The issue of liquor prohibition is not a question of debate anymore. No matter what they say and regardless of the Act being lifted or not, Alcohol’s definitely here to stay.
So why don’t we just lift it for the convenience of all drinkers and settle it?
Because ‘drinking’ doesn’t necessarily make you a bad person and ‘not drinking’ also doesn’t necessarily make you a good person.
And if drinking and not drinking is also about our religion then for me, faith is also a personal choice. It’s as personal as deciding how you’d like to live your life or making a choice between good and bad.
However, if we are adamantly concerned about the ills of the society and think we can erase it by prohibition, why especially liquor? Why not the other 101 ills polluting our society everyday?
How about corruption? How about checking briberies and back door appointments that deprive the deserving candidates of their place and position? How about making an act on recommendations? How about prohibiting letters from big shots that make it an easy entrance for undeserving candidates?
How about equality? How about rooting out partiality and favoritism? How about freedom of choice as freedom of expression? How about education? How about advocating healthy living and teaching our children which roads lead to it?
How about banning TV Channels? How about safeguarding the welfare of innocent children from getting too exposed in the world of technology? How about the issue of tobacco consumption? How about sanitation or the threats of pollution? How about environment? How about saving our world, our future and our children?
How about the illegal transactions of money taking place everyday, literally? How about the booming black market? How about rape, extortion, robbery? Does it really mean those involved in such crimes actually commit it under the influence of alcohol?
I’m not advocating its use by any means but why only alcohol if we are seriously worried about the increasing societal crimes? If we think, all the social evils are taking place because of alcohol consumption then we are very badly mistaken because there are issues far more important and threatening than what alcohol does.
In any case, the flow of liquor is never going to stop. No matter what, it will continue to flow in whatever way, whether we like it or not.
But one may also wonder, lift it and then what? Have an even more chaotic society?
Maybe we’ll have hyper-excited crazy youngsters and drinkers hogging wine stores, shelling out money, perhaps even drink like there’s no tomorrow for a short while (like they’re still doing when they go out in the cities and go wild with craziness at the sight of open stores at too good prices).
But the excitement will die down at some point of time and we’ll get used to open wine stores. At least we can be sure they’re consuming something better than what used to be.
For whatever it takes, drinkers will always be drinkers, unless of course he/she decides to quit it by will and determination. How else are we talking about a ‘dry state’ when alcohol is the easiest consumable thing available in the state? And that too, in abundance?
Somebody who drinks will always, always find a way.
And as much as I hate to bring in talks about Christianity here, it, being the core issue of prohibition, it’s also sad to note, we pride ourselves in being one of the very few states in the country with more than 90% Christians but where is the end result? My guess is that many percentage of Nagas could be alcohol consumers whether everyday or occasionally.
Somewhere down the line, Christianity has become something that many of us blindly follow simply because our parents and their parents follow but then, just because one is born in a Christian family does not make him/her a Christian or does it? At the end of the day, it’s not so much about displaying your faith but it’s between you and God. Right down Personal!
But, if we are really concerned about the morality of our society, then why don’t we begin from our homes? Why don’t we teach our children what it means to believe or what it means to have faith? Why don’t we practically show them the kind of human being we ought to be by living itself? Why don’t we allow them to learn from the way we lead our everyday lives? Why don’t we send them to Sunday schools, to Church, to places of worship and also see to it that whatever they learn, they also practice? Or at least teach them what’s right and wrong, just so that their conscience is always there to prick them when they make choices in life, whatever that may be?
If prohibition is only about maintaining the prestige of being a Christian state more than personal conviction and faith, then we’ve failed miserably. Actually either way, we’ve made total fools of ourselves.
That world of imagination may seem pretty fascinating. There, we can lie to ourselves, to everybody and pretend to be somebody else or live a life of sham. Nobody cares and no one can really stop us but it’s just dream, dream, dream and a little short of reality.
We’ve got to wake up to the real world and start being practical or being ourselves to be precise. Because, at the end of the day, that’s what really matters, and not the figments of imagination we carry around in our minds.
“Reality” is serious stuff and we cannot afford to show an indifferent attitude to what goes around in actuality. The bottom-line is clear. It’s only left for the authority to decide now…They have the final say but it’s hard to tell what’s holding them back.
So why don’t we just lift it for the convenience of all drinkers and settle it?
Because ‘drinking’ doesn’t necessarily make you a bad person and ‘not drinking’ also doesn’t necessarily make you a good person.
And if drinking and not drinking is also about our religion then for me, faith is also a personal choice. It’s as personal as deciding how you’d like to live your life or making a choice between good and bad.
However, if we are adamantly concerned about the ills of the society and think we can erase it by prohibition, why especially liquor? Why not the other 101 ills polluting our society everyday?
How about corruption? How about checking briberies and back door appointments that deprive the deserving candidates of their place and position? How about making an act on recommendations? How about prohibiting letters from big shots that make it an easy entrance for undeserving candidates?
How about equality? How about rooting out partiality and favoritism? How about freedom of choice as freedom of expression? How about education? How about advocating healthy living and teaching our children which roads lead to it?
How about banning TV Channels? How about safeguarding the welfare of innocent children from getting too exposed in the world of technology? How about the issue of tobacco consumption? How about sanitation or the threats of pollution? How about environment? How about saving our world, our future and our children?
How about the illegal transactions of money taking place everyday, literally? How about the booming black market? How about rape, extortion, robbery? Does it really mean those involved in such crimes actually commit it under the influence of alcohol?
I’m not advocating its use by any means but why only alcohol if we are seriously worried about the increasing societal crimes? If we think, all the social evils are taking place because of alcohol consumption then we are very badly mistaken because there are issues far more important and threatening than what alcohol does.
In any case, the flow of liquor is never going to stop. No matter what, it will continue to flow in whatever way, whether we like it or not.
But one may also wonder, lift it and then what? Have an even more chaotic society?
Maybe we’ll have hyper-excited crazy youngsters and drinkers hogging wine stores, shelling out money, perhaps even drink like there’s no tomorrow for a short while (like they’re still doing when they go out in the cities and go wild with craziness at the sight of open stores at too good prices).
But the excitement will die down at some point of time and we’ll get used to open wine stores. At least we can be sure they’re consuming something better than what used to be.
For whatever it takes, drinkers will always be drinkers, unless of course he/she decides to quit it by will and determination. How else are we talking about a ‘dry state’ when alcohol is the easiest consumable thing available in the state? And that too, in abundance?
Somebody who drinks will always, always find a way.
And as much as I hate to bring in talks about Christianity here, it, being the core issue of prohibition, it’s also sad to note, we pride ourselves in being one of the very few states in the country with more than 90% Christians but where is the end result? My guess is that many percentage of Nagas could be alcohol consumers whether everyday or occasionally.
Somewhere down the line, Christianity has become something that many of us blindly follow simply because our parents and their parents follow but then, just because one is born in a Christian family does not make him/her a Christian or does it? At the end of the day, it’s not so much about displaying your faith but it’s between you and God. Right down Personal!
But, if we are really concerned about the morality of our society, then why don’t we begin from our homes? Why don’t we teach our children what it means to believe or what it means to have faith? Why don’t we practically show them the kind of human being we ought to be by living itself? Why don’t we allow them to learn from the way we lead our everyday lives? Why don’t we send them to Sunday schools, to Church, to places of worship and also see to it that whatever they learn, they also practice? Or at least teach them what’s right and wrong, just so that their conscience is always there to prick them when they make choices in life, whatever that may be?
If prohibition is only about maintaining the prestige of being a Christian state more than personal conviction and faith, then we’ve failed miserably. Actually either way, we’ve made total fools of ourselves.
That world of imagination may seem pretty fascinating. There, we can lie to ourselves, to everybody and pretend to be somebody else or live a life of sham. Nobody cares and no one can really stop us but it’s just dream, dream, dream and a little short of reality.
We’ve got to wake up to the real world and start being practical or being ourselves to be precise. Because, at the end of the day, that’s what really matters, and not the figments of imagination we carry around in our minds.
“Reality” is serious stuff and we cannot afford to show an indifferent attitude to what goes around in actuality. The bottom-line is clear. It’s only left for the authority to decide now…They have the final say but it’s hard to tell what’s holding them back.
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