Okay, I'll say it...

I don't care what happened to Natalie Holloway. I don't. Enough already. I give. Get off my TV screen.

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The nightly MSNBC transition from Keith Olbermann to Rita Cosby is the manifestation of "going from the sublime to the ridiculous." I came into the room the other night and they had a flippin' panel discussion of the "latest developments." Almost enough to make me go all Elvis on the TV, but I don't keep firearms, and the remote was closer than the sledgehammer.

God, doesn't Rita Crosby (or Cosby - I've seen her own network spell it both ways) drive you crazy? Could she possibly be any more vacuous?

Ah.... who the devil is Rita Holloway?

By flatlander100 (not verified) on 03 Dec 2005 #permalink

Sorry. Natalie Holloway.

By flatlander100 (not verified) on 03 Dec 2005 #permalink

I care, but only inasmuch as I care about any other young woman I do not know who meets that same sad fate.

Unfortunately, it happens every day. When you're white, pretty, socially acceptable and personable it makes the news. But it also can be forgotten as quickly...remember Shondra Levy?

Who is Natalie Who? Oh wait, let me guess, she's white and something terrible has happened or possibly happened to her?

Who is Natalie Who?

It appears that Scott Peterson's 15 minutes of fame have come and gone.

I have never heard of this person. I had to do a google search to figure out what it referred to (BTW, what is google's business model? Where do they make their money?) What should be evident is that what pass for news channels in US cable media are nothing more than gossip.

God, doesn't Rita Crosby (or Cosby - I've seen her own network spell it both ways) drive you crazy? Could she possibly be any more vacuous?

I have a theory about that husky voice, but this is a family blog.

I don't watch much TV, so it doesn't really bother me. However, if I did watch a lot of TV, and this Holloway thing was bothering me, I'd either change channels, or turn it off. That's just me. Same reason I don't watch churchy-shit on Sunday mornings, or FOX news. Ever.

I dunno Ed...this post seems to be the sort of thing that, while it may allow you to blow off a little steam, it probably (and incorrectly, in my opinion) portrays you as being a little more calloused, cold, and cynical than you really are.

(Note: I say this as someone who "knows" you only through your blog, so I don't know how you "really" are. However, I have been a regular reader for a while now, and I get the sense that we're on the same wavelength, most of the time, and I dont' see you as a calloused, cold person.)

Anyway, on one hand, truthfully, factually, no, I don't care either. Not really. Not if we're going to be completely honest. I haven't thought about it in weeks, primarily because I never watch FOX news, and I rarely watch TV. On the other hand, as a parent, I can empathize with what these parents are going through. Thinking about what they are going through bothers me. I can't help it. I don't like to see people suffer any more than the next non-sociopath.

Additionally I think that, yeah, while this shit does happen every day, that the Holloway family is extremely fortunate to have caught the media's attention. What if it were your kid? Man, I know if it were mine, I wouldn't care if it were on FOX News 24/7. I wouldn't care what "America" thought about it. I'd just want my son back. And, I'd feel damn lucky if I were fortunate enough, like the Holloway family is, to have caught the spotlight. That family has had a run of real-fuckin-bad-luck, so I just can't find it in me to publicly say, "Enough!", just because they've had just a tiny-little-bit of "good luck", and that their "good luck" annoys me.

I say "good luck" because really, if they had a choice between having it broadcast to the whole damn country (for how long now?) that their daughter has probably suffered some horrible fate, or simply having their daughter back, I know damn well which one they'd choose.

They'd choose not to annoy people with their tragedy.

rmadison wrote:

I dunno Ed...this post seems to be the sort of thing that, while it may allow you to blow off a little steam, it probably (and incorrectly, in my opinion) portrays you as being a little more calloused, cold, and cynical than you really are.

I agree it could be interpreted that way, but I thought my intent was pretty clear. Perhaps it wasn't. I don't know Natalie Holloway, or her parents, or anyone who does know her. If I did, I would surely care very much what happened to her. As it is, I can only feel that vague, distant sort of "wow, that's tragic" sort of caring. But more than anything, I'm tired of the media saturation and exploitation of it, and that is precisely what it is. If I knew the family, I would not count them as lucky for having caught the media's attention, but quite unlucky. That's just the kind of person I am. I think some things should be handled privately, not publicly, and I consider it highly undignified by those who carry on in public about personal tragegies, and highly intrusive by those who insist on publicizing it.