IN TIME OF TRAGEDY, THE EMOTIONS AND SUFFERING TEND TO BE UNIVERSAL

By the time you read this, it is very likely that more than 100 Russian submarine crewmen will have been declared dead, lost in the depths of the Barents Sea following an explosion of some kind. Better news, of course, would be a successful rescue attempt, but those efforts appeared dim Thursday.

There are, of course, tragedies everywhere in our world every day. But this one has grabbed the attention of most everyone who has access to news.

Why?

Because it is a human drama with which all of us can in some way connect. As parents, mothers and fathers everywhere share the anxiety and grief of the families of the men in the stricken sub. And because it is a contest between unexplained calamity and the human ability to overcome even the most desperate situations. And because there is the thought that we will not give up on those Russian sailors until we know for sure that their fate was sealed long before any rescue efforts were made.

In tragedy, we come together in ways that demonstrate how we are all alike around the globe. American tears in this disaster are just as salty as those in Russia or anywhere else.