Political beings

I used to be one of those who blamed politicians for everything that’s wrong with our society. This was before i wised up a bit. The so-called apolitical people do a lot of damage in the name of fencesitting. Turns out blaming politicians—or in that vein, politics—is like blaming oxygen for slowly killing us. Politics is everywhere around us. It begins in the kindergarten playground where kids form their own little groups. It never ends though. We are, for lack of a finer term, political beings. The sooner we accept it, the better. For some reason (let’s call it ignorance), we tend to associate politics and politicians only with corruption and debauchery. When we do that, we are only asserting our unwillingness to make a difference by staying unaware. It’s quite similar to standing on the side of the road ostracizing the monsoon for causing an accident instead of helping the guy whose motorcycle slid. Moreover, the weather isn’t in our control but our future certainly is. Being aware of the guys who are running for office and the kind of work they are doing at the local level could be a good start. But then, we don’t even want to know who the corporator in our neighbourhood is, let alone confront him/her on issues that is close to your heart. We only want to crack jokes on the NaMos, RaGas and Kejris of the world. Democracy might not be perfect but it has proved again and again why it’s the least of all evil systems out there. If people show as much interest in knowing/discussing the powers-to-be at a level that’s closer to home, we’ll certainly reach a stage where the government would consist of people who genuinely care. Right now, it’s defined by people who stand in the queue because they don’t have a voice and are so helpless that they feel only a ballot or a bribe can change their lives for better. And that’s the political order we should be aiming against.

Syriana

When i first learnt about Holocaust, i wondered how did the world let such a catastrophe take place. I thought it's impossible that there weren't good-hearted people around who wouldn't even try to fight against the system. Those with a good conscience and a clear voice of reason. A pogrom which went on for six years must have faced resistance of some sort, right? At least that's what i always thought. And when i decided to read further, i came across personalities—both Jewish as well as gentile—who tried their level best to avert the inevitable. Their efforts were appreciable but the overall result swung towards the Nazi's favour. Besides, a huge populace was sold on the idea of hatred. As we well know by now, love is cherishable from a distance but hatred makes an awesome commodity. Instill fear in people about other people and see the neighbours turn against each other like morons. Snitch. This happened in all parts of the world where multi-cultural society existed. Events like these tested humanity and more often than not, it failed miserably. The reason why you are reading this is Syria. Something really bad is going on out there. We are not talking about a country that was born last century. We are talking about a civilization that features Damascus, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities (along with Varanasi). Still, there are places in that country with names like Homs (in ruins now, also where Steve Jobs' father hails from), Raqqa (where an ISIS member killed his mom last week because she wanted him to leave that group) and Madaya (where neither the trees have any leaf left on them nor are any dogs or cats on the street as people have eaten anything they can place their hands on). This is not the worst part. That would be us. For some reason, i feel we are responsible too. I don't know how exactly but 50 years later, somebody might ask “How did the world let such a catastrophe take place?” 

NB. It's easier to shrug and say that there are problems everywhere. Why look miles away when there are imminent issues in the interiors of India? Men belonging to the lower rung are exploited by those in power. Women are violated on routine. Babies are denied basic necessities when there is more than enough for every single child who takes birth in the country. Yes, absolutely but there is much more to the equation. Being concerned is the first step because that leads to curiosity to know more about a given situation and that eventually leads to better dispensation of information. Half or quarter knowledge is extremely dangerous. A world community is manifested when people are aware and discussing stuff that matters. Someone here should be concerned about what's happening there and someone there should be concerned about what's happening somewhere else. That's how humanity won't fail the test.