More thinking about this one

The idea of death was with me yesterday all day after I fired off my diatribe on disrespect. Basically I was thinking of what makes people stand in line to see a dead body. What makes them want to tear apart the mistress of a foolish man because his ex-wife died. What makes them think that their actions in these cases matter in the least. Because they do not. They are not involved in the dead person's life/world/reality in any way. Because the dead person is DEAD.

And there you have it. Starfuckers to the last. Which is probably harsh, but I'm calling it as I sees it today. Not to say that I'm above it, either. I got up at 4:00AM and watched the Princess get planted. I cried. It wasn't what I see as my finest moment, either.

I have an aversion to the self-serving nature of this kind of thing. That somehow it pulls me out of the mundane to be able to tell everyone that I was there. That I saw this happen. That somehow, even tertiarily I was involved. When in reality this is not respect. Respect is giving the family privacy. Respect is reserved for those who actually loved and cared for the dead person. Respect is reserved for those who actually knew the person. The rest of us can basically opt for sadness, regret that someone is gone who we admired from afar, and that's basically it if you want to remain classy about it. But this kind of sick fascination with these dead folks, as though there is some sense of implied ownership? That's not in any way, shape or form respectful.

There is nothing to be proud of to have bullied the Royal Family into some kind of massive theatrical display. Just as there is nothing to be proud of to have a handkerchief with Lincoln's blood on it (or Louis XVI, or Marie Antoinette, et al.). Basically it's akin to tourism- the collection of mementos of someone famous. And it's kind of icky.

Now. That's what I spent time pondering yesterday. The physical part of the phenomenon. The spiritual/mental side of things is something entirely different. Perhaps I'll think about it today. Or maybe not- the sun is shining and I want to go play.