Having read so many brilliant 55-ers, especially by IHM and OG, I often wondered if I could make the cut as well. I finally decided to give it a shot with this work of fiction.
*
The Blameless One
A School Principal allowed suspected paedophiles to be teachers. The teachers preyed on the children and the principal did not stop them. But the parents did not blame the principal, saying he was innocent, as he had never personally committed any of the horrible acts. So he continued as principal, and the paedophiles continued uninterrupted.
The Quirky Indian 
July 3, 2009 at 4:02 pm
First!! 🙂
July 3, 2009 at 4:32 pm
There is no doubt that fifty five words can speak volumes!
July 3, 2009 at 5:17 pm
😦 😦
blameless?
entirely new definition for the word 😦
July 3, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Sad but true!!!!
Well written and proves the fact, sometimes you don’t need loads of words to put your point across.
July 3, 2009 at 5:46 pm
😦 😦
came here seeking revenge… this is not the right post…
Kya yaar… you made a mockery of me… its irrepairable damage… !!! 😥
July 3, 2009 at 6:44 pm
Addresses a prominent problem and the fears of our times-especially with us who have little kids left in schools for 6-7 hours at the mercy of these teachers.
But in your fiction, why do the parents NOT blame the principal? Just cos it is not THEIR children who suffer?? QI, the parents are not known to be so easy on the matter. The authorities might be.
July 3, 2009 at 6:46 pm
Chilling and sadly true, I’m sure in many cases..
Great 55er!
July 3, 2009 at 6:51 pm
well written! and sad, but true.
btw what is the funda of a 55-er? why 55?
July 3, 2009 at 7:42 pm
wow man.. some deep funda in that simple story and it can be applied to a lot of rectn incidents. Meanwhile, if you like 55ers check out manuscrypts.com he has quite a few. But they are on the lighter side
July 3, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Damn ! 🙂
July 4, 2009 at 5:38 am
that’s horrible…
July 4, 2009 at 10:42 am
My, my… you can speak a volume with such less volume (or words!!)
Good one! 🙂
July 5, 2009 at 9:52 am
Am interested to know the inspiration behind this…
July 5, 2009 at 1:44 pm
😐
This is a worry for most parents now since they know that such people exist. They existed before too but then parents didn’t believe their children.
This world now full of awareness is scarier.
But why wouldn’t parents take a stand?
July 5, 2009 at 4:24 pm
Ah, a good 55-er… haven’t read many though.
July 6, 2009 at 6:19 am
i think the Parents too are blameless then? Poor kids 😦
July 6, 2009 at 11:42 am
Awesome!! Really hit the nail on the head
July 7, 2009 at 10:30 am
Good. I feel this is not abt pedophiles as such Correct me if wrong but is is abt personally corruption free leaders allowing others in his team to be corrupt or something like that ? Parents are may be the media who tends to give clean chit to such leaders.Children may be the always exploited Public. MMS as PM and A K Antony as Kerala CM comes to my mind
July 7, 2009 at 10:45 am
Work of fiction?
Not sure, at least here in Taiwan except that parents complained.
The results?
This high school teacher was just transferred…
About your nice post, if we count the title, there are 58 words 😉
Are you training yourself for Twitter?
😆
PS
how come when you let a comment in my blog, your URL does not show up and same for me in yours? We are using the same platform… I don’t get it…
July 9, 2009 at 3:03 pm
omg!!! now THATS a 55-er alright! what a way to start!
July 9, 2009 at 4:21 pm
I think your next target should be Twitterature! World’s greatest classics in 20 tweets or less! Hehehe! Check this out: http://www.twitterature.us/
July 11, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Lolz, So cynically funny 🙂
July 11, 2009 at 8:19 pm
“How dare you suggest there’s Pedophiles in my school! Are you comparing us with the Catholic church ?!”
July 12, 2009 at 12:59 am
So sad! Why do these things happen?!
Btw, a good start to 55-ers. And you have some good scope there to improve 😉
July 13, 2009 at 9:58 pm
Hi QI I have been away … came here to read your response to comments 🙂
July 14, 2009 at 11:26 am
@Neha: Dhiren is losing his touch! Welcome here.
There is a link in the post to IHM’s blog where she explains the funda of 55-ers. It’s essentially a 55 word (or less) story.
@IHM: You’re right, 55 words convey a lot!
@Indyeah: You’d be surprised – at many levels, that’s a common reaction.
@Smita: It’s a fact of life; of very many facets of life.
@Hitchwriter: You’ll notice I haven’s used the word ‘bhaiya’ anywhe….ooops!
@Mampi: You have a point. But in most situations involving trust and custodianship, we tend to be very forgiving of lapses in leadership.
@Smitha: True in very many situations…
@Balu: Yes, it can be applied to so many situations, can’t it? And a lot of recent incidents. And thanks for the link.
@Kislay: 🙂
@Shraddha: It is. And welcome here.
@Sakhi: It’s strange how you can say a lot with very few words….
@Desiderata: It’s just a thought I had about how we react to breaches of trust and lapses in leadership….
July 14, 2009 at 11:38 am
@Solilo: There’s awareness, but there’s also no accountability.
@Vee: Well, it’s my first attempt, so thank you for the encouragement!
@Liju: Exactly! The parents are as blameless as the Principal.
@Ritu: Thank you!
@Charakan: You’re right, it can be applied to a lot of situations where there is a breach of trust and ‘custodianship’ has gone wrong.
@fvarga: Seems everybody is on Twitter now. 🙂 About the link: it has to do with our settings.
@Ashwathy: Welcome here, and thanks for the comment.
@Nikhil: Good to see you back. And thanks for the link.
@Mystiquedew: Another absconder returns! Good to see you back.
@Neo: Hmmm…you’re on dangerous ground here, my friend! 🙂
@Pal: Thanks for the encouragement and the critique. I shall try to improve my standards. 🙂
July 15, 2009 at 1:51 am
😯 😯 😯 😯
I can’t believe what I am reading. Does such people (and parents) exist in this world. 😯
Well written though. 🙂
July 15, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Hi Quirky Indian!
First time here, and couldn’t relate to the 55er much 😦 except for if I’ve to take pedophily as a metaphor for bad education, moral corruption of impressionable minds by pushing them onto the path of senseless competition, and instilling in them an attitude of win-at-any-cost.
You’ll find the basic concept of 55-fiction in this Wikipedia article. A very essential element of 55-fiction is reader getting shocked by reading the last line of the story. I’m telling you all this ‘cuz I’m not sure if you’re aware of these aspects/conventions.
I don’t claim to be a good 55er-writer, but do visit my blog and you’ll find some 55ers there. They might be different from the ones that you’ve read. Only one on my blog has a social message, though. But you might better understand what I mean reading them. 🙂
TC and all the best!
July 16, 2009 at 3:23 am
Dear Quirky, CONGRATS on winning the LOL Challenge! You deserve this, and many more such successes in life!! Keep writing.
– An ardent fan
July 29, 2009 at 7:48 pm
Interesting!
Maybe the principal didnt try to stop these corrupt people because he feared for his life?
Kahani mein twist? 😉