Fingers Are Mightier Than Guns

Pens serve an important role in our lives. They help us remember
important events, get our creative ideas on paper, expand our knowledge,
and help us communicate with others. While these facts may be a bit
random, at least we know a little more about the supply we use every
single day.
Pens are around 5,000 years old when ancient Egyptians used reed
straws and made of soot or red ochre mixed with vegetable gum and
beeswax. In the 1850s, Birmingham became the top pen nib
manufacturer, producing half of all the pens in the world.
Perhaps you may not know that the average ballpoint can produce a line
of around 2 km or on average write approximately 45,000
words. Modern ballpoint pens feature metal balls as the writing
point. Often times these are made from tungsten carbide which three
times tougher than steel. Gold-nibbed pens slowly adjust to your writing
style as it flexes and softness.
It is said that in 95 percent of cases, if a person is given a new pen, the
first word they write is their name and there are 5 main kinds of pens
used worldwide: ballpoint, fountain, and soft-tip, Rolling-ball and
specialty pens. In World War II, pilots used ballpoint pens because they
do not leak at high altitudes. Ballpoint pens have quick-drying ink
making them perfect for left-handed writers.
But, the pen which is considered mightier than the sword, rather it has
become a proverb, has lost its significance. The pen created revolutions
in history and transformed human beings. It was instrumental in
preserving civilization. Today, it has become outdated due to
computers.
Proverbs generally speak the real fact of life rather gives a piece of
advice based on common sense and later on these become the practical
experiences of humanity.
Let me share a few of these – Early to bed and early to rise; makes a man
healthy, wealthy and wise, Pen is mightier than the sword, Books are the
treasure house of knowledge and so on.
Frankly speaking, history is proof that writers have changed the world
through their writings. Mahatma Gandhi, John Keats, Swami
Vivekananda, William Wordsworth and much more have created magic
through their writing. No doubt pen has the power to break the
demographic barriers or a book can be written in one country and can be
read across the world. Writers through their preaching and knowledge
fight against various social evils and bring transformation in the society.
While a pen and sword cannot be compared because the pen is used for
writing purposes and the sword is used for fighting purposes. But when
we have switched over to a keyboard for writing on computers, laptops
and mobiles, the pen has lost somewhere in the past and fingers have
taken its place. Even it is not sometimes used for signing even with the
introduction of digital signatures. The other day when I quoted the
famous proverb – Pen is mightier than a sword – I was immediately
pointed out by young generation boy, Sir, the proverbs have to be
changed with the passage of time. It should now be like this – Fingers
are mightier than guns.
Anyhow, when figures put its hands on keyboards, the pen has lost its
significance in the digital era.