A Game Played On The Shoulders Of Terror
By Aditi Munot
03 December, 2008Countercurrents.org
The events that occurred in Bombay were disgusting.A Few men walk into our country with grenades and RDX and AK47s and dare to blow up the city. And they just don’t dare, they actually succeed in killing hundreds of innocent people and spreading terror and fear throughout the country. This is disgusting to the core.
But what’s more disgusting is the employment of this horror by the media and politicians and bureaucrats for their benefit. What’s disturbing is how they have viewed this as an opportunity to make more money and breed differences. What is distressingly unacceptable is the fact that these people are building their palaces on the grave of the common man.
The media has spun a tale out of this horrific episode. The phrases used, the tone and voice modulation, the speech and content of the reporting journalists could bring shame to any Saas-Bahu opera. The callousness displayed just deplorable. The repetition of the same footage over and over again, and attempt only to magnify the fear and anger felt. The same Breaking News for hours together. All that these channels really care for is their TRP rating. The display of those gory details repeatedly was gruesome and it’s a shame the media chose to gain popularity and make money out of this tragic incident. And to top it all….. the media plays the terrorist’s best friend….. ensuring the terrorists have up to date and detailed information of the actions being taken by the NSG, Commandos and Police to fluster this attempt. All the media has really done is exploit the lives and emotions of the common man.
What different have our politicians done? The leaders of our country…. They have been nothing but opportunistic. Pointing fingers at each other, playing the blame game, making sensational statements and announcing monetary compensation for the deceased. What is a Narendra Modi trying to achieve? To use this situation to push forth one’s political agenda is an act of absolute shame. The resignation of Shivraj Patil….. an attempt to curb the criticism of the opposition. All these politicians don’t give a damn about the common man. It is all about making the most of any crisis for their personal benefit. If this crisis could not unite these people, nothing ever will. If this event could not anger them enough to come together as one for the nation, nothing ever will.
But the common man is no different. He has not come together and said ‘no more’. The common man has the strength to bring the nation to a halt and say ‘we will not allow this, enough is enough’. But instead he has chosen to get back to life as usual, business as usual. He has chosen to blame an easy target and get away. He has strengthened his views against the Muslims – they should not be allowed to live here, all terrorists are Muslims, go blow up Pakistan, this is a Hindu land and so on. The average Indian has refused to see through the game. It’s a few fanatics- Hindu or Muslim and a handful powerful and rich – Hindu or Muslim, doing all this, benefiting from all this.
Its time to see through this farce. Its time to seek real answers. Its time the politicians stop hurling dirt at each other and start thinking about us. Its time the media aid us instead of making fun of us.
03 December, 2008Countercurrents.org
The events that occurred in Bombay were disgusting.A Few men walk into our country with grenades and RDX and AK47s and dare to blow up the city. And they just don’t dare, they actually succeed in killing hundreds of innocent people and spreading terror and fear throughout the country. This is disgusting to the core.
But what’s more disgusting is the employment of this horror by the media and politicians and bureaucrats for their benefit. What’s disturbing is how they have viewed this as an opportunity to make more money and breed differences. What is distressingly unacceptable is the fact that these people are building their palaces on the grave of the common man.
The media has spun a tale out of this horrific episode. The phrases used, the tone and voice modulation, the speech and content of the reporting journalists could bring shame to any Saas-Bahu opera. The callousness displayed just deplorable. The repetition of the same footage over and over again, and attempt only to magnify the fear and anger felt. The same Breaking News for hours together. All that these channels really care for is their TRP rating. The display of those gory details repeatedly was gruesome and it’s a shame the media chose to gain popularity and make money out of this tragic incident. And to top it all….. the media plays the terrorist’s best friend….. ensuring the terrorists have up to date and detailed information of the actions being taken by the NSG, Commandos and Police to fluster this attempt. All the media has really done is exploit the lives and emotions of the common man.
What different have our politicians done? The leaders of our country…. They have been nothing but opportunistic. Pointing fingers at each other, playing the blame game, making sensational statements and announcing monetary compensation for the deceased. What is a Narendra Modi trying to achieve? To use this situation to push forth one’s political agenda is an act of absolute shame. The resignation of Shivraj Patil….. an attempt to curb the criticism of the opposition. All these politicians don’t give a damn about the common man. It is all about making the most of any crisis for their personal benefit. If this crisis could not unite these people, nothing ever will. If this event could not anger them enough to come together as one for the nation, nothing ever will.
But the common man is no different. He has not come together and said ‘no more’. The common man has the strength to bring the nation to a halt and say ‘we will not allow this, enough is enough’. But instead he has chosen to get back to life as usual, business as usual. He has chosen to blame an easy target and get away. He has strengthened his views against the Muslims – they should not be allowed to live here, all terrorists are Muslims, go blow up Pakistan, this is a Hindu land and so on. The average Indian has refused to see through the game. It’s a few fanatics- Hindu or Muslim and a handful powerful and rich – Hindu or Muslim, doing all this, benefiting from all this.
Its time to see through this farce. Its time to seek real answers. Its time the politicians stop hurling dirt at each other and start thinking about us. Its time the media aid us instead of making fun of us.
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