For fuck's sake, enough with the fear-mongering. I know that "objective journalism" is sitting at a table, playing poker along with a unicorn, Santa and the Tooth-fairy in the Fairyland Casino, but how low can you sink? I'll quote here an article title (leaving it in Polish as the stupidity is more palpable that way):
Atomic demon? Seriously? Cool story bro. While scrolling through the piece I really hoped to find some photos of Godzilla or other rubber monster/alien robot standing jollily smack in the middle of Tōkyō, munching on a truck. Evangelion in the background. Sadly there was nothing of the like there, only liveblogged one-line summaries from various press agencies/other sites. No broad context, no scientific details. Just stuff written, or rather poorly translated for the most part, by shmos who don't get paid to check the facts they "write" about.
Elswhere I've read stuff like "Tōkyō is situated north of Fukushima." and was forced to cringe. I don't expect everyone to know Japan's geography, but it doesn't take an IQ worthy of MENSA to check the facts on a fucking map. Or all the comparisons to Chernobyl. Extremely adequate indeed, 'coz the technology behindconstruction damage control of malfunctioning nuclear reactors didn't move an inch in the last 24-25 years. Yeah, right. But the presses gotta keep rolling, each click on an article, no matter how absurd its title or how meritless the content, still generates revenue from ads (even if they're blocked in the browser) on the news site. If it isn't authored by someone with a Ph.D in nuclear physics or engineering of nuclear power plants don't read it. Four times out of five it'll be a waste of time. Same goes for firsthand relations ,the kind about which Mo. wrote in her post (the one about the article by B.). No amount of words can convey what happens to a person during such an event. Not even when the words are for the most part flowery, overly dramatic adjectives. Nor can tearjearking photos or videos explain it. People are too desensitized by the constant stream of atrocities in the media for that - consider the winners of World Press Photo in the last decade. Each year there had to be some photo akin in theme to an African child on the verge of starvation. Preferably a sexually abused amputee orphan girl using an Ak-47 as a crutch. Suffering from AIDS to boot.
Another thing are the reactions on social networks. All that "Pray for Japan" crap re-posted ad nauseam. As if pleading to an imaginary entity could change anything. Oh, I'm sorry - it makes the praying person feel good about him/herself. The recipient remains oblivious and has to deal with reality. Or inquiries whether the Polish Humanitarian Organization is recruiting volunteers. Inquiries by people who (for the most part, as there are exceptions to every rule) on the daily basis wouldn't give a fuck about their fellow man if he collapsed on the tram - because he stank. By people who don't have any search and rescue training whatsoever, can barely remember their CPR basics and the only asset of whom is knowledge of Japanese. But the thing about catastrophes is that they're in some way seminal events. And everybody wants to be a part of those. Part of the change. Just to be able to say "I was there." They didn't want me there, I wasn't of any use to them, but hey, who cares?
One last thought about the news - until the quake/tsunami hit Japan, Libya was where it was at. Now nobody gives a fuck. Page three, bottom column. Headlines occupied by the nuclear holocaust (pending). Any bets on where he hype will be next week?
"Po trzecim wybuchu w Fukushimie. Świat patrzy jak Japonia walczy z atomowym demonem."
Elswhere I've read stuff like "Tōkyō is situated north of Fukushima." and was forced to cringe. I don't expect everyone to know Japan's geography, but it doesn't take an IQ worthy of MENSA to check the facts on a fucking map. Or all the comparisons to Chernobyl. Extremely adequate indeed, 'coz the technology behind
Another thing are the reactions on social networks. All that "Pray for Japan" crap re-posted ad nauseam. As if pleading to an imaginary entity could change anything. Oh, I'm sorry - it makes the praying person feel good about him/herself. The recipient remains oblivious and has to deal with reality. Or inquiries whether the Polish Humanitarian Organization is recruiting volunteers. Inquiries by people who (for the most part, as there are exceptions to every rule) on the daily basis wouldn't give a fuck about their fellow man if he collapsed on the tram - because he stank. By people who don't have any search and rescue training whatsoever, can barely remember their CPR basics and the only asset of whom is knowledge of Japanese. But the thing about catastrophes is that they're in some way seminal events. And everybody wants to be a part of those. Part of the change. Just to be able to say "I was there." They didn't want me there, I wasn't of any use to them, but hey, who cares?
One last thought about the news - until the quake/tsunami hit Japan, Libya was where it was at. Now nobody gives a fuck. Page three, bottom column. Headlines occupied by the nuclear holocaust (pending). Any bets on where he hype will be next week?
Obśmiałam się wczoraj z Mużem jak fretka czytając ten wpis :D.
ReplyDeleteNa dole powinien znajdować się przycisk:
"Roześlij do oszołomów w celach cynizująco-edukacyjnych".
Niezaleznie od calosci wpisu, z ktorym generalnei nei zamierzam polemizowac, bo sie z nim zgadzam (ale media to byly hieny), a jak usinie udowadnialam komus w Pozku (nie pamietam, komu O_#), system jest stworzony tak, zeby ludzie zywili swoje niskie, zwierzece instynkta bardziej, niz te wysoie- nie zgadzam sie ze stwierdzeniem, ze modly jakiekolwiek maja sluzyc tylko i wylacznie polepszeniu wlasnego samopoczucia. Jesli ktos faktycznie wierzy- to dla niego ma to ogromne znaczenie, nie tylko w kontekscie krochmalenia swojego sumienia :) Jasne, ze zyjace ofiary tsunami potrzebuja teraz konkretnej pomocy, jedzenia, wody, dachu nad glowa, medykamentow...Ale to, ze ludzie nie wiedza o czyjejs szczerej, wspolczujacej mysli, nie znaczy, ze mysl ta jest bez znaczenia. To jest wlasnie jeden z tych instynktow wyzszych :)
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