The reasons why Don’t Look Up is as good a piece of satire as it undoubtedly is are various. The most damning portion of all those layers is the one which puts personal gain above the greater needs of the planet (and rest assured that is vague enough an allusion for you not to be spoilt if you’ve not yet seen it). I am reminded of this coming back from Twitter this morning to write here, of how many people have poked me recently, and told me to stop being so fucking serious about the state of the world.
I know Middle England doesn’t give a fuck. Advertisers, too, are keen to look elsewhere. You can’t use a conflict to sell anything, for starters, so everyone is leaning increasingly harder into distraction. It’s returning your brain to a state where the rest of the world can be in trauma but it’s not your problem. It’s accepting that as reality plays out on people’s feeds, without three independent verifications of each war crime, no one is prepared to call any of it out.
Instead, we’re going to Gavin for the weather.
I have thought a lot of late about what might have happened if the Nazi genocide had been conducted in a period when social media was prevalent. Looking at what is happening on TikTok (and why the US want it banned) and Twitter (where the owner wants you to watch what a great world it is where the Right Wing is King) it seems that not much at all has been learnt since the 1940’s.
There should come a point where it becomes impossible to look away from atrocity. Instead, we’re being encouraged to let it happen daily and continue with our lives, because a group of people want to normalise the experience. It has no direct consequence, so when this punishment is then meted out on you and yours, you will accept this is the way of things and do nothing.
So much for the plucky Brits who refuse to be conquered.
There is resistance of course, and being part of it is often like banging my head against the wall until I pass out. I respect and seek out those now who are doing their best to keep me informed of the actual realities taking place around them, and not if I won’t be able to go out on Friday for a jolly, Instagram-focussed jaunt into the countryside. These people don’t need to be told what’s at stake. They already get it.
How I do get people to listen is now something that is undoubtedly going to leech into my poetry, and already has. It’s also going to be how I look at other people as potential friends or business associates. Integrity is paramount for me: in a world where it’s also in danger of extinction in certain areas, you want to promote and encourage those willing to take risks to preserve it.
The internet is a global stage. It’s time far more people took that power seriously.
You seem to be getting sorted. I can’t bear the world at the moment, it’s unbelievable. What choice do we have? Really have? Trying to opt out of so much social media, but it drags me back in because opting out of social media is like giving up on society. Since burying my dog I’m being inundated with messages from dog’s homes, dog charities, rescue stuff.Big Brother is watching me. My friend is hardly on social media at all, but her emails are being swamped with fake doctor and hospital appointments, protecting her isa nightmare. She is made vulnerable by technology. I’m lost. Reality is creaking. We are all living different realities. It should be one, shouldn’t it? What does an informed society look like? OMG!