Interesting photo and read... without reading the photo first sparked intrigue for me... i instantly thought i wonder what they were saying, but at no point did i think that there was any chance they were laughing or having a joke with such chaos unfolding in the background.
I had assumed that they'd have been having a fairly shocked yet deep convo about what had just happen...
Thanks for sharing. I agree that they were probably in a state of shock and the photographer picked the right time (or not) to take the photo of them. Only these people know what they were talking about and how they were feeling at the time and we shouldn't judge them for how we think they were feeling or behaving. Very interesting photo and I think it is going to spark a lot of conversation in this thread.
I know how I felt on 9/11. I don't think we can judge any ones thoughts by a single photograph that was taken while they were watching a horrible scene. They were probably sitting there in shock and just talking about what they were seeing. I really don't think they were laughing and having a normal conversation. I think it really shows how one photo doesn't define the true feelings of the moment.
I actually think this image DOES capture the feeling of the moment. I was in NYC that morning and watched the whole thing unfold in person. I was in SoHo, and as I walked north, I noticed more and more people hanging out in parks together, people playing music (both live and recorded), people joking and laughing. Why? Because what the heck else were we left to do? Of course nothing would ever quite be "normal" again, but we had to try to make some sense of what we were seeing. And those of us who saw it happen were left with a heightened sense of being thankful to be alive. Since there was nothing we could do to help, the next best thing was to live. So as much as this may seem a horrible/unfitting/wrong/inappropriate/whatever contrast to what was happening that day, this image captures a larger slice of reality than most people understand.
even though I don't think that the people in this photo were doing anything wrong at the time, the overall point he makes of Americans "forgetting" about 9/11 is true. And to be honest, the media doesn't help that either. The minute people starting calling in our local news stations to say they couldn't handle the footage anymore on that day, they started sensoring what they put up. Within 2 or so days, it was only pieces mixed in with other stories, within a week it wasn't talked about at all.
Yes, I understand moving on. But for many Americans it was the drama of the moment, now it's onto the next.
Many Americans want to "move on" without learning from the tragedy or seeing how our foreign policies put us at risk,while also "never forgetting" in the sense of justifying our current on-going, international law-breaking war on terror.
I see what Melissa is saying about people feeling like there was nothing anyone could do. At the same time, if your mother or husband was in the building you wouldn't be kicking back saying "well I'm going to joke and laugh because there is nothing else to do." You would be busy feeling sad, horrified, angry etc. So the question is, why do many people not feel those emotions when others are affected? Why is it so hard to be empathetic? Why does it have to happen to YOU before you feel involved.? Like others have said, I don't know what those in the photo were feeling. But I do think some Americans have a weird way of distancing themselves from tragedy, or of looking at it as entertainment when it's not affecting them personally.
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I had assumed that they'd have been having a fairly shocked yet deep convo about what had just happen...
anyhoo rambling, very interesting read.
Yes, I understand moving on. But for many Americans it was the drama of the moment, now it's onto the next.
I see what Melissa is saying about people feeling like there was nothing anyone could do. At the same time, if your mother or husband was in the building you wouldn't be kicking back saying "well I'm going to joke and laugh because there is nothing else to do." You would be busy feeling sad, horrified, angry etc. So the question is, why do many people not feel those emotions when others are affected? Why is it so hard to be empathetic? Why does it have to happen to YOU before you feel involved.? Like others have said, I don't know what those in the photo were feeling. But I do think some Americans have a weird way of distancing themselves from tragedy, or of looking at it as entertainment when it's not affecting them personally.