Unwild Rumpus

 Anti-capitalism, for me, is not just a moral stance. Neither is it just a political flex or a purely academic pursuit. It is the recognition that my life and my value system is tied irrevocably to this economic system that's just plain toxic.  And while I don't have the ability or inclination to renounce wealth and lead a total treehugger lifestyle boycotting all kinds of capitalistic influences in my life, I can at least examine my preferences and correct my prejudices through this lens.  Here are 10 things I have slowly been learning from all the theory I've been injesting: 1. Not to place the sole responsibility for poverty on the poor. It isn't just laziness, bad habits or lack of financial knowledge that's keeping them poor. Poverty and inequality are inherent to capitalism.  2. And similarly, not to attribute billionaire capitalists success to their individual achievements but acknowledge that it is because of market monopolization, killing competition, explo

I am a vegetarian. By birth. Not by choice. Ask my parents and they might tell you that vegetarianism was never imposed on me. Eating meat was always an option, though strongly discouraged. Growing up in a hill station, we were usually the only vegetarians in our social circles and parties always meant looking for that one vegetarian dish on buffet tables piled high with meat dishes of every kind. When my parents went to enrol me in boarding school, I was to be the only vegetarian in the entire hostel. After much deliberation, my parents enrolled me as a meat eater with an assurance from the boarding mistress that a vegetarian option be provided to me, if I desire. I am embarrassed to admit here that I never once tried meat during my entire hostel life. Every time I was asked "would you like a vegetarian option?" I responded in the affirmative. Now I realize that this wasn't purely by choice. The anti-meat conditioning all through my formative years was so strong that I h