In a timely and moving statement on his Facebook page, Patton Oswalt posted his thoughts about the Boston Marathon tragedy with a reminder that good always conquers evil. He recalls his reaction to 9/11, saying that, at that point, he had had it with humanity.
“But I was wrong,” he continued. “I don’t know what’s going to be revealed to be behind all of this mayhem. One human insect or a poisonous mass of broken sociopaths. But here’s what I DO know. If it’s one person or a HUNDRED people, that number is not even a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a percent of the population on this planet.”
He refers to the heroes who ran towards the destruction instead of away from it, willing to do whatever it took to lend a helping hand. Though he doesn’t mention them, this includes the marathon participants who continued running to MGH to donate blood after the race. This includes anyone who has given blood or volunteered in the aftermath; whoever committed this heinous act, there are countless more lending assistance and working to put this city back together. Oswalt honored them with his poignant comments.
“This is a giant planet and we’re lucky to live on it,” he said, “but there are prices and penalties incurred for the daily miracle of existence. One of them is, every once in awhile, the wiring of a tiny sliver of the species gets snarled and they’re pointed towards darkness. But the vast majority stands against that darkness and, like white blood cells attacking a virus, they dilute and weaken and eventually wash away the evil doers and, more importantly, the damage they wreak. This is beyond religion or creed or nation. We would not be here if humanity were inherently evil.”
While many celebrities have offered their condolences for the city of Boston over Twitter, in monologues, or in public statements, Oswalt reached out to the global community with his remarks. He reminded the citizens of the world that without kindness and the existence of those willing to help in times of need, humanity would have swallowed itself whole already.
“So when you spot violence, or bigotry, or intolerance or fear or just garden-variety misogyny, hatred or ignorance,” he concluded,” just look it in the eye and think, ‘The good outnumber you, and we always will.’”
Following a tragedy like the one that occurred on Monday, it’s important to keep thoughts like these at the forefront. Oswalt’s message has spread like wildfire across the internet; celebrity or not, he sent a message that could reach everyone, not just Bostonians and Americans. The Boston Marathon is an international event, and his statement has an internationally significant meaning. Events like these occur all over the world on a daily basis, but the perpetrators will always be outnumbered by the amount of people willing to overcome and help each other.
Oswalt’s statement in its entirety can be found on his Facebook page.
