Saturday, July 16, 2011

We The People?

Attended a debate/discussion/tv show by NDTV, “We The People”, on the topic, 'Mumbai Terror', a while back.

People had a lot to say about,
Democracy, policies not being implemented, 80 year old spineless Prime Minister, 4500 people travelling in the local trains of Mumbai when the capacity is only 1700, who would be able to answer why Kasab is still kept healthy and alive and why exactly are we still spending endless money on that guy when it can be used for several other constructive purposes, like first aid for the victims of the Mumbai Blasts, 2011..!
Why we should vote for YOU in the first place when we don't even have the basic security expected as a citizen, 10 people dying everyday from accidents in the local trains which makes it 300 a month and therefore much more than the number that would probably die in a bomb blast...

The feeling of helplessness still remains no matter what even after a discussion/debate like that, of almost two hours.

And I cannot get over the fact as to how people can be so full of themselves and so fake at the same time.
They have a lot to say for sure, in the most manipulative ways one could, and mentioning how this person has high regards for the youth and a lot of expectations too, which she did not know how to elaborate on, when asked to, as to how is one expected to contribute at the individual level?


And yes, it was also mentioned and discussed as to how the hashtags on twitter, helped so much in passing on news and acted as a great medium of communication, which they totally did! Be it for help, for blood donation, or any other need.for.help. during the Mumbai blasts that took place on a 'Wednesday'...
Yes, the Wednesday mentioned in quotes is for a reason I'm not going to state.

Really liked how Mr. Naresh Fernandes and Mrs. Namita Devidayal, two authors, who had so much to say and made sense and stated facts in every thing they said or had an opinion about.

Towards the end, Barkha Dutt had come to talk about a story of a man, sitting there in the audience amongst us, crying, because he could not control his tears which came out because he has a brother admitted in a hospital right now, who is severely injured, from the bomb blasts that took place in Mumbai, two days ago. He said, "padhe likhe nahin hai hum, maa baap bhi nahin hai, Zaveri Bazaar mein hee kaam karte the, Jharkhand se hain, Mumbai rozi roti kamaane aaye the...
Abhi pata bhi nahi hai ki wahan kaam karne wapas jayenge ki nahi.."
That coming from an ice cream vendor who's eyes were full of tears, as politics, debate, discussion, country issues, had nothing to do with crossing his mind at that point of time, and it wouldn't cross any of ours if we were in his place too, to have someone as close as that, fighting between life and death.
Sympathizing with this man, was easy. But empathizing is what most of us can't do. Because at the end of it, we're all fine with it, in our subconscious minds, until someone close to us or someone we know goes through a tragedy like that.

It's not about anger anymore, it is the feeling of helplessness after knowing that more blasts and terror attacks are expected in Mumbai, and that we shouldn't let it become a "routine", but not being able to do anything substantial about it anyway.

The Mumbaikars have been tested about their spirits already and repeatedly.
And yes, I guess the statement is pretty much true as received in form of forwards, that says,
"Politicians divide us and terrorists unite us."
It's sad how that statement tells us that we need a bomb blast/terrorist attack for us to get hit in our heads and get that realization which we should have long ago!
Yes, at first, that statement wouldn't be interpreted as expected but I guess the sentiments behind it are sort of self explanatory.

Yes, we cannot always blame and criticize the government and the leaders/representatives all the time, and get away with it, because it's too easy an answer to give for any question. But what 'exactly' can one do at an individual level apart from holding debates/discussions in schools/colleges about such topics more often?

More than 70% of the people of the city still live in 'jhopad-pattis', and why Mumbai again?
We know some answers, we don't wish to know some and we don't wish to do anything about some.

"Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky. We fell them down and turn them into paper that we may record our emptiness." ~ Kahlil Gibran.

2 comments:

  1. I wish, that at times like these, all the political parties, especially the Congress and the BJP, would realize the acute need for them to work together. All the opposition and their followers do is burn effigies of some Congress leader, most recently, Rahul Gandhi. All they want to focus on is grabbing votes. These politicians may kill for votes and their power.
    I think all of us, as citizens, should vote. SO MANY people do not contribute towards that. It really is up to us because it is our democracy. We have to choose. There is no one to blame for what happened, and everyone will have suggestions, opinions..many people will blame this one or that one. All that goes on after every bomb blast. Some people suspect it was a political party itself who might have contrived the three blasts in Mumbai on Wednesday.
    But opinions do not matter. What they (the intelligence authorities, the government, the ruling party) need to do is implement what they say,we need to VOTE for our government, and I think Kasab should be hanged.
    Terrorism will exist and breed, Osama or no Osama. We cannot be like the typical Hindi movie hero; talk in abundance before actually finishing off the villain. We need action. Lots of it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes Sapna, I'd have to say that all that you wrote is like an extension to what I managed to recollect from the discussion.
    Yes, action is what is needed and recommendations made, need to be implemented. The intelligence authorities are expected to provide a basic and approachable communication system, which would not leave Mr. Prithviraj Chavan to say that 'he could not reach his personal secretary and the commissioner of police for 15 minutes after the blasts happened because the lines were congested.'

    http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/couldnt-contact-police-chief-for-15-minutes-after-blasts-chavan-on-mumbai-blasts-119439

    I mean, are you kidding me? Mobile phone was the ONLY way you could come up with to get in contact with the commissioner of police?
    Messages were passed on to people for help and action faster on twitter man!
    The first three lines mentioned by you, were also another person's comment during the discussion. Yes, and it was also particularly mentioned that people in Mumbai have not been voting, and that people must!
    Sapna, I know opinions don't matter. But last night, it was like I had so much to say and not much at the same time. So I had to take it out, and by writing it all, I did. Instead of my diary, it was here.

    ReplyDelete

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