A member of an organization telephoned me asking why I did not depute my reporter to cover their programme. His tone revealed he was worked up by the absence of media persons in the programme. According to the man, none of the newspapers in the state ‘bothered’ to pay heed to their request for coverage. His outfit had organized a pre-Christmas programme for the orphans. Well, charity on ground and charity before the media—these are two realities today. We noticed that people are too happy to carry out Good Samaritan services only before the media.We have touched this issue in our earlier edition and we are doing it again in this edition. Our moral landscape has become too artificial and devastated, thanks to the rise of ‘hollow men’, in the words of American poet T.S. Eliot. Without getting published what little things they have contributed to the society the supposed Good Samaritans feel it is not worth rendering their services. To such elements we cannot consider them as people who in good faith gratuitously render needed care at the situation of an emergency. When commercial and political ventures are operated in the garb of charity such ventures do not merit for entertaining in public domains especially in newspapers. It is a pity that charitable services are on sale. “…when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men…when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” (Matthew chapter VI). We have also mentioned sometimes ago in this column that another uncomfortable trend is that—these uncharitable people doing charitable services usually lobby for awards too. They submit their bio-data complete with the mentions of ‘good services’ they have rendered. We know this is an age of hyperbole but there are also things called aspects of morality and ethics without which the society is a hollow showpiece.
