On the CNN website, they keep using a picture of some young woman with a piece of red tape over her mouth, and the word LIFE written across it, who is “protesting” at the Florida hospital where that woman may or may not die when her feeding tube is removed. The woman is described as an “activist.”
OK, which side are you on? And what the fuck is taping up your mouth supposed to mean to anyone? And what the fuck good are you doing for your cause, whatever it is, if nobody even knows what side you’re on?
Ya know, I saw that pic this morning and puzzled over it for a good 5 minutes. I mean, usually that kind of message comes across pretty clear, but we can glean several possible meanings from her actions:
She believes that Schiavo should be allowed to die, but the House is taking that choice away - so she is silenced by the tape, and LIFE is the brand/seal on the tape (or reason) for silencing her.
She believes that Schiavo should be kept alive, but she’s so worked up about it that she’s worried what will come out of her mouth (or she’s a really incompetent speaker/protester). So she covers up her mouth and sends her message through LIFE, figuring it’s a stronger visual message anyhow (and hey, she got national coverage for it).
She’s for or against what the House is doing, but wants to save her voice from all that yelling either way.
Ummmmmm…yeah. Two symbols that contradict each other – the tape indicates a voice silenced, signifying that she’s against the authorities and their decisions, but the word LIFE indicates that she believes in the sanctity of life. WTF?
I like how the AP captioner didn’t try to determine what the message was.
Ah, well. The article on MSNBC has now made clear for us that they’re opponents of the removal of the tube. Still don’t get the exact nature of the message they’re trying to send.
And thanks, SA. Although I admit, I was trying to come across as silly. Protestor: Ya know, my throat’s still a little sore from that cold last week and I’m really not a shouter anyhow. Guess I’ll just cover up my mouth with this piece of tape…
Unless of course, you were being facetious and in that case I’m completely wooshed.
Either way, glad to put in my two cents now and again!
Just a general thought about the tape over the mouth thing. . . I’ve seen that done by protesters of all persuasions and have been completely mystified by it,. I mean, YES, I get that it’s a symbolic protest against what the person thinks is the system’s silencing of the message (whatever “the message” may be), but IMO all it does is help their opponents. If I were an Evil Oppressor[sup]TM[/sup] confronted by protesters wearing tape over their mouths, I’d commend them for helping my side and ask them to keep up the good work.
It’s like the GLBT Day of Silence. “Oh, yes, we’ve had to be silent about ourselves for generations, so we’ll continue to say nothing! Take that, society! We’re going to be quiet at you until you give in!”
No, I’m afraid you weren’t being whoosed. I’m afraid I’ve been exposed for what I occasionally am: a post-skimmer. I picked up some salient stuff at the beginning and just sort of skimmed the rest…thus, my cursory examination failed to pick up that little gem.
Can a bell pepper talk? The woman is, quite literally, without a mind. Terri, for all rational purposes, died when she collapsed, and was silenced at that moment. What on Earth motivates these idiots today I don’t know.
The Day of Silence is misunderstood, I think. It isn’t supposed to be about gay rights, it’s supposed to be a recognition of those who have been victims of anti-gay violence. It’s not a petition for same-sex marriage. It’s like a moment of silence for Matthew Shepard only it goes on all day.
Last year during the “day of silence” one of my GLBT classmates participated. Problem was, I had to do a school project with her, due in class that day. She couldn’t talk, so she wrote down her thoughts on a pad of paper to communicate with me. :rolleyes: If I wasn’t already sympathetic to the GLBT’s plight, this certainly wouldn’t have convinced me. It just royalled pissed me off. Luckily the teacher was sympathetic. Gotta love liberal colleges.
