Brandon Lawson
EF2
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I apologize for starting a new thread for this and I realize that this has been talked about multiple times. But my post is so big I felt it warranted a thread of its own. It's also the opposite of what a lot of people have been saying.
I am starting to tire of all the concerns for people who cheer/get excited when tornadoes cause property damage or even take human lives. Shouldn't you be taking knitting lessons instead? Whether people vocally cheer for a tornado or not, it can be argued that the act of showing up to see a tornado in the first place is, in itself, cheerleading enough, without having to say a word.
I would also like to point out that, while still tragic, the number of people who die by tornadoes pales in comparison to the number of people who die by getting struck by lightning. I've never heard anyone condemn lightning photographers for taking pictures of lightning.
Death is a reality that we all must face sooner or later on this planet. If you haven't made your peace with God then it may be a good idea to do so.
I know that no chaser wishes anyone to get hurt. But these are tornadoes we're talking about and our attraction towards them comes from their beauty AND their power. The fact is that tornadoes and destruction go hand in hand. If you chase storms, sooner or later, you're going to see tragedy. These events are out of anyone's control.
You drive hours upon hours just for the chance to see a tornado and many times you don't even see a decent storm. It's only fitting to get excited when you finally do see something.
For me it's getting to the point where I feel like I must vocally say something while filming about how I hope people are okay, or I must say "oh this isn't good, oh no..." just because so many people complain about chasers being insensitive. If my house got demolished by a tornado, I'd most likely be a couple blocks away hooting and hollering in excitement. I mean I might as well enjoy the view.
Now I'm not gonna wish to see things like homes get destroyed, or say "hooray, that person's house just got demolished," but tornadoes are extreme events, and with that comes overwhelming emotion that is sometimes difficult to contain, express, deal with, etc.. It's hard enough to not sound like an idiot on camera when nothing is going on, but it's even harder still when one of the most powerful forces on earth is unfolding before your eyes. I see nothing wrong with people expressing their amazement at the power of a tornado, and often that amazement comes in the form of screaming.
Another thing is that I'm always interested in trying to guage a tornado's strength. It's not easy to see how intense a tornado actually is unless it comes into contact with something destructable. Call me sick, but I enjoy seeing things get destroyed, just like when I was a little child and I built things with lego blocks so that I could pulverize them. It's just inherent in me. And when you see tornadoes doing what they do best, not many people can say they didn't enjoy watching it happen.
I'll be completely honest and I'll probably get severely scolded for it too, but I enjoy it all. I'm not gonna go through all these charades and act like I'm a saint because I'm obviously not. But I also think it's stupid to be a storm chaser if you can't get past pretending to not enjoy the destructive force tornadoes possess. I find it pointless to supress the passion I have inside me for tornadoes and what they can do if, when it actually happens, I pretend to not love every second of it. I don't celebrate the death of anyone! But I can't stop chasing storms and the tornadoes they produce anymore than I could stop driving my car, just because car wrecks kill thousands of people everyday.
There, I said it. Think of me what you will.
I apologize for starting a new thread for this and I realize that this has been talked about multiple times. But my post is so big I felt it warranted a thread of its own. It's also the opposite of what a lot of people have been saying.
I am starting to tire of all the concerns for people who cheer/get excited when tornadoes cause property damage or even take human lives. Shouldn't you be taking knitting lessons instead? Whether people vocally cheer for a tornado or not, it can be argued that the act of showing up to see a tornado in the first place is, in itself, cheerleading enough, without having to say a word.
I would also like to point out that, while still tragic, the number of people who die by tornadoes pales in comparison to the number of people who die by getting struck by lightning. I've never heard anyone condemn lightning photographers for taking pictures of lightning.
Death is a reality that we all must face sooner or later on this planet. If you haven't made your peace with God then it may be a good idea to do so.
I know that no chaser wishes anyone to get hurt. But these are tornadoes we're talking about and our attraction towards them comes from their beauty AND their power. The fact is that tornadoes and destruction go hand in hand. If you chase storms, sooner or later, you're going to see tragedy. These events are out of anyone's control.
You drive hours upon hours just for the chance to see a tornado and many times you don't even see a decent storm. It's only fitting to get excited when you finally do see something.
For me it's getting to the point where I feel like I must vocally say something while filming about how I hope people are okay, or I must say "oh this isn't good, oh no..." just because so many people complain about chasers being insensitive. If my house got demolished by a tornado, I'd most likely be a couple blocks away hooting and hollering in excitement. I mean I might as well enjoy the view.
Now I'm not gonna wish to see things like homes get destroyed, or say "hooray, that person's house just got demolished," but tornadoes are extreme events, and with that comes overwhelming emotion that is sometimes difficult to contain, express, deal with, etc.. It's hard enough to not sound like an idiot on camera when nothing is going on, but it's even harder still when one of the most powerful forces on earth is unfolding before your eyes. I see nothing wrong with people expressing their amazement at the power of a tornado, and often that amazement comes in the form of screaming.
Another thing is that I'm always interested in trying to guage a tornado's strength. It's not easy to see how intense a tornado actually is unless it comes into contact with something destructable. Call me sick, but I enjoy seeing things get destroyed, just like when I was a little child and I built things with lego blocks so that I could pulverize them. It's just inherent in me. And when you see tornadoes doing what they do best, not many people can say they didn't enjoy watching it happen.
I'll be completely honest and I'll probably get severely scolded for it too, but I enjoy it all. I'm not gonna go through all these charades and act like I'm a saint because I'm obviously not. But I also think it's stupid to be a storm chaser if you can't get past pretending to not enjoy the destructive force tornadoes possess. I find it pointless to supress the passion I have inside me for tornadoes and what they can do if, when it actually happens, I pretend to not love every second of it. I don't celebrate the death of anyone! But I can't stop chasing storms and the tornadoes they produce anymore than I could stop driving my car, just because car wrecks kill thousands of people everyday.
There, I said it. Think of me what you will.