Editor's Pick

Clout of money

8 October 2006, 18:00 PM
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Aronno Rahman, Shantinagar
When I asked an American shopkeeper in New York a few years back, “Where is Baghdad, the depot (!) of weapons of mass destruction?”, he was looking at me in a strange way but answered me as usual with American confidence-- “possibly in Africa”. I could not laugh even, as it is not his job to learn geography besides earning money. But I recollected one of my uncle's story a few years back when he went to his village for travelling. In the dusk he was sitting on a bench in a roadside small teashop. Some farmers came there to have a cup of tea. All on a sudden he heard the conversation of those bare shirt, muddy-footed persons“Bush shouldn't do it”. When my brother used to stay in Moscow during the Soviet era, he used to see people reading books in bus stations, cafes, parks etc. Now the same city is full of black money and restlessness.

Now people have started thinking of life in a narrow spectrum. To do the job for his means and then to look for crude enjoyment is the easiest way to pass time without burning your brain for knowledge. But one thing the West had was the ability to depute the real knowledgeable persons in their respective fields. That's why they are maintaining the pace of development.

Now come to us. In my childhood I used to feel the pulse of the general people towards me a bit differently as I, fortunately, was the son of a teacher. Along with my dad, when I used to go to the market, the shopkeepers used to respect him from their hearts. We didn't have enough money. But those businessmen had enough respect and fear. They used to feel that unfortunately they didn't have that education. The respect for an educated man means respect for education. But those days are gone by -- money decides everything today.

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Now I can only pray for some miracle to happen and change our society.

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