Sense & Insensibility
Lamenting aloud in a wintry noon…
Absolutely!
There are so many things wrong in all spheres of our collective life, namely political, educational, social, cultural and economic, and we wonder who or what can right them. Politically, we are in a suspended animation state. But can we expect in our right mind to be ruled again by a group of people, many of whom don't even have the endowments to belong to the homo sapiens family. Both jailed and unjailed political leaders continue to remain disoriented and directionless as for their own fate, hence how can they give any direction to the people? Confused and fearful, they talk in riddles and jump at every sound of an olive jeep outside their residence, the unjailed ones I mean. So, what can the nation expect from them? They have been a pathetic lot before and they will remain a pathetic lot in the future. The fifty plus (in age) people of this country have witnessed two amazing things in their lifetime. One is the historic Liberation War in 1971, and the other is the whirlwind corruption of the BNP-Jamaat alliance government between 2002 and 2007. Power had robbed them of all the human qualities, and as a result, they let loose a reign of terror that left many rules of tyrants in history far behind. Is it the fault of power or something else? There can be nothing wrong with power itself. George Bernard Shaw said: "Power does not corrupt men; fools however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power." Dear readers, haven't we seen many of them around -- those I so fondly call "Powerfools?" More on power: Benjamin Disraeli said: "When men are pure, laws are useless; when men are corrupt, laws are broken." Quite a riddle, indeed. Here is a pleasant thought from none but John F Kennedy: "When power leads man towards arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses." So, brother politicians, for God's sake do read some poetry and give us a breathing space. So much for power and corruption. But are we having anything better in other sectors, known to be more benign ones? For example, the cultural world? Not really, if we evaluate without attaching too much passion to it just because it is Bangladeshi culture. But, do we accept them as Bangladeshi culture? Do we own them? I don't think many of our saner citizens would like to own what is going on in the name of songs, modern music, dance, television drama and cinema as Bangladeshi culture. "Shameful" is one word that describes all. Thanks to the availability of billions, multi-sectoral organisations are promoting mediocre performers in glitzy shows, only to draw public attention to their products and brands. By doing so, they are doing colossal damage to our art and culture and our sense of aesthetics. And knowing it all too well we keep mum. Why? We all know why. Switch on your TV set and you will find strangely dressed men and women, some even fifty plus and refusing to stop, gyrating and hollering in the name of dancing and singing. Whatever comes out of their vocal chords cannot be called songs, if anything! Whatever has happened to songs that lower your blood pressure and make a better human? Then let's watch a TV drama. Blistering barnacles! Most of the young heroes are roadside vandals, real life ruffians, doing things and talking in a language that belongs to the gutters! What are they doing in our drawing rooms where our growing children watch TV with parents? Imagine your twelve-year-old son using the same language in school with friends believing that it was macho talk. The other day, on a TV drama a roguish-looking hero actually slapped a rickshawpuller just to give a realistic touch to his acting. It was real, by God! Now, would he dare to slap a gentleman or a police constable on the street for the same reason? In the same drama, one roguish hero kicked another when the latter interfered with his conversation with his girl friend on cell phone. It was so crass, so unacceptable, that I switched off the TV set. Is our education sector any better, which was supposed to be so anyway? My profession brings me closer to college and university teachers, and I must confess, every time I meet one, of course except a brilliant few, I worry till midnight about the fate of their students. If a teacher cannot speak his or her mother tongue properly then it is hundred percent unacceptable. Then we have the case of university departments giving away first classes on a first come first serve basis. Oh, how wish I were a student now! Gone are the days when a good second-class form Dhaka University kept a student smiling for weeks. Will lamentation take us anywhere? No. Then what is the solution? How can we improve things and make this society a safe and liveable one? We have to search within for answers. Shahnoor Wahid is Senior Assistant Editor of The Daily Star.
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