Politics And Toothpaste

It would be the same at the end of the journey,
If you came at night like a broken king,
If you came by day not knowing what you came for,
It would be the same

If you came this way,
Taking any route, starting from anywhere,
At any time or at any season,
It would always be the same. T.S. Eliot

A rich discussion followed our recent post on secular-right politics. The key points were these: that Indian politics remains about identity, that retail persuasion is the only viable means of mass engagement, and that the vanguard elite model we proposed is too simplistic.

We thought we'd respond by constructing an allegory, about toothpaste!

Retail is how toothpaste is sold. It comes in red & white & blue & stripes & peppermint & clove oil & cherry & tube & pouch & bottle & every other aesthetic variation to please & reinforce a multitude of customer identities. But, lets face it, behind the glamour, all toothpaste is the same toothpaste -- a witch's brew forever, and only, changing appearance.

If one wanted to sell yet another version of essentially the same toothpaste, no doubt one'd have to sell it retail. One'd have to find a new twist to appeal to yet another combination of identities. But, we're not here for this -- been there, done that -- activity, are we?

Let's instead imagine a time before toothpaste, when all manner of inherited wisdom & quackery masquerade as dental science. Here, people practice hygiene with small branchlets or abrasive powder or just plain water -- some not doing anything at all. It's not a pretty world, we'd all agree!!

To these deprived folks with yellow teeth, merely presenting, say, Close-Up in-a-tube might blow their minds!

Why is this? Because fresh ideas can sometimes explode in our imaginations, thereby selling themselves. Heck, no one sold us Google retail, or blogging or rock 'n roll or even satyagraha. For ideas whose time has come, all one needs to do is light the fuse. Valid ideas have a momentum of their own; they resonate with everybody no matter what their past belief or identity or expectation or lack thereof. In Eliot's indelible words, the exhilaration would be the same for all at once. That's what we seek; a lesser ambition is a waste of time.

Not all ideas catch fire, obviously -- but that's creative destruction, with which we are entirely comfortable. However, if Indians are fed up of stale formulations -- our insatiable political conversations surely point to this -- it must be true that, given the right ideas, they'll take to them by the millions -- gulping fresh air amidst our charred political breeze.

The genius is in coming up with these fresh ideas, the new mousetraps, the Close-Up even before there is toothpaste.

We happen to think secular-right is one such idea. India may or may not be ready for it. If the former, the idea doesn't need retail selling; if the latter, retail selling is futile. Either way, we'll never know if we don't put it in a tube and place it in the political ether. The American neo-conservatives didn't know they'd win either. But they believed in the validity of their ideas just enough to overcome their self-doubts & intimidation -- particularly about process & party politics. Five years later, they had triumphed.

The vanguard elite model has worked for a diversity of political revolutions. One doesn't have to agree with the purpose of these revolutions to embrace their process. That is our argument. It sure beats sitting around and waiting for the proverbial Godot to show up from among our current -- highly cynical -- political system.

Therefore, we should focus on what we can do -- to develop fresh ideas on stagnant issues, new language to dispel the pervading monotony, credible & mesmerizing voices who speak without fear, and, most of all, a burning contempt for the status-quo to constantly fuel our ambition. If we are correct about the validity of our ideas, India herself will do the rest.

Last season's fruit is eaten
And the fullfed beast shall kick the empty pail.
For last year's words belong to last year's language
And next year's words await another voice. T.S. Eliot