Blog ‘Sad Photo’: the picture was taken in Indonesia. I’ve spent a lot of time there and I haven’t seen this gesture. In general, Indonesians don’t make a lot of hand gestures as it is considered rude. For example, if you ask someone directions they will point with their chin rather than their fingers.
Add to that the fact that beggars are pretty much everywhere in Indonesia. A lot of them are creepier than the old lady in this photo. If you spent energy sending beggars where the sun don’t shine you’d barely last the day out. Sure, a leper dragging his bloody stump across your car window might seem both shocking and horrible enough to provoke a spontaneous reaction. But a grey-haired lady sitting on the ground?
Additionally, I find it difficult to believe that a child would bother ‘giving her the finger’. Indonesia has a strong, traditiona, respect-your-elders culture. Again, I’ve never seen anything openly rude in public from Indonesian children that age.
I’m not an expert on determining whether images have been digitally altered. Suffice to say I don’t think the young girl in this photo is actually telling the beggarwoman to get stuffed.
Blog ‘Sad Photo’: the picture was taken in Indonesia. I’ve spent a lot of time there and I haven’t seen this gesture. In general, Indonesians don’t make a lot of hand gestures as it is considered rude. For example, if you ask someone directions they will point with their chin rather than their fingers. Add to that the fact that beggars are pretty much everywhere in Indonesia. A lot of them are creepier than the old lady in this photo. If you spent energy sending beggars where the sun don’t shine you’d barely last the day out. Sure, a leper dragging his bloody stump across your car window might seem both shocking and horrible enough to provoke a spontaneous reaction. But a grey-haired lady sitting on the ground? Additionally, I find it difficult to believe that a child would bother ‘giving her the finger’. Indonesia has a strong, traditiona, respect-your-elders culture. Again, I’ve never seen anything openly rude in public from Indonesian children that age. I’m not an expert on determining whether images have been digitally altered. Suffice to say I don’t think the young girl in this photo is actually telling the beggarwoman to get stuffed.