Though for 12 years the United States has been fighting a global “War on Terror,” the senseless bombings at the Boston Marathon make it clear that terror has yet to be defeated. The attack struck close to home; it was shocking, infuriating and tragic.

This tragedy shows through the emotions it evokes, a side of the “War on Terror” most Americans have not experienced since 9/11, and it is a reminder of the reality of violence.

On Tuesday, President Barack Obama described the bombing as an “act of terrorism.” As the New York Times pointed out in an article on Tuesday, the attack ended “more than a decade in which the United States experienced strikingly few terrorist attacks.” Over the course of the last decade, 33 Americans have been killed by terrorist attacks within the United States, including at the Boston Marathon.

These are 33 lives which can never be brought back, 33 grieving families and networks of friends. For those who have connections to Boston or to any of the victims, the bombings on Monday brought about the sorrow that is felt when heinous attacks such as these are carried out against those we love.

It is this sense of loss and its accompanying confusion and anger which led the American people to support the “War on Terror.” The goal of this ongoing conflict is to put an end to terrorism, yet the recent bombings make it is clear that Americans are still at risk.

Those on the scene in Boston witnessed the horror of this war firsthand; they heard the explosions, felt the shrapnel. It is the first bomb to kill somebody within the United States since 2004. The other side of the “War on Terror” has seen many more deadly attacks. According to OWNI, the French media website partnered with WikiLeaks, the conflicts carried out in Iraq and Afghanistan have resulted in estimations of at least 227,000 deaths, “this includes 116,657 civilians (51 percent) between 76  – 108,000 insurgents or Taliban Islamists (34 to 36 percent), 25,297 Iraqi and Afghan soldiers (11 percent), and 8,975 American, British, and other coalition forces (3.9 percent).” Additionally, a 2011 Brown University study, which can be read at costofwar.org, estimates that “200,000 civilians have been killed as a result of the fighting at the hands of all parties to the conflict, and more will die in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan as the violence continues.”

American bombs explode every single day in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and Yemen, many times killing innocent civilians. One week before the Boston Marathon bombing, a NATO airstrike in Afghanistan killed 11 civilians, 10 of whom were children. These people are just as shocked, infuriated and traumatized as the victims in Boston.

The American people have remained almost completely isolated from the horrifyingly violent battlefields of the “War on Terror.” The average American may be aware of arbitrary casualty numbers or may have seen an image of a blood-stained street, but they are detached from the reality of the situation. The pain that is felt by those affected by the Boston bombings, is also felt by those affected by the “collateral damage” left behind in American military strikes.

The senseless bombings at the Boston Marathon shattered countless lives and turned an overwhelmingly positive event into a nightmare. There is no justification for such grotesque acts, no matter where such violence occurs and no matter who is responsible.

The selfless acts of courage and compassion witnessed since the moment the bombs in Boston detonated have displayed the overwhelmingly positive potential of the human spirit. It is this same compassion and selflessness that must be used to counter the outlooks that breed these senseless acts of violence.

An explosion among a crowd of people is a horrific experience no matter where it occurs. A terrorist attack should not be used to justify acts of terror against others. The media is intently focused on suspects; people are looking for someone to blame. As President Obama said, those responsible for the bombings will feel the “full weight of justice.”

The American people are looking for an answer to who carried out this plot so that they can be brought to justice. It is pretty clear who the victims in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen have to blame for their losses. Acts of violence cannot be countered with more violence; it will only breed the grief felt in Boston and the anger that inspires these horrific attacks.

Jason Roche is a Collegian columnist and can be reached at [email protected].