The Stain Was An Illusion
A massive realisation, thanks to a few incidents this week
TLDR
You don't need to feel guilty if the intention of the trial or the accuser is to prove you wrong without examining the facts.
The verdict is irrelevant if the jury or judge has already decided beforehand, based on an assumption that the accused has bad intentions.
Flashback
I had written a post based on the stubborn stain on my white t-shirt, comparing it to a feeling of guilt that would not go away.
This week three unrelated events culminated to make me feel that this weight of guilt that I carried had no legs to stand on in the first place. Let me start with the shirt first.
The Miracle
Though I was ok with the stained t-shirt, I still wanted the coffee stain to go away. So I thought I would brush it with my own hands. So, I soaked it in a bucket with some soap powder. But I did not get to the task for more than two weeks.
The t-shirt was just lying there. Today, I still didn’t have the mood to get rid of it or brush it manually. I just put it in the washing machine.
I didn’t expect the stain to go away. But voila, when the washing machine had done its job, the stain had disappeared. This connected my thoughts to a Prashant Kishore interview I had watched right before I set out to check the washing machine.
2024 Exit Poll Scam
Prashant Kishore observed some large trends and predicted a clear victory for BJP with 300+ seats. However, when the results came the BJP got 240 seats.
He admitted that he had made a mistake in predicting UP, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal. This was an honest mistake done due to factors beyond his control.
Of course, he should not have predicted numbers. But his larger observations still hold true and BJP is forming a government with NDA allies.
Now, BJP opponents are claiming that he deliberately did this to create a pro-BJP narrative. The same is being said about all pollsters and a fake narrative about stock market gaming is coming up.
Here, the pollsters can create a stock market scam by betting the other way as well. Why would they create a fake exit poll to make money by losing their credibility? This was the key argument of Kishore.
Again, if the malicious intent is assumed beforehand, then the conclusion will be in the same direction. Unless some solid proof is presented to backup such accusations, these kinda narratives will fall flat.
I was pretty impressed with the way Prashant Kishore stood up for himself in the face of criticism. He spoke the truth according to facts that were avaialable to him. If the voter behaviour in the booth was different, then he can’t be blamed for wrong predictions. The same goes for pollsters as well.
Shitty Journalism
The Ken wrote a piece about my workplace claiming that our ethics were questionable. It did this by picking 5 unsatisfied customers and some anecdotal evidence of mistakes to claim that the organisation was not functioning ethically.
The journalist concerned was shown plethora of ratings and was given access to contacts of the large majority of students who did get a good service from the startup.
However, the journalist went ahead and published a piece according to the narrative that she had decided beforehand. There was no research or a desire to know truth at all.
As per the Twitter thread written by my CEO, the organisation had asked her to include our quotes in the piece. But she did not do that as well.
In this scenario, the CEO had no desire to fight the set narrative in her head. He went ahead and posted the truth on social media.
An overwhelming response was received from investors and well wishers. This shows that one can fight a false propaganda if you have truth on your side.
When I put these three things together, I am convinced that I need not carry the weight of any guilt at all. It’s good that the episode played out the way it did. It showed me what kind of a person I am. It revealed to me that I can trust myself and respect myself.
The stain that I thought I had on my character was a mere illusion that had kept me captive. It is not even a stain. It’s just a nuisance that has impacted me emotionally in a very disproportionate manner.