Muni stands with Boston... What about the rest of us?

“We stand with Boston.” I was on the Muni in San Francisco, when I noticed the bus had inscribed this instead of the usual “Go Giants” on the screen of the bus. Interesting, there has been scant media coverage about the most recent terrorist attack on United States soil a mere months after the tragic bombing. It seems almost as if the media has decided that the Boston Marathon bombing is no longer relevant news. Instead, our magazines are filled with news about celebrity gossip and what women should be wearing this fall. Does the media think the people do not care or is tragedy now irrelevant?

The media has a duty to the public. This duty includes truthful, accurate news. Kim Kardashian’s baby does not qualify as news. It is the medias duty to educate the public. Why do Americans lack geographical knowledge and understanding of global events? The media does not see fit to provide us with actual news; instead we read dribble about the latest in celebrity gossip. Well, Americans want to read gossip rags you might argue. My response is: try harder media. You managed to convince legions of women that they need to be a size zero and in a heterosexual relationship in order to be worthwhile to society. Why can you not use those same skills to discuss economic struggles in Greece or stimulate discussions about racial and gender equality in the United States?

So, thank you San Francisco Muni for reminding me about the Boston bombings. Thank you for reminding me that the tragedy is still affecting families throughout the U.S. And, thank you for reminding me that life is precious. 

Thanks,

EmBoss

Commuter Life

I created this blog months ago with the intention of documenting my "gap year" between my undergrad at UCLA and my future in medical school. Sadly, and yet no surprising at all, it has taken me until now to actually post a single thought.

But today was different. I was on my usual commute from work, which includes a trek across the legendary Golden Gate Bridge. As usual, I was reading my Kindle (a particularly fascinating read by Jeff Burkhart aka "The Barfly") and listening to music. I noticed some tourists boarded our commuter bus and sat in the available seats on the bus. They eagerly looked out the buses grimy, smudged windows at the traditional Victorian three-story beauties, dogs with their heads out car sunroofs, and the unusually fog-free San Francisco sky, while the rest of us "jaded commuters" decided our newspapers, our emails, and our iPhones were more interesting than the world outside our bus.

The tourists hopped off through the back doors, which the bus driver graciously opened for them: something highly unusual for us regulars. I was suddenly struck by the momentousness of the fact that I was about to traverse one of the most famous sites in the entire world and I was buried in my electronics.

I was letting the world passively pass me by. I was not appreciating the strikingly beautiful fall sunset nor the tourists who were delighting in a city I love and call my home. With that thought I vowed to pay more attention: more attention to others in my life, more attention to my own actions and their implications, and more attention to my surroundings. I must be an active participant in my own life so I am able to experience the joy in the little moments, which hopefully steamroll those other moments I wish had gone away!

Cheerio,
EmBoss