Way back in the fities, there was tragic rail accident near the temple town of Trichy in South India where a few hundred lives were lost . The next morning, the then Minister of Railways , resigned owning “moral” responsibility. Closer in time , there was an accident involving three trains two years ago, this time in the North of the country. The then Railway Minister, pitched tent at the site for a few days , and ensured that all help was extended. There was , however, no talk of moral responsibility.
Copilot educates me that “moral responsibility” plays a crucial role in shaping ethical behaviour in society. If that is the case , then we have come a long way over the decades.
Which is better, pitching a tent and supervising repairs , or accepting moral responsibility and resigning? Ah….. say the proponents of the latter, the former is ones duty , the latter is an ethical act. Here is a quote on ethics that Copilot extracted for me from the Net , written by Ayn Rand “Ethics is a code of values which guide our choices and actions and determines the purpose and course of our lives.”. If that is so, than it is a personal trait and one that we should not expect persons in power and responsibility to exhibit.
I suppose that is the reason, no one resigned for the tragedy at Pahalgam , though as a nation we rose rightly as one and supported the strong retaliation that followed. In other parts of the world , the battle rages on and hundreds die weekly. The International Court is unable to exercise its powers in seeking out those responsible. The world has moved on …
The word "moral" has ceased to have any meaning in today's world. Just look at the circus show going on in the USA, the country that was considered the model of democracy and free speech.