Esoteric Bowl

March 2005 has been a very strange month. From Michael Jackson wearing pajamas as he reported to court in his child molestation case, to Robert Blake being found not guilty for the murder of his wife. From President Bush nominating Paul Wolfowitz to head the World Bank, to Major League Baseball testifying before congress about steroid use.

But all of these stories as well as any stories about the Iraq war or the Indonesia earthquake have all played second fiddle to the one story that has dominated the national news; the Terri Schiavo case.

The condition that Terri Schiavo is in is truly unfortunate. And the circumstances facing her family and her husband are also unfortunate. Because I don’t know all the details of the case, I’ve put my trust in the court’s decision and kept my opinions to myself. But lacking details has not stopped many others from feeling a need to add their two cents.

While I have no interest in following the 24/7 news coverage of the Terri Schiavo case, I do find the response of others quite interesting. First there is the national media, which has embedded reporters in Florida to provide viewers with the mood of the protesting crowd. The national media has given far more attention to these protesters than any group of anti-war protesters ever received. And while all of this is going on, Martha Stewart is wondering where all the media has gone.

Then there’s the politicians, who have used the tragedy to gain air-time and to further their own agenda. Congress pushed through an emergency bill to allow the Terri Schiavo case to be reviewed by federal courts, and President Bush cut his vacation short to return to Washington to sign the bill. Many of the politicians have since backed off from the issue since learning that an overwhelming majority disapprove of their meddling into the case.

And finally there’s the protesters. They have come out of the woodwork in Florida. Even though the case is none of their business, it hasn’t stopped them from protesting, getting arrested, and attempting to malign the reputation of Ms Schiavo’s husband by suggesting he tried to kill Terri. During Easter weekend, some protesters carried crosses with Terri’s image on it, suggesting she is some kind of martyr or savior to their cause. I don’t know what it is about Florida, but whether it’s voter fraud or Save Elian Gonzalez, they always seem to have an unquenched thirst to be in the national spotlight.

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 31st, 2005 at 5:25 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.