“And maybe it’s the time of year, yes, and maybe it’s the time of man. And I don’t know who I am but life is for learning.” – James Taylor, Woodstock
Natalee Holloway
On May 30, 2005 a high school graduate from Mountain Brook, Alabama went missing. Her name was Natalee Holloway. She was on a graduation trip to Aruba. Her disappearance caused a media sensation. In September 2010, you can still find stories about this girl on television, in newspapers and lots of other media. Her mother, Beth Twitty, has become nothing less than a celebrity doing every talk show she can get on, from Greta Van Susteren, Oprah and others. It was and still is a media circus.
Agnes Gonxhe Bojaxhiu was born August 26, 1910 and died September 5, 1997. We barely heard anything about her death because five days earlier on August 31, 1997 a bigger death occurred – the death of Diana Frances Spencer, also known as Princess Di.
Princess Diana
These three women had little in common. But one thing ties them all together. They were all media sensations.
Let’s start with Holloway. Why would the media care five years after her disappearance, especially after they have a suspect in custody? They care because she’s a beautiful white girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. Young women go missing around the world every day. Most of them don’t even get a picture on a milk carton.
Princess Diana had an untimely death. At the age of 36, the world wept because she was such an important figure. What the media doesn’t remember is the moment up to her last heartbeat. She had become nothing more than tabloid fodder. To put it into today’s terms, she was basically a Kardashian, bedding down every billionaire playboy she can get her hands on.
What does Agnes have to do with all of this? Everything. She was a woman who gave her entire life to helping people in poverty. She was known the world over and honored by popes. Her death was a mere after-thought on the news because of the blonde hair blue-eyed girl…the queen of the Enquirer, and a bulimic.
Oh, by the way, Agnes had a stage name too. It was Mother Teresa.
I told you that to tell you this. Natalee Holloway is not a bad person. And the truth is Princess Di had her problems, but did a ton of public service. Mother Teresa needs no introduction. If she were an endurance athlete, I wouldn’t want to be in that race.
The media decides what’s going to happen and when they’re going to let it happen. Take for instance the new story coming out of Louisiana. There’s another oil spill. Isn’t it odd that this spill comes on the heels of the one that basically ruined the Gulf of Mexico? For the last hundred years we haven’t heard of this, but now there’s two in a row. Could it be that the oil companies had these leaks all the time but kept them quiet? Maybe the BP spill got out of hand. I was born at night, but it wasn’t last night.
It’s my feeling that spills have been happening for a long time. I also think the media is lazy and goes for low-hanging fruit. It’s great that they’re covering these spills. Now if we can only lower our thirst for oil.
I know it sounds like a meaningless statement to do so. I mention on this site that we should ride our bikes to work sometimes, especially since most Americans live within two miles from their place of work. Other countries are working to cut fossil fuels out of their diet. Brazil seems to be well on its way, for one.
Me on my two-cylinder Ducati. Photo by Michael Tortorich
I’m not saying get rid of your car. I have one and I use it some days. As anyone who reads this site knows, I always try to use my bicycle first, my two-cylinder motorcycle second and my four-cylinder car as a last resort. With the advent of more hybrids and electrical cars, options are there. Next time you’re car shopping, you may want to consider one of these.
Sophia Loren...media sensation worthy
