RIGHT AND CORRECT
I am a college going student, here in India.
Citing history as evidence, people have always stood up and taken sides for what they thought was “correct”, and those who took a stand changed the world. Take it, the French Revolution, the Renaissance, iconoclastic people have stood up and foment revolutions.
Albert Einstein once said “A man who stands for nothing , falls for anything”, clearly mentioning that each person has to have a stand on something, that is what makes him take a side , give purpose to his actions, dedicate his actions to something he feels passionate about. A man with a stand always has a answer, has a defense to his actions, has a voice. A man with a stand knows himself fully and bears responsibility, for himself.
But a man without a stand, he falls for anything. He gets manipulated by anything, his actions don't seem to make sense to himself. He cannot answer what he thinks, because he cannot think and thus remains as a mere pawn and makes himself vulnerable to being controlled by others. Say a man who is impassive on a major social issue, may turn out to be controlled by a side which is more powerful.
But we, who take a stand against existing norms are CORRECT, but not RIGHT. Being right and being correct are two different things.
You are RIGHT if your thoughts are acceptable to everyone, however flawed they may seem, but they are acceptable to the ideology of the mob, because let us face the truth, the mob does not want to change. You want to blend in, get approbation of others, be RIGHT in your thoughts. Talk sweet, never talk against the conventions, respect the person that everyone respects and do not critically think. You do not ask questions and you certainly do not break
conventions. You do not go voicing against a “respected person” whose authenticity may or may not be questionable. You fear what other fear, you do what others do, you accept what is generally accepted , you talk sweet, you blend in to the environment. This is how you are RIGHT.
But people who are CORRECT, they have done a mistake being correct. People who fall into this category unfortunately ask questions which are taboo and which spoil the mob's mood, do not fit among the public. Yes, we are eschewed for our questions, but we take a stand on our questions. We are the people seeking answers to our questions, because maybe we took a side. We do not respect the person we are told to respect, in fact we skeptically analyze that person. We do not accept what is told to us, and have the audacity to question.
But people who are CORRECT, many times face the heat, humiliation and risks. Socially excluded, they are adamant for their answers. But these are the people who take a stand.
People who take a stand deserve credit, as they are the ones who shape a society. They are the ones who will stand up and take the pains to face the peril, they are the ones who take the arrow, because they are the ones who stand in the battlefield of ideologies. The people who take a stand ask questions and defy boundries, for revolutions and changing times.
We don't need people who are RIGHT, we need more people who are CORRECT. We need more people who critically think, point out flaws, question conventions, and exercise their rights as a dutiful citizen. We need more people who can stand up for wrong, even if that notion of wrong is not same for everyone. We do not need any more entrepreneurs now, but more people to keep a check on them. If you can see, scientists, professors of higher stature have more or less been correct. They do not generally fall under the influence of propaganda
of large organizations as they have a thinking of their own.
But do you want to be CORRECT? Maybe. If you are too self-centric, you want to focus on your success, you become RIGHT. But remember, however RIGHT you may be, however “popular”, or “acceptable” you may be, you are never CORRECT. If you are just RIGHT, you stand nowhere ideologically in front of a person who is correct. Remember, people who are just RIGHT, they talk what appeases the crowd, not what pisses them off. You may never talk your heart, because you may get socially excluded, but you never get to make the choice
you want, you never on the correct side.
And do not be completely CORRECT either, after all social exclusion is not a nice
punishment. However CORRECT you maybe, the mob brands and stereotypes you with unpleasant things, as you question them, you break the status quo. When you break the status quo, you halt. Maybe all the opportunities that should have been yours, all those friends and recommendations that you deserved are rejected for you. But being correct, you always know on your conscience that you are on the right side. Side you believe in. Yes, you have taken a stand, and therefore have a meaning in your action. Ideologically, you become
“respectable”.
For our society to become more robust, free thinking, we need more people who are CORRECT. The choice is yours, either to blend in, for your sake, or to question, for propriety's sake.
By :
A college going student. Here in India.
I am a college going student, here in India.
Citing history as evidence, people have always stood up and taken sides for what they thought was “correct”, and those who took a stand changed the world. Take it, the French Revolution, the Renaissance, iconoclastic people have stood up and foment revolutions.
Albert Einstein once said “A man who stands for nothing , falls for anything”, clearly mentioning that each person has to have a stand on something, that is what makes him take a side , give purpose to his actions, dedicate his actions to something he feels passionate about. A man with a stand always has a answer, has a defense to his actions, has a voice. A man with a stand knows himself fully and bears responsibility, for himself.
But a man without a stand, he falls for anything. He gets manipulated by anything, his actions don't seem to make sense to himself. He cannot answer what he thinks, because he cannot think and thus remains as a mere pawn and makes himself vulnerable to being controlled by others. Say a man who is impassive on a major social issue, may turn out to be controlled by a side which is more powerful.
But we, who take a stand against existing norms are CORRECT, but not RIGHT. Being right and being correct are two different things.
You are RIGHT if your thoughts are acceptable to everyone, however flawed they may seem, but they are acceptable to the ideology of the mob, because let us face the truth, the mob does not want to change. You want to blend in, get approbation of others, be RIGHT in your thoughts. Talk sweet, never talk against the conventions, respect the person that everyone respects and do not critically think. You do not ask questions and you certainly do not break
conventions. You do not go voicing against a “respected person” whose authenticity may or may not be questionable. You fear what other fear, you do what others do, you accept what is generally accepted , you talk sweet, you blend in to the environment. This is how you are RIGHT.
But people who are CORRECT, they have done a mistake being correct. People who fall into this category unfortunately ask questions which are taboo and which spoil the mob's mood, do not fit among the public. Yes, we are eschewed for our questions, but we take a stand on our questions. We are the people seeking answers to our questions, because maybe we took a side. We do not respect the person we are told to respect, in fact we skeptically analyze that person. We do not accept what is told to us, and have the audacity to question.
But people who are CORRECT, many times face the heat, humiliation and risks. Socially excluded, they are adamant for their answers. But these are the people who take a stand.
People who take a stand deserve credit, as they are the ones who shape a society. They are the ones who will stand up and take the pains to face the peril, they are the ones who take the arrow, because they are the ones who stand in the battlefield of ideologies. The people who take a stand ask questions and defy boundries, for revolutions and changing times.
We don't need people who are RIGHT, we need more people who are CORRECT. We need more people who critically think, point out flaws, question conventions, and exercise their rights as a dutiful citizen. We need more people who can stand up for wrong, even if that notion of wrong is not same for everyone. We do not need any more entrepreneurs now, but more people to keep a check on them. If you can see, scientists, professors of higher stature have more or less been correct. They do not generally fall under the influence of propaganda
of large organizations as they have a thinking of their own.
But do you want to be CORRECT? Maybe. If you are too self-centric, you want to focus on your success, you become RIGHT. But remember, however RIGHT you may be, however “popular”, or “acceptable” you may be, you are never CORRECT. If you are just RIGHT, you stand nowhere ideologically in front of a person who is correct. Remember, people who are just RIGHT, they talk what appeases the crowd, not what pisses them off. You may never talk your heart, because you may get socially excluded, but you never get to make the choice
you want, you never on the correct side.
And do not be completely CORRECT either, after all social exclusion is not a nice
punishment. However CORRECT you maybe, the mob brands and stereotypes you with unpleasant things, as you question them, you break the status quo. When you break the status quo, you halt. Maybe all the opportunities that should have been yours, all those friends and recommendations that you deserved are rejected for you. But being correct, you always know on your conscience that you are on the right side. Side you believe in. Yes, you have taken a stand, and therefore have a meaning in your action. Ideologically, you become
“respectable”.
For our society to become more robust, free thinking, we need more people who are CORRECT. The choice is yours, either to blend in, for your sake, or to question, for propriety's sake.
By :
A college going student. Here in India.
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