A while before i was born, there was a generation i would have loved to be part of… they are identified by a number of descriptors – flower power, hippies, love and peace etc.
the 70’s was their time, and the protests against what was then conventional in society, were made in several forms – from agitation on the streets to men wearing their hair long and from groupism and drugs to song lyrics…That generation was very clear in their belief that society and humanity as a whole were going on a path that wouldn’t quite turn out to be the right one, in the years to come… from the wars that were being fought for all the wrong reasons, to the pressure exerted by society on them to conform, they felt everything was going wrong.. and they fought it, by turning the tables on the way things were functioning then.. by just walking out with long hair and unkempt beards and staying in groups and resorting to drugs… not all of it was good, but they made a point…
This generation is also seeing wars, but with wrong reasons on both sides. 9/11 wasn’t right, but nor was the attack on iraq… 7/7 was not right, but nor was the gunning down of an innocent guy.. but i dont see terrorism as the biggest enemy, for it can be resolved if people can be made to sit and discuss issues.. and though that was putting it simply, it still can be done…
the bigger enemy is us, for we have forgotten humanity… in a purely materialistic society, where technological advancement and career/economic advancement are the indeces of society’s and the individual’s development respectively, there is simply no time to lend a helping hand to those more unfortunate than us, because MMS scandals, the status of the brad pitt-angelina jolie affair, the ambani feud etc are more important to us…but when i see a ‘go slow’ movement thats gathering steam in Europe, and a ‘blank noise’ happening around me, i think we might be in for a fight.. a neo flower power movement, and a way to drag us back to a better path…
until next time, how can we play a part??
Well Said indeed. You’re right, I see this erosion too all around me and it makes me sit and think sometimes. What exactly are we passing on to the coming generation? Are we making any effort at all to instill the right values, to show them not what is right or wrong, but what is logical to a better human development. I guess, it’s in the choices that are there, but what to choose? Don’t tell them what to choose. Tell them instead what happens if they choose something that’s gonna affect adversely in the long run. Getting across the correct picture across is very important.
Good post, friend.
well said Manu. excellant post.
also, Ramana i agree with you totally. sometimes it is scary to think that we might pass on the wrong information and values to our children. did our parents go through the same dilemnas? am sure they did. but now that we are in that phase, it is a little intimidating to say the least.
Excellant post.
looking forward to wat others have to say on it!!!
it comes back to individual responsibility manu. i, as a mother, wife, teacher have to do my dharma along with the karma. likewise the engineer, doc, toilet cleaner, street sweeper, likewise the writer, the marketeer, the consumer…
Rock n ROLE? @ play a part
My friends and I had a discussion in the same vein after watching Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi.
The previous generation were revolutionaries. They saw what the world was like, didnt like it one bit, and tried to change it. Admittedly, they failed in many aspects. But I can’t help their ..optimism.
With our generation, we seem to be too defeated. We know the ‘system’ sucks, but we cynically accept that it cant be changed, bury our heads in the sand and go on with our lives.
We are etoo cynical a generation.
Dude .. yeah! flower power man .. like Dude .. lets roll one maaan ..
Did you just see that gorgeous naked lady walking by ? no ? Then dude .. roll me another of this man ..! Mah brain is fried dude.. yeah! Just chill Brothers..
isin’t this a repeat post?
phatichar: the problem is that what is ‘correct’ is always changing
parna: like is aid, what is right and wrong is not exactly sacrosanct now..
stone: same here 🙂
blokes: but how u r and what u do also gets reflected on the people around you and vice versa..
jw: 🙂
ash: still havent finished that movie… i have seen the first cd and never managed to see the second!!
NHB: was fun, huh? 🙂
deez: sort of.. coz it was on for a day, and then i replaced it with the rakhi post.. wanted views on this, so i put it back…:)
can we really contribute is the question! watever i had muggd for karl marx ka theory makes sense now. for a neo flower power, the current order needs to be shatterd, n shatterin that to replace with marijauna smokin,
hashish filled order would be just replacin ciggies with joints .
The path is more difficult now because there are so many choices.. …it was good back then !! when you had lesser evils and more to do …
YES a movement is in order…I hope it comes with it’s fun parts as did the 70’s 🙂
I’d have made a great hippie! Sigh! My mom just doesnt appreciate flowers, power, love and peace!
erratica: which is why it should be a neo flower power, and not a replica …
pallavi: right you are, right now its about doing a lot of things, and achieving nothing.. a shallowness..
gabby: lol, agree 🙂
poornima: yeah me too 🙂
Its coming bak…at least the fashion is! But the sentiments…sigh! Theyre long gone i think…
Ah! Is it deja-vu??
I really thought that I had read this exact post before…… and I was looking for my comment n ur reply!
Yup. Its the era of self absorbtion. If it aint affecting my life, i dont care !
mirage: too long gone to bring back??
nupur: you would have read, but i dont think you commented…
how i wish i was born in the 70s too. i wud have been a hippie for sure 😀
I think the sad thing is that the ‘system’ has begun to work for some of us in material terms. And the material victory is so overwhelming for India that the rest of it – the loss of idealism, the dilution of passion, the corruption of values – ceases to matter. Youth today seem happy to revel in the new-found pleasures of the booming economy … it will take some time before we have had our fill of this, and can begin again to get restless and look beyond the magic cocoon that we’ve created.
J: yippie to hippies!! 🙂
anjali: but hasnt the restlessness started already??