Please don't indulge in godless modern paganism and set up homely, self-indulgent makeshift memorials with cheap flowers and teddy bears. Don't hold hands and sing bad pop songs. Go to church. That's what it's for. For centuries, people smarter than you and with more finely honed aesthetics worked on rituals that actually do what they're supposed to do. ”
Huh? I feel like I've been whiplashed. Rod Dreher starts out offering the sensible analysis that words of comfort are the only sensible response to this tragedy. Then, he suddenly jerks 180 degrees and quotes Kathy Shaidle criticizing the mourners for how they choose to mourn. Do it the right way. Do it her way. Conform to her choice of setting, of music, of ritual. Otherwise, you're just not very smart, you're stupid, you're shallow, you're lazy. Do it her way or it won't work. You won't feel any better.
Rod Dreher gently puts his arm around your shoulder to comfort you, then just as he wins your confidence, he gives you the hard sell for his brand of religious snake oil. And it's a hard sell. I would understand if someone with family or friends impacted by this tragedy might feel like Rod Dreher just punched him in the stomach. Rod Dreher himself should go to church and say his prayers and not try to tell mourners how to grieve.
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The first useful suggestion I've read following this tragedy comes courtesy of the UK's The Register. It suggests how a campus-wide warning could have been issued. I hope other universities, cities, etc., take notice.
"Mobile phones are capable of receiving emergency messages if they're within a specific geographical area - irrespective of the type of phone, and without the administrators needing to keep track of everyone's phone number. It's called 'cell broadcast' and it's a 3GPP/3GPP2 and IS95CDMA specification. So it works on four of the five major US networks: Cingular, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint."
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