The underlying cause of US foreign policy

[jhetley]

One of the local teen population intersected her Saturn with a gravel truck the other day, so that her school is now going through the brave routine of grief-counseling and postponing this and that and deciding that the prom will go on in spite of the tragedy because that is what she would have wanted.

And I recall kids dying when I was in high school.  Hell, that was back when most cars didn't have seat belts*, and the speed limit on the Interstate was 85 mph. 

We didn't do any of that institutional grief stuff.  Toughed it out, back in school the next day.  Callous and cold-hearted.

And I am much of an age with Shrub and the other Power-Mongers of this great nation.  Maybe that's why a few hundred thousand dead don't matter.

*Some of the cars had running boards, even.

Comments

[lolleeroberts.livejournal.com]

I'm possibly a few years younger than you (52) and I remember much the same, although as Catholics we always got funneled into the church to pray. I don't think it made us callous and cold-hearted. We just hadn't pathologized grief. There's an entire industry now regarding grief; it's become a lucrative business.

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

>...it's become a lucrative business.

I'm afraid that's my take on the culture, as well. Plus, in the modern parlance, people are "in denial" about death. It shouldn't happen, at all, to anybody. It isn't *natural*...

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

Hm. Yeah, there's probably big business about it, but there's also some better awareness.

I think, more than big business, it's a kind of either show-off-yness or a fear of being seen as callous... though both of those are attributable to "grief as big business" (since business will market, etc.).

[quilzas.livejournal.com]

People just can't seem to deal with death these days.

I learned about death early on as a child. Having a multitude of cats (all outdoor) also makes it so you get to see 'em run over (and then have to take care of the body) or otherwise injured (some of which they don't recover from - we never took 'em to the vet.. either let 'em heal or put them out of their misery).. not to mention all the prey they bring around to play with... And some just disappeared.

Take said lesson.. and it gets applied to, gee, anything else that's alive.

Though I did mourn my dog more than any family member that's yet to die (two great-grandparents and my grandfather).

Back in high school, I remember a couple kids died at various points 'They' didn't do much. We just all sort of ... moved on. They got maybe a page in the yearbook.

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

When I was a sophomore in high school, one of the senior class died in a tragic sports accident (hit in the head by a baseball). ISTR that we had a "moment of silence" for him during announcements, and it wouldn't surprise me to hear that some of his classmates and/or teammates needed some counseling. And they dedicated the yearbook to him. But yeah, not so much with the giant hoo-ha.

OTOH, I went to a high school with 3,000 students, and the first time I ever heard this guy's name was in his obituary. How large is the school this girl went to? I can see it being a much bigger deal if the school only has 300 students and everybody knows everybody else.

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

Yeah, this is a much smaller school than I attended (500+ in my graduating class.) I'm not sure what the actual enrollment is -- not our own city school.