Saturday, July 30, 2005

If you suspect it, report it

On my first visit to Delhi more than a decade ago (it was part of a month-long sojourn around the country cloaked in the guise of a college field trip), the first thing I noticed as we came out of the railway station and got into a bus was the warning sign on the back of the seat in front of me that said, "Warning: look under your seat. There may be a bomb there. Report it to authorities and claim reward". This was during the peak of Punjabi terrorism with transistor bombs going off with regular intervals in the capital. Needless to say, I was scared shitless (being exposed to sub-ten-degree cold for the first time in my life didn't exactly help, either).

Anyway, the point is that I saw a similar sign today in a press conference organised by the UK police. The sign wasn't so dramatic or sensationalist: it simply said, 'If you suspect it, report it'. Shades of Big Brother and 1984?

(As I type this, I spy a naked guy walking nonchalantly around in an art gallery in Euro News. WTF?)