O-Bits: Death, Real or Imagined Edition

In England, the Sue Ryder hospice is  looking to start a “national conversation” about death and dying, the BBC reports.  We’re in favor of that. They believe it is important to speak to the terminally ill about their final wishes, but equally important for family members to take care of themselves. We can get behind that as well.   Heidi Travis, the chief executive, said “death is an inevitable part of all our lives, and yet in modern society we have become far more distanced from the first-hand reality of it.”

The students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas have certainly experienced death first-hand, but that’s not enough for some people. The teenagers, who have been impressively poised and forceful in making their point in the spotlight, have become targets of on-line abuse and death threats from gun-rights supporters. And if you had any hope that our leaders would step in a protect these kids…The Junior Don “liked” multiple tweets accusing David Hogg of being a “crisis actor.” Because just when you think our”first” family can’t sink any lower….

Taking a step away from the horrors of real deaths by firearms, we check in with the community of Fortnite gamers, to see what’s troubling the world of digital carnage. Needless to say, we’re not disappointed. User Daantjuh-NL is annoyed because after hitting a player with a a fatal  shotgun blast, that player still has the time to wreak their revenge by getting off a headshot. Daantjuh’s not sure of the solution, perhaps a knifing animation. We’ll be keeping an eye on this…

Steven Mirkin

Steven Mirkin’s diverse career has taken him from politics to pop culture to high art, offering him a front row seat to some of the most fascinating events and personalities of our time: writing speeches, fundraising appeals and campaign materials for Ed Koch, John Heinz and independent presidential candidate John B. Anderson; chronicling the punk/new wave scenes in New York and London; interviewing musicians such as Elton John, John Lydon and Buck Owens; profiling modern masters Julian Schnabel, Paul Schrader and Jonathan Safran Foer; and writing for TV shows including 21, The Chamber, Let's Make A Deal, and Rock Star: INXS.

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