"You should be the change you want to see in the world"

                                           It is obvious now, that we always look for someone to voice our thoughts, to fight for our problems, rather than think, realise and resolve it ourselves. I am happy for the unity against corruption but, I wonder for how long this struggle bears significance in our hearts. We have all forwarded e-Mails, tweets, messages in support of Annaji, but do we all really understand what the fight is really about? Corruption, a deep rooted evil, is not just limited to some individuals, but is omnipresent. With a little insight, we can just realize how we helped it grow and sustain. A lokpal bill as the one proposed, can punish/expose some predictable names, but doesn't eliminate it completely. The only way I find appropriate and useful in the long-run is the change of approach towards uprooting the evil. I'd like to name a few examples we can easily find ourselves experiencing/already experienced.

                                           We travel on a waiting list ticket/ general ticket and bribe the official in charge, to get a berth reserved. We plan ahead our trip to a very famous temple/place, but we do not plan the darshan/visit timings. We have money to bribe the guards/officials and sneak into the long queues. Ration Card, Driving license, Passport - every document that is needed, we realize its necessity in the eleventh hour and want things to get finished soon, all because we are confident about the weight of our pockets and the magics it can perform. We never try to think that things take their time in the respective offices before we can expect the result and there are already a number of applicants (passengers/pilgrims) ahead of us, waiting. Most of us do not exercise the right to vote and most of those who do, choose the lesser evil from among a list. An evil is an evil, small or large. Did we ever think that this is corruption? Yes, it is! "Corruption is spiritual/moral impurity or deviation from an ideal" - Wikipedia says.

                                           Isn't it the moral responsibility of every citizen to allow the system to function for the betterment of all? We hinder it, we misuse it and finally we abuse it. We really have no right to question an official who made money processing our works first, when there are others waiting in the long queue before. And we absolutely don't have any right to question any corrupt politician when we did not choose to vote. Corruption, in a way, is a by-product of human indolence and impatience. If only we can plan ahead, if only we can bear the little discomforts that come in our way, if only we can wait, if only we can justly deny any demands for bribes (Yes, we can, if we realize it), if only we can use our weapons like RTI, no vote policy; we can really expect a better society. 

                                          Mahatma Gandhi's words, "You should be the change you want to see in the world" are reverberating in my ears, as I write this. Let us make some commitments to ourselves, to ensure a better nation, a better world (After all that has been said, I don't think an exhaustive list is needed).