Re: [Goanet]Pros of caste and castacho and zat
--- Mervyn Lobo [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Mario, 1) I can show you an easy way to get your kids to clean thier rooms. This is NOT a free service. 2) I can also show you how to get your kids to marry whom you want. This is a free service. However, in the first place, you would have to have kids who want to be tied to your skirt forever. Mario replies: Mervyn, Your offer comes too late on both counts. We brought up our kids to be independent-thinking Americans of Indian-Goan heritage, and our Grandkids will all be Anglo-Indians, if you know what I mean. Fixing them up with anyone was never an option, Don't even think about it, Dad. BTW, they keep their own homes far cleaner than they ever kept their rooms.
Re: [Goanet]Pros of caste and castacho and zat
Mario Goveia [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: 1. We can use caste to punish an unruly offspring by forcing him or her to marry a dominant person of the same caste, citing the caste system. That should really straighten them out in a hurry, eh? But what if the dominant person belongs to another caste? Well, then I guess we jump to the anti-caster side. By the way, maybe Gilbert's research can find how many of us have kids we can force to marry whom we parents want, especially when they are unruly and rebellious to begin with. I'd really like to know this. I had a hard enough time just getting my kids to clean their rooms. Mario, 1) I can show you an easy way to get your kids to clean thier rooms. This is NOT a free service. 2) I can also show you how to get your kids to marry whom you want. This is a free service. However, in the first place, you would have to have kids who want to be tied to your skirt forever. Mervyn2.0 __ Post your free ad now! http://personals.yahoo.ca
Re: [Goanet]Pros of caste and castacho and zat
We must thank Cecil and Mervyn for working so hard to find some pros in the diabolical caste system among Catholic Goans. No wonder we cannot kill this many-headed, multi-beneficial monster. While some of us have been focusing on the abominable discrimination that the caste system represents and all the heartache and destructive effects that it has caused among families throughout the years, while diluting the fundamental tenets of our Christian religion and making hypocrites of so many, and others were looking to do serious research to find out if the system even exists, it seems that there are some REAL benefits that we anti-casters had completely overlooked. What were we anti-casters thinking? Are we so crass and callous that we would deny the community these wonderful benefits? So, let's recap: 1. We can use caste to punish an unruly offspring by forcing him or her to marry a dominant person of the same caste, citing the caste system. That should really straighten them out in a hurry, eh? But what if the dominant person belongs to another caste? Well, then I guess we jump to the anti-caster side. By the way, maybe Gilbert's research can find how many of us have kids we can force to marry whom we parents want, especially when they are unruly and rebellious to begin with. I'd really like to know this. I had a hard enough time just getting my kids to clean their rooms. 2. We can use caste to get rid of a truly undesirable offspring by finding someone from the same caste and brainwashing them. And here I thought that undesirable offspring could be easier gotten rid of by opening them up to a wider meat market regardless of caste. 3. We can use caste to dump someone we have been dating with no intentions of marrying. Now that's a really uplifting use of caste, isn't it? 4. Finally, vote banks, we must have castes so we can get them all voting is a certain way, which fits in nicely with the political climate in India, but I don't know how well this benefit would work in the diaspora. Actually, they forgot one major benefit that comes in handy in India. Don't scheduled castes get special privileges in college admissions and government jobs? Abolishing castes would jeopardize all those plum set-asides. So, I guess we anti-casters can all give up now. Abolishing discrimination cannot stack up against all these wonderful benefits, can it? I'm finally beginning to realize why the system has lasted for so many hundreds of years. Now, where's that bottle of caju I just brought back from Goa? I really need a double peg, right now.
[Goanet]Pros of caste and castacho and zat
Thanks Mervyn for pointing out one of the pros of the caste system. Most of the pros of the caste system of course are related to marriage. 1) Un-marry-able people: If a girl/boy of marriageable age is extremely undesirable as a spouse because of physical/ psychological/ mental defects then he/she would remain unmarried for ever. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing for him/ her/ society. But if he/she professes to be of a particular caste then a partner from the same caste will eventually be located, sometimes equally undesirable as a spouse! 2) Dumping: Caste (and religion) sometimes is a very convenient excuse to get out of a relationship. There are many young men who have dated a female of another caste/religion and when the marriage question pops up they cite caste/religion incompatibility because of their parents' wishes. That the parents did not approve of the dating, which did progress regardless, is conveniently forgotten. Commitment phobia exists worldwide but in a caste/religion centric society such as ours it becomes a convenient tool for dumping a partner when the question pops up. 3) Vote banks: Caste (and religion) is also a valuable tool for the politician. Given a relatively equal choice we will vote for a person of our own religion. If there are two contestants of the same religion then caste sometimes is the decisive factor while voting. Why do you think there is always mention of the Bhandari Samaj lobby or the Saraswat Brahmin lobby in Goan politics? Which brings me to another trivial matter. In school I remember we used to used phrases like suneam castacho and dukra castacho as insults. I always presumed that castacho meant huge as in Jacoban kal castacho sorop dhollo (Jacob caught a big snake yesterday). But now I wonder whether castacho has something to do with caste rather than size. I mean big dog is not nearly as insulting as of the dog caste. Can some Konkani experts please clarify? Isn't caste zat in Konkani? Is there any connection between caste and cricket. Howzzat? And since I mentioned snakes and size. Isn't it strange how we indicate the size of a snake or a fish by extending an arm out and indicating the size by placing the other hand on the forearm, biceps of shoulder of the extended arm. Whereas in the West the size of a fish (or snake) is indicated by the distance between palms facing each other with hands extended. My forthcoming book on Culture Conflicts - Goa and the West: Conversation and Gestures is devoted to such idiosyncrasies. Asking a man/woman if he/she is married is considered polite and acceptable here in India but is considered extremely impolite in the West. This leads to strained relationships between visiting tourists and ambitious taxi drivers and hopefully my book will solve the problems in South Goa between the hotels and the Tourist Taxi Drivers' Union. If anyone here knows similar cultural differences between Westerners and Indians/Goans, that could lead to tension, please post the same for inclusion in my book. Cheers! Cecil =
