On the other hand... just yesterday, more than 200 innocents lost their lives in Iraq. The most number of casualties on a single day since the war over 5 years ago. More than 1400 people have died in Iraq this week. So why is it that the world's media is focusing on just the VT killings?
Let me illustrate my point:
TimesOfIndia.com (apparently one of India's most widely read new websites) has featured a picture on the most important news event in India's history... the Bachchan wedding.
CNN has few in-depth articles about the killer and the plight of the victims. NOTHING about the Iraq blasts on its front page.
The NYT has a tiny article on its front page
The Washington Post has a tiny article on its front page about the Iraq bombings (incorrect number of victims and all)
The BBC is the only news media that has actually covered this news with any apparent interest.
Everyone else seems to have a passing reference to the carnage that has occurred in Iraq over the past week.
It made me sad to think that to the world news about innocent Iraqis being slaughtered has become so commonplace, that even staggering figures such as 1400 people dying over the past one week is nothing but a statistic. There are no candlelight vigils. No speeches made to the families of the victims. No 10 hour documentaries about the suffering of the families. No articles about the heroism of strangers in trying circumstances. Nada. Nothing. Just a couple of articles stating that 1400 people died this week in Iraq in various bomb blasts.
Why do we just not care about these cursed people? Are they not worthy of candle light vigils? Did the sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers ... people who die in these bomb blasts not have the same aspirations that the kids in VT had? Did their families not love and care for them as much as the families of the kids in VT? Why is it that we the world show so much apathy towards these people who were unfortunately born in the wrong place at the wrong time?
It's not that I think it is wrong for people to care about their countrymen, but why is it that violence and tragedy in one place evokes so much sympathy from everyone, and yet others who are in desperate need of sympathy beget none? I despair when I think of the disparity in sympathy shown towards people.
They say life is unfair. Perhaps my rant will not really do anything at all towards drawing attention to the people in Iraq.
I am but a single voice in the universe... still I would like to state that I will make a daily rememberance for the innocents of the world that happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. A vigil for the innocents of the world that are sacrificed in the name of religion, greed, politics and so many other things that man uses as an excuse to kill others. A vigil that regardless of caste, creed, color, religion, and, nationality.
Perhaps my vigil does not mean much to anyone else. Maybe it is a selfish act to appease my guilty conscience for not lifting a finger to help anyone out. Still it is heartfelt... to show that I care.
5 comments:
In the field of Information theory, the amount of "information" associated with a given event is defined as being inversely proportional to the likelihood of that event occurring. So if an event is highly likely, say "a person drinks a cup of coffee/tea in the morning", the amount of information associated with that is very small.
I guess people in the West are so used to the idea that more than 100 people dying in one day in Iraq is somehow "normal", that it's barely considered newsworthy anymore.
But I totally agree with your sentiments Boo, and really enjoyed reading your piece. Here's hoping that in the future at least, things will not be so bad.
I was just traipsing along and I came upon this piece... I'm living in India but spent 17 yrs in the Middle East, so I do have a decent idea of what goes on there(which unfortuantely is what goes on everywhere if you're not in the
good books of Uncle Sam) and sadly, things don't change..
Like they say, history is written by the victors not the vanquished... News is of the rich and the famous... :(
One thing that has always bothered me is that besides writing about it or talking about it and then 'tch tching'.. I seem to be at a genuine loss... I applaud thee on thy stance!!
~cheers n cheerio
Truly said mate...
I'm not sure if sympathy really helps. How does a daily remembrance better the situation? We must not console ourselves by claiming we have 'sympathy' and that we care (at least, I'm not). Because if we truly cared, we would do something about it. Something more proactive, something that'll avoid it from happening again.
A year or so back, I came across this MTV ad that was banned by the US government (http://www.ad-titude.com/comments.php?postid=183).
And honestly I think the media is a reflection of its viewers / receptors. The media will not broadcast something unless its audience tunes in. How else will they make money? People in America and other parts of the world WANT to watch this stuff and that is why they tune in. There's a reason why a celebrity marriage is a big deal in India - people bloody give a damn about it! It's true that the media is over-hyping it, but only because there are people out there who feel affected by the incident. The same goes for the VT incident.
all about big bucks brat
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