> > "I was worried for the stabbing victim, certainly, but mostly I kept being curious about what would next develop instead of being terrified that this was going on so close to home."
> >
> > Thank you, violent media, for all that desensitizing!
> > --mpython"you mean they don't have stunt doubles in real life?"girl
>
>
> I wouldn't think that it's so much the media as it is human nature.

Thank you, Gahalia, for answering before I did. I think you're right, and, while I do think there is far too much sensationalism in the media, I don't think this is an instance that can be used to emphasize that statement. Unless you are a completely different species -- no, even animals display curiosity -- you're going to be vaguely curious about events that are out of the ordinary and that might affect your life. It doesn't take the media to bring out natural curiosity in people.

One night when I was about 15, a drunk driver careened over an embankment into my back yard. The driver continued to drive around, taking out some bushes and slightly hitting a tree. We called the police, they eventually came, got the guy, hauled him off to jail, and then a tow truck had the fun of towing the truck up the embankment. It was late, but I stood on the back porch, peering through the trees and listening to the police conversations. Yes, I hoped the guy wasn't hurt, but I was also wondering what would happen next, what thing he would demolish next, and what the police would do about it.

So, should I have attributed my curiosity to the "violent media, for all that desensitizing"? You can say yes, but there is one small catch: I grew up without television, and I lived in a small town where the local newspaper consisted of such breaking news stories as the students who made the honor roll. At the age of 15, when the truck crash intrigued me, I had seen hardly any movies, and even less television. To credit my natural curiosity to the media would be a serious insult.

Ellmyruh