27th
Hillary puts it well
Antidisingenuousmentarianism: “Okay, so it’s very weird to write about this, but it’s also very weird not to. … Three people getting shot to death about two blocks from your house, in the heart of your idyllic neighborhood. The thing is, by writing about it, you make it seem like it’s about you, which it’s not. … some statement of support or sadness or whatever might be worth making.”
I’ve been trying to figure out why I was so annoyed at online reactions to the shooting. There were a few different ways that people seemed to respond: either they were trying to own the grief, exaggerating some tenuous connection to the dead, or else they expressed a fear that came across as ludicrously self-centered. (As if Zinkhan was going to come back just to shoot them, see.)
Why not be quiet and respectful about it? If you know someone who was hurt by this, reach out to that person. But why do you have to demonstrate to Facebook that you’re no less upset than anyone else in town?
It’s an awful thing, but it’s not an awful thing that happened to me. Which is why I’m still trying to figure out if there’s a better way to for me to respond than with a respectful silence. Hillary’s response is better than mine. She’s able to make a statement of support and sadness.
Edited in an attempt to remove the stink of finger-pointing. This is about my own discomfort, not correcting anyone else’s behavior.
