This stuff is fascinating - and for the record you are definitely OK to disagree with me on any of this. This community rules, and you're respectful and great even when disagreeing.
But this email just landed in my email inbox from a Webworm subscriber who just cancelled their subscription (that's OK, you can anytime).
"You didn’t ’become curious.’ You ‘became an asshole.’ You literally said ‘I think I can do whatever I want!’ as your justification. And you can. But what a fucking dick."
Fucking hell. the right to deny reality. that's it, succintly put. the right to deny global warming, trans people, palestine. yup, it all fits. and it's bloody spreading, i have a feeling the UK it tending in the same direction, just not as quickly.
it had never occurred to me. i mean, just like you i've seen the absolutely dilberate ignorance in the US, the pride people take n believing in something they know is wrong, but that it's part of the american dream to ignore those bits of reality they'd rather ignore, picking that up is inspired David, well done. re-reading that it sounds like sarcasm, but it's not, i've just really been stumped by this, it's brilliant.
Thanks for reading it, Ben. I woke up very early on Sunday and started trying to get me thoughts together. It was going to be a day off / or at least lazing in bed trying to catch up on some books - but when my brain says to write I have to write. So thanks for reading and appreciating.
Death is something that little can see beauty in. It is the great fear of many; that dark void we will inevitably face and one that we know anything about. The brevity of life is something of a bewilderment and death is truly a scary journey in the end. I don’t speak for all of us Americans, but it’s something that in America we don’t like to think of or be reminded about even though violence is somewhat of a national past time here. And when you post a picture in which your curiosity reflects a morbid beauty in death, Americans kind of lose their shit.
I saw this post and thought nothing of it, just one man’s take on what happens in life. Some of those people that commented I’m sure are more offended because of their fear and their detachment from how life operates. They would rather you post a picture of you feeding a deer over you find a dead one. Though I wonder if I wasn’t bothered by it because of growing up around hunters and cleaning deer myself. But regardless, I feel like the comments were a bit dramatic thing I could be wrong. If they truly knew you they would know you never want to see an animal harmed.
Keep being you. It’s what makes you great. There was something about that photo that had beauty to it.
Americans can be so so weird….and while anaesthetized to the horrors of mass murders in US malls, schools and hotels , the dismantling of USAID, horrors of Gaza and Ukraine they dream about annexing Canada and Greenland and building paradise beaches along the Mediterranean coast of the Gaza Strip and in the next breath complain about the “distasteful “ post of a dead deer on Instagram and that Zelenskyy didn’t wear a tie or a suit when he came to the White House! Totally unhinged…
I suppose part of me wishes I saw those same outraged comments when I share my reporting on, say, abusive church leaders. It's unfair to compare them maybe - and I know a photo can create a visceral reaction - but still, all that energy. One person commented about 20 times! Throw that passion into something that matters - please.
Respectfully, and you know I adore you David, that's why images of that nature are called "triggering". That person was triggered and had an outsized reaction to something that seems small or innocuous to others.
They may not be avoiding reality in general. This just happened to be triggering to them for whatever nuanced reason applies to them. They might be struggling with personal grief, mental health, or just a rough day. Some might feel overloaded by constant exposure to tragedy and have emotional limits.
We live in a world where digital spaces bring together wildly different people, each with their own triggers, beliefs, and contexts. That complexity is worth considering.
I think what frustrates me in conversations like this is the lack of nuance. Sweeping generalizations – about Americans or anyone else – tend to erase the complexities of real people and their very real, individual reactions and experiences.
It's all good. I also - as someone who puts a lot of things out into the world - there are limits on what I can do on triggers.
I tend to be drawn to a lot of things that others may find triggering - so I think it's best some people just don't follow me or engage with my work. Dark Tourist was pretty triggering - so was Tickled - Mister Organ. My series of posts of dead birds on Instagram. None of those had trigger warnings, and I am not sure they needed them.
It is complex - but at the same time, in order to tell stories I have to sometimes make it simple and *just tell the story*. In saying that - I have hard rules - internal journalism school things - about specific trigger warnings and I work to those.
As for sweeping generalisations - I tend to do that sometimes. It's on purpose - as I think we all kinda have to look at bigger picture stuff and how we fit into it. It's intentional and meant to be confrontational at times.
I include myself in them - ie - when talking about the NZ psyche I will often include myself in it - as we are all part of it. "We New Zealanders like to tear people down when they get too big for their own boots" doesn't apply to me (I'd argue), but I go with "we".
All around I'd say this piece was pretty opinionated and a little poetic (aka up its own ass) so naturally I expect some disagreement too (which is fine).
I generally whole heartedly agree that we need more nuance and that trigger warnings are really important especially on topics that trigger a lot of people. I hesitate to agree though in this specific instance because I think it’s highly likely that most of these people who are angry and/or offended eat meat regularly and I think my biased opinion as someone who doesn’t is that it’s hypocritical to continuously pay for people to kill animals and keep them in abhorrent conditions and then get angry and confrontational about a photo of a dead animal. That is just something that always really irks me but again that might just be my own issue haha. I think it’s a beautiful and interesting photo that didn’t warrant this level of anger (and David constantly having to self censor is probably exhausting).
As far as the people who were offended about the photo being meat eaters, who knows. I’m pescatarian and occasionally eat chicken. But I wasn’t offended by the photo so another big shrug.
I don’t think trigger warnings are across the board really important in instances likes this one. I just think it’s an extra step that shows courtesy. It’s empathetic and a kindness. It shows care toward the audience being broadcast to. But like any kindness or courtesy, it’s not a requirement, but nice when it happens.
David made an interesting point about things that exist within and outside of the natural world. It made me really stop to think.
And I understand you have your own frustrations based on injustices and hypocrisy you feel, and another big shrug from me. I think it’s all a nuanced situation with lotsa layers of complexity because a large pool of people are all going to bring their own baggage and opinions to the same discussion.
It’s cool to have convos on nuanced topics so I appreciate you sharing your perspective
Please understand that not all Americans fit into the description you provide. Some of us think, actually, and are disgusted by the things you mention.
One other thought - I tend to do this just to make us remember that we're all part of it. Like when I write about NZ men being shitty about Lorde, I tend to frame it as "We NZ men have a problem". Because in some way we all play a part, right? I don't like to excuse myself from things as it's a reminder to loudly disagree and push back!
Yes, Steve, I truly understand that. That is why I said "Americans CAN be so weird..." I feel sorry for those whose voices are drowned out by the unhinged followers of one man who should never have had so much power given to him...
Hmm, not sure it’s all USA - my theory (n=1) is a disengagement from nature (life). I once posted a picture of a dead ferret we’d trapped on a social media feed of the bird conservation charity I worked for in NZ. A large unfenced sanctuary where trapping was (is!) big part of the conservation story. The response was fast and surprised me. I (naively) thought there would be “good job” “one less ferret means more manu” etc. I got “how dare you, I come here to see the pretty birdies and you show me DEATH”…
I chose not to respond and there were plenty of other comments from those who understand ferrets were never meant to be in NZ and if we want to see pretty birdies, then they don’t mix. But still the number of upsets vs supportive was higher. Nature is beautiful but she’s also raw, real and ugly. We should take her every way and see the entirety of her, not just the curated prettiness we shape her into.
We just got around to watching the 10-part "The Americas" nature documentary, and while it was very visually impressive it suffered from the "Disney-fication" where nothing bad can happen to anything cute seen on screen. I remember a number of hunting chases, but not a single successful predator where the target was anything that might be designated as "cute", and the only animal death I remember being truly visible were the crab being impacted by cars on a highway. I think the basis there is the same as happened here, where the reality was "pre-sanitized for your convenience". That then causes the kind of people who think "why do we need to kill all these cows - you should just go to the grocery store to get your steak".
I'd be one of the people in the comments patting you on the back for trapping the ferret! I'm an animal lover and a vet nurse, and I love our native manu so I am very happy for pests to be trapped - we do a bit on our property too. So New Zealanders can be the same and choose to turn a blind eye.. its an out of sight, out of mind thing eh. But if amazing people like you weren't doing the hard yards with pest control, they'd have less beautiful birds to look at.
I admit it wouldn't be my first choice to see a hollowed out deer carcass on IG, but I've followed you long enough to know there's a 10-15% chance any given picture will be a dead animal, and if I really don't want to see it, I can always unfollow. I don't really have any right to ask a stranger to curate their social media feed to my tastes or sensitivities.
It's what I call in my head a "me problem". When I may be mildly irked or irritated by something but I also know I'm not the center of the universe, and I can't expect other people to always cater to my whims. Not liking the posts on someone else's social media feed is a "me problem", and there's an easy fix for it that doesn't involve telling another person how to live their life. Social media trains us to think that we're the Main Character, and every passing thought or idea we have is correct and needs to be expressed, and that's not really true.
And I think when you realize a lot of Americans, particularly a lot of conservatives, live in total fantasy, it explains so much about our politics.
And in Cotino they will always be the main character and every whim will be catered for...until the place is taken out by a flood or a massive storm or a bunch of giant alligators. Nature will be okay if it stays in it's place and it never occurs to them that it is we who have encroached. In Aotearoa some features of the natural environment (Whanganui River, Te Urewera) have been granted personhood to help ensure they are cared for and respected. What if that had been done for the whole planet?
I was thinking about that giant self cleaning lake (aka a gian pool?) and what wildlife may find it's way inside. I can see some insane prank material going on.
I was just thinking of that, was told (in 2005!) the Disney World ban on swimming when life guards weren't working was in part because they monitor the pools/lagoons are 'clear'. Was on that visit, after a week in Disney World at a conference, I got taken to 'Celebration' for dinner. I most remember the fake snow (foam) sprayed into the main street (think from the streetlight fittings) in December, in Florida, from Thanksgiving to Xmas. I wonder if Cotino will have that too?
I was taken aback by the original photo, not because it bothered me, but because it felt out of context on the ‘gram where everything is curated.
That’s my take away - a lot of people are living heavily curated lives where all the bad stuff in the world is filtered out. The deer broke their reality and they could not cope.
Picking media that suits your world view is curation, social media curates a world that keeps you coming back. That’s how we get our picture of the world these days and it’s not real.
I could write another 1000 words about how bad that is.
I’m loving all the responses but this is the one that resonates the most. How dare you have the audacity to break into my curated reality with brutal honesty?
What’s striking is that I’m going to guess that the majority of people not liking this are not conservatives. But the striking similarity is deafening. When a thing doesn’t fit my world view, it is wrong and YOU are wrong for delivering it. We are all the same.
Totally - well said. I think on social media I also have a thing where I have different audiences. The Dark Tourist people won't care. The ones who think I make a quirky podcast about Costco (who missed the capital punishment episode) will be shook etc.
I don’t think it’s a waste of time. For each of the people that had a little melt down there will be another who thought about it and about your follow up.
Thinking is the goal right? We desperately need people to think more? But it’s hard because everything is so complicated - so it’s easier not to think.
Oh wow Cotino gives me those really creepy 'everything is ideallic until you dig down a bit' vibes like stepford wives or something 😬
I saw all the dead deer drama and ngl I was also a bit taken aback by how *intense* the reaction was! Sure it might not have been pleasant for some, but it seems like a reaction out of bearing with the picture, if that makes sense. Like when my kiddo has a screaming fit of sadness over one dropped crisp. Your theory as to why is very interesting! Also, morbid curiousity is such a normal human thing, the person calling you a creep for indulging in it needs to chill tf out. I always like seeing what you put in your stories because it's such an interesting snapshot of different vibes. Mundane, interesting, morbid, funny... We never know what we'll get and that's part of the appeal imo! You have a really unique view/(tone?) I don't see other IGers have.
I wonder if in the end its a fricken shock that RoadRunner doesn't always get up to fall another day, or be run over.....that must be a deeply disturbing realisation none of us want to make....thinkn about enculturation here....
First it was Disneyland. Then Disneyworld. Then the whole town of Celebration, FL. Now Cotino in Palm Springs, CA. At each stage there you can see more and more immersive experience being developed and insulation from everything else. Pretty soon they'll have their fourth wall television from Fahrenheit 451 and be completely enveloped - which I think is the back-story for The Matrix that didn't work because humans couldn't handle the lack of conflict and strife.
Celebration didn't turn out to be all they imagined! I recently read something about "The Dark Side of Disney's Perfect Town." That's paraphrasing, but I can't remember the title. It talked about murders and suicide, along with swingers and all sorts of wild stuff. Disney sold it around 2015 or so.
I'll echo my same sentiments here that I did on IG: Anyone who knows/follows you, should know how loving you are towards animals and also on the same hand how curious you are. I mean that is how you got bit by a squirrel, David 😉. I felt the genuineness of it. I viewed it as nothing more than roadkill I'd see in the road. Clearly people have no trouble hitting the poor creatures but God forbid they have to see them afterwards and deal with the consequences of actions. 🙃.
I think this is part of the reason why I spend so much time in cemeteries. The silent alone time is very nice but also somber. The subtle reminder that this is also going to happen to me and everyone I know. Memento mori, I think its called. It's very grounding. Sometimes the sight of a newly dug grave or one that's been freshly filled in can be both jarring and peaceful.
Keep doing what you're doing, David. The real ones are gonna hang on.
As part of this (unplanned) exile from my career as an archivist, I have become a taphophile - spending time in cemeteries photographing and researching headstones and burial sites for people on request, who are often overseas and unable to visit themselves. Cemeteries are very peaceful and contemplative, and I've had some touching encounters with complete strangers which have brought me to tears. The confrontation with the finality of death never diminishes, however - I doubt I will ever rationalise it - but would never pass judgement on another for their view.
There are many things we need to be coddled from including many things the government is actively doing to certain groups of people right now - but a dead animal is about the most natural thing in the world and we are so far removed from the things we do 3x a day that we totally forget that animals are put through worse to get to our table.
This dear likely lived a free life until being killed, likely by a vehicle, and then someone or something removed parts of it, etc... something that millions and millions of animals go through every day - getting slaughtered for food. I grew up hunting and fishing so got to see our food alive and well before it was on the dinner table later that day.
David did not kill this dear or show it's suffering - it's simply an image of a dead animal and it's something we should be able to deal with even if horrific and graphic. There's often beauty in trying to remember and reflect on the animal and what it might have gone through.
British person living in Aotearoa here. This post and your Instagram post are both fascinating. Your work and your mind is curious, it questions. This is why I subscribe, you open up my thinking. I questioned why the deer photo unsettled me, I had clicked on the link in your writing, then I read the bit about Gaza further down. Without the flowers and leaves, other beings have been equally obliterated in live feeds, and these beings are human. I simply will not look away just because I get a bit ick. They say ignorance is bliss, but this shit sucks. Thanks for your honesty.
The comments had me rolling. Have they never even seen roadkill? I was thinking to myself “they must not be from the Midwest”. Hunting is a huge part of our life in Wisconsin.
Maybe I am desensitized. My dad, uncles and grandfather were all hunters. Every hunting season they would bring the deer back to the house and cut up the meet on my grandparents’ dining room table. I was the weird kid that went and poked at the meat to see what it felt like. 😂
I love animals and hate to see any endure any pain. Having hunters in my family has taught me a lot about having respect for the animals we do consume and about the most ethical ways of obtaining that resource. Having farmers in the family has helped put that in perspective too.
Please don't refer to, or think of, wild animals as a "resource". They do not exist for our exploitation.
However, if you feel you have to eat dead animals, and I know some people in fact don't have much choice, I think it's far better to shoot an animal in the midst of its free life, rather than factory farm them. The trouble is that there are too many humans wanting to eat meat and too few wild animals to satisfy that appetite.
Respectfully, you can acknowledge that animals can be a resource for meat and bodily nourishment while still having respect and love for them. I do not take their life for granted.
I know meat eating can be very controversial. It’s very easy for people to judge those of us who consume meat. We aren’t heartless monsters. As stated in my original post, my family are hunters but it’s not a game or a sport just to kill something. It’s respectful, the animals roam freely in the woods, and the goal is to create as little suffering as possible. If there is not a clean shot of the deer or turkey, my family won’t risk it.
There are also negatives to veganism. It’s not 100% bloodless. Farming any sort of crop for the masses needs vast expanses of land which can cause displacement and death of the wild animals whom inhabited those spaces.
It’s a modern day issue. Our ancestors used to farm their own crops and slaughter their own animals. Most of us do not have the space or capacity to include that into our busy ways of life. The goal should be to support your small and local farmers as much as possible. However, that is not always the most cost efficient or most accessible way to survive.
Regarding crop farming, much more land is used for farming animals than crops so veganism is still a massive harm reduction in that respect. Around 44% of the world's habitable land is used for agriculture. One third of that is crops, two thirds grazing, so already animal farming requires double the land. Of those crops only 16% are for direct human consumption. The majority are used for animal feed. Just 4% are for other use like biofuel and textiles. Animal farming accounts for 80% of agricultural land use, so is a much bigger contributor to death and displacement of wild animals than crops for human consumption. It also only provides 17% of the world's calorie consumption so it's very inefficient.
Hi Lara, can you please provide where those stats are from? Just curious and I want to learn more.
The thing about just eating veggies/fruit or grains, is that it does take a lot more of that food type and more calories to consume to equal the amount of protein and other vitamins found in meat. It’s well known that that many of us already don’t meet the requirements of essential nutrients. This diet can create an additional barrier to that.
I know people who are successful vegans, I know people who have tried it and then have had health struggles so they added meat back into their diet. I feel strongly that it is a personal choice and that everyone should choose a diet that best fits with their lifestyle and needs.
The main goal for all of us should be to promote the most sustainable and ethical way to receive our food. I know it’s not easy, especially with the demand that is required for all of us to eat. I’m not sure how to implement global changes, but supporting local small farms with values you align with is a start.
I have been vegan for 14 years. I know people who have been vegan for much longer too. It is not harder to eat a balanced plant based diet than one including animal products, it is just different. Like any change we make there is a bit of a learning curve at first, then it becomes second nature.
I'm not going to go for the numbers again because I need to get back to work, but health issues associated with the consumption of animal products are huge. It's unfair to point out that some people had health issues on a plant based diet and ignore all of the health issues that meat eaters have. And I think it stops being personal choice when that choice has a victim.
Being vegan is the most sustainable and ethical way to receive food. Some people have good reasons that going vegan is not feasible, and that's ok. We have to do our best with what we have. And for those of us who have supermarkets full of choices, and lots of restaurants available to us, change can start with choosing the veggie burger instead of the beef one. It doesn't have to be hard. Global change is slow indeed, and I agree with supporting local as much as possible.
I think this way of thinking about animals can mean different things for different people. In an American context thinking of the way cattle, pigs and chicken are "farmed" - the word "resource" can have a high ick factor and show how dismissive we can be of animals and their "use".
But then look at a family raising a few goats in the Gobi desert to use for milk and eventually kill and eat every single body part, "resource" takes on a different tone? That's how I tend to see it, anyway.
I thought about Rotten.com for this old Webworm piece, which is pretty relevant in all this too - but when DO we look away? Written by a very smart guest columnist: https://www.webworm.co/p/whendowelookaway
People want to see death through the lens of a crafty horror filmmaker who fictionalizes its ugly reality and glorifies the kill. The finality of something beautiful like this is jarring and important.
I am one of the people who found this distressing and have a couple of takes (kiwi, not american btw). I grew up on a sheep farm so animal carcasses isn't something new, but it also doesn't stop me from feeling intense empathy towards animals (I watched the animated film flow last night and balled, imo it should be R16 not G!). It's not the fact that the animal is dead, it's thinking about the suffering of how it got there. There are the comparisons with Gaza etc - but for me there are a couple of differences, one the Gaza posts have a point, this seemed more like it was for shits and giggles and the 'beauty of death'. Imagine if someone posted a photo of dead child and said wow isn't death beautiful? Just because it's an animal doesn't mean it requires less respect. Which brings me to the second point, cruelty that happens to animals for me has an extra layer of distress because like with this situation it is by humans, it is our fault, it isn't their doing and that seems so unfair. One other thing... probs controversial... you have a decent following David. Most people who are trying to create a community via SM would never post something like this because they know it would lose them followers - I think this post has the feeling of 'I can do what I like and I don't care' and maybe that doesn't sit so well. Like I'd get it if it was for a reason, but this seemed there to shock and not much else.
Some good points here - and thanks for making them. I do definitely want to make it clear I did not post it for "shits and giggles", and it did not (in my mind) show a lack of respect. I adore animals, respect them, am never far away from (live!) ones.
The Gaza issue was a contestable point as I said within the piece - but I very much hear you - and I agree. That shit has a huge point (and the topic of this other guest Webworm written by someone way smarter than me: https://www.webworm.co/p/whendowelookaway).
In saying that - I would argue my deer also had a point, as I hope I laid out in this piece.
As for creating a community on social - I guess some people do but I never have. I largely find social media the opposite of community - which is why I like Webworm so much! We can talk at length like we are now and it's just such a better format to talk about stuff in.
As an aside - I had a long running story series (a few years?) on Instagram of dead birds with the hashtag #sleeping - so between that and Dark Tourist I figured the post actually wouldn't be *that* bonkers! (I was wrong)
All good. I absolutely know how much you love animals (cats and goats right?) but I guess this kinda got to me because the deer's life obviously ended in a very violent death and that isn't beautiful that's sad and tragic. I've seen beautiful deaths (my uncle in an open casket being honored on a marae) and heartbreaking death - first on the scene to a car accident. There's a difference. Dead birds falls into the first category (mostly) - it's natural and part of life and that's cool. I guess maybe another factor, and this is on me not you, is that I have a very vivid imagination so when faced with something like this it can replay over and over wondering what happened. I also can't watch horrors - I still haven't recovered from Revenge of the Toxic Avenger when I was a teen. Re social media - It was the first image to pop up when I opened insta (I didn't see the story?) with not a lot of context and I wondered why. I dunno, really it was a fleeting bit of annoyance (more so on the vitriol in the comments to be fair) but when you asked for feedback thought I'd put my two cents in.
The post didn’t bother me personally but I think this is very well put! If only everyone who rage commented on the original post layed out their argument like this.
I didn't comment on the original post because I'm not a SM commenter, ever. But in this instance, feedback has been solicited, good and bad. I was just putting in a case for why people may feel affronted by a dead deer, that's all. I have no intention of unsubscribing because I'm here for the good and bad not just the good (you also have to be curious about why people may disagree with you, right?) - along with an opportunity to speak, when normally I'd shut the hell up.
Apologies Anna. I didn't intend to comment on your comment; it was meant to be a direct reply to David. I don't generally comment on other commenter’s feedback because, like I said, it's not my business. I’ll delete this and repost in the right place. Thanks for letting me know.
Thought provoking comment, love it! Led me to think about it further, have a read if that's interesting to you.
Canadian here who, thanks to traumatic life experiences, is more comfortable with death than most other Canadians. I didn't love it but I appreciated the warning in the stories.
The reason I'm replying to you though, Anna, is because your point about posting a dead child really resonated with me.
My IG/FB feeds are FULL of mom content (I have two very young children), and often that content is about fetus/infant/child loss. It's terrible and gutting for me; and there are pictures. Not often of a mangled body but many of the parents holding their deceased infant/child. They wrap them up to make them look like they are cozy and sleeping but then the caption is very explicit in explaining that they are dead. I also see a lot of content on my feed of before and after photos of babies with shaken baby syndrome. For me, it's horrific. I don't find it horrific that they would post it, more just that I get sad for the families when I read the stories.
All this to say, I HATE that kind of content because it's upsetting to me personally, but wow, is it ever out there and people eat that shit up!
Some comment, some commiserate, some share their stories, some rubber-neck and a few judge. It's all there and it always has been (like the rotten.com comments other mentioned). Most people who the content is meant for don't freak out and recoil the way people did for this deer but for those who never see the content, it is shocking for them when they do.
I wonder if it's because those who would recoil aren't getting it on their feed and those that are, have informed the machine that they are either interested or at the very least, open to handling it.
David's content has it's own wonderful brand and I think we're all learning that many people didn't realize this dead deer situation could be part of it? That and like David mentioned, IG is all puppies and staged photos so maybe it's as simple as not being the platform for it?
Anyhoo, just a thought dump for my Monday morning to say I liked your comment and it made me think :)
Hey Laura, thanks for your thoughtful comment. It's so true we don't know what is upsetting to others. There are certain things I def avoid... My feed is mostly craft and writing and politics so yeah I guess a dead deer isn't really part of my algorithm. In saying that I also follow NZ accounts who hunt - I guess the confronting part of David's post was the context of the death, the not knowing what happened.
I tried to respond to this but text didn’t work here. I’m sorry that you felt bad about this. Is it possible that your feelings about it are strong, and it makes it hard to think about it objectively?
not wanting to be argumentative and seriously respecting the comments.........if you know David, and I get a sense of him from a distance and never meeting..........he is not the I can do what I like and I don't care kinda guy........everrrrrr.
Not like the prez who says he could shoot someone and no one would care...........
The image to moi was more like the 1st nation poeple giving some kind of honour to the sentient being that they had just killed for food.........and they thanked it. The pic was not a fuck you look at this pic. It was a look at this pic, and everyone's lense and variables kicked in, baggage and judgements..................the question could have been and knowing David it was obvious....what is David seeing here, what is he saying...............if you want to be known and be a part of the tapestry of life....you wouldnt refrain coz you would lose followers. You maybe wouldn't consider losing followers over their own shite an issue...........this is a sensitive and caring human..........he gives a fuck, that's why he posted it. Tautoko Farrier.
This stuff is fascinating - and for the record you are definitely OK to disagree with me on any of this. This community rules, and you're respectful and great even when disagreeing.
But this email just landed in my email inbox from a Webworm subscriber who just cancelled their subscription (that's OK, you can anytime).
"You didn’t ’become curious.’ You ‘became an asshole.’ You literally said ‘I think I can do whatever I want!’ as your justification. And you can. But what a fucking dick."
They have never emailed me before.
I checked their location: USA.
Fucking hell. the right to deny reality. that's it, succintly put. the right to deny global warming, trans people, palestine. yup, it all fits. and it's bloody spreading, i have a feeling the UK it tending in the same direction, just not as quickly.
it had never occurred to me. i mean, just like you i've seen the absolutely dilberate ignorance in the US, the pride people take n believing in something they know is wrong, but that it's part of the american dream to ignore those bits of reality they'd rather ignore, picking that up is inspired David, well done. re-reading that it sounds like sarcasm, but it's not, i've just really been stumped by this, it's brilliant.
Thanks for reading it, Ben. I woke up very early on Sunday and started trying to get me thoughts together. It was going to be a day off / or at least lazing in bed trying to catch up on some books - but when my brain says to write I have to write. So thanks for reading and appreciating.
Yes all this 👏🏼👏🏼
Death is something that little can see beauty in. It is the great fear of many; that dark void we will inevitably face and one that we know anything about. The brevity of life is something of a bewilderment and death is truly a scary journey in the end. I don’t speak for all of us Americans, but it’s something that in America we don’t like to think of or be reminded about even though violence is somewhat of a national past time here. And when you post a picture in which your curiosity reflects a morbid beauty in death, Americans kind of lose their shit.
I saw this post and thought nothing of it, just one man’s take on what happens in life. Some of those people that commented I’m sure are more offended because of their fear and their detachment from how life operates. They would rather you post a picture of you feeding a deer over you find a dead one. Though I wonder if I wasn’t bothered by it because of growing up around hunters and cleaning deer myself. But regardless, I feel like the comments were a bit dramatic thing I could be wrong. If they truly knew you they would know you never want to see an animal harmed.
Keep being you. It’s what makes you great. There was something about that photo that had beauty to it.
Beautifully written Adam
Americans can be so so weird….and while anaesthetized to the horrors of mass murders in US malls, schools and hotels , the dismantling of USAID, horrors of Gaza and Ukraine they dream about annexing Canada and Greenland and building paradise beaches along the Mediterranean coast of the Gaza Strip and in the next breath complain about the “distasteful “ post of a dead deer on Instagram and that Zelenskyy didn’t wear a tie or a suit when he came to the White House! Totally unhinged…
I suppose part of me wishes I saw those same outraged comments when I share my reporting on, say, abusive church leaders. It's unfair to compare them maybe - and I know a photo can create a visceral reaction - but still, all that energy. One person commented about 20 times! Throw that passion into something that matters - please.
Respectfully, and you know I adore you David, that's why images of that nature are called "triggering". That person was triggered and had an outsized reaction to something that seems small or innocuous to others.
They may not be avoiding reality in general. This just happened to be triggering to them for whatever nuanced reason applies to them. They might be struggling with personal grief, mental health, or just a rough day. Some might feel overloaded by constant exposure to tragedy and have emotional limits.
We live in a world where digital spaces bring together wildly different people, each with their own triggers, beliefs, and contexts. That complexity is worth considering.
I think what frustrates me in conversations like this is the lack of nuance. Sweeping generalizations – about Americans or anyone else – tend to erase the complexities of real people and their very real, individual reactions and experiences.
It's all good. I also - as someone who puts a lot of things out into the world - there are limits on what I can do on triggers.
I tend to be drawn to a lot of things that others may find triggering - so I think it's best some people just don't follow me or engage with my work. Dark Tourist was pretty triggering - so was Tickled - Mister Organ. My series of posts of dead birds on Instagram. None of those had trigger warnings, and I am not sure they needed them.
It is complex - but at the same time, in order to tell stories I have to sometimes make it simple and *just tell the story*. In saying that - I have hard rules - internal journalism school things - about specific trigger warnings and I work to those.
As for sweeping generalisations - I tend to do that sometimes. It's on purpose - as I think we all kinda have to look at bigger picture stuff and how we fit into it. It's intentional and meant to be confrontational at times.
I include myself in them - ie - when talking about the NZ psyche I will often include myself in it - as we are all part of it. "We New Zealanders like to tear people down when they get too big for their own boots" doesn't apply to me (I'd argue), but I go with "we".
All around I'd say this piece was pretty opinionated and a little poetic (aka up its own ass) so naturally I expect some disagreement too (which is fine).
Hey Emily!
I generally whole heartedly agree that we need more nuance and that trigger warnings are really important especially on topics that trigger a lot of people. I hesitate to agree though in this specific instance because I think it’s highly likely that most of these people who are angry and/or offended eat meat regularly and I think my biased opinion as someone who doesn’t is that it’s hypocritical to continuously pay for people to kill animals and keep them in abhorrent conditions and then get angry and confrontational about a photo of a dead animal. That is just something that always really irks me but again that might just be my own issue haha. I think it’s a beautiful and interesting photo that didn’t warrant this level of anger (and David constantly having to self censor is probably exhausting).
As far as the people who were offended about the photo being meat eaters, who knows. I’m pescatarian and occasionally eat chicken. But I wasn’t offended by the photo so another big shrug.
I don’t think trigger warnings are across the board really important in instances likes this one. I just think it’s an extra step that shows courtesy. It’s empathetic and a kindness. It shows care toward the audience being broadcast to. But like any kindness or courtesy, it’s not a requirement, but nice when it happens.
David made an interesting point about things that exist within and outside of the natural world. It made me really stop to think.
And I understand you have your own frustrations based on injustices and hypocrisy you feel, and another big shrug from me. I think it’s all a nuanced situation with lotsa layers of complexity because a large pool of people are all going to bring their own baggage and opinions to the same discussion.
It’s cool to have convos on nuanced topics so I appreciate you sharing your perspective
Thank you
Please understand that not all Americans fit into the description you provide. Some of us think, actually, and are disgusted by the things you mention.
Totally understand what you’re saying @Steve B. It just a shame that those, like you, who do think are silenced by those that do very little thinking
Absolutely true.
One other thought - I tend to do this just to make us remember that we're all part of it. Like when I write about NZ men being shitty about Lorde, I tend to frame it as "We NZ men have a problem". Because in some way we all play a part, right? I don't like to excuse myself from things as it's a reminder to loudly disagree and push back!
But yes, definitely not All Americans.
Yes, Steve, I truly understand that. That is why I said "Americans CAN be so weird..." I feel sorry for those whose voices are drowned out by the unhinged followers of one man who should never have had so much power given to him...
Hmm, not sure it’s all USA - my theory (n=1) is a disengagement from nature (life). I once posted a picture of a dead ferret we’d trapped on a social media feed of the bird conservation charity I worked for in NZ. A large unfenced sanctuary where trapping was (is!) big part of the conservation story. The response was fast and surprised me. I (naively) thought there would be “good job” “one less ferret means more manu” etc. I got “how dare you, I come here to see the pretty birdies and you show me DEATH”…
I chose not to respond and there were plenty of other comments from those who understand ferrets were never meant to be in NZ and if we want to see pretty birdies, then they don’t mix. But still the number of upsets vs supportive was higher. Nature is beautiful but she’s also raw, real and ugly. We should take her every way and see the entirety of her, not just the curated prettiness we shape her into.
This is a great example I think of what happened in my case, too. People expect a certain thing (cute birds) and any deviation is seen as an assault.
PS keep doing amazing work! New Zealand birds need all the help they can get.
We just got around to watching the 10-part "The Americas" nature documentary, and while it was very visually impressive it suffered from the "Disney-fication" where nothing bad can happen to anything cute seen on screen. I remember a number of hunting chases, but not a single successful predator where the target was anything that might be designated as "cute", and the only animal death I remember being truly visible were the crab being impacted by cars on a highway. I think the basis there is the same as happened here, where the reality was "pre-sanitized for your convenience". That then causes the kind of people who think "why do we need to kill all these cows - you should just go to the grocery store to get your steak".
I'd be one of the people in the comments patting you on the back for trapping the ferret! I'm an animal lover and a vet nurse, and I love our native manu so I am very happy for pests to be trapped - we do a bit on our property too. So New Zealanders can be the same and choose to turn a blind eye.. its an out of sight, out of mind thing eh. But if amazing people like you weren't doing the hard yards with pest control, they'd have less beautiful birds to look at.
I admit it wouldn't be my first choice to see a hollowed out deer carcass on IG, but I've followed you long enough to know there's a 10-15% chance any given picture will be a dead animal, and if I really don't want to see it, I can always unfollow. I don't really have any right to ask a stranger to curate their social media feed to my tastes or sensitivities.
It's what I call in my head a "me problem". When I may be mildly irked or irritated by something but I also know I'm not the center of the universe, and I can't expect other people to always cater to my whims. Not liking the posts on someone else's social media feed is a "me problem", and there's an easy fix for it that doesn't involve telling another person how to live their life. Social media trains us to think that we're the Main Character, and every passing thought or idea we have is correct and needs to be expressed, and that's not really true.
And I think when you realize a lot of Americans, particularly a lot of conservatives, live in total fantasy, it explains so much about our politics.
And in Cotino they will always be the main character and every whim will be catered for...until the place is taken out by a flood or a massive storm or a bunch of giant alligators. Nature will be okay if it stays in it's place and it never occurs to them that it is we who have encroached. In Aotearoa some features of the natural environment (Whanganui River, Te Urewera) have been granted personhood to help ensure they are cared for and respected. What if that had been done for the whole planet?
I was thinking about that giant self cleaning lake (aka a gian pool?) and what wildlife may find it's way inside. I can see some insane prank material going on.
Although I imagine a lot of vigilance after this (truly horrific) incident: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jun/15/disney-world-alligator-attack-boy-search
I was just thinking of that, was told (in 2005!) the Disney World ban on swimming when life guards weren't working was in part because they monitor the pools/lagoons are 'clear'. Was on that visit, after a week in Disney World at a conference, I got taken to 'Celebration' for dinner. I most remember the fake snow (foam) sprayed into the main street (think from the streetlight fittings) in December, in Florida, from Thanksgiving to Xmas. I wonder if Cotino will have that too?
https://flic.kr/p/4fRdqD
The crocodile from Peter Pan with the clock!
This is so true, the not having any right to ask a stranger to curate their social media feed.
I was taken aback by the original photo, not because it bothered me, but because it felt out of context on the ‘gram where everything is curated.
That’s my take away - a lot of people are living heavily curated lives where all the bad stuff in the world is filtered out. The deer broke their reality and they could not cope.
Picking media that suits your world view is curation, social media curates a world that keeps you coming back. That’s how we get our picture of the world these days and it’s not real.
I could write another 1000 words about how bad that is.
I’m loving all the responses but this is the one that resonates the most. How dare you have the audacity to break into my curated reality with brutal honesty?
What’s striking is that I’m going to guess that the majority of people not liking this are not conservatives. But the striking similarity is deafening. When a thing doesn’t fit my world view, it is wrong and YOU are wrong for delivering it. We are all the same.
Totally - well said. I think on social media I also have a thing where I have different audiences. The Dark Tourist people won't care. The ones who think I make a quirky podcast about Costco (who missed the capital punishment episode) will be shook etc.
It's a funny place.
And mostly a waste of time.
I don’t think it’s a waste of time. For each of the people that had a little melt down there will be another who thought about it and about your follow up.
Thinking is the goal right? We desperately need people to think more? But it’s hard because everything is so complicated - so it’s easier not to think.
Oh wow Cotino gives me those really creepy 'everything is ideallic until you dig down a bit' vibes like stepford wives or something 😬
I saw all the dead deer drama and ngl I was also a bit taken aback by how *intense* the reaction was! Sure it might not have been pleasant for some, but it seems like a reaction out of bearing with the picture, if that makes sense. Like when my kiddo has a screaming fit of sadness over one dropped crisp. Your theory as to why is very interesting! Also, morbid curiousity is such a normal human thing, the person calling you a creep for indulging in it needs to chill tf out. I always like seeing what you put in your stories because it's such an interesting snapshot of different vibes. Mundane, interesting, morbid, funny... We never know what we'll get and that's part of the appeal imo! You have a really unique view/(tone?) I don't see other IGers have.
Exactly what I thought. The outrage is completely OTT, just like a toddler losing it over a dropped crisp. Love the analogy.
So, you won't be moving in then?
I fear not 😂
I wonder if in the end its a fricken shock that RoadRunner doesn't always get up to fall another day, or be run over.....that must be a deeply disturbing realisation none of us want to make....thinkn about enculturation here....
First it was Disneyland. Then Disneyworld. Then the whole town of Celebration, FL. Now Cotino in Palm Springs, CA. At each stage there you can see more and more immersive experience being developed and insulation from everything else. Pretty soon they'll have their fourth wall television from Fahrenheit 451 and be completely enveloped - which I think is the back-story for The Matrix that didn't work because humans couldn't handle the lack of conflict and strife.
Celebration didn't turn out to be all they imagined! I recently read something about "The Dark Side of Disney's Perfect Town." That's paraphrasing, but I can't remember the title. It talked about murders and suicide, along with swingers and all sorts of wild stuff. Disney sold it around 2015 or so.
I'll echo my same sentiments here that I did on IG: Anyone who knows/follows you, should know how loving you are towards animals and also on the same hand how curious you are. I mean that is how you got bit by a squirrel, David 😉. I felt the genuineness of it. I viewed it as nothing more than roadkill I'd see in the road. Clearly people have no trouble hitting the poor creatures but God forbid they have to see them afterwards and deal with the consequences of actions. 🙃.
I think this is part of the reason why I spend so much time in cemeteries. The silent alone time is very nice but also somber. The subtle reminder that this is also going to happen to me and everyone I know. Memento mori, I think its called. It's very grounding. Sometimes the sight of a newly dug grave or one that's been freshly filled in can be both jarring and peaceful.
Keep doing what you're doing, David. The real ones are gonna hang on.
I could not agree more on cemeteries. Truly beautiful. I visited one in Sydney by the ocean and it took my breath away.
As part of this (unplanned) exile from my career as an archivist, I have become a taphophile - spending time in cemeteries photographing and researching headstones and burial sites for people on request, who are often overseas and unable to visit themselves. Cemeteries are very peaceful and contemplative, and I've had some touching encounters with complete strangers which have brought me to tears. The confrontation with the finality of death never diminishes, however - I doubt I will ever rationalise it - but would never pass judgement on another for their view.
Cemeteries are very peaceful.
Excellent point about David’s very well documented love of animals. 👏
There are many things we need to be coddled from including many things the government is actively doing to certain groups of people right now - but a dead animal is about the most natural thing in the world and we are so far removed from the things we do 3x a day that we totally forget that animals are put through worse to get to our table.
This dear likely lived a free life until being killed, likely by a vehicle, and then someone or something removed parts of it, etc... something that millions and millions of animals go through every day - getting slaughtered for food. I grew up hunting and fishing so got to see our food alive and well before it was on the dinner table later that day.
David did not kill this dear or show it's suffering - it's simply an image of a dead animal and it's something we should be able to deal with even if horrific and graphic. There's often beauty in trying to remember and reflect on the animal and what it might have gone through.
British person living in Aotearoa here. This post and your Instagram post are both fascinating. Your work and your mind is curious, it questions. This is why I subscribe, you open up my thinking. I questioned why the deer photo unsettled me, I had clicked on the link in your writing, then I read the bit about Gaza further down. Without the flowers and leaves, other beings have been equally obliterated in live feeds, and these beings are human. I simply will not look away just because I get a bit ick. They say ignorance is bliss, but this shit sucks. Thanks for your honesty.
The comments had me rolling. Have they never even seen roadkill? I was thinking to myself “they must not be from the Midwest”. Hunting is a huge part of our life in Wisconsin.
Maybe I am desensitized. My dad, uncles and grandfather were all hunters. Every hunting season they would bring the deer back to the house and cut up the meet on my grandparents’ dining room table. I was the weird kid that went and poked at the meat to see what it felt like. 😂
I love animals and hate to see any endure any pain. Having hunters in my family has taught me a lot about having respect for the animals we do consume and about the most ethical ways of obtaining that resource. Having farmers in the family has helped put that in perspective too.
Please don't refer to, or think of, wild animals as a "resource". They do not exist for our exploitation.
However, if you feel you have to eat dead animals, and I know some people in fact don't have much choice, I think it's far better to shoot an animal in the midst of its free life, rather than factory farm them. The trouble is that there are too many humans wanting to eat meat and too few wild animals to satisfy that appetite.
Respectfully, you can acknowledge that animals can be a resource for meat and bodily nourishment while still having respect and love for them. I do not take their life for granted.
I know meat eating can be very controversial. It’s very easy for people to judge those of us who consume meat. We aren’t heartless monsters. As stated in my original post, my family are hunters but it’s not a game or a sport just to kill something. It’s respectful, the animals roam freely in the woods, and the goal is to create as little suffering as possible. If there is not a clean shot of the deer or turkey, my family won’t risk it.
There are also negatives to veganism. It’s not 100% bloodless. Farming any sort of crop for the masses needs vast expanses of land which can cause displacement and death of the wild animals whom inhabited those spaces.
It’s a modern day issue. Our ancestors used to farm their own crops and slaughter their own animals. Most of us do not have the space or capacity to include that into our busy ways of life. The goal should be to support your small and local farmers as much as possible. However, that is not always the most cost efficient or most accessible way to survive.
Regarding crop farming, much more land is used for farming animals than crops so veganism is still a massive harm reduction in that respect. Around 44% of the world's habitable land is used for agriculture. One third of that is crops, two thirds grazing, so already animal farming requires double the land. Of those crops only 16% are for direct human consumption. The majority are used for animal feed. Just 4% are for other use like biofuel and textiles. Animal farming accounts for 80% of agricultural land use, so is a much bigger contributor to death and displacement of wild animals than crops for human consumption. It also only provides 17% of the world's calorie consumption so it's very inefficient.
Hi Lara, can you please provide where those stats are from? Just curious and I want to learn more.
The thing about just eating veggies/fruit or grains, is that it does take a lot more of that food type and more calories to consume to equal the amount of protein and other vitamins found in meat. It’s well known that that many of us already don’t meet the requirements of essential nutrients. This diet can create an additional barrier to that.
I know people who are successful vegans, I know people who have tried it and then have had health struggles so they added meat back into their diet. I feel strongly that it is a personal choice and that everyone should choose a diet that best fits with their lifestyle and needs.
The main goal for all of us should be to promote the most sustainable and ethical way to receive our food. I know it’s not easy, especially with the demand that is required for all of us to eat. I’m not sure how to implement global changes, but supporting local small farms with values you align with is a start.
The data is from the UN. This article is a good easy to read presentation of it https://ourworldindata.org/global-land-for-agriculture
I have been vegan for 14 years. I know people who have been vegan for much longer too. It is not harder to eat a balanced plant based diet than one including animal products, it is just different. Like any change we make there is a bit of a learning curve at first, then it becomes second nature.
I'm not going to go for the numbers again because I need to get back to work, but health issues associated with the consumption of animal products are huge. It's unfair to point out that some people had health issues on a plant based diet and ignore all of the health issues that meat eaters have. And I think it stops being personal choice when that choice has a victim.
Being vegan is the most sustainable and ethical way to receive food. Some people have good reasons that going vegan is not feasible, and that's ok. We have to do our best with what we have. And for those of us who have supermarkets full of choices, and lots of restaurants available to us, change can start with choosing the veggie burger instead of the beef one. It doesn't have to be hard. Global change is slow indeed, and I agree with supporting local as much as possible.
I think this way of thinking about animals can mean different things for different people. In an American context thinking of the way cattle, pigs and chicken are "farmed" - the word "resource" can have a high ick factor and show how dismissive we can be of animals and their "use".
But then look at a family raising a few goats in the Gobi desert to use for milk and eventually kill and eat every single body part, "resource" takes on a different tone? That's how I tend to see it, anyway.
It seems alot of your IG followers did not grow up looking at rotten.com, and it shows!
Haha that website fucked me up for years.
Oh shit I'd forgotten about rotten.com! Now that was unhinged.
I thought about Rotten.com for this old Webworm piece, which is pretty relevant in all this too - but when DO we look away? Written by a very smart guest columnist: https://www.webworm.co/p/whendowelookaway
People want to see death through the lens of a crafty horror filmmaker who fictionalizes its ugly reality and glorifies the kill. The finality of something beautiful like this is jarring and important.
I consent! Enthusiastically! I consent to this David Farrier, and any other David Farriers you've got lying around. :)
I am one of the people who found this distressing and have a couple of takes (kiwi, not american btw). I grew up on a sheep farm so animal carcasses isn't something new, but it also doesn't stop me from feeling intense empathy towards animals (I watched the animated film flow last night and balled, imo it should be R16 not G!). It's not the fact that the animal is dead, it's thinking about the suffering of how it got there. There are the comparisons with Gaza etc - but for me there are a couple of differences, one the Gaza posts have a point, this seemed more like it was for shits and giggles and the 'beauty of death'. Imagine if someone posted a photo of dead child and said wow isn't death beautiful? Just because it's an animal doesn't mean it requires less respect. Which brings me to the second point, cruelty that happens to animals for me has an extra layer of distress because like with this situation it is by humans, it is our fault, it isn't their doing and that seems so unfair. One other thing... probs controversial... you have a decent following David. Most people who are trying to create a community via SM would never post something like this because they know it would lose them followers - I think this post has the feeling of 'I can do what I like and I don't care' and maybe that doesn't sit so well. Like I'd get it if it was for a reason, but this seemed there to shock and not much else.
Some good points here - and thanks for making them. I do definitely want to make it clear I did not post it for "shits and giggles", and it did not (in my mind) show a lack of respect. I adore animals, respect them, am never far away from (live!) ones.
The Gaza issue was a contestable point as I said within the piece - but I very much hear you - and I agree. That shit has a huge point (and the topic of this other guest Webworm written by someone way smarter than me: https://www.webworm.co/p/whendowelookaway).
In saying that - I would argue my deer also had a point, as I hope I laid out in this piece.
As for creating a community on social - I guess some people do but I never have. I largely find social media the opposite of community - which is why I like Webworm so much! We can talk at length like we are now and it's just such a better format to talk about stuff in.
As an aside - I had a long running story series (a few years?) on Instagram of dead birds with the hashtag #sleeping - so between that and Dark Tourist I figured the post actually wouldn't be *that* bonkers! (I was wrong)
All good. I absolutely know how much you love animals (cats and goats right?) but I guess this kinda got to me because the deer's life obviously ended in a very violent death and that isn't beautiful that's sad and tragic. I've seen beautiful deaths (my uncle in an open casket being honored on a marae) and heartbreaking death - first on the scene to a car accident. There's a difference. Dead birds falls into the first category (mostly) - it's natural and part of life and that's cool. I guess maybe another factor, and this is on me not you, is that I have a very vivid imagination so when faced with something like this it can replay over and over wondering what happened. I also can't watch horrors - I still haven't recovered from Revenge of the Toxic Avenger when I was a teen. Re social media - It was the first image to pop up when I opened insta (I didn't see the story?) with not a lot of context and I wondered why. I dunno, really it was a fleeting bit of annoyance (more so on the vitriol in the comments to be fair) but when you asked for feedback thought I'd put my two cents in.
The post didn’t bother me personally but I think this is very well put! If only everyone who rage commented on the original post layed out their argument like this.
I very much appreciate this comment section here as we can disagree and talk in a very reasonably reasoned way. Adore it.
I didn't comment on the original post because I'm not a SM commenter, ever. But in this instance, feedback has been solicited, good and bad. I was just putting in a case for why people may feel affronted by a dead deer, that's all. I have no intention of unsubscribing because I'm here for the good and bad not just the good (you also have to be curious about why people may disagree with you, right?) - along with an opportunity to speak, when normally I'd shut the hell up.
Apologies Anna. I didn't intend to comment on your comment; it was meant to be a direct reply to David. I don't generally comment on other commenter’s feedback because, like I said, it's not my business. I’ll delete this and repost in the right place. Thanks for letting me know.
It's comment Inception!
😂😂
Oh all good! That makes much more sense!
Thought provoking comment, love it! Led me to think about it further, have a read if that's interesting to you.
Canadian here who, thanks to traumatic life experiences, is more comfortable with death than most other Canadians. I didn't love it but I appreciated the warning in the stories.
The reason I'm replying to you though, Anna, is because your point about posting a dead child really resonated with me.
My IG/FB feeds are FULL of mom content (I have two very young children), and often that content is about fetus/infant/child loss. It's terrible and gutting for me; and there are pictures. Not often of a mangled body but many of the parents holding their deceased infant/child. They wrap them up to make them look like they are cozy and sleeping but then the caption is very explicit in explaining that they are dead. I also see a lot of content on my feed of before and after photos of babies with shaken baby syndrome. For me, it's horrific. I don't find it horrific that they would post it, more just that I get sad for the families when I read the stories.
All this to say, I HATE that kind of content because it's upsetting to me personally, but wow, is it ever out there and people eat that shit up!
Some comment, some commiserate, some share their stories, some rubber-neck and a few judge. It's all there and it always has been (like the rotten.com comments other mentioned). Most people who the content is meant for don't freak out and recoil the way people did for this deer but for those who never see the content, it is shocking for them when they do.
I wonder if it's because those who would recoil aren't getting it on their feed and those that are, have informed the machine that they are either interested or at the very least, open to handling it.
David's content has it's own wonderful brand and I think we're all learning that many people didn't realize this dead deer situation could be part of it? That and like David mentioned, IG is all puppies and staged photos so maybe it's as simple as not being the platform for it?
Anyhoo, just a thought dump for my Monday morning to say I liked your comment and it made me think :)
Hey Laura, thanks for your thoughtful comment. It's so true we don't know what is upsetting to others. There are certain things I def avoid... My feed is mostly craft and writing and politics so yeah I guess a dead deer isn't really part of my algorithm. In saying that I also follow NZ accounts who hunt - I guess the confronting part of David's post was the context of the death, the not knowing what happened.
I tried to respond to this but text didn’t work here. I’m sorry that you felt bad about this. Is it possible that your feelings about it are strong, and it makes it hard to think about it objectively?
Oh for sure! Anything with animals... It's why I can't watch David Attenborough!
not wanting to be argumentative and seriously respecting the comments.........if you know David, and I get a sense of him from a distance and never meeting..........he is not the I can do what I like and I don't care kinda guy........everrrrrr.
Not like the prez who says he could shoot someone and no one would care...........
The image to moi was more like the 1st nation poeple giving some kind of honour to the sentient being that they had just killed for food.........and they thanked it. The pic was not a fuck you look at this pic. It was a look at this pic, and everyone's lense and variables kicked in, baggage and judgements..................the question could have been and knowing David it was obvious....what is David seeing here, what is he saying...............if you want to be known and be a part of the tapestry of life....you wouldnt refrain coz you would lose followers. You maybe wouldn't consider losing followers over their own shite an issue...........this is a sensitive and caring human..........he gives a fuck, that's why he posted it. Tautoko Farrier.