Love Among the Ruins

As most readers probably know, an oil-drilling mishap in East Java resulted in an amazing eruption of hot toxic mud that has displaced well over 10,000 people. The accident happened on May 29, but the flow continues today. It’s roughly the size of Monaco, and has swallowed villages and factories.

Now, a romantic soap opera is being filmed against this inspiring backdrop. That’d be odd enough in itself, but the soap opera is being bankrolled by the company whose drilling is responsible for the eruption:

"We don't want to blame anyone through this show. We want to show that behind this tragedy something positive can appear," director Daniel Rifki told Reuters during a break in filming.

The possibilities here are staggering. Al Gore may’ve inspired Love Story and uncovered the pollution at Love Canal, but even he wasn’t visionary enough to create Love Canal Story.

I look forward to heartwarming romantic stories set in toxic, ruined landscapes from Prypiat to Athabasca.