Politicians and Politics

"Politics is the last refuge of the scoundrels". Whoever coined this phrase is not very far away from the truth. Though it is not fair to tar everybody by the same brush, still the majority of them do qualify.

By their acts of commission and omission, these worthies are unfortunately the ones who frame laws which us lesser mortals have to follow. Never mind that the laws they make are not followed by themselves.They are a law unto themselves and care very little for others.

Any country in the world is not spared of the misery of these people. So much so any form of Government, be it a Democracy, a Dictatorship, a Monarchy or any other type, they all have these people. Yes the affect they have varies, but the end result remains the same.

Has any politician ever made it to any function on time? As far as memory goes, never. They are all busy working for the common good, so their schedules go for a toss.The hapless invitees, have to twiddle their thumbs and wait endlessly for their Honorable so-and-so to make an appearance.

With traffic held up to allow them to pass, as their time is valuable and yours is not. Poor man/woman has extremely no time to be held up in traffic snarls, which you and I have to endure everyday.

A huge phalanx of security personnel guard them all the time making them inaccessible to the common man.The leader has to be protected from the lumpen as their lives are very precious. So much so in India there are a minimum of ten police personnel guarding one Dignitary, whereas there is one cop for about more than a 1000 common citizenry. In case of a blast or some terrorist activity the people killed are those on the streets.What a skewed ratio.

All these people join Politics to serve the people.But they end up serving themselves. At least in a Democracy, we can get rid of one crop to give another guy a chance. Everybody has to have an opportunity to misrule. That is the beauty of this system called democracy.

In other forms of Government, we have to endure the same person/s till eternity. There is no redemption. Because any dissent is treated as treason and the harshest punishment meted out to the dissenter. Case in point is one of the Asian countries where a senior politician was executed.

How many of the rulers/lawmakers have not indulged in corruption, debauchery, violence and all the other negatives one can think about.Each and almost all politicians have made it up the power ladder, by trampling on others. When rulers of some countries think they are slipping, they embark on adventurous Wars and conflicts, all to bolster their seats.

During their tenure,many of them amass huge fortunes that cannot even be imagined by a commoner.Their personal fortunes rise by 400 -500%.All this while serving the country.There are instance of many of these politicians selling away the assets of the country to the highest bidder.More money to line their pockets and enjoy the Lifestyle of Billionaires, with mansions in some exotic place, huge estates, yachts, airplanes and others.

The leader of a country faces charges of sexual abuse with a minor, another,of eliminating his rivals one by one. In the African countries everyone is at war, everyone killing everybody else.The ordinary residents have no food or water, yet the Militias are equipped with the latest weapons and heavy military machinery.They keep going on their killing spree, spreading hatred,their leader's firmly encosed in plush accommodation and enjoying all the luxuries of life. The wife of one of the leaders in an Asian democracy had around 3000 pairs of shoes and an unimaginable number of dresses.

There is a case of an American politician, holding up traffic on a bridge just to spite a rival. The ordinary citizen be dammed. Put up with me because you elected me in the first place, is the refrain. True, we get the government we elect in a democracy.

A lot of services were shut because of the showdown between the ruling and opposition parties in the US of A. In a clear case of oneupmanship, they brought the country almost to the brink. Ultimately the common workers who lost jobs were the ones who suffered. Did anybody even loose a night's sleep over their predicament?

In some Asian countries the citizens are being massacred by their own rulers. Thousands are suffering. Heavy artillery is being used by the ruler against his own people killing them accusing them of being rebels.

In yet another African country, people rose in revolt against the leader and dethroned him. But they were deceived into believing that they had found a solution to their problems.

One of the Superpowers? wages a war against a middle Eastern country accusing it of amassing weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found but their leader was killed and the country reduced to anarchy. All in the name of rescuing the people from a Tyrant. Even today Death and Destruction takes place here everyday. So much for their intervention.

Politicians are a necessary evil. Whatever the drawbacks, there are some who are good and have some respectability. The concept of Patriotism, Common Good, respecting the sentiments of the underprivileged still strikes a cord in them.

Great names like the late Mr. Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Martin Luther King and many others, raised hopes. But they have all passed into history leaving their legacies behind.

Can any modern day politician even come close to the ideals these greats upheld? The answer is a resounding NO. Today it is all about Money and Power. More money to get more power. More power to misuse, to misgovern and cause suffering.

Gandhi and Nelson Mandela two great leaders of our times. They battled all odds and emerged victorious.