I’ve noticed a hush over the Internet lately that gives me the idea people are sick and tired of bad news. My desire for a lift sent me in search of news that isn’t always gloom and doom. Do you ever feel the need for that? Something that focuses on the world but doesn’t bring you down? A few sources advertise positive news, but most use the term “good news” and look at things primarily from a religious viewpoint, which isn’t what I was looking for.
I’m a romantic who likes to think this news simply makes the idea of chemistry between two people a scientifically verifiable fact. “See? We weren’t just being silly when we fell in love, honey.” But a potion? Scientifically engineered trust? I have trouble with that. Maybe I’ve read too much George Orwell.
I got the link from Signs of Light, a positive news source sponsored by CharityFocus.org. Another item with a positive slant, which may require viewing it through the right lens: Teen gets scholarship from death row prisoners’ group.
The lighter side of our local news today is that although the earthquake gave us a good scare, reducing our need for morning coffee, once we’d calmed ourselves and the animals there were no casualties to report. The only damages I’ve heard of so far were a cracked foundation at the CDF fire station in Warner Springs and some cracked power poles elsewhere.
Ah, you may be right about the lull. I too am tired of reading depressive news, and even more tired of writing it. I’ve finally found my way out of a year-long slump and am reaching for the highs to keep me walking away from the past and looking towards a brighter future. I wonder if, as you suggest, everyone’s doing the same.
Can’t remember the last time I watched TV news. For many years I had no TV. Raised my son without TV. Then I married an adorable sports nut junkie.
Only news I read is what I cherry pick on the Internet from several newspapers – run the gamut from liberal to conservative publications.
Forgiveness for the toes I might be crunching in these neck-of-the-woods, but the NC Times is a worthless use of paper – I dash to the section called ‘Weird News’ for laugh therapy. And our local rag is even worse – the main headliner is someone called Virginia Funk – kind says it all.
The paradox to avoiding all the violence and depressing news is that I will watch anything that starts with CSI.
Quite frankly, my favorite read is right here – check it every day. Always something interesting, thought provoking.
Thanks, Reenie.
I confess for most of my life I haven’t followed the news very well. In 1978 my grandmother asked me if I’d heard the pope died. A few weeks later she told me again that the pope died. I thought she was repeating herself and reminded her she’d already told me that. She laughed and said, “No, this is a different pope. You need to check the news more often.”
Once when we lived in San Diego, we turned on the TV news on a stormy morning. The weather person said it would be a beautiful day. That second the TV station blacked out because of lightning. It gave me the best laugh I’ve ever gotten from the news.
I follow the big events, and last year I got sucked into the political coverage, but that’s unusual for me. The classified ads are useful when I’m looking for something in particular, and newspaper is great for disposing of cat litter (though not the local paper printed on smaller newsprint), but daily news tends to upset me and wear me down, so I avoid it more and more. We even recently unsubscribed from the satellite news channels we used to watch, because their coverage became so lopsided. Now when I want to check the news I go looking for it on the Internet.
The two Popes story is a classic – a real belly laugher!
Reagarding depressing news: I watched Oprah the other day – catch her as often as possible – and was traumatized with an hour devoted to ‘baby rape,’ child slavery, and child prostitution clips that included father’s pimping their sons. I understand this is necessary ‘education’ that Americans especially need – that we are clueless to the nightmarish global treatment of youth – as well as slavery issues right here in the US of A. It was some of the darkest, most depressing coverage I have ever watched – it was a rough lesson in enlightenment.
“Bad news exhaustion” probably works the same was as “olfactory exhaustion” does. If you spend a long enough time around something that stinks, your sense of smell gets inured to the offending stench, and you effectively no longer smell the bad smell. That says plenty about news coming out of Washington these days, anyway.
(Me? Most days I can just about get through the comics without feeling the misery.)
Reenie:
It is important for us to know about those things. I don’t like to turn a deaf ear on people’s genuine troubles. I wish the news was more balanced and educational (instead of mostly gossipy and sensational) about situations that our awareness or action can improve.
Blogdog:
There are days when I can take almost any news. Other days I’m ultrasensitive to it. Sometimes all I can handle is comedy or music-or silence. I find pets to be pretty wonderful, in their ability to make me smile when other things get me down. Maybe it’s because they don’t worry about the news.