Why?
It does seem like we're living in particularly grey times, doesn't it? We barely resurface from one wave of tragic news that another one hits us harder ... if the water doesn't get you, the earth will - and if nature lets us be, it turns out that we're our own worst enemies.
Is it worse that some misguided, brainwashed miscreants decide to kill a hundred fellow human beings amidst a celebration - or that a callous bus driver with no particular motive, godly or otherwise, drives right over someone already fighting for his life? Or that out of a crowd of people witness to that outrageous situation, only one courageous girl responds to the crisis?
Is it worse that no one believes it is their responsibility to help another suffering human being – or that whoever does help faces a backlash from the ‘system’ and from individuals alike? Why, when Varna is able to take courage in her hands and rush a dying man to the hospital, does she face only resistance from the keepers of our law and safety? Why, when Uma sends out an appeal to help earthquake victims, is she subjected to an incomprehensible personal attack?
Is the fight against terrorism – or natural disasters – really the biggest challenge on our hands? Or is it our own sickening apathy, our disconnection from other human beings, our loss of compassion and our startling unwillingness to even support the few who do display some compassion?
There really aren’t any answers out there, are there?
Is it worse that some misguided, brainwashed miscreants decide to kill a hundred fellow human beings amidst a celebration - or that a callous bus driver with no particular motive, godly or otherwise, drives right over someone already fighting for his life? Or that out of a crowd of people witness to that outrageous situation, only one courageous girl responds to the crisis?
Is it worse that no one believes it is their responsibility to help another suffering human being – or that whoever does help faces a backlash from the ‘system’ and from individuals alike? Why, when Varna is able to take courage in her hands and rush a dying man to the hospital, does she face only resistance from the keepers of our law and safety? Why, when Uma sends out an appeal to help earthquake victims, is she subjected to an incomprehensible personal attack?
Is the fight against terrorism – or natural disasters – really the biggest challenge on our hands? Or is it our own sickening apathy, our disconnection from other human beings, our loss of compassion and our startling unwillingness to even support the few who do display some compassion?
There really aren’t any answers out there, are there?
posted by Anjali at
11:40 PM
5 Comments:
seriously, as far as disasters (man-made included) go, this year's been horrible....right from the tsunami...i suppose it's always the little things that come in the way of the important things....the policemen mite have felt they're losing face or some stupid trifle like that...who knows?...i guess the answer is in us....we only need the courage to acknowledge it exists...
By
the Monk, at 3:37 AM, October 30, 2005
precaution and courage will be vital tools to combat such situations.
nice blog :)
keep blogging...
By
Amit Bulbule, at 3:05 PM, October 30, 2005
The apathy drives me up the wall.. but what do I do about it? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
And that is the core of the problem. Why don't we ACT? I don't know. And I wish I did.
By
Camphor, at 8:42 PM, October 30, 2005
somewhere, somehow the two issues are connected...
By
manuscrypts, at 11:42 PM, October 30, 2005
well said. id guess that a part of the reason may be the sheer numbers of people, and therefore the kind of massive poverty and problems we are daily exposed to. we have become numb, innured to events. (NB: i do not however propose that as a "justified" reason!)
"A catalogue of horrors would defeat its purpose" - EM Forster.
other countries value life far more than we do.
By
m., at 7:06 AM, December 19, 2005
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