Hey everyone! So you all can call me SoK, if you wish. Nice and easy. I'm new around here, so be gentle! I've lurked around this site since 2006, and always wanted to contribute to the community, but never really had the chance. Well, here I am, a freelance blogger and reviewer, about to start my blogging thing here on the mighty SuicideGirls once and for all! Bahahahaha
Maniacal laughter aside, I suppose I should let you know what to expect from my blog. Most of it will be entertainment related, be it video games, movies, TV series, music, books, etc. But I also am going to post a lot about current events, cool places to check out in the world, random things I encounter on my travels... Basically anything that goes through the old noggin. A lot will be video game related, so just a heads up. :P
However, for my first post, I want to bring things home with something that hit hard as a Canadian. See, yesterday there was a shooting at a Canadian war memorial, right beside our government headquarters in Ottawa. A soldier, and not an active one but an honour-guard at the memorial, was killed. I'm not sure how much air-time it got in the United States, but it's everywhere here.
The thing is though, it's not what happened that struck me. It's the media's response to it. We get a ton of American news here, and when acts of terror happen in the US, there's always seems to be so much fear-mongering. It's always "national security" this, and "terrorism" that and "extremist" yadda yadda. It always seems to focus on who committed the crime, and not the people affected. It's always about striking back, taking the fight to them, etc.
In Canada, things are different. No one really cares the person's name that committed murder. No one cares what religion he believed in, the colour of his skin, where he grew up, or how he got the weapons he used. No, our news is focusing on the soldier killed. It highlights his life, his loved ones he left behind, the affect his death is having on people... And not only that but the news isn't all about striking back or retribution, but rather about Canada staying strong. That we need to be brave, remember fallen soldiers, regardless of if they died in battle or not, and that our flag, our country, unites us.
Now maybe we only get a select amount of American news filtering into Canada, but I never see that kind of media. All I see on American news is the attempt to convince people to be scared and angry. But yesterday, in a blatant attack on the Canadian Forces, we were told to be brave, keep strong, and that we did not need to be afraid. On such a sad, mournful day, it was also a hell of a day to be Canadian. <3 And to my American friends, we may be your hat, but we're a damn proud hat! :D