Fools rush in...

What has captured the imagination of the nation is "Corruption Free India". The means, end, madness is all going to be justified in one way or the other. There will be closure to this jamboree. And it wont even take a week. The UPA is handicapped by a bureaucrat babu at the helm, and the bunch of advisors have led it to one mistake after the next.
The small group in Tihar, the hundreds on Dilli roads, the thousands on streets elsewhere and the lakhs who are like it online, view themselves as something else. Perhaps ten years down the line, they will be people who will proudly claim "Freedom fighter" benefit for what they did in August 2011.
On the other hand, i wonder if there will be similar movements and mass mobilisation and support for say, Nuclear bill? Or the bill on Taxation? Or even Environment??
Right now, corruption is a representation of everything that is wrong in the country. Corruption is a visible phenomenon. That we do nothing abt it in our day to day lives has caused matters to come to this day. When newly laid roads are washed away, we never question our corporators. When parking space or area reserved for gardens and public schools is given to make malls, we don't stop to ask them why. We have no sense of entitlement - that we deserve a good life, good health system, good schools and education, good roads and amenities. And because we live like irresponsible citizens - not voting and not voting the ineffective out of power - we should be punished.

Our electronic media has played the worst role they could in this circus. At a moment when they should have been objective and educated their viewers on both sides of the Lokpal bill, they have played favourites. The near certain escalation of the issue, will ensure TRPs for the channels and awards for some half-baked reporters, who will go on to believe that making everything into a mass movement is the right way forward.

Secondly, the frustrations of millions of people were fueled by those ridiculous email forwards which put unrealistic sums of black money stashed away in Swiss accounts, with dope like "it can feed entire country for 30 years" etc.
For 65 years, the movie "Gandhi" was telecast at least three times every year but never did people take to the streets for "peaceful" protests like they have now. The other factor, hence, is Bollywood where movies like RDB, No one killed Jessica, have portrayed the power of the mob. Just taking to the streets, lighting candles and disrupting the very functioning of the economy that pays for all this, is plain ridiculous.

For all those who have found a "purpose" in their lives in this shindig, i wish them luck. They have chosen to do something abt the situation. Perhaps, in hindsight they will see sense in what the rest of us are saying... It summarises the present societal norms, more or less, where both parents work and don't have time for their children, and in their collective guilt, they do whatever the child wants them to do. When the child resorts to emotional blackmail for not getting what it wants and doesn't listen to the parent half way.

Gandhi went on innumerable indefinite fasts to get Brits to pay attention. But he also fasted as penance for his followers who did wrong. Will we see Anna fast till his followers stop offering and accepting bribe, and will they change their ways cos of his fasting, remains to be seen...