Keith J. Roland in his letter ("Boston bombings lack any reason," April 23) was unhappy with authorities and the media asking the question "Why?" with respect to the bombings at the Boston Marathon.
In his outrage, he berates President Obama for wanting "to know why the bombers did what they did." In one sentence he claims "there is no 'why'" while in another he states, to "care why suggests there may be a legitimate reason justifying the act, and that we cannot condemn it until we understand the motivation of the terrorists."
However, the question "why" is imprinted so heavily on our brains that it is extremely difficult not to ask, not to seek reasons for behavior, especially antisocial behavior. It is necessary to understand the motivation of behavior so that, in some cases, such behavior can be prevented from occurring or from being repeated.
Sadly, Mr. Roland is not alone in seeking swift retribution regardless of the Constitution. State Sen. Greg Ball, as highlighted in Casey Seiler's column ("Baseball bat and Greg Ball," April 28), would support "torture" applied to "a suspect who (had) not yet even appeared before a judge."
Further, Senator Ball had suggested the surviving brother should have been denied the rights and privileges of citizens; Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is a citizen. To deny him his rights would put us in the same class as the terrorists these two are abjuring.
Norman Greenfeld
Albany