It All Begins At Home
Enemy of the State got me thinking. Yes, I did just watch it for the gazillionth time! And yes, it does get you thinking about privacy laws. But, on that front, I don't have too much of an opinion because I feel as long as you have nothing to hide and they're just looking out for national security, it's a done deal.
However, it did get the wheels turning in my head about another, more significant issue. Corruption. The issue of corruption makes so much sense to think about in terms of India. Yet recently I've been trying this new experiment. Take a large issue and bring it down to your level. Comprendre? Non? Teek hai. Mei bathathi hoon.
When you speak about taking care of the environment, you try to make a difference by cleaning up in your area. And when you say 'Let's reduce poverty in India', you start with the poor people around you. So I started thinking about the corruption around me.
The major institution I'm involved in presently is my college. And I thought about all the instances where corruption played a role. Cheating during an exam. Leaking the exam paper. Bending the rules for a student. The examples are endless.
I spoke to my college principal about culture recently. She said that she envisions our college to imbibe a culture of integrity. Sometimes though, I feel that perhaps it is only the infrastructure that absorbs this culture.
Curbing this corruption, however, is social suicide. Think about it. Snitching on someone who cheated during an exam, or even telling on a teacher who gave out the question paper. In college, you have to turn a blind eye to these things in order to remain 'cool.' Yet in the same breath do we not criticize the Indian government for corruption?
It's a hard truth to swallow. And we can sweep it under the rug, justifying that the levels on which they occur differ tremendously. But like I've said before, it's about culture. And culture doesn't just sprout wings at the appropriate moment. It's an idea, a thought, a value system, that has to be inculcated from the very beginning. And if it isn't nipped in the bud, we permit the seed of corruption to grow.
A survey conducted by India Today stated that 68% of the youth believe that corruption is the greatest ill facing India, winning over illiteracy which stood at 20%. And this is where I need to quote India Today:
A double standard is apparent. An overwhelming majority said corruption was the biggest ill, yet a third said they would bribe to get work done.
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra also tucked this idea into the seams of Rang De Basanti. It takes courage to voice this truth, and even more to call for action.
We therefore are responsible for the corruption that takes place in our country. And we have to shoulder that responsibility.
So I guess it's true then. Charity, and everything else along with it, does begin at home.
However, it did get the wheels turning in my head about another, more significant issue. Corruption. The issue of corruption makes so much sense to think about in terms of India. Yet recently I've been trying this new experiment. Take a large issue and bring it down to your level. Comprendre? Non? Teek hai. Mei bathathi hoon.
When you speak about taking care of the environment, you try to make a difference by cleaning up in your area. And when you say 'Let's reduce poverty in India', you start with the poor people around you. So I started thinking about the corruption around me.
The major institution I'm involved in presently is my college. And I thought about all the instances where corruption played a role. Cheating during an exam. Leaking the exam paper. Bending the rules for a student. The examples are endless.
I spoke to my college principal about culture recently. She said that she envisions our college to imbibe a culture of integrity. Sometimes though, I feel that perhaps it is only the infrastructure that absorbs this culture.
Curbing this corruption, however, is social suicide. Think about it. Snitching on someone who cheated during an exam, or even telling on a teacher who gave out the question paper. In college, you have to turn a blind eye to these things in order to remain 'cool.' Yet in the same breath do we not criticize the Indian government for corruption?
It's a hard truth to swallow. And we can sweep it under the rug, justifying that the levels on which they occur differ tremendously. But like I've said before, it's about culture. And culture doesn't just sprout wings at the appropriate moment. It's an idea, a thought, a value system, that has to be inculcated from the very beginning. And if it isn't nipped in the bud, we permit the seed of corruption to grow.
A survey conducted by India Today stated that 68% of the youth believe that corruption is the greatest ill facing India, winning over illiteracy which stood at 20%. And this is where I need to quote India Today:
A double standard is apparent. An overwhelming majority said corruption was the biggest ill, yet a third said they would bribe to get work done.
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra also tucked this idea into the seams of Rang De Basanti. It takes courage to voice this truth, and even more to call for action.
We therefore are responsible for the corruption that takes place in our country. And we have to shoulder that responsibility.
So I guess it's true then. Charity, and everything else along with it, does begin at home.
posted by Melanie at 10:07 PM
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