The Gender Disparity

Recently, the Indian Air Force (IAF) made a statement, which was viewed as a controversial one by many. I heard a lot of people talk about it, read a lot of material and then felt that the statement which was issued was not as controversial as few of us made it out to be.

The statement implied that women are not well suited for direct combat roles in the IAF, especially in the role of fighter pilot. Well, to me it made no attack on women’s intellectual capabilities. Yes, it’s a fact that a woman’s physiology works against her in many walks of life. So, just to show equality, would it make sense to make an investment, which will not give the desired returns?

If someone asks me, are men and women equal? My answer is, ‘No’, though I am mindful of the fact that my mother and two sisters are women. I feel men and women are unique and should not be compared or contrasted. Comparing them would be like comparing apples and oranges. I am of the opinion, that it is more important to understand the differences between the two sexes and play the role which appropriately fits each one. To support my point, here are two quick examples…

In the game of Tennis, a men’s match can last for five sets, but a women’s match can utmost last for three sets. Would it be apt for women to play five sets, to claim equality? Or, can men look after a one day old infant, like women do? Well, let’s respect nature’s plot. We must acknowledge that men and women have their unique strengths and weaknesses. Why not play roles that suit our respective strengths instead of arguing for non-existent equality and become counterproductive.

Maturity… Explanation

Some questions are way too simple, yet to answer them remains a very hard task. Here is some food for thought. Someone recently asked me, “What is maturity?” Simple question… eh? It took me nearly couple of minutes to even attempt giving an answer. I gave a semi-humorous answer, “maturity is maturity… the mature know it and never ask about it and the immature never attain it and keep asking about it” Well, that was a cunning way to escape.

Later, I thought and thought, finally to come up with a lucid explanation of the term maturity.

When we were kids, we wanted everything that people known and unknown to us owned. Later came the time, when we wanted only some things which our classmates possessed. As enough time went by, we at this stage, in early college life, wanted only those things which our selected friends had or desired for. Beyond this phase came the phase, in which you asked yourself, questions like. WHAT I REALLY WANT? WHY DO I WANT THIS?

Some people who successfully answered these questions, I classify them as matured people and the others, who have no answers to these questions and are continuing to participate in a blindfolded run even today, I hope they attain maturity, sometimes soon.

For me knowing, what you want, why you want it and in addition to that, how you get there, are the early signs of maturity.

Guidelines to maintain a Blog

My friend was appreciating me for having a blog and updating it fairly regularly. It’s no big deal to have a blog as any one can have it for free. So, I suggested her to maintain her own blog space. She refused to do so, sighting that maintaining a blog would reveal some part of her personal life to public. Well, that’s a good point, but if maintained with proper guidelines, a blog will reveal only those points, which are either informative or fun. The rest can be omitted. To, this she asked me to pen down certain informal guidelines which might motivate her to have her blog soon. Here they come, for my friend and many like her, who are avoiding having a blog space, considering that as an intrusion in your personal life.

Most people update blog for two main reasons:
• Communicate with readers (both known and strangers) and present them with some interesting stuff
• Express your ideas to the world

Well, that’s fair enough. To begin with, here is a list of NOT TO DO THINGS while writing on your blog:

1) Never ever mention somebody’s name, designation, organizations that they (or you) work for and their personal stuff (yes this rule should be applied to you as well as others known to you). Remember, your today’s enemy was your yesterday’s friend. And today’s enemy might turn out to be your co-worker, your boss or your friend, tomorrow. In general, badmouthing anyone is a very bad practice in itself.

2) If you have had a forgetful experience, avoid writing it. It could be a break-up, job loss, betrayal etc. Anything that goes in your blog, you might read it sometimes later, and these bad memories might haunt you then. Just omit this part, which will speed up the process to get over such bad experiences.

3) Avoid expressing your strong opinion on controversial topics. Remember again, any user on the web can navigate to your blog through Search Engines. Why invite enmity from unknown people

Now coming to THINGS TO DO:

1) Make use of the reverse pyramid idea, in which you discuss a point in broad at the beginning and narrow down to the crux of the matter and draw an obvious conclusion.

2) Try to give that personal touch by writing in first person.

3) Give various perspectives and sound a little pragmatic. Remember, anything that is doable and can be related to anyone’s life, catches more attention.

To conclude, I would say, stay sensible and make sure that reading your blog should either be informative or pleasure. Hope, after reading this article, you too, like my friend will have your own blog. Happy Blogging!!!