“I’m so fed up with hearing about the death of an actor no one knew! There are children and soldiers who die every day and no one says anything about it!”
I saw this post on Facebook and it made me think.
I’d agree.
On the flip side, I think it’s a ‘connection’ situation that some aren’t able to fathom. Actors come into people’s living rooms. We occasionally connect with their characters and relate. In this country, we don’t have a Prince or a Queen. Hollywood is our royalty.
Psychologically, this is why people are upset. They feel they know Paul Walker (naturally, we get more upset when prettier people die) and he is on display for us; to a degree, we have access to him and his life. The USA won’t even so much as release names or faces of the many dead soldiers who have come home each day. Stories on children’s hospitals are few, far between, heartbreaking and gloomy.
Walker represented glamour and an American dream…not death and depression. As a country, we are in an emotional melancholia. Anti-depressant use is up 400% from last year. When this happens, fantasy TV shows like True Blood, The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones do very well in ratings because people want escapism.
So, when someone dies whom fans have admired for doing things they’ve always wanted, but never had the balls to (because most people don’t follow their dreams) it affects them on a personal level.
Is it messed up that people are mourning an actor they don’t know more than a soldier who is being held hostage? Yes. But it’s completely understandable if you think about it.
We don’t comprehend how others see things or feel at times – even if it’s not right. We don’t try to put ourselves in their shoes. We lash out instead of being intelligent and using the “WHY” question we were originally taught as children, but forgot somewhere along the way when many of us became sheeple herded along by TV and corporate owned mass media. “I wonder WHY she feels that way or WHY he did that?”
Shit could be so much more positive and calm if we could just learn to understand all sides. That’s what tolerance really is. Not being nice to people who are different because you have to. It’s empathy. I doubt my little blog is going to cause world peace or anything, but perhaps it can help one or two of you grasp things a little better. That’s my hope, as I sit here late at night, typing away. (However, I’m a hopeless idealist.)
Ask WHY. Question everything.
…And have a kick ass week. Life is short.
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Putting The Clothes On, Taking The Gloves Off. 
Not sure how I landed here, I was not even searching this actor. But, I’m glad I did and it was nice to read this. I agree completely, and would only add that understanding why some people would act as if his death affected them personally, does not mean we should accept that behavior. People nowadays are so disconnected that some movie star’s or musician’s death affects them more, and they know more about them and their lives, than about their next door neighbor who may be suffering. I am guilty of this as well. I remember growing up, I could tell you the name of every person who lived on my street. Now, I don’t even know how many people live in the apt next door. We don’t talk to each other anymore. We don’t really care. We do not want to be bothered. Instead we pretend to know and care about someone who does not even know and, likely does not care, that we even exist. While pretending not to notice the people who are closest.
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