Hi Rajib: >You have not spoken a single word on the rights or the wrongs of the reasons people trash/ed AR's opinions. >People have given you enough fodder to chew on.
*** I would have, had there been even a rudimentary attempt by anyone to explain why or how AR's commentary and/or opinions were wrong, or without merit or otherwise irrelevant. If there was an attempt to explain how state violence had nothing to do with the rapidly growing violence she was queried on. All we saw were attempts at questioning and discrediting her motives, or trashing her persona for all kinds of real or imaginary shortcomings of her. *** I expected YOU to put forth some explanation. Did you? If you did WHAT was it? Assume for a moment, with my concurrence, that I don't read and comprehend very well :-). >Your attempts at putting down the intelligence of other folks who have labored to put in an opinion without offering a single word of opinion about those >opinions feel pretty lame. *** On the contrary I think my fellow netters are very intelligent.What I am stumped by is their attempts to hide from the truths AR pointed out. Perhaps YOU will explain :-)? > In that pattern you should seek to find your own ideological bondage, terror of having an inconsequential position, the seach for non-existent approval anywhere and the deep seated insecurities of finding one's position ossified over decades and >totally irrelevant to the ground. **** Heh-heh! How original :-)! But it is NOT about ME, nor is it about AR. I would hoped that someone like yourself would have realized that without having for me to pint that out . And therein lies the conundrum: Of my fellow mens' attempts to run from the issues and instead focusing on the persona of the messengers whose message rile them so. c-da ---- Rajib Das <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > C-da, > > You have not spoken a single word on the rights or the > wrongs of the reasons people trash/ed AR's opinions. > People have given you enough fodder to chew on. > > Your attempts at putting down the intelligence of > other folks who have labored to put in an opinion > without offering a single word of opinion about those > opinions feel pretty lame. People don't get easily > affected with acerbic words when all that is there to > it is just fluff and a mish mash of inconsistencies. > > In that pattern you should seek to find your own > ideological bondage, terror of having an > inconsequential position, the seach for non-existent > approval anywhere and the deep seated insecurities of > finding one's position ossified over decades and > totally irrelevant to the ground. As to the sense of > guilt from your own absence at shaping your society's > welfare, what shall I say? > > Like I said, it is great AR is going back to writing > novels. > > :-) > > Rajib > > > --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > > Yes! But Why? > > > > Why should otherwise able and intelligent people, > > shut their minds up to the reality that surrounds > > them? And run helter-skelter , seeking refuge behind > > ridiculous ruses when confronted with the likes of > > AR's interview? > > > > Is it AR's no-words-minced style communication that > > jar their genteel desi-middle-class spirits? Upsets > > the equanimity of their peaceful lifestyles? > > > > Is it that Indian outlook, the absence of which > > desi-bloggers charge AR so bitterly with? > > > > Is it some facile ideological bondage that hold > > them prisoners, forcing them to accept the > > unacceptable? > > > > Are they terrified of acknowledging their govt's > > role in midwifing the birth of ULFA, something some > > not-so-nice fellow netters of theirs won't let them > > forget :-) ? The same govts. that they denounce > > routinely but are willing to hold up to the world so > > proudly as 'democratic' ? And get so bent out of > > shape when its dysfunction is pointed out , > > particularly to those whose approval they so seek, > > namely the West? > > > > Is it because of a deep seated insecurity, seeking > > shelter behind a nationalistic identity, even while > > knowing full well that it is built on a foundation > > of smoke and mirrors? > > > > Is it because of a sense of guilt from their own > > absence from shaping their society's collective > > welfare, even if only indirectly? > > > > Confounding, if you asked me. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ---- mc mahant <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > > > The Brits had a joke: > > > "My mind is made up. Do not confuse me with > > facts". > > > here the mindmaking is all about the free loot to > > continue. > > > mm> Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2007 07:07:16 -0800> From: > > [EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: assam@assamnet.org> > > Subject: [Assam] Arundhati's Interview on India's > > spreading Violence> > It is not that I derive any > > vicarious pleasure out of challenging my fellow > > netters to exercise their communication skills, > > knowing that it is not everybody's bag of tea. One > > may not have the time or the ability or the > > enthusiasm to engage in debates, rebuttals and so > > forth. But that does not mean by any means that they > > are either unable to think critically or > > analytically or lack the ordinary decency to be > > caring about their fellow men -- the likes of which > > Arundhati Roy spoke about incisively and > > passionately.> > What I find curious here, however, > > is the lengths to which these highly intelligent > > netters would go to deny what must stare them in > > their faces: In this instance the increasing > > VIOLENCE in Indian societies across the > > sub-continent and the role of its purportedly > > 'liberal democratic' governments, past and present, > > in generating and spreading it, by acts of omission > > and commission, dating back to independence.> > The > > question is why so? What is it that they are so > > afraid to admit, to acknowledge? Why do they attempt > > to take refuge behind such absurd alibis as AR's > > motives, or her personal shortcomings or her > > intellectual acumen or her western/un-Indian > > attitudes? Would that make the issues she points out > > go away? Make them any less important or > > consequential?> > I would not believe for a moment > > that my fellow men are that simple-minded or that > > naive.> > So what is it then?> > That is a conundrum > > I am not sure I have yet cracked :-). But I have > > some guesses, which I will air in the days to come. > > In the meantime, anybody else who have some thoughts > > why? The perpetrators too are welcome to explain > > their own feeble attempts at hiding behind > > subterfuges and living in denial :-).> > cm> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > There is an atmosphere of growing > > violence across the> country. How do you read the > > signs? In what context> should it be read?> > You > > donâ•˙t have to be a genius to read the signs. > > We> have a growing middle class, reared on a diet > > of> radical consumerism and aggressive greed. > > Unlike> industrializing Western countries, which had > > colonies> from which to plunder resources and > > generate slave> labor to feed this process, we have > > to colonize> ourselves, our own nether parts. > > Weâ•˙ve begun to eat> our own limbs. The greed > > that is being generated (and> marketed as a value > > interchangeable with nationalism)> can only be sated > > by grabbing land, water and> resources from the > > vulnerable. What weâ•˙re witnessing> is the most > > successful secessionist struggle ever> waged in > > independent India ╉ the secession of the> > > middle and upper classes from the rest of the > > country.> Itâ•˙s a vertical secession, not a > > lateral one.> Theyâ•˙re fighting for the right > > to merge with the> worldâ•˙s elite somewhere up > > there in the> stratosphere. Theyâ•˙ve managed to > > commandeer the> resources, the coal, the minerals, > > the bauxite, the> water and electricity. Now they > > want the land to make> more cars, more bombs, more > > mines ╉ supertoys for> the new supercitizens > > of the new superpower. So itâ•˙s> outright war, > > and people on both sides are choosing> their > > weapons. The government and the corporations> reach > > for structural adjustment, the World Bank, the> ADB, > > FDI, friendly court orders, friendly policy> makers, > > help from the ╢friendlyâ•˙ corporate > > media> and a police force that will ram all this > > down> peopleâ•˙s throats. Those who want to > > resist this> process have, until now, reached for > > dharnas, hunger> strikes, satyagraha, the courts and > > what they thought> was friendly media. But now more > > and more are reaching> for guns. Will the violence > > grow? If the ╢growth> rateâ•˙ and the > > Sensex are going to be the only> barometers the > > government uses to measure progress and> the > > well-being of people, then of course it will. How> > > do I read the signs? It isnâ•˙t hard to read> > > sky-writing. What it says up there, in big letters, > > is> this: the shit has hit the fan, folks.> > You > > once remarked that though you may not resort to> > > violence yourself, you think it has become immoral > > to> condemn it, given the circumstances in the > > country.> Can you elaborate on this view? > > > > Iâ•˙d be a liability as a guerrilla! I doubt I > > used> the word ╢immoralâ•˙ ╉ > > morality is an elusive> business, as changeable as > > the weather. What I feel is> this: non-violent > > movements have knocked at the door> of every > > democratic institution in this country for> decades, > > and have been spurned and humiliated. Look at> the > > Bhopal gas victims, the Narmada Bachao Andolan.> The > > nba had a lot going for it ╉ high-profile> > > leadership, media coverage, more resources than any> > > other mass movement. What went wrong? People are > > bound> to want to rethink strategy. When Sonia > > Gandhi begins> to promote satyagraha at the World > > Economic Forum in> Davos, itâ•˙s time for us to > > sit up and think. For> example, is mass civil > > disobedience possible within> the structure of a > > democratic nation state? Is it> possible in the age > > of disinformation and> corporate-controlled mass > > media? Are hunger strikes> umbilically linked to > > celebrity politics? Would> anybody care if the > > people of Nangla Machhi or Bhatti> mines went on a > > hunger strike? Irom Sharmila has been> on a hunger > > strike for six years. That should be a> lesson to > > many of us. Iâ•˙ve always felt that itâ•˙s> > > ironic that hunger strikes are used as a political> > > weapon in a land where most people go hungry > > anyway.> We are in a different time and place now. > > Up against a> different, more complex adversary. > > Weâ•˙ve entered the> era of NGOs ╉ or > > should I say the era of paltu shers> ╉ in > > which mass action can be a treacherous> business. We > > have demonstrations which are funded, we> have > > sponsored dharnas and social forums which make> > > militant postures but never follow up on what they> > > preach. We have all kinds of ╢virtualâ•˙ > > resistance.> Meetings against SEZs sponsored by the > > biggest> promoters of SEZs. Awards and grants for > > environmental> activism and community action given > > by corporations> responsible for devastating whole > > ecosystems. Vedanta,> a company mining bauxite in > > the forests of Orissa,> wants to start a university. > > The Tatas have two> charitable trusts that directly > > and indirectly fund> activists and mass movements > > across the country. Could> that be why Singur has > > drawn so much less flak than> Nandigram? Of course > > the Tatas and Birlas funded> Gandhi too ╉ > > maybe he was our first NGO. But now we> have NGOs > > who make a lot of noise, write a lot of> reports, > > but whom the sarkar is more than comfortable> with. > > How do we make sense of all this? The place is> > > crawling with professional diffusers of real > > political> action. ╢Virtualâ•˙ resistance > > has become something> of a liability. > > There was > > a time when mass movements looked to the> courts for > > justice. The courts have rained down a> series of > > judgments that are so unjust, so insulting> to the > > poor in the language they use, they take your> > > breath away. A recent Supreme Court judgment, > > allowing> the Vasant Kunj Mall to resume > > construction though it> didnâ•˙t have the > > requisite clearances, said in so> many words that > > the > === message truncated === > > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > Now that's room service! Choose from over 150,000 hotels > in 45,000 destinations on Yahoo! Travel to find your fit. > http://farechase.yahoo.com/promo-generic-14795097 _______________________________________________ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
