Why Are We Surprised?

There was an awful story on the news yesterday about a 61-year-old woman who was raped and beaten unconscious while visiting her mother’s gravesite at Toronto cemetery.

People are outraged and disgusted.

I agree with the feelings. What I don’t understand is people’s surprise and outrage that it should happen at a cemetery.

Let me clarify.

A cemetery is a place of peace, as one woman said. It’s bad enough losing your loved one, but then to be attacked while reflecting on your loss and remembering that person is disgusting.

But why are people surprised a lowlife, who obviously doesn’t care about people, would attack a woman in a place where no one is around.

People are using normal, sane judgments on a person who is neither normal nor sane.

What is obvious to us is not obvious to a person who could rape and beat someone unconscious.

We are learning today that 10 months ago, a homeless elderly man was beaten to death in the same cemetery.

I don’t remember hearing much about this.

Are people also outraged and angry an old man was beaten in a place of peace?

Apparently not.

I feel sickened by the story of the woman who remains in hospital and I hope her physical and emotional health recovers quickly. I do not wish to make light of her suffering as I can’t imagine what she is going through.

However, I think we need to feel disgusted, saddened and angry by every story that shows people can do completely terrible things to each other.