SATURDAY, MAY 15, 2021
Forrest Gump visits the Times: This morning's New York Times offers high-visibility personal profiles of three different people.
One profile appears on the paper's front page. The other two top the newspaper's International section. Here are the three principal headlines:
Meet the Nun Who Wants You to Remember You Will Die
Miss Universe Myanmar Arrives in Florida With a Message for the Junta
Prince Harry Shares ‘Pain and Suffering’ of Growing Up in Royal Family
Sad! Needless to say, the former punk-rocker nun with the skull on her desk was hurried to the front page. At the New York Times, sub-headlines like this sound extremely deep and intriguing.
Meet the Nun Who Wants You to Remember You Will Die
Suffering and death are facts of life: “Everyone dies, their bodies rot, and every face becomes a skull.”
Intriguing! No really, that sounds extra-deep!
For ourselves, we hadn't realized, until this very day, that Ruth Graham, a good decent person, had achieved an escape from Slate. Graham wrote the front-page profile of Sister Theresa Aletheia Noble, complete with a triggering dateline.
The profile graces the paper's front page. The profile starts like this:
BOSTON—Before she entered the Daughters of St. Paul convent in 2010, Sister Theresa Aletheia Noble read a biography of the order’s founder, an Italian priest who was born in the 1880s. He kept a ceramic skull on his desk, as a reminder of the inevitability of death. Sister Aletheia, a punk fan as a teenager, thought the morbid curio was “super punk rock,” she recalled recently. She thought vaguely about acquiring a skull for herself someday.
These days, Sister Aletheia has no shortage of skulls. People send her skull mugs and skull rosaries in the mail, and share photos of their skull tattoos. A ceramic skull from a Halloween store sits on her desk. Her Twitter name includes a skull and crossbones emoji.
That is because since 2017, she has made it her mission to revive the practice of memento mori, a Latin phrase meaning “Remember your death.” The concept is to intentionally think about your own death every day, as a means of appreciating the present and focusing on the future. It can seem radical in an era in which death—until very recently—has become easy to ignore.
At the Times, this sort of thing stacks up as thoughtful and cool.
According to the Times' front page, we live in an era "in which death—until very recently—ha[d] become easy to ignore." Before long, Graham explains what that odd statement means:
"The pandemic, of course, has made death impossible to forget."
Until the pandemic came along, were we living in an era in which death had become easy to ignore? We're prepared to say that the answer is yes, unless you had access to newspapers.
(Or unless you grew up in the Catholic church! Everywhere you look in such churches, you see images of a gruesome death, accomplished amid vast suffering.)
In our own experience, Boston nuns of the 1950s were selling that iconography to small children in angry and negative ways. Today, the Times is intrigued by the 40-year-old nun with all the skulls, the one who's helping death make a comeback.
Had death become easy to ignore begore the pandemic came along? Not exactly! For example, children were dying in Iraq, often alongside their parents. After that, children were drowning in the Mediterranean. Some people had died in the Holocaust!
Had the nun and her followers heard about that? Did the former punk-rocker nun with the skulls and her followers care?
Today, the Times is treating the nun, with a hat tip to Arsenio Hall, as someone who makes you go oooh. Meanwhile, Miss Universe Myanmar is deeply invested in courageous behavior with respect to the dying and dead in her dangerous nation. Remarkable people of her stripe deserve every person's respect.
As for Prince Harry, he didn't ask to be born a royal. He has every right to think his situation through.
That said, does the Times have to hang on every word? Dearest darlings, use your heads! In its finer precincts, out in the Hamptons, this is the reigning culture of the fatuous, failing enterprise widely described as Our Town!
Meet the Nun Who Wants You to Remember You Will Die? In our view, Miss Universe Myanmar—Ma Thuzar Wint Lwin—shows us what a very insightful, very brave person might be willing to do after that!
Also, Greta Thunberg: Also, Greta Thunberg! She shows us what a very bright person might be willing to undertake on behalf of the young and the living.
Top report in National: Also this! The top report in the National section appears beneath this headline:
A.O.C. Had a Catchy Logo. Now Progressives Everywhere Are Copying It.
Please don't get excited! This top report doesn't focus on AOC's policy views. It covers "the slanted text in Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s logo, and its break from the traditional red, white and blue color palette."
(Presumably, no pun intended!)
"Intriguing! No really, that sounds extra-deep!"
ReplyDeleteYeah, right. Liberals love this shit, ain't they?
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"At the Times, this sort of thing stacks up as thoughtful and cool."
ReplyDeleteThe Times is reporting what the nun said and did, who she is, not foisting some interpretation on her. If Somerby dislikes Catholicism or nuns or the ideas about death, it isn't the fault of the NY Times.
Why was the nun given a place of prominence? Because she is local. Happenings in Myannmar are more distant and thus less important to New Yorkers. That should be obvious.
I don't go "oh" over nuns who fetishize death. I don't see that the Times is doing that, simply because the nun does. Somerby doesn't have to respond that way either. In fact, it would be better if he didn't, in my opinion. But blaming the newspaper for the nun's focus is taking his animosity toward the NY Times too far.
I take it you disagree with @10:01? Why not state your objections instead of name-calling? Calling someone a fucking loser is something you think about lots of people but tend to keep in your head and don't say out loud unless you have some actual point to make.
DeleteWe all understand that it can be traumatic for a conservative such as yourself to read liberal criticisms of a pseudo-lib such as Somerby who is busy expressing conservative memes. You might be a lot happier over at one of those conservative blogs, where you won't encounter any distressing thoughts.
Actually, today Somerby is expressing anti-Catholic sentiments, perhaps arising from his childhood. He may be telling us why he dislikes women so much...maybe they remind him of his favorite nuns.
Deleteto be fair, Somerby has basically said that police who kill AAs should get medals. He hasn't displayed quite that level of hate towards nuns
DeleteWhy should a woman who won a contest for her God-given looks be given a platform to express her ideas? Looking good says nothing about the quality of one's thoughts on any topic, except fashion and appearance. But Somerby thinks she should appear on the front page in place of a local nun, who has presumably dedicated her life to helping others? That suggests some distorted values on Somerby's part.
ReplyDelete"(Presumably, no pun intended!)"
ReplyDeleteWhat pun is involved?
“Slanted” [text] that is not “red, white, and blue”.
DeleteSheesh.
So, this is Somerby's way of sneaking in a bigoted reference to Asians? How nice!
DeleteObviously this is your way of doing that.
DeleteGo ahead, explain what Somerby meant...
Delete“ A.O.C. Had a Catchy Logo. Now Progressives Everywhere Are Copying It.
DeletePlease don't get excited! This top report doesn't focus on AOC's policy views. It covers "the slanted text in Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s logo, and its break from the traditional red, white and blue color palette."’
(Presumably, no pun intended!)
He’s making fun over the supposed excitement of AOC’s campaign logo ironically described as having a script that is “slanted” (to the left?) and not in the usual colors of the ole “red, white, and blue” (jingoism).
Evidently, your take it is that this is describing an entire ethnic group, rather than it being a quip about their take on her political bent.
Right, you can't explain any pun involved without that bigoted reference. Either that or you don't know what a pun is.
DeleteYour comment is so slanted against the blogger that it should be typed in Avant Garde Gothic.
DeleteSomerby presents three headlines. Later he says that it is great for Miss Universe to speak her piece and Prince Harry has a right to explore his situation too. So why were these two additional headlines presented? To conform to the rule of three? If Somerby dislikes giving front page prominence to a morbid nun, he should just say so and leave the others out of it. This manufactured pattern of what he calls silliness comes from him and doesn't appear to be any kind of pattern at all. It is just an excuse to make his animosity toward Catholic nuns seem acceptable, buried amongst two other headlines he doesn't actually have any complaint about.
ReplyDeleteFinally, a proven example of voter fraud:
ReplyDelete“A Trump voter in Colorado is accused of casting an illegal ballot for his dead wife — whom he’s also accused of murdering,” MSNBC reports."
File under "Every Right-wing Accusation is a Confession"
DeleteGot a couple of chuckles Bob. Keep going, you old lefty.
ReplyDeleteLeroy
' In its finer precincts, out in the Hamptons, this is the reigning culture of the fatuous, failing enterprise widely described as Our Town!'
ReplyDeleteNaturally, because your enterprise is the enterprise of hardcore malevolent Trumptards who tried desperately to get Trump-reelected. It failed, just as Somerby failed in his attempts to be a useful idiot for Trump (he ended up as useless idiot).
Anyone who is not Somerby (i.e. not a Trumptard) will see all the serious items on the Time's front page. Somerby is disconsolate because he doesn't see articles praising Trump, Ron Johnson, Matt Gaetz, Roy Moore and Devin Nunes, the way he did.
Oh, the poor reporters. They are merely the dupes of the claim intelligence agencies.
ReplyDeleteSure.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/15/business/media/spooked-private-spies-news-media.html
Ooh La La. You dumb dicks can read Barry Meiers latest article in the New York Times to learn how you got played on Russiagate by the very cohort of idiot journalists Bob speaks about. Just letting you know here since none of the low IQ, stupidly idiotic irrelevant blogs you read will even mention it. Are you ready for your reckoning? No? I didn't think so. You're too prideful, too stupid.
ReplyDeleteOh, poor baby, did you want some cream for that butthurt ?
DeleteBut you can get back to believing about Hugo Chavez !
Sadly, an idiotic non response is expected and unsurprising. Of course you don't want to understand how you got played. Partisanship is your religion and you are a fundamentalist. So fascinating to watch.
DeleteNot Russia.
DeleteNot economic anxiousness.
Plain old bigotry and white grievance, that got Trump elected, no matter how much that hurts the fee-fees of our Right-wing media.
Keep in mind, this is the same media which calls the GOP a "political party", and not "a criminal enterprise".
The ticket to a successful career in the media, is the ability to excuse Right-wing bigotry no matter what.
Delete"Russia" is merely one of the many distractions the press uses to gaslight the people into thinking there is a Right-wing ideology that isn't grievance.
To me it's interesting how spies have infiltrated the media and control it. I would hate to be so blinded by partisanship as to deep six this fascinating part of our contemporary political and media culture. But that's what we come to. You retards prefer jackassery to reality. That's cool. You're just doing the best you can with the intellect you've been given.
Delete"When Mr. Trump, an ex-MI6 agent and two former reporters were thrown into the mix, the ingredients were in place for a media debacle of epic proportions. And in a news business that is fragmented and hyperpartisan, a similar fiasco may lie dead ahead."
There is a direct line between the media treating the GOP as a political party, and the January 6th insurrection.
DeleteHillary Clinton's corruption is a figment of dim-witted imaginations.
Delete''I would hate to be so blinded by partisanship as to deep six this fascinating part of our contemporary political and media culture. But that's what we come to. You retards prefer jackassery to reality. That's cool. You're just doing the best you can with the intellect you've been given.'
DeleteIt's OK, I'm sure Vaseline is available. Stick to your Hugo Chavez fantasies.
I don't know what any of that means but good luck. Sorry you got played for a jackass so hard on this one. I'm sure it's not the first time nor will it be the last. So it goes. Bye.
DeleteOnce you're suckered into believing in supply-side economics, getting you to believe in Antifa is child's play.
Delete' Sorry you got played for a jackass so hard on this one. '
DeleteGot played ? We won, while you believed in Hugo Chavez conspiracies. Do get some vaseline, poor baby.
“Had death become easy to ignore begore the pandemic came along? Not exactly! For example, children were dying in Iraq, often alongside their parents. After that, children were drowning in the Mediterranean. Some people had died in the Holocaust!”
ReplyDeleteRight before that, Somerby just got through saying
“Until the pandemic came along, were we living in an era in which death had become easy to ignore? We're prepared to say that the answer is yes, unless you had access to newspapers.”
Less than 9% of US citizens subscribe to newspapers.
So he is giving opposing answers to his own question.
I would add that Protestant Christians also make a religion out of ignoring death. They view it as a mere transition to eternal life. At least Catholics attempt to remind people of death and suffering. The difference between the two types of Christianity in this regard is illustrated by the cross iconography: Catholics depict Jesus on the cross, emphasizing his suffering and sacrifice, whereas Protestants mostly depict the empty cross, emphasizing the resurrection and notion of escape from death and suffering.
Off topic - my friend who is a grandmother of foster children is now planning to take the two oldest (ages 11 and 9). She's 78 and her husband is 88, so I hope this works out for a few years at least.
ReplyDeleteThe foster parents of the youngest, who has emotional disabilities) intend to adopt him.
Hope for the best...
I’ll hope and pray.
DeleteYes, you do tend to leave the thoughts out of thoughts and prayers.
DeleteYou tend to leave thoughtfulness out of thinking.
DeleteThoughts and prayer rugs.
DeleteBlessed are the prayer plants.
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