So for those old enough to remember, September 11, 2001 will be our generation’s day of infamy. Because on that day, hijackers crashed planes into the World Trade Center, Pentagon and in a Pennsylvanian field. This evil act killed approximately 3,000. Then add the thousands injured. Also, consider that an entire generation lost it’s innocence and invincibility.? There is an online 9/11 photo that proves how painfully real that day was.
I won’t put the photo up here because it could be too much to handle. But here is a summary. A 4-year-old boy stands on the Brooklyn Bridge. His mother takes a picture of him smiling slightly. His mother took the picture. However, this boy is unaware one of the towers got hit by an airplane and the gaping hole in the building. We can guess she took the picture right after the first plane, but minutes before the second one. Because others crossing the bridge seems equally as unaware.
So what does this have to do with computer repair or IT support? Well, unfortunately, some people use this tragedy to produce fake photos. Some of these photos are distasteful, to say the least. And they’re using the best of computer technology to doctor these fake photos. So when Austin Sansome, now around 21, posted this picture on Reddit, people immediately became skeptical. On Reddit, people accused him of putting up a fake photo. They asked questions like, “Why didn’t anyone notice the smoke? Didn’t anybody hear a loud kaboom?”, and other questions. But there were others who believed the photo was real. Then something happened.
Sansome went on Reddit to kill the beef. As a young man, he held up the authentic picture his mother took on that horrible morning. He explains he still lives in New York City, and assured this picture is tragically real. I believe him. But what is sad about this (besides the obvious), is that why did he have to go all out to prove himself on this online 9/11 photo? Why do people make photoshop fake photos of tragedy? To me, this is abuse and exploitation of the system. I think when people do fake photos of this, they’re disrespecting those who had to endure it. Yes, I like photoshop. But keep it light and entertaining. Don’t use fake photos to make light of tragedy. Why do people do this?