These days, it seems nothing the media get their hands on can't be turned into some small tragedy, or plague.
Enter the harmless little bug, called cicada.
They bother us only every 17 years, stay a few days, and then disappear.
What do they offer us?
Let's see: they aerate the soil, give birds a bounty to feast on, regale us with some of the splendid sounds on earth, and leave nary a trace.
Oh, I forgot to mention. They do not bite, assault, sting or enter your home. They do not become a nuisance, nor change the balance of nature.
So why do the news insist of calling it Swarmaggedon? or a plague?
Because if they said, hey listen here, there's going to be a great thing this year. Bugs are coming that will serenade you, feed our birds and help our soil.
But no, it can't be that joyous, no siree.
On the Eastern seaboard, this spring, a swarm of cicadas will be emerging from a 17 year old slumber. The epicenter is the capitol, WAshington D.C., with some zones north and south.
One news outlet calls it "the plague of cicadas in cities and by the sea"
But what do they do? Do they occupy hotels? eat our homes? destroy our gardens? sunbathe in the nude?
Nope.
Some outlets are really going off the cliff. They are suggesting buying potent noise cancelling headphones.
But for real! Does anyone remember that hypnotic sound in 2001, Odyssey in space?
Yes, that was the sound of cicadas. The director made a point of going out and recording the incredible sound. And then immortalized it in his incredible movie.
Yes that sound. It's mesmerizing. Hypnotizing. It is a natural trance inducer. It is almost spiritual.
But not if the media can help it.
Here here. This writer is ready with recording devices to immortalize the divine sound, and be able to re-hear at will.
Op-Ed
Source : the Independent UK 5.20.13
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