 LIKE
A TOY SOLDIER
Welcome back! After a long holiday, it's good to be back. The break was
so long I had time to do everything I wanted--it was even long enough to
get bored. So, I filled up the time watching TV.
What was the most important subject on TV this month? Bird
flu! I don't usually like to talk about the kinds of things that the
media cover. But hearing about diseases and similar international
dangers always has an influence on me. Anyway, the TV programs and
newspapers have all been focusing on this story. They're right, because
something that most people eat is carrying a deadly virus. It's now
being said that it's not just birds, but that vegetables and fruits
grown outdoors may also be affected by sick birds as they fly from one
country to another.
While the media was causing people to be afraid of bird
flu and telling them what they should and should not do, I was really
having fun. Isn't it like we're like toy soldiers in the middle of a war,
trying to protect ourselves? (And our leader is, for sure, the media).
We're so ready do whatever we hear will prevent us from getting bird flu.
For instance, some people believe that the best way to protect yourself
is to just stop eating poultry, but others follow the advice of the
experts who say that you can still eat it safely if you follow some
basic food preparation rules.
I remember the Chernobyl disaster in the Soviet Union (it
affected tea) and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (we all stopped eating meat).
I can't believe that these events are part of my childhood memories--I
must have had a lot of time to watch TV. Anyway, they were similar "war
stories," as a result of which we were told to give up certain foods in
order to protect ourselves. All of these events involve war against
nature, and the goal is to survive.
As time passes by, the media will continue to publicize so-called
protection measures (even if it means the end of the chicken business).
Who could have guessed that Turkey would be congratulated by the World
Health Organization for not hiding the bird flu outbreaks, as some
believe that some other European countries have done? So, thanks to the
media, for filling my empty days, and for getting us those
congratulations from the WHO.
Gülay Acar (COMD/III)
howtoreachgulay@yahoo.com
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