Thursday 16 December 2010

Forgiveness?



I had breakfast with my Thai Sister. We don't speak when I'm there. I try, but she prefers silence, so that's when I see the occasional ad with something going on, or as in this case, I caught sight of the screen image and was right by it in no time as the shots were still ringing out. Me incredulous. He did that didn't he. This is the real thing.

Its not nice, but I've uploaded it as I think too much of the dying process is cordoned off from us. Specifically the killing that takes place to protect our lifestyles. This clip too has been sanitised with the court officials being cropped out of it leaving their deaths to the imagination. Can I level with you? This is a no nonsense, matter of fact example of how banal  a killer  can be in their conduct. 


He begins with by spray painting a circle overlapped by a larger V. As if remixing V is for Vendetta and Anarchy. Then he explains who stays, and instructs the the women to leave. One of the women returns doing Disney cartoon tiptoing behind the gunman only to fail miserably at dislodging the gun. He's not phased at all by this unexpected event. 


Then we cut to the the best efforts of the court officials pleading they need to understand his motivation for their impending death, a sense of dragging it out longer than necessary emerges, the judge who actually signed the papers that led to this incident requests that everyone else be released.

I'm aware that in all this mess of man against whatever it is that the cultural complex leaves for so many, an incongruous relationship with something biological, and which pushes those on  the margins, sometimes over the edge. 

I'm touched that this still exists in our species, and that all is not lost. Not in one go anyway. 


The shots take place matter of factly. The judges slain where they work and if I recall correctly from the uncensored TV screen version the gunman makes a hopping movement at some point as if maybe a guard has finally arrived at the scene and tried to prevent what had already been committed to history.

The sobering effects of guns are acute. When the barrel direction is on you, suddenly the realisation that its our consciousness which is beyond value and that all those remaining worldly goods are trivial and useless to barter with or to plead for our lives.

 I feel bad about this event. Maybe it's dull with the cropped corpses. If the video provokes even minor changes in some lucky peoples priority of values, its worth the sickening feel it leaves behind.