Details emerging about the young man who went on the shooting rampage at Virginia Tech indicate, we are told, “a chilling portrait of a 23-year-old loner who alarmed his professors with twisted creative writing…” (Kokomo Tribune, 4/18/07, p. A1). The report tells us that Cho wrote “obscenity- and violence-laced screenplays… One was about a fight between a stepson and his stepfather, and involved throwing of hammers and attacks with a chainsaw.” One classmate revealed, “When we read Cho’s plays, it was like something out of a nightmare. The plays had really twisted, macabre violence that used weapons I wouldn’t have even thought of.”
Frankly, I am confused by the concern expressed over Cho’s writings. It sounds to me exactly like the plots of innumerable movies and television shows being shown as entertainment on any given week of the year. Monday’s entertainment news leader reads, “‘Disturbia’ gets movie-goers’ attention with $23M” (Kokomo Tribune, 4/16/07, p. A8). “Disturbia” - number one grossing movie the weekend before Cho’s shooting spree. Yet, the nation is shocked by the obscenity and violence in Cho’s playwrights? A chainsaw used as a weapon? Hmmm… where have I heard of that theme before? Macabre, murderous uses for everyday tools and items? Hmmm… ever heard of the “Saw” movies? I wonder how many terrified students on the Virginia Tech campus that day were listening to or wearing paraphernalia from groups like “Slip Knot” that market bizarre, macabre, culture-of-death themes as entertainment?
I am not issuing a call for censorship. I am not even suggesting that there is any cause-and-effect link to be made between the modern cultural fascination with the macabre and Cho’s actions. Instead, I am inviting every reader of this blog to take time to reflect on the personal choices he/she makes and ask if those choices contribute to a culture of fear or a culture of peace. Are the entertainment and lifestyle choices you are making every day something you are proud to pass on to your children, or would you rather they not do what you are doing? Are you really so willing to plop down your hard-earned money to glorify gore and culture-of-death media, or would you really rather use your resources to make a difference in the community and world in which you live?
Not a single one of us can bring any of Cho’s victims back to life or erase the injuries he has caused. But we can honor them. We can make daily choices in our own personal lives that reflect and honor peace and the valuable sanctity of life instead of bizarre, macabre, gory deaths and lyrics. What path are you taking? It’s your choice.
Frankly, I am confused by the concern expressed over Cho’s writings. It sounds to me exactly like the plots of innumerable movies and television shows being shown as entertainment on any given week of the year. Monday’s entertainment news leader reads, “‘Disturbia’ gets movie-goers’ attention with $23M” (Kokomo Tribune, 4/16/07, p. A8). “Disturbia” - number one grossing movie the weekend before Cho’s shooting spree. Yet, the nation is shocked by the obscenity and violence in Cho’s playwrights? A chainsaw used as a weapon? Hmmm… where have I heard of that theme before? Macabre, murderous uses for everyday tools and items? Hmmm… ever heard of the “Saw” movies? I wonder how many terrified students on the Virginia Tech campus that day were listening to or wearing paraphernalia from groups like “Slip Knot” that market bizarre, macabre, culture-of-death themes as entertainment?
I am not issuing a call for censorship. I am not even suggesting that there is any cause-and-effect link to be made between the modern cultural fascination with the macabre and Cho’s actions. Instead, I am inviting every reader of this blog to take time to reflect on the personal choices he/she makes and ask if those choices contribute to a culture of fear or a culture of peace. Are the entertainment and lifestyle choices you are making every day something you are proud to pass on to your children, or would you rather they not do what you are doing? Are you really so willing to plop down your hard-earned money to glorify gore and culture-of-death media, or would you really rather use your resources to make a difference in the community and world in which you live?
Not a single one of us can bring any of Cho’s victims back to life or erase the injuries he has caused. But we can honor them. We can make daily choices in our own personal lives that reflect and honor peace and the valuable sanctity of life instead of bizarre, macabre, gory deaths and lyrics. What path are you taking? It’s your choice.
No comments:
Post a Comment