Stuff that makes you pause and reflect on everything

[Blarg]

I remembering reading a long article about L.A. news, and it was described as the worst in any major city in the nation. Our news here is so feature-based rather than hard-news oriented, and cut into such tiny chunks that even major issues are given less time than a single commercial, that the world the media describes can become surreal and trivial easy to feel completely disconnected from. A famine or civil war killing millions might be mentioned once every few weeks, and in a broadcast that spends ten times as long on a local dog show. Most people don't read the newspapers or know what's going on in either local politics or more broadly. So it can be strange and out of sync with our environment to think that anything really matters or could be taken seriously.

That anyone does actually care about anything can be so out of character it frankly scares people and sometimes prompts them to anger or ridicule, as if not caring or really knowing about anything were a form of sophistication or fair-mindedness, and trying to do anything or give a damn was a fall from grace or hopelessly naive.

I admire people who can commit to something in a world that sometimes seems to be all about nothing, and where fitting in is both such a treasured goal and an excuse for almost anything. Simply sincerely giving a crap is pretty cool.

I admire people like those retirees who have come down to help in Lousiana. It's not as easy to get around for them as it is for some of us, but they're still willing to bust their ass and put their health at risk for total strangers, for no reward. People like that give you a little perspective on yourself.