In my view, there are reporters and there are journalists. Reporters do exactly that. They report. But journalists on the other hand, should not be mere instruments of describing, but should be the activists who are working for change through their role as advocates.

Journalists are blessed with something that most advocates have to look for: an audience that listens to them. Whilst advocates in the traditional sense have to fight to reach their target audience, journalists have a daily dose of communication that can be delivered right to the doorstep of the public at large.

That gives them an edge to call for change. The captive audience can be fed not lies, but the needed parts of truth. There is a …

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25 years after Black July, the term “National Security” is used to thwart lot of things. V from the movie ‘V for Vendetta’ said “I do, like many of you, appreciate the comforts of the everyday routine, the security of the familiar, the tranquility of repetition”.

At least he had that. We don’t.

We can’t nikang sit, walk around at night, carry our CDMA phones, visit TamilNet, buy remote controlled toys, visit Galle Face Greens, nikang stand, wear full-face helmets, fix crash-guards to our SUVs, take photos, talk about cessation of violence and a host of other things because they might supposedly impede upon the national security and the sovereignty of the country.

The country the (proud) Sinhalese stole from the native …

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Take it from me, being a responsible citizen in this country sucks, big time.

Take last Saturday for example. There I was, driving along with my parents when I saw this lorry which was being driven about like the driver’s pants were on fire. Not only was he driving fast, he was driving all over the road. Being the responsible citizen I am, I decided to do the only viable thing.

I got my gun out and shot him.

Well, not really. I don’t own a gun, and I don’t think I can muster up the nerve to do something like that.

I called 119.

After getting a busy signal for a while, I got through to them, gave details of the lorry, and then …

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