Election Day Musings

I live in Mumbai and today, Mumbai will vote. While I am on my way to work, without excercising my right, I wonder what calls for all the enthusiasm this time around.

Is it the nonsensical and devisive rhetoric of the Thackeray who so desperately needs the Raj? Or is the corrupt to the core Pawar who does not even pretend to be of any use to anyone except his bankers? Maybe, it’s the party that still lives in the shadows of the Gandhi and has total lack of either ideas or intent to frame policies, whether good or bad. Or maybe, the ‘strong leader’ who was instrumental in demolition of the Babri Masjid, on the way a huge blood bath and then the Gujarat carnage. Whatever it is, I just don’t get the logic of this excitement or pleasure of voting.

The fact that I did not vote will raise many an eyebrows, but my plain and simple answer is – vote for what? Excercise your rights, pat comes the reply. My answer remains the same – For what?

A right to choose is only as good as the choices available. When all the choice I have is to either choose institutionalized corruption or communalism, I would rather not get my hands dirty. Sometimes, abstinence helps. It prevents the blot on your finger.

The Keats Shelly Memorial

The Keats Shelly Memorial, originally uploaded by bookcrazyword.

It is definitely not a ‘dont-miss-it’ sight seeing oppurtunity in Rome, but for anyone interested in literature, it is worth a visit. Actually, I ended up spending most of my Euros here than the rest of the trip. I picked up 3 mugs of 8.5 Euros each with Blake’s and Keat’s poems on it.

My Bible in Italy

What should we do next? Sumit trying to discover, originally uploaded by bookcrazyword.

I was told by many tht  Lonely Planet is an essential for any traveller truly interested in exploring an unknown land. I certify after my trip to Rome, Venice, and Florence that it stands to its reputation. It was the next most important thing to the Passport for us.

Majestic Hornbill

h, originally uploaded by bookcrazyword.

You got to see her to believe it. When I was first taken to this beautiful Hornbill’s large cage at Auroville, I was dazzled to say the least. She is huge for a bird and has an amazingly strong and long beak. Also, she can move its neck 360 degrees. I have had the most fun shooting her and every time I clicked, she danced around and showcased its capabilities. Birds can be lonely too. Go visit Auroville, even if its just for this one experience.

Why am I not a Politician?

Not that I could be a better one than the Thackearys or Mr. Laloo Prasad Yadav, but I often think why I deprived this nation of the best leader it could ever have. Well, the reason is initially I was inclined not to. But, somewhere down the line, I just started understanding too much. And with understanding, I started seeing too far and too clearly (at least enough to contemplate on this question).

I could, with all the understanding and vision that I had achieved, see it clearly that in the long run I was bound not to succeed. Actually the logic is simple. I read Ibsen and agreed completely when he said that the majority is always wrong and the minority is always right. Now, to be the next Saviour of all my people, I had two choices – either to succeed by being wrong or fail by being right. Wrong I never am, so the first choice got eliminated. Losing no one likes, so the second choice eliminated.

Then it made me think, “Which profession allows me to be as ruthless and yet not fail for being right?”. And guess what, I became a lawyer. Today I charge people to tell them that they might lose. Then charge to fight the lost battle. And then, charge even more, to add comedy to injury, in the name of appeal. My only regret – I want to charge to write this. Damn it! Now that you are not paying, here I end.

Mind-Prints

Handprints, originally uploaded by teldow.

COGITO, ERGO SUM

I think, therefore I am

When Will I Read This?

and time, it marches ever on, originally uploaded by morning breath.

What a picture! The clock is ticking. And I have still not attempted seriously to read this book. I bought Sartre’s Being and Nothingness around 6 months back but have yet not managed beyond the first few pages. This is definitely one of the books I want to read. But, when will I read this?

WHY?

WHY?, originally uploaded by crayon paper.

I just love the surrealism here, as if a symbolism of the very word WHY, which more often than not floats in our minds in one context or the other

Existentialism

Existentialism, originally uploaded by somewherein72.

I have been reading a lot of existentialism and found this on Flickr. It is a very well done image. However, to be fair to the philosophy, I would have preferred Love, Living, and Being to be bigger in size than Meaninglessness, Negative Impulse, and Society

Albert Camus

Albert Camus, originally uploaded by stuartliroff.

I consider him ‘the absurd hero’. Through his theory of absurd, he has given us one of the most practical ways of living life meaningfully. Paradoxical as it may sound, he starts with asserting life has no meaning. For more from me on him visit Albert Camus – The Absurd Hero