It's a rare thing in Bermuda to see triumph and tragedy occur within hours of each other.

But yesterday was one of those days. Bermuda qualified in glorious style for the cricket World Cup, having overcome low expectations and some internal strife to reach what may be the pinnacle of sports for this small island.

At the same time, Bermuda residents, in common with much of the rest of the world, were glued to their televisions and computers after yesterday's horrific terrorist attacks in London.

These two events may seem to have little in common at first glance, and it may even seem trite to tie them together.

But the qualities and skills that sport ? and especially cricket ? demands of its participants are the same qualities that terrorists attempt to destroy.

Teamwork, national pride, fair play and the very normalcy that sport symbolises are the results of stable and civil societies.

Countries and societies divided by racial and religious hatred fail to produce great teams; the divisions are too wide and the need to survive overtakes the pleasures of peaceful competition.

It is no small irony that the ICC Trophy tournament that Bermuda has ridden to the World Cup is taking part in Ireland, an island that is struggling, and largely succeeding, in overcoming its own deep religious divisions and has, more importantly, largely abandoned terrorism as a means to an end.

And it is no accident that a more peaceful Ireland has formed a team from both sides of the border to compete so successfully in this tournament.

That should give hope to Bermuda that it too can continue on its road to maintaining racial and social harmony. The success of the cricket team has and will help to bring Bermudians together, and that's all to the good.

That has to be contrasted with the bombings in London. Assuming that they were executed by al Qaeda, or an affiliated group, they demonstrate what happens when people turn their backs on negotiations and peaceful efforts to affect change.

Instead, it is their aim to disrupt and ultimately destroy civil societies which operate under the rule of law to the point where they can no longer function and are forced to surrender to militants.

There is not the room here to go into why Islamic fundamentalists have opted for terror to right the wrongs they perceive in the Middle East and in the West, but regardless of the rights and wrongs of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or even the invasion of Iraq, the terrorists who have chosen to declare war on the values and principles that underpin modern democracies and civil society must be resisted.

That's because the alternative is stark. Failure to resist will open the way to instability, intolerance and anarchy. Anyone with a grievance of any kind will feel justified in taking up arms against a perceived oppressor.

In doing so, the pleasures derived from peaceful pursuits, be they going to work without fear, enjoying a night out or joining in the celebrations derived from qualifying for the cricket World Cup will be lost. It is too high a price to pay.