Ethics, morals, or virtuousness is the basic building block of the whole world. We live in a ‘Post truth’ climate, where the new generation is inheriting a new moral landscape. There has been a generational shift in the morals of people today. People are becoming less and less empathetic and more and more indifferent. In fact, what is right and wrong is changing as society is changing, and that doesn’t necessarily mean progress. In some terms, this change is rather more substandard.
We have so many issues related to ethics and morals today. Ethical issues are the process of undesirable wants and needs of human beings.
There are two main reasons behind these ethical issues that are consumerism and comparison from society. For instance, people show interest and are honest in beginning but subsequently become a victim of corruption later. This happens due to our high expectations, excess need to achieve success, or what we desire to have- ultimately push us into hell.
Socialism, racism, or modernization is slowly sucking out the morals out of the society, which was once the only thing we were dependent upon today has no subsequent meaning. This further leads us to the void of moral dilemmas, for example, you are in a drowning boat with your significant other and your child and there is only one life jacket available- whom will you save? Confused right? And why not? everyone would be confused, miserable in such situations. RC report rightly points out that values need to be sustained by institutions. But in India, such institutionalization is still weak.
Intolerance attack on African National students. Often dubbed as Racism by Africans is yet another good example of ethical malfunction. Like Undermining Equality before Law- the minister assaulting Air India personnel without remorse and facing no legal action. The fourth reason could be a lack of Empathy and Compassion: The wide socio-economic-political disparity in India calls for steps to eradicate these by the active involvement of those that are empowered. Empathy and Compassion are required to do so, especially in public administration.
Cyberbullying and hate culture
Another ethical issue of our society is Cyberbullying often dubbed as the hate culture. It is a heinous thing that still by many countries is not considered a crime. Even social media hasn’t put strict guidelines on cyberbullying. This has led to numerous death in the last few years. Cyberbullying today isn’t just bullying but a trigger coin for depression, anxiety, and other mental disorders. Today so many people are becoming suicidal and often end up taking their own lives. In fact, there has been a recent surge in suicide within India. A major shock came last year when the young actor Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his apartment. So what’s with this growing suicide culture?
Basically, Suicide is the last stage for many of the mental disorders from which many of these celebrities seems suffering from. And this is not an issue in India alone but the whole world is at the surge of such an epidemic. So rising hate culture and cyberbullying is just another factor igniting the condition.
Almost 1 in 4 of 8 to 11-year-olds and 3 in 4 of 12 to 15-year-olds have a social media profile. Around 1 in 8 young people have been bullied on social media. Almost 1 in 4 young people have come across racist or hate messages online. In 2017, the Internet Watch Foundation identified over 78,000 URLs containing child sexual abuse images. A 2016 study by the Cyberbullying Research Center found 34 percent of teens have been victims of some type of cyberbullying. On the other hand, 15% admitted bullying others. Research presented at the 2017 Pediatric Academic Societies Meeting revealed the number of children admitted to hospitals for attempted suicide or expressing suicidal thoughts doubled between 2008 and 2015. Much of the rise is linked to an increase in cyberbullying.
The freedom we have, to bully someone while maintaining our anonymity is what outraging the hate culture. The guidelines should be strict on demolishing anonymity and making sure that people use their own names. People don’t even realize what kind of damage their comments are causing to the other person and how deadly they can result in. The ignorance is rising while people continue to make senseless allegations and spread rumors.
If you know someone being bullied, don’t just sit around and watch, instead take action. At the very least, help by not passing along a mean message and not giving positive attention to the bully. Also, one thing is very important that when you encounter any such event, respond thoughtfully and not fast. Always keep the record of each event with proof, so in the end, it can make it easier for you to achieve justice. A little awareness and presence of mind are enough to eradicate online abuse completely from the world.
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