Writing this post today fills me with embarrassment because this is a task I should have finished about 4 months ago. I will however excuse myself because the last few months have driven me bonkers, just by the sheer load of things that had to be accomplished. Updating my blog was no emergency.
A lot needs to be said about the year that was and a lot of "events" need documenting. I will however begin with something that is easiest and requires early attention. Easy because I simply have to type off a piece of paper and the urgency because that piece of paper is in tatters. No points for guessing, it is yet another debate speech from yet another college fest :D
Although I do not know who suggested the topic for this year's debate, I'm guessing it was the same person who drew the flag of Japan, or the guy who scrawled Nike's logo. Lazy and outright boring.
"Social Media does more harm than good."
*sigh*
How do you even make something like that sound unique and interesting?
My partner (Sana Nayeemunissa aka Nemo) and I (aka Nido) tried our best, even managed to include poetry in the 2 minutes of speaking time!
I'm guessing we weren't altogether boring, because we took home the silver baby! (Why it wasn't gold is a whole different, super annoying story, so I'm going to skip it altogether.)
I spoke for the topic. Here goes:
_________________________________________________________________
The first word my nephew learnt to speak was "mummy."
His second word was "daddy."
His third word however, was "Yuttu."
"Yuttu" was a magical word that made my nephew finish his food without a tantrum and go to bed without a fuss. Needless to say, his parents loved "Yuttu."
"Yuttu" was my one year old nephew's way of saying- Youtube.
(true story)
Our generation is constantly blamed for being too engrossed in out gadgets, but I also see parents who cannot be bothered to spend time with their child, or even talk to him. They simply shove a gaming tab in their hands and get busy with their own mobiles.
It's true, social media does a greater job of raising the children of today.
Also, back in the day, a child bullied at school would at least be safe at home. But today this bullying follows him home in the form of text messages and insulting tweets. Think about it for a while. Does a school-going child really need a phone? Sirs, you and I grew up without one and I think we turned out pretty fine. These are distractions at best and tools of aggression and hostility at worst...because a child who knows how to watch his favourite cartoon online today, will learn how to access pornography tomorrow. No wonder "cyber crime" is such a buzz-word these days.
In fact, children exposed to social media early on in life are found to have much less patience and understanding of the world around them. This transition from "human-beings" to "cyber-zombies" is happening much too fast.
If I had to define the word social media, I'd call it "an adult's glorified toy."
Because let's face it, it makes sounds, it makes you laugh and you feel better when you're online. It is now simply a tool to stroke your own ego.
I have sent out my tweet. Now whether this birdie flies or poops on your head, I don't have a care to spare.
We have the entirety or knowledge known to mankind since the dawn of time at our fingertips, but we use it to talk about pens, apples and pineapples.
The world is changing as you change your display pictures and much of this change is happening OUTSIDE of social media, because let me remind you: Gandhiji's Dandi March was not an event he created on Facebook.
So this is my plea, for my generation and the generations that will follow:
When I was a child, I'd never be home,
I'd be out with my friends, on our bikes we'd roam.
I'd wear holes in my trainer and graze up knees,
or build club-houses high up in the trees.
But now the park is so quiet, it gives me a chill,
No children playing outside, the swings hang still!
There's no skipping, no hopscotch, no church and no steeple,
It's true, we're a generation of idiots- smart phones and dumb people.
So don't give into a life that simply follows the hype,
give people your love, don't give them your "like."
______________________________________________________________
Our team was highly praised by doctors, seniors and juniors alike. The wave of applause and appreciation that followed made up for any chunk of yellow metal we rightfully deserved but didn't get. No complains there!
Just before the debate, I made an impromptu decision to participate in the extempore as well. The topic I got was "Should human beings eat to live or live to eat?"
I know, I know. I spent the entire one minute of my "prep-time" in thinking about what a supernaturally boring topic it was. At the end of the minute when I finally found myself at the podium, I realised I hadn't thought of a single thing to say!
I took a deep breath and decided to go with the flow. I think I ended up with something along these lines:
The very first thing I remember about learning History in elementary school was the story of our ancestors: the cave men. We learnt that men in the ancient past had to hunt to sustain themselves. In order to procure food for his family, man would step out with spears and daggers each day. Yes, back in the day, man fought a battle between life and death in order to find food.
A lot needs to be said about the year that was and a lot of "events" need documenting. I will however begin with something that is easiest and requires early attention. Easy because I simply have to type off a piece of paper and the urgency because that piece of paper is in tatters. No points for guessing, it is yet another debate speech from yet another college fest :D
Although I do not know who suggested the topic for this year's debate, I'm guessing it was the same person who drew the flag of Japan, or the guy who scrawled Nike's logo. Lazy and outright boring.
"Social Media does more harm than good."
*sigh*
How do you even make something like that sound unique and interesting?
My partner (Sana Nayeemunissa aka Nemo) and I (aka Nido) tried our best, even managed to include poetry in the 2 minutes of speaking time!
I'm guessing we weren't altogether boring, because we took home the silver baby! (Why it wasn't gold is a whole different, super annoying story, so I'm going to skip it altogether.)
I spoke for the topic. Here goes:
_________________________________________________________________
The first word my nephew learnt to speak was "mummy."
His second word was "daddy."
His third word however, was "Yuttu."
"Yuttu" was a magical word that made my nephew finish his food without a tantrum and go to bed without a fuss. Needless to say, his parents loved "Yuttu."
"Yuttu" was my one year old nephew's way of saying- Youtube.
(true story)
Our generation is constantly blamed for being too engrossed in out gadgets, but I also see parents who cannot be bothered to spend time with their child, or even talk to him. They simply shove a gaming tab in their hands and get busy with their own mobiles.
It's true, social media does a greater job of raising the children of today.
Also, back in the day, a child bullied at school would at least be safe at home. But today this bullying follows him home in the form of text messages and insulting tweets. Think about it for a while. Does a school-going child really need a phone? Sirs, you and I grew up without one and I think we turned out pretty fine. These are distractions at best and tools of aggression and hostility at worst...because a child who knows how to watch his favourite cartoon online today, will learn how to access pornography tomorrow. No wonder "cyber crime" is such a buzz-word these days.
In fact, children exposed to social media early on in life are found to have much less patience and understanding of the world around them. This transition from "human-beings" to "cyber-zombies" is happening much too fast.
If I had to define the word social media, I'd call it "an adult's glorified toy."
Because let's face it, it makes sounds, it makes you laugh and you feel better when you're online. It is now simply a tool to stroke your own ego.
I have sent out my tweet. Now whether this birdie flies or poops on your head, I don't have a care to spare.
We have the entirety or knowledge known to mankind since the dawn of time at our fingertips, but we use it to talk about pens, apples and pineapples.
The world is changing as you change your display pictures and much of this change is happening OUTSIDE of social media, because let me remind you: Gandhiji's Dandi March was not an event he created on Facebook.
So this is my plea, for my generation and the generations that will follow:
When I was a child, I'd never be home,
I'd be out with my friends, on our bikes we'd roam.
I'd wear holes in my trainer and graze up knees,
or build club-houses high up in the trees.
But now the park is so quiet, it gives me a chill,
No children playing outside, the swings hang still!
There's no skipping, no hopscotch, no church and no steeple,
It's true, we're a generation of idiots- smart phones and dumb people.
So don't give into a life that simply follows the hype,
give people your love, don't give them your "like."
______________________________________________________________
Our team was highly praised by doctors, seniors and juniors alike. The wave of applause and appreciation that followed made up for any chunk of yellow metal we rightfully deserved but didn't get. No complains there!
Just before the debate, I made an impromptu decision to participate in the extempore as well. The topic I got was "Should human beings eat to live or live to eat?"
I know, I know. I spent the entire one minute of my "prep-time" in thinking about what a supernaturally boring topic it was. At the end of the minute when I finally found myself at the podium, I realised I hadn't thought of a single thing to say!
I took a deep breath and decided to go with the flow. I think I ended up with something along these lines:
The very first thing I remember about learning History in elementary school was the story of our ancestors: the cave men. We learnt that men in the ancient past had to hunt to sustain themselves. In order to procure food for his family, man would step out with spears and daggers each day. Yes, back in the day, man fought a battle between life and death in order to find food.
But we evolved over the years. We no longer go hunting to find food, the food comes to our doorstep. Food is no longer considered a basic necessity. It is now looked upon as an art, which is evident from the fact that we have something like the "MasterChef" and "DoctorChef" competitions today.
In conclusion, the idea that man must eat in order to live is passe, primordial even.
Most certainly, the human beings of today, you and I, live to eat, rather than eat to live.
To be honest, I was quite surprised by myself. I hadn't seen that coming until it came. It got me a medal too, yay!
That was a good day, one of my most cherished ones. The prizes and the praise were completely overshadowed by what came next. My classmates, in an unnatural burst of unity, decided to try out the rides that were put up in the college grounds! The giant wheel was fun but the break dance was mental! I don't think I will find people shrieking with fear and laughing with joy at the same time ever again.
I went home that day with a huuuuge smile. ;)
In conclusion, the idea that man must eat in order to live is passe, primordial even.
Most certainly, the human beings of today, you and I, live to eat, rather than eat to live.
To be honest, I was quite surprised by myself. I hadn't seen that coming until it came. It got me a medal too, yay!
That was a good day, one of my most cherished ones. The prizes and the praise were completely overshadowed by what came next. My classmates, in an unnatural burst of unity, decided to try out the rides that were put up in the college grounds! The giant wheel was fun but the break dance was mental! I don't think I will find people shrieking with fear and laughing with joy at the same time ever again.
I went home that day with a huuuuge smile. ;)
Love this!
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