NYSSD: "Wes Amerigo's Giant Fear"

A lot of this post-9/11 angst was generated by the media, which increasingly tells Americans how they should be feeling about their lives. I reject that kind of mind control. As I said earlier, I lived in Italy when there was real terrorism--bombings and kidnappings of politicians and ordinary folks were standard practice--and America hasn't suffered any real trauma because of 9/11. We shouldn't let the media make us react like hand puppets every time they pull the strings.

Larry, although this is only tangentially related to the discussion of the story, I fully agree that our thoughts are often controlled by TV. The man or woman on the screen wants to tell us what we ought to think is funny, what is pathetic, what is outrageous, what is patriotic, and what is right and wrong. We are told when to laugh and when to cry. This is mostly done by example and by implication. The person on the screen thinks something is funny. That person is a wise authority. Therefore, we all ought to think that "something' is funny. The person will laugh and then look at us as if we are expected to go along with his idea of funny. Eventually, we accept this and go along with it.

For a variety of reasons, I usually don't watch the news. One reason is that I hate the overbearing pretention of some of these authority figures. I happened to be vacationing in Washington on 9/11. After I walked down and looked at the smoke arising from the Pentagon, there was not much to do but watch TV. That just happens to have been the last news show I've seen. So, I have not given them the chance to fill me with the official, accepted, media approved sense of dread.

Good for you -- I hate knowing the news... only thing I need is the weather report and I have the weatherbug online, now. On 9/11, my bags were packed and we planned to be in London that night, so we had a week of oddly-disconnected days... watching TV and waiting and wondering about our lives before the planes were allowed to fly out again.

I don't watch much TV news, the only show I'll actively seek out is the 3pm BBC America news, which I may watch two or three times during the week. You are so right that they seem to want to instill "an official, accepted, approved sense of dread." Nevertheless, I think most people are aware that, sad to say, as a country we are on edge.

If we are on edge we are so because we have a President who has been threatening war for a year, NOT because of 9/11.

Does it have to be either/ or?

It's awful, isn't it? But doesn't he call it the War on Terror or some damn thing like that?

I'll tell you, 9/11 was jumpy for me, but I began to be in a state of "emergency" during the Columbine shooting. For some horrible mistake in timing I turned on the TV just before the shooting happened and felt, of course, an instantaneous sympathy for the students who had the first and then repeated pictures of them running, hiding and looking thoroughly frightened. I had two children of my own in their high school at the time. It was not a pleasant thought to see us in similar circumstance. I could turn not turn it off until there was some resolution. So seeing creepy things on TV was already something I'd forbidden to myself.

I'll tell you a funny bit of magical realism in my own life. We didn't, of course, watch TV for the entire eight days from 9/11 until 9/19. We walked and visited the mountain, read, though it was hard to concentrate, cleaned things. Finally, I said, "Well, I might as well make a blackberry pie."

I am known to make several of these in season, but I hadn't made any in 2001. I decided that we'd never, ever be allowed to leave and maybe that was just as well. I might as well make a pie.

It was a particularly delicious pie but it was still in the oven when British Airways called to ask if we'd take three seats on the flight leaving in a few hours. We managed to get ourselves packed and left most of that pie for my son who was staying home. It was as though all of our fate rested in my making a blackberry pie, and in a way, that pie was a faint return to normal.

!

The simple solution to TV's mind control is to watch as little of it as possible. That is what I do. I watch old movies on cable channels, but rarely anything on network and network news only when I am over at my mom's house and she insists on turning it on. I get my news from the Net and public radio.

Pifka, I could go for a hunk of that blackberry pie just about now. That is, so long as I didn't somehow also get the flavor of turtle soup and barbecued ribs--and end up camping our all night hoping for a second piece. Blackberry pie, like all pie, is good both hot and cold, but especially good warm with vanilla ice cream.

Sozobe, we do have some sense of dread, but for me it is because I think our president is doing everything wrong. He may be ruining the UN, alienating our allies, and creating many more enemies among the Muslims than we now have. I could go on and on. It is a dreadful world at the moment. We ought to keep in mind that things often do not turn out as badly as we expect. As Yogi Bera (or however he spells it) said, "It's hard to make predictions. Especially about the future." So, there is room for hope.

Another dreadful thing is that I have grandsons that are coming into military age. It sounds like Pifka has at least a son that age, and I know you, Sozobe, have mentioned children. This is when war really hits home.

Yup, that's for sure.

And I agree about the president, very much so. That was the point of my either/or comment -- I found 9/11 itself deeply distressing, but find Bush's actions since even more so. What will happen the day we start this war? What horrible things will happen during the war (here and there)? How long will occupation last? How awful will that be? How will Bush continue to consolidate power and impact civil liberties? Etc.

By the way, I virtually never watch TV news -- I say virtually because I occasionally (1 X/ month) catch "Macneil-Lehrer". My news is overwhelmingly from the New York Times, with some supplementation on the Internet.

Great quote, Hazlitt! That's definitely worth a piece of blackberry pie.

Yep, my son will be nineteen soon and had to register with the selective service last year on threat of imprisonment. I'd rather he not be in a war --- big surprise.

I see on the Net this morning that Bush is going on TV tonight, Monday, to issue his ultimatum to Saddam. That means that the US has abandoned the UN route and will probably be at war by Friday. Last night I went to a huge, wonderful candlelight vigil for peace organized by the Quakers (I live in Philadelphia where they are very active)...I didn't want this obscene war to start without registering some small protest of my own. Thta's the best way I know to combat post-9/11 angst, taking action.

Yup, I went to a vigil, too. It was really nice. I wish it would have some effect, and am pessimistic as to whether it does, but definitely nice to DO something, anything.

It is nice to be around peaceful people isn't it? I noticed the moon was out last night, giving its own benediction to the vigils.

Has anybody started the next story? I haven't finished it yet... it's creepy and depressing.

Oh, it's Monday. Ya know what, I really liked reading the story IN the New Yorker instead of online. Not sure why there should be a difference, but there was, for me. So I think I won't read it until I get the new New Yorker. If anyone else wants to start a new discussion, that's cool.

I do like starting new threads to pull in more people. Got SealPoet and Larry on board with this one.

Gore Vidal once said, "It's better to be futile than passive." That's my political philosophy at times like this, Sozobe.

This was a great discussion. I've started reading the new story.

I have invited a couple of people to this discussion but to no avail, so far.

I like that quote, Larry.

Hazlitt, I bet people will join based on individual stories, too, whether they like that specific one. I'm pretty happy with the core group we have here, anyway.

Sozobe, how can anything this good not grow.

The reason this discussion has been so good is that the more obnoxious types who pollute the Books forum have avoided it so far. Let's hope Tartarin and D'Artagnan and their ilk continue to avoid us.

I'll grant there has been little of obnoxious nature untill quite recently. I think this thread got to something over 40 posts before anything inapropriate was posted.

I'm sure the incident was just a slip and that it won't be repeated.