@my123cents on Twitter
The bulk of this post is going to be Chad's, but since we both wanted to weigh in on the death of Robin Williams, I figured I'd tie it into one post. My thoughts will be short and sweet.
Remember the alien who made us laugh in Mork and Mindy. Remember the Genie who made us believe in ourselves in Aladdin. Remember the teacher who inspired us in Dead Poet's Society. Williams' apparent suicide has created an open dialogue on the issue of mental illness, depression, and suicide. He was not selfish in his actions. We don't know the pain he was going through. That's the thing about mental illness. People suffer in silence.
I think we as a society need to acknowledge mental illness is a very real medical condition just like cancer, diabetes, or heart disease. The stigma needs to be broken. It's okay to get help. I know several people who have ended their own lives because they felt there were no other options. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, call the Suicide Prevention Hotline anytime, 1-800-273-8255.
Chad's take on things
Monday at work my
coworkers got into a discussion about the death of Game of Thrones actor J.J. Murphy. They were trying to figure out
which character J.J. portrayed on the show. Since I don’t watch Game of Thrones and don’t think I’ve
ever seen J.J. Murphy before, I got up and walked around for a bit to get away
from the conversation. When I came back, they had all gone back to work. I sat
at my computer and decided to check the news sites to see if anything
interesting was going on in the world before going back to work myself. That’s
when I saw Robin Williams had been found dead. This led to a brief talk with the coworkers as they had seen
the news and talked about it while I was gone.
Again, I realize what I’m
about to write is going to be more of the cynical, angry old man side of me
that seems to be coming out more and more lately. That isn’t my full intention.
This is more of an observation and curiosity I have towards human behavior.
Aladdin Photo courtesy: Disney |
After news broke about Robin
Williams’ death, literally for the next hour every single posting on my
Facebook timeline was either a RIP comment or picture of Robin from one of his
movies. I understand the death was
shocking due to Robin not being ill but I what I don’t understand is why
celebrity deaths impact people so much.
On the way home from work I
was talking with a friend and she made two valid points. I have a lot of
friends who work in the film/television industry. In a sense, Robin was a peer.
That could explain all the postings. I’ve had other people I’ve worked with on
shows die in the past few years and everyone who knew them posted similar
comments to those being posted about Robin. Difference being fewer people knew
these behind the scenes persons and so there were less comments.
The second point my friend
mentioned was a nostalgia factor. Robin Williams has been a star for nearly 40
years. From Mork to Popeye to Mrs. Doubtfire to Genie and others that had a
lasting impression on the audience, Robin Williams leaves a legacy of quotable
and memorable characters. Anyone
who grew up with these characters understandably feels a loss due to Robin’s
death.
The issue I have is not so
much why people would be sadden by the death of Robin Williams but why one
person’s death gets heralded while others get mocked or ignored. Maybe it’s because I don’t idolize
celebrities the way society tells me I should. Yes, there are celebrities I am
huge fans of but at the end of the day, I realize they are just people like
everyone else and if I actually knew them, my opinion of them could be
radically different.
Kevin Ward, Jr. Photo courtesy: USA Today |
Getting back to the first
part of the last paragraph, on Saturday night, racer Kevin Ward Jr. was struck
and killed by Tony Stewart during a race at Canandaigua Motor
Sports Park in upstate New York.
The few comments I’ve seen regarding the incident put more blame on
Kevin for being on the racetrack than showing compassion for his death.
Granted, Kevin shouldn’t have left his car and walked onto a racetrack while
cars were still driving. Does that make Kevin’s death any less tragic than
Robin Williams’ death that would make it okay to mock or trivialize it?
Ferguson riots |
Earlier on Saturday in Ferguson, Missouri an 18-year-old
male, Michael Brown was shot by a police officer. This story went primarily
unmentioned until riots and looting broke out in Ferguson. I do not know most
of the details involved in this case. Does that support what I’m trying to say
in this writing? Police shoot a person and a town breaks out into mass chaos
yet as of this writing four of the top six stories on Yahoo are about Robin
Williams. Even President Obama has
issued a statement regarding the death of Robin Williams yet has been silent
about a town in turmoil.
Last month Islamic state fighters stoned two
women in separate towns in Syria to death for allegedly committing adultery. In
2014 people are still being stoned to death and it doesn’t make the news for
several days.
Again, I understand Robin Williams had
universal appeal and recognition. I think part of my issue may also be the
manner in which Robin died. The current story is he committed suicide after
suffering from depression. While his life is being celebrated and remembered,
how long before people move on and “forget” about the reason for his
death? Mental illness seems to be
a growing problem in society yet how much is being done to treat and cure (if
possible) this disease? That’s an
honest question, as I have no clue what to the answer. I’ll save that tangent for another
time.
Good Morning Vietnam |
Robin Williams was a hilarious comedian and
talented actor. His death is shocking due to the nature of how it happened. But
I am jaded and cynical to the point where the death of a celebrity doesn’t take
precedence over actual events in the world that will have more of a lasting
impact. I simply don’t understand
the culture of celebrity society promotes. Being rich, being famous, being
infamous doesn’t mean anything to me. People are people.
Good thing my123cents has Kevin around to keep
things light and fun.
I think its OK to say that Robin had died, but why do TV people keep talking about it for days or weeks. People want to glorify them as though they are special, which they are not. The norm for those kinds of people is death by drugs or booze & the TV people celebrate that. The people who work hard each day & contribute 10 times more never get noticed.
ReplyDeleteNearly all the celebrities have a tough life due to loss of privacy. Its very difficult for them to give up a part of your life and not having control of it.
ReplyDelete