Straight Face

The story of our livesThe story of this country is a bit like the sad, sad tale that Mike Davidson relates in his book, The Transformation...

The story of our lives
The story of this country is a bit like the sad, sad tale that Mike Davidson relates in his book, The Transformation of Management. It goes like this: Once upon a time there lived four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody8217;s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it but Nobody realised that Everybody wouldn8217;t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done!

From all available evidence, we are a nation of one billion Somebodys, Anybodys, Nobodys and Everybodys.

Everybody is convinced that Somebody is doing the job. Somebody is fighting for our independence and ensuring that we stay independent. Somebody is working towards making sure that our children are in schools and that healthcare is reaching the sick and impoverished.Somebody is working hard to ensure that relief reaches the disaster stricken and justice reaches the riot victim. Somebody is ensuring that our lives are safe and is keeping a tab on the movement of terrorists.

Somebody is ensuring that bombs don8217;t go off on trains and that they do not collide into each other. Somebody is monitoring X-ray machines in airports to ensure that there are no nifty pistols masquerading as toothpaste tubes in someone8217;s shaving kit. Somebody is ensuring that human rights are not being violated, even as the rule of law prevails. Somebody is making sure that the Harshad Mehtas of the country don8217;t take stock markets for a hike. Somebody is out there making sure that school buses are not manned by maniacs who think they are on a Formula 1 racetrack or that scams and scandals are not erased from public memory.

Over the last hundred years, Everybody believed that Somebody would do all this. After all, these are responsibilities that Anybody could shoulder. Anybody should know thedifference between right and wrong. Anybody could realise that corruption is an universal evil and that justice is an universal good. Anybody could see how crucial manning security systems are and how important training and professionalism is in ensuring that things get done. Anybody knows that it is only through vision and commitment that nations are liberated and governed. Anybody knows that it is only through hard work and dedication that visions are realised.

Yet Nobody considers it their responsibility to ensure that things get done, hopes get realised, plans get completed, systems exist and are properly regulated. Nobody believes that they are required to get involved when disaster strikes, when a hijacking takes places, when a cyclone rages and people8217;s lives get blown away. Nobody feels the pain of a mother who has lost her child to a preventable disease like Japanese encephalitis or the fear of the relatives of the hostages on an Airbus that has sat like a broken bird on the Kandahar runway theseseven days. Nothing permeates the apathy and cynicism that protects Nobody like a coating of Teflon.

And consequently Everybody shrugs their shoulders and washes their hands of the responsibility. When things go wrong, Everybody is astounded because Somebody should have done what Anybody could have done but Nobody did. Everybody gets worked up and appears on TV talk shows to natter and to jabber on endlessly about why Nobody did what Anybody could see was the thing to be done. Everybody blames everybody else about the security failure and failure of social values. Everybody knows exactly what has gone wrong, and are quick to jab their fingers of blame in all directions. Everybody loves to order inquiries and set up commissions. But Everybody forgets the problem once it disappears from the national radar screen and ignores the solutions ventured by commissions once they have finished their job.

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Ultimately, it is Everybody who has let Everybody down. That is the story of our lives. The millennium questionis, will the tale of Somebody, Anybody, Nobody and Everybody continue to be that of India8217;s in the 21st century?