CONSUMPTION pt. 1

I've been reading a lot of books, watching a lot of movies, and watching a lot of the WIRE recently, on top of my aforementioned obsession with old J-pop. I finally felt like it was time for me to write about the things that have been boosting my spirits in recent weeks.

Well, it's strange to start off with this book, since it's not much of a spirit-booster, but I just finished Underground by Haruki Murakami, which is a series of interviews conducted with witnesses and survivors of the sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo commuter trains in 1995. The interviews are broken up into sections that focus on each particular train line that was hit, painting a narrative for each train from many different perspectives. Every narrative shares some similar points, mainly that of a gradual onset of the symptons of poisoning, the symptoms reaching a head, someone finally pinpoints the source of the problem, and then people scramble to try to survive or help the survivors.

One of the most shocking things about the accounts of the day is the apathy, or obliviousness, most people had to what could have been happening to them. Many of the interviewees witnessed other people passing out and such, but continued on about their merry way, off to work or wherever they were going, despite the fact that they were or would soon be falling victim to the same sorts of symptoms that had hit those around them already. Some of the interviewees, who had escaped the trains and train stations and managed to make it out to the streets, or even to work, acted as if these crazy headaches and blurred vision, etc, weren't anything too bad. Some also mentioned how passersby and even the news media reporting on the incident live and onsite failed to offer a helping hand, unless they were specifically badgered or hounded by someone to do so.

One of the survivors mentioned that he/she (I forget which) believed the attacks hurt so many people because Japanese people have a cultural tendency to grin and bear "it", in this case "it" being some unknown ailment suddenly setting upon them, soon to worsen and eventually be revealed as sarin gas poisoning. This same interviewee, who had lived in New York for some time, thought that Americans would be hooting and hollering and getting something done about it as soon as they noticed the strange smell on the train, or the onset of their symptoms. I agreed to a certain extent that some nosy, perpetually irked, sue-happy Americans would've probably disposed of the sarin packages on the trains much sooner than they were in reality, followed by drawing out a draft of their lawsuit against the train company. However, I don't think that the average American passerby would've done any more to help those suffering around them any more than the people did that day, since people everywhere seem to have the same "it ain't my problem" mentality. Additionally, the emergency response system is painted as inept by the desperation and frustration of the interviewees' accounts, but I get the impression that they were doing the best they could in a situation that very few could've expected (unlike, say, Hurricane Katrina).

There's also a small section of the book devoted to interviews with former Aum members, Aum being the cult that perpetrated the attacks, and that section was super interesting as well. The common thread in these accounts for the most part is of people who don't quite fit in or have any particular direction in life suddenly finding a place where they fit in and embracing it wholeheartedly. This led to people allowing themselves to, initially, be separated from their family and earthly possessions, to, later, being forcibly locked in sauna-like jails, secretly experimented upon with LSD, and given amnesia-inducing electro-shock therapy. Most of the people interviewed in this section had renounced Aum as an organization and the cult's leader as the divine guru after the attacks occurred, but all still appreciated their time in the cult, all having claimed to have seriously experienced great and mystical things unlike any other experiences in their lives. It certainly seems like any other religion in that sense, capable of bringing extreme happiness, but also capable of manipulating people who are at their most vulnerable.

I totally recommend this book, and the interview format makes it very easy to pick up at the drop of a hat, and, conversely, put down at the drop of a hat (or when you arrive at your train station) without breaking up the momentum of the book.


At my friend's Skylar's suggestion I also recently read Superstud by Paul Feig, creator of the beloved TV show Freaks and Geeks. The book is his account of his attempts to find love (and sex) while trying to remain true to his romantic ideals and the engrained pressure of his religious upbringing. Having experienced some of the same stuff as him, I got a kick out of reading what he had to say, though there are parts of the book where things drag. There are some moments of 100% absolute stupidity on his part, though, that equate with comedic GENIUS and make the book a worthwhile read. In particular, the last two major sections of the book have some comedic gold contained within which make it worthwhile to read everything up until then. This one is also an easy read, perfect for those 10 minute long train rides to and from work, or for those 10 minute long escapes to the toilet for a little poopoo session

More later...!!!