Either by accident or design, we the people of Nagaland relish interesting times. And because the love of talking entrenched in us is bone marrow-deep, inadvertently, almost everything and anything is rendered interesting. However, as amusing as it is, this is not without dangers. The louder the cacophony, the higher also is the risk of mouths racing ahead of brains. Shades of this danger are today manifested in some of the voices we see emerging through various media.
It was not always so. Or at least that is what we have been told. It was not only in the Wild West that an unspoken code dictated that a person’s word was his honour. Even in the headhunting years, Naga people always considered it wise to put premium on the spoken word. In fact, the kind of reverence that our ancestors accorded to our oral tradition –which is not to say that it is not so today –would suggest that in such cases, the spoken word was considered sacred even. The point here is that the words were measured and considered.Of late we have witnessed a rapid rise in the number of voices, all claiming to represent the people, making their presence felt in the traditional media as well as the social media. Almost all these voices are in the form of complaints –against the government, church and all things that represents a form of establishment. Maybe, this is merely a reflection of the system that we have created as a people. Or maybe, just maybe, complaints have become our default mode today.
No doubt the angst and the anguish are genuine. Sure governance is almost nonexistent, corruption has straddled every inch of the society and development is every politician’s favourite sleight of hand. People have every right to register their grief. But going through the nature of the “complaints” flooding the traditional media as well as the social media platforms, it is not incorrect to worry for the mindset that has come to grip our society.
This is especially so in the case of social media where snark is king. At least in the case of the traditional media (which in Nagaland translates to newspapers), there is editorial control on the contents of the news as well as opinion pieces. Most internet platforms do not have this mechanism. In any case, one is at liberty to write anything on your page or timeline.
Any remark, be it intemperate or reasoned, made in private can be a thing of the moment, sparked by a little frustration and soon forgotten. But in the internet, it takes a life of its own. And considering the level of negativity and snark that accompanies almost every one of these “complaints”, especially in the case of those with claims of representing the people, it is extremely worrying.
Human dignity, no doubt, demands the right to question and thus, to complain. But it also demands the right to be mistaken. All things must function within reason. And this also includes “complaints”, regardless of how genuine they are.
