Thoughts here have turned towards what good news might consist of, what with most of the news from Iraq lately having been so bad. Do we really want the media to be dominated by the stuff? I mean, might good news not be rather … boring?
Personally, what I dislike is not bad news as such. It is the drawing of wrong conclusions from it. Yes, there has been a terrible flood in the Dominican Republic, and I want to be able to read the details of it. But this does not mean that all the people out there live all of their lives in a state of permanent Tidal Wave of Mud Terror. You think that is an exaggeration? Well, I was living in a hotel in Krakow for the first weekend of the Iraq War, the easy bit. All I had to learn about the war was BBC 24 hour news, and this was, as I am sure you all vividly remember, the exact mistake that the BBC made. Hey, here are some soldiers who have been ambushed! Ergo, Iraq is one Great Big Ambush. No, it was just an ambush, and actually, even I could deduce that, despite all the gloomy commentary, My Team was winning big. Here was a classic piece of good news that the BBC truly did misread and misreport as bad.
But unlike the good news of how well that war was actually going, a lot of good news is genuinely dull, compared to bad news. Consider those Twin Towers, the ones they used to have in New York. The building of those Towers was quite interesting, especially if you saved up the news of their existence until suddenly … hey! … there they are! How about that!! (Perhaps one of the reasons why I was so taken by the Erotic Gherkin is that I only noticed the thing just before it got finished.) But no matter how you package it, the building of those Towers can never compare, newswise, with the extraordinary way they were destroyed.
But genuinely good news can sometimes be quite dramatic.
One regular place to look is in the Science/Technology parts of the media. There, you get things happening, or being announced, which are both genuine triumphs for humanity, and which are quite dramatic and interesting. Think of Dale Amon’s postings about space travel. Testing a space rocket is an inherently dramatic procedure and the news that everything went well is still news, even if the news that it was a disaster would probably be bigger news.
Here is some good news:
An operation to remove the tonsils of a seven-year-old girl has been broadcast live on the internet.
Jessica McNeal, from Blackburn, Lancs, underwent the hour-long operation at Blackburn Royal Infirmary using a new coblation technique which lessens the patient’s pain.
Michael Timms, the consultant surgeon performing the operation for East Lancashire NHS Trust, has pioneered the technique for the past four years.
It uses salt water which is turned into plasma and can cut through tissue. The technique is less painful, reduces bleeding, and has a shorter recovery time than traditional methods.
Mr Timms said: “Performed well, coblation tonsillectomy has a number of advantages over traditional techniques that significantly improves both the patient’s and surgeon’s experience of the procedure.
“This broadcast should help patients and surgeons understand the subject better.”
The news here is doubly good. Not only is there a new surgical procedure proving its worth, and on a seven-year-old girl – cue the photos! There is also the further bit of good news, to the effect that by shoving the whole drama onto the internet, medical education is also being propelled forward. And there is just enough controversy about it all (should this really be on The Internet, question mark question mark) to fan the flames of newsworthiness. Personally I’m all for it, if only because televising a dramatic medical procedure helps to pay for it, by spreading the benefits around.
In general though, it has to be admitted that the good news in our lives just at the moment is small stuff compared to the big bad news. I’ve been toying with another good news posting for here, about a new brand of instant coffee a fellow Samizdatista introduced me to, even better than Nescafé Gold Blend, but I am still working on how to make it seem, you know, not silly.
Theres also manufactored good news. Who can control that to the best may bring for a new world leader.
I’ve been spouting off for awhile that if Bush wants to be re elected he needs to strike a deal with the pharmaceutical companies in favor of the seniors, and do better pay and benifits for the military.
Hmm, now that coffee post would be useful. Not silly at all. Post away!
I do on bad news days what I do on good news days: off to the range I go.
The volume of ammo expended depends on the news.
“U.S./U.K. Forces Kill Lots Of Islamist Jerks” (have to search quite hard for that one) — 100 rounds.
“Sen. Hillary Clinton Lashes Out At Republican…” — 200 rounds
“Michael Moore Receives [anything other than a smash in the mouth]” — 300 rounds
You get the idea.
Some weeks, it’s a damn good thing I have over 100,000 rounds of ammo in the locker.
Space travel is indeed good news, who wants to be stuck on the same planet with the French?
Kim may be happy to know that the DoD is working on something called the Common Aero Vehicle (CAV) , Sonn we’ll be able to hit almost any target on earth within about 45m minutes and we will not have to ask anyone’s permission to use their air space.
Think of it as a nice big fast bullet.
“Nescafé Gold Blend” – I would honestly like to know what that other blend of instant coffee is. I’ve not yet found one that can stand up to Gold Blend, even though they made it a little worse with that last recipe change.
Another point, which Brian will recall. Putting good news about liberty-enhancing developments in tech, or about stuff which is just plain good fun, is all part of creating a winning momentum for the libertarian side.
I must say I always try to leaven my contributions with postings which point to the good things going on the world, even if it seems silly to some, like gloriously crass Italian tv, or vulgar, like the latest Ferrari sports car.
Go on Brian, blog about the coffee!