No News Turns Out To Be Bad News

Story by Egon Sinclair 

| Published Nov 11, 2008

Despite the old mantra, the lack of information surrounding yesterday’s catastrophe has been anything but positive.

“I haven’t heard anything since last night,” said Miriam, a distraught deli worker who fled the scene when the horrific events first started to unfold. “Nothing at all. I’m starting to worry about my family and friends.”

Approximately an hour after the incident, ambulances and EMT crews swarmed the scene to tend to the huge number of casualties.

As of this morning, the body count was listed in the triple digits. According to corroborated eyewitness reports, a bunch more people appear to be in pretty bad shape.

“It was bad – real bad,” said Dalton, who was at the epic-center of the tragedy for some reason. “I saw a whole bunch of really terrible stuff. Stuff that would just blow your mind. I can’t even begin to explain it.”

Rescue workers and cleanup crews will be dispatched later this week, according to the person who answered the phone at the mayor’s office, to search for survivors and begin rebuilding the location where the calamity took place.

“We plan on working really hard,” said a woman whose authoritative tone and piercing stare indicated she probably worked for the city. “We’ll do whatever it takes to help people recover and move on with their lives.”

“Hopefully, we can learn from this,” she added. “As long as people keep abreast of what’s happening in the world by following the news, we should be able to avoid another dreadful misfortune like this one.”

Although reports were filed by several news crews in the area when the situation first turned from bad to worse, there hasn’t been a single piece published that paints a clear picture -- if any picture at all -- of what happened on that fateful evening.

This dearth of news has caused public outcry and unrest.

Roger Wiggins and about two dozen dedicated followers stormed city hall this morning, setting up picket lines and demanding details about yesterday’s grizzly happenings.

“They can’t keep us in the dark like this!” shouted an irate Wiggins, flaunting a sign that read ‘Substance Over Style!!!’ and marching in a tight circle.

“I’ve read about a dozen articles on that awful disaster, but they don’t tell you anything! Those lousy reporters talk and talk and talk for hundreds of words, but never get to the goddamned point!”