The following is from an editorial that appeared in the San Jose Mercury News:
While it remains too early to fully place blame for Monday's sinister bomb attack at the Boston Marathon, it is abundantly clear that this was an act of terror against the United States.
At last count there were three dead and more than 170 injured. A number of the injured suffered amputation of limbs.
The bomb did not inflict the kind carnage that occurred during 9/11, but it does serve as a painful reminder of that day.
Placing a bomb at a public event such as the marathon usually is designed to serve two purposes: first to do maximum damage and second to scare the victims into changing their lifestyle. The result makes people feel unsafe and unprotected.
The chill created by the notion of dead children and severed body parts strewed about the streets of Boston has done that.
But Americans should not be cowed. As it did after 9/11 and the Oklahoma City bombing, the nation will survive and carry on. The FBI is leading the investigation. It has the kind of resources needed to conduct such an investigation. Leads could stretch halfway around the world.
It was two explosions that rocked the finish-line area at Monday's marathon. It's one of America's most iconic sporting events, which may explain why it was the target.
The initial response by authorities to the crisis was responsible. Air traffic at Boston's Logan Airport was halted and police closed sections of the city.
President Barack Obama was right to remind the nation not to jump to specific conclusions about who may have been responsible for this act. It may take a while, but we have every confidence that the FBI will pursue the bomber or bombers and they will be punished. Our hearts and prayers go out to the blast's victims and their families.