My thoughts back then on the Station Fire

My thoughts back then on the tragic Station Fire: Being a fan of horror fiction, I was reminded of the ghastly prom night apocalypse scene in " Carrie " , the Stephen King movie, when I watched the on the scene news coverage of the West Warwick nightclub holocaust. My nephew, Ricky, lives right across from the " The Station " . After making a few anxious calls, I learned that none of my extended family - the younger ones are most likely to frequent seedy or classy nightclubs - were unlucky enough to be there. To die a horrible death because you just love a decadent heavy metal band. Likely last thoughts of a victim in the burning, screaming , stinking darkness : visions of Hell , last agonies fading to black nothingness or eternal peace..... Father ! Mother ! Oh God, oh God ! .... I was living.... now I am dead ! But " Carrie " was about revenge. And every good horror story has something to say about GOOD and EVIL. We look for villains here in " The Station " . But even the owner wipes bitter tears. Governor Carcieri got it right : the fire that has taken nearly 100 lives was a TRAGEDY that should not have happened. Our litigious society has forgotten the very meaning of TRAGEDY. It prefers to obsess foolishly on CRIME and PUNISHMENT. No laws or punishment will cure the human race of pure stupidity. And numerous bad judgments culminate in an out of control event - like an earthquake or volcano. No moralizing judge will ever be able to put the Absurd on trial. Forget about those ridiculous grief counselors. Just BE THERE for people who grieve. West Warwick is an old mill town, still haunted by the ghosts of the New England Industrial Revolution. Now and then a friend of mine - often in late October - visit one of our favorite West Warwick pubs : " Ronnie's Last Chance Saloon " . Until the fire at " The Station " the only hot topic in blue collar West Warwick was whether or not to build a casino. A new casino should greet its visitors with a statue of the Greek goddess - Chance . A real bitch ! at 10:12 PM