Bending the Rules

Disclaimer: This post is in no way influencing anybody to vote for a particular person. It only gives an insight to the confused state that we as the youth of the nation go through every time elections are about to happen. 

Just 6 days to elections, and Dilli meri jaan, aan, baan aur shaan is already feeling the heat and pressure of being the Capital of the world's largest democracy. (On other days, it is neglected just like any other city in India...not that we want other cities to be considered less important!) 

Since posters, writing on walls, banners, cut-outs, flags and hoardings were banned by the ECI, political parties are now left with the option of installing life size advertisements on bill boards attached on bus stops and busy road crossings to attract voters. They are desperately resorting to technology in the form of recorded messages on radio, social networking sites, media, SMS and trumpeting rickshaws to hoard the votes of those who they are supposed to serve after being elected. Their aim is to target all age groups of voters: the young, the middle- aged and the old. But for now, let's just leave out the old and the middle-aged, as I feel that their outlook towards this whole thing called "Election" and "Voting" is already rigid and pretty much pre-decided, rather I would call it sun-baked. 

Focusing on the youth, as per ILO, 66% of India's population is under 35 years of age, which points to the fact that a decent number falls in the 18-35 bracket. Also, as most people are aware, we have student unions in various universities in India, so if your institution has such a union, you get an opportunity to start young and probably have a brighter chance to enter mainstream politics.
Consider this. When a person turns 18, the first thing that comes to their parents' mind is: "Voter ID banwa lete hain iska jaldi se...elections se just pehle tension nahi hogi", which is to be appreciated actually. But weeks before D-day, the elders use various tactics to influence the 18 somethings, to vote for the "party" (not even the "candidate") that they have been vouching for generations. Unfortunately, most of the youngsters are driven into this mad race and they grow up to be adults with no real opinions and little knowledge of the political framework. 

Now there are several reasons for our not applying our brains, despite the inner voice that keeps on telling us otherwise. In decreasing order of significance, here's the reason why:

1) We feel that individual opinion = family opinion.
2) If there is a Student's union in the university (take the case of Delhi), we are influenced by our seniors, and in turn influence our juniors to support a particular group, which eventually leads to the creation of a false image in our mind about the whole system.

3) We are awed by people with great political personalities, who are the talk-of-the-town, good orators and excellent at winning media debates, and suddenly, their "party" becomes our "party".
4) We are way too lazy/ indifferent to look up a genuine source of information that might come in handy to shape our views on politics and to give us a better perspective.
5) We try to make a reputation among our peer group by impressing them with big political words that we pick up from various sources, bragging that we know what's going on and indirectly trying to tell them "Look, I am not a nincompoop!".

By following the above mentioned path, we are falling into an incessant downward spiral and also putting the next generations at risk.

Here, I would like to introduce to the readers an expression called "Practical Wisdom". I came across this phrase through a TED talk given by Barry Schwartz, which I saw on the web. Originally coined by Aristotle, it is derived from the Greek word Phronesis (or prudence). It means that in everyday situations, one needs to have the experience, flexibility and the virtue to pursue what is right. Such a person can be called Practically Wise. 

This phrase was devised by Aristotle when he noticed a group of stone masons replacing a straight ruler with a flexible lead ruler to measure the circumference of columns, which he called "bending the rules". Even today, this simple philosophy that became apparent a long time ago, is applicable. Judges resign when their prudent decisions are challenged, ministers quit when they feel they are being made scapegoats for the wrongdoings of others, employees revolt when they are underpaid. These are but very few examples of practical wisdom.
We, as responsible youth, can apply this simple principle in our daily lives, especially during election season. By using our own intellect, we can take better decisions of whom to vote for. After all, nobody is going to peek through that little space with the EVM inside or grasp your finger and throw you out if you don't follow their commands.

So, once and for all, let's not fall prey to impassiveness, dictatorship or hypocrisy. Let's not believe in the lies of political leaders and fake representations given by workers about their political parties, and instead try to be as well-informed as possible. Use the internet/ newspapers for extracting meaningful details about whatever areas are doubtful to you. Let's not reject that candidate just because he/she is not that cool, is very outspoken or "tarnishes his/her image" by ruining every interview. Let's not get carried away in the debate of whose campaign is more persuasive and effective. Let's not question a candidate's ability to serve the people or accuse him/her based on fabricated facts, without fully knowing his/ her background. Let's not reach to a conclusion just for the sake of concluding.

LET'S BEND THE RULES