Jacob Peenikaparambil: A simple act of Cristiano Ronaldo of removing a couple of Coke bottles and replacing it with a bottle of water resulted in a whopping loss of $4 billion in the Coca-Cola Company’s market value. Besides a dip of $4 billion in the company’s market value from $242 to $238 billion, Coca-Cola’s stock price dropped by 1.6%. The star footballer of Portugal, pushed aside Coke bottles at a pre-match press conference and advised to drink water. According to the media reports, after holding up a bottle of water as a sign of endorsement, Ronaldo said, “agua” which means water in Portuguese.
This incident brings to the fore that every act of a human being, whether big or small, will have its repercussions on others. History is a witness to the fact that actions of individuals impact society. Often the impacts could be unexpected and huge. For example, the movement, “Arab Spring”, was sparked by the protests that occurred in Tunisia on 18 December 2010 in Sidi Bouzid, as a reaction to Mohamed Bouazizi's self-immolation in protest against police corruption. Mohamed Bouazizi was a fruit vendor. The police confiscated his cart with fruits and asked for a bribe to return it. Since he had no money to give bribe to the police, he committed suicide. Mohamed Bouzizi would have never thought that his self-immolation would give rise to a massive political movement that overthrew regimes in many Arab countries.
“Arab Spring” refers to a series of anti-government protests, uprisings and armed rebellions spread across many Arab countries in the early 2010s. The anti-government protests first started in Tunisia and spread to other countries like Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Syria and Bahrain that resulted in regime changes. Sustained street demonstrations took place in Morocco, Iraq, Algeria, Lebanon etc. Social media played a leading role in the swift spread of revolution throughout the Arab world.
Often communal riots started in different places in India because of minor incidents which were later made use of by anti-social elements. According to Wikipedia, the outbreak of 2013 communal riots in Muzaffarnagar in UP which resulted in 62 deaths and displacement of 50,000 people is attributed to an eve teasing incident.
A bad action by an individual can have unexpected and devastating consequences on many others. For example, sending or forwarding hate speeches and fake news on social media can lead to conflicts and violent confrontations between two communities. The virus of hatred is more dangerous than the coronavirus. Unfortunately, certain individuals and organizations in India are indulging in manufacturing and marketing hate news and fake news in view of polarizing people. It is a great crime not only against the nation but also against humanity.
A kind action by an individual can lead to the replication of such acts by many other individuals. When Covid 19 second wave devastated lakhs of Indians, many Good Samaritans took initiative to support the infected and affected persons and hundreds of volunteers joined them. The initiative started by some individuals and organizations were replicated by others too.
Our actions, good or bad, will have consequences for others: individuals, families and wider society. As intelligent and sensitive human beings, we have to be conscious of what we say and do. Sometimes a word casually used without much thought can wound the feelings of a person or a community and can invite negative and violent reactions. That is why it is said, “Think before you act, think twice before you speak”. The words of Earnest Hemingway are very pertinent in this context. “Before you react, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you criticize, wait. Before you quit, try”.
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