RIFLE RANGE BOY

Hi Mom, Dad! What's Up?  Greeja De Silva The moment Elvis Presley went on stage gyrating his pelvis, belting his then-new number 'Hound Dog', the elders went white. To them, his suggestive moves were the mark of the beginning of the end, Armageddon. Nearly seventy years on, we are, however, still very much rocking. Ironically, almost all toddlers make Superman out of their fathers. This admiration slowly dwindles as puberty hits when opinions about the perspective of life clash. They grow apart with the passing years only for the toddler, now a middle-aged father of an adult child himself, to realise the 'Superman-Ubermench' capabilities of his old man.  All these are nothing new but generational gaps. The generation next looks at their predecessors as obsolete and the elders at their offspring as decadent and self-destructive. Even Socrates must have thought the same of the youngsters of his times that he thought his death by hemlock would awaken them.  Of course, ...

Recently, during my last trip to a town right in the centre of the Hindi heartland, I had the fortune of interacting with some friends who would be relatives. A chance conversation with some female members of the society jogged my memory back to a time when my girls were developing into late teenagers, growing horns and their pointed devil's tails were sprouting.  My wife was getting acquainted with two female members of the family. This is somewhat the direction the conversation took.  "Hi, since we know each other now," wifey said. "Maybe we should exchange numbers and contact each other!" Our hosts, almost in unison, replied, "...but you have our husband's numbers. You can call that number. " "No, I don't have your numbers." "We share the same phone." was the reply. I could see my wife's eyes pop in amazement.  "But, but I am sure you want to check your Facebook, WhatsApp, etcetera." The homely girls cooly r...

Jexi (2019) Director:  Jon Lucas,  Scott Moore There is nothing groundbreaking about this movie. It reminds me of at least two films which dealt with the same theme. In 1984 'Electric Dreams', a desktop computer, Edgar, falls in love with the protagonist's crush. After successfully wooing his beau with the help of his computer, his life turns into a living hell. His computer controls most of his home devices and goes hyperdrive to sabotage the protagonist's work and love life. In 2013 'Her', the protagonist falls in love with an Operating System, AI. All three films show us how hooked we are to our digital devices. We avoid human interaction and feel most comfortable left to our devices. Furthermore, interaction with the same kind becomes increasingly more difficult. Even though we were told that we are social animals who thrive on human dealings, somehow, it becomes more and more an uphill battle. People demand. They want to be treated special. They demand the ...

Omphaloskepsis! (Omphalo = umbilicus, skepsis = act of looking) Just how often have we seen people who appear almost in a stuporous state, unarousable by external stimuli? Viewed from this side of the table, it may look like he is self-absorbed or awestruck at the sight of his own genitalia. A clinician may diagnose him to have narcolepsy. In Western Africa, the doctor may give him the spot diagnosis of Trypanosomiasis @ Sleeping Sickness. A man of the clergy would assume that he is engaged in sincere prayers, engaging with a plea with his Maker bargaining so that everything will be alright.  Of course, the correct explanation is none of the above. He is merely immersed in his own digital devices. Being in an almost trance-like state, he insists that very much in touch with the present and that his generation excels in multitasking, something alien to my kind, he asserts. Navel-gazing? © Amethyst Aziezéé A few years ago, a series of pictures used to appear...

Credit: depositphotos.com The social media wants us to believe that there is only One Truth, the one that we seem to be churning. The constant words of approval and barrage of 'likes' make us convinced that we are indeed God's gift to mankind, little geniuses, knowing the secrets of life and the rules of the Game. In the comfort of the cocoon of our private spaces with the security of nods of yeomen who agree and add on in agreement to whatever we say, we go on a roll.  The squeal of dissent is muffled and vilified by roars of mobs of netizens on our platform. What we fail to realise is that these disapproving netizens are equally loud in their own social backyard cheered correspondingly by loud spectators who agree with them. Together they glorify each other in the sweet melody of their echo chamber. With the splurge of adrenaline spiralled by cheering of bystanders, the momentum to act and to react snowballs. Keyboard warriors with their fangs and steely knive...