Monday, August 29, 2005

Retro!!

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??

24 comments:

phatichar said...

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.

Stone said...

Excellant post.
looking forward to wat others have to say on it!!!

Anonymous said...

Rock n ROLE? @ play a part

Anonymous said...

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.

NoHairBrain said...

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..

Deez said...

isin't this a repeat post?

manuscrypts said...

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..

manuscrypts said...

stone: same here :)

blokes: but how u r and what u do also gets reflected on the people around you and vice versa..

manuscrypts said...

jw: :)

ash: still havent finished that movie... i have seen the first cd and never managed to see the second!!

manuscrypts said...

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...:)

erratica said...

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 .

Pallavi said...

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 ...

GratisGab said...

YES a movement is in order...I hope it comes with it's fun parts as did the 70's :)

Mrs. Dalloway said...

I'd have made a great hippie! Sigh! My mom just doesnt appreciate flowers, power, love and peace!

manuscrypts said...

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..

manuscrypts said...

gabby: lol, agree :)

poornima: yeah me too :)

Mirage said...

Its coming bak...at least the fashion is! But the sentiments...sigh! Theyre long gone i think...

Nupur said...

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!

Anonymous said...

Yup. Its the era of self absorbtion. If it aint affecting my life, i dont care !

manuscrypts said...

mirage: too long gone to bring back??

nupur: you would have read, but i dont think you commented...

manuscrypts said...

cynic: yup, exactly!!

J said...

how i wish i was born in the 70s too. i wud have been a hippie for sure :D

Anjali said...

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.

manuscrypts said...

J: yippie to hippies!! :)

anjali: but hasnt the restlessness started already??