Looney times

The biggest news to hit prime time this week was Saddam's noose. Experts, journalists and TV presenters all had a field day analyzing every minute of the event. As a large section of people rejoiced, many others protested citing various reasons. Those of us who couldn't care less just sat back and watched the story unfold. All in all we saw an execution being reduced to a mass entertainment event. The amount of song, dance, tears and rhetoric surrounding the hanging likened it to a Karan Johar movie.

As I saw this story develop, many things struck me as bizarre. For example rumours were rife about execution videos being posted on the internet. Apparently somebody witnessing the execution captured the entire thing on video with his cell phone camera. How insane is that?! I haven't seen the video myself but I'm sure when the noose was placed around Saddam's neck, he was asked to look into the camera and say 'cheese' while his executioners stood on either side flashing the victory sign. There were also reports of people taunting the condemned man as he was led to the gallows. Whatever happened to the mesopotamian civilization? There seems to no trace of civil society left anywhere in the region.

Following the execution reactions began to pour in. The USA and its government in Iraq saw it as justice being served. Europe and most of Asia was shocked and disappointed. Over the last few years a clear pattern can be observed. The USA does something and the rest of the world expresses its shock and disappointment. This has become so common that I think its time they took the word 'shock' out of their press releases. In Iraq the Shias danced on the streets in joy while the Sunnis took pride in how their man had bravely faced death. Reminds me of a cricket match where one side wins and the other side takes positives out of its loss. The rest of the Islamic world complained that they felt insulted because the execution took place before a holy festival. I'm still trying to make sense of that.

Just when I thought the dust was beginning to settle on the issue, I read a report in the newspaper of a kid in Pakistan who tragically lost his life while trying to re-enact the Saddam execution to those who missed the live broadcast there. Kids seem to learn so much more from TV than they do in school. Shaktiman inspired them to jump off buildings twirling like tornadoes and now this. Since it occured in Pakistan nothing much might come of it. Had it happened in the US, parents might have sued CNN for not flashing the message "The following actions were carried out on convicted professionals. Do not try it out at home".

The long running Saddam show has finally come to an end. I wonder if we'll get to see a re-run or a remake anytime soon.