Public Accountability
“Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth and sooner or later that debt is paid”- Valery Legasov (Chernobyl Miniseries).
We are in the most chaotic period of this century and one of the most chaotic in over the last 100 years. Not since the World Wars have we seen panic grip countries and communities like this throughout the world. However, It feels like public accountability is at its lowest in the past decade. Every wrong turn taken, every wrong move made by society has been blamed on the incompetence of our governments. Some of them rightly so. But we will not move forward unless we hold ourselves accountable for the mistakes we have made.
Not the governments, not the politicians and the rich who live their life in luxury, not our neighbors or our families but ourselves. Unless we are humble enough to accept that we have made mistakes and unless we realize we are living in broken societies and broken communities- we cannot move forward. Some of these wrongdoings were our fault. One cannot blame the Government or whoever people want to blame for an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases if they do not wear a mask. Over the last 100 years- there have been several scientific and social breakthroughs that made life for all of us easier. However, We still vote politicians into power based on race, religion, and color.
This brings to my point- Our political process. Many countries throughout the world are democracies but there is something broken with that political process and in my opinion, it is not the politicians. The problem lies with the people who vote them into power. Many of us vote with malicious intent and as soon as the election is over, we spend our time criticizing the other side over and over until the disagreement over policy becomes hatred for the other side. These emotions of hatred, anger, and malicious dislike prevent us from being open-minded about how the region is run and prevents us from constructively criticizing the side we voted for. We cover up the failures of the side we supported and voted for with petty reasoning and lies. Recognizing a problem and a failing of our doing is the 1st step in the road to recovery. Political debates are a microcosm of everything wrong with society right now.
I don’t know when was the last time I saw a government or a politician hold their hands up and say they were wrong. Similarly, The people who are involved in the democratic process reflect this phenomenon. This broken process has been visible all over the world in the last year because of the COVID 19 Pandemic. Our malicious and impure intent of support to one side has proven our downfall. Our selective outrage on many social issues and constant noise about other’s downfalls and limitations restricted us in our battle to effectively tackle the virus. It is about time we introspect and take accountability for our actions. Because, Unless we do not realize our failings and mistakes- we won’t be able to implement effective policy to tackle issues such as racism and climate change. I know this statement sounds like a cliche but we are at a critical juncture. I see this as a human problem rather than a purely political one.
I hope I will be proven wrong in the near future but this pandemic has shown that we are too arrogant in nature and not humble enough in our approach to many walks of life. We cannot let our egos get in the way of our recovery to a better planet. Many of us feel there is only one way to solve all our issues and this causes a divide. This divide turns toxic instantly and essentially prevents us from making real progress. Society as a whole needs to be more open-minded. Valery Legasov in the miniseries “Chernobyl” perfectly mouths a dialogue that everyone can relate to in our current situation. (Anyone who has not watched “Chernobyl”- Please do!).
“What is the cost of lies?”- “It’s not that we’ll mistake them for the truth. The real danger is that if we hear enough lies, we no longer recognize the truth at all. What can we do then? What else is left but to abandon the hope of truth and content ourselves instead with stories. In these stories, it doesn’t matter who the heroes are. All we want to know is- Who is to blame”.
Through the chaos (which the Joker in “The Dark Knight” tells us is “fair”) of quarantine, lockdowns, vaccinations, elections, and isolation- a far more dangerous poison has formed. Unless we are humble enough to accept our failings and rectify them- I fear our fate leads us on a path to a disaster that sends a shiver down the spine just like what happened in the 1980s in Chernobyl.