On this anniversary of the birth of Martin L. King, Jr., I am reminded of how oblivious I have been to the monumental events which have taken place in my own lifetime. I was in school during Rev. King's civil rights activiites, yet I paid no attention at the time. I hear his sermons now and feel deprived that I have not really heard them until now. How would it have changed me had I been listening back then?
Has television helped us know more about our world? The civil rights marches, Viet Nam terrors, protests and riots have all been served up to us in our living rooms when we were younger. What did we learn from those images? Now we see gruesome execution scenes captured on cell phones and broadcast worldwide. How does that afffect you?
I have never been in a fistfight. The last one that I witnessed firsthand was when I was in junior high school. I found it revolting. I have never shot anyone or been shot or even threatened with a gun. But I have been virtually exposed to horrific violence. And that's just watching the news. I think that virtual violence is going to prove to be detrimental to us Westerners. If we witnessed firsthand the violence we see on TV, would it have the effect of compelling us to take action? When you can't just click the remote to make it go away, does violence have a sobering effect? Does virtual violence numb us to real violence? Is it all a computer game? Is it Wag the Dog?
I wonder if the "deciders" who have gotten us into this war in Iraq are as naive as I am about violence. How have they been affected by virtual violence? How real is this war to them? I wonder.
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6 comments:
Great pix. Did you see the photo album I put up of mine? It was such fun out taking them! They even used several throuhout the night on Channel 11 weather and then on the news! I love the ice combs!!! Phyllis
Remember when the news didn't show the dead bodies? The first real bodies I ever saw on film were in those driver's ed movies we had to watch. Blood on the Highway! I'd seen plenty of movie violence and been, I think, pretty much uneffected by it. The real deaths shown in those movies were completely different to me.
That was then. I still enjoy the escapism and excitement of some fictional violence. However, movie violence continues to escalate to really insane levels. The news is following (or leading?) the same trend. And I find myself pretty much uneffected by the daily deaths shown on the evening news. I'm appalled on an intellectual level, but totally cold about it emotionally; compared to how I felt about seeing the bodies of those reckless teenagers in the driver's ed films.
Even non-war and crime stories are more voyeristic and sensationalized. We sat around holding our collective breath wondering if we will get to/have to see the footage of the death of the Crocodile Hunter. Whenever Donald Trump fires a beauty contestant we get to hear and sometimes see all the selacious details. It goes on and on and on.
I think you make a really good point. I can remember the Gulf War and how it was televised. We sat glued to the TV. Now, we see seens in the middle east and just flip through the channels. We have not a clue. And I think that makes us very dangerous.
I don't watch news on television. Occasionally I will watch an editorial type show, but there are only two of those that I can stomach. I can't stand television news. It is so sensationalized, and coming from a journalistic background, it makes me sick.
The scenes of death and horror that are depicted on the news are not real to us. How can they be? Newscasters follow a story about dead marines with one question the father of Anna Nicole's baby. What's real about that? How are we supposed to feel?
I will never forget my first year of employment after college. I was just a young pup working at the local newspaper. I lived in southeast Oklahoma where the roads are narrow and the drivers are drunk and stupid. In that one year, I personally saw seven dead bodies on the side of the road and I heard the screams of victims trapped inside cars that had been sheared in two. That was real.
Thanks for your comments. I have lived such a sheltered life. I watched my Dad take his last breath, but that was peaceful not violent. One day violence will come to my door. How will I respond?
I am too well acquainted with violence. Last summer I was beat up by a fresh air kid at camp. I try to avoid even the suggestion of it, it has been in my life too much. Maybe I'll explore this further in another post.
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