Life Porn
So I am definitely a lot more skeptical of this than I would have been if I watched this last year. The Occupy movement was kind of disillusioning and left me cynical with respect to grassroots movements. For this reason, after I finished watching this video I went and did some of my own research. I read arguments for and against this Kony 2012 campaign instead of writing the essay I’m supposed to have finished later today, and came to the conclusion that I think it really is worth supporting this cause. I haven’t decided if I necessarily support Invisible Children, Inc. (the company that puts this video out) in all of its endeavors quite yet, but I think the cause, and the plan they’re using to deliver that cause to people, is very worthwhile.
Some people against the campaign have said that people are missing the true reason for why Joseph Kony is stil alive and operating and central Africa. The Ugandan forces are extremely corrupt and must be dealt with before Kony can be captured, they say. I don’t exactly know enough about the history of the region to confirm or deny this statement, but what I will say is that stating things like this are also missing a crucial point. Using the above reason in order to not do anything is weak and short-sighted. It may take some time to capture Kony in this way, without first dealing with the issue of corruption, and yes, it ultimately might even fail. But in not trying, we are admitting defeat and leaving thousands of children to die. Say what you will about cultural relativism, but the children involved in the conflict have expressed their stance, and have said that they want to be freed of their situation.
I also think that this video brings up another interesting point. Communication technologies such as facebook have, in the past year, been instrumental to history-making events such as the Egyptian revolution. We are at a point where we can use a virtual space to organize ourselves and gain exponentially increasing support for an issue, all without leaving our keyboard. The process of sharing a link about genocide or some other serious issue leaves us with a feeling of satisfaction. I can convince myself that by sharing a link on facebook, I am somehow making the world a better place. The reality is that we rarely have any serious impact on the world, at least in such a scenario. I think this Kony 2012 movement realizes that this is an issue and tones down what it aims to do. It isn’t necessarily aiming at making people jump up and become activists. Instead, it frames itself as essentially an advertising campaign meant to publicize the issue so that other people who really are activists can then pressure the people who can make changes happen.
All in all, it’s something worth looking into, at the very least.
Interesting story of the day: I was playing around with google earth and went to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and found a tiny island called “Ascension”. I zoomed in on it, and found a landmark tagged as “Herd of Feral Donkeys.” I don’t exactly know what to make of it, but I have decided that I must witness this spectacle of bloodthirsty pack animals. The island has an airport, so now it’s just a matter of findin a flight I suppose. I even got the coordinates: Latitude: 7°56’46.12”S Longitude: 14°22’46.41”W
I’m going to write a short explanation for why I haven’t kept this up to date: I haven’t felt like it. Actually, low motivation has kind of been the name of the game for me so far. I miss having a more rigorous academic schedule that checks attendance and all that. The British school system practically necessitates laziness and nero-zero workload.
The Avengers trailer. Yes please.
