apathy

There is a part of me that sometimes feels I have a limited right to anger; to rail against 'the system', 'politicians', 'leaders'. Occasionally the guilt of non involvement rears its head- if I don't do anything, say anything, participate in anything, how much of a right do I have to expect and demand?
Today I am sickened by some of the unabashed political opportunism I see in the wake of the Mumbai attacks. What was the BJP doing about preventing extremist crime in the previous decade? They were busy laying the seeds for violence through their divisive politics. Yet today they could well come to power based largely on their projected ability to tackle ‘terror’.

But this is not a tirade against Advani & Co. Its just a minor outpouring of guilt. Considering I have never (that's right- never) voted, I might as well say I asked for it. I'm a virtual non entity. I'm not being naïve enough to say that politicians will come and go on the preferences of people like me. Nor does this apparent apathy imply a lack of concern or a diluted sense of belonging. But I wonder how I need to step up a bit, feel more like I am putting in attention and effort that deserves something in return.

Till then, I can keep spouting cliches and writing blog posts.