A FEW GOOD MEN...Friday and Saturday nites for a bachelor in mumbai are usually dedicated to one activity and one activity alone..yeah,u guessed it rite,booze..but..this is not some macho "i-smashed-100-beercans-on-my-forehead" kinda post...i have quit booze for around a month now..and dont intend to touch it again..have done it for 5 years now and was getting kinda boring..same old discos-same old beers,vodka,whiskey...same loud music..same cigarettes..same ol' disgusting smell on my shirt when i wake up with dehydration the next day..but..this is not an "i-am-a-reformed-man-and-a-saint-now" post either..this post is about the world we live in today...why ? bcos,sometimes when u drink and wonder what are you ?where are you ? who are you ? where is this going ? etc...and chat about it with some friends...u hit a goldmine of an idea...somewhere u have never been too...
so..come friday nite..and we were talking about soceital reforms..in a disco !! imagine..loud music..blue smoke..scantily-clad babes and 4 guys shouting to make their point clear..
the agenda: reforms in india..nope,we were not taking a stand on cliche'd "bribes should be banned" or "prostitution is immoral"...we were for it being legalised ! why ?? bcos,thats the root problem...the right and wrong of it...the day u judge the right and wrong in a concept,u have a problem...and u spawn a whole new set of problems..
Lets take an example...and this holds true across examples....Take "bribes in any state transport corporation/regional transport office in india"..whats the prime reason for the conductor demanding a bribe from the private bus operator to ensure that his bus is full...while the govt. bus is empty ? simple...money...lack of it...lack of clean money...so what does he do ? he opts for the smarter route...and takes a bribe..who loses out ? everybody...even the private bus operator..he mite be caught someday and is therefore always in the shadows..
I am not a fan of the concept of "progress" and the part money has played in it,as i have said
here but now that we are where we are...we mite as well make the most of it...
Nevertheless..Consider our solution in this scenario..legalise it..encourage the conductor to get as many people on board as possible...for money...cash...hard cash...clean hard cash...he'll do it ! he'll bring in more money than he did in a month ! now...who wins ? everybody !
Take another case..Jammu and Kashmir..before u go all hammer and tongs,excuse me,please keep your emotions and jingoism at home...i am just trying to suggest an idea...what if the indian/pakistani government decides like any of us,that...since i want that piece of land so much,i am buying it...all of it...souds weird,when i say it na..but think about it,it's a concept thats so fundamentally simple...i want it,i buy it...we do that all the time...why not as nations ?? no war,no bombs...no politics...no religion...ek dum john lennon world...
out-of-box...permanently-rubbishable...but it appealed to me for it's simplicity....the world works on money...lets take it to one more level...and perhaps...after it gets involved,make life simpler for a change ...
Most problems in this world can be diagnosed by asking the 5 questions-What,when why,where and how...and every problem that plagues the system has a fundamental flaw...a fundamental human weakness..of either greed,envy,lust,etc...all of which are based on not having enough of something....and when and if that is satisfied,you have a solution to the problem...and the system is absolutely fine...
so...when u look at the solution that we thot of to the problem....in this light,it does seem to make perfect sense....or does it ?? depends,on how open your mind is to be able to not pre-judge a solution...
appealed to me like crazy...simple,effective....precise...
Moral of the story:There's no good or bad in this world...what we perceive to be good/bad is actually what a few "good" men decide to brand so....to suit their plans...it's now upto us to do something about it...
