Look again

[dreamer_easy]

I'm going to be sitting here for a while, desperate to avoid working. This is a burble advisory!

There are numerous problems posed by reading the newspapers, one of which is the sheer volume of information, which leads us to glance at headlines and skim first paragraphs rather than trying to read everything in detail. Especially eye-catching headlines: do you remember that great bit in All The President's Men where they're working out the stories for the day, and one is the oddball story, and the editor says: "It'll be the only story that everyone reads."

But even if we read whole articles, we're often still missing crucial facts - which wouldn't matter if our brains didn't try to fill them in, the way it fills in our blind spots. Yesterday, after receiving the unpleasant news that my sister's car had been burgled, I spotted a headline alleging that a pair of teenage vandals in New Zealand had been caught by their victims and videotaped being made to dance until police arrived. At least, that's how the paper spun it, with the help of my mind filling bits in. Some of it didn't quite seem right - how did they stop the boys from leaving, and make them dance? - but it seemed like a cheeky bit of justice.

But look again:

"The two young men had allegedly sprayed graffiti tags on a fence at the home in Whangarei on Thursday night last week. The next day a couple who live at the home tracked them down and forced them to come back to their house where they called the police. While they waited for police to arrive, the couple took out a video camera and forced the men to dance for at least ten minutes... It was not clear how the couple managed to capture the teens or whether a weapon was involved."

That's an entirely different story to my first impression - of naughty lads caught red-handed during a break-in, and taught a harmless lesson until the authorities arrived. Rather, what that more recent news report alleges is a vigilante kidnapping. The video-makers will still have the support of Laura Norder types everywhere, although Laura might have a different opinion if it was her children involved - or if her kids happen to resemble the alleged vandals.

ETA: Whangarei homeowner will not be charged over dancing taggers. "It was not deemed in the public interest to prosecute Mr Chambers".

In a similar vein, I'd vaguely noted stories about an Israeli woman claiming "rape by fraud" when she discovered she'd had sex with a non-Jew. This turns out to be complete bullshit of the "it wasn't rape-rape" variety. Analysis and useful links here.

Comments

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

This reminds me to recommend to you the book I'm currently reading: Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error (http://www.harpercollins.com/books/Being-Wrong-Kathryn-Schulz/?isbn=9780061176043) by Kathryn Schulz. It's a marvelous examination of error--why we make so many mistakes, how we deal with it as individuals and as a society, and how it can be a very positive thing. I think you would find much to engage with in its pages.

[dreamer-easy.livejournal.com]

Looks like it's right up my alley! Thanks! :D