I happened to read an interesting article by Prof. KS Jacob in the Hindu dated April 27, 2010 (Creating Wealth Without Justice). While the article is indeed thought provoking, I'm afraid that the points mentioned therein run counter to the very laws of nature.
Here are my thoughts on the subject:
Inequity in life is not only normal, but even desirable. It is actually an unwritten law of nature. All living beings, including humans, can't be born equal nor become equal. If a lion bothers about the unfairness of a zebra dying for the sake of filling its own stomach, the lion will starve to death. If the deer bothers about the hunger of the tiger, it will have to be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice.
People will always be differentiated based on different parameters such as IQ, knowledge levels, skill levels, height, weight, physical disabilities, etc. It is impossible to treat all human beings as equals, nor is it feasible to ensure equal opportunities for all. That is the very essence of Gods creation.
Perplexing though the above statement might appear on the surface, allow me to elaborate:
· It is impossible for all of us to be born equal. There would be differences in physical abilities, IQ levels, wealth & income levels, country of origin, gender, etc.
· A vast majority of us are adequately selfish, tending to put self above family, family above friends, friends ahead of neighbours, known persons above unknown persons, etc. in most situations. Certainly, not too many of us would consider paying the tuition and hostel fees for IIT / IIM education to an acquaintance's niece as willingly as we would proffer the same to our own child who has got selected.
· The very same selfishness also makes us seek to live in a society (so as to enjoy the benefits of companionship, opportunity to be "one-up" on the other, to seek the services of other human beings to make things easier for oneself, etc.)
If we think through the above three irrefutable factors and take them to the logical conclusion, we'll realise that there is bound to be inequity in life.
Some obvious examples:
· At birth,
o One person is born the son of an Anil Ambani, and the other is born to a rickshaw puller from interior Orissa.
o One is born in
o The result: Obvious
· In a school or college,
o Some students score better marks than others due to factors of nature or nurture.
o On the day of the exam, one student suffers a headache, misses the school bus by a whisker, comes across a bad accident on the road en route, reaches the exam hall with a minute to spare. Another student (who is "equally bright, coming from an equally rich / educated / comfortable family background") meets a close pal who wishes him good luck, catches the school bus / auto in time, gets his favourite seat, reaches the exam hall with 15 minutes to spare.
o The result: Obvious
· On the road on New Year's eve - around midnight -
o A rich man's son, driving the latest Mercedes, bangs into a beggar sleeping on the pavement, and kills him instantly. Immediately he rushes home and informs his dad about it. The dad contacts the best lawyer in town right away, seeks advice on all the "right steps to be taken" and acts immediately.
o A poor man who has come to the city from his native village looking for work who is merely loitering around taking in the sights of the new surroundings is caught by the cop on "suspicious behaviour" and language problems ensure that he is not able to explain his presence outside the fancy restaurant at that hour!
o The result: Obvious
· World of Journalism -
o Prof. KS Jacob, with all his knowledge of his chosen field of work, linguistic skills, gift of the gab, position at CMS Vellore, etc. writes a nice, long article putting forth his views and sends it to "The Hindu" for publication
o Ms. XYZ, a "home-maker" with a reasonable degree of thinking ability, but without a command over the English language, writes an article on the IPL controversy in broken English, with poor grammar and sends it to "The Hindu" for publication
o Mr. PQR, a job-seeking graduate from a small town in UP, who barely has the IQ required to finish his degree after a delay of 4-5 years, just tries to send a brief letters to the editor, trying to express his views on an article that he read.
o The result: Obvious
One can go on and on with examples.
However, the fact of life is that inequity exists; Has always existed; Will continue to exist for as long as living beings roam around out here.
So, what can we do?
Some suggestions:
At an individual level,
- Become aware of the existence of haves and have-nots in this world
- Accept the fact - One has to live with inequity in this world
- If you're one among the "haves" - smile and enjoy your life. If you have a bigger heart, do what you can to bring a few "have-nots" to your group of "haves" during the course of your life on this planet
- If you're one among the "have-nots" - grin and bear it. To the best of your abilities, try to switch sides and become part of the "haves"
At the societal level,
- Be conscious of the existence of haves and have-nots in this world
- In any case, the group of "haves" will never let go. They will only try to improve their own well-being - physical, financial, philosophical, et al! Try to create a society where the situation of "have-nots" is reasonably tolerable and keeps improving over a period of time
Keeping in mind the two points mentioned above, I can't think of any alternative to the "Capitalistic" model which would be better. It is better to have 100 loaves of bread to be shared by two persons in the ratio of 90:10 than to have 5 loaves of bread to be shared by two persons in the ratio of 60:40. Capitalism achieves the former, and most other systems end up making do with 5 loaves of spoilt bread.
I rest my case.
Regards,
N
