Boston Bombing aftermath, any similarity to the Lincoln assassination aftermath?

[KateH.]

If Debate Club has taught me anything, I should explain my opinions. Let me explain what I meant before. I wasn't referring to the Boston Bombers. I was referring to the case of Booth. Both acts were horrible and caused grief and pain. I am not saying that we forgive the Boston Bombers. Murder with no cause is inexcusable. We can only hope that the tragedy will bring people together and we can stop the hate with love. No, I am not saying that Gene was hating on anyone. He makes a very valid point. I'm just raising another point on the subject of Booth (not the Boston Bombers).

In the case of Booth, it's hard to compare him to the Boston Bombers because the time was so different. America was divided in half. There was no unification. There was North and South and both had different ways of life. Booth thought that he was going to be a patriot for the South, his country, his American. I'm not saying that assassinating President Lincoln was not wrong. It was very wrong. However, in order to understand the workings of Booth's mind, we have to look with somewhat of an unbiased eye and not just toss him aside as a bloodthirsty killer.

We all make mistakes. Some mistakes are just worse than others. To understand why a man who had everything going for him would commit the first presidential assassination, we have to somewhat forgive the mind of that man and look deeper into his thoughts and life. I'm not saying that we excuse his error. However, we have to not focus so much on it. To do that, we have to accept it and learn to forgive that lost soul.

John Wilkes Booth wasn't always an assassin. He had many friends and admirers, his sister loved him, and he was a popular actor. The name John Wilkes Booth was once renowned. To understand what drove him down such a dark path, we need to realize that he wasn't always an assassin. I believe it takes some forgiveness to accept that he did have good qualities too.