[Reader-list] A child's view

[Aditya Nigam]

I am sending a piece that a friend's daughter wrote for her school
assignment. This is a 12-year old's comment.
Aditya

THE AMERICA TRAGEDY AND WHAT I THINK ABOUT IT

WRITTEN BY SHANA BULHAN HAYDOCK

CLASS 6-B

I think that tragedy came after fights, fights came after wanting more and
more - - - - It all started because nobody is happy with what they have.
Everyone wants more. Some people are very rich and don't care if others are
very poor. There is no balance. That is called Capitalism.

Another thing: some people don't allow other people to live in their
country because they believe in something else. Some people couldn't bear
with different people, such as Hitler, who killed off most of the Jews.
People cannot live with each other and bear with the differences of the
other people. They buy guns and weapons from people who sell them. They
kill the people they don't like.

USA is one country which has a government that wishes to become more and
more powerful. They wage war on other countries because they wish to have
more, more, more! And then attacks come upon them. And they vow to strike
back! Why can't they just sit down and realise that they killed so many
people, they cause heartbroken families to strike back. Why can't everybody
realise that violence, killings, murder - - - it's all very brutal and
horrid. If nobody would kill nobody, that would mean peace. Peace - - - - -
that's what hundreds, thousands of people really, actually want. Why can't
everybody set aside their differences and love each other? Peace makes us
happy. Hearing about capitalism, violence, innocent people dying, that
makes us unhappy. If any person could live in any country they choose, then
there would be no fighting for strips of land like in the case of Israel
and Palestine.

And anyway, what's the use of getting more and more? You just want even
more! What's the use of becoming powerful? Others start to hate you.
Therefore, if everybody had the same amount of everything, and could try to
control their longing for more and more, then this never would have
happened, I believe.



Aditya Nigam
Fellow, The Sarai Programme
Centre for the Study of Developing Societies
29 Rajpur Road
Delhi-110054