The Criticizing of Politics: Justified or not?

From the time we set upon the path of education till our old age, human beings share one common perception. In fact, this perception has been the only constant feature of Human beings through generations. The perception of viewing Politics as a Gutter and Politicians as Corrupt individuals has remained constant. Anywhere we go, in our schools and Colleges, in Coffee Shops, in Offices, in Films and any public place, the notion that Politicians are all Corrupt has been enforced again and again. Ask the younger generation and they would say that they would want to be an Engineer, Doctor, MBA Bigwig, Architect, but never a Politician. Now, in the beginning of the 21st Century, is this perception justified? It also points out to the very understanding of Corruption as most people percieve of it.

Our human psyche is such that it is acceptable to call Politicians corrupt. Our mind has been bombarded with this perception so many times that it is hard to assume a Politician and his field anything but Corrupt. However, i am going to put forth some things which might enable to do a double check on this issue.

The first thing is if the field of Politics is like the gutter, why dont Citizens clean it up? Why doesnt the initiative come from the Citizen himself? The fact of the matter is that along with the acceptance of Politicians being corrupt, Citizen Mentality has leaned towards Apathy. If the dirt is present, let it be there, but do not try and get your hands dirty in this. It is another but unfortunate thing that a film made me realize this. The mindset of India is such that the effort to change the Status Quo, however rotten it might be, is frowned upon. The thought that maybe Change could be hard to digest overrides this thought.

People talk about eliminating Corruption. Destroying the Corrupt through the process of Law and by force is often the solution metted out by Citizens. However, the more basic question that needs to be asked is: Can Corruption really be removed from a System?

The answer according to me is NO. Individuals are by nature Corrupt. The Urge to do things quickly and to bypass the rigidness of the system is something all people want. I think Corruption can only be curbed from within, not eliminated. It remains to be seen that how the Conscience of Man can be sold down the drain for a period of time. Surely, at some point, there must be an effort and a realization to curb the Corrupt tendencies. This thing might be time consuming, but according to me, it is a fact that people must realize. If Corruption has to be eliminated completely, kill of the human race in the whole planet! Only then, a Corrupt free Planet can be possible.

According to me, other than the acceptance that Politicians are corrupt, they are also very Brave People. They have voluntarily allowed themselves to dirty their hands doing Public Service. Not many individuals in this planet would do that. The people who sit in their Air Conditioned Offices, in their executive Suites, in their Couches at home, they represent the very reason as to how Apathy can rejuvenate Corruption at any given point of time.

It is for these combination of reasons that I choose not to call Politics a Gutter. For me, the real challenge comes as to how can you clean the Gutter. This Gutter will test my conscience, and give avenues to sell it off for a price. However, it is better to do something about it, rather than just talking about it. This generation, some of them at least, believe that it is time to "Walk the Walk, rather than Talk the Talk".