Morgan Freeman\’s statement about these random shootings….
\”You want to know why. This may sound cynical, but here\’s why.
It\’s because of the way the media reports it. Flip on the news and watch how we treat the Batman theater shooter and the Oregon mall shooter like celebrities. Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris are household names, but do you know the name of a single victim of Columbine? Disturbed people who would otherwise just off themselves in their basements see the news and want to top it by doing something worse, and going out in a memorable way. Why a grade school? Why children? Because he\’ll be remembered as a horrible monster, instead of a sad nobody.
CNN\’s article says that if the body count \”holds up\”, this will rank as the second deadliest shooting behind Virginia Tech, as if statistics somehow make one shooting worse than another. Then they post a video interview of third-graders for all the details of what they saw and heard while the shootings were happening. Fox News has plastered the killer\’s face on all their reports for hours. Any articles or news stories yet that focus on the victims and ignore the killer\’s identity? None that I\’ve seen yet. Because they don\’t sell. So congratulations, sensationalist media, you\’ve just lit the fire for someone to top this and knock off a day care center or a maternity ward next.
You can help by forgetting you ever read this man\’s name, and remembering the name of at least one victim. You can help by donating to mental health research instead of pointing to gun control as the problem.\”
I wanted to comment on this…
This event and all of the preceding mass killings in our society are PRIME EXAMPLES that we create the very world we live in.
Morgan Freeman is quite correct. The demands of our society have created a media which begs for these kinds of actions to take place. Why? Because, we, as a society, ignore everything until we\’re shocked into paying attention and the media outlets know this. We have created the very world we asked for.
The need to rise above the mess we\’re created for ourselves has never been greater. It\’s unfortunate that you can\’t change the world directly, but you can change yourself, and that\’s where the change has to occur. \”Be the change you wish to see in the world\”. That single statement holds so much truth… it\’s a simple truth, yet completely overwhelming as well. All it takes is \”action\” upon yourself to initiate it.
The first thing you can do is what Mr Freeman suggests above… ignore everything about the shooter and mourn the victims. They\’re the ones who won\’t be able to live and grow in this world, learning the lessons they should have learned. Make sure the cowardly shooter remains a sad, lonely nobody. Give your love to those who need it right now.
Well writen Mr Freeman
It apparently wasn’t a statement by him, which I guess, shouldn’t come as any real surprise on the innarwebz. 😉
However, the message is very well put… and I fully agree with it too.