Rants Of An Insomniac

So, after a losing battle with insomnia, I'm finally giving in to writing this blog at 4 am. These last few weeks, especially the last week has been extremely boring. The last week has been especially boring because I've pretty much been in solitary confinement. All my friends have left for their respective homes leaving me alone. So, Its only natural that I have a lot of bullshit to say, since I don't have anyone to actually say it to.

Bullshit #1 - The Jan Lokpal :

Much publicity has been given to The Jan Lokpal Bill in the last few months. Sure, making it sound synonymous with Anti Corruption gave it a lot of integrity and a hell lot of publicity. The stashing away of tons of money in Swiss banks sure gave it a lot of fuel. Sure, its for a good cause, right?? I mean, it started of with a comparatively lesser known social activist and a strict Gandhian, Anna Hazare fasting forever. The guy just shot to international fame, some calling him the Gandhi of our times. Sure, he seemed like the guy in charge of the movement and everyone supported him. Even the opposition, which didn't do squat, when it was in power, supported him and used him. That is the key - "Using Him". The so called civic society is led not by Anna Hazare, but by the others who defiantly say they are representing the civic society. Now, what I don't understand is this, weren't politicians supposed to be representing people?? The same politicians who are apparently so corrupt that they have been looting the country all these years.

Sure, corruption is so bad in India that not being corrupt is almost a taboo in government offices. There are many decent, honest people in power. But, the majority are apparently corrupt. The so called civic society has a point. There needs to be checks on them. But what they overlooked is the fact that those checks fuckin' exist. Ever heard of The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC)? Remember, they were in the news a short while back?? Or how about the Central Bureau Of Investigation (CBI)?? These are some of those authorities which are supposed to be fighting crimes like these.

The majority of the people supporting or going on the streets don't necessarily comprehend what this movement is about. They just hear phrases like Anti-corruption or Black Money and they think, "Hey! This sounds cool and it is everywhere.. I should definitely go for these rallies.. Chicks will find it hot." 

Most of them are there to hang out or to try to hit on the opposite(or same) sex. And someone ends up circulating utter bullshit on the Internet about the amount of black money in off shore accounts and how it will eliminate poverty  and how we will not be required to pay taxes for the next 20 years or so. 

The problem with the Jan Lokpal is very simple. The constitution and the systems governing the system are not meant to be corrupt. They just became corrupt because of the people. the same people who represent the people and the same people who are supposed to make sure corruption doesn't happen. The Jan Lokpal, if eventually enacted would give it almost superhuman powers. and with great powers come great responsibility. Yeah, I stole that from Spider man. With great powers also comes the tendency to be corrupt. All those corrupt officials and politicians couldn't have been corrupt if they were not, well, officials and politicians. And who is going to keep the Jan Lokpal in check?? Are they going to fast for another authority to keep Jan Lokpal  in check?? Its just a vicious cycle.

Don't get me wrong, I'm against corruption and hiding assets in offshore accounts. But, here's a reality check, the government already taxes us for pretty much everything and we don't get crap. Even with all the money which is not black, we're still kinda rich. but, the majority of the population is so damn poor. We might feel proud to see the number of millionaires in India increasing but we just don't give a rat's ass about the poorest of people living in our country worse than most people are living in some of the poorest nations in Africa. and corruption is a two way stream. They demand bribes and we oblige just to get our work done. We, as a nation have the mindset of paying off people to get out of tricky situation. With that sort of thinking, corruption would go on and assets will be hidden. 

I'm just saying that if we change our ways, we can get rid of corruption with the existing government bodies. Also, I'd like to add that I have utmost respect for Anna Hazare and I think it was brave to start off a movement of such magnitude. But fasting may not always bring in the results.

Bullshit #2 - The Media:

Gone are the days when the government owned Doordarshan (DD) used to keep the nation entertained and informed. Now, there are infinite number of television channels vying for our attention. In the last few years, private News channels have taken a prominent role in our life. so have the countless newspapers which seem to be breaking out everywhere. Sure, you can see live coverage of everything from a terrorist attack to wardrobe malfunction of someone who is supposed to be famous (or trying to get famous by doing so). And if the news is juicy enough, they will rerun the news as long as nothing better happens. Sure, knowing what is happening around us is very important and the media is doing a great service, right??

Remember how a Sadhu died after fasting for a while when everyone was busy watching Baba Ramdev fasting under medical supervision?? While Baba Ramdev was "pseudo fasting" to bring back black money from offshore bank accounts, this guy was fasting to stop dumping toxic waste into the biggest river in the country. This river which is somewhat of a lifeline for millions of people. If that is not a noble cause, I don't know what is. Baba Ramdev, on the other hand was fasting in front of thousands or millions of people for the cause of  reclaiming black money. The point is, this guy is basically a Yoga teacher who is filthy rich. He runs a lot of trusts and he gets a hell lot of gifts worth a lot. The issue of black money maybe important. But it was a losing battle from the beginning. And it certainly ended pretty badly for him. So, in effect, all that media coverage was for nothing while a fraction of the same could have probably saved the guy trying to save a river. 

News media has always been about misdirection. Most of these are run by corporates who run it for the money and social obligation for namesake. News is almost completely commercialised and deals have to be made with many including the government. Propaganda never dies!! 

Everyone hears about the Naxals attacking the Tribals in many parts of the nation. but no one reports the reason for the attacks. All you ever read is the number of people killed. Where is your investigative journalism now? Apart from a few magazines like Tehelka, no one seems to be interested. No one seems to care about the thousands of tribals being forced out of the forests so that huge mining companies can mine it. I thought forests were important resources too. Maybe I was wrong!!

Mass media, instead of being a tool or a resource to the people is now nothing but a commodity which can almost entirely be bought off..

 The rest will continue later. I'm too sleepy to think. Whatever I have written is my opinion. I may be wrong about somethings or pretty much everything. It is based on the extent of my very limited knowledge about my environment or society.

The Flow Starts...

Finally, after many months of contemplation, I have decided to jot down my thoughts, opinions and whatever else might be in my mind, which continues to confuse me. Being somewhat of an introvert, I never wanted anyone I knew reading stuff which I wrote, thus ending my short stint at trying to write a journal.

In the last two and a half years or so of unemployment and basically being a burden on everyone, I've had a lot of time to think about a lot of random stuff in my life. This does not mean I've become wiser than before or wise, as a matter of speaking.

Lately, I've been wondering about the artificial world we live in. This world, promoted by mass media which is in turn controlled by people living with the sole purpose of accumulating wealth, seems to me to be inhospitable for any person who wishes to live a simple life. They want you to be like all the people they want to control by means of making you feel bad about yourself. there are little girls starving and using toxic cosmetics to be like supermodels. People trying to have a fairer skin tone by bleaching their skin to be accepted as good looking in society.

When did we start looking up to televisions and magazines?? Whatever happened to the philosophy of being content?? I used to think that doing good and being healthy was the way to look good. They say that you end up looking like the person who you are inside when you become old. This holds true when you look at old well known people in history who did not use make up. These include Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, etc. Lately I've been seeing some scary old faces with unsuitable Botox and old cosmetic surgeries.

When it comes to politics, everyone knows that there vested interests at play. I've started to think that democracy is a failed system. We've been ruled by Kings for Millenia and the only wars were to overthrow other Kings or to expand the empire. There have been more bloody wars after the introduction of Democracy in the world, including the two World Wars. The innumerable proxy wars and the cold war and the so called war on terrorism, which is a farce, have been fought even with the calls for freedom and liberty and security. So, Democracy has failed in a few decades where Kingdoms have survived for thousands of years. Unless we come up with something better, I'm afraid, we are all doomed by corrupt and useless politicians and corporates.