Friday, November 28, 2008

The Insignificant Indian

All of us have had to endure the torture and share the pain of our brothers and sisters in Mumbai who have been victimized by dastardly acts of cowardice.Reports of inhuman acts of terror have become rhetoric on Indian news channels to the point where some of us have become numb.But this act dubbed as a 'War on Mumbai' which lasted almost 60 hours reminded me of how insignificant we are in this country.

The fundamental democratic principle is to ensure that the opinion of every individual matters.Here we are at the face of one of the worst attacks on our country and its people,frustrated with the government and security agencies because of their incapability,angered by the sight of innocent people who have died for no reason,moved by the pictures of aggrieved family members.But what difference is it going to make?

Every incident of this nature has an expiry date in our memory depending on where people were killed , how many people were killed and most importantly Who was killed.As many as 18,350 civilians died during the past nine years in 61,226 incidents of violence in Jammu and Kashmir, north-east, naxal-affected States and communal flare-ups.Very few of which we have actually read about or bothered about.Even if we do read about it and flinch what do we do next? Turn to the sports page.It takes us close to 200 deaths in the financial capital and the worst hostage crisis in Indian history till date to sit up and take notice.I wonder if an attack of this nature in a small town claiming the same number of lives have the same effect on us.We probably would have dismissed it.The life of every Indian has a price tag that we have put on it by of his status in the society. The life of a labourer who struggles to make ends meet is as valuable as that of High-flying executive who dines at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. The first step in fighting terror is to appreciate this.

The very essence of a meaningful existence is to make a difference to the lives of the people around you.We have resorted to the fact that in our country we cant.And us resorting to such a conclusion is the defeat of purpose.

It is an insult, not only to the Government of India but to each and every Indian that someone has (once again) ridiculed us and reminded us that we are insignificant.A bunch of brutes have suggested that the tears shed and the lives lost will not transpire into anything .

Perhaps this is not the first piece of text you have read condemning terrorism and raising questions.It will defintely not be the last. So what do you plan to do?

27 comments:

Anonymous said...

"The first step in fighting terror is to appreciate this".. Perfect da.. V have failed to do this and think so v will continue doing so..
These politicians will use this incident just to gain political mileage...and give a damn 2 the ppl..
Where d f***ing hell is raj thackery now... He will fight against north Indians and not against terrorists.

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ koushik
exactly da wher is his marathi brigade..and wait for the elections..these guys will play out videos of these horrific attacks and ask for votes

shankyingill said...

and ppl will vote 4 them...... no use to remain blaming them if the bliss of ignorance continues with the ppl....
the chief question remains how do v act against all this!!.....
the worst part is imagine abinav bindra got 1 crore for one single gold medal he won( am not against this ..), whereas the police officers who was encountered , having won 30-40 medals of honours would get 5 lakhs 4 his family.( just like the encounter specialist in delhi ....)horrible

Anonymous said...

If someone in the country deserves a pay hike it is the Army Personnel and the NSG commandos..

Vivek said...

wil comment after you read mine....

The Eternal Seeker said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
The Eternal Seeker said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
The Eternal Seeker said...

@ravi

The worst part is that a constable's family and an Inspectors family will be compensated differently.Goes to show how we don't value the lives of these people who take up jobs like these.The first step in finding out the solution is to be aware that there is a problem and not be apathetic towards it like we have been all along.

Quotodian said...

well said and beautifully written ... i am touched ..

Unknown said...

Exactly briefed abt the kind of attention given based on classes of t society...if 1 could remember, abt equal no. of lower n middle class ppl if not more died thro out the yr by the serial blasts in many cities across India...n did tat get such an uproar?? NO..since foreigners n some bigshots got affected, t media coverage is so extensive n so many "condolences" came...n its a crazy idea to give t country's security responsibilities to t Home Ministry, who doesnt know a clue abt t strategic n military aspect...Army should be given a free hand in tackling terrorism with politicians just signing in t papers where ever required...bcos, finally its t army tats gonna eradicate terrorism n not politicians...

Anonymous said...

this terrorist attack is a staged show similar to 9/11 attack on us....watch the second part of this video
http://isohunt.com/torrent_details/51659421/zeitgeist?tab=summary

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ashwin

Perhaps the issue here is that defence is a union subject and not a state subject and therefore decisions take a long time to materialise. possibly

ZX12R said...

while i read ur blog a i had opinion slowly building up-that u r becoming too cynical...man nobody attaches price tags to human lives anywhere in the world...yes there can be incidents of being opinionated or biased...but giving a price tag it too big a word to be used so loosely...!! we are living in one of the most successfull democratic and secular nation..remember dude..!

Anonymous said...

if INDIA is a most successfull democratic and secular nation..what will be the situation in countries which is no so successfull and democratic and a secular nation....this is not a prob which is going to end.terrorist will prevail until the end of humanity.only thing v can try to do is to get ourself in a safe place and live a selfish life like everyone else does.

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ sudharshan

i stand by what i've written bro..we don't value human lives in our country .. From not respecting our defense personnel and taking care of their families to the govt health care system..everywhere lives are lost..and we've resorted to the fact that nothing much can be done..for god's sake we don't even provide the defense with proper weapons and protective gear..it does paint a picture.. All said dude i ' m as much an Indian as you are and want the best for our country..but i am frustrated by the things happening around us..no point in singing praises when things are going haywire..

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ sudharsan

Read Anonymous ...now THAT's cynicism!

@ anonymous

i agree to an extent .. one man's gain is another man's loss..some guy out there is going to get frustrated becuz all is well with someone else..but it is possible to stop him from picking up a weapon and becoming a terrorist if we look deeper into why ppl take those steps..

Anonymous said...

RELIGION is the only reason or motive for any human to become a terrorist...wat do u think is it possible to eliminate all religions??but it is the best solution 4 peace.one world! one religion(humanity)!

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ Anonymous

I completely disagree..There is no religion on the face of earth that propagates hatred..MAN propagates hatred..I accept your conclusion but i reject your premise

Anonymous said...

@anonymous
dude u r totally confused n talking out of frustration..! God b with u.. :)

@the eternal seeker

machi...i agree dat there should be more technological advancements in the way the army operates...but again...we are talkin with the videos shown by ndtv and the likes of it...we haven't seen in reality...
i also want u guys to discuss abt the way media was doin coverage as though some one day match was goin on...and these channels were fighting to provide "the exclusive news"...!!

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ sudharshan

maamz 'make hay while bombay burns' tat was the grand idea.. its not about technology..a bunch of vietnamese with bamboo sticks and inferior arms defeated the United States army..its abt strategy too

Anonymous said...

valid observation da..

but everythin said on tv and on this comments section fails to recognize the premise tht all said n done, finally, it is d media which shapes most of our opinions.

sensationalism sells.. so a thousand ppl dyin as a result of toxic potato blight will obviously b given lesser priority than the 100 who got killed by terrorist gunfire

so stop weighin things, some things r more imp than others only if u think they r

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ instinct

ur views never cease to baffle me.. lol i disagree with ur numbers.. a thousand deaths will definitely create a stir.but i agree media plays a major role in formulating public opinion.

KC! said...

I have to disagree with the statement that we are insignificant - or did you mean in the eyes of our govt? Coz, no body wastes time in killing/shooting insignificant masses - it is because we are being considered significant, that we are facing these attacks. But one thing is sure, our govt. needs to wake up and try to be more alert, which I doubt will ever happen in Indian history :(

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ Singari

I did mean that we Indians are insignificant in the sense that we are unable to do anything about the whole issue of terrorism..And lik u've mentioned historically we have been unable 2 put a govt which wil keep us safe..

Anonymous said...

this conversation s an eye-opener.. but what i ve 2 say abt it is, y don't v try changing the country?? instead of blaming ppl, y don't v take up d responsibility n do something. like 4 eg join a political party like the 'Lok Parithran' or open a party of our own.. as d young citizens of India v can def'ly make a difference!!

The Eternal Seeker said...

@ anonymous

I am glad you feel that way..And instead of directly getting all hyper and planning to jump into politics we can start by questioning the government and not be push overs.

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