Food for Thought

I was excited when the subject of the Kent State Massacre came up in one of my other classes yesterday afternoon. I learned quite a bit about this event in my last year of high school and I though I would post a remarkable photo from the day of the shooting. 

http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2009/05/filo.html

I'm sure that a numerous amount of people have already seen this photograph at some point in their lives, but it is vital to be aware of what is going on in the photographs that are so iconic for the United States today. The link that I posted explains who is in featured in the photograph and what was happening in-order for this moment to be captured. When you know the details of what is happening in this photograph it truly puts the Kent State Massacre into perspective and shows how unnecessary the shootings that occurred on that day were. I think we often times forget that the subjects of historically renown photos (such as the one that I posted or even those from the Holocaust) are REAL people, and due to the events that transpired before the photos were taken are no longer alive. I have an incredibly hard time wrapping my head around the fact that these pictures are the last taken of those who have fallen from the hand of another human being. It is mind-boggling what a simple photograph can capture and I think it is extremely important that we always remember that. 

It just makes me think that the government seems to utilize their access to violence in the midst of situations when it is not always necessary... Food for thought.