Right,Righter,Rightest
Thurmugi seems to be the year of the right. Both from a political standpoint and also from a literal sense. We see the rise of right across the globe, with some even managing to win the coveted House post on the far side of the planet. Never before has the world nations been so united in being discorded for similar reasons. Nationalism and Patriotism are tested and verified as many times, if not more than, blood sugar and cholesterol and this is a common phenomenon world over. Powers to be and incumbent power centers, both drive their people away from their home in the game of one-uppance and civil wars, on who is more right in catering to their scattering masses. Insane statements by people in power are taken at face value and in deeper sense and are fought against and for on the streets. Right has never been so wrong and right at the same time. Opinions are never debated but are fought over and aren't at rest till the opposition is grounded to dust. There are more character assassinations that take place on social media on a daily basis, than all the politically motivated cold war and world wars put together. People don't think twice before idolizing or demonizing any one or anything. What was considered as viral for one or two stray incidents have become everyday occurrences, thanks to the tightly bind of the world wide web. No one is willing to concede on any point for its the concept of "my right is more right than your right" if at all if its right!!!
India, like Trantor of Foundation series, has always been the country which can be considered as the best sample set to represent world nations across all categories, as any change or event that happens in India has resonance and possible replications world over. And its not just because of its size and population, its also due to the innate nature of our politicos to ape everything under the western sun. Some posts back, I had rambled about, how we should be a presidential form of govt and what I would do if I became the president. With the current PM, who makes sure his imprint is there on every single major decision, be it internal or external affairs, seems like we are already onto the presidential mode of governance ala USA. Every single opposition labels this govt as Modi’s govt and rarely by the party in rule. Every single criticism is directed at the PM at a personal level and not at the government. For a person, who has the pulse of the nation at his fingertips in Twitter, he has reaped the rewards of a 5 year term and has managed to secure hordes of followers who defend his decisions as their own. Ditto for Trump. Both Modi and Trump have viewpoints that are 360 degree different than their opponents. While Modi’s has found favor with voice of reason and hope of a better future supporting it, Trump might still have to win over with his actions and their consequences once he takes office. Between the two of them, they’ve the biggest and probably the youngest populace of supporters, who trust their destiny on their decisions. Both of them have a Schrodinger-ish approach towards their policies which are neither here nor there and cannot be written off or considered successful. If at all the phrase “re-writing history“ applies to anybody these two would be the chosen ones or should I say chosen two’s??!!
Their path to success and their supporters goes on to show what happens when politics apes movie dom. We’ve seen the rise of actors donning the white cap and encash their popularity into votes. What we are witnessing now is the reverse trend with politicos tapping in on their inner actors and fan base into securing their parliament seats. Ditto for anyone who shoots for their claim to fame. Be it a budding author to sportsperson to media personality, anyone who wishes to carve a space in public domain, never had it so easy. The more controversial and blatant they are, the quicker is their claim to fame. With fan bases quickly turning into battle ready battalions, arguments have taken over meaningful debates with mockery and cynicism replacing constructive alternate viewpoints, which are condescending at best.
Are these good signs? May be yes and may not be so as well. On one hand we feel its an overkill of expression with the rise of keyboard warriors, while on the other hand the power-to-be ‘s have one more medium to monitor and crush any “dissent”. We are moving more and more towards a feudal mode of a system and governance and implicitly monarchy has been accepted as the way political systems behave, with every party having its own dynasties vying for the iron throne. There is a popular saying that a war doesn’t determine who is right but who is left. Will that be the fallacy of our lifetime with the rightest of rights determine what is the right right? As Enya croons, “Only time” will tell.
India, like Trantor of Foundation series, has always been the country which can be considered as the best sample set to represent world nations across all categories, as any change or event that happens in India has resonance and possible replications world over. And its not just because of its size and population, its also due to the innate nature of our politicos to ape everything under the western sun. Some posts back, I had rambled about, how we should be a presidential form of govt and what I would do if I became the president. With the current PM, who makes sure his imprint is there on every single major decision, be it internal or external affairs, seems like we are already onto the presidential mode of governance ala USA. Every single opposition labels this govt as Modi’s govt and rarely by the party in rule. Every single criticism is directed at the PM at a personal level and not at the government. For a person, who has the pulse of the nation at his fingertips in Twitter, he has reaped the rewards of a 5 year term and has managed to secure hordes of followers who defend his decisions as their own. Ditto for Trump. Both Modi and Trump have viewpoints that are 360 degree different than their opponents. While Modi’s has found favor with voice of reason and hope of a better future supporting it, Trump might still have to win over with his actions and their consequences once he takes office. Between the two of them, they’ve the biggest and probably the youngest populace of supporters, who trust their destiny on their decisions. Both of them have a Schrodinger-ish approach towards their policies which are neither here nor there and cannot be written off or considered successful. If at all the phrase “re-writing history“ applies to anybody these two would be the chosen ones or should I say chosen two’s??!!
Their path to success and their supporters goes on to show what happens when politics apes movie dom. We’ve seen the rise of actors donning the white cap and encash their popularity into votes. What we are witnessing now is the reverse trend with politicos tapping in on their inner actors and fan base into securing their parliament seats. Ditto for anyone who shoots for their claim to fame. Be it a budding author to sportsperson to media personality, anyone who wishes to carve a space in public domain, never had it so easy. The more controversial and blatant they are, the quicker is their claim to fame. With fan bases quickly turning into battle ready battalions, arguments have taken over meaningful debates with mockery and cynicism replacing constructive alternate viewpoints, which are condescending at best.
Are these good signs? May be yes and may not be so as well. On one hand we feel its an overkill of expression with the rise of keyboard warriors, while on the other hand the power-to-be ‘s have one more medium to monitor and crush any “dissent”. We are moving more and more towards a feudal mode of a system and governance and implicitly monarchy has been accepted as the way political systems behave, with every party having its own dynasties vying for the iron throne. There is a popular saying that a war doesn’t determine who is right but who is left. Will that be the fallacy of our lifetime with the rightest of rights determine what is the right right? As Enya croons, “Only time” will tell.
Comments
In any case, he is not right at all. In fact he is not anything - just whatever catches his fancy at that instant.