Just the picture of this 27-year-old woman dying on the ground sent me into the waiting arms of the horrors, heartbreak and rage. Rage at the slimy little shit who aimed his weapon at Neda Agha Soltani as she was standing next to her father and pulled the trigger. Heartbreak at all she and her father and those around her went through as life left her body. I have a working knowledge of what it is like to be on the ground bleeding profusely after being shot, death pulling me away from the world. The horrors have been in nightmares, difficulty sleeping , moments when my eyes fill with tears that sometimes spill down my cheeks.

Being a father I can’t and won’t imagine what her father went through experiencing his daughter being shot to death. Experiences like that are out of the reach of words, despite the efforts of this and other pens.

The fact the Iranian government and others turn an encouraging eye on these things is physically, morally and spiritually revolting. This hideous disregard for human life, matched, by the way, by the likes of Dick Cheney and his ilk, the ability to be murderous, is not confined or defined by the borders of any country.

This is a short piece for this blog. It is hard to see through tears and type through the pain. What I can say is please remember to live and remember to love. Remember kindness and compassion. In love lives real power, real strength. For the few who experience the idea of being loving and kind as weakness, ask yourself, why is it so hard for you to do?

Please, be loving, it is the only way out of this.

Rest in peace, Neda Agha Soltani.