Dark features
Wayne Carey has quite the reputation. Not necessarily in a good way. The former AFL star/drug addict/alleged domestic abuser and all-round massive tool is about to be inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame. Should he be inducted considering his colourful past? Is he tarnishing the great game? Should he be celebrated for his undeniable talent as a footballer, or derided for that time he said so delicately to a potential conquest in a King Street nightclub, “Piss off and get some bigger tits”? I am not sure.
It does appear though that being a little dim and having a complete disregard for human life and emotion is a distinguishing trait of his namesake. The feature article, ‘NYPD Inaction…’ by Sean Gardiner detailed the tragic story of Romona Carmichael’s kidnap and murder that may have been avoided had the NYPD, in particular, Detective Wayne Carey acted sooner.
This article was interesting in the way it approached the key question of whether policies relating to missing persons are racist. I must say, every time I see a high profile missing persons story in the news (think the Wales-Kings), I wonder about the people that don’t come from wealthy backgrounds or have family connections. How do they get help from the authorities and the media? Will anyone care? It seems not. I believe Gardiner sought to shock the reader into asking these questions. He is quite graphic in his description of the crimes that were committed against Romona. It can be uncomfortable to read. At the same time he uses quotes from her angry and grieving mother to tug on the heartstrings of the reader.
I noticed that Gardiner almost dehumanised the killers in the way he described them. He was also not particularly favourable when talking about Detective Wayne Carey. He comes off as an inept, heartless, procedure-driven cop who should have left the force years ago.
I really engaged with this article and it did well to illicit an emotional response from me. I want to know more, but perhaps the details of the crime overwhelm the main point of the article a little.
The second article, ‘Pearls Before Breakfast’ by Gene Weingarten was a much lighter affair and did not make me think of thuggish AFL stars. Yay! This was a really fun read and despite its length, I was engaged the entire time. What a concept! Are we too busy/self involved/brainwashed by our corporate empires and governments to notice beauty and art when it is laid before us by one of the greats? Sadly, yes.
This experiment would have been quite a massive task for the journo’s involved. The fact that they managed to rope in Joshua Bell is a feat in itself. They had obviously put a few contingencies in place in the event that the crowd went wild. A lot of research would have gone into this story. Quotes from W.H Davies and comparisons with the film ’Koyaanisqatsi’ are but a couple of examples.
The use of quotes from the passersby was particularly effective. It gave me a feeling of ‘it could have been me’. I could have walked past this amazing performance. Then I started thinking about my own existence and whether my job is turning me into a drone! Arrrrgggggggghhhhhhhhh! Then I stopped being dramatic and read the next article.
The wonderfully titled article ‘We have still not lived long enough’ by Tom Griffiths was an unpleasant reminder of how quickly we forget the past. After our beautiful state was incinerated on Black Saturday, there was a lot of blame flying around. Not many people said they saw this coming, but how could they not considering our history?
Griffiths used quite dramatic language to get his point across. “And when they do burn, they do so with atomic power.” This has happened before. It WILL happen again. I found his detailed explanation of the geography of Victoria to be extremely effective. I learnt a lot from this article. Who knew that eucalypt had evolved so well? He would have researched botany texts and spoken to academic and governmental experts to get just some of this information.
Some of the language was emotive but as the article was published on 16 February 2009, just one week after Black Saturday, that is no surprise. Griffiths is almost aggressive in how he communicates his point. How can we forget what has happened to our state so many times in the last century? Why are we not learning from these experiences? Are human beings so arrogant they think they can win a war on bushfires? Maybe Wayne Carey has the answers.
liviacullen said,
May 9, 2010 at 1:24 am
Thoughtful and interesting discussion of the feature pieces Timbo. I didn’t really feel like the description of the murder in Gardiner’s piece detracted from the main point but I see where you’re coming from. I felt more like he used it as a tool to provoke outrage in the reader in a subtle kind of way. I like the way, he doesn’t directly say things like “police are racially bias…we should be outraged”. Instead he uses the strength of describing the murders along with the emotion of Romona’s mother as a vehicle to make his point. I think it’s a clever way of writing I’d really like to master.
aurora9383 said,
May 9, 2010 at 2:17 am
Haha, I also felt very drone-like when I came the realisation that it could very well have been me too. I work at a dry desk job. I catch the train and ignore buskers! Arrghghgh!!! It’s a bit confronting, but I also thought that it was a flawed experiment. Sometimes I do whizz past buskers and think “hmm they’re actually quite good” but that doesn’t compel me to stop or donate. When you’re in a hurry you’re in a hurry. Perhaps it’s just that most people just can’t afford to be late?