A Dark Tale of 49 Murdered By Hate, Revisited
originally published here on July 12, 2016
The story of the slaughter of 49 partiers at Pulse has been told many times. By a thousand journos and bloggers. Orlando and her people are still coming to grips with what happened there in the early morning hours of June 12th; all the more so today as we're exactly one month from this sad and shocking spectacle. The memorials still attract many people--from around Central Florida and all over the planet--on a daily basis.
Like so many of us with deep roots in this marvelous city, I've read a lot of the coverage. Every media outlet in the country has been all over this story, and they should. Because I worked part time in radio news way back in the day, I've always enjoyed critiquing the media and I must say that I think so many around here have done great work on this heart breakingly-awful story. WKMG, our local CBS affiliate is among them. I've been a loyal viewer for many years and think they're showing the rest of us how it's done.
The Orlando Sentinel has never shone more brightly. I say that as one who's been reading their work for half a century; we go back to when The Sentinel landed in the driveway every morning and The Evening Sentinel-Star was tossed into the same spot mid-afternoon each week day. It was a welcome thing, back in the '60s and '70s, to have a paper to peruse after dinner.
Today's article in The Sentinel about how our city and its people are doing a month after the tragedy is first-rate. To catch that, follow this link.
When I think about Pulse, I eschew thoughts of hate, trauma and death and instead focus the good times had with musical colleagues back in the '90s when the club that would later become Pulse under the new owners was a well-known Italian eatery. Dante's served up good Italian fare and liberal helpings of local music. Good times. If any of us could have had just a moment's premonition of about what would one day happen in that place, it would have been world-altering.
In a previous blog posting here I said that if the shooter's goal was to make our city cower in terror or turn on one another, he failed miserably. This community has never been more united. The messengers of hate who tried to kick Orlando when she was down have learned that this community thinks they're really sick. Yeah, I'm speaking to you, Prosecutor Ken Lewis. Sorry, make that former-prosecutor Ken Lewis. Fits my concept of justice precisely.
We're remembering and celebrating our brothers, sisters, children and friends who didn't make it out alive. Praying for the survivors and doing what a community can do, in a material way, to help them move forward with their recoveries and their lives.
Watching that unfold is greatly consoling. Chronicling it for this community and the world is exemplary. As I take in the many stories carried by our local TV stations and The Sentinel 30 days down the road, I'm reminded of one more reason that Central Florida is an excellent place to live, thrive and survive, filled with many caring and generous people. The slogan #OrlandoStrong is not merely a feel-good phrase, it's a statement that sums up well the true character of this community.
"Bulldog Ben" Basile
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