Enough Is Enough

" Ours is essentially a tragic age ". When D H Lawrence began his controversial novel in such a direct fashion, a modern reader could hardly associate with the modernist lament of the early 20th century. The applicability of this specific phrase, in such a typifying manner today, strikes me as ominous - to say the least. The entire country is in anguish, and it is pent up anger and frustration within us that is manifesting itself in the forms of innocuous articles.

What has happened in Mumbai, has not left us short of words -- we always have words : curses hurled at politicians - pseudo governors of this 'great democracy', limitless ponderings by the media, and ordinary citizens such as myself. While everyone continues to give mumbai a pat on the back for 'bouncing back', -- many of us wonder, till when will we continue to fool ourselves into believing that we are having the last laugh over our enemies? Till when shall we continue on the basis of this hypothetical cushion we call 'spirit'? The inevitability of livelihood dictates that we cannot sit on our behinds as a response to repetitive carnage. I have lost count of the number of times the news have carried such headlines of killings, bloodshed and blasts. I wont be surprised, if a couple of years down the line we have a column in every national daily (in that vacant space between the international and the sports pages) titled 'Blasts Today'. Certainly ! unless something is done about this. Which brings us to another key strength of our country's. Our secularity and our Democracy. The very democracy where rival parties cant wait for incidents like these to point out the inability of the rulers to govern. The very same democracy in which X, who is in charge of the coutry's finance is asked to go and take charge of internal security while Y will come and replace him, just because Z resigned his responsibilities - as an attempt to apologize for what transpired.
Of course, some variables in between are too busy checking out the Taj Hotel with directors and actors -- heres hoping that 'Another Wednesday' fares just as well. How much effort would it require, for the Manmohan's and the Advani's to stop their defence-attack game for one second - and to show the nation a common, unified face of leadership - putting aside for once their political barriers in the face of such a national calamity? The helplessness suffocates me.

The question remains - what can be done about this ? At all costs, the first thing the government of India should do is take matters into its own hands. Lots of people tell me Pakistan is not to blame. It is as much a victim as India... and what not. The point remains that as long as we have militant training camps where these creatures (for want of better word) are bred and trained - there can never be an end to this. Fact remains that only the Pakistani government has judicial and military authority in the region and therefore it is imperative that they act. Inaction, leaves them as guilty of terrorism as these organizations themselves. If they do not have the will or means to do so, then please let our government do it for the betterment of this world.
Today, technology has developed to the extent that a handful of people can tear through the heart of this nation at their whims.One cannot stress enough, the importance of inculcating religious tolerance in the generations to come. What kind of convoluted logic can we apply to people like Azam Kasav - who believes he has earned his ticket to 'jannat' by doing what he did. The ugly face of 'religious terrorism' (the oxymoronic status of this phrase almost amuses me) is burning the very fabric with which this nation was first knit together.
The intelligence failiure in the wake of these terror attacks is appalling to say the least. If a tenth of what is reported is to be believed, Indian authorities had been warned of possible sea entry into mumbai by LeT terrorists in Novermber; of smuggling of weaponry into the city and that 'The Oberoi Trident' and 'The Taj' were primary targets. Add to this the extraordinary delay in assessment of the situation leading to wastage, literal wastage of priceless lives.

One cannot be grateful enough for our defense forces, the NSG commandos and everyone from top to bottom who risked their lives so that our country could be a bit safer.

I believe that our role as the youth of today is of paramount importance. It is we who govern what the generations to come shall be. A shift in position from that of cynic to an active participant in governance is warranted. Let us teach them, though channeling of this multitude of thoughts - the way to govern a nation.

As I was following the American elections - I couldn't help but appreciate the transparency involved. The extremely open debates between the presidential candidates on their stands on economy, defense, foreign affairs and internal governance was invigorating to say the least. And what we have a here is a complete mockery of democracy. We elect someone without knowing who will be chosen to lead the nation (not to mention gallant last moment stepping-downs and handing over the reigns to a shocked economist). Inevitably, a coalition is formed (the trade of party seats being no better than prostitution) and we have people up there playing a tug of war, swaying left and right.

The incoherent blabbering that I have indulged in was spontaneous, but this incident has left a scar, and all of us are watching in wait - for action, for action , for action.