I know that I am truly blessed for having a website like Sepia Mutiny to blog on. So few people are granted the chance on a daily basis to voice their thoughts and opinions on the type of megaphone that SM has turned into. Every so often though something comes across my desk that makes my skin tingle, puts everything into focus, and reminds me why I do this every day…why I blog. Today something like that came to my attention. Instead of a story that was particularly newsworthy, or some important cause involving persecuted individuals faceless to me, this one hit home. This one involved a close friend. I may not be able to save the world by blogging for SM but at least I can help to try and right a wrong for my friend.
This morning my old roommate Sandeep emailed me this article featuring another old roommate of mine, Eric Amin:
If civil-liberties-minded New Yorkers were already annoyed by the USA Patriot Act, the recent arrival of the worst allergy season in 50 years (this month, the city jumped from 88th to 11th on the list of worst U.S. cities for allergies) has really made it hit home. The revision of the act, signed by President Bush on March 9, takes aim at an insidious threat to our nation: Sudafed, Claritin-D, and Children’s Motrin. These over-the-counter meds use the decongestant pseudoephedrine (PSE), which is also used to make crystal meth. The revamped Patriot Act, which went into effect in April, limited each sale of PSE-containing drugs to 3.6 grams (about 120 pills) per person per day. In September, drugstores will be required to move them behind the counter and enter the buyer’s name in a registry that tracks sales. Many larger chains are already requiring I.D., turning checkout into something Soviet-esque. Within days of the new regulations, parents were already getting sniffly (“I hate that I can’t buy more than one box of Claritin-D at a time; I missed out on a great sale”) on Urbanbaby.com. New York DEA agent Matthew Barnes explains that it takes about ten packages of Sudafed, combined with ingredients such as antifreeze, lye, battery acid, and fertilizer, to produce one ounce of meth. Despite the fact that 70 percent of meth is smuggled in from Mexico-border “superlabs,” Barnes says that the new restrictions will help hinder meth production in “small toxic labs” throughout the country. Lawyer and Rite Aid customer Eric Amin worries the government registry could be used to track and deport sneezy immigrants. To avoid the hassle of giving his information, he bought nasal spray. [Link]
<
p>With the article Sandeep included the following note that he emailed to our common friends, including Eric:
the story below made you look like a total p*ssy“ohhhh, i’ve fallen and i can’t get up…..”
Yes. The story did make my friend Eric look like a total p*ssy. BUT…look at the original version, the one that was vetted by Eric prior to print by New York Metro. He explains it to us in a distraught email:
Those bastards! the original draft of the article was more in-depth, complete with the story and quotes, and now i’m just a “Rite Aid customer.”Dogshit.
This is what the editor sent me to fact-check, as it was supposed to read last week:
Last Wednesday, he was at work sneezing every 10 minutes. Nuisance to his co-workers. At pharmacy counter, asks about something stronger than Loratidine and is told anything stronger is behind the front counter. It’s not where the pharmacist works, it’s at the front counter/cash register. “I was kind of distraught, my eyes were really watering, they hurt, my allergies were really bad. ….I was just really annoyed by the whole thing. I just wanted something. My eyes were hurting. I just got Visine AC.” He went back upstairs and called his doctor, who prescribed Allegra. He went to his local Rite Aid later that night to pick up the Allegra, there was some problem with his insurance, he couldn’t get it. He asked about Claritin-D or something and was told he’d have to produce ID, and he could only get a limited amount, and he’d have to sign for it. “I was like, WHAT?” (at this point it dawns on him that this whole rigmarole could be about crystal meth, he’d read something in Time magazine). He ends up getting nasal spray. “I am particularly concerned that the registry requirements might deter immigrants who fear deportation from buying cold and allergy medication.”
<
p>Now it is true that Eric STILL doesn’t come across as particularly masculine in his own version, but did you all notice the real yet subtle difference between the two versions? In the version that was actually published you are left with the impression that Mr. Eric Amin (a U.S. born citizen) is a nervous immigrant who is afraid of being deported unless he goes with the nasal-spray option. In his own version he is not concerned about his own status, but those of actual immigrants. In the published version he is afraid. In his own he is looking out for others, heroically even.
<
p>Folks, it is little things like this that get me. I feel it it my duty to come to the aid of desis like Eric Amin. They just want to get the red out of their eyes, and stop their runny noses. They don’t want The Man all up in their bidness and they don’t want the media exploiting them for a story.
<
p>This is why we blog. For the little guy. For all the Eric Amins out there.
[note: this is not to imply that Mr. Amin shouldn’t be deported on other grounds]
Shek, good looking out! I’m so pissed my story was altered so much to make me look like a big PU$$Y, now i’m just a lower-case pu$$y trying to get a nut. By the way, why don’t you share your thoughts on why I should be “deported on other grounds.” I’m curious.
abhi, this article makes YOU sound like a p*(!$y. Ohhhh, why I blog…blah, blah, blah…
Real men shop at Duane Reade.
Brown fury, I know your address and your phone number and why your toilet overflowed that one time. Be careful. The power of the blog can be used for evil as well as good.
On first read (of the final version of the story) Eric didn’t sound like an immigrant. In fact by stating that he’s a lawyer concerned about the plight of sneezy immigrants, he almost sounded like an immigration attorney, not a worried immigrant. After reading Eric’s version in the email, the difference is clear. Nice post Abhi.
I agree with Timepass. It’s good to be reminded of how editing affects message, how much context is often lost.
Btw, newyorkmetro is New York magazine, which just seems to exist these days to sell Viking ranges and promote loft sales. uhh, not that there’s anything wrong with that. Bring back Kurt Andersen to the helm.
The sniffles seem to going ’round. Anyone have the inside dirt on Theraflu. I pretty sure that shite is laced with opium. Oh my, stronger than the Tiger balm my grammy used to suffocate me with.
This article is crap. You guys are going down. There was a hint of intrigue when a couple of other bloggers were around. I dont think I will be reloading this page anymore. Thanks for some good times.
Jesus Christ. I was going to yell at Abhi for his (not) liberal use of the word “pussy,” but the fact that he has to deal with punks like you annoyed me too much.
Uh, a couple of other bloggers? Newsflash: it’s only ONE blogger who left. Either declare your unrequited love for Manish or cut down on the hype, thanks.
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. It’s usually five-year olds who proclaim that they are mad and never coming back while leaving in a huff, but I guess you’re really in touch with your inner child.
Apul was another ‘original’ that left sometime back, right?
I wonder if this story should be in “Humor” category? Nonetheless, nice post, Abhi.
Abhoo, you should not be faulted for posting stories about your illustrious friend and roommate from undergrad, Eric “Fameen” Amin. This is a blog, afterall, and should be a venue for lighthearted banter. You can’t be expected to spur investigations of the Indian government or convincing the State Department to bar M.I.A. from entering the U.S. with every one of your post’s. What is the meaning of all this unwarranted criticism? This is a blog — a diary, after all — not the nightly news.
Anyway, I did conclude that Eric “Fameen” Amin was afraid of deportation. It is perfectly reasonable as he is not a U.S. Citizen but a Ugandan who sought refuge here after the overthrow of his uncle and brutal dictator, Idi Amin. In the original article, Fameen looked particularly soft in the middle. He was described as weeping and crying at the pharmacy counter, possibly because he couldn’t get his meth fix.
I cannot attest to the veracity of anything in my post. Much of it is likely false. Abhi, you may want to consider deleting it as an obscure rant that is personal and not issue focused.
WTF? It’s very bad journalistic practice to vet your articles with subjects before printing.
Nice post, but picking up on why we/you blog, i am surprised that the mutiny hasn’t really reported/discussed the quota stir that is intensifying each day in India these days. The reservations are now upto 50%, not sure what position you guys are taking on it. But, hope you guys support the students protesting.
yes i second that . i think there should be a disscussion on reservation as it will be greatly affecting a lot of indians .
i couldnt live without allegra for the past two months, its gettin better now. freakin “garden state” amin did sound like a worried illegal. Just like movies ads take stuff out of movie reviews and post it out of context “extraordinary…” nytimes. while the real review says “extraordinary bullsh*t”
Posts like these remind me of why I comment.
I do it for Abhi. And AJP. And Ennis. And Vinod, and Manish…yeah. All the little people out there, who blog bleary-eyed from bunkers, sans Claritin, sans Sudafed.
This comment…goes out…to y’all. You’re my boy, Blue!