How to set an example

English is now a problem for the men currently in charge of managing India It is an evil language apparently and one that must be exorcised from textbooks across the land so more suitable languages can take its place We dont know what these languages are but they will undoubtedly figure it out eventuallyParents must accept this without question and force their children to comply because this fabulous new idea has come from the minds of some of the most brilliant people ever to walk the Earth These people may not have won Nobel Prizes and most of them may never have darkened the doors of any institute of learning either but they have Indias best interests at heart which ultimately is all that matters Its weird how all their children continue to study in English though and how so many of them have mysteriously managed to raise enough money to send their offspring to the Big Bad West where everything and everyone is an enemy of IndiaTake a few minutes to figure out where the children of all our political leaders study and what they study before comparing that information with what they keep telling the rest of us at every opportunity Everything that is supposedly good for us is never quite the same for people doling out that advice We must make sacrifices forget about offering our children access to an education that matters while they can do the exact opposite because no one wants to call them outLook at how they dealt with COVID19 too the minute it managed to get past lax security measures and into their airconditioned cabins We were asked to fight it with yoga and Ayurveda or with drinks made of turmeric and honey while they promptly checked into private hospitals and begged doctors for medicine from the West Naturally none of them was turned away for a lack of hospital beds eitherOur bizarre VIP culture has long been a problem but its surprising how little things change I think about those jokes that crop up like clockwork whenever a politician turns up somewhere in India prompting hasty makeovers and clean streets that are otherwise allowed to sink into decrepitude for the rest of the year Hope they visit again so we get a new pavement everyone laughs even though the joke is on us Our own taxes arent used to offer us better services unless an elected representative condescends to turn up and all we can do is shrugWhat politicians need to do is put their illgotten money where their mouths are and show us that they have faith in the things they want us to believe in If they want us to fight a pandemic by beating utensils thats what they should do on television when the virus attacks them If they want us to trust public healthcare those are the hospitals they should visit themselves instead of flying to the West for treatment If they want us to uninstall Chinese apps and stop buying goods made in that country they must tell us why they continue to accept funding from the Chinese for their own pet projects And if they want our children to give up on the English language they should admit their own children to a Sanskritmedium institution first assuming they even existIt may seem trivial to try and put a stop to our servility and pander to the delusion that politicians are important people with weighty issues on their mind The reality is more prosaic given that it is increasingly the dumbest and most morally bankrupt among us who gravitate to a life in Parliament If these people are important why are the rest of us comfortable with being unimportantIt will be interesting to see what happens as more ministers succumb to a virus that doesnt distinguish between rich or poor VIP or servant We should also call out those who have separate rules for us and themselves because it is only by shaming them in public that we may hope for some measure of changeI am not optimistic about this obviously Nothing this entrenched will change overnight given how easily we turn over and allow our rights to be trampled by people who shout louder than the rest of us Maybe I shouldnt be surprised by any of these incidents either This is India we are discussing after all a land where all standards have always been double standardsWhen he isnt ranting about all things Mumbai Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet He tweets lindsaypereiraSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individuals and dont represent those of the paperKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news