strangely,
i want to race to the edge
and enjoy the f
a
l
l
disintegrate,
be patched back seamlessly to a new whole,
with memories of
d i s t a n t
dark years...
archived and unsung.
complete me, You, in one line...without years or memory.
Math and Morality
While the nude Emperor flaunted his imaginary robe, and while the audience ahhh’d and ooooooooh’d with his grand entry, the tale was kind enough not to strip the Emperor completely bare. The phallus was the only part that remained unexposed. With the young kid sporting the truth, the fairy tale did drive one truth home: a simple gaze is all we need.
Bush and Blair have taken the concept of amity to a remarkable extent. As the world watches this remarkable duo’s undying love for each other, all around the globe are reversing their ideologies and are balancing their convictions by rallying behind the oppressed. None but a few CBS style reporting bases are seen manufacturing the content and attempting consent at this point.
We, in
Bangladesh are reputed to be slow learners and what the others learn today, does not hold interest for us till the next month. But amazingly, Houdini has landed home earlier than schedule this time. In Bangladesh, this time, we have been smart enough to resort to the tricks of democracy and the primacy of illusions has taken over.
Abracadabra- The numbers in the ballot box are bound to change with the alliance wand.
Democracy in this land has assumed a new synonym: “Math” and the earlier loyalty to “morality” is long lost. What is amazing is while even the western media shies away from this practice in general
The morning dailies and the 24/7 channels in the country are hyper active to project our hyper reality. Every single media tool has a specific discourse as a target. The making and the unmaking of consent has begun. Popular truths may be home grown and may often give respite to political analysts, but it certainly does not over rule the power of ideology. Ideology is swinging with time and power’s slapping democracy in the face. While we watch election preparations on full swing, we also watch the power of alliance oscillating as per the rules of math. Mr. Election Math and Ms. Immorality make a strange couple, living under the same roof, sharing the same bed and breathing poison and passion at the same time.
It was just the other day that I was intently reading a write up by Mr. Mamunur Rashid, an eminent banker and a rare mind of our times. He had written about the concept of branding stressing that most of the cities have brand tags (for example, Thailand: the land of smiles), and therefore, Bangladesh should have one too. I have been pondering over this and instead of coming up with a brand name for the country, I have come up with an apt brand name for Dhaka.
Dhaka today, truly, is a City of Dialogue.
Jalil (AL secretary) and Mannan Bhuiyan (BNP Secretary) are talking.
B&J have just been photographed and are smiling.
B&J have just expressed hope.
B&J have just taken a dump.
The B&J syndrome is painstakingly detailed. The main issues are leading to an irreversible failure of the dialogue. While J wants the CEC reforms, B can’t even take the smallest step forward as he is not authorized to deviate from the “constitution” as constituted by the Position. So, the daily dialogue goes on and this has been the moment we have been waiting for. The intellectuals had hoped for this handshake; the business leaders had shuttled between their oscillations; the private initiatives from cultural entities had stepped up their pace to see this happen. And so it is and so it shall be.
B&J should actually be a single entity. That way the collaboration has a nice ring to it…just like B&O, the Danish music system. There are obvious similarities between B&J and B&O. Both belong to the Mid-fi range, yet are great to look at. Both of them rot under specific conditions: B&O under humidity and B&J under the heat of the internal party pressures.
The dialogue should go on forever. It should have a continuous ring to it which would glorify Democracy on the Run and would assure people that there is no need to go out in the streets with logis and baithas, as suggested by the Honorable Leader of the Opposition just the other day. Bangladeshis are getting used to the system of Carpe diem these days. We live for the day, and we live for the minute. Our political and economic inadequacies have turned us into great warriors of our times, championing the survival mode of a Ghor Pora Goru, a hapless cow, doubting every single turn that the leaders make, questioning every alliance, critiquing every single achievement of this land. Our leaders have led us to this state of mind where even a single word or a twitch of an eyebrow makes a difference. We don’t trust them anymore and we don’t trust the B&J style anymore as well. The testing has been done. The hint of initiating a dialogue at an ambassador’s residence has done enough harm to our psyche. We are tired of talking about the military stepping in lest the talks fail. We are a slow nation whose territorial integrity apparently stands unthreatened despite strangers coming in and proposing to mediate. The hilarity of a bus blocking traffic and jamming the flow of democracy (reference: Syed Manzoorul Islam’s column in Prothom Alo on the 9th of Oct’2006) is the truth of our times. The reality of Bangladesh being an over baked bagel, halved by the two main political parties, and left open, screaming for some fat free, honest spread of cream cheese is what we are left with today. Ketchup dialogues from B&J corner won’t do the job.
Scars are difficult to heal yet are easy to conceal as the world of quick fix cosmetic appliances have been made more affordable these days. There isn’t any situation that stays uncontrolled or unaddressed in this part of the universe. Even while the world’s bleeding with Talibans, we are still willing to have their look-alikes in our own cabinet just because they have had the latest makeover aided by Power. Democracy in Bangladesh can’t afford a quick switch to Demonocracy just because the horizon is halved by failed leaders and failed talks. Beware Dialogue. Humid summer nights, intolerable water and power crisis don’t kill us. We are beyond makeovers today. We want our same old skin tone to surface- without laser treatments or wrinkle reducing night creams. We want Democracy in its old and promised form. We, the people don’t form part of your recipe of free floating, easily available and purchasable package of Betrayal.
i never imagined that i would ever come close to hating men so much, but i do. with my life half over, i still have the energy to resent, rebel and reject and restart. will some of you follow me?
