Our mission
It refers to the editorial of The Daily Star that one wonders if the leaders of our country make statements at public meetings only to pander to the fears and prejudices of the gullible audience! Can we not expect more respect for facts and responsibility from our national leaders when they make public statements? For half-truths are worse than lies.
Those who profess to favour freedom and yet depreciate agitation, are people who want crops without ploughing the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning; they want the ocean without the roar of its waters. The struggle may be a moral one, or it may be a physical one, or it may be both. But it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand; it never has and it never will. Anyway, these facts are things of the past while the peoples' predicament is very much an issue of the present and one may feel tempted to say the public has thus far given the past precedence over the past. The public and the press can bring our political and governmental institutions back to life, make them responsive and accountable, and keep them honest. No one else can. It's time for greatness -- not greed. It's a time for idealism -- not ideology. It is time not just for compassionate words, but compassionate action.
Now, we all want to know how our money is spent.
There is more to Bangladeshi politics than fat cats and their political friends. There are serious-minded liberals who fight the good fight on many issues, ecologically oriented politicians who remain true to their cause, and honest people of every political stripe who are not beholden to any wealthy people. But there are not enough of them, and they are often worn down by the constant pressure from lobbyists, lawyers and conventional politicians. We do not want to blame anybody in particular. What we want to see is that our mission, to end the blame game and corruption, is accomplished.
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