Abyss

Too disturbing not to take note of it. It is a collective failure. In this land of Buddha, Nanak, Kabir, Shankaracharya, Ramanuj, Khana, Leelabati, Meera ... or in recent times Vivekananda, Raman Maharshi, Netaji Subhash, Gandhi, Azad, Tagore, Laxmibai, Matangini ....what are we heading to? There were never a shortage of ideals in this country. Do we make our kids familiar with great lives? Do we ourselves try to lead one? Let good sense prevail. Let this madness stop. Let we all wake up before it is too late. Historically, we as a nation were better placed compared to rest of the world both on economic and social front. It had been and still is country blessed with natural resources - minerals, planes fed with rivers, forests, sea, mountains, desert what not. As a society we thrived with greatest of thinkers emanating from this place. We practised freedom, we respected diversity. In any direction we travel for 100KM we find a new dimension in culture emerging. The other unifying force had been in the faith of the good's triumph over evil, the highest place given to those whose lives are full of sacrifice and service. This was a great blend that preserved one's individuality, freedom at the same time the society came first. What is now seen as some textbook theory of borrowed texts was in practice here. Post 1947 we getting our economic quotients right but the society is facing a greater disorder. Much of it can be attributed to what has been mentioned in the following article and also not learning from our very own history. As it is said, "The greatest learning from history is that people have not learnt from it." While a national movement brought independence for us and we indeed are proud of it, it is time to launch another national movement to come out of this abyss, to let development every nook and corner of the country, to deluge the land with good thoughts and good deeds. Youth of India need to unite and lead from the front. All great changes of the world is brought by youth. This cannot be exception. Students in schools and colleges should take this up as a national mission project, use their social networking skills to flood the nation with positive thoughts and ideas, force negatives to take back seat. Let we elders be told how we can help, it will be a privilege for us to join hands with you. We could not but you surely will.

From today's TOI.

Young, Pampered & Reckless
It’s a heady concoction of sexual and material yearning. And it’s making city kids commit desperate acts, say experts
Prithvijit Mitra | TNN

Kolkata: It’s now being termed as the “city kid syndrome”. A label used to identify youngsters from affluent families, who are brash, daring, impulsive and often ruthless. They don’t hesitate to take chances in seeking pleasure even if that means they have to tread a risky path or even cross the line and break the law. And one out of every five Kolkata teenagers, say city psychiatrists, is ready to flirt with danger and is a serious threat to peers who are perhaps not even aware of his/her inclinations.
Early sexual awakening aided by exposure to sexually-implicit material is one of the major reasons, say experts. The murder of the five-year-old girl by two teenagers last Tuesday is not an isolated case. There have been several such murders in recent years and scores of attempted murderous attacks by youngsters for reasons as trivial as an iPod or a CD. Sexual attacks on teenaged girls have been on the rise as well. More shockingly, even preteenagers are being targeted as Tuesday’s incident showed.
“Children no longer have to try to lay their hands on adult material. They are routinely being exposed to sexually stimulating stuff in the media and on the internet. As these children are used to being pampered and getting what they want, they start believing they can get away with anything — even molestation or murder,” said Siladitya Ray, consulting psychiatrist, B P Poddar Hospital.
He cited the instance of a 15-yearold boy who had caressed a girl in his neighbouring flat and wanted to murder her when she later resisted his advances. “He was not repentant for having touched her forcibly and couldn’t accept her refusal. ‘‘I can’t take no for an answer for I never have, the boy told me,” added Ray.
The fact that hurting or killing is not pardonable is escaping many teenagers, experts point out. They are keen to have their way and don’t seem to care about the methods, said Arindam Mandal, consultant psychiatrist, Apollo Gleneagles Hospital. “It usually starts with stealing to acquire something. Then, they start bullying their parents and friends for more. The more the latter give in, the more aggressive they turn. The majority of these youngsters don’t regret doing this. Some don’t even hesitate to break the law and it is this group that is the most dangerous,” said Mandal.
Parents are to be blamed partially for these youngsters turning aggressive, said Ray. “They are taught to be competitive and look upon their peers as rivals from early childhood. Consequently, they indulge in a game of oneupmanship and can’t accept the fact that they don’t have what their friends possess. And for these misguided youngsters, the bone of contention could be a gadget or even a girl,” explained Ray.
The city youngsters’ idea of seeking pleasure is now a skewed one, some argued. It’s no longer fashionable to do the routine things. They derive a kick from treading the risky path — experimenting with drugs, alcohol, watching pornography, partying late and seeking the opposite sex’s attention. “Till five years ago, 18-year-olds would do these things occasionally. Now, you have 13-14 year-olds going out on dates or bunking school to arrange a party,” said Amarnath Mallik, psychiatrist.
The wired world has only made things easy for these errant youngsters and the task of disciplining them a virtually impossible one for their parents. “It’s no longer just the TV. Social networks, e-mail and chatrooms allow you to surf the virtual world any time. The longer a youngster stays hooked on them, the more will be the temptation to try the forbidden. You don’t even need to get out of your room to indulge in sleaze,” said Mandal.