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That is a bizzare distinction you're making. "This stranger" isn't some bloke they didn't know existed until this morning. This stranger, whether George Michael, Bowie, Prince etc is the human they have been listening to on their radios for decades, singing along to in the car/shower/pub, dancing to at weddings, listening to at the funerals of loved ones, paying to see perform at concerts, buying their albums and watching on TV.
Building memories and a connection with another human through the music or art they've created, and tangling it up with our own lives is hardly a difficult concept to grasp.
Don't get me wrong, I understand feeling discomfort at the value we as a society attribute to public figures over everyone else, and the outpouring of grief on social media is often over the top. But to me, if after years of seeing a person in popular culture, who you've made a direct connection with to your own life and memories, and you felt nothing, that would be weird as fuck.
Fyoosh-
Agree with Fyoosh and Hoefla
I'm not fussed about the #fuck2016 sentiment, although it's quite interesting that it's definitely a mix of celebrity/pop culture death and serious geopolitical stuff like Syria/Trump/general rise of right wing populism. I think it's quite natural that people are upset about both, and there's been lots of out-pourings on social media and coverage on the news about Syria and Aleppo this year.
Humans aren't really rational and I don't think we should aim to be all the time. There's something creepily neoliberal about the constant need for rationality - like our emotions should be like economic markets and we should be most sad when the objectively worst stuff happens. That's not really how we perceive tragedy and loss. I don't have the energy to be sad/angry about everything that I should be, because it would be pretty much 24/7. Also one death is something I can comprehend and relate to because I've experienced in my life with friends and family - the deaths of thousands of civilians in a conflict I still don't really understand can be harder for people to grasp. I have been physically upset by the news numerous times this year though but I would say i'm pretty emotional.
JamesQGM
Symantics.
What difference does it make when George Michael dies than anyone else? Why are people notably upset about the death of this stranger. It's weird as fuck.