I remember my rather gritty grandfather growling “Pictures don’t lie” at us after purposely catching us at our worst possible moments.  He LOVED to get us making a horrible face, a picture from behind, a mouth full of food…and then when we’d complain when he showed it to others, he’d growl his favorite personal maxim, “Oh, my achin’ crotch!   Pictures don’t lie.”

Maybe the PICTURE doesn’t, but…

I had a Gifted and Talented update a few years back, and one of the activities involved the mural above:  Picasso’s Guernica.

Part of what we were supposed to do was look for what images we saw.  Then, we had to explain what each image meant… how it was symbolic…  why Picasso chose what he did.

In a room full of about sixty people, there were at least 40 different answers.  We discussed, we talked, some argued that others were wrong about what they saw.  Some defended.  I found it interesting.

At the time, I didn’t find it quite as dangerous as I do now.

It’s ironic that I’m writing this blog.  In a world of Twitter and Instagram and Snapchat so many stop at the picture anyway.  People read the headline, decide they’ve seen all they need to see… and move on.

This struck me yesterday when I saw a picture that someone posted from the Dallas police memorial.  It was a picture posted by Fox Business of President George W. Bush, Michelle Obama, and President Barack Obama.  All three standing with their right hand on the left side of their body, apparently looking the same direction.

Beneath the comment, a former student posted “Look the O’s don’t even have their hands on their hearts.”  I looked closer.  It appeared to me that they did…

Then, I clicked to enlarge the picture which took me to the Fox Business page… and all of the comments that went with it.  I scrolled up and down the side.  Every comment analyzed each aspect of the picture.  “I’m so tired of Michelle looking bored.  Worst first lady ever!” “Look at that look on his face!   George W. Bush was a real American.  Look at Obummer!   If you want to go to sleep, go home!”

Again, I found myself thinking “I don’t see that…”  But, wow!   These people were sure filled with more vitriol than I could stomach for very long.  HUNDREDS of comments about how they LOOKED and all of the conclusions that could be drawn.

I think back to the infamous coffee mug salute of 2014 and how many were calling for impeachment at that moment.

(semi interesting side note.  I did not vote for Obama in 2008 or 2012 and have never considered myself an Obama supporter.  However, the intense hatred that so many have over insignificant things lands me in the position of supporting him over and over again… may be worth thinking about it before hatred spewing… but I digress.)

I am concerned about how much feeling is created by looking at a picture, seeing a sound bite, and deciding “that’s how I feel.”  Then our pitchfork society joins the crowd with the anger and the torches and attacks… while never really knowing that SPLIT second of still time probably didn’t deserve that much judgement and leaving people entirely uninformed.

I think of those Mark Dice YouTube videos where he goes on the street and asks people what they think of current campaigns.  In this particular one he is convincing Hillary Clinton supporters that Clinton supports Sharia Law.  We have so many people who don’t take the time to read. I see this every time I post a blog post…  100 people will click “Like” on a picture, but only 10 will read the blog.

I’m worried we live in a society where people make judgements based on pictures and wait for someone to tell them what they should be thinking.

As a society we have begun to zoom in on Jennifer Aniston’s tummy in every single picture to decide whether or not she is pregnant.  We have decided that she has been longing to have a baby for years and we’re oh so happy for her only to have her lambast all of us for scrutinizing her.

It’s a little nuts of us, isn’t it?

So, yes… Grandpa… you may be right.  You captured that nanosecond of time.  That picture is real…

What about when they DO lie:

Barack Obama… black panther 1998, right?

or maybe not… Maybe someone with Photoshop knew how to use a picture and changed it so that they could make a point…

And have you noticed that if you talk to someone and say, “I’m sorry, but that picture is a fake” they generally have one of two responses.  1.  They take it down and never say another word about it.  2.  They say “Yes, that one is fake.  But you know it’s not about the picture.  It is depicting something that is true.”

Huh?

That’s your perception, right?

Is the dress white and gold or blue and black?.

Is the soul rising from the man’s body? or is it a trick of light?

Is an image truly worth 1,000 words or are we better off with words than with the image?