Monday, April 04, 2005
Ashes on a stick
I don't even know where to start with this article, which compares Terri Schiavo's death to Jesus's crucifixion.
We could start, I suppose, with the details. Like that Terri's already been cremated. They never got their hands on Jesus. And that Terri's blood isn't saving any souls.
I could go on, but it wouldn't be proper. I'm just disgusted by this comparison. It's pure emotional appeal. It entirely ignores the details of either the Schiavo case or the story of the crucifixion, and in this way abuses both Schiavo and Christ.
Now, maybe we shouldn't judge a website by one story, but this story got me really curious who the Cybercast News Service is. They claim, from their Corporate History website, to be "a news source for individuals, news organizations and broadcasters who put a higher premium on balance than spin." So we're looking for balance here. Then maybe we've got it, because this kind of "journalism" should be equally as revolting to people of faith on both sides of the Schiavo case.
One of the site's testimonials, from Cal Thomas, says that CSN has "...facts that you can print out and share with your friends... and those facts can be used to convert people to the truth." The religious overtones of this statement make the Schiavo story even more vulgar. You can't convert anyone by nailing a braindead woman to a cross. You're only going to sway people whose eyes are too feeble to discern the vague forms they see, whose tongues taste truth when they swallow opinion. At best, this crowd will go out and find other sightless, tasteless louts, and form an itinerant stumbling band of vocal fools.
Oh wait, we already have that with the Schiavo case. So much for balance.
We could start, I suppose, with the details. Like that Terri's already been cremated. They never got their hands on Jesus. And that Terri's blood isn't saving any souls.
I could go on, but it wouldn't be proper. I'm just disgusted by this comparison. It's pure emotional appeal. It entirely ignores the details of either the Schiavo case or the story of the crucifixion, and in this way abuses both Schiavo and Christ.
Now, maybe we shouldn't judge a website by one story, but this story got me really curious who the Cybercast News Service is. They claim, from their Corporate History website, to be "a news source for individuals, news organizations and broadcasters who put a higher premium on balance than spin." So we're looking for balance here. Then maybe we've got it, because this kind of "journalism" should be equally as revolting to people of faith on both sides of the Schiavo case.
One of the site's testimonials, from Cal Thomas, says that CSN has "...facts that you can print out and share with your friends... and those facts can be used to convert people to the truth." The religious overtones of this statement make the Schiavo story even more vulgar. You can't convert anyone by nailing a braindead woman to a cross. You're only going to sway people whose eyes are too feeble to discern the vague forms they see, whose tongues taste truth when they swallow opinion. At best, this crowd will go out and find other sightless, tasteless louts, and form an itinerant stumbling band of vocal fools.
Oh wait, we already have that with the Schiavo case. So much for balance.
Comments:
Post a Comment
