A few weeks ago during the ongoing US Presidential election campaign, President Barack Obama made a speech where he controversially used the words "You didn't build that" in reference to how individual wealth creation is dependent on social institutions and structures. The soundbites of the speech were relayed on the news networks and on the internet (below):
The immediate para of the "You didn't build that" part of the speech was:
"If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some
help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody
helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that
allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If
you’ve got a business -- you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that
happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own. Government
research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money
off the Internet."
-US President Barack Obama
Something about this speech felt familiar. Deja vu perhaps? Then the speech faded from memory.
During this morning's journey to work, I heard words that brought this speech back to mind. I was listening to one of my brother's music CDs when an old telugu song came on. This song too talks of the futility of self-absorption and calls for the realization of the organic nature of human existence within the social framework. The song was from the telugu movie "Rudraveena" called "Chuttu Pakkala Choodara Chinnavada" ("Look Around Little One") written by Sirivennela Sitaramasastri.
The last stanza of the song roughly translates to:
Every grain you eat, was produced by this community
The life in which you take pride, was shaped by this society
When the time comes to repay your debt, are you fleeing?
Will you burn the boat, after you've crossed the stream?
Both the song and the speech have a socialist tone. In the song this message is contrasted against a mystical and spiritual understanding of human existence. While the same message is used by Obama to counter an existential interpretation of free-market individualism. Put together, these interpretation have sought to project socialism as a beacon to refute both the atheistic & worldly as well as the religious & other-worldly interpretations of human existence.
But in this effort to glorify socialism in poetry and prose, one aspect that remains unanswered is the extent to which collectivism is an end as opposed to it merely being the means. This element of vanity within socialism was captured by the comedian John Foster Hall in his often quoted pithy one-liner:
"We are all here on earth to help others;
what on earth the others are here for, I don’t know"
- John Foster Hall
Links:
3 comments:
Hats off for brining two drastically different but similar DNA items together, it was g8 read..enjoyed.
Glad you liked it...as that man said...we are here to help others...
Thank you for sharing the link.
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