Sticks and Stones...

About 20 years ago, I ran a small advertising company in Mumbai. Sunil, my office boy, was all of 20. His job was to make coffee and run errands. He also went to night school.

 

One morning, he came to work with blood on his face and a torn shirt sleeve. I was shocked! What happened?

 

One of the others in the office said helpfully: 'He got into a fight.'

 

Sunil stood silently in front of me with his eyes cast down.

 

I said: 'Sunil, what happened?'

 

He replied: 'I had to fight. That guy called out a bad word. About my mother.'

 

'What word?'

 

No answer.

 

'Okay,' I said, 'call me by that name.'

 

Sunil looked up aghast. 'I can’t do that!'

 

'Yes, you can. Go ahead, call me by that name.'

 

Of course, he didn’t. How could he possibly call his boss a w-----!

 

I said: 'Okay, let’s pretend you called me a w-----.'

 

He cringed.

 

'Did I become one? Am I one? Go, on, answer me! Did your mother become one? Of all the stupid things to do! Now you’ve probably set off a gang fight!'

 

Today, listening to and watching all this brouhaha about Paula Deen, I was reminded about Sunil. Is he still angry with that boy? May be that boy has now become a celebrity and it’ll be worth Sunil’s while to rake this all up!

 

Can we just stop and think for a minute? All these words that get blipped on TV, are these really such a big deal? Do we have to go running to ‘teacher’ every time someone shouts out something nasty at us? And does the media not have something better to broadcast?

 

Come on, people, just grow up!