So I know that terrorism is no laughing matter, but I can't really help but chuckle a little at all of the media coverage surrounding the recent bomb scare in Times Square.
First of all, some of the quotes in the original New York Times article on the incident were downright patronizing, if not taunting. Mayor Bloomberg said that the device "looked amateurish." Piling on, explosives expert Kevin Berry noted that, if the bomb had functioned as intended, "it would be more of an incendiary event" rather than explosion. I'm not sure what an "incendiary event" means (the phrase conjures up images of July 4th fireworks), but Mayor Bloomberg and Mr. Berry almost seem like they're saying to the perp: "You know what? Your plan flopped not just because we're awesome at our jobs, but also because you suck at making bombs." Terrorist fail.
And then there was the reporting in the Times. The original article covering the incident struck a strangely patriotic tone in its closing sentences. A police sergeant from Florida who was in town while chaperoning a school trip was quoted as saying that he was impressed by his New York counterparts; "I just sat back and learned a lot," he added. The Times also found a Brazilian tourist who leaped to a broad sort of sympathy, saying: "I feel sorry for America. I'm at your guys' side." I'm not sure why the Times felt the need to jump straight to this type of "defend-the-Motherland" reaction without having more thoroughly ascertained the other, arguably more relevant details of the bomb scare. The Floridian made the scare seem almost more like a Broadway spectacular rather than the real threat that it was, while the Brazilian went in the opposite and overly dramatic direction. Reporting fail.
And now the NYPD is supposedly looking for a White man in his 40's as the "person of interest" in the case. It's a good reminder that, before 9/11, Timothy McVeigh had been the deadliest terrorist in American history. Can you imagine if we tried to racially profile every White man in his 40's in New York to catch the alleged suspect (in fact, I'd kind of like to see them try)? Police fail. Crazies comes in all shapes and sizes. We're lucky that our modern law enforcement agencies can rely on much more sophisticated methods to identify suspects and to make their case. Except in Arizona.
I know I'm pushing the envelop with this post, and, to be honest, all of this joking masks a certain unease I feel about the episode. What's clear from the whole affair is that a partnership between a vigilant public and a crack law enforcement team helped prevent something that turned out to be merely alarming from becoming something far more serious. I am truly thankful for that. Even from afar, I've always felt a certain protectiveness of New York, and not just because I'm going to be moving there. When I was a senior in high school, I had a chance to visit Ground Zero in February 2002 and to volunteer at the St. Paul's Chapel for an evening. St. Paul's is a small church across the street from World Trade Center, and in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks it was used as a staging area for the emergency workers who continued going down into the rubble to search for survivors, even five months later. I spent 12 hours working an overnight volunteer shift in support of these emergency workers, fetching food, drinks, and blankets for them in between shifts and talking to them about what they saw. At sunrise, I went with one of the chaperones (a photography teacher from a nearby high school) to the family viewing platform on the southwest corner of the site. I started to cry when I saw a half-used box of tissues on one of the chairs. I didn't know anyone who had been directly affected by the attack (at least until I went to college on the East Coast), but staring at the gaping hole in the ground, I felt like I shared a small bit of the pain and a lot of the anger. It sounds weird to say it, because it makes me sound like a raving lunatic a la Dick Cheney or Sarah Palin, but that experience made me feel like I was -- that day and a little bit ever since -- a New Yorker.
It's especially important during these potentially chaotic times to make sure that level-headed discourse prevails in our press and ethically responsible methods in our government. And I reserve the right to laugh a little at the absurdity when they fail to do so.
(Yes, I made that graphic at the top. And yes, I know it's sensationalist. But that's the angry New Yorker in me coming out.)
No comments:
Post a Comment