Turning on the TV expecting a quietly routine, extremely mundane news bulleting peppered with dollops of scoops abt the Abhiash wedding... I was shattered. Some bizzare pyscho had gone on a rampage killing scores of students and injuring a multitude of others at V Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia. The very news flash sent a chill down my spine. This couldnt be real is the only thing my brain was registering and evrything else was numbed.
Suddenly, every other proceeding seemed unnecessary. The first thought swerved to my friends studying there and praying tht they be alright. The very next moment I was gripped by this huge catastrophic feeling.. At a slightly different time (circa 2002) and maybe a lil different place (Gainesville) and that bullet could have been for me.
Is my life that cheap... anyone can walk in and shoot me cold? Is anyone's life that meaningless? What are we achieving with advances in science and technology if we give equal access to thugs and criminals? Is this progress good then? Was this a one-off, randomised case of pyschotic behavior prevading society or have we turned the clock on humanity?
The more I thought of it.. the more shattering the answers were. I felt this was just one of the terrible manifestations of convulted value streams we are drawing upon. The reflections are there everywhere... Only when they leave an impression do we consider that the sanctimony to be shattered.
I see road rage daily... everyday the drivers veer off showing their strength and supremacy while alluding to knock anyone and evryone in their way; But it gets highlighted only when a super rich brat tramples innocent roadside dwellers. Violence is encouraged heartily through video games and wrestling entertainment; but it makes dreadful reading only when students procure guns and go on a rampage. Rock and hard rock is celebrated till a Kurt Kobain dies only to be enshrined for all he meant; drugs and death.
We abuse evry freaking right we have been mandated to exercise only to shoot the gun over someone else shoulders saying " Him and not me is breaking the limits".. not realising we are pushing ourseleves to a collective pitfall.. Every one is gonna fall; if not today then some day for sure...
Sad is the fact that by the end of the shooting 33 innocents were dead, sadder is the part that we would just move on with lives taking this to be a blip on the Human advancement radar but saddest is the part that not many of us would introspect to find the deadly creature growing in each of us in this jingo-heavy value-less world...
Rejoice we would that thankfully, it wasnt us.... Repent we should that this wasnt the last.....
And some day.. It could be you or me......
3 comments:
Dear shreyas,
let me tell u,this blog of urs almost moisted my eyes.brother u hav poured ur heart here.it seems u r really moved by it,it has kind of purturbed u a lot.even in orkut i read ur postings.But some whr down the line u cant blame tht guy .wt was in his mind tht moment who knows.wt propelled him to kill so many lives and shatter families ..not known.but yes this incident will wander in memories & of people for a long time to come.
it will haunt the families who hav lost their dear ones.This bloddy wound wont easily heal and may the lost lives rest in peace.
rgds
Vishu-pavin
shreyas, no matter how disgusted and disheartened u n me are, whoz gonna answer all your questions?
yes, none of us deserve this kind of death under unnatural circumstances, but at the same time, we constantly live under the glare of insecurity....today, v sat up and started protesting abt the massacre because it happening in V Tech. but lets not forget our very own India or even ....there is Nithari..there is Kashmir...and yes, v can only sympathise and sympathise or who knows n godforbid if tomotrrow v hav unnatural death, the rest of the world will only sympathise!
no matter how much it is painful or beyond our imaginations....wait for few more years or months or days.....yet another tragedy will hanunt ur soul!
Well, my thoughts are somewhat off track, but I do think they carry some relevance here..
Its amazing really to see how our country reacts to global calamities. Esp a city like Mumbai which is remarkably self-indulged and likes to rest on its ability to "move on" ...Socialite Mumbai raised its brow (the one that was neatly botoxed) and wondered how to deal with this "Virginia-tech thing"..The big question that floated was what to do to sound our political best..cancel our page 3 parties? scale down? Call off?
But these sort of things fool nobody..They are ways to papmer your own conscience. Instead let's quietly accept the fact that there are people who genuinely do not feel anything bout distant disasters..and don't pass judgements.There are those who'll drive past accident victims silently and others who'll get down and lend a hand in equal silence without any fuss..Its your choice..
Besides has any one of us stopped eating? Partying? going to malls and multiplexes? Life goes on..That's the tragedy and beauty of this city..
The Virginia incident would never be forgotten..How can anyone wipe off the images of some psycho charging at innocent, unsuspecting youths? That it destroyed young blood is one thing. That it destroyed and wrecked our complacency and took away our peace is what we will have to live with..
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