Paapu CAN Vote!

The amount of sites that have been popping up that are encouraging the youth and their counterparts to vote has been phenomenal. Jaago Re, Lead India and Vote India are just a few that I personally follow but many fabulous News sites too have great coverage of the upcoming elections: Hindustan Times, India Times and India Today. The previous three have all been put together by the youth which makes them a tad more special in my opinion. Each one has an individual reason to why India should vote and how their single ballot makes a difference. Google "Vote India and over 35 million hits come up. Amazing!

It was beautiful that the "youth rose from the ashes" after the Mumbai Terror Attacks. They gathered together to stand up against how the situation was handled, their claim for safety and stood up realizing they had to make changes. Change. A simple word and idea that had they had forgotten about. This is the time to make that change and help your country move ahead.

It is every citizens innate right to vote and more important that they exercize that right. Rahul Kanwal very interestingly pointed out, "Half of India's population is under 25 and two-thirds under 35. That's 700 million people who could potentially be agents of change." That clearly is should be a wake up call to every citizen in that age bracket (and otherwise): VOTE! If you are in that age frame, you need to do it for your future, if not, vote to secure your children's tomorrow. The youth's vote is perhaps the most important because of multiple reasons. Firstly, the youth are the educated lot who will be the deciding factor for the future of India. Secondly, sadly they are being deemed as "self-obsessed." The youth should not stand for this and in fact, by voting are showing that they are just the opposite. Rising and asking for a change in administration will help the youth gain more credibility and help raise the standards of politicians in India. It is now that the politicians of India need to get younger- in age and ideals. The time of the "oldies" and more older men and women in the Indian society needs to come to its conclusion and this is the perfect time for this youthful change to occur. The biggest democratic country in the world must draw inspiration from Barack Obama and François Fillon; both young leaders of the modern world.

It is a decline in these very standards that has caused a deteriotation in the election of politicians. Murderers, thieves, prisoners, even terrorists have become politicians in the past. How has that been allowed? Corruption is a big factor that is not helping and in fact only adding to the disgrace of the country. Being the biggest democratic (and most secular) country in the world, this is a worrying thought. Afghanistan recently voted in a number of Taleban members into their government, however, this is expected from a country that is in complete political shambles and does not allow its citizens to vote freely. From India, this is rather discomforting. Ultimately, what is the point of celebrating over 50 years of Independence when the no one is utilizing their democratic right correctly, if at all.

However, only the youth can change this insane phenomena. The youth is not simply enclosed to a particular age group. It is not based on a mere number but in fact stands on the equilibrium of modern and traditional ideas. As our perceptions in life and lifestyle changes, so should the expectations of our government. The problem is clear. The involvement of the youth in politics is scarce. But can you blame them? Every time a member of the youth stands up and voices his opinion, he is shut down and told he is "too young" or are told it is their "khelne-khoodne ke din" (days to have fun and frolic). Perhaps if the government would then sit up and listen to what the future of their country wanted, they would see that the youth has views, values, morals, needs, wants and expections.

The first way for them to be recognized it to vote. The country houses over one billion people. India should, in fact, have a record number of citizens turning up to vote in comparison to any country in the world. However, because a major chunk of the educated lot have not voted in the past, the uneducated go ahead and vote for ones that promise them castles in the sky but are unable to pull through. As educated and informed people, it is your job to help the rural folk who innocently vote for politicians who either threaten them, pay them or promise them changes that never actually happen.

I wish I could- and believe me I would do anything to vote in India. However, I do not have that privilege but if you can, you must and you should. By not voting, you deprive your country and someone else casting a ballot. Make your vote count and refuse to be a silent spectator. And if you need any reason or inspiration to vote, check out the sites! They can provide some great reason to vote. Vote India (youth or otherwise) Vote!

As for the government who is calling you- the youth, a "Paapu" for not voting, here's your chance to prove that you ain't no "Paapu" and you can vote.

Photo Credit: Bollywood.com

"The Shoe Hurling Crew" - National Heroes or Imbecile Protesters?

"Shoe Hurling" could be the next popular competitive sport. Do not be surprised (or alarmed) if you see it as a category at the next Olympics. By pseudo definition, Shoe Hurling entails a shoe, an unhappy member of the public in the form of a journalist (or student) and a government official, local or foreign. During a press conference, a question-answer session or a speech, given unsatifactory answers or for mere dislike, a shoe is thrown in their direction. Hit or miss, this "sport" causes great humor, gains much interest and can be awfully entertaining while other times it can cause much chaos.

"Shoe Hurling" seems to be catching on with journalists all over world. The founder of the Shoe Hurling Club was media person Muntadhar al-Zeidi, who was quick to throw both his shoes at the previous American President George Bush during a press-conference in Baghdad. After he was tackled by security, arrested and questioned, he came out to claim he was simply saying goodbye to the former President on behalf of the Arab world. Farewell, in perhaps the most insulting ways. In Arabic culture, showing the sole of a shoe to someone is a sign of disrespect and thus, throwing your shoe is a sign of extreme contempt. The citizens stood by the journalist claiming he did what Arab leaders "failed to do." Fellow Arabs stood up in pride and the rest of world mocked Bush's dodging skills.

Next to join the Hurling Crew, was Cambridge student Martin Jahnke, a Pathology student who decided to throw his sneaker at the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao as he was giving a speech at the prestigious campus. Jahnke, of German decent, was extremely angered by the Premier's ideas on globalization and screamed, "How can this university prostitute itself with this dictator here? How can you listen to the lies he is telling?" After which, he threw his athletic trainer. The Premier was shocked but gathered himself calling the incident a "dirty trick." Cambridge dealt the student themselves, asking him to personally write a letter of apology to the Jaibao, after which the Premier encouraged the University to reinstate the student and allow him to continue his education. Although, he was pardoned for his "indecent behavior," he was charged on numerous accounts and additionally, fined 5,000-pounds. Unlike the Iraqi journalist, who was thrown into a jail, Jahnke was let off the hook considerably easily.

Jarnail Singh too, became a member of the crew as he hurled a shoe at the Indian Home Minister, P. Chidabaram, during a press conference. The Sikh journalist's emotional outburst occurred during at the question session after the Home Minister read out the Congress party's agenda if they were voted into power in the upcoming elections. The Minister quickly answered his question pertaining the clean chit given to congress leader Jagdish Tytler after his involvement in the 1984 Sikh riot case. When the journalist was refused to ask further questions, his bottled emotions seized to remain dormant, as he shouted, "I protest" and threw his shoe at the Minister. He was taken out of the room by security and of course, to jail for questioning. He was set free a few hours later, realizing that his actions were unacceptable. In fact, his newspaper, Dainaik Jagran, wrote a front page feature condemning his misbehavior as did all political parties, left and right, and his family. However, the Sikh community saw this occurrence in a different light. Overnight, they deemed him a local hero, offered him a seat on parliament and additionally, offered him Rupees 200,000 (5,000 USD) as a congratulatory bounty. The journalist refused all offers.

This new form of protest or disgust for politicians seems to be catching on with journalists around the world. Do they not realize that there are many different ways to show their distaste? To their benefit, journalists have the power of the pen that they can put to use instead of throwing a shoe. Perhaps writing an article would not bring in as much publicity, but it definitely beats losing dignity and being hauled into jail for a day. Gandhi for one, would be turning in his grave at such despicable behavior. In most cultures, the shoe is seen as a symbol of dirt and to some extent the devil. Is it really respectable to chuck a shoe at anyone, let alone a politician. Gaining respect from a small population but losing self-respect in the eyes of oneself, ironically does not seem worth it. Interestingly, every country has dealt with their nationalized "Shoe Hurlers" differently. Some were thrown into jail and declared heroes, others were penalized.

Jarnail Singh's protest however, may have hit the nail (shoe rather) on the head and proved to be a success. Okay, so he missed the Home Minister, but did manage to help local courts give Jagdish Tytler the boot to becoming potential forerunner in their party and whose involvement in the 1984 riots was being questioned. In his case, the shoe antic transpired this time round but does that mean it will always work?

Just as a matter of observance, the Shoe Hurling Crew completely exists of men. Wonder when the ladies will be a part of the gang. Perhaps a few stiletto heels flung at the officials may create more drama and allow them to taken seriously. Women are more dramatic by nature. Additionally, the members need to indulge in a few shoe-flinging sessions. None of the shoes, in all their forms: loafers, sneakers and trainers, have managed to actually hit their government victims. While Bush proved his dodging skills, Jhanke missed as did Singh. A few lessons would help the Shoe Hurler's credibility and skills. And lastly, it would be interesting to know the brands of the trainers; ironically, was a China-made Nike sneaker pitched at the Premier or an All American New Balance high-top at Bush? The Indian media did manage to disclose that Singh's sneaker was a size-9 Reebok; probably made in India.

Conclusively, I personally believe these educated journalists (and students) should stop behaving like illiterate vigilantes and find other methods of demonstrating their unhappiness with government officials. Superficially, I'm not sure if I want to lose a pair of shoes (sneakers or stilettos) to a government personnel...especially a good designer pair! Hey, those are expensive.

Photo Credit: Discovery Education