about the couple who 'should' have been on flight MH17?

[JaneFonda]

In the news, the British couple and their baby who swapped off flight MH17 to take another one instead.

In the interview, they said that 'someone must have been watching over them'.

AIBU to find this incredibly disrespectful? I feel so angry that they are suggesting that 'someone' or a God or something was watching over them, but not over the 298 people who died.

I didn't feel offended, I felt uncomfortable. I am, generally speaking, about as far from professionally offended as it's possible to be.

Out of all the possible things to focus on and all the possible debates to have about this terrible event, we appear to be having this one because the OP got angry. Not about the men who shot a passenger plane out of the sky, not about the Russians who most probably armed them, but about an exhausted and relieved family who had the good fortune not to get killed and maybe said something a tad insensitive.

It's bizarre and uncomfortable and I totally agree with Corporate

Your post is out of place on this thread corporate
Its puerile.

It's too fucking soon for interviews too. Some people have only just even confirmed as dead.

I am a little that they agreed to be interviewed tbh. Seems very disrespectful 24 hours after such a tragedy to be telling the whole world how lucky you are to have not been involved.

I don't think you're being that unreasonable, actually- I found the bloke's almost-grinning expression to be in pretty poor taste under the circumstances. But I guess that's what you'll get when the media scrambles for an 'angle' and thrusts microphones in people's faces when they've just had a shock. The reporters are more to blame.

Oh yes, it's true about it being too soon for interviews and for long, lingering shots of the relatives on buses. That was appalling, but I don't think it's at all fair to direct our anger about that towards the family they interviewed.

I disagree, Devere. How is saying what that woman said disreapectful? She wasn't doing a giddy dance of glee. She was saying thank god I am alive, that was all. This level of dissecting what a shocked, shaken woman said when her family had a lucky escape from death is what is purile.

I think if anyone can take offence at what she said that is ridiculous.

It really makes me squirm when people say things like that. I understand they're so relieved and everything but, yes, it comes across as incredibly insensitive. People are always doing it, though. There's something called 'survivor guilt' that can severely traumatise people if they've lived when the person next to them died, for instance. I suppose these attempts at woo justifications could be part of that: "I was chosen" is a much safer thought than "It's sheer chance that I've alive when so many died."

My near-miss story was the King's Cross fire. I hate it when people say we must have been guided or some such shit - and someone always does. No, we were all late and for once that worked in our favour.

I only saw the written report, didn't know they'd been interviewed by TV.
Again, to be fair to them I think people are underestimating the pressure of being vulnerable and under pressure by media, which is something I've experienced first hand. We can all reflect at leisure after the event.
It's human nature for most to respond to questions and not to say No.

And to be honest, I don't think you can really draw a parallel with someone just being late and someone being denied their booking at valid check in.

Am aghast at this thread. Can't quite actually believe that some people are dissecting, analysing and then criticising a very commonly used phrase used by someone who is probably in complete shock and struggling to process what has just nearly happened to them. It's abundantly clear that it's simply shorthand for "we are amazingly and inexplicably lucky" and in no way whatsoever implies that those who were not so fortunate were somehow deserving of their fate. Where is your human kindness and empathy?

Thank you johncusackswife exactly what I was trying to say but much more eloquently.

Add me to the thanks JohnCusack.

I get too emotional and frustrated on these threads and lose the ability to communicate effectively.

In shock, young, wouldn't judge them. It must feel bizarre to have escaped this.

tbh the news crew who sought them and interviewed them at such a harrowing, tragic time are to blame here. I thought they were put in a terrible position, whilst obviously shocked.

I'm not particularly outraged that reporters reported on these people's experience. It's human to be interested in these sorts of narrow-miss occurences. It doesn't compare to interviewing victims' family members - that really is beyond the pale.

BBC News just described bodies as 'burnt, twisted and bloated' and showed a picture of a body lying in the road, someone who could probably be recognised by loved ones. The coverage of this by the desperate 24 hour news channels is staggeringly offensive in their bid to keep people tuned in.

That is really awful. Why would they show a recognisable body? Terrible.

YABVU. it's their belief and they have every right to thank God for watching over them. I'm sure they didn't mean to cause any offence for goodness sake. I'm Christian and I always thank God for everything because as a Christian, that's just what you do.

It's all too horrible. Even in the newspapers they were describing bodies and what those bodies were wearing. At least one of them could obviously be recognised by a family member.

It's so unnecessary when we are all perfectly capable of filling in the blanks with our imaginations.

Just watching the news report on this, followed by yet more horror from Gaza. Profoundly depressing and sad beyond words. What is wrong with the human race that we can't all just get along....?

I know. We watched it for a while and then it went into a news feed loop of more and more misery. We had to turn over in the end.

I changed to Pulp Fiction for light relief...