Steam Pipe Hype

A major steam pipe recently exploded in midtown Manhattan now like most old fashioned new yorkers when I heard this news my reaction was a simple "so what else is new?" and then a concerned "damn I hope it does not mess up the trains today." and from talking to most people this was the general reaction of the working NYC stiff. But you would never know that from the major news media. If you did not know any better from the reports and images of the steam pipe rupture you would have thought a major act of terrorism occurred and the whole damn world was coming to an end.

It is worth noting that underground steam pipe explosions are common place in the city that never sleeps. I had one on my block last month and while the sound of the blast can jerk you out of a sound sleep it is a very minor concern and more often then not does not make the news at all. However this explosion occurred during rush hour and in an area surrounded by sky scrapers. The news media then quickly jumped to the conclusion that the blast was terrorist related and even when the truth was revealed the live news broadcast deliberately utilized camera angles that made the steam shooting from the pipe appear to look a great deal like the images most associate with the September 11th attacks on the twin towers. The reporters then in the studio kept reinforcing the idea that the blast was just like the terrorist attacks. I recall one channel 2 news reporter saying as the camera focused on the steam "I think its just like a building collapse and eerily similar to 9/11"

After the initial images were conveniently doctored to appear more menacing the street interviews were also conveniently made to sound as fear stricken as possible. Every person on every news cast interviewed spoke of the unwavering terror they felt and how it was just like 9/11 and how they fled for their lives for fear that the horrifying steam pipe might kill them. NOT A SINGLE PERSON INTERVIEWED expressed the indifference to the incident that I did. Which is truly suspicious considering everyone I have talked to about it was totally indifferent to what had happened. Thus it is reasonable to conclude that at least one person asked to be interviewed expressed this indifference to their interviewers but did not make it on the air. It is very easy to see why the media did not allow such a view to make the airwaves or the papers. The fact is that Terrorism, Carnage, Horror and Chaos sell paper and keep viewers tuned in. Ask yourself what is more interesting to watch a terrorist attack with a massive explosion and hundreds of people running for cover or a steam pipe rupture? The choice is clear. Its also rather convenient for the government and in particular the current administration as we all know by now the fear factor in the American population is a very powerful weapon to pass legislation that would erode freedoms in exchange for the idea of safety and that would certainly never be made into law without the fear gripping the population. So much for rational press the media is now a corporate media obsessed with ratings and sales as opposed to the truth and New Yorkers and Americans at large are nothing more then easily spooked sheep afraid of a steam pipe. I sincerely hope that the fools on the news interviews do not represent the whole of the nation for if they do then things are far worse then even I have envisioned.