A private news channel, which has a national presence, holds an annual event where they go and meet/greet the soldiers serving the motherland during Deepavali (One of the most famous festivals of India). They bring in a lot of emotion, saying that the soldiers are away from their families and are in need of an assurance that they are not left alone and to respect the service they are doing.
The Soldier. One of the most celebrated and looked up profession in the country. Nothing shows patriotism as much as a man in the uniform. The lifestyle revered, the job feared and the soldiers an asset to the country.
Personally, I would not salute or take my hats off for an army guy. I don't owe him anything. At least in my 27 years of existence, I don't.
When I make this argument I am confronted with (And I know I will be in the future) with a lot of strong arguments. Arguments citing that I am "safe" because of them, that the country is "safe" because of them, they work in the harshest of conditions and I need to respect that and the quintessential i-phone argument of "you have not been in the army, so you don't know what it takes."
Let me put forth my argument. For my argument I use another job which I feel needs more respect than the army man. I shall present my argument as comparison to this vocation.
Joining the military is a personal choice. People might join the army for various reasons, but still it is a choice. India does not have compulsory military service. Now lets look at the coal miners of India. None of the "army joining crowd" would personally make a choice to be a coal miner. When Rob Kendrick of the National Geographic visited the coal mines in India, the most powerful moment for him was when he saw three generations of a family working in the coal mine. This is certainly not by choice! But the Soldier is an honourable man.
The argument "Army is essential for the country" is pretty common. In a country where the main commercial energy source is Coal ( Around 55% of the installed electrical capacity) I feel the coal miner is needed more than the soldier! With the Government infesting the country with the "development" rhetoric should know this better. Well the Army itself demands on the coal industry directly or indirectly but still the Soldier is an honourable man.
Next comes the argument "they keep the country safe". In the present world where the war is fought by information and economics, the movement of soldiers is merely a symbolic action. War is the village shandy for Arms manufacturers, steel magnets and oil merchants to show off what they have and for upper class, rich, suit and tie misanthropes to argue who has the longer "organ", as for them death of the soldiers brings bling in their bank accounts. In this age of economic warfare the finest foot soldier is the coal miner with his hammer. But the soldier is an honourable man.
When the Armyphiles (Yes, I just created a word) are in an intense argument, the "they work in harsh conditions" argument comes up every time. I would agree that they work in really harsh conditions, the deserts, the himalayas, the rough seas and the unpredictable skies. But the army gets all the necessary supplies to survive the "harsh" conditions. From metal toed boots to oxygen cylinders, from camouflage fatigues to fine whiskey! What does the malnourished coal miner, who wears shorts and flip flops and descends 400 feet into the earth to drill a 3 foot high rat hole, and go scrape coal, while the whole uncertainty of the hole caving in is in the back of his mind, does he get any supplies? Many be a torch so that he can go deeper or may be a cheap cigarette for his breaks (As if he hasn't inhaled enough). But still, the soldier is an honourable man.
Lets come to the benefits the soldier gets of his patriotic work. The Indian army website lists the benefits the army men get. From travel concessions, to rations on supplies. From pension and gratuity to free medical care. From allowances over allowances to family benefits. The list is so long that once I had completed reading the list my hair had turned grey! What does the poor miner get? Well a temporary plastic shed and no toilets! Of course the soldier is an honourable man!
This is just an example. I can draw equally strong examples using farmers, ragpickers and the whole unorganised labour sector. But in the end of the day the soldier is an honourable man.
Yes, the army helps out during Natural disasters, but it is the same army indulging in heinous crimes in the North-East and Kashmir. I don not want my taxes to go the soldier! I want my taxes (I would pay extra if the farmer got more) to go to the most basic of vocations. I find it hard to believe that the concept of a soldier which gained much hype during ancient times where fighting meant survival is still going, not only going but is increasing! But even in the 21st Century Modern-Developed world the soldier still is an honourable man.
On the last note, let us see the movie industry of India. From my memory I can just remember one movie "Kaala Patthar" (Black Rock) based on coal mining, but the number of army/military movies are innumerable! Another medium is the advertising industry which banks on the military rhetoric in so many instances! Yes the soldier is an honourable and profitable man!
I shall end this blog with an open challenge. All you 24X7 News Channels out there, all you CSR flaunting corporates, wish one coal miner or farmer or ragpicker a happy Deepavali and you might actually "light up" someones life.
The Soldier. One of the most celebrated and looked up profession in the country. Nothing shows patriotism as much as a man in the uniform. The lifestyle revered, the job feared and the soldiers an asset to the country.
Personally, I would not salute or take my hats off for an army guy. I don't owe him anything. At least in my 27 years of existence, I don't.
When I make this argument I am confronted with (And I know I will be in the future) with a lot of strong arguments. Arguments citing that I am "safe" because of them, that the country is "safe" because of them, they work in the harshest of conditions and I need to respect that and the quintessential i-phone argument of "you have not been in the army, so you don't know what it takes."
Let me put forth my argument. For my argument I use another job which I feel needs more respect than the army man. I shall present my argument as comparison to this vocation.
Joining the military is a personal choice. People might join the army for various reasons, but still it is a choice. India does not have compulsory military service. Now lets look at the coal miners of India. None of the "army joining crowd" would personally make a choice to be a coal miner. When Rob Kendrick of the National Geographic visited the coal mines in India, the most powerful moment for him was when he saw three generations of a family working in the coal mine. This is certainly not by choice! But the Soldier is an honourable man.
The argument "Army is essential for the country" is pretty common. In a country where the main commercial energy source is Coal ( Around 55% of the installed electrical capacity) I feel the coal miner is needed more than the soldier! With the Government infesting the country with the "development" rhetoric should know this better. Well the Army itself demands on the coal industry directly or indirectly but still the Soldier is an honourable man.
Next comes the argument "they keep the country safe". In the present world where the war is fought by information and economics, the movement of soldiers is merely a symbolic action. War is the village shandy for Arms manufacturers, steel magnets and oil merchants to show off what they have and for upper class, rich, suit and tie misanthropes to argue who has the longer "organ", as for them death of the soldiers brings bling in their bank accounts. In this age of economic warfare the finest foot soldier is the coal miner with his hammer. But the soldier is an honourable man.
When the Armyphiles (Yes, I just created a word) are in an intense argument, the "they work in harsh conditions" argument comes up every time. I would agree that they work in really harsh conditions, the deserts, the himalayas, the rough seas and the unpredictable skies. But the army gets all the necessary supplies to survive the "harsh" conditions. From metal toed boots to oxygen cylinders, from camouflage fatigues to fine whiskey! What does the malnourished coal miner, who wears shorts and flip flops and descends 400 feet into the earth to drill a 3 foot high rat hole, and go scrape coal, while the whole uncertainty of the hole caving in is in the back of his mind, does he get any supplies? Many be a torch so that he can go deeper or may be a cheap cigarette for his breaks (As if he hasn't inhaled enough). But still, the soldier is an honourable man.
Lets come to the benefits the soldier gets of his patriotic work. The Indian army website lists the benefits the army men get. From travel concessions, to rations on supplies. From pension and gratuity to free medical care. From allowances over allowances to family benefits. The list is so long that once I had completed reading the list my hair had turned grey! What does the poor miner get? Well a temporary plastic shed and no toilets! Of course the soldier is an honourable man!
This is just an example. I can draw equally strong examples using farmers, ragpickers and the whole unorganised labour sector. But in the end of the day the soldier is an honourable man.
Yes, the army helps out during Natural disasters, but it is the same army indulging in heinous crimes in the North-East and Kashmir. I don not want my taxes to go the soldier! I want my taxes (I would pay extra if the farmer got more) to go to the most basic of vocations. I find it hard to believe that the concept of a soldier which gained much hype during ancient times where fighting meant survival is still going, not only going but is increasing! But even in the 21st Century Modern-Developed world the soldier still is an honourable man.
On the last note, let us see the movie industry of India. From my memory I can just remember one movie "Kaala Patthar" (Black Rock) based on coal mining, but the number of army/military movies are innumerable! Another medium is the advertising industry which banks on the military rhetoric in so many instances! Yes the soldier is an honourable and profitable man!
I shall end this blog with an open challenge. All you 24X7 News Channels out there, all you CSR flaunting corporates, wish one coal miner or farmer or ragpicker a happy Deepavali and you might actually "light up" someones life.
