Table of Contents

1. A Nation’s Paradox: Praising Government Amidst Decay
2. The Cult of Personality and Information Control
3. Manufacturing Consent and Reality Distortion
4. Psychological Factors and Cognitive Dissonance
5. Case Study in Contradiction
6. India – A fool’s Paradise
   1. Systemic Apathy and Dysfunction in India
   2. The Normalization of Crisis and the Politics of Distraction
   3. The VIP Culture: Where Some Lives Are More Equal Than Others
   4. The Calculus of Outrage: Normalizing Tragedy, Weaponizing Grief
      1. The Tragedy of Contradiction for loss of lives
   5. The Messiah Complex and the Great Distraction
7. Conclusion

A Nation’s Paradox: Praising Government Amidst Decay

A disturbing paradox exists in certain nations: a populace that actively praises its government’s accomplishments while simultaneously bearing the brunt of rampant corruption, soaring crime rates, and a tragic loss of human life. This phenomenon, where citizens appear to devalue the lives of their countrymen and overlook systemic collapse, is a complex interplay of psychological manipulation, manufactured consent, and the potent allure of strongman politics.

The Cult of Personality and Information Control

At the heart of this disconcerting trend often lies a leader who cultivates a cult of personality and projects an image of being the sole savior of the nation. These leaders, while often presiding over a landscape of violence and decay, maintain a firm grip on public opinion through a sophisticated apparatus of propaganda and information control. State-run or state-influenced media relentlessly broadcast a narrative of national glory, highlighting supposed government achievements and painting a picture of a nation on an upward trajectory, even when the reality for many is one of despair and insecurity.

Manufacturing Consent and Reality Distortion

This constant barrage of positive messaging serves to manufacture consent, a concept where the public is conditioned to passively agree with the government’s agenda. It creates a reality distortion field, where the lived experiences of hardship and loss are overshadowed by a grander, more appealing nationalistic narrative. Citizens are encouraged to see themselves as part of a larger, triumphant story, and to dismiss internal problems as either exaggerated by enemies of the state or as necessary sacrifices for the greater good.

Psychological Factors and Cognitive Dissonance

Psychological factors play a crucial role in the public’s acceptance of this manufactured reality. Cognitive dissonance, the mental discomfort experienced when holding conflicting beliefs, can lead individuals to either reject the evidence of their own suffering or to rationalize it. For many, it is easier to believe the government’s narrative of progress than to confront the grim reality of a failing state. Fear is another powerful motivator. In an environment where dissent is suppressed and critics of the government often face persecution, public praise can become a form of self-preservation.

Case Study in Contradiction

A stark example of this phenomenon was observed in one Asian nation. Its “strongman” leader declared a “war on drugs,” which resulted in thousands of extrajudicial killings. This campaign was framed as a decisive and necessary action to restore order and safety. Despite the immense loss of life, particularly among the urban poor, the leader maintained high approval ratings. His supporters often lauded his toughness and viewed the violence as a justifiable means to an end, a narrative heavily promoted by the government and its online surrogates. The victims were often dehumanized and labeled as criminals, making their deaths more palatable to a public desperate for a solution to the country’s perceived drug problem.

India – A fool’s Paradise

Systemic Apathy and Dysfunction in India

In India, a different facet of this disconnect emerges, rooted in a government system often criticized for being dysfunctional, with a lack of accountability and a pervasive apathy towards the loss of life affecting the entire country. This isn’t always about cheering a violent campaign, but rather about a systemic numbness and normalization of crises, where a portion of the citizenry remains focused on a narrative of national pride while the foundational systems of the state falter.

The government’s response to natural disasters has frequently been criticized as slow and inefficient, leading to preventable casualties and exacerbating the suffering of affected populations across the nation. This perceived apathy is not limited to emergencies; it is seen as a systemic issue where delayed justice, a lack of access to resources, and inadequate protection from violence become commonplace.

This dysfunction is woven into the very fabric of essential public services:

• Healthcare and Education: Despite government expenditure, there are widespread concerns about the quality of healthcare in government hospitals and a lack of accountability in state-run schools. For millions, this translates to a tangible decline in well-being and opportunity.
• Dysfunctional Judiciary System:
  The Indian judiciary faces dysfunction due to several key issues and we list down few issues:
  1. Corruption: Like other pillars of democracy, the judiciary has been found to engage in corruption, with a lack of accountability and difficulty in registering FIRs against judges without the Chief Justice of India’s permission.
  2. Lack of Transparency: There is a significant lack of transparency, particularly in the appointment of judges through the Collegium system, which is seen as secretive and violates the public’s right to know.
  3. Pendency of Cases and Vacancies: The system suffers from a high pendency of cases and a substantial number of judicial vacancies, contributing to delays and an inability to provide timely justice.
  4. Professional Arrogance and Ignorance of Precedent: Some judges exhibit professional arrogance, making decisions without thorough homework and ignoring precedent, which leads to delayed justice and an increase in frivolous litigation.

The Normalization of Crisis and the Politics of Distraction

In India, the paradox of praising a failing state moves beyond simple apathy into a deep-seated normalization of crisis. This systemic dysfunction is so profound that the value of human life often becomes secondary to trivial displays of power and the volatile theatre of identity politics.

The VIP Culture: Where Some Lives Are More Equal Than Others

This chilling reality is starkly visible in the nation’s pervasive “VIP culture.” It’s a system where the lives of ordinary citizens are literally sidelined. An ambulance carrying a critical patient can be stopped for a politician’s convoy. Students are blocked from reaching their exam centers, their futures jeopardized for the convenience of a motorcade on its way to a trivial function. In one harrowing incident, an elderly man was crushed under a VIP’s car, with security allegedly ignoring pleas to stop—a gut-wrenching symbol of a system where some lives are deemed expendable. Unsurprisingly, these events are rarely met with meaningful apology or accountability from the powerful.

The Calculus of Outrage: Normalizing Tragedy, Weaponizing Grief

This devaluing of life permeates society.

• Deadly stampedes, which claim hundreds of lives, are met with fleeting outrage before being subsumed into a collective shrug of normalcy.
• The horror of newborn babies burning to death in under-equipped government hospitals becomes another statistic, accountability lost in a bureaucratic/political maze.
• The unspoken sentiment echoes loudly: these lives don’t matter as much.

The Tragedy of Contradiction for loss of lives

The selective outrage reveals a crucial element of the political strategy.

1. The death of dozens in a stampede, a direct result of administrative failure, might elicit fleeting sorrow but rarely sustained public fury demanding accountability.
2. However, when a smaller number of citizens are killed in a terrorist attack, the national discourse explodes with rage, demanding retribution and even war against an external enemy like Pakistan.

The implication is clear and deeply unsettling:

Accountability is demanded fiercely from an external foe, while the systemic failures leading to far more numerous deaths internally are met with a muted response. In this calculus, the manner of death and its political utility tragically outweigh the intrinsic value of a human life.

The Messiah Complex and the Great Distraction

This societal numbness is fueled and exploited by a political ecosystem that thrives on distraction. While citizens are kept busy debating religion, caste, and language, the foundational pillars of the state crumble. Leaders are often elected not for their administrative competence, but for their ability to deliver populist freebies, incite hatred against historic adversaries(mainly Pakistan), and divide the populace along identity lines, positioning themselves as the sole saviors of a particular group.

There is a powerful, collective yearning for a messiah—a strongman leader who promises to reclaim an elusive past glory and restore civilizational pride. This potent narrative provides a perfect cover, allowing the government and its supporters to celebrate a vision of national greatness while evading responsibility for the grim realities of soaring rape cases, unchecked crime, and a judiciary so dysfunctional it fails to deliver justice to its own citizens. The focus remains fixed on an imagined past, while the tragic present is ignored.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the state where citizens boast of a government’s achievements amidst widespread suffering is not only a sign of a populace devoid of empathy..

But, it is a testament to the power of sophisticated propaganda, the psychological need for hope, and the chilling effectiveness of a political strategy that prioritizes the illusion of glory over the sanctity of individual human lives.

The result is a society where the true cost of systemic failure is tragically obscured, and the very value of human life is diminished in the shadow of a carefully constructed national myth and false pride.