I wish I cared about things. I do care but unfortunately not consistently and definitely not long enough. By things, I don't mean people, I mean things. Damn! This morning my ability to say anything with clarity seems to be marred by the usage of the word things. Let me try once again - By things, I mean issues. By issues, I mean
"Save the World"
"Vote for the Walruses"
"Stop obliteration of our Ozone"
"Don't mar Mars with human exploitation"
"Treat Trees tremendously"
"Antarctica is for Penguins"
"My language is the mega language among all languages"
"Don't impose your language on my beautiful language"
"For creatures walking on four legs"
"To eat a fin is a sin"
"Let us not choke the world in smoke"
"Cows can camp in the centre of any road"
"Let's wow the whales"
"Let's wow the whales"
So many movements! Millions passionate souls display their uncontrollable passion in these movements. Yet none of them interest me. I look at them with disinterested half closed eyes, make a sound that sounds like "Gnaaah" and move on. I am very disturbed that I am not interested in any of these. What disappoints me is that I am not even interested in declaring myself to be a staunch supporter of any of these issue even if I don't care about it.
For example, why can't I declare that I am a staunch supporter of secularism. I could throw some acidic statements at people who claim that something written in 20000 BC in India talked about Black holes and the General Theory of Relativity. That would be fun. But I am not even intelligent enough to hate our current Prime minister and his party. While I am surrounded by people who have no hesitation in shouting out from either sides of a microphone about the unfairness meted out by Indians (which probably includes them) on Kashmir and its people, I listen to them with disinterest. Sadly, I don't fit into the other end of the spectrum either. I am not a staunch right wing religious fanatic either. Actually, I am not even religious. I almost follow nothing that any religion recommends. I have no qualms about doing things that the religions prohibit. I make promises to God but do not keep them and when it seems that the respective God is punishing me for not having kept my promise, I look towards the sky and throw abuses at him/her. That said, I am not an atheist or satanist either. I don't go around the world announcing "God is phony". I actually love visiting temples - not all them but certain temples. So I don't fit there either.
Thus I feel I am a misfit in this society. Anytime I find myself stuck in the company of people who are passionate about some cause or the other I look at them in wonder and say "Why can't I be like him or her!" But as the discussion proceeds I invariably end up feeling "Why can't they be like me!"
Many years ago, I was having a dining table discussion with a person whom I considered a friend for three months. He thought he was expounding the value of vegetarianism. In reality he was busy abusing non-vegetarianism by talking for many minutes about the cruelty of being a non-vegetarian. I had no intention of becoming a vegetarian for I loved meat. I also loathed the saintliness projected by some of the vegetarians. This temporary friend was one of finest specimen belonging to this category. I humoured him for sometime by letting him recount the goodness of being a vegetarian before letting him know "I do not kill animals and I only eat animals that are dead. I give meaning for their death for they would continue to live through me". As stupid as that argument sounds, it was sufficient to quieten his vegetarian frenzy.
With the advent of vegans, vegetarians got a taste of how non-vegetarians felt when they preached about the cruelty of being a non-vegetarian. The vegans made the world believe that milking the cow is as cruel as killing it for through milking you are affecting the cow and its calf too. So consuming curd or paneer is as cruel as consuming meat. Ha ha ha!
Even now I feel amused when I remember that fellow who tried to convert me to a vegan! Ironically, he did not last being a vegan himself for much longer for within a few months he degraded his status by mixing ladles of curd with rice.
All this took place prior to 2014 when the party ruling the country decided to save the cows for they considered the cows to be more sacred than Gods themselves. At many places consuming meat in public was considered suicidal. It went to the extent that one had to be careful not to lick one's lips while uttering the word cow. Thus the life of the beef-lover became miserable. I was thrilled for I only had to consume beef to feel like a revolutionary. For the first time in my life I had an opportunity to be an anti-establishment person. All I had to do was walk into a thattukada and order "porottayum beef fryum" and imagine being surrounded by millions waving red flags while bellowing "inquilab zindabad". Che Guevara and Karl Marx showered flowers on me from their respective heavens.
The world is a funny place. In a matter of decades, vegetarianism and veganism has moved from being benevolent to being oppressive. Many are now trying to convince the world that beef eating represents the culture of real India for the tribes have always consumed beef. We are told that they have been oppressed by the powerful vegetarians. You cannot wave the flag of vegetarianism proudly and you better not preach its benefits to all and sundry for you will then be considered an oppressor. As Bob Dylan has prophesied in 1964.
Such is the whimsical nature of the world as far as passions and their related movements are concerned. So how can I even act passionate about an issue I don't really care when I would be considered an idiot for having supported a trivial or harmful issue within a few years? Should I not be thankful for being a cynic and look at the noise makers with benign tolerance as they scream throats out believing they are saving the world?
Pat,pat,pat....
Tchh, tchhh, tchhh,...
For example, why can't I declare that I am a staunch supporter of secularism. I could throw some acidic statements at people who claim that something written in 20000 BC in India talked about Black holes and the General Theory of Relativity. That would be fun. But I am not even intelligent enough to hate our current Prime minister and his party. While I am surrounded by people who have no hesitation in shouting out from either sides of a microphone about the unfairness meted out by Indians (which probably includes them) on Kashmir and its people, I listen to them with disinterest. Sadly, I don't fit into the other end of the spectrum either. I am not a staunch right wing religious fanatic either. Actually, I am not even religious. I almost follow nothing that any religion recommends. I have no qualms about doing things that the religions prohibit. I make promises to God but do not keep them and when it seems that the respective God is punishing me for not having kept my promise, I look towards the sky and throw abuses at him/her. That said, I am not an atheist or satanist either. I don't go around the world announcing "God is phony". I actually love visiting temples - not all them but certain temples. So I don't fit there either.
Thus I feel I am a misfit in this society. Anytime I find myself stuck in the company of people who are passionate about some cause or the other I look at them in wonder and say "Why can't I be like him or her!" But as the discussion proceeds I invariably end up feeling "Why can't they be like me!"
Many years ago, I was having a dining table discussion with a person whom I considered a friend for three months. He thought he was expounding the value of vegetarianism. In reality he was busy abusing non-vegetarianism by talking for many minutes about the cruelty of being a non-vegetarian. I had no intention of becoming a vegetarian for I loved meat. I also loathed the saintliness projected by some of the vegetarians. This temporary friend was one of finest specimen belonging to this category. I humoured him for sometime by letting him recount the goodness of being a vegetarian before letting him know "I do not kill animals and I only eat animals that are dead. I give meaning for their death for they would continue to live through me". As stupid as that argument sounds, it was sufficient to quieten his vegetarian frenzy.
With the advent of vegans, vegetarians got a taste of how non-vegetarians felt when they preached about the cruelty of being a non-vegetarian. The vegans made the world believe that milking the cow is as cruel as killing it for through milking you are affecting the cow and its calf too. So consuming curd or paneer is as cruel as consuming meat. Ha ha ha!
Even now I feel amused when I remember that fellow who tried to convert me to a vegan! Ironically, he did not last being a vegan himself for much longer for within a few months he degraded his status by mixing ladles of curd with rice.
All this took place prior to 2014 when the party ruling the country decided to save the cows for they considered the cows to be more sacred than Gods themselves. At many places consuming meat in public was considered suicidal. It went to the extent that one had to be careful not to lick one's lips while uttering the word cow. Thus the life of the beef-lover became miserable. I was thrilled for I only had to consume beef to feel like a revolutionary. For the first time in my life I had an opportunity to be an anti-establishment person. All I had to do was walk into a thattukada and order "porottayum beef fryum" and imagine being surrounded by millions waving red flags while bellowing "inquilab zindabad". Che Guevara and Karl Marx showered flowers on me from their respective heavens.
The world is a funny place. In a matter of decades, vegetarianism and veganism has moved from being benevolent to being oppressive. Many are now trying to convince the world that beef eating represents the culture of real India for the tribes have always consumed beef. We are told that they have been oppressed by the powerful vegetarians. You cannot wave the flag of vegetarianism proudly and you better not preach its benefits to all and sundry for you will then be considered an oppressor. As Bob Dylan has prophesied in 1964.
For the loser now
Will be later to win
For the times they are a-changin'
Such is the whimsical nature of the world as far as passions and their related movements are concerned. So how can I even act passionate about an issue I don't really care when I would be considered an idiot for having supported a trivial or harmful issue within a few years? Should I not be thankful for being a cynic and look at the noise makers with benign tolerance as they scream throats out believing they are saving the world?
Pat,pat,pat....
Tchh, tchhh, tchhh,...
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