Trafika Europe 12 - French Bon-Bons

Aperture

FLASHOVER

Death, Lethe, Lorelei, Lethe. O. Mandelstam

On Holocaust Remembrance Day we each lived through Facebook’s temporary death. But the Lizard Squad hackers weren’t the best: they silenced the swarm of pics and statuses, cute cat videos for an hour max. In that breach the space between users belonged to none of us, a blank white field untouched by any foot, over which stars of David drifted down. Facebook, Tinder, and Instagram—deep bins for our substitute lives—now mute, locked fast; hinged dreams all over Europe slammed shut, in Asia and America, too. This way to the gas? No, just a cleanse. Today we’ll scrub from you all needless pics of veggie burger snacks, pet hamster updates, and reggae tracks. This way, follow the white tiles: shelves for tablets, drawers for laptops. Everything in wintry hues, the season’s rage. This water’s Lethe’s, the faucets near. Yes, it’s delicious and fit to drink. But later there’ll be time. For now, bare heads

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