Bizarre - 3rd instalment

7. FAIR PLAY: MONKEYS, APES HAVE SENSE OF RIGHT AND WRONG.


Monkeys and apes have a sense of morality and the ability to tell right from wrong, according to new research.

In a series of studies scientists have found that monkeys and apes can make judgments about fairness, offer altruistic help and empathize when a fellow animal is ill or in difficulties. They even appear to have conscience and the ability to remember obligations.

The research implies that morality is not a uniquely human quality and may have arisen through evolution. It could mean the strength of our conscience is partly determined by genes.

The scientists say that the evidence is clear. ' I am not arguing that non-human primates are moral beings but there is enough evidence for the following of social rules to agree that some of the stepping stones towards human morality can be found in other animals.' said Frans de Waal, professor of psychology at Emory University in Georgia in the US.

De Wall described experiments on monkeys and apes to see if they understood the idea of fairness. The animals were asked to perform a set of simple tasks and then rewarded with food or affection. De Wall found the animals had an acute sense of fairness and objected strongly when others were rewarded more than themselves for the same task, often sulking and refusing to take part any further.

Another study looked at altruism in chimps - and found they were often willing to help others even when there was no obvious reward. ' Chimpanzees spontaneously help both humans and each other in controlled tests,' said de Waal.

Other researchers, said de Wall, have found the same qualities in capuchin monkeys, which also show ' spontaneous pro-social tendencies,' meaning they are keen to share food and other gifts with other monkeys,
for the pleasure of giving.

My comments: Among the living species, it is only the human beings which is not ashamed of the unfair practices indulged by them. They kill for pleasure ( hunting ), or based on their beliefs ( religious wars ) or their megalomania ( killing to conquer other countries ) or for other reasons, though such reasons do not affect them ( say, capitalism vs communism ). They have been spoiling the environment. And they have been depleting the resources of the earth at an incredible speed, unmindful of future havoc. No animal does so much wanton damage and killing and injury as human beings do.



8. A 21st CENTURY DRAUPADI - DURYODHANA GETS A BASHING

Those who have read their Mahabharata or watched the B R Chopra mega serial will always remember that climatic moment when Yudhishthira loses the wife in a game of dice and a weeping Draupadi is dragged to the gaming hall in the royal palace at Hastinapur where the disrobing of the Pandava’s wife is divinely pre-empted by Krishna.

There was an entirely different twist to the tale some time back on Diwali night in the Kundapura village in the Dhampur tehsil of UP’s Bijnor District when a drunken 28 year old Ram Singh gambled away first his money, then his ring and finally his watch before staking his wife for a sum of Rs. 5,000 and losing her too. When the winner went to Ram Singh’s house to claim the wife, what followed was completely contrary to what Vyasa had scripted. Instead of letting herself be dragged away, Ram Singh’s wife picked up a burning log of wood and used it to beat up the winner who fled in tears to the nearest police station.

The matter did not end even when the cops intervened and the loser borrowed Rs. 5,000 and paid off the winner in cash instead of kind. When Ram Singh returned home, he was severely beaten up by his wife. The thrashing stopped only when Ram Singh begged for forgiveness and wailed that he would never, ever gamble again his life!

Draupadi has come a long way since the Mahabharata! Today’s Draupadi obviously believes that God helps those who help themselves! So much so that today’s Duryodhana has to cower behind the law-enforcing Bhishma to escape retribution. And today’s Yudhishthira has to fall at Draupadi’s feet to be accepted by her. And if Ram Singh reforms, we could even see that traditional proverb being re-adapted to state that ‘ behind every successful man is a woman with a broomstick or a burning log in hand.’ And Kundapura village may have already left Kaliyuga behind and moved into golden age of its own!

My comments: The educated and ritual oriented Indians quote ad nauseum the teachings and actions in the ancient religious texts to justify many of his impious actions. The 20th century Draupadi as in the subject matter has set an example for women who are treated as property of men. The real liberation of this country would take place only when uneducated, non-earning women would oppose their being treated as door mats or property of men. In other words, male chauvinism has to be opposed by not only women but rational men also.

9. KIDS, AGED 6 & 7, TRY TO ELOPE FROM GERMANY TO AFRICA

The two childhood sweethearts eloped from Hanover determined to tie the knot under the African sun. They said that they are very much love and decided to get married in Africa where it is warm, taking with them as a witness another girl aged five. The idea for the romantic trip began when one of them told the other two about her holiday in Italy and how enjoyable the same was. These kids were picked up by police at the railway station and the police officers managed to convince the young lovers that they would struggle to get to Africa without money or a plane ticket.

My comments: With the passage of time, children in some respects are growing very fast, unrelated to calendar years or compared to the position obtained in the past. There are many reasons for this. One is the TV from which children learn what adults can do. Then they get the feeling why not they also imitate. In the instant case, all those read the write up would smile and wish well for the toddlers. Curtain.



10. BOYS BEWARE! SPY GIRLS ARE WATCHING

In Delhi parents of some of the college students are engaging spy girls to keep an eye on their wards. A large number of parents in Delhi are taking help of private detectives to track their children's movements. In most colleges of Delhi, there are girls who work as a campus detective on part-time basis. These girls are trained by the private detectives to carry out their operation secretly. These girl students or detectives get into the group with which their subject hangs around. Any undesirable relationship, drug abuse or alcohol, late night hanging out with friends is traced with the help of these amateur girl detectives. These girl detectives also undergo a training session on how to carry out the spying without revealing any detail.


My comments: Either I am a moron or the story is wrong. Most of the parents with college going sons and daughters are more worried about their daughters than sons. In fact even when the parents come to know about the peccadilloes of their sons, they would shrug it off or give a mild warning to the boy. In Indian society the current belief is that ‘ boys will always be boys’ and they will do things to imitate what grown up men are doing. Parents do not expect them to remain chaste. But when it comes to daughters the approach is quite different. Parents are all the time concerned. Late return to the home from college becomes a serious issue. So also going out or talking on phone with boys. So if not already started, I expect that there would be more boy spies to keep an eye on girls.