And then things went from bad to worse
No doubt in my mind; it’s the strange news that sells. Nobody cares about the bird that was seen on my lawn. If, on the other hand, the bird was an albatross or a kiwi or a bluewinged yellow-throat robin, the news outlets would be all around the place. I exaggerate, but only a little.
Check out two stories from today. In Iraq, a hanging went “terribly wrong”. I didn’t need to check out the video feed. Just knowing that the hangman, using protocols laid down when that part of the world was under civilized rule, overcalculated something in his equation is enough. Forget hanging him, we’ll behead him. Then he’ll know things have gone from bad to worse. Note to hangman; change the batteries in your cheap calculator.
How about headline from CNN. “Woman drinks so much water she dies“. When I was taking swimming lessons at Melmerby Beach, we called that drowning. Now it’s called “Hold Your Wee For A Wii” (thanks, KDND-FM 107.9 in Sacramento). Once again, those little bitty 8 oz bottles caught up. Imagine if she’d been “SuperSized”. I know, the story is tragic, but it’s also clearly bizarre.
And it sells. Tomorrow, the newspapers and media pundits will have something completely different (and titillating) to offer us. And the day after that. It’s the nature of the beast. But for today, give pause and bow our heads in remembrance of things gone wrong.
