Not just an idiot's box anymore!

Maddela Cheruvu Suri a.k.a Suri got murdered yesterday. It made the front pages in all the telugu newspapers. The news channels are breathless trying to cram in every last bit of information on this story and repeat it all day long. There are bandhs and agitations going on!

Before I get intothat there is another story.

About a year ago, Dr. YSR died and you, I and almost everybody knows the rest of the story. This morning when I saw the paper and saw the TV that Dr. YSR's story seemed to have a different angle to me - YSR died and a year later, the party has split and his son is planning to start on his own**. How did that happen? Simple really. YSR had died in a very unfortunate plane crash. There was a three day long tension and suspense and tragedy on all the channels and (hence) all over the state. Three whole days! Continuously! This has sort of created a mass hysteria. And this mass hysteria led to some very unfortunate deaths. People viewing these channels, have died of a heartbreak! (At least I'd like to think so. I mean, whoever heard of person actually dying of a broken heart? There are far more devastating tragedies and people still managed to live!!) Don’t believe in my mass hysteria theory? I got a real example! One of my uncles is a hard core TDP fan. When they said YSR's plane went missing, he was one of those few who were happy and hoped they wouldn't find it. But in those two days, he cried once and cursed Chandrababu Naidu. I was sure he'll take down the TDP flag in his porch and put a Congress flag instead. If a passionate TDP lover could become like that just by watching TV, what chance would a weak, old Congress fan stand? So they had to have "heartbreaks" and die!**

The number of these deaths rose substantially in a couple of days. Few months down the line, the son, YS Jagan, has started this Odarpu yatra to meet with the families of the deceased. This has led to a conflict in the national party which finally led to a split and Jagan resigning from the party altogether.

**I truly can understand what people went through back then. I’m NOT making fun. I do not mean any disrespect to anyone!

And now this.

You might be thinking this Suri must have been a very important person. Maybe he is, I don't know. Actually, I don't want to know. In spite of the media frenzy, all I see in this news story is that Suri got shot in his head five times by his follower/friend. Also, the "victim" Suri has been in the news and papers for quite some time, because he was also involved in the murder of a political um..leader, Paritala Ravi, and has been in jail for the same. He got released recently and has also announced that he is no more interested in the literally deadly game "faction". Recently a movie has been made based on their story. And there's a sequel to that movie too (Actor Surya played his role in Raktacharitra). In short, a faction-ist died; sadly, after renouncing his ways publicly.

Again, is he really that important in AP politics? It is not rhetoric or even a sarcastic question, I really want to know! Because to me right now, he has inspired a movie (in a good way) and that's it! Other than that, I don't see anything. He is just another person. (Ok not really normal – he has been a convicted murderer and all, but still.) There were three pages in the newspapers filled with the same story, the news anchor wouldn't shut up about him (they're now showing an old interview of his!) and people are getting emotional talking about it! All just because it makes an interesting story. Oh please do correct me if I'm wrong!
It feels like a Déjà vu to me. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone from the family starts a new party or something.

So why am I blogging about this?

I really don't care about the "world". But sometimes the stupid world rubs my face in its atrocities until I notice and when I do notice, I go nuts. This is my way of trying to get me back to my normal state.

And why am I blogging about this?

The poorest, saddest of all are the ones like me - people who don't take sides, and just believe whatever the news anchor says; people who cannot and will not have an opinion of their own; people who are easily manipulated, even by a fictitious character; people that form the “crowd” of the country.

Not crowd, herd! We are the goats that blindly follow the tail of another goat. We’re not even the goats in the front of the herd, the ones in the middle.

We, the common man a.k.a the herd-forming half blind goat of India!

And our one eye is the TV, a.k.a the idiot’s box!!