As a friend of mine so cleverly put it on twitter this morning, “I feel like a kid who woke up on Christmas only to be told Santa was murdered” (-@shakashuma). Unfortunately, that was exactly the case for many other EDM fans and ravers this morning, when it was announced that the Sunday events of Electric Zoo were cancelled.
The ravers equivalent to the ‘blue screen of death’
According to the Huffington Post this morning, the festival was cancelled in a combined effort between the mayor’s office and the creators of the event to protect the lives of concert goers after two reported deaths at yesterdays events. Four others remain in critical condition. The cause of the deaths is still under investigation, but party drugs like the ever popular MDMA are a suspected cause. There are two kinds of (mainly angry) reactions taking place on the web, each by people who think the other is like “s000 ruhtarded”. (How could anyone ever have a different outlook on a situation that mine, OF COURSE I’m right). Maybe it would be nice for a second if we could take a step back and look at both sides so we can stop yelling at each other on twitter? (Seriously guys, it’s very unbecoming).
Reaction 1; “F*CK THIS, F*CK THIS. People lyke NEED to learn to handle their drugs, and two little deaths/4 potential deaths should NOT deny me Sunday EZoo. #fight4theright2PARTAY
Logic behind it; Look, here’s a person who spent anywhere between $180 and $500 or even more under the pretense that they would be having the time of their lives today, seeing their favorite artists, hanging out with friends, and doing whatever other questionable behavior they planned to do today. Outfits were purchased and plans were solidified (I actually had my outfit sitting on my bed, it was so fetch :(.) All this planning creates a lot of anticipation and excitement, and to be cancelled on such short notice is OF COURSE going to cause a social media uproar. It’s our generation’s preferred method of coping (anyone remember password journals? If they had just stuck around about a decade more, all of this could have been avoided…) Between people who want to notify friends and people who want to express their dissatisfaction, there will be some negative feelings present. Just let these kinds of reactions go. People are allowed to social media sulk. (If you’re still upset in a few hours, imagine the deceased was your best friend, and people citywide are angry because your best friend’s death denied them the opportunity to deliberately partake in the same activity that got YOUR BEST FRIEND killed. I can’t even imagine.)
Reaction 2; @(reaction1); Are you kidding me? Shut your whore mouth for a moment of silence for the dearly departed. #RIPstrangers
Logic behind it; PEOPLE DIED. Yes, this is horrible, I agree. The cost of a life is well beyond $180-$500 (I’ve lost 4 iPhones so my net worth is at a whopping estimated $3,200). We can all agree on that. But just like my friend mentioned in her tweet, a kid on Christmas doesn’t think about the fact that Santa Clause got murdered, they’re blind sighted by their desire for the presents they had been anticipating for so long. They’re being selfish, aka human. Just because at the moment you are able to realize the deeper significance of the situation that your friend who had a three day pass doesn’t mean you should try to force this realization on them. Most of the people I know who are bitter right now will have calmed down in an hour to realize that yes, it is someone’s son/daughter/best friend who died yesterday and that for someone, this was more than a $200 loss, but the loss of their entire world.
The way I see it is this; I’m disappointed that todays festivities are cancelled as much as the next three day/Sunday pass holder. In a very selfish way, I wish the festival would still take place today, but I don’t think that makes me or anyone else who feels that way a bad person. What we can do is (oh God, she’s gonna say it) learn from this. Drugs have become so engrained in rave/EDM culture that the danger behind the substances almost have lost significance. Very serious drugs seem like a casual thing to do now. To many, it’s not ‘Are you going to take something?’ but “What/how much are you on?’ Take a step back, know what you’re doing, and please, the next time you rave, do so responsibly or it might not be a stranger’s name making headlines.
State of Alaska 