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Us, not others!

Aug 13,2022 - Last updated at Aug 13,2022

In our discourse, the formal as well as the informal, the private as well as the public; one notices that much, if not all, emphasis, when speaking negatively about issues, is placed on what “the other” or “others” do, and not what “I” or “we” do.

The matter has become not only dominant but almost chronic, and it is what Freud refers to, negatively, as either displacement or projection.

We displace and project on others, and not confront ourselves or invoke our roles, when we discuss matters pertaining to nearly all social ills.

When, for example, we speak about traffic violations or traffic accidents, we blame “other” people, not “us”.

We do the same thing when referring to the harm that is done to the environment: the trash in our streets, public areas, outing grounds, historical sites, etc.

Discourse on lies, hypocrisy, nepotism, deception, cheating in exams and corruption follow the same pattern.

And we see the same premise at work when we talk about water and energy consumption, libel on social media, mediocracy in performance at work, etc.

Such unhealthy discourse is harmful not only because it is distortive, disorienting, and fallacious; but also because it has negative implications on actions.

If we do not confront social ills head on, determine who is responsible for what, and shoulder our responsibilities individually and collectively; we will not be able to chart our way through and proceed forward.

The other negative implication of such negative phenomena is that the “conscience” of individuals stops functioning and people up end participating farcically in a blame game that is of no good to anyone.

Imagine what it is like when the individual in society loses his/her conscience! 

It is time, high time, to promote the culture of self-examination, self-assessment, self-reliance and the crucial role of the self in societal development, which has been prevalent throughout our history, but seems to have come to an end at this moment in time.

After all, it is all about us, not others; about what we do or not do, and not what others do or not.

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