Where Are We Heading

Where are we going wrong as a society when 8 year olds plan to stab their teacher without realizing the effects or the enormity of their plan?

In another case, 16 year olds, in a pre meditated plan, attack a fellow school student so that they can upload a video of it on a popular video sharing site. (Video Here)

Instead of bully-like behaviour, these are cases of mob mentality. Earlier, we saw this behaviour during wars, riots, unrest or a similar situation but not where children or youngsters were involved.

Now in a changing world, we are seeing cases, unusual scenarios where slightest of provocation are triggering off events. These are alarming cases of herd mentality, cases of assumed power over the victim and with no signs of remorse.

It’s a very scary place to be right now. As we become developed, are these indicators of eroding human values? Or are these societal issues of the developed world? Or there are deeper reflections of images influenced by the media? Whatever the answer may be, as a society, we need to check such behavioral indicators.

Because, I think, it won’t take long for others to replicate it. Like school shootings in US, incidents like Gurgaon school shoot out have started to haunt India. Is this the future staring at us?

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Cross posted at C-Splash (a citizen journalism initiative)

Indian Students Unsafe in US?

According to a survey, 53% of all students in US universities are of Asian origin. Out of which about 80,000 are Indian students and there has been a gradual increase in the figures since the last decade.

Recent news reports seem to indicate that an increasing number of Indian students are becoming targets of violent crimes in a country which was touted to be a safe haven. Why is this happening?

Dr Akkaldelvi Srinivas is the latest to join the list. In fact, he is the fourth Indian student to meet a violent end in the US in the past three months. Isn’t that alarming?

Is it a systematic hate wave? Are people feeling threatened of Indian taking their jobs? Is it the recession? Why are South East Asians not targeted?

Sitting in the other side of the world I can’t analyze or understand this. My blog seems to get a lot of hits from the US. Can anyone shed some light on what they feel? Why are Indian students becoming targets of crimes?