Even though I think X has written the most interesting and truly thought-provoking things on these subjects in two posts, here and here, I feel that I have to write something about it.

First, what has happened in Norway is horrible; one seriously damaged individual went haywire and killed people. While I'm sorry for the victims, their families and those personally struck by this, I can't help wondering what the rest, the people and media say and most of all why they say it.

Some of my Facebook friends have changed their profile picture to one of the Norwegian flag, some have placed the Norwegian flag over a picture of themselves and used it as a profile picture. Some write status-updates on how they "send thoughts and well-wishings to their neighbour...", groups are joined and Facebook applications are created and used because of what has happened.

My main thought about this is: why is the massacre in Norway more highlighted than almost any other one in recent times?

Here's pieces of two posts I want to highlight because I think they say more about the entire deal than any other I've read.

As X has written eloquently, with a very interesting idea of a paper I'd want to read too:

it'd be really interesting writing a paper on mourning, national mourning, international mourning. Who deserves to be mourned, and who doesn't? What decides which deaths we pay attention to? Geographically close = emotionally close, seems to be the formula. I don't get it, it doesn't make any sense, I don't understand. But that's why it's so fascinating and interesting.

X also quotes our friend Marielle in this post, which is in Swedish but here's my translation from a small piece of it:

70% of the status updates about Norway. I understand when some share a connection, but others smell of White-People-Have-Died-mourning.

I agree. I've yet to understand why people tend to reflect and write more about Norway than, say, about the fact that tens of thousands of people are still killed per month in the Congo, where the deadliest conflict in the World is still raging since World War 2, nearing 6 million people killed - mainly over bits and bobs required to make computers and mobile phones.

Hang on. Tomakecomputersandmobilephones? What? And people aren't shitting themselves senseless about this fact in comparison with one lunatic going rampant? And do people even remember the Beslan school killings!?

How does the thought-process run inside somebody who really has no connections with Norway, who hasn't given a toss about the nation and its inhabitants before the massacre and yet runs wild now?

But Norway is only a few miles away. The country touches Sweden. That must mean something. I can't remember Norway in my life in any other aspect, but, but...we nearly speak the same language. They're white, we're white. I'll update my Facebook status to reflect that of my friends', to show we're all in this together. Supporting Norway. I'll tweet it. That's the way to go, where I stand. Everybody now knows, they'll see I'm compassionate. Somebody's clicked Like, another writes "Agrees...". They know. I feel safe. Safer still. More and more dress like I do on Facebook, wearing a Norwegian flag. It feels comforting to see those red, blue and white colours.

I cannot help but wonder how long these people will take to think it's OK to change their profile picture back to something non-Norwayish, and if they think doing so today would seem like a slap in the face to...someone?

Discussing this is highly interesting to me. Of course grief isn't measurable, but don't you want to know more about why you react in this way to this particular incident, and really not at other times? I would, if I felt drawn to it. I'm not trying to attack grief or throw my hands up for cynicism, but rather understand the mental process; this discussion is the only kind that I know of, where atheists I know behave completely like religious people.

Let me clarify that.

When questioning a modern-day so-called christian's or moslem's beliefs, I find them commonly shooting from the hip, e.g. by saying "You can't question my belief!" or "You don't understand". I've always found their answers very banal and frightened, as though they're really meaning "Don't attack my belief! I've got to respond with something that'll make these questions stop!". As though the logic switch is turned off when contradictions are discussed, in the bible and the quran.

Why do the most born-again supporters of the nation of Norway - or rather, its very recent dead, not counting the Norwegians who have died in greater numbers from, say, alcohol, tobacco and drunk driving - behave like the tabloids and focus irrationally? I really think the most that can be learned from observing this, is by seeing what those reporting about Norway aren't reporting otherwise.

It all reminds me of the idiots who actually - and they do exist - claim "I was first!" when commenting on others who write about Amy Winehouse's death on Facebook/Twitter/whatever; have we really become a tabloid culture? Is public knowledge of your so-called compassion much more important than the actual content, and foremost, what you are saying and conveying?

Today, an entire weekend after the murders in Norway, I see some of the most ardents supporters of the country of Norway (since Friday) have raised flags not only in their profile pictures, but in anger. "I cannot believe how some people oppose my writing about Norway," one person writes, "don't they have any compassion?"

Well, maybe compassion is the problem.

I feel that if compassion isn't there when discussing the world at large, yes, then there is a problem. Aren't we all the same, no matter where we live, what we look like or which language we speak?

To finish this post off, I bring you what (now former) Facebook-friend of mine wrote as his status update just after the news reported that a bomb had exploded in Oslo; the first quoted line below is paraphrased slightly as the "friend" deleted the entire conversation after the fact; read on and you'll know what I mean:

Nu är det någon som bombar oss Nordbor. Ut med packet.

This is roughly translated to "Now somebody is bombing us Northeners ((Could also be interpreted as "Scandinavians".)). Out with the riffraff."

Apart from the fact that I was surprised and almost vomited at the revelation of one of my "friends" - this person being a former class-mate whom I haven't seen for nearly 15 years - being a xenophobe, I decided to converse rather than merely removing him from my friend list at the time; here's the conversation in Swedish with a translation following:

me: Det påminner mig om bombningarna i Oklahoma City, då en del automatiskt trodde att gärningspersonen var utländsk. he: Hur kan du få det till att jag lägger skulden på "utlänningarna"? me: Det har jag varken fått eller skrivit. he: Du gör en form av liknelse... Sen är jag iofs övertygad om att gärningsmannen/männen inte bar lusekofta, det är nog du med Niklas... me: Jag har inte liknat något. Jag tycker inte att någon ska ha lusekofta. he: Hahaha.. Jaja, nu e det nån jävel som skjuter ihjäl massa ungdomar på ett läger i Norge också... Utklädd till snut...

Translated by yours truly:

me: This reminds me of the Oklahoma City bombings, when some automatically assumed that the culprit was a foreigner. he: How can you turn this into my blaming "the foreigners"? me: I've neither turned anything into or written that. he: You're making a parable... In any case I'm convinced the culprit/culprits weren't wearing a lusekofte ((A traditional Norwegian sweater.)) and I think you do too Niklas... me: I have made no parable. I don't think anybody should wear a lusekofte. he: Hahaha.. Wellwell, now some bastard are shooting a lot of kids at some camp in Norway too... Dressed as a cop...

Now, this person was sadly not alone in assuming the bomber was a foreigner, just like a whole bunch of other anti-intellectuals who did the same.

I e-mailed said "friend" about this conversation, after a) the culprit was discovered to be a white, Norwegian male and b) my "friend" deleted his Facebook update and never replied to my question as to why he deleted it.