Ah, well...I bet that despite the lame heading I gave to this post, you knew you are not here for a movie review for The Fast and Furious! That, by the way, can be done here.
This one, is about the 'fast' and 'furious' that are currently - to use a Twitter jargon that is now becoming increasingly commonplace - 'trending'.
Yes, I am referring to the Baba saga that had both of it - yes, the Fast (n., not adj.): that was preceded, inspired, and encouraged by the POC done by Anna; and the Furious (with the government displaying its disapproval by flexing its muscles and resorting to strong-arm tactics. So much so, that it even sprung the Courts into action, demanding an explanation from the Govt).
I felt like penning my thoughts on this entire episode (after all, this indeed seems just an episode of what looks like a long-winded soap opera):
A Tale of Two Excesses
From first mollycoddling the Baba with ministers being paraded to receive him at the airport, to then coercing him and the thousands who had gathered at the Maidan, to rein 'em in - the government made major mistakes by being excessive in its approach on both counts.
Will the Real Satyagrahi please stand up?
Try this:
Search for Mahatma Gandhi courts arrest.
Search Results: Thousands
Search for Mahatma Gandhi jumping/hiding in salwar kameez.
Search Result: None
Did the Baba steal/burgle/kill anyone that you have to run and hide like a petty thug the way he did? Isn't it second nature to a true Satyagrahi to court arrest or at least expect and surely unfazed by that possibility?
In my view, the stature and respect for Baba would have only grown, if he would have courted arrest manfully, head held high. This whole jumping around, shying away, and even resorting to a ladies suit, left a pungent taste, which only led me to lose my appetite for his fight.
Why only Delhi or Noida (NCR region)?
Dear Baba,
First you ask the countrymen and the government to ensure that we do all it takes to extirpate black money and corruption from this system. Very good and all of that, I say.
But hey, on being denied entry by the Congress (Central and Delhi Govt) post your aborted crusade, you conveniently approach the U.P. Chief Minister - another epitome of the same corruption and black money that you so hate, requesting her to allow entry into Noida (U.P.) - how can one collude and request to be with the one who is against one's principles and is, in effect, the kind of person against whom you are doing all this is in the first place? Sounds of eroding credibility, right?
A Satyagrah can be done anywhere, isn't it? But doing so only where huge crowds can easily come and at a place like NCR (Noida) where the media is headquartered/readily available, simply points to..well, I do not wish to insult my readers' IQ level by explaining the conclusion of all this. All of us can connect the dots, can't we?!
Lost in Translation
How many of us now even remember the cause that was being espoused through this fast? Why do we not stress on what is the government doing about the issues instead of only focusing on what the government is doing with the people who are taking up those issues?
I do not think this is the first time one has raised this issue of focusing on the messenger more than (or even totally instead of) the message. Unfortunately, by the looks of it, I don't think, if, realistically speaking, I can say that this is the last time either.
Just hopeful and curious to see when and how we can get to see an end to any such charade.
This one, is about the 'fast' and 'furious' that are currently - to use a Twitter jargon that is now becoming increasingly commonplace - 'trending'.
Yes, I am referring to the Baba saga that had both of it - yes, the Fast (n., not adj.): that was preceded, inspired, and encouraged by the POC done by Anna; and the Furious (with the government displaying its disapproval by flexing its muscles and resorting to strong-arm tactics. So much so, that it even sprung the Courts into action, demanding an explanation from the Govt).
I felt like penning my thoughts on this entire episode (after all, this indeed seems just an episode of what looks like a long-winded soap opera):
A Tale of Two Excesses
From first mollycoddling the Baba with ministers being paraded to receive him at the airport, to then coercing him and the thousands who had gathered at the Maidan, to rein 'em in - the government made major mistakes by being excessive in its approach on both counts.
Will the Real Satyagrahi please stand up?
Try this:
Search for Mahatma Gandhi courts arrest.
Search Results: Thousands
Search for Mahatma Gandhi jumping/hiding in salwar kameez.
Search Result: None
Did the Baba steal/burgle/kill anyone that you have to run and hide like a petty thug the way he did? Isn't it second nature to a true Satyagrahi to court arrest or at least expect and surely unfazed by that possibility?
In my view, the stature and respect for Baba would have only grown, if he would have courted arrest manfully, head held high. This whole jumping around, shying away, and even resorting to a ladies suit, left a pungent taste, which only led me to lose my appetite for his fight.
Why only Delhi or Noida (NCR region)?
Dear Baba,
First you ask the countrymen and the government to ensure that we do all it takes to extirpate black money and corruption from this system. Very good and all of that, I say.
But hey, on being denied entry by the Congress (Central and Delhi Govt) post your aborted crusade, you conveniently approach the U.P. Chief Minister - another epitome of the same corruption and black money that you so hate, requesting her to allow entry into Noida (U.P.) - how can one collude and request to be with the one who is against one's principles and is, in effect, the kind of person against whom you are doing all this is in the first place? Sounds of eroding credibility, right?
A Satyagrah can be done anywhere, isn't it? But doing so only where huge crowds can easily come and at a place like NCR (Noida) where the media is headquartered/readily available, simply points to..well, I do not wish to insult my readers' IQ level by explaining the conclusion of all this. All of us can connect the dots, can't we?!
Lost in Translation
How many of us now even remember the cause that was being espoused through this fast? Why do we not stress on what is the government doing about the issues instead of only focusing on what the government is doing with the people who are taking up those issues?
I do not think this is the first time one has raised this issue of focusing on the messenger more than (or even totally instead of) the message. Unfortunately, by the looks of it, I don't think, if, realistically speaking, I can say that this is the last time either.
Just hopeful and curious to see when and how we can get to see an end to any such charade.
