ANTIDISESTABLISHMENTARIANISM
Huge word isn’t it? But it kind of sums the entire age group of 14-25, that age of self belief and rebellion. The word itself has roots almost unavoidably in England , referring to a particular class or group who are against the establishment because of the wrong it has established and the way it handles the society. The word has been ripped apart and torn and now has become a symbol of coolness for all of us.
‘I am a rebel man ‘ has suddenly become the phrase which I get disgusted by nowadays (yes it’s just me I tend to write about). Early on it used to be ‘ stoners are cool bro’ and now I just realized that the latter is just the subset of the former. Here’s what I think….you are NOT a rebel man …you are just a wannabe human entity wearing a che guevara shirt ,quoting bob marley , wearing loose pants , smoking that joint and thinking you have the intellectual capability of Albert Einstein. You my dear friend are an an absolute nothing who thinks the way to become something is through inebriation. You are not against the system. You have no idea what the system is. All you think about is Pink Floyd ,Tool, Bob Marley and some other hypno-psycho-babble band that makes you trip. That is not being a rebel. The sheer disdain I have for these classes of people seems to be increasing every day, the simple reason being that this class of people is increasing day by day. Being a rebel does not mean wearing a t-shirt with a marijuana logo on it or bringing up the topic of legalizing weed every time you get stoned. Being a rebel means taking a stand for something that you believe in , because you understand it and not because its cool and makes you trip.
Rebels have intoxication incidental to their existence(if they do it at all) and not the means of their existence. In this day and age being an alcoholic is cool, why , “oh because i become highly functional after i drink alcohol”. “I write poetry”….talk about why Manmohan Singh is an absolute schmuck …..talk about how “the system is fucked man”. You know what rebels do …they go to prisons, they die for what they believe in….they stand in front of the line and know how to take a hit ….they actually get off their backsides and change things (i know right …….seems alien the concept). The next time you get stoned/ drunk and actually go ahead and do that …then you are a rebel. Rebels don’t just have thoughts about changing the system….the word doesn’t just refer to an idea of changing things and opposing things….there is an inherent implication in there to do something about what you feel is wrong. Your identity as a rebel intellectual is not determined the amount of weed you smoke, the bottles of beer you can drink, that perfect joint you can roll , the way you can pour your beer, the way you argue with your parents……it is determined by your actions and not your highly stratified intellectual thought process.
This generation has rightfully claimed the tagline of ” WORST [PERIOD] GENERATION [PERIOD] EVER [PERIOD]” and you know why because we only have highly intellectual thoughts and no actions to back it up. We sit and we think. That’s it. Then we drink and wake up in the morning with a hangover. I hate what we have become. What we represent. Are we really just wannabe stoners and alcoholics who talk about how India is a rundown country, I am an atheist and how my parents don’t understand me. Its time we actually substantiated our actions. This is not a call to arms (, i just want someone to reflect on their actions and understand where they are going wrong. What they are meant to do. What they are meant to be. If they come to the conclusion that I am going to be a rebel then tear off that Che Guevera shirt, drop that joint , throw away the beer and actually go and lodge a complaint.
