“A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.” – David Brinkley

Forget being a teacher or doctor, kids would rather be YouTubers

Gone are the days when children dreamed of becoming doctors and teachers – today’s children want to become YouTubers and vloggers. The terms – for people that create and star in online videos – would probably not be recognised by some grandparents. But more than three-quarters of youngsters say they’d consider a career in online videos, according to a survey of 1,000 children aged six to 17. A research revealed that 34 per cent of children would like to be a YouTube personality, while one in five wished to start their own channel. Traditional career choices, such as teaching, were much less popular. The research also revealed that children would rather learn how to use video editing software instead of studying traditional subjects such as math and history. While there’s nothing bad about being a YouTuber, but if all the children would become YouTubers and vloggers, wouldn’t there be a scarcity of teachers, doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc.?

Rizwana Iqbal,
Karachi

How powerful is protest?

The culture of opposition is an ever-evolving landscape and the role of protest, as an expression of this opposition, has changed significantly over the last two-three decades. Whether it’s directed towards a government, corporation or individual, protest is undeniably powerful. The second half of the 20th century saw protest serve as a particularly effective vehicle for policy change across the world. Some notable examples include the Civil Rights movements, climate change protests, and much more. These demonstrations saw like-minded impassioned individuals come together to rupture the fabric of society and form a targeted and direct challenge to the government. After repeated attempts, often over the course of many years, change eventually resulted. But present-day protests have become less meaningful. Protests have lacked clarity and led to their presence coming across more as white noise than a defined message. The mechanisms behind protest have changed and in order to be effective, they need to be taken advantage of to ensure they maximise awareness, rather than depleting it.

Ameed Ahmed,
Karachi.

Zoos: Pitiful prisons

Almost all of us grow up with fond memories of visiting the zoo with our parents, grandparents or friends. I wouldn't have listed zoos under animal cruelty, if I didn't think that they were bad for the animals that live in them. Zoo and wildlife in Pakistan are being mistreated on almost a regular basis. Not just Pakistan, zoos around the globe are mistreating animals. Recently, lonely elephant Kaavan was finally sent to a sanctuary after spending years in solitude. Now even celebrities are raising their voice against this issue and some have demanded closure of all zoos. People should stop visiting zoos so the authorities stop profiting and the torture on these creatures finally comes to an end. It is simply not right to enjoy seeing these animals while they live in captivity.

Rabiha Shamsie,
Lahore.

Shocking rise in child abuse cases

Crimes against children have been a cause of great distress to Pakistan’s developmental efforts. Childhood is reflected as a developmental age with high susceptibility to psychological and physical risks. Sexual assaults and rapes are such violent crimes that not only leave the victims physically assaulted but also emotionally traumatised or even dead. According to reports published in various newspapers, the number of such incidents has jumped from 1,746 in year 2017 to 2,327 in the year 2018 registering 33 per cent rise in a year. In 2020, a case or two is reported every other day of either a missing child or a child subjected to sexual assault. Despite being a taboo subject, children must be taught about good and bad touch and should never be shamed if they are subjected to sexual abuse. It is, therefore, very important to create mass awareness about this heinous crime so that incidents can be reduced, if not completely eradicated and it is high time that the government takes serious actions against the offenders.

Maheen Tariq,
Islamabad.