I just saw my very first oh-so-tragic (and offtopic!) colorbar about London.

[conuly]

STOP THAT RIGHT NOW.

I don't see any colorbars for the genocide in Sudan. I don't see any off-topic crying posts about the massacre of the Hmong that's going on right now. I see a few posts, occasionally, about American deaths in Iraq - but none about the civilian deaths there, which greatly exceed our own. I can only conclude that nobody cares when people die unless they (the dead people) are white.

I didn't even point this out. All I said was that images don't help anybody, and that a better way to show your support would be to... well, I don't know, but that's not it.

Apparently, that makes me "snippy". Oh, deary, you haven't seen snippy. Or snide, or sardonic, or anything like that. All you saw was sensible.

Stupid spammers.

Yeah, it's okay to interrupt people to say something like "here's how you find out if somebody you love is dead or alive". I'd be heartless to say otherwise. But to post a fucking image that took you five seconds to whip up in PhotoShop, just so that you can go about your day pretending that you're a thoughtful and caring individual? Fuck off.

You want to show how much you care? You want to prove that you honestly believe that senseless deaths are "everybody's tragedy"? Go out and help somebody. You don't even have to leave the fucking country, just donate some damn blood and save a life.

Or you can email everyone and their dog with an image. Yeah, right. Go pat yourself on the back for a job well done.

(Of course, I'm not much better, my idea of helping is apparently to rant on my journal. But at least it's my journal.)

Comments

[lakidaa.livejournal.com]

*pet*

I know where you're coming from.

Thankfully, I have not been spammed.

[conuly]

In veronica_mars, of all places. That doesn't even *pretend* to be on-topic. And then she whines that "if the mod asked me to delete it, I would!" Well, gee, thanks?

[forestdweller.livejournal.com]

*wild applause*

[conuly]

*bows*

[wodhaund.livejournal.com]

Oh man. I'm so glad I've missed that.

I hope to god that nobody sends me that or I may be tempted to tear them a new one. :D;;;

[thetwistedsista.livejournal.com]

Maybe it's because it's a major country. I see no September 11th colourbar, and to be honest-I'd wish they'd let all this London Bombing thing die a little. It's annoying hearing the upteenth account of what happened in the newspaper-and having to get through around 20 pages of opinions, stories and PO'ed Prime Ministers, just for something just as bleak-or the page 2 Sudoku puzzle (which was on pg 25 I think today)
Just think of all the silly merchandise. Wristbands and such. There's a bomb in Iraq evry few days. I see no woe posts, or Iraq is hurt. Sometimes people hype up Western events all too much.

[innerbrat]

Speaking as a Londoner? I'm insulted by a colourbar.
50 people is not very many.
Tubes are disrupted all the time.
We get bombed A LOT.

It was scary while it was happening and before we knew the scale.
Now? Our solidarity comes from getting over it. We drink tea in the face of terror. We don't need colourbars, as colourbars quite frankly are nasty and tasteless now every fandom and its mother has one.

Good for you.

[lakidaa.livejournal.com]

eeeew.

Dude, OT topics like that = NOT COOL.

if it was tacked on the end? maaaaybe. Just out there by itself? uck.

[elfie-harly.livejournal.com]

Hear, hear.

[ratkrycek.livejournal.com]

I agree completely.

[usnbfs.livejournal.com]

*loves you*

[rho]

At the London Live8 concert, one of the performers mentioned that about 30,000 people die needlessly in Africa every day, and commented that you could guarantee that if there was anything of that scale happening in the West, then there would be widespread indignation, and every effort would be taken to prevent it.

Apparently, it only takes about 50 or so deaths to raise huge indignation in the West. That's less than 0.2% of the number dying in Africa day after day after day. And that's not to say that I don't think we should be indignant about what happened; fifty deaths is fifty too many, as far as I'm concerned. It just adds a little bit of perspective.

[ladytalon.livejournal.com]

The other day someone posted about Live8 to an Animal Crossing community. Boy do I hate off-topic spam. I think I hate it more when the person is posting about some altruistic cause--I'd rather see "Click here for XXX!"

...What's up with that?

[leora.livejournal.com]

Should people be donating tea? (good tea - not crappy Lipton's or somesuch)

But in all seriousness, I agree with Rho. 50 deaths is 50 too many, but we shouldn't focus just on these 50 when there are deaths everywhere. I believe people should, in general, be working to make the world a better place. And that means helping various causes, and not just when something becomes a news event.

And i do think it's more likely classism than racism. I think it's that London is perceived as a "Western nation" or a "first world country". If it'd happened in Japan, people would likely be upset and active too. It's those small countries that are either "backward" or nobody can remember their name anyway that people can shrug off horrors in.

Hmmm, I feel a cynical day coming on.

[dandelion.livejournal.com]

We would happily accept tea whether people are dead or not. Trust me on this ;)

[scottrossi.livejournal.com]

thank you for posting this conuly. its nice to know there are others that are aware of the bias against "brown people" that seems to be ongoing in anything we do.

and what's this about the Hmong? i know all about Sudan, but i haven't read nor heard nor seen anything about them. can you enlighten me somewhat?! this is tragic and disgusting!

[phoenix-blue.livejournal.com]

http://www.livejournal.com/users/phoenix_blue/46560.html

S'all I got to say. *Smiles*

[conuly]

It was on CNN a little while ago.

[sporks5000.livejournal.com]

Connie, have I mentioned that I love you and that you're clearly the most sensible person in the world?

[conuly]

You're just strange, perhaps?

I wouldn't've minded if it had been a needful post, something with a link to information about loved ones, anything like that. But it wasn't.

[conuly]

Like I just did?

[conuly]

That makes sense.

[conuly]

On the other hand, look at how many people die in car accidents every year, far more than from terrorism, and see how much attention that gets. That's needless deaths in the US!

[conuly]

We drink tea in the face of terror.

*smiles*

I love that line. I'm not metaquoting, though.

[conuly]

Yes, but I'm always willing to hear it again!