Ownership, Responsibility, Commitment - call it whatever - the term suits the particular day and time and place but the theme remains the same. We are all responsible for something or the other. Every body alive has the responsibility to sustain the body that gives the thought and soul a form. Everyone has or tries to form bonds with other human beings. Bonds to which we have to inherently commit - even if not to a person but to the thought of forming a bond ( psychopaths excluded). Everyone has some task to perform even if it is breathing. Something for which we have to take an ownership. I am not sure if many of you would agree with me but through the few sentences I have written in this post till now I was just trying to ascertain as to how none of us can escape from these big words and how we exhibit this through some small but very important actions.
Now that I have tried to establish that, let me get down to what I do best - rant. When every body knows these themes, why do they not inculcate it in their everyday activities? Oh yeah, here I go again answering the question I myself posed - because they don't give a damn. I see my maid not bothering to lock the back door she opens, I see a watchman not asking a random stranger who the hell he is, I see a cop not doing anything about a guy jumping a red signal, I see people every damn day not acknowledging their responsibilities let alone attempting to execute them. I am not perfect and I don't say this in a self righteous tone where I want to show I am super human but attempt to show I am human but I say this in a simple real tone- 'I make mistakes' but I always try when I know the mistake (of course!) to take responsibility for it. There are times I refuse to acknowledge it and somehow the instances where I take up the moral responsibility and the instances where individuals seem to ignore that completely are just not matching up.
When faced with a dilemma, I often want to go ahead and do the task myself but I am not here to save the world. So how do I go about this? How do I retain my sanity while not losing it? The 'it' in case being my temper or my patience or my happiness. How do I balance it when I have to interact with those who are irresponsible and don't care about things which matter? Or am I being too righteous by dictating what should matter in the first place? Am I causing imbalance where there is balance by expecting responsibility or am I attempting to create a balance by expecting it? Do I have the right to expect it or am I expecting it because that's what the norms say I should expect?
I really don't know and I really am thinking about this for some more time. If I want freedom then with that freedom comes the basic right that everyone has to choose what they want to do and that since there would be conflict, there would be a law and that law by virtue of its existence would curb the freedom. Whether its the freedom of a select few or of the multitude, it does curb it with the hope of sustaining the created life and the harmony in the society. Should I be comparing the responsibility with a law for controlling a freedom to achieve a great good or should I be comparing it with a ban for preventing the freedom for selfish means? When I get down to it selfishness works for the self while selflessness works for those around. Also, freedom in an ideal world is where like minded people strive to create harmony where the laws are not even needed because the ethics are more than enough. Am I expecting the ethical ideal which can become the social norm? I know not.
Thursday, May 09, 2013
Thoughts from a safe house on a rainy night
In my recent book reviewing frenzy, I haven't written general gyan in a while. Bangalore had amazing showers today and I loved listening to it for the few minutes I had. The days have been pretty hot and I had been looking forward to the rain often while buying something nice to drink in the afternoons. I felt so peaceful until I realised that the clothes I had put out to dry were still up there in the terrace and i couldn't take them. It's all dripping wet. In a few seconds the peace disappeared and here I was upset that the much longed for rain wet the clothes that would dry anyway and got water into a room (whose source I am yet to ascertain). I was anxious and my inner watchman was surprised - again. Getting what I wanted was not making me happy - again.
How do you continue to remain in a state of contentment? Is it by giving up your attachments as a few books recommend? Then, how can I call something contentment if I don't know anything else? It is called changelessness. Is changelessness then the best state? Uniform predictable weather with no sudden downpours, uniform traffic flow with no dead animals or accidents, uniform work load with no sudden dead lines, uniform conversations with no emotional drama, uniform relationships with no expectations. Is that what I should aspire for? The longer I think the more I realise that unless things remain static, the things you want cannot give you happiness for long periods of time and unless things remain predictable, you cannot effectively plan. I can aspire to reach from state a to state b and state a and b should not change. Only my movement should happen. But then, isn't my movement itself causing a change to both the states? Assuming someone else wanted a or if a disappears or that b was a state created to accommodate me, i can be happy and say that this static and predictable universe is what I strive for. Where I continue to experience change. Hilarious.
And here is the catch - things can never remain static and nothing is predictable. So what's going to happen to my pursuit of happiness? Is it always going to be a pursuit? I remember writing about it a while ago and I wonder how this recurring theme in my life is going to converge or how my internal watchman is going to come to a conclusion and when. Progress cannot happen unless we keep moving and unless we are pushed out of our comfort zones we seldom move. So is all this change in aid of progress? What is the progress for then? What does it achieve? Evolution couldn't have happened without discomfort but at the end of the day, what's the point of evolution? It produced you, me, the geniuses who make blogging possible of course but when the world ends a few hundred years later, would anything have mattered? When I breathe my last a few decades later would all these questions have got answers? Why the mad rush? Are we just responding to the urge of our selfish genes?
I love life and so would every live human being or insect or animal. Every damn thing would have a sub conscious affection for the very thing causing us to have those feelings. So maybe the whole point of all this is the pointlessness of it in the long run to the universe and the importance of it in the short run to the tiny population which is observing the particular life, action, or whatever you choose to call it. Maybe
How do you continue to remain in a state of contentment? Is it by giving up your attachments as a few books recommend? Then, how can I call something contentment if I don't know anything else? It is called changelessness. Is changelessness then the best state? Uniform predictable weather with no sudden downpours, uniform traffic flow with no dead animals or accidents, uniform work load with no sudden dead lines, uniform conversations with no emotional drama, uniform relationships with no expectations. Is that what I should aspire for? The longer I think the more I realise that unless things remain static, the things you want cannot give you happiness for long periods of time and unless things remain predictable, you cannot effectively plan. I can aspire to reach from state a to state b and state a and b should not change. Only my movement should happen. But then, isn't my movement itself causing a change to both the states? Assuming someone else wanted a or if a disappears or that b was a state created to accommodate me, i can be happy and say that this static and predictable universe is what I strive for. Where I continue to experience change. Hilarious.
And here is the catch - things can never remain static and nothing is predictable. So what's going to happen to my pursuit of happiness? Is it always going to be a pursuit? I remember writing about it a while ago and I wonder how this recurring theme in my life is going to converge or how my internal watchman is going to come to a conclusion and when. Progress cannot happen unless we keep moving and unless we are pushed out of our comfort zones we seldom move. So is all this change in aid of progress? What is the progress for then? What does it achieve? Evolution couldn't have happened without discomfort but at the end of the day, what's the point of evolution? It produced you, me, the geniuses who make blogging possible of course but when the world ends a few hundred years later, would anything have mattered? When I breathe my last a few decades later would all these questions have got answers? Why the mad rush? Are we just responding to the urge of our selfish genes?
I love life and so would every live human being or insect or animal. Every damn thing would have a sub conscious affection for the very thing causing us to have those feelings. So maybe the whole point of all this is the pointlessness of it in the long run to the universe and the importance of it in the short run to the tiny population which is observing the particular life, action, or whatever you choose to call it. Maybe
Thursday, May 02, 2013
Iron man 3 - he does it : again
He is smart, has oodles of charisma, is rich, has awesome toys that can fly around with him and oh yes, he can single handedly outwit powerful enemies and save the world - again. Of course I am talking about iron man in the most recent edition iron man 3.
The plot is not water tight but the screen play keeps a attention deficient viewer engaged. Downey jr just sweeps any body off their feet with his awesome charisma, so much more obvious in this movie as he spends most of the time outside his faulty suits. The special effects are amazing and the music and background score mind blowing. I watched the credits roll as the music kept playing in the background and I got to watch the last scene with a special guest. I am still in a high when I think of the movie and I guess I'll watch it again for all the reasons above.
The villains are scary but ridiculously funny. The selfishness and misplaced love for one self and the loved ones around is a recurring theme in some movies that I miss having mindless villains like the joker. It's ridiculous to compare Guy Pearce with Heath ledger but seriously I was hoping for more crazy. I see the world around me and I keep confirming there are more crazies around than anything else. I want to see them beaten in these fantastic movies - at least. Pepper pots finally gets to kick in an otherwise forgettable role. She ain't no black widow but her presence does light up the screen a bit. The precocious kid trying to help the iron man, the hot (literally) villains and the flashy cars worked well for the movie.
The mandarin and the head of security were wasted. Even the newly branded iron patriot was, but not to a very great extent so I shall let him be the almost non existent side kick as usual.
All said and done, its a Downey jr movie through and through. Watch it and fall for the iron man - with or without his suit.
The plot is not water tight but the screen play keeps a attention deficient viewer engaged. Downey jr just sweeps any body off their feet with his awesome charisma, so much more obvious in this movie as he spends most of the time outside his faulty suits. The special effects are amazing and the music and background score mind blowing. I watched the credits roll as the music kept playing in the background and I got to watch the last scene with a special guest. I am still in a high when I think of the movie and I guess I'll watch it again for all the reasons above.
The villains are scary but ridiculously funny. The selfishness and misplaced love for one self and the loved ones around is a recurring theme in some movies that I miss having mindless villains like the joker. It's ridiculous to compare Guy Pearce with Heath ledger but seriously I was hoping for more crazy. I see the world around me and I keep confirming there are more crazies around than anything else. I want to see them beaten in these fantastic movies - at least. Pepper pots finally gets to kick in an otherwise forgettable role. She ain't no black widow but her presence does light up the screen a bit. The precocious kid trying to help the iron man, the hot (literally) villains and the flashy cars worked well for the movie.
The mandarin and the head of security were wasted. Even the newly branded iron patriot was, but not to a very great extent so I shall let him be the almost non existent side kick as usual.
All said and done, its a Downey jr movie through and through. Watch it and fall for the iron man - with or without his suit.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Service of all the dead - Colin Dexter
I did not know why the hell i picked up this book. I am never picking up another book of his unless i really want to make an effort to forget everything in life.
The plot is confusing, the characterization crazy to say the least and the writing very trying. I almost got my readers block back thanks to this weird book. Do not waste your time reading it. I am so disappointed. :(A stranger is watching - Mary Higgins Clark
Mary Higgins Clark is another pop corn read for me and I was lucky enough to pick a bunch of her books at a discount sale. :)
This book deals with a topic i have never been able to make up my mind about - Capital punishment. As a man faces death penalty for a crime he did not commit, the actual murderer is plotting another horrible death in the same family where he wrecked havoc a few years ago. Steve lost his wife Nina 2 years ago to a very angry killer and is only now ready to welcome a new love in to his love. The object of his attention though does not see eye to eye with him on the topic of capital punishment and on the day he is about to profess his love to her, she is whisked away with his 6 year old kid by a mad man who wants money from Steve to spare their lives.In a race against time, the FBI and Steve try to save 3 lives and catch the kidnapper before its too late. An interesting thriller, well written but not too awesome. The kidnapper's characterization was a little shallow and i did not really like the main characters too much to fall in love with the book too. A decent read on a lazy afternoon without too much of mental strain. :)
The Sunday Philosophy Club - Alexander McCall Smith
England has always been one of those countries i have admired. I guess it stems from my admiration for the British English and the various authors who taught me the language when i was a kid. After the beautiful experience with Botswana in the No 1 Ladies Detective agency series, I was expecting something similar with the Sunday Philosophy club and i was pleasantly surprised to find something in a slightly different vein here.
The philosophy is a lot more obvious here and somehow i did not really like the nosy Isabel Dalhousie and her moral obligation to look into the death of a young man who while falling down had looked into her eyes. Her co-dependent relationship with her house keeper, the strained interesting relationship with her niece and the funny relationship with her niece's ex are a nice read but not too captivating. The plot is also watery and it is just the occasional philosophical monologues which kept me captivated. Unfortunately, i have not had anyone to discuss the morality of obesity or lying with as whenever i begin the topic, i seem to automatically lose the audience i would have otherwise had.The Kalahari Typing School for Men - Alexander McCall Smith
The fourth book in the No 1 Ladies Detective agency series featuring Precious Ramotswe. This book can possibly be my favorite in terms of themes explored.
Precious has competition in the form of an Ex-CIA male detective who wants to rule Botswana. Her ever dependable assistant detective is struggling to make ends meet and decides to launch a typing school to earn a little something. Love blossoms in the most unlikely place and she is left reeling from it. The children who had been adopted from the orphanage bring their share of problems and it was a nice experience to watch all issues get resolved.The books are a lot more predictable now that i have got the hang of it but i still like reading them. The empowered female characters make me love the series and the beautiful portrayal of a country i want to visit is just icing on the cake.
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