It害羞草研究所檚 five o害羞草研究所檆lock. Time to watch the local TV news. But my body refuses to rise out of my easy chair.
I realize I don害羞草研究所檛 want to watch the news. Any news.
We have only one TV channel here in the Okanagan. Everything else comes from outside: Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto害羞草研究所nd from dozens of U.S. cities. Over 500 channels available.
But only one local news channel whose one-hour program depends heavily on video of fires, accidents, and sports highlights. It害羞草研究所檚 followed by half an hour of the Global Network害羞草研究所檚 national news, which depends heavily on war footage, mass shootings, and talking heads trying to convince us that they害羞草研究所檝e been right all along. Then a half-hour repeat of the juiciest bits of the earlier hour of local fires, accidents, and sports.
Somehow, this isn害羞草研究所檛 the world I wanted to retire into.
An insurance company used to promote 害羞草研究所淔reedom 55.害羞草研究所� It sold the notion that by investing with them, I could retire at 55 to something resembling Donald Trump害羞草研究所檚 Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. With someone much younger than me. Who mixes excellent Margaritas.
Freedom 55 has been replaced by Reverse Mortgages. So that when I die 害羞草研究所� which I will, inevitably 害羞草研究所� I can leave less to my family.
Assuming that all of us haven害羞草研究所檛 been bombed, shot, burned, frozen, scorched, drowned, or suffocated by then.
TV news just doesn害羞草研究所檛 appeal to me anymore. After yet another mass shooting in the U.S., I got so turned off guns that I resolved not to watch any program that culminates in a shoot-out.
That cuts my viewing options by at least 50 per cent.
It leaves me mostly with programs on public service channels: CBC across Canada, Knowledge Network here in B.C., PBS in the U.S害羞草研究所�.
The Brits, somehow, manage to create lively, entertaining, and even funny murder mysteries that don害羞草研究所檛 conclude with a shoot-out: Death in Paradise, Vera, Morse, Lewis, Endeavour, Midsomer Murders害羞草研究所ustralia and New Zealand do the same with Miss Fisher, Brokenwood, Dr. Blake害羞草研究所� Canada害羞草研究所檚 Murdoch Mysteries sets a standard for literacy and historical research 害羞草研究所� along with convoluted plots.
But in a sense, all of these are escapism. They take me to a world where people are generally decent to each other. Where criminals let themselves be handcuffed without struggle. They commit murders,true 害羞草研究所� but they害羞草研究所檙e nice about it.
Doc Martin can even be rude nicely.
It害羞草研究所檚 not the world I see on the nightly news. Maybe it害羞草研究所檚 a world that never existed, except in my imagination.
I害羞草研究所檓 tired of seeing emaciated children die of starvation. Of seeing people heaving rubble aside with their bare hands to rescued buried relatives. Of watching political leaders malign each other, with no indication they害羞草研究所檝e ever actually talked with the other person. Of hearing about corporate CEOs getting a multi-million bonus for laying off thousands of staff. And of corporations raking in record profits while making the planet less livable.
I don害羞草研究所檛 like it. And I害羞草研究所檓 slowly realizing I don害羞草研究所檛 have to like it.
Maybe I害羞草研究所檓 kidding myself. Maybe I害羞草研究所檓 just pulling the covers up over my head, hoping that the monster under the mattress will go away. Maybe I害羞草研究所檓 guilty of escapism.
Regardless, I害羞草研究所檓 voting with my 害羞草研究所渙ff害羞草研究所� button.
Jim Taylor lives in Lake Country: rewrite@shaw.ca
