Tragedy, But...
A couple quick comments about this horrific Cho Seung-Hui story from Virginia Tech...
First of all, it is just horrible beyond belief that it happened. It saddens me to the core of my being, and I grieve so for the victims, and the families and friends left behind.
With that said, I think this is an unfortunate sign of the times that this monster's actions are spread throughout the media, everywhere you look. It frustrates me, (and others, I know), how much energy the media spends on covering the shocking, the terrible, the horrible news, and how relatively little effort they put into covering the positive, uplifting, inspiring ones. Is that a reflection on the quantity of such news there is of each end of the spectrum? Or is it just a reflection on the depths to which the media will stoop, nay, debase themselves, to sell a story? I suspect the latter, but perhaps it's a little of both. Of course one has to wonder as to the effect of near glamorizing the perpetrators of all these atrocities. It's like a child who doesn't get the attention/affection he craves by being a good boy, so instead lashes out and revels in the attention he does receive, albeit negative. It's better than nothing, right?
Then, there's the focus that some seem to have on the violent stories/screenplays this guy wrote for school. Apparently, he wrote such awful things about throwing hammers at people, and attacking them with chainsaws. Another one with students who fantasized about killing a teacher who had molested them. Cho's fellow classmates were horrified, wondering what he was capable of. Um...hello, people? You want to see more of that carnage? You need look no further than your local movie theater. Do people think the same thing about the guys who wrote Saw? Hostel? Turistas? So many, many more...? (And yes, they do seem to be predominantly guys, don't they?) My point is that perhaps Cho had become a product of our society. Maybe we need to take a closer look at the kinds of things that pass for "entertainment" these days. I'm not just talking movies, but television, music, books, video-games, blah, blah, blah... You name it, and "it's" boundaries of good taste are most likely being eroded. I hate to be this way, but I just have to wonder...
Finally, I would like to express my derision for the Westboro Baptist Church's plans to protest the Virginia Tech funerals. That is all I think I need to say.
First of all, it is just horrible beyond belief that it happened. It saddens me to the core of my being, and I grieve so for the victims, and the families and friends left behind.
With that said, I think this is an unfortunate sign of the times that this monster's actions are spread throughout the media, everywhere you look. It frustrates me, (and others, I know), how much energy the media spends on covering the shocking, the terrible, the horrible news, and how relatively little effort they put into covering the positive, uplifting, inspiring ones. Is that a reflection on the quantity of such news there is of each end of the spectrum? Or is it just a reflection on the depths to which the media will stoop, nay, debase themselves, to sell a story? I suspect the latter, but perhaps it's a little of both. Of course one has to wonder as to the effect of near glamorizing the perpetrators of all these atrocities. It's like a child who doesn't get the attention/affection he craves by being a good boy, so instead lashes out and revels in the attention he does receive, albeit negative. It's better than nothing, right?
Then, there's the focus that some seem to have on the violent stories/screenplays this guy wrote for school. Apparently, he wrote such awful things about throwing hammers at people, and attacking them with chainsaws. Another one with students who fantasized about killing a teacher who had molested them. Cho's fellow classmates were horrified, wondering what he was capable of. Um...hello, people? You want to see more of that carnage? You need look no further than your local movie theater. Do people think the same thing about the guys who wrote Saw? Hostel? Turistas? So many, many more...? (And yes, they do seem to be predominantly guys, don't they?) My point is that perhaps Cho had become a product of our society. Maybe we need to take a closer look at the kinds of things that pass for "entertainment" these days. I'm not just talking movies, but television, music, books, video-games, blah, blah, blah... You name it, and "it's" boundaries of good taste are most likely being eroded. I hate to be this way, but I just have to wonder...
Finally, I would like to express my derision for the Westboro Baptist Church's plans to protest the Virginia Tech funerals. That is all I think I need to say.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
« Home