Have I Become Cynical?

On a typical lethargic summer afternoon, I sat down to pass my time with a podcast. I’m not sure what drew me to it, but I sat down to listen to this podcast featuring Russell Crowe. The chat started with a discussion of Crowe’s recent work, his latest film projects, and his personal projects back home. However, the topic soon meandered into the realm of addictions.

They spoke about how drug abuse, justifiably, gets a bad rep for its harmful after effects, but other addictions like nicotine, alcohol, gambling, betting, etc., get away with it. All forms of substance abuse and addictions are, by definition, harmful, ‘abusive’ to the person. The only difference, I guess, is the nature of damage it causes to the human body or society at large.

The discussion flowed between various forms of gambling and betting, as well as the latest online betting platforms. At this point, Russell Crowe shared an anecdote about his great-grandfather’s gambling addiction. He went on to speak about how Crowe’s strict discipline and awareness about the damage that addictions cause have helped him control the habit.

While Crowe was advocating restrictions and controls on habits, the podcaster opposed them. He was of the viewpoint that any form of addiction cannot be controlled with laws and restrictions. People can only be educated and left free to choose the right path.

I was stumped by his viewpoint.

In my opinion, educating people about addiction and its impact on their lives has a limited impact on the problem. This is because addiction is driven by curiosity and the need for thrills. If young people are given free access to anything they desire, whether it is harmful substances or harmful information, how many of them will act responsibly?

I also feel that laws, restrictions, bans, etc., will not help for long, as people are becoming increasingly contrarian and anarchic. Youth are driven by the dream of a boundless future, so they do not like to be restricted by fear, responsibility, laws, or bans. But is giving complete freedom the answer?

In the discussion, one person advocated educating people from a young age about consequences, cause and effect, responsibilities, etc. But the human ego is so big that people generally think they are too intelligent, or wise, or powerful to fall into bad times. They think only the weak, poor, or stupid ones will get into trouble.

I know that I sound too pessimistic here, but from my experience, I have learned that a person can be wise and intelligent, but people, as a collective, cannot be trusted to make the right choice every time. It is always the most dominant voice in the group that decides what is acceptable and what should be nipped in the bud. There is no guarantee that the dominant voice is intelligent and wise.

People tend to follow that dominant voice despite their personal opinions telling them that it is wrong. Even the wise and intelligent become blind followers for various reasons. They end up acquiescing to that dominant voice, sometimes due to a lack of courage, reluctance to take responsibility, or even laziness in thinking for themselves. I know I sound like those jaded, cynical old folk, but too many dominant voices have failed us time and again.

Despite this long, winding rant about today’s youth, I have no simple solution or radical advice to rectify the situation. It is only through experience that one learns to distinguish right from wrong. My hope for the future is that we strike a balance between laws, restrictions, and timely education to reach enough people. These educated youth need to become the dominant voice in the crowd and ensure a bright future.

The sad thing, however, is that by the time all this happens, we are no longer considered youth. We lose our chance to influence the youth, becoming cynical old folk who are brushed aside.