We need a different world

The reactive responses to crisis are no longer satisfying to impartial good citizens

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We need a different world
by Azada
16-Jan-2010
 

Earthquake in Haiti: A different world is not just possible but is increasingly a necessity.

As, at the safety of our living rooms, we witness the story on magnitude of devastation in Haiti unfolds, it is also an opportunity for us to bring this crisis down at our personal level. I see this is as an opportunity to reflect on life, all aspects of it – our family, friends, country, world at large…and the fragility of it.

How one can be a help? That is an immediate and constant question that perhaps no matter how we try to bury it behind forgotten minds – it does persist.

It persists in our minds because it is real and we feel just few yards away from it as it shapes. The earthquake that should have happened even in 90s would be much less in our attentions, now due to instant communication systems, is having an immediate impact on us. This is a historical paradigm shift in what I’d like to refer to as the democratization of agony.

It is impossible to remain impartial to the level of pain and agony of a disaster if we can watch it live, hear the stories of real people struggling with it, and seeing the generous and heroic efforts of others to reach to the victims. Thus, it is very natural for us to place ourselves in victim’s position. It does not take much imagination. It is there. It is on our living room screens. That man, woman, child whom is pulled out under concretes – suddenly is us, our mother, sister, and son. We are them. They are us.

This closeness to pain, the universality of its message, this democratization of agony, brings me to realize that there is an immediate need that this situation – this shift and sharing of pain – are first to be recognized at global level. Second, and even more importantly, it is to plan smarter at holistic level in handling of world crisis in advance.

The world conscious are now demanding from their political representatives to act smarter and proactively to crisis that we can not overlook in our living rooms. The heat is also going up on big business as much to take up social responsibilities at global level.

No longer, the message that a different world is possible should be at monopoly of progressive political left. This better world, as incidentally will never be an ideal, I believe, is more efficiently managed if passed to free market economy. As much, it is not the business of governments to run the business of productions and services – it is as much wrong to allow the business dictates policies and regulation via their monetary means – that is, lobbying and political economy muscles.

The relation between religion and state might have been resolved beautifully in developed nations, however, I believe, the logical boundary between business and political system is yet to form for better of society. All these takes and gets are impacting on how world institutional powers and nations will handle crisis of global, hereon. Haitian earthquake seems is a pivotal turn for the world to act more harmonically and in advance – proactively dealing with potential dangers before becoming crisis.

The reactive responses to crisis are no longer satisfying to impartial good citizens of the world. The frustrating rush to deal with the Haitian crisis is not working well – no matter how sincere and resourceful the world is engaging. What we experience in Haiti is an inactive world response to a nation that was destined to crisis such as floods and earthquakes.

No matters how generous and immediate are the responses of the world powerful nations; it bears not any less the responsibility to help these disaster prone places to prepare in advance. It is certainly economical and good for business too to prepare for disasters. The resources - unutilized in rich nation as ours in America - can be put into good use in poverty stricken areas of the world - less alone in America itself. There are awful good many number of people with diverse background and nationality - who see things beyond their immediate domain and sovereignty. If it were not for good of these souls, we would have had even more dire situations at broader corners of world.

A different world is not just possible but is increasingly a necessity.

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