I just watched
Hotel Rwanda last night and a discussion I had afterwards with my boyfriend got me to thinking...and I've continued to think about it since, so I thought I'd open the concept up to the thoughtful assemblage here.
After watching the movie, I logged on to talk to PW for a few minutes, as we do most nights, and, of course, I was deeply affected by the film so naturally the subject entered our conversation and after commenting on how much I admired the film I started talking about the Rwandan genocide in general and the things that I've learned about it from reading. About the horror of learning about the scope of the massacre for the first time and the shame I felt when I realized how utterly negligent the west's reaction to it was. That
my president, Bill Clinton, was in office when it happened thus permanently dispelling my illusion that there was a compulsion towards justice and human rights in the US Democratic Party. Largely contributing to my present political state of not really trusting the efficacy and finer intentions of my chosen political party on any but a superficial, lip service level of commitment. For all the big talk and finger pointing going on towards the Bush administration and their ME Follies Grand Tour, I don't know if it is much worse than pretending to care about the fate of the citizens in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories only as long as it's a politically viable thing to do.
Which brings me to my next sub-issue. I have done a lot of reading...I've read about so much of the horribly, breathtakingly brutal ways in which mankind has turned on itself and performed the unthinkable on its once peaceful neighbors. I have seen pictures of mass slaughter, brutalized women and disfigured children. Appalling stories and images of refugee camps full of disease and deprivation. These things impact me very deeply and can haunt me literally for years causing me tears, grief, sleepless nights and GUILT. Not in a debilitating way, just to intercede in case you are wondering. I am not crippled by these thoughts. Believe it or not, I am generally a very happy and optimistic person as ridiculous as that may sound.
So, back to the conversation last night. I was relaying some of this to PW last night who is not a very political or particularly well-informed American - like so many of us - and we got to talking about whether or not it is better to know these things. At first my reaction was "of course, it's better to know." But is it really?
Here in America we are afforded a narcotic lifestyle like no other nation can match. Even our cultural lookalikes in Europe, and perhaps even Canada (maybe some of our Canadian comrades here can chime in on their own behalf), do not lead the same sheltered, consumption-obsessed lifestyle that we do. It is very easy to live your entire life here and know next to nothing about how people are suffering the unthinkable at the very same time we are shopping for the best buy on a new flat screen television for the bedroom or considering whether to go with XM or Sirius satellite radio in the new Ford Expedition parked out in the driveway. Now, of course, I am generalizing to make a point, I know not all of us can afford to live that way (I know I can't!) but still, even the most disadvantaged of us are vulnerable to our own anesthetic distractions.
After dwelling on this for the better part of a day, I have come to the conclusion (for myself) that I would rather know. If anything, being aware of these things at the very least means that one more person is paying attention. Even if, most of the time, I don't feel there is anything I can do about it BUT pay attention. These people - men, women and children - deserve to be grieved for. And I do grieve for them.
So what is your opinion?
Do you think it is better to fully comprehend the mess the world is in and accept the psychic consequences that will sometimes make you feel very sad, angry, guilty, and impotent as well as handicap your full engagement with the American way of life?
Or, to go along with the status quo, absorbing only the information disseminated to you through our media outlets because there is nothing you can do about so why torture yourself?
Or, is this all just a bunch of bleeding heart bullshit? If so it's okay, I can take it.
