It surprises me how situations and circumstances change our definitions for us.
15th august, a festival we have done so many diff. Things since school days....so here's. A run down of how this day has changed for me in the past 25 odd years...
@ the very first since I can rememeber, It was a school holiday, yeah another day I get to play! Run around in the aparment grounds
Then, It was a flag hoisting thing, proud to be doing it @ the school grounds in boy scout uniform with glimpses of some patriotic movie in front of the eyes
It was now a day where I realised thanks to history lessons wht it means to over throw british raj and have "freedom" so was all abt. Respect for the freedom fighters
It meant a lot when you are so far far away, all patriotism, respect and regard for the country comes to mind suddenly while watching the desi tv programs and those small celebrations on the american streets
This year I sit and think do we really have a reason to celebrate/congratulate/wish each other? What have we gained today that's worth that emotion? Lemme make tht list:
We can vote!
We have the right to do whtever bussiness we want
We have our own jurisdiction/ law made by indians
We have our own taxation system
We can say whtever we want
We can demand justice from the biggest authority
And here's wht the reality for me has been:
Vote, and bring who on board? Criminals? Hooligans? Ppl who have no decency in their behaviour even on camera! I can imagine wht they'd be doing in their day to day bussiness!!!
Bussiness, is good, cut throat compitition and so much of preasure, labour is expensive, raw material is just not affordable, everything is simple becoming unaffordable!! Independence has nothing to do with it, but curroption, stocking of grains and controlling the pricing sure does
Laws, jurisdiction - ya true we have it, and we have it drafter per our indian requirements, but my friend where is the implementation of that bit? Who da hell cares abt law and order in a country where u can find loop holes and always plan a exit strategy! And if tht doesn't work there's always bribing, you throw money and u can "buy" justice for yourself, or atleast delay the hearing by like 60 years and I say this from personal experience!!! And at the same time you have terrorists living eating breathing on our tax money!!
Where builders get away with making 20+ floory sky scrapers tht have no parking, recration, or even fire safety exits, no electricity generators nothing! But on paper its still an "approved" building with OC et al!!!
The govt. Gets taxes here
to make summer only roads, (they should all have sign boards: "Spill no water, easily soluble"),
To not make drainage channels for the entire city, so all garbage and filth always stays "easily accessible"
To keep the dumpsters always over flowing so that diseases can spread very easily
To not make any parks, recreation areas in a city that's so densly populated that we really don't see the point of a "park" any more!!
Can u? Can u really say wht you feel? Try it and tomm. Some "supporter" will come and give you his peace of mind for hurting his feelings!!! In bombay u are still ok but really don't try it in any non-metro areas u'll pay the price
Justice again, as I said before "justice" has become a commodity, tht sells for a price, a very high price, even if you are not the guilty party! I know this 'coz I've well, spent more than my share of time in diff. Types of courts already!
U pay the price and close the matter, tht seems to be the option and the only one!! Unless u are ready to motivate yourself everyday, to drag yourself to a conglomeration of disheartened folks, filthy criminals, crooks n spineless humans in black suits and khakhi uniforms amidst some decent ones. This sounds tough on paper, in practice its worst!
Its not anarchy, I mean it could've been worst, a lot worst (check out any middle easter country where there's anarchy today, or even pakistan if u don't wanna go too far) however I still don't see too much good come out of our independence. On records and paper we have a lot of achievements a lot obtained within the country as well as on international fronts but what we lack is a fullfilling life for the masses. There are a few demons that engulf our nation today and to me they are bigger, more fatal than the autocratic reign we were in once upon a time. And guess what, we no longer have the men of steel tht existed back then, with only one wish in their hearts, to throw british raj...they don't make them anymore...
Atleast I've not seen one alive yet....
They fought for us, they brought us freedom, but I feel it was a bit too soon. We had or even have no clue of the possibilities we can soar to if we truely realize the potential of all the benefits we have as a free nation. I am no expert on anything, neither do I claim to know of all issues or achieemnts in depth, but I know this for sure that we could surely do away with a lot of preasure from the entire nation with implementation of a few rules, laws regarding quality of products, services, with stricter anti-curroption law implementation, with aggressive population and immigration controls. I mean cleaning up should start somewhere, if it requires a bomb blast even then that's understood, sometimes a shock is required, but wait we've already had 3 or mor of those recently! So what are we still waiting for?
To me this day is a government holiday, and I only feel apathetic towards my countrymen. This false bubble of happiness and feeling good abt. The independence is all useless to me. It's another day of loss of constructive thinking and since the past 50+ yrs. No political leader seems to have done anything to really leverage the independence of our nation.
Some may say am confusing patriotism with politics, well with todays life and state of affiars it's bound to, infact days when I get reminded of patriotic values, remind me of how sad those great fighters might be feeling when they look down from the heavens to see what they fought for and what we made of it, our country!!!
To me patriotism today has become a mere distraction that the government officials use to distract the common man and perhaps bargain some sympathy from him.
One doesn't become patriotic by changing status on facebook, twitter and one doesn't become patriotic by fwding/sending sms, hell one doesn't become patriotic by even blogging abt it. I m no politician and will never be, but don't give me that shit that if I can't help the system then I should blame it for the state it is in. It is in this state becoz my leaders have cheated me and the nation so if I were to manage wht they do, why did I elect them anyways! We cud do ok even w/o a government! Hell we'd do awesome with a monarch for all tht you may know!
If you really want to feel patriotic, gather the civic values of a citizen of India and implement them in the hope that one day everyone will follow, that to me is worth more than flashing the tri-colour around.
I wish to see common mans life be easier and independent of those worries I spoke abt earlier, give my friends a beTter quality of life, one filled with honesty, without tensions and preasures, with peace and trust in the govenrment of the country and then I'll wish a "happy independence day" to my fellow indians.
(I hope tht day comes in my lifetime atleast as I would surely like to wish u all a true independence day someday.....)
thumped...
15th august, a festival we have done so many diff. Things since school days....so here's. A run down of how this day has changed for me in the past 25 odd years...
@ the very first since I can rememeber, It was a school holiday, yeah another day I get to play! Run around in the aparment grounds
Then, It was a flag hoisting thing, proud to be doing it @ the school grounds in boy scout uniform with glimpses of some patriotic movie in front of the eyes
It was now a day where I realised thanks to history lessons wht it means to over throw british raj and have "freedom" so was all abt. Respect for the freedom fighters
It meant a lot when you are so far far away, all patriotism, respect and regard for the country comes to mind suddenly while watching the desi tv programs and those small celebrations on the american streets
This year I sit and think do we really have a reason to celebrate/congratulate/wish each other? What have we gained today that's worth that emotion? Lemme make tht list:
We can vote!
We have the right to do whtever bussiness we want
We have our own jurisdiction/ law made by indians
We have our own taxation system
We can say whtever we want
We can demand justice from the biggest authority
And here's wht the reality for me has been:
Vote, and bring who on board? Criminals? Hooligans? Ppl who have no decency in their behaviour even on camera! I can imagine wht they'd be doing in their day to day bussiness!!!
Bussiness, is good, cut throat compitition and so much of preasure, labour is expensive, raw material is just not affordable, everything is simple becoming unaffordable!! Independence has nothing to do with it, but curroption, stocking of grains and controlling the pricing sure does
Laws, jurisdiction - ya true we have it, and we have it drafter per our indian requirements, but my friend where is the implementation of that bit? Who da hell cares abt law and order in a country where u can find loop holes and always plan a exit strategy! And if tht doesn't work there's always bribing, you throw money and u can "buy" justice for yourself, or atleast delay the hearing by like 60 years and I say this from personal experience!!! And at the same time you have terrorists living eating breathing on our tax money!!
Where builders get away with making 20+ floory sky scrapers tht have no parking, recration, or even fire safety exits, no electricity generators nothing! But on paper its still an "approved" building with OC et al!!!
The govt. Gets taxes here
to make summer only roads, (they should all have sign boards: "Spill no water, easily soluble"),
To not make drainage channels for the entire city, so all garbage and filth always stays "easily accessible"
To keep the dumpsters always over flowing so that diseases can spread very easily
To not make any parks, recreation areas in a city that's so densly populated that we really don't see the point of a "park" any more!!
Can u? Can u really say wht you feel? Try it and tomm. Some "supporter" will come and give you his peace of mind for hurting his feelings!!! In bombay u are still ok but really don't try it in any non-metro areas u'll pay the price
Justice again, as I said before "justice" has become a commodity, tht sells for a price, a very high price, even if you are not the guilty party! I know this 'coz I've well, spent more than my share of time in diff. Types of courts already!
U pay the price and close the matter, tht seems to be the option and the only one!! Unless u are ready to motivate yourself everyday, to drag yourself to a conglomeration of disheartened folks, filthy criminals, crooks n spineless humans in black suits and khakhi uniforms amidst some decent ones. This sounds tough on paper, in practice its worst!
Its not anarchy, I mean it could've been worst, a lot worst (check out any middle easter country where there's anarchy today, or even pakistan if u don't wanna go too far) however I still don't see too much good come out of our independence. On records and paper we have a lot of achievements a lot obtained within the country as well as on international fronts but what we lack is a fullfilling life for the masses. There are a few demons that engulf our nation today and to me they are bigger, more fatal than the autocratic reign we were in once upon a time. And guess what, we no longer have the men of steel tht existed back then, with only one wish in their hearts, to throw british raj...they don't make them anymore...
Atleast I've not seen one alive yet....
They fought for us, they brought us freedom, but I feel it was a bit too soon. We had or even have no clue of the possibilities we can soar to if we truely realize the potential of all the benefits we have as a free nation. I am no expert on anything, neither do I claim to know of all issues or achieemnts in depth, but I know this for sure that we could surely do away with a lot of preasure from the entire nation with implementation of a few rules, laws regarding quality of products, services, with stricter anti-curroption law implementation, with aggressive population and immigration controls. I mean cleaning up should start somewhere, if it requires a bomb blast even then that's understood, sometimes a shock is required, but wait we've already had 3 or mor of those recently! So what are we still waiting for?
To me this day is a government holiday, and I only feel apathetic towards my countrymen. This false bubble of happiness and feeling good abt. The independence is all useless to me. It's another day of loss of constructive thinking and since the past 50+ yrs. No political leader seems to have done anything to really leverage the independence of our nation.
Some may say am confusing patriotism with politics, well with todays life and state of affiars it's bound to, infact days when I get reminded of patriotic values, remind me of how sad those great fighters might be feeling when they look down from the heavens to see what they fought for and what we made of it, our country!!!
To me patriotism today has become a mere distraction that the government officials use to distract the common man and perhaps bargain some sympathy from him.
One doesn't become patriotic by changing status on facebook, twitter and one doesn't become patriotic by fwding/sending sms, hell one doesn't become patriotic by even blogging abt it. I m no politician and will never be, but don't give me that shit that if I can't help the system then I should blame it for the state it is in. It is in this state becoz my leaders have cheated me and the nation so if I were to manage wht they do, why did I elect them anyways! We cud do ok even w/o a government! Hell we'd do awesome with a monarch for all tht you may know!
If you really want to feel patriotic, gather the civic values of a citizen of India and implement them in the hope that one day everyone will follow, that to me is worth more than flashing the tri-colour around.
I wish to see common mans life be easier and independent of those worries I spoke abt earlier, give my friends a beTter quality of life, one filled with honesty, without tensions and preasures, with peace and trust in the govenrment of the country and then I'll wish a "happy independence day" to my fellow indians.
(I hope tht day comes in my lifetime atleast as I would surely like to wish u all a true independence day someday.....)
thumped...
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