Remembering Air India Flight 182 with Optimism

What a moronic thing to say. Of course the bombing of Air India 182 compares to the WTC attacks on Sept 11 2001. Are you saying the friends and family members of the victims didn't lose anything comparable? Are you saying the bombing had no comparable impact on Canadian life? That the previous largest aircraft-related mass death due to terrorism is nothing at all like the current largest aircraft-related mass death due to terrorism? How many hundred more people should have had to die for you to decide the two are comparable?

This isn't generally how I respond to blog posts, but Chris you are a fucking idiot.

"while they may not compare, comparisons can certainly be drawn up."

Genius.

Wow. That first paragraph has got to be the most insensitive things I have ever read. Have you seen the Air India 182 documentary? I'm betting you haven't. I'm also betting that you were at an age in 1985 when events did not impact you as much as the age you were in 2001. I saw Air India 182 at Hot Docs and I challenge you to belittle the families of the victims by repeating your first paragraph to them personally.

Could you explain to us exactly what it is in your mind that makes the Air India bombing a less worthy "reflection"?

Oops. I meant *one of* of the most insensitive things I have ever read.

Sorry - what does the AI Flight 182 tragedy have to do with Toronto?? I watched the new doc last night - I'm still at a loss to decide who should be more embarrassed by the catastrophe - CSIS/the RCMP/the CANADIAN GOVERNMENT? That it remains unresolved (from the aspect of successful prosecution) is a national disgrace and shameful.

Every time I think about this it either makes me cry or makes my blood boil. Any of my family members could have easily been on that flight.

I don't think people should get upset about the first paragraph. It doesn't compare in a number of ways. I applaud the author for trying to understand this tragedy; in many ways, I struggle to accept it without succumbing to hatred or anger.

It's hard to contemplate and understand the suffering of other people. The author here has tried. That's an important thing for people who feel more personally connected to it like myself. Given that back in 85 most people saw this as an Indian tragedy, it's comforting to see that that isn't any longer the case.

@alx: Many of the victims and their families were from Toronto and the GTA.
@minou, @rex: I concur - some of the people affected lost their entire families - not just one member of their family - but their ENTIRE family - all their children and their husband or wife. This was a tragedy that cannot compare to any other tragedy. But if we must compare, 9/11 is appropriate. Like 9/11; strangers were targetted, involves planes, and those responsible have not (for the most part) been held accountable. However, unlike 9/11, it did not spark a war, and has been largely forgotten. Not being aware during the tragedy is not an excuse to minimize it - imagine if everyone who was not alive or aware if world war ll minimized the horrors of the holocaust, or the internment of the Japanese and Ukrainians during the wars. In time these events will be forgotten. We need to prevent tragedies - not forget them. Lest we forget people, Lest we forget.

Mukul Paliwal was in grade 9 with me. I didn't know him very well, but his locker was across from mine. He, his mother and sister died on flight 182 and his father was absolutely shattered by the event.

I lost close friends and acquaintances due to this tragedy, as did many others I know. And it pains me as much as 9/11. Any loss of life due to the misguided behavior of others is an equal and uncomparable tragedy.

@johnnylee. MOST of the victims were from Toronto (apparently) but that is not the issue - TO was merely a transit point - the flight, and the planning of the attack originated in Vancouver, a more appropriate location for any memorial, surely.

There's a line in there "Canadian treatment of this part of our history" that rings true, example: a good chunk of this blog going on about 9/11- this is about a tragedy that pre-dates New York's plane problems by about 15 years.

Implying that this is somehow less of a tragedy really takes away from what's a nice write up on the memorial.

I wanted to wait a bit before responding to this discussion, for reasons that are probably obvious.

I don't feel differently from most of the commentary here, although there has been stuff said that's made me think further in directions I hadn't yet.

I said they don't compare to mean they don't equate, and in raw numbers, they don't. The statement (johnnylee) that suffering cannot be so easily quantified, comparing the loss of whole families vs individuals out of families was valid and overlooked by myself.

I was also referring to NYC/USA's intense personalization of 9/11 vs Canadians' apparent disconnect and even apathy about Flight 182. While I'm very glad we didn't start a campaign of endless global warfare as a "response", I did find it troubling how much people here have just treated this as something that happened to "someone else".

With that in mind, I'm very happy about the posted discussion here, because most of it not only talked about but demonstrated passionate feelings opposite to that disconnect and apathy - rude reply included.

Correction to Craig's post - Mukul Paliwal was a friend of mine, and he was travelling alone on the flight.. his mom, sister, brother and father were not flying with him. His father however died a couple of years later on the exact same date, while continuing to fight to apprehend those responsible.