News has just come in that the Maharashtra government has changed its mind on introducing sex education in schools. Now, it won’t. The reason: opposition from MLAs cutting across party lines. The BJP went a step further and claimed that introduction of sex education is anti Indian culture. Yeah, sure! I guess BJP members are all products of Immaculate Conception.
Going by the logic of sex education offending our traditional beliefs, shouldn’t we be doing a Bamiyan at Ajanta, Ellora, Khajurah and other ancient monuments of importance for they dare to depict gods and goddesses in the nude or in various stages of undress?
Or is the logic that when we have Band Stand, the beaches and other places where young kids can have practical sex sessions and discover the secrets of nature themselves, why waste time and money trying to teach them the very same things in school? These places are in Mumbai and I am sure similar places exist where readers live.
And lest I forget, autos and cabs are other places where semi-grown kids can experiment, albeit under the watchful eye of the much experienced drivers. I guess the argument is that these drivers can correct and may be personally teach kids if they get it all wrong.
Humor aside, when will politicians realize the virtue of education, education of any kind? Our cities are brimming to the full with people, space is at a premium, and frustrations are running high. Adding to that would be lack of knowledge leading to misconceptions and the eagerness to experiment without fully realizing the consequences of actions.
These were the same politicians who yelled from roof tops of the ills of Dance Bars and their degrading effect on our culture. The result, dance bars shut down, and dancers turned into fulltime sex workers. And now we have the Indian Cricket League and the Indian Premier League having women wearing next to nothing dancing in front of a billion Indians of which children form a significant part. But I guess nudity with Political blessings and permission (read Sharad Pawar) is not offensive to our traditions. In fact, we may be upholding the values of the Ajanta era, right Mr. Politician?
And last but not the least, for a country with over a billion people, isn’t it surprising that our politicians find the very mention of sex taboo? I guess we are all children of Immaculate Conception, and sex has nothing to do with us being the second-largest populated country in the world. No wonder the West still thinks of India as a land of snake charmers and rope trick magicians.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Hungry Kya, Eat a TV
The hungry and impoverished in India are likely to shift to a new diet—television sets. At least that’s what seems to be the idea of politicians cutting party lines across the country. First it was Karunanidhi in Tamil Nadu, then YSR Reddy in Andhra Pradesh, and now the Congress in its quest for power in Karnataka is promising a TV set to people below the poverty line. How blessed are we to live in such enlightened times.
On Tuesday, there was a photograph in one of the national dailies where Naxals in the Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh were being given TV sets. It was then I realized that people had turned Naxals and picked up arms and killed people because they did not own TV sets. Until then, I always thought that they were protesting hunger and lack of opportunities to earn a decent living. How wrong was I! And I have the humble politician to thank for clearing my long-standing misconception.
Earlier, the self–appointed champion of the masses, M Karunanidhi, had promised TV sets to the poor and is still busy fulfilling that promise. Yes Mr. Karunanidhi, like Marie Antoinette you say, if you don’t have bread to eat, try a TV set. How very sensitive. People do not have food to eat, jobs to earn a livelihood, but TV sets they must have.
And now the Congress is planning to do the same in Karnataka. Distribute TV sets to the poor if elected to power. Yeah sure, it isn’t your money anyways, right. All parties realize that the tax payer is stupid and will not fight for his rights. So to fulfill their poll promises they will dip into the pockets of the tax payer. That’s a nice way of doing business, I say. Zero investment and five years in power. I guess it pays to be a politician in this country more than anything else.
For a change, how about preparing workable plans for poverty alleviation through providing gainful employment to the poor? How about devising strategies to ensure that the kids of the poorest of the poor have access to quality education? How about thinking of ways to provide drinking water and electricity to the needy? And for a change how about visiting your constituencies at regular intervals and ensuring that these plans are implemented properly and the benefits are accruing to the target audience and not their own lackeys and yes men? And by all this, I do not mean Reservation.
If politicians are ready to do all that and more, I am sure every single tax payer will happily pay his/her taxes, not look for ways to fudge and cheat, and will every year not end up feeling that his/her hard earned money is being extorted from him and then squandered on foolish, unworkable schemes and that a large part of the tax collected is not ending up in the pockets of ministers, their henchmen, and the babus.
Also, every single tax payer realizes that growing inequalities are not good for society as a whole and is a harbinger of violent revolution. And no one wants a bloodbath on their hands and their conscience. So dear Mr. Politician, it’s high time that you and your ilk stop preying on other’s fortunes like vultures for personal and political gains and assume the responsibility that it promises while assuming power. The promise of building a nation and ensuring that each citizen gets to live a life of dignity.
On Tuesday, there was a photograph in one of the national dailies where Naxals in the Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh were being given TV sets. It was then I realized that people had turned Naxals and picked up arms and killed people because they did not own TV sets. Until then, I always thought that they were protesting hunger and lack of opportunities to earn a decent living. How wrong was I! And I have the humble politician to thank for clearing my long-standing misconception.
Earlier, the self–appointed champion of the masses, M Karunanidhi, had promised TV sets to the poor and is still busy fulfilling that promise. Yes Mr. Karunanidhi, like Marie Antoinette you say, if you don’t have bread to eat, try a TV set. How very sensitive. People do not have food to eat, jobs to earn a livelihood, but TV sets they must have.
And now the Congress is planning to do the same in Karnataka. Distribute TV sets to the poor if elected to power. Yeah sure, it isn’t your money anyways, right. All parties realize that the tax payer is stupid and will not fight for his rights. So to fulfill their poll promises they will dip into the pockets of the tax payer. That’s a nice way of doing business, I say. Zero investment and five years in power. I guess it pays to be a politician in this country more than anything else.
For a change, how about preparing workable plans for poverty alleviation through providing gainful employment to the poor? How about devising strategies to ensure that the kids of the poorest of the poor have access to quality education? How about thinking of ways to provide drinking water and electricity to the needy? And for a change how about visiting your constituencies at regular intervals and ensuring that these plans are implemented properly and the benefits are accruing to the target audience and not their own lackeys and yes men? And by all this, I do not mean Reservation.
If politicians are ready to do all that and more, I am sure every single tax payer will happily pay his/her taxes, not look for ways to fudge and cheat, and will every year not end up feeling that his/her hard earned money is being extorted from him and then squandered on foolish, unworkable schemes and that a large part of the tax collected is not ending up in the pockets of ministers, their henchmen, and the babus.
Also, every single tax payer realizes that growing inequalities are not good for society as a whole and is a harbinger of violent revolution. And no one wants a bloodbath on their hands and their conscience. So dear Mr. Politician, it’s high time that you and your ilk stop preying on other’s fortunes like vultures for personal and political gains and assume the responsibility that it promises while assuming power. The promise of building a nation and ensuring that each citizen gets to live a life of dignity.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Have Old Parents? Throw Them Out
My mother and father are old. They can’t do most of the household work that they used to a few years ago. They remain sick for most part of the year. Their memory is failing. Even normal tasks like cleaning themselves up when they defecate have to be performed by others. Thought of sending then to an old age home, but that would be an ongoing financial commitment, and why waste money on something or someone that will fetch no returns? Killing them is fraught with legal trouble, for why spend time in jail for killing someone who may die any day soon? So what’s the way out? Just beat them up repeatedly until they can bear it no longer and leave the house on their own accord. If that doesn’t work, just throw them out of the house.
These dear friends are not my sentiments but certainly seem to be those of a growing set of people who do this and more to infirm parents as they are no longer of any use to them. Newspapers, TV channels are filled with such stories and the regularity with which such stories are appearing is frightening as well as depressing to say the least.
I can remember my parents fussing over me when I was little, cleaning me up when I defecated. Feeding me when I was hungry, accompanying me to school and bringing me back home safely. Staying hungry during lean times but ensuring that I did not stay hungry. Burdening themselves with loans so that I can have a good education, and working hard, sacrificing their own wants and desires so that they can fulfill mine.
And I think the parents of these people who are ill treating their creators would also have done the above-mentioned things and more so that they do well in life. After all that it beats me how can people be so cruel. Forget our own parents; we shouldn’t be so cruel with anyone in life. So it beats me as to how come people have the heart to do these things. How can they eat their meals in peace, sleep well at night, and fuss over their own children even as their creators are reduced to a life that even a stray dog should not be made to live?
Have we as a people become so selfish and inhuman that we fail to see anything beyond self? Why do we fail to understand that as time passes and we become infirm, our children will do the same thing to us, as they will follow in the footsteps of their parents? And then we will have no one to blame for what goes round comes round.
These dear friends are not my sentiments but certainly seem to be those of a growing set of people who do this and more to infirm parents as they are no longer of any use to them. Newspapers, TV channels are filled with such stories and the regularity with which such stories are appearing is frightening as well as depressing to say the least.
I can remember my parents fussing over me when I was little, cleaning me up when I defecated. Feeding me when I was hungry, accompanying me to school and bringing me back home safely. Staying hungry during lean times but ensuring that I did not stay hungry. Burdening themselves with loans so that I can have a good education, and working hard, sacrificing their own wants and desires so that they can fulfill mine.
And I think the parents of these people who are ill treating their creators would also have done the above-mentioned things and more so that they do well in life. After all that it beats me how can people be so cruel. Forget our own parents; we shouldn’t be so cruel with anyone in life. So it beats me as to how come people have the heart to do these things. How can they eat their meals in peace, sleep well at night, and fuss over their own children even as their creators are reduced to a life that even a stray dog should not be made to live?
Have we as a people become so selfish and inhuman that we fail to see anything beyond self? Why do we fail to understand that as time passes and we become infirm, our children will do the same thing to us, as they will follow in the footsteps of their parents? And then we will have no one to blame for what goes round comes round.
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