A
man asked his servant to set the curtains on window, for he wants controlled
sunlight for an indoor plant. Servant being over-efficient built a wall outside
window, blocking sunlight completely, what happened to that plant is a separate
story. I don’t know why and how, my mind relates this story to PTA banned list;
its causes and outcomes.
I
must say we all should commend PTA guys for such deep and detailed hard work.
This list includes almost every word that we can use to abuse/curse. PTA played
proactively this time by including many words that we might use as a backup for
actual ones. There could be many causes which led PTA to take this step, as I think.
An
obvious reason is that government wants a sober society where one shouldn’t be
abused or humiliated, a very valid reason. Because how we communicate
eventually becomes a part of our thought process and it develops in our heart
and mind. There could be political reasons behind this which I cannot think of.
What they think is right, no issues with that, but the question here is how
they plan to overcome/address the issue isn’t right.
Apparently,
so far, people only learned new words and are making fun of it. It’s like
making someone drink water and telling him not to pee. This would eventually
have unfavorable outcomes. PTA should have focused on the most basic things
like why do people abuse or use cuss words? Why is this trend increasing?
What’s the trade-off?
Generally
people use such words in two states, when they are in good mood (with friends)
and when they are under stress. It has become our national habit. Bollywood
movies and our dramas are major inspirations for youngsters using such language
while communicating among friends. For later, it is obvious that everyone is
under-stress these days. Economic and political instability and social
insecurity are catalysts. Everywhere you go you find problems, be it terrorism,
inflation, load-shedding, corruption, racism and what not. People are so fed up
and frustrated that they express their feelings or opinions in cuss words and
feel good about it. Banning such words on text messages will end up frustrating
them even more and people will start using these words socially and openly.
If
the idea is to counter this habit, we can counter by other means. These words
should be banned socially (on social platforms) not in private conversations.
You cannot teach ethics, people observe and learn by themselves. For this
purpose, our so-called leaders should set the example (by behaving
sophisticatedly). Humans need to exert excess energy and pressure to stay
normal and perform. Government, instead
of banning cuss words, provide with some relief on any ground so they stay and
act normal, abusing trend will start declining itself. Lastly, media should
play its role by considering the impact of what they broadcast. Our youth
follows media and glamour world blindly.
I
would like to request government and respective authorities not to impose such
stupid bans on our personal lives and how we communicate with friends because
this would only increase the pressure and anxiety which would be exerted in
other unwanted means. And the true
purpose will die the same way that indoor-plant died.
Excuses are the nails used to build a house of failure.
~Don Wilder and Bill Rechin
