Echo Chambers
I recently watched the excellent “Don’t Look Up” by one of my favorite contemporary directors - Adam McKay. If his Oscar-winning hit “The Big Short” was a post-mortem of the hubris and stupidity that people demonstrated during the 2007 Recession, it would be fair to say that “Don’t Look Up” is a pre-mortem of the inevitable future that humanity is creating for itself by turning a blind eye to climate change.
Watching the movie reminded me of a poem I wrote about how all of us have become trapped in our own echo chambers, reinforcing and regurgitating things that we find solace in, regardless of what the truth might be. And so, that’s what I’m sharing today with you.
Alright, poem starts in 3… 2… 1!
"The grass is green,
it's always been.
And that's the way it goes!
It has been found,
the earth is round.
Come on, everyone knows!
The fire's hot,
and snow is not.
They teach it all in schools!
The sand is soft,
and ice will frost.
And those just are the rules!
We've seen and heard,
a common world.
The same for me and you.
So, facts are facts,
we cannot act,
like they just aren't true."
He plead his plea and tried to talk
some sense into the world.
But they were in their echo chambers.
He was never heard.
That’s it! Thanks for checking out edition no. 41 of Hello Universe. Today’s poem leans more on the thought-provoking side of my writing, and less on the fun side, but hey, that’s how life works sometimes! :)
Some fun stuff:
This is a place where I share something cool to read, something cool to listen to, and something cool to watch! The underlined words are links that you can click to visit the recommended content.
Check out Wordle: The latest viral game everyone is playing. Easy to get into, simple interface, approachable mechanics, no wonder it’s a hit. Play it now!
Listen to “Again” by Wun Two: A super relaxing, chilled out track this week. It’s one of the best samples in a lo-fi mix.
Watch Towing Icebergs to Australia for Freshwater: This video is weird to watch because what it describes has really happened. There were actual plans and proposals and scenario analyses of towing Antarctic icebergs to solve Perth’s drinking water problem. It’s fascinating, check it out!
I would love it if you also shared some fun stuff that you love to read/ listen to/ watch across the internet, down in the comments.
See you next week!