Here, I come

A long forgotten dream. A world war has happened and we've somehow survived. The atmosphere is totally bleak, utterly devastated. Those who've perished seem to be the lucky ones. I'm in an open space, living with my family in a torn tent. We're running short of food and I'm discussing with some people about the possibility of starting farming on a piece of land, in order to grow food for ourselves.

The rest of the dream is hazy, but I remember this dream when today, we have news of North korea going nuclear, and all the other big brothers who've stacked nuclear weapons in their backyard crying hoarse. Hope my dream remains a dream and doesn't become a living nightmare for all of us on this earth. But with these crazy scoundrels ruling us, anything can happen.

And then, there are some disturbing images on tv. There's a communal flare in Mangalore, not far from here. It's a sensitive area -- the muslim and hindu dogs over there are always at loggerheads for some issue or the other. Three days ago a fight broke out over the transportation of cattle to slaughterhouses and soon there was widespread violence, resulting in a few deaths. A kurfew is declared and the police are manning the entire city.

They show a young man on TV who has ventured out of his house and a group of policemen stop him on the way. They start lashing him with their sticks until he's forced to flee --they pursue him, thrashing him all the way. He didn't look like a rioter. Later a car passes by and the police stop it. The driver and the passenger are thoroughly checked, the car is inspected and later they're let go. What's disturbing is the attitude of the police constables. They threaten the hapless driver and the passenger, nudging and prodding them with their sticks--the harrassment is sickening and revolting. Agreed, the situation is tense and people are dead, but does that give you a sanction to terrorise anyone and everyone in the name of maintaining law and order?

I find it difficult to sympathise with or understand police brutality, however justified it may seem to be. One of my cousins is serving in the police force and his attitude is evident--a slow transformation into a rowdy in uniform. They too are humans but the access to power brings out the hidden devil, I think.