I’m sure the Japanese are sad about Cute Knut too

Cute Knut died.

The four-year-old money-making tourist attraction, er, I mean polar bear died last Saturday at the Berlin Zoo in front of visitors, twirling around several times and then taking a dive into water in his enclosure.

USA Today described the reaction to the animal’s sudden passing: “In the sort of gesture seen after the death of popular culture icons such as Princess Diana and Michael Jackson, fans of Knut the polar bear left flowers, candles, notes and stuffed bears at the gates of the Berlin zoo and outside the enclosure where Knut died Saturday.” The Associated Press reported that the bear had fan clubs around the world and zoo officials received condolences from all over, including Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii.

Thanks to the magic of Facebook, a woman in Berlin took offense at my ridiculing those who think the loss of a bear is as newsworthy as the loss of 20,000 human beings. When she asked me if I think of the Japanese “24/7,” I replied that yes, actually I can’t stop thinking about the suffering in Japan right now.

On March 11, the most powerful known earthquake ever to hit Japan shifted Earth on its axis by almost four inches. More than four million households in northeastern Japan were without electricity and 1.5 million without water. The earthquake and resulting tsunami severely damaged the country, taking out roads and railways, causing fires and collapsing dams. At least three nuclear reactors suffered explosions and residents within 12 miles of the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant were evacuated. Early estimates placed insured losses from the earthquake alone at between $14 and $35 billion dollars. NASA said the earthquake caused the planet to spin faster.

I’m as pro-polar bear as the next guy. I’m not immune to cuteness and I feel sorry for anyone who’s born in captivity, rejected by his mother and raised by zookeepers. But come on, people. Perspective much? Which event was more earth-shaking, really, and worthy of ink and attention?

I wonder how many cards and flowers and balloons have been sent to Tokyo.