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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Survival of the Fittest: the Chilean miners emerge from below

The Chilean miners (12 so far as of this writing) have emerged from their entrapment below the surface.  Their ordeal for the last two months has captivated the world.  The mission to save them has already become a stuff of legend, having been compared to the Apollo 13 mission, and has received (reportedly) movie rights to Hollywood.   President Pinero of Chile might have very well saved his presidency.  The media have discovered something to sell for a while.
But at the core of all these are the miners.  How has the event changed them?  What psychological impact this event will have on them?  Will they remain the same – the average blue-collar poor miners?  Or will they become awash with their new-found celebrity?  Can they handle the media?  Can they manage their finance from the offers of movie rights and other sources?  Can they escape the envy of their family and friends?
What will become of them six months from now when the excitement subsides? 
These miners deserve compassion and support in their post-fame lives just as the support they are getting now.  They are not rocket scientists.  They are poor miners with very little formal education.  But that does not mean they deserve any less.  They don’t need pity and patronizing.
They just need to get their life back.
Watch the rescue video of the first six miners:
Source: The Washington Post

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