I have a hard time understanding this one. I just got home yesterday after being on a 4 month motorcycle trip from Minnesota, up to the Yukon and Alaska, then back down to the western states. I posted about an accident I had up in Alaska when I hit a guardrail and had to get my moto repaired, but it was a good trip and we had fun. I found out when I got home that my neighbor's uncle was killed on his Harley back in September, when a woman crossed the centerline and hit him head on. http://www.startribune.com/local/169084856.html?refer=y But it seems the media isn't really interested in the dead motorcyclist. I guess there's too many of them littering the highways of America. No, the media has to find a human interest story: http://www.austindailyherald.com/20...ush-helps-woman-find-missing-dog-after-crash/ And to top it off, that story ran on the front page and was on TV on the day that the family buried Jon. Am I the only one who is disgusted by this?
You're giving the media too much credit. We're fighting two wars and dead soldiers end up on page 6 in today's world. Of course if a Kardashian makes a video of her blowing some gangster-rapper it's on the front page. The media panders to the masses, and the "average" person today is kind of an idiot, which means half the public are bigger idiots. Sorry to hear about your friend. It's always awful to hear about another rider being killed for no other reason than someone else's negligence.
Nobody cares when things get real. Morons are so used to these stupid reality shows on TV that when something truly real happens then they can't or won't handle it. There's more entertainment in bubble gum blow jobs than obituary columns from the Middle East.
my heart goes out to you and the others impacted by your friend's death... and i am disgusted by the "human interest" story of the perpetrator's loss of her dog. note how the author of the article wrote that the authorities were still investigating the cause of the accident. if she was in the wrong lane, how long does it take to figure out who was at fault? this lady should be prosecuted for negligent homicide. as riders we've seen time and time again how these drivers walk away. in my own town, a man drove his car into the path of an oncoming biker. the biker lost his life. the driver of the car received a $50 ticket for FAILURE TO YIELD.
No, you are not. Sorry to hear of your friend's death. There are too many motorcyclists, bicyclists, pedestrians and other victims where their death at the hands of an inattentive or downright felonious driver merits nothing more than a shoulder shrug from authorities, and a statement along the lines of "gosh darn that's an unfortunate accident". For it to get topped off by the lady's ****ing dog being lost as a news story is beyond the pale. Yes, I'm thoroughly disgusted by that situation.
Disgusted...yes. Surpised...no. That is the media. What do you expect? Sorry about your friend. Ride safe.
I'm sorry to hear about your friend but no, no one cares anymore. I see it at work, no one willing to put forth the attention necessary to perform their jobs properly/consistantly and they're not held accountable for it anyway...so why give a shit, right? Accountability...today, with laywers and people's rights . I see it on the roads, most people caught up in meaningless distractions. No respect for their fellow motorists. No clue that operating a vehicle is the most dangerous thing they do on a daily basis. I see it in daily life with people growing an electronic device out of their hand or ear. Good grief who/what is so important that it's necessary to text every two minutes? -It requires using a brain and a little more complex thought to get beyond 10 seconds and the next distraction. For most, those days are gone, filled with endless distractions of media, entertainment...whatever. That's what the masses want, a life filled with meanless distractions. The generations to come....help us all. Frankly, I'm sick of seeing what is on the front page of the paper, the crap posted up in front of me on AOL/Yahoo/whatever...and the way they try to draw me in to push the clicker. Television, I got sick of that two years ago and uplugged it. I don't miss it. The 'human interest' bullshit that got your undies in a bunch (and should get everyone's) is a perfect example of the next distraction...no one gives a damn about her going left of center and someone dying...but lets hurry up and get this feel good story about the fucking dog being reunited with it's owner to make people happy . The man who died, what's his story? Don't worry, it won't make the news because it would require more than a minutes read...well beyond the range of the distracted.
The same kind of accident just happened yesterday in WI killing another MN motorcyclist. In the world of news traffic accidents are mostly 'day of' news stories and the follow ups to who is at fault and what happens to them just doesn't happen but upon rare cases. Those involving public figures/famous names are the exception. Earlier this summer, most news outlets did stories about motorcycle safety only after we were on pace to set a record for the number of deaths involving motorcycles. Unfortunately, I think they have a 'canned' feel and don't really show the costs of driving a car without motorcycle awareness. The online stories are even worse with a 'rip and read' approach that often leaves you thinking the motorcyclist was at fault. Sometime they are.... often they are not. If you're disgusted at the stories then maybe it's time to become an activist motorcyclist. If you make noise through your efforts to promote safety you may get noticed by the media in that light. We should all try to promote safety in our own ways that work for us individually. If not, as the weeks and weeks go by with newsrooms stating death after death, we are only going to become white noise.... ignored. indifferent. Scott in Shoreview '79 Suzuki GS550
Nope ,, just abut to send an email to the paper editor that wrote it. That would be tim.engstrom@albertleatribune.com You may want to let him know how this made you feel.
That is really sick. I would write a scathing letter to the editor at the very least. They owe the family of the deceased an apology.
IM sorry to hear about your neighbors uncle,and glad that your ok.We no longer have a village idiot were a village of idiots. I concur that no one cares about any one anymore just look at the sad state of affairs of our country on the bigger level.
The owners of the paper or the TV station have only one goal. Sell ads. The program or story content is nothing more than bait to get us to sit through advertisements. The real problem is with the mush brained readers and viewers. The more garbage they see, the mushier their brains get, and the less they demand in program content. There is little or no community leadership or political leadership. Even the churches put their political goals above their humanitarian and community endeavors.
I am so sorry for your neighbor's loss. I'm also happy to hear that you are ok after your crash in Alaska. These are things that came to my mind when I read this thread...for what they are worth: 1. Be the change that you desire. So we've all noticed there is an increase in apathy...the thing you can do is not succumb. Don't use other's apathetic responses as your justification for bad behavior. If you see other's with bad manners...be super polite wherever you go. If you see other's cutting people off. Make it a point to let them in when it's your turn. Lead by example...you never know whom your ripples may touch =) 2. These newspapers were in two different states. I think perhaps it would give too much credit to TX newspapers to be watching MN news for an article of interest (unless it were national level). Keep your head up...
I sent an e-mail to Mr. Engstrom, but haven't had a reply yet. I just get angry at the seeming indifference that society, as a whole, has when any person, not just a motorcyclist, is mowed down by a drunk or distracted driver. It sickens me to read something like this, as though a dog is more important than a dead man. I've seen too many times, the killer being comforted instead of the family. This is just another instance.
Come on man? What do you expect from the media. The same media that thinks it is national news when an obese news reporter is told she is a bad roll model.
You need to contact the police chief, sheriff etc and make sure the woman is charged. Letter from the family would be best. Then once charged, letter to the DA asking for prosecution. Go to the court proceedings. Get help from the paper. Rod
Up front, let me say I'm a journalist. Okay, those of you that are still here: That has to be about the worst piece of journalism I've ever seen. I'm in two minds: weep for the death of my craft in your country - or apply for a job there and resurrect it. Because? A halfway decent journo would pin the two stories together and pose the question:" What's the odds that this dumb woman crossed onto the wrong side of the road because she had the damn dog on her lap?" And Fido, knowing its owner was an idiot, fled in the hopes of a better life in the cornfields. And also, a quarter-way decent journo would be asking the question several posters already did: "What's to investigate, if she was on the wrong side of the road at 3.00pm?" She's not been dazzled by oncoming traffic; she might have fallen asleep in the 3.00pm dip or she might have been distracted by an unrestrained canine. What is the Po-leece concealing? And I wonder if her "church family" uttered a single prayer for the innocent father and husband she mindlessly killed - or were they too busy god-bothering for her mutt? Seiously, you guys deserve better newspapermen.
