When the Spine turns Vestigeal

The first time one hears of a murder, one is shocked. The next time one hears of a slaughter of a dozen, one may be awe-struck. The third time, it may take a massacre to move the person - anything short of that might be just news.

We witness a similar situation now. Rapes in trains, cars and temples are nothing more than pieces of news. For the media, they are sensational news - flashed all over, generating more revenue, more web hits. However, the implications for the society are grave. People are getting used to it, becoming immune to its impact and taking it in their stride!

How many of the news papers and the media have carried an incident of rape on the front pages all the way till the culprit is caught and prosecuted? Which website has gone the extra mile in covering the news, garnering public voices and making sure that the criminals are brought to justice? Have we become so dumb and numb that we cave in meekly to the atrocities to be mere spectators and nothing more?

If rapes are becoming more and more common, if women are increasingly vulnerable to these assaults and if some bastards have developed the audacity to commit such crimes repeatedly and increasingly in public places and in broad day light, it is the Government's indifference to the crimes against women and the media's negligence of its responsibility that are to be held accountable. Laws are not for punishing after the crime is committed - they are supposed to thwart them in the first place. If the present laws are not strong enough to make criminals hesitate, trash them and get new ones that work!

I challenge the media, any one in the media, to take any of the recently reported series of rapes on its front pages in highlighted boxes till the day the case is closed and the criminals are sent behind bars. That, and only that, will make people listen and think. Flashing the news for a day and moving on to the next victim will only make the public insensitive to the issue and encourage the voyeur to get more practical. For once, let us think beyond money and business!