A Paranoid World, A Paranoid me
Today (10-OCT-2006), as I sat at my table to read 'The Hindu', two articles grabbed my attention. One, an editorial titled "The end of 'non-proliferation'" on page 10 and the other, an OP-ED article titled "The Paranoid Style" on page 11 of the newspaper. Something struck me after the reading. From what I read from the OP-ED article by Paul Kruggman and what I related from that to the editorial, there was something so interrelated between the two. And that interrelation set me thinking and my thoughts pointed towards the paranoia that has gripped the world.
The definitions of the noun, paranoia are varied. One definition goes like-"A psychotic disorder characterized by delusions of persecution with or without grandeur, often strenuously defended with apparent logic and reason" and one another goes like-"Extreme, irrational distrust of others". These definitions aptly point towards the current state of affairs in the world and the aforementioned editorial and op-ed provide rich arc typical examples on how the paranoia of some people, groups or nations have held humanity to ransom.
North Korea went Nuclear on 09-OCT-2006. This has enraged the whole world and more importantly the Americans. America now finds itself being pushed aside by a small dictatorial junta run by a maverick General, Kim Jong Il. Though this came on expected lines-with the North Koreans opting out of NPT way back in early 2005 and having declared their intentions to detonate a nuclear device a few months back, the Americans and even the Chinese, the closest ally of North Korea, were caught off guard. The Americans with all their might have not been able to influence the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and other UN nations to help curb North Korea-a member of "the axis of evil", as declared by President George W Bush. The editorial lamented on what the Americans are to or could do to diffuse the situation- with an emphasis that the Americans should take recourse to diplomacy. Even so, can we expect the Americans to mete out a treatment to North Korea on the same lines of its treatment to Iran, Iraq or Afghanistan? The answer is not that hard to come by and my guess could be as good as anybody else’s.
The Americans have been paranoid of the entire world- believing that the entire world is out to destroy them and their country. To exaggerate things, the Americans are being led by a Paranoid right wing leadership that denies vehemently its failure on issues concerning Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, according to the OP-ED article, the right wingers have said they have been victorious in all those countries and blamed their opposing party in politics and the counter-right wing media of having demoralized them in their efforts to "rebuild" countries which have been gripped by "ignominy and tyranny". On a similar line, Kim Jong Il is paranoid too. He claims that having got the nuclear capability his country is going to see a renewed phase of security, prosperity and peace, both for North Korea (DPRK) and for its estranged neighbors (Japan and South Korea). Now for a country where the vast majority of its people die of hunger and starvation, and a country where the flora and fauna have come to the brink of extinction because the desperate masses of that nation have consumed them all, security, prosperity and peace would be as elusive with nuclear weapons, as without them.
Let’s move on to the paranoia of a different kind now, seen today in our immediate society. It’s about the capital punishment and more so about the Presidential clemency plea of Mohammad Afsal. We have one section of the society that wants the Capital Punishment to be retained and enforced on Mohammad Afsal and other section of the society that’s opposed to it. We have the majority, the non-intelligentsia that wants India to avenge its pain through an act, which they say will deter terrorists of the future, and the other minority, the so called intelligentsia, which asks for the abolishment of a very abhor able, medieval practice. Each group is paranoid in its own way. The first, paranoid with the feeling that anything short of death sentence to Mohammad Afsal will send further signals of India being a soft state, which can be bled by anyone, whenever they wish. The second, for the simple fact that it feels that any stance taken contrary to the mainstream view portrays them as 'intelligent'.
One more instance where we find people and groups of people being paranoid is in the field of fourth-estate and the new news through modern TV broadcasting. The media is paranoid about stories- stories which are to be commoditized and sensationalized and fed to the masses, who are equally paranoid with their own colossal appetite for Breaking, ‘Live' news. We see news anchors to the likes of Rajdeep Sardesai, Barkha Dutt, Arnob Ghoswami etc., shout at the top of their voices, all with an intention to retain the fickle attention of the TV viewing public; the main idea being to prevent the public from switching to a different channel and lest the channel loose their valuable TRP ratings. The public on the other hand has come to see news as products that need to be served to them on a platter with all the “rightful frills” and if they are not served with such frills they believe they have the privilege of using the new cliché, “TV viewer is the king”, to their own advantage.
These and other examples in abound, make me ask a few questions to myself and others around me. Where are we heading as individuals, groups, societies and nations? Can we make it back to the sphere of sanity before it’s too late to return from insanity? Are we going to let a few handful of powerful and some sinister people mould our outlook towards both the trivial and the important as per their whims and fancies or are we going to stand up and be counted for individual choices and opinions? And above all, I ask to myself, am I going paranoid about the world’s paranoia?
Today (10-OCT-2006), as I sat at my table to read 'The Hindu', two articles grabbed my attention. One, an editorial titled "The end of 'non-proliferation'" on page 10 and the other, an OP-ED article titled "The Paranoid Style" on page 11 of the newspaper. Something struck me after the reading. From what I read from the OP-ED article by Paul Kruggman and what I related from that to the editorial, there was something so interrelated between the two. And that interrelation set me thinking and my thoughts pointed towards the paranoia that has gripped the world.
The definitions of the noun, paranoia are varied. One definition goes like-"A psychotic disorder characterized by delusions of persecution with or without grandeur, often strenuously defended with apparent logic and reason" and one another goes like-"Extreme, irrational distrust of others". These definitions aptly point towards the current state of affairs in the world and the aforementioned editorial and op-ed provide rich arc typical examples on how the paranoia of some people, groups or nations have held humanity to ransom.
North Korea went Nuclear on 09-OCT-2006. This has enraged the whole world and more importantly the Americans. America now finds itself being pushed aside by a small dictatorial junta run by a maverick General, Kim Jong Il. Though this came on expected lines-with the North Koreans opting out of NPT way back in early 2005 and having declared their intentions to detonate a nuclear device a few months back, the Americans and even the Chinese, the closest ally of North Korea, were caught off guard. The Americans with all their might have not been able to influence the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and other UN nations to help curb North Korea-a member of "the axis of evil", as declared by President George W Bush. The editorial lamented on what the Americans are to or could do to diffuse the situation- with an emphasis that the Americans should take recourse to diplomacy. Even so, can we expect the Americans to mete out a treatment to North Korea on the same lines of its treatment to Iran, Iraq or Afghanistan? The answer is not that hard to come by and my guess could be as good as anybody else’s.
The Americans have been paranoid of the entire world- believing that the entire world is out to destroy them and their country. To exaggerate things, the Americans are being led by a Paranoid right wing leadership that denies vehemently its failure on issues concerning Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, according to the OP-ED article, the right wingers have said they have been victorious in all those countries and blamed their opposing party in politics and the counter-right wing media of having demoralized them in their efforts to "rebuild" countries which have been gripped by "ignominy and tyranny". On a similar line, Kim Jong Il is paranoid too. He claims that having got the nuclear capability his country is going to see a renewed phase of security, prosperity and peace, both for North Korea (DPRK) and for its estranged neighbors (Japan and South Korea). Now for a country where the vast majority of its people die of hunger and starvation, and a country where the flora and fauna have come to the brink of extinction because the desperate masses of that nation have consumed them all, security, prosperity and peace would be as elusive with nuclear weapons, as without them.
Let’s move on to the paranoia of a different kind now, seen today in our immediate society. It’s about the capital punishment and more so about the Presidential clemency plea of Mohammad Afsal. We have one section of the society that wants the Capital Punishment to be retained and enforced on Mohammad Afsal and other section of the society that’s opposed to it. We have the majority, the non-intelligentsia that wants India to avenge its pain through an act, which they say will deter terrorists of the future, and the other minority, the so called intelligentsia, which asks for the abolishment of a very abhor able, medieval practice. Each group is paranoid in its own way. The first, paranoid with the feeling that anything short of death sentence to Mohammad Afsal will send further signals of India being a soft state, which can be bled by anyone, whenever they wish. The second, for the simple fact that it feels that any stance taken contrary to the mainstream view portrays them as 'intelligent'.
One more instance where we find people and groups of people being paranoid is in the field of fourth-estate and the new news through modern TV broadcasting. The media is paranoid about stories- stories which are to be commoditized and sensationalized and fed to the masses, who are equally paranoid with their own colossal appetite for Breaking, ‘Live' news. We see news anchors to the likes of Rajdeep Sardesai, Barkha Dutt, Arnob Ghoswami etc., shout at the top of their voices, all with an intention to retain the fickle attention of the TV viewing public; the main idea being to prevent the public from switching to a different channel and lest the channel loose their valuable TRP ratings. The public on the other hand has come to see news as products that need to be served to them on a platter with all the “rightful frills” and if they are not served with such frills they believe they have the privilege of using the new cliché, “TV viewer is the king”, to their own advantage.
These and other examples in abound, make me ask a few questions to myself and others around me. Where are we heading as individuals, groups, societies and nations? Can we make it back to the sphere of sanity before it’s too late to return from insanity? Are we going to let a few handful of powerful and some sinister people mould our outlook towards both the trivial and the important as per their whims and fancies or are we going to stand up and be counted for individual choices and opinions? And above all, I ask to myself, am I going paranoid about the world’s paranoia?
posted by Akhilesh @ 9:37 PM
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