So, in this new world of eggshell walking and hyperdrive patriotism. A lot of things have disappointed me, not the least of which has been the announcement that the WTC Simpsons episode (home of the best Mountain Dew joke EVER) has been pulled from syndication.
But I heard a guy on sports radio 670 yesterday go WAYYYYY over the top. Way way wayyyy over the top.
Last week a race car driver (I’m sorry I can’t remember his name) was in a horrific accident on the track, lost both of his legs and was in critical condition in the hospital.
A columnist reported that the accident was ‘devastating’. Joe Idiot Radio Commentator went ballistic, demanding to know how DARE he use the word devastating, when there were 6,000 dead people in NYC, when the world was at war, when the terrorists were at large…it is INAPPROPRIATE to use the word devastating (and here’s the best part) EVER AGAIN in reference to sports.
Now, I’ve already been convinced that sports are meaningless, but I’ve got to tell you. If I lost both of my legs in a car crash, that would be pretty f-ing devastating. If my DOG got hit by a car tomorrow it would be DEVASTATING. It doesn’t make the WTC any less devastating, but COME ON.
Let’s rein it in people. Emotions still run the gamit, there are still other tragedies unfortunately. There are also joys, loves, triumphs. There are other heroes in other states, there are other battles, other wars. I’m afraid that for the next six months to a year, people are going to start playing the “WTC CARD” as a defense to anything or as an admonishment of behavior, and I think that’s counterproductive to our return to normalcy.
jarbaby, how dare you post a rant about something as trivial as this, you insensitive clod.
I think that what we are seeing is the aftermath of tragedy known as “I Feel The Pain More Than the Rest of You.” Joe Idiot Radio Commentator has to show that he is more wounded, more patriotic, more devastated than the average person because he is a morally superior human being. When the rest of us have started to lose our perspective, have started to try to pick up the pieces, to move forward, Joe Idiot Radio Commentator and those of his ilk will keep on suffering, keep on taking offense, because damnit the rest of us just don’t get it!
I see this every fricking time something awful happens, and the grandstanding and melodrama is more than I can stand. I mean, come on, don’t use the tragic loss of lives as a platform for your little morality showdown. I’ve saw it after WallyM7 died, after Dale Earnhardt died, and I know we’re going to see a tiresome lot of it in the months ahead.
And this is yet more reason to hate Mike North. Why that guy still stays on the air is beyond me. Does he actually cover any SPORTS? As far as I can see, his four hours on the air every day are devoted to talking about his wife, talking to his personal trainer and his stockbroker.
Yeesh. This is why I listen to Dan Patrick in the early afternoons. No knee-jerk uninformed opinions. (At least, LESS knee-jerk uninformed opinions.)
(In sharp contrast, I really enjoyed listening to Bors & Burnsie and Jiggs & Buffone on AM 670 last week. It was neat listening to someone from outside the typical ‘evening news’ realm give their opinions, and to listen to the callers talk about their own experiences.)
But as for the OP itself, tragedy shouldn’t be a contest – “mine is worse than yours”. Admittedly, getting smashed up in a car wreck isn’t quite as bad as losing your life in an explosion – but that doesn’t make it any less meaningful to the person who was IN the wreck, or his family, friends or loved ones.
It’s like there’s some pecking order for tragedy or something. I was talking to a friend of mine and commiserating about her boyfriend dumping her. She said, since my boyfriend broke up with me too, and I’m unemployed on top of everything else, and I’m carrying on, so what right does she have to be upset over her piddling little problem. I said, hey, your personal tragedy is no less valid because of the WTC tragedy, the scale is just different. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still mourn your personal losses.
I agree with you on the OP jarbabyj, by you’ve “got some 'splaining to do.” Why were you listening to sports talk radio if sports are meaningless? Were NPR, Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura, Classic Rock and Howard Stern all unavailable?
In case anyone is curious, the driver in question is Alex Zanardi. The accident also involved Alex Tagliani (who, amazingly, came out more or less OK), 12 laps from the end of the CART race in Lausitz, Germany on September 15. The race summary is available here.
Two weeks ago our world was ripped apart by a tragedy of near-incomprehensible proportions. And all you can think about is getting your rocks off watching jarbaby and I play a little tongue hockey in an effort to comfort one another?
It’s an outrage. You should be ashamed. I know I’m not thinking about how that gorgeous jarbaby rack would feel pressed up against my own. I mean, how could anyone think about something like that at a time like this?
