Gip’s Thoughts: A Proud Denier of the Bad

Did you know there are two ways of relating to the news? Some of us are Wallowers. Others are Deniers.

No, I didn’t know that either. But that’s the idea proposed by writer Daniel Stone in a March 23, 2009 Newsweek web article called “Selling the Silver Lining“.

Wallowers, he writes, are those who take in the news; deniers are those who “turn their heads, choosing to immerse themselves in the ‘Back to the Future’ trilogy or scrapbooking , turning off the news altogether”.

I’m neither. But if I must take sides, I’d be more proud to be a Denier than a Wallower.

I watch the news on TV and read it on the Internet every day. I sometimes even buy one of those antiquated relics of the past, a newspaper. (I used to write for papers, you see, so I sometimes still enjoy turning pages rather than pressing Page Down or spinning that little wheely thing on my mouse.) I also turn off the talk radio in my car when I find the topic dull or negative, but that doesn’t mean I deny that the topic exists. I just choose not to pollute my brain with it.

Limiting pollution of my body is why I stopped consuming artificial sweeteners many years ago, stopped drinking cola (to which I was clearly addicted) several years ago and also stopped watching judge shows and those trash talk shows like Maury Springer, or whatever his name is. Those things aren’t bad, but they aren’t good enough for me to take in. They exist solely to make really good foods and programs look even better.

Stone’s somewhat tongue-in-cheek article isn’t really bad, either. It points out that there are advantages to being what he insists on calling a Denier, and he even talks to a couple of psychologists about the issue. It is, however, very conspicuously low on links to good, positive news, information and essays.

Maybe you should drop Stone a line recommending your new favorite source of good words.