Travelling just happens to me. In the last journey; I noticed a girl in the next seat. Her phone was ringing constantly. She picks up her charger and keeps it for charging. Nevertheless, the ringing continues every now and then, disturbing the sleep of everybody in the coach. Finally, making an end to the ring, she picks up the phone and just screams against her dad on the other side. She was having a 'waiting' ticket. Hence, her father was worried about her getting a berth. That anxiety must have inspired the man in calling her daughter again and again. Nobody, in the compartment liked her tone and tenor of talking to her father. The case didn't last long, she got a berth as soon the ticket examiner came. After an hour or two, around 1 o'clock midnight, everybody gets up again due to the ring of the mobile again. but, interestingly, this time she talks in calm, composed, sweet manner. And, again, its a male voice this time. The call lasted for more than 3hrs disturbing the sleep of everybody out there. No doubt, it can be anybody in the world, other than her father. Everyone who was awake there because of the ring of the bell, looks at each other surprised in seeing the change in the communication pattern.
Entropy is the degree of randomness.This is one thing which is constantly increasing. Thanks to Newton, for lucidly stating this years ago. Let, us be more specific. The type of entropy which is increasing at an alarming rate and is an area of concern is the Social Entropy. A healthy system and practice is there in deciding the President of the country, still there is uncertainty in decision making and randomness in the vote-support of the allies. Interestingly, after all the so called deliberations, the ruling alliance decides to extricate the finance minister from the post and send him to Raisina hill. The randomness, the author sees is not in making the FM, the President; but doing it at a time when there is economic slowdown and policy paralysis.
Anything can happen in a country where one witnesses some random man changing into Pinky and grabbing the medals at international level. Two things can amuse us. One, How did he get into the squad, when even for the smallest government job we have all sorts of tests, including the physical ones.Two, still after this disguise, he comes up with no medal in some of the athletic meets. We have an inherent instinct in always picking the right man for the wrong job. Many lawyers in managerial positions, engineers in banks and financial institutions, etc.. The case of Pinky, being an extension of the same. The sudden burst in the tennis world before the championship is yet another case of increasing social entropy.
The print media reports Kerala as a state which tops in criminal activities. This is randomness; which breaks all the conventional ideas that education, literacy, greater human development, better socio-economic status precedes the formation of a peaceful and non-criminal state. This randomness does not restrict itself to any single state. It has a feature of its own, its an epidemic, highly contagious in nature. Examples don't stop here, they are in plenty. Everywhere we see the peaking of social entropy.
An ancient Palestinian story goes like this. A traveller, after his days travel, heavily tired, reaches a house around the late-midnight. He knocks the door. At once, the landlord opens the door. Seeing the person very tired, he goes to the kitchen only to understand that there is not even a single piece of bread left in the home. He tells the traveller to get inside and take rest and tells him that he will be back with some food very soon. He rushes to the neighbour, knocks the door. Palestinians during those days sleep around the fire in a single room. Hence, if any single person gets up, it accounts to waking up of everybody in that room, disturbing the sleep- the only recreation of the poor working class. The man keeps on knocking the door,only to see that no one cares to open the door. Lets pause here, and scan the mind of that individual who is knocking the door for somebody else's' food. This man builds the social chain, he stitches the social fabric. Everyone of us is supposed to play such a role. We forget the role, we forget the script, we increase the randomness, the social entropy. Was she correct in talking harshly towards her parents? Is the government doing right in stabilizing the economy? What is the spirit in getting a medal in disguise? Why isn't education positively correlated to peaceful conditions in a state? Let us introspect.
