Recently I read an article published by Al Jazeera which said that the world is not producing enough intellectual-thinkers. Thinkers of such prowess that they become very dear to a country’s civil society. People have immense respect for their opinions, so much so, that the state can’t touch these men without fearing absolute mayhem on streets. These people, are not afraid to ring a discordant note in the smooth rhetoric of the state, rather, they consider it their responsibility to break down intricacies into simpler words, and pass the knowledge to public.
I’ll try to explain this with an example. Let’s suppose there is a furniture-maker, making tables and chairs for a living. A small business. But where is the wood coming from? If he thinks this through, then he is a thinker. But let’s move on with the story. If he is taking the wood that is being sheared off illegally, then he surely wouldn’t buy the wood. No one in their right mind would. Now, for business, this is problematic and has to be dealt with. For this, the wood-seller invests in a company. This company takes care of the conscience issue. It invites the furniture-maker to their office and tells him -very smoothly- that they are running an NGO for children from the profits they make. And, of course, that is a side detail -the thing that matters to him is that the wood is of good quality and available cheap. Sweet deal. Now that this buffer zone has been created, replete with grins, handshakes, coffees and some discussion of the country’s social problems, the furniture-maker goes ahead with the deal hoping to make a difference to the country’s poor. A clear conscience maintained. Perfect. A whole forest wiped out at dirt cheap cost, the wood-seller makes a fortune, pays a crumb to the advertiser, throws another to the “NGO”. Still a hefty profit. Perfect.
Only if the furniture maker thought where the fucking wood is coming from! But to come to think of it, it’s not difficult to realize why we do not care of it at all! We are poor people, and when middle class tastes money, they want more and more of it. It’s addiction and with a few masterstrokes, they can be rich. Dirty rich. Secondly, most of us don’t know what is happening. We are gullible people. And in awe of money. We worship entrepreneurs and put up Bill Gates’ poster in our rooms, wishing to be like them some day. “Hard work is the key,” they said. Thirdly, the blanket people -the people responsible of keeping our conscience clear by advertizing, marketing, promoting products- are too terrific at their work. The thought of enquiry into the grassroot level simply leaves our mind. Everything is available at competitive prices, we want everything, all the time. It leaves no time to think.
When this happens, the furniture maker’s is not the only case. It’s a free market economy, things grow on an exponential scale and the snow ball grows bigger and bigger and bigger. Either you are a part of it, or you will remain poor. Enter the mainstream or die with lesser friends, constant criticisms and of course, poor. The ball is largest- just before collapsing and wrecking havoc all around.
That’s why I think the thinkers would have to be people who know the system, who know the system inside and out. Who are financially independent and do not fear starvation if they abstain from the scam, or the “inside”. These thinkers will have to be very courageous, because the snowball is big and lethal. They will be of immense understanding and who can communicate complex and apparently –special vocabulary of corporates– to the poorest people. These thinkers would bust the blanket-factory. They’d passionately believe that a people of a country has the right to understand for themselves what is actually happening. They will have to replace the current role models of the young and inspire them to think originally. The exploiters fear when the employees think. It is most pleasant to them if the workers just do what they are required to do, and repeat the routine the next day. And epithets such as “hard-work”, “my role”, “my karmas” are used to guile him into being complicit with the functioning of the establishment. It suits them perfectly.
I think it’s about time we start thinking. It’s about time for everything to not be so pruned. Some wilderness is good. It’s healthy. It’s natural.
*Please repost if you found the article making sense.*
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