Everywhere I looked I saw
Millions of people, maybe more,
People wanting without needing,
People talking without listening,
People fighting wars for nothing but bloodshed,
No one murdered the beast in their conscience!
This post, inspired by the song ‘The Sound of Silence’ (originally called ‘The Sounds of Silence’), was written for Trifextra (Prompt: write 33 words on a beast in an unusual place).
What’s poverty? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s hunger? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s nakedness? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s homelessness? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s illiteracy? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s murder? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s rape? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s misgovernance? It’s just a state of mind!
What’s corruption? It’s just a state of mind!
Everything’s just a state of mind!
This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda. (Prompt: One sentence should be repeated at least thrice in your post.)
I’m scared I may claim the world is perfect. Since the world cannot be perfect, it would mean I had lost either the ability to think or the courage to speak the truth.
This post was written for Trifecta (Prompt: 33-word explanation of what scares you (or your character)).
“Sir, if we pay him a bribe of Rs. 50,000, he’ll issue the clearance certificate immediately,” the Project Manager said.
“You know we don’t do such things in this company. No bribe. Anything else is OK. But see to it the clearance certificate is with us as soon as possible, definitely within a week,” the CEO replied.
As the PM walked away, the CEO said, “Please keep me updated by email.”
An hour later, the CEO received a telephone call from the regular raw material supplier, who said, “Sir, I was asked to inflate this month’s bill by Rs. 50,000. I wanted to check with you.”
“Sorry, I didn’t hear you. There was some disturbance in the line. Anyway, I’m busy with some very important work. Whatever the matter, please discuss it with the PM,” the CEO replied.
The next afternoon, the CEO received an email from the PM: “Clearance certificate received.”
He immediately emailed a reply: “Good! Please confirm you did not pay any bribe.”
The PM replied: “No bribe paid, Sir.” He smiled. “Ignorance is bliss,” he thought to himself.
The CEO read the PM’s email and smiled. “Ignorance indeed is bliss,” he thought to himself.
***
This is a fictional story. But, it frequently happens in reality in many organisations of various kinds (business organisations, religious organisations, governments, etc.) in India and the rest of the world. On record, the head of the organization opposes corruption. However, (s)he knows about most of the acts of corruption indulged in by members of the organization. To protect herself/himself from any consequences in case these acts of corruption are exposed in the future, (s)he ensures that whatever is done has been done apparently without her/his knowledge.
Please read this Firstpost piece about Willful Blindness. To quote Adrian Sanders, “Willful blindness is a legal term. It states that if there is knowledge that you could have had and should have had, but chose not to have, you are still responsible.”
Have you come across instances of Willful Blindness? Please do share your experiences.
This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda.
“Sir, how do we eradicate hunger, illiteracy, corruption and crime?”
“All these are just states of mind. The solution is very simple! Keep drinking zombies until you forget them and fall blissfully asleep!!”
This post has been written for Trifecta : Week Ninety Eight writing challenge where the post had to use the following definition of Zombie : a mixed drink made of several kinds of rum, liqueur and fruit juice.
Proactive Indian 