The longer that I’m stranded in Ireland due to the Volcano, the more cynical and funny/sad the news seems to get. I’ve now seen more talking heads interviewing volcanologists (Live Long and Prosper) than I can speak of. And yet, somehow, it’s fascinating – because it’s so overplayed (we’re talking pick your favorite B movie end of the world scenario – Volcano? Apocolapyse? Day after Tomorrow?) and perhaps over dramaticized (weepy bride misses wedding, angry parents with tired whiny children, empty airports with slow strolling reporter and panning camera) to keep the fickle public interest. It’s a formula that works, and I know it, see it, and recognize it – but nonetheless find myself fascinated – because I just want to know if my flight will go on Wednesday (doubt it – I should just unpack into the hotel drawers and plan on staying a while) like the rest of the several hundred thousand stranded by the ash around the globe.
As far as the Volcanologists (Live Long and Prosper) go, they all pretty much (for 4 days straight) say “big mountain go boom”, and “Ash is Bad!” and “It’ll stop when it stops.” To that end, I realize three things. a) I could have figured that out myself from the pictures after you told me that the first time b) Yes, ASH is bad, but it’s also good – because it makes the soil around the volcanoes some of the worlds most fertile – lots of nutrients. Think of it as mother nature manure. Better than cow manure – and Everyone who is a farmer wants to raise crops in it…. that’s why there are huge civilizations around volcanoes… c) No matter how advanced our technology is, Right Now, Mother Nature still has one up on us and has won this round of “stump the scientist”. Kudos to Earth on that one.
Oh – because I saw a great article filled with beautiful pictures (yah I know – but it is beautiful in a “hell on earth-really glad i’m not there but wish i was with my camera – just to say I was and have the photo to prove it – way) from Iceland’s local English paper. (You can see it for yourself here.) I must note that Icelanders are learning to hate Fox “news” almost as much as the rest of the world, and are quite vocal in their annoyance. Fair Play to Iceland for actually recognizing the humor and over-doing of everything that Fox says – even this.
Oh – and Congrats to Fox – for annoying people the world over. Again. Keep up the Scare-mongering. You might get a real apocolapyse out of it. No really. Predict it enough, and eventually you might be right.
On another front, I saw an article on MSNBC today, where Leonard Nimoy says that Barack Obama is a Star Trek Fan (With those ears? you sure he’s not half Ferengi?). Not only was the timing excellent, the article is complete with the Mr. Spok pose Nemoy is most famous for… the Hand with fingers V’ed in the middle and the thumb sticking out; aka – to us Trekkies – the Vulcan (live long and prosper) hand greeting. While the article is great, on initial opening of the page, I thought….
Oh Dear! Mr. Nemoy, You’ve been watching too much News Coverage of Volcano-ologists – just like me… (see last post where I explain that with each Volcano-ologist interview I’m holding up the hand greeting)
Ok that’s enough for today –
Live Long and Prosper.
