The story of the young couple in this photograph merits a moment of attention. According to an interview with NBC’s Today Show, the woman on the street, Alex Thomas, was pushed by Vancouver, British Columbia, riot police to the ground, where she apparently started to panic until her boyfriend, Scott Jones, kissed her to calm her down.
I don’t know the details of their involvement, if any, in the Vancouver hockey riots, which are nothing new (I commented on L.A.’s 2009 sports-related riots here and proper sportsmanship here), and I am disgusted by the looting and attacks on private property. The photograph, apparently captured inadvertently by photographer Richard Lam, is fitting for our troubled times. Whether the Canadian government’s use of force was appropriate in this instance, this young couple’s kiss amid the riots is a bright spot in dark and dangerous days. With the United States and the West in uncharted territory on the brink of economic collapse, with total government control a real and imminent possibility, and engaged in an undeclared war of total destruction with jihadist barbarians, we should take a cue from these Canadian youths and indulge in a kiss as often as possible. Ms. Thomas describes the image as “beautiful” and she’s right. More than ever, we should live in (not to be confused with for) the moment and make love, with vigor and passion for life, selfishly acting to be happy here on earth. We should hold close those we value, as Mr. Jones did when he “seized the day”, and kissed, and calmed, his girlfriend.
In these difficult times, we ought to “seize the day” and argue for reason and fight for our lives. Too many, perhaps most, accept what’s wrong with the world or, worse, reject it yet stand by and do nothing. But fighting is not the ultimate purpose in life. This kiss reminds us what is.