Goin' Down To The Crossroads

The first thing that struck me was the headline: Eight People Injured During Stabbing Attack At Minnesota Mall. The second thing that gave me pause was the picture of the crowd outside that mall. All eyes were turned toward Crossroads Center. Here is what my mind did: "Hey, there was a Crossroads shopping center in Boulder when you grew up. I wonder if there is any connection?" The cluster of retail outlets that used to be called "Crossroads" is now called "Twenty-Ninth Street," but there is still a mall at the intersection of 28th Street and Canyon Boulevard. All those interested in getting their shopping mojo on will head to this intersection. It would seem that this naming convention, Crossroads, is prevalent across these United States. That is where commerce takes place, after all.
From Minnesota to Texas, from North Carolina to right here in sunny California, people flock to places where you can get a muffin and a new pair of jeans. When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping. Which may be why bad guys find such a target-rich environment when they decide they want to wreak havoc. Havoc has been wreaked not just in St. Cloud Minnesota this summer, but two people were attacked and killed at a mall in Taunton, Massachusetts. Keeping in mind that this is still months before Black Friday, when such mayhem seems much more likely, if not encouraged.
The line between havoc and terrorism is a fine one, and it would only take a phone call or an email to make the mess in Minnesota into an international incident. Stabbing at the heart of the darkness known as capitalism seems like a pretty terrorific idea, but slicing and hacking your way through a crowd seems so inconsequential in comparison to assault rifles and plastic explosives. It's only a matter of time before ISIS figures out how to unleash a zombie horde on a Crossroads near you. That's when we're going to all wish we were carrying our machetes. Thank goodness I live in an open machete carry state. It comes in handy when I feel like sharing my muffin.