A Typical CNN Story?

Under the title ‘Strangers unite dying teen with Guatemalan family’ CNN published a story which they probably thought uplifting and heart throb, but which gives me the creeps when reading it.

In short, a Guatemalan youth enters the US to find work to help his family, falls ill, and hospital staff manages to organise his parents to come to the US. They are helped by a Congressman and an airline, and probably quite a few private persons unmentioned. So far so good, and it makes an uplifting story. And I want to make it clear at this point, that what I say further down should in no way diminish what these persons and companies did so far.

The crux of the matter lies the last two sentences in the article: ‘Gonzalez has vowed to fight to the end, but doctors say his prognosis isn’t good. With no money, Stegall says, it will be tough for the teen to get a heart transplant. Now, after traveling thousands of miles for more than two weeks to make a better life for his family and himself, Gonzalez faces his final fight, but it’s one he will face with his family, thanks to the kindness of others.’

Quite truthfully, are you able to read this statement without getting the creeps? I was reading and rereading the whole article several times, but it says what is says: Tough luck buddy, no money, no life, and we, the powerful CNN with loads of money don’t intend to do the damnedest about it. What a sordid person the writer must be.

After such publications, are there any Americans who wonder why the world just shrugs off the death of another American soldier as ‘just an American’? Obviously, this article is about ‘just a Guatemalan’ in the worst sense. And where are the readers and consumers of CNN’s news? Wasn’t there one catholic who read or saw it? The American Catholic Church is able to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to hush up pedophile proceedings against its members, but not to find a few Dollars to help one of their own?

And where are all the charities? They seem very good at collecting money, but spending it?

In a country where probably thousands of over 90 year olds are kept artificially alive without the ability of speech, without the outlook to get any better, or without showing the slightest movement of limb, an 18 year old is left to die. How sordid. A person who has a life in front of him and possibly give something to humanity must die, while those that should long be dead for old age are kept artificially alive so the hospitals and doctors may cash in on their fortunes. It still makes me shudder.

And it shows just how uncaring publishing companies are. There are probably dozens of charities just waiting for a possibility to get published in a good story by CNN. All it takes is a phone call. But seemingly, that is too much to ask from overpaid second rate journalists employed by a dehumanized corporate identity.