Thoughts: Of Security, Safety and of Priorities

A lot has been spoken about it. Since it happened, that is. Debates and arguments, discussions and peace marches, many people have taken it up. A sort of post-mortem, so as not let it fade from memories. As if, it would. 

Calling it, it isn’t an attempt to lessen the import of the act by any means. Neither is it a means of avoiding the truth. An act of extreme violation, of defiling and corruption, barbarism and inhumanness towards one’s very being; what difference is the right nomenclature going to make in the context? It’s a deed of abject apathy and as such, doesn’t merit any name-tagging of any sort. 

But what matters is the deed in itself in that, the audacity with which it was committed. The single-minded ruthlessness that certain factions employ to get their way, however amoral and wrong it might be. And what matters more than the deed in itself is the innumerable post-mortems that spring up. 

Post-mortems, that consist of so-called experts coming and raging on about potential punitive measures, about how in the future such events can be prevented, about the innumerable ways in which the system failed and most importantly – the peace parades that spill over as sudden as the event itself, without any precedence whatsoever. 

And just as sudden people assemble to carry the fight forward, equally abrupt is their dispersion. Holding candles one day, only to forget the event a few months down the line; it’s like a vicious cycle – a sliver of memory here today, gone tomorrow. Peace parades are supposedly all about taking a proactive stance, a vestige of the bygone days when the nation strived for its freedom by standing its ground – literally, so to speak. 

But reality differs from suppositions and differs hugely, at that. Peace parades today are more of a trend, catching steam as more people report its USPs on the various available social networking sites. A prospect that rather than achieve the purpose, defeats it admirably as over-hyped newscasters and media personnel start to surround the locale and try to purposefully put a completely different slant to the story. 

With law-making authorities entering the fray, thanks to the media intervention, the whole concept of peace and march lies blown to smithereens while newer voices rage on about suppression of freedoms of expressions and speeches. This utter destruction of the original purpose and intent, carried out in so unassuming a manner, pinpoints the very catch in the situation. Of lapses in security that necessitate these parades in the first place, and the resultant moral policing carried out by those practicing jurisprudence in an effort to subvert their inadequacies. If the law were so keen to maintain its untarnished repute, it wouldn’t have occurred at all in the first place, would it?

 

Which is why, while wanting to do a certain act as a stance against an unmoral deed, remains a message to be passed around; doing so with utmost discretion needs to be a priority. For as significant taking a stance is, equally significant it is to see it to fruition, no matter the involvement – or intrusion – of the media personnel and the unwanted extravagances of backlashes they bring in their wake.

Midnight Breed Series: A Review

Fiction that deals with paranormal protagonists and antagonists seems to be a popular trend in the present times. Like a domino effect, but without an exact known causation, the genre has brought forth various authors trying their hand at it and succeeding too, immensely. 

Incidentally, despite the fact that many authors have been successful; the aspect of repetition in the theme of such paranormal characterisations has also emerged in their literary work. As, in a bid to elaborate and evolve the plotline, many authors invariably succumb to the lure of creating and incorporating newer characters – placed opposite to the existing protagonists, often as the proverbial anti-heroes – those, that invariably following well-worn clichés. 

But where there might emerge character combinations like witches against war-locks, or witches and warlocks against vampires; the most cliqued character combination remains that of vampires and werewolves. Rather like two sides to the same coin, seldom does one get to find a paranormal account where an independent narration is given about either of these two factions. 

And though storylines involving these two mythical sects are not in any way devoid of imagination or without any convincing premise, it indeed does get predictable after a certain time-span. And with such a predictability comes boredom; the sheer feeling of ennui that leaves one bereft of satisfaction that only a good read can bring. This is where Lara Adrian’s ‘Midnight Breed’ series packs a different yet a most impactful punch. 

After 10 books and numerous twists and turns along the way, the author has managed to hold on to the attention of her readers – in fact, even managed to keep them on their toes thinking about what’s to come next – without introducing any lycanthropes to vie for attention with the vampires. So much so, that the readers of the novels get such an authentic picture of these fictional images that they can actually imagine the parallel course of paranormal affairs being conducted along with the mundane flow of life. 

The plotline is systematic, clean and focuses on one simple object – conflict between a paramilitary-like vampire organisation known as ‘The Order’ and an almost unknown enemy within the vampirical bureaucratic ranks that the Order seeks to unravel in the course of each of the book. Each story is thus complete and stand-alone, but yet incomplete as the author connects the previously disjointed dots and leaves them to be connected further along in the series, as each of the ‘Order’ warrior tries to untangle them. 

Of course, unravelling details about the enemy also includes the warriors getting involved with women along the way, closely followed by seductive moves – seductive, but not corny – with each book thus having its version of a happily-ever-after. 

But it isn’t the plotline alone that makes the novels unique. It’s the way each characterisation is fleshed out, both of the vampires – good as well as evil – and of the females, known as breedmates, that nails the romanticised bit to perfection. Unlike the norm where vampires are traced back to a certain Count, are dead and are anti-God in nature, Lara Adrian’s creations, referred to as Breed, depict an uncommon blend of fact and fantasy that makes these characters more relatable and convincing to a reader.

Transcendental in nature, Adrian’s vampires have non-earthly origins which accounts for their blood-craving nature and their natural aversion towards sunlight. Just as it’s these non-earthly origins that provide them with their extreme agility and speed, the tattoo-like patterns adorning the entirety of their body – from neck downwards, throughout the torso extending to their hands and feet. Their quality of humaneness, on the other hand, is lent thanks to the said quality provided by their human mothers and later on through their mates, to their progeny. 

Deviating from the expected trajectory yet again, Adrian presents specially endowed women to suit her male characters. Women, who are not only blessed with inherent qualities that make them exceptional but who, also, contribute substantially to the aura of mystique and intrigue that the plotline has otherwise essentially invoked. 

While it’s not easy for literary creationists to create fictional tales, coming with a convincing plot with equally engaging characters; to come up with a series of novels, that constantly challenge the readers and keep them on their toes cannot be merely qualified as difficult. And more than the vested time and effort on the part of the creationist, it’s the shroud of doubt about the book not being accepted by the audiences – and thus not living up to the standards set by its series’ predecessor – that takes a toll on the author. 

In case of Lara Adrian though, there’s not a single Midnight Breed novel that has disappointed or let her readers down. A fact that cannot be taken lightly, especially considering that only two more months remain for her 11^th novel in the series to hit the bookstores. A book eagerly anticipated with soaring expectancies, poised to take over from where the previous 10 left, for almost a year now.

Anachronisms

It means naught,

When freedom comes with restrictions

It means naught,

When life comes with impositions

Stifling surroundings,

Impenetrable enclosures

Snuffed out kindles,

By provocative flames

Banked embers,

By ignited zealots

Seemingly obvious,

Yet glaringly opaque

Mocking outsiders,

Impervious to the misery inside...

Embittered natives,

Falling prey to the manipulative beyond...

Everyday diabolism

Everyday contradictions

A reality,

Nothing less than a fatality...

A Caricature of a Nation

It’s a nation like no other. Innumerable conquerors trying to lay siege at its boundaries with just as many succeeding as were thwarted, it’s a nation filled with contrariness. Diversified sects sub-divided within themselves, people of innumerable races and creed but most of all; politicians who try and tether these numerous factions by playing up to these weaknesses and drawbacks. 

There’s wariness and there’s respect cloaked in the wariness. An open fact that everyone knows and understands, it’s again fear that drives the understanding to be yet again camouflaged within so-called honour and awe. Such hypocrisy is rampant and provincial, spreading its tentacles throughout the nation’s far-flung boughs and roots. From at its highest governing glory to its measly and lowly grass-rooters, the nation’s people have been well-seeped in the ideology of double-standard and rough-necked behaviour, in case of their demands not being met. 

The nation knows neither right nor wrong. But its people know the bridges that join these two extremities. Bridges, which were crafted and evoked by the founding fathers and historians and bridges that yet again, are mired in disputation because of the founding fathers’ arrogance and so-called superiority about their knowledge. Frays mark these bridges as uncountable criss-crossing between the two facets that hold them together persist; just as countless splitting, between these two extremes, threaten their very existence. A fraught existence at best, the nation’s populace lives in superficial harmony blighted by deep-set hatred and communal discord. 

Once upon a time though, things were different. When the land and its people were troubled by an alien source, a source about whom not many had heard about. There was no peace on the land and oppression grew, festered by the alien source. Finally when peace was wrought, with verbal battles overcoming physical brawls, the entire nation rejoiced. For peace was acquired after centuries and centuries of subservience to a so-called higher power and as such it became a valued and treasured quality.

And while the people emerging from the shadows of their shackles were advised to take up ruling by a majority of their own, the lack of absoluteness of provisos – as penetrating as the founding fathers made them – made the fundamentals of majority ruling a farce, a parody of its original conception. Rulers emerging each new day, each promising the dark side of the sun and the unsuspecting crowd falling prey to the same old rhetoric as if they were new; the nation’s development though the ages of new-found peace is a testimony of its ever-glistening hopefulness and the exploitation that this optimism has brought about. 

The nation today, is not seen as an independent entity but is counted as one of the frontrunners, a pivot in the entire scheme of management of global affairs. Yet its internal mismanagements continue and many speculate, shall do so for the next foreseeable future. Yet, it’s amidst such speculative observations that the optimism still rears its head as talks emerge of new-age rulers ushering in a bright future. Only to fail all over again, as enclosed within the ranks of old-gen politicos such new-age rulers also seem to lose their individuality, leaving behind endlessly pointless predictions about bequests and bequeathing of political predecessors. 

Line of succession, hierarchical positioning and familial ties bind the nation’s governance today as they did in the bygone eras. Thirst to inherit and rule, longing for power and desire to dominate and overthrow have set the tone of real-life incidents and events in the nation, throughout the passage of time. But even as the nation grows and develops, instead of widening thoughts and actions, the backdrop of power, dominance and racially-inspired mottos still grip the nation and its populace; as though developments were incidental, and not essential, for survival.

Of Politics, Nations and Choices

A nation, at times, is defined by its leaders. And at times, a nation’s leaders end up limiting its horizon. Leaders come in many sizes – not literally and figuratively – but in terms of their sizeable, cumulative ability to rule and govern a nation. Thus we see really minuscule national leaders, with no ounce of managerial skills but with good elves and imps to ascertain their authority and we also see people with an aptitude for skilful governance so large, that it alternatively awes and spellbinds people. 

Some rulers rule by force, palpably tangible and often demeaning to the nation’s citizens, while some do the enforcing far more subtly, like inserting a needle into a banana. There, however, is no actual deciphering meter where citizens can gauge and consequentially mark their national leaders. The whole deciphering and unearthing is like finding the proverbial pot of gold, under the rainbow. A hit or a miss – either the people strike value for their ballot or the chosen leaders just turn out to be volunteered incumbents, gnawing and grating at the peace of minds, till the next person can be customised for the job at hand. 

So how difficult is it to rule a nation? By the look of things happening around the globe, it seems pretty easy enough. Negligence, over-blown theatrics, rallies and debates, cat-calls and show-stopping of a different kind; there isn’t anything happening beyond these. Of course, in order to spike the adrenaline, a few rounds of guns and pistols, rifles and bazookas are more than welcome. 

Talks and associations, and committees and agencies, extrapolating and interpolating within each other, but not going beyond the required ex-officio bureaucracy levels; governing a nation is not more than emitting parrot cries – pardon the pun – and then, when the citizen parrots come closer, trapping them into a cage with no escape routes. In fact, the actual parrot catchers can even learn a thing or two on how to keep their winged prisoners in check. Instead of cutting the captives’ wings right at once, as they normally do, the parrot catchers can learn from national leaders to pluck at their prisoners’ wings as a form of torture, while all the time proclaiming safety and security to their so-called beloved captives. 

Threats and litigations, nothing is of import to leaders. This makes their job even easier. Yes, but if a threat occurs to their life, then the citizens have no choice but to bear the shenanigans of the leaders’ security personnel. An insult to a person’s character is treated as by-the-by, but when people express their freedom, it constitutes defamation. A perquisites’ galore, round-the-clock, the easiest job on the planet is that of a nation’s leader’s. 

Unemployed, employed, educated and not-so-educated, everyone’s welcome. Actual training from experts, makes choosing national leadership as the most viable and workable career position in any kind of economy. For there’s always options for growth, however regressive at times, they might be. The commonality can always go to hell and purgatory, but for a nation’s leadership elite, it’s always heaven and nirvana – on some post-dated, likely-to-bounce, edict.

Politicians, Leaders and the Societal Effect

Fuelled by power, to attain power; politics is all about power. Values and beliefs have no place in this ever-building need to conquer boundaries and create newer ones just as there’s no place for satisfaction. Politics doesn’t see religion nor caste or traditions, but it does create its own religious creed, depending on the requirement necessitated. In its own way, politics might indeed influence society, but politics by itself isn’t self-generated but a by-product of the societal beliefs in the first place. 

Society, at its basest, can be defined as a group of people coming together to sustain themselves not just individually but wholly as a group. But even within a group, it’s the inability of certain people to co-exist in harmony that necessitates the augmentation of politicising in the first place. Greed and avarice, desire to dominate and overhaul doctrines, only to replace them with different sets of dogmas are all manifestations of power, from the basest of societal levels to the most varied and the highest of hierarchies, which determine the core existence of politics and politicians. 

Democracy, autocracy, socialism and every other form of governmental organisation that exists doesn’t function without power and the ability of politicians to successfully wield it to their advantage. Socialism and communalism advocate the prioritisation of society over individualistic avarices, but in essence these two factions are not but ideologies put forth by a certain sect of society that believes its doctrines to be greater than the rest. Same goes for democracy and autocracy – the latter being almost to the point of despotic while the former only presents a titular demonstration of choices and options, more to keep the politicians at check rather than give the public any real chance of actually choosing the right candidate for the job. 

But right candidate or not, the statute of establishing governance requires that there be a leader at the forefront to manage affairs. Leader, or in plurality leaders, who would ideally lead the society to achieve its best. At times, even at its worst. The reality however is drastically different, especially if a society’s leaders pretend to try and lead, only to slacken leadership’s leash having once attained power. Many societies have fallen prey to this tried and tested bait and many more will soon follow considering that many youth aspire to get into this race to become the ultimate ‘leader.’

Which then brings me to my next point; leaders – potential ones included – also have their own version of the rat race. From the start to the finish, achievement after achievement, from the grass root till the uppermost berth, it’s about racing. Against peers, rivals and at times, even against one’s own self. And it’s perhaps in this unending rat race that the whole core of values and beliefs start to get eroded. The laws of the jungle start to apply, where the fittest wanting to survive do anything possible within their means – even beyond – to achieve that lofty leadership mantle. And them, who are deemed not fit, are discarded as though they were lesser mortals of an unmentionable ilk. 

People evolve and by way of that, so does society. But evolution in terms of the world’s – world, too is a society – leaders and politicos always doesn’t underscore positivity and optimism. At the same time, the evolution of the societal frontrunners also doesn’t entail perennial dissatisfaction and discontent. The whole ambience construes as more of an impasse, a vague kind of push-and-pull effect that mesmerises and frustrates us people in equal measure – a classic case of ‘can’t be with, but can’t be without either.’