For some reason I felt rather shocked by the news that the Cutty Sark went up in flames yesterday. Maybe it is as a result of going there on various school trips so it has become an intrinsic part of my identity. A bit wooden in places, creaks a bit and highly combustible, yep that sounds about right…
On Saturday night I was talking with my parents and sister about Madeleine McCann. Whilst I think that what has happened is awful and potentially very tragic, I find the mass coverage of it very odd. If she isn’t found soon and a ‘better’ story comes up will the media slink off into the shadows? Yes it’s good that it has received so much media coverage, but surely totally disproportionate when compared to all that is going on in the world. Is it just me who found the one minute silence yesterday really odd? What are you meant to think about in a one minute silence when you have no idea where the person is or what to do for the best? It has just made me wonder why this story has received so much coverage, which is what we were talking about on Saturday night and then yesterday on the BBC they ran an article on it. The thing is that I think a lot of it is that it makes a good story. I know that sounds cynical but I think it is probably true. A lot of children go missing, some never to return but they don’t get any coverage at all. Young children from middle class families help to make a story.
Anyway, when we were talking about it on Saturday I made some comment about how we used to walk to school on our own when we were about 6 or 7. My father took this as a slight on his parenting skills and as though i was suggesting that he was somehow negligent– there are many things that I could criticise about my father’s ability as a parent, but letting us go and play in a field isn’t one of them. 25 years ago there was nothing odd about wandering about on your own at that young an age and we used to go off to the local playing fields and play and nothing ever happened and there wasn’t this fear that it would. Now would parents let their children wander about like that? I think not. We live in a different age, one where you can’t let your children go off and play without adult supervision or seemingly even sleep in a hotel bedroom. Maybe it’s a good thing that the life and fate of one child has such a big impact across nations and if it brings her home, should anyone criticise that? Maybe not, but if she isn't found soon, we'll see how much longer she stays there in the headlines.
On Saturday night I was talking with my parents and sister about Madeleine McCann. Whilst I think that what has happened is awful and potentially very tragic, I find the mass coverage of it very odd. If she isn’t found soon and a ‘better’ story comes up will the media slink off into the shadows? Yes it’s good that it has received so much media coverage, but surely totally disproportionate when compared to all that is going on in the world. Is it just me who found the one minute silence yesterday really odd? What are you meant to think about in a one minute silence when you have no idea where the person is or what to do for the best? It has just made me wonder why this story has received so much coverage, which is what we were talking about on Saturday night and then yesterday on the BBC they ran an article on it. The thing is that I think a lot of it is that it makes a good story. I know that sounds cynical but I think it is probably true. A lot of children go missing, some never to return but they don’t get any coverage at all. Young children from middle class families help to make a story.
Anyway, when we were talking about it on Saturday I made some comment about how we used to walk to school on our own when we were about 6 or 7. My father took this as a slight on his parenting skills and as though i was suggesting that he was somehow negligent– there are many things that I could criticise about my father’s ability as a parent, but letting us go and play in a field isn’t one of them. 25 years ago there was nothing odd about wandering about on your own at that young an age and we used to go off to the local playing fields and play and nothing ever happened and there wasn’t this fear that it would. Now would parents let their children wander about like that? I think not. We live in a different age, one where you can’t let your children go off and play without adult supervision or seemingly even sleep in a hotel bedroom. Maybe it’s a good thing that the life and fate of one child has such a big impact across nations and if it brings her home, should anyone criticise that? Maybe not, but if she isn't found soon, we'll see how much longer she stays there in the headlines.
2 comments:
i saw an online comic about this, and figured it was a joke....sad to hear that I was wrong.
Hello Sir Jorge - yes it is terrible isn't it. Strange thing to have in an online comic!
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