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| How is something "remaining unchanged" news? |
When I die, if my death turns out to be slow and drawn out due to my organs shutting down one by one, can you please take steps early on to avoid any kind of media circus? I can do without a crowd of reporters and photographers hovering outside my hospital room, desperately waiting for me to choke out my last wheezing breath.
To be honest, I'm not even that keen on having the light left on in the hallway, so I can imagine a global media scrum camped on my doorstep wouldn't exactly be conducive to a restful slumber.
Not sure why anyone would be particularly interested in my demise anyway, especially if I'd made it to almost 95 years old, but then, I'm not sure why ANYONE's death would attract that kind of attention at that age.
Now Jesus, he was interesting, but he WAS only 30, and it wasn't natural causes. Are they expecting Nelson to rise again, 3 days later? Is that what they're all waiting for? Fair enough I suppose. An ascension would definitely be front page news.
Sadly, yet again, the story itself has become the story.
The last time I wrote about this phenomenon was around the time of the prank call to the hospital when Princess Kate was under the weather early in her pregnancy. In that case, you may recall, the media blamed the media for causing the suicide of a nurse. I've just re-read that last sentence twice, and it still seems hard to believe that's what happened, even though that's exactly what happened.
This time, the media probably can't blame themselves for the death, if it ever actually happens, although I'm beginning to wonder if some of them might be looking to hurry things along a bit so they can all go home.
Please don't mistake me; I'm not trying to belittle Mandela's life and achievements in any way. I get that he'll go down in the history books as one of the more notable figures of our time and for good reason. Absolute legend. What I AM trying to belittle, is the poor man's death.
Everybody dies. Just as well, things are getting crowded enough as it is. What are they hoping for, these people camped outside the hospital in Pretoria? There are banners actually wishing the guy a speedy recovery, wanting him to "get well soon" for god's sake. Is it not time to let him go and move on? But then, I do wonder if that's what's been holding the Republic back for quite some time now.
I listened to Hosking talking about Mandela's legacy yesterday, and was astounded to discover not only is he not president anymore, they've had TWO since him. Who knew? It's a bit like Queen since Freddy died - Brian May desperately keeps trying to keep things going, but everyone knows it'll never be the same.
Let him go, give him some peace. That's what those banners should be saying. Thanks for all the amazing things you have done, we'll do our best to take it from here.
Instead, the longer the vigil lasts, the more unsettling the atmosphere becomes. Will there be unrest, maybe even violence as South Africa is finally forced to accept and deal with the vacuum his inevitable (yes, guys, it is actually inevitable) passing will create? Most of us sincerely hope not. Sadly, some kind of domestic chaos is probably exactly what many media outlets have been waiting for, and precisely why they've set up shop in Pretoria.
Which all brings us back to where we started; the story itself has become the story, and that's never journalism, that's creative writing. If anarchy ensues, violence, injuries, death - who will be to blame? Well, this time it won't be a couple of idiot Australian radio hosts, although they've probably sent someone to cover it. After all, everyone else has.
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| May as well have written "Bring Back Buck" |
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