Every one of us must have heard in some form or the other about the Biblical story of Adam and Eve in Garden of Eden. This story is told in the book of Genesis, chapters 1, 2 and 3, with some additional elements in chapters 4 and 5.
God creates Adam from the dust of the earth and breathes life into him. Later, he makes Eve from Adam's rib, to keep company. The serpent tempts Eve into eating the forbidden fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and she gives the fruit to Adam, too. God expels them both from the Garden of Eden and curses them to live a life of mortals. They have children, Cain, Abel, Seth, and others, who then populate the world. The serpent in Christian theology represents Satan, and the Fall establishes original sin. Muslims honor Adam as the first prophet.
Ok, why am I talking all this, the Original Sin of Man led to his expulsion from the Oasis of God. towards suffering and dishonour, but man of today I feel still continues to garner more and more sin on his forehead. Every biblical teaching, every verse in Quran, teachings of Budha, Holy scriptures of the Hindu's all talk about peace, harmony and co-existence. They all preach us a way of life, which is to set for us a divine path to Nirvana, to attain the highest-level of existence, but we over the years seem to be deteriorating for the worse. Every religion of the world has a dooms-day prediction in-built and what alls happening point us to that dooms-day scenario. The Christians would call it the Armagedon or the Judgement day, the Hindi term it as end of Yug or era. And almost enevitabaly claims a wash-out turn-off events on the dooms-day scenario.
Why is that we all seem to be staring at the barrel whats going wrong with this race and this era ?
The Kal Yug, ("Age of Kali", "age of vice"), is one of the four stages of development that the world goes through as part of the cycle of Yugas, as described in Hindu scriptures, the others being
- Satya Yuga,
- Treta Yuga
- Dvapara Yuga.
Kali Yuga is associated with the apocalypse demon Kali, not be confused with the goddess Kālī, as these are unrelated words in the Sanskrit language. The "Kali" of Kali Yuga means "strife, discord, quarrel, or contention."
Todays world is a true reflection of all these. People might claim that the world is more orderly and less chaoitic than it was for many many years back. Is that true. A few years back wars used to happen in the Battle-fields at the front-lines, now where are those battle-lines. War, fighting continue on there rampage in their own back-yards for many many unfortunate familes. Poeple in civilised world and developed economies like the 3 monkeys know nothing. Civil-wars rampage many African countries threatening the once Land of Gods to extinction. The countries which are rich in natural heritage are robbed and stripped naked-off their natural resources and treasurs under the name of globalisation, world economy, world trade leaving the local population discplaced and cluessless. Countries like India, China which are supposed to be the cultural epicenters among the world Civilisations are falling apart from their cultural heritage which they are proud-off on similar lines of an Aztec or similar native American tribes whose culture went extinct with arrival of explorers and colonies.
World today is becoming smaller and getting well connected. But the dangers attached to this are also becoming much clearer, easy access of information, easy exhange of cultures, ideas and thoughts. It sounds good doesn't it but what we don't realise is we are slowly but surely leading to an erosion of our core values and traditions. Many today if asked how is culture different from tradition would have no answer, in the same way a few years from now difference between different cultures would be lost.
Clear and present Danger
Balance of Power -
Every era, every period of time the polical certainity or the uncertainity lies on the balance of power that plays around in the environment. As for the Newton's law "For every action there would be an equal and an opposite recation". Never in the world there was a time that this didn't happen and when it doesn't happen it reminds of a silence before the storm. And always competition is always good. Even God has Competition doesn't he Satan in Christianity, Rakhasas in Hinduism right. Its important for this balance of power to exist, else the void left behind would be soon be claimed by elements of Greed and opportunists. Take the instance of end of Cold War, with no power play in existence, US might is exhibited everywhere. Afghanistan, Iraq and what all to follow ?? Vietnam, Korea, Central America have all been in wars and after end of it they still recovering.
Afganistan today after 2001-2002 outbust of Taliban is a hot-bed of Drug and Narcotic trade. One-third of the world Poppy plantation are illegally cultivated here to create Heroin, Cocainne and supply to the rest of the world. On exit of Russian, and takeover of Taliban, the Cocainne production was contained to a large extent due to the hardcore religious fundamentalism of Taliban, which in some way was good for the Taliban. But after the Taliban where thrown out they now have resorted to Cocainne trade to fund their activities and sustain themselves. Narcotics are in high demand in Western countries, and thats what they wanted to destroy using the new found weapon. The trade routes are through the Irag, Pakistan, to Africa, Mexico and few former Soviet countries. The cases of drug abuse have been on a rise and set to consume atleast half of the young Western population in the next Decade if situation doesn't improve.
As this wasn't sufficient slowly but surely the developing economies are falling a prey to the same mistakes the Western ecomies have made, Drug abuse in countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, India is also on a steep rise. Unlike the western economies its the man on the street who are getting ot lay their hands on these dangerous substances.
Cocainne, Heroin might not be the only drugs around a new cheap and more powerful (dangerous) Meth(methamphetamine - chemical used in pharma products) is on prowl. Discovered in Japan for many years it had no use till it was pressed into millitary service to keep its soldiers awake and high on energy continously for long hours. Its widely used during the Japanese kamikaze suicidal attacks. Its currently used by lots of labourers and sex workers in Thailand and is commonly known as Yaba there. Meth is more scenical and leads to more fatalities due to sheer presence and availability on the streets. Its effect last longer and kick stronger than that of Coke, sometimes atleast 10 times of that. A person stays high for more than12 hrs on the usage of the substance. The chemical compound clones the naturally occuring chemical in the brains nerve endings called the dopamine, this replicate compound increases the nerve firings by atleast 10 times, giving a high and feeling of high energy flow for prolonged period of time. Even more dangerous is the free availability and production of this in a backyard using few indegenious things and some headache medicines.
Hunger for high, hunger to reach to state of extreme senses, that people get into destroys the very being in humans the Spirit. The Spirit of life of people who get into this addiction are lost. People are stripped off everything they ever had. This for many looks like a true triumph of Satan(atleast on the way) for its going to get its Souls to take control of and rule the world. Narcotics, drugs and substance abuse is a bigger and know evil we all need to unite against and fight. There is no stopping on count of many brothers, sisters, sons and daughters of men are lost, how many lives get effected down the value chain right from the farmer and his family who makes the living on Poppy alone to the middleman who assumes risk of smuggling in the material and the underworld criminals who combines with a friendly neighbourhood boy to supply his material on the streets, schools, colleges and clubs round the world. As syndicate grows, it feeds innuberable branches of the value chain making it harder and harder to set loose and destroy this tree.
Another recreational drug, LSD has remained popular among certain segments of society. Traditionally, it has been popular with high school and college students and other young adults. LSD also has been integral to the lifestyle of many individuals who follow certain rock music bands. Code named Acid, its availability and popularity is on rise in India too.
In a few Eurpoean countries, legal drug usage centres have been made available where hygenic facilites, needles are provided and medical assistance made available to curtail and keep track fo drug overdosage which potentially could lead to death. These Euporean countries neither have money nor resources to contain the trade and illicit usage of the narcotics, leading to legalising the usage and avoid the backlash of its citizens incase of failure of the enforcement agencies.
Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are increasingly sucking our children into a black hole of addiction. For those who don’t know, pseudoephedrine is the decongestant commonly found in many cold medicines such as Sudafed and Nyquil. It is also a key ingredient used to make methamphetamine(Meth), a highly addictive stimulant that has become the No. 1 priority for law enforcement in many American states. While 80 percent of the drug is produced by illegal labs in Mexico and the Central Valley of California, teenagers looking for ways to pay for their addictions, or just to make a quick buck, have been making methamphetamine in home laboratories from the cold medicine, using commonly available ingredients to cook crstal meth.What’s such a powerful drug doing in cold medicine? Manufacturers began using it after other formulations were banned or were found to be dangerous. Ephedrine, a chemically related drug, was commonly found in herbal sports products until 2003 when the FDA banned it. At the time, the supplement industry cried foul because the drug’s cousin was still in cold medicine. Not sure why the FDA thinks pseudoephedrine is any safer, though it does work for many adults. Stricter controls have to be enforced before it snowballs into a bigger evil.
Whatever the drug may be, whatever place of origin might be, legal or illegal the narcotics trade and usage all-over the world is on a rise, and with the pace at which globalisation is happening these drugs will only have new takers, new shores to touch and new trade routes established. Unless this ever flourishing trade is stopped and citizens of the world unite and be responsible to themselves and world we are slowly but surely headed towards self-destruction or the dooms-day scenario. World economies will tumble as more and more of its youth and Gen-X fall victims to this potent drugs, slowly but surely the gloom will engulf the world if not taken care of.
A concious effort worldwide is the only way to bring this down, For sometime its prudent enough to pull down the greed, differences, selfishness among us to fight for a cause, a cause of humanity, a fight to protect ourselves from self-destruction and Judgement day. Things can't be achieved in the four closed walls of a church or long cresent top Minarets of the Mosque, its inside us, its our will to change the world. We need to make an effort to be sensitive to needs of the world. This is a lovely planet and as a responsible inhabitants of this place we need to fulfill our duties lest the back lash of forces of nature would hard and long for us all to repent.
Thanksgiving apart from being an American tradition is the most happening Sales season in the US, where the retailers and consumers across the country and from neighboring countries get into a shopping frenzy.
The retailers make about 20% of the revenue over the Thanksgiving weekend sales which typically lasts 4 days.
