CONSIDER IT CRASHED: Why do I love India?:)

I just had to link to this beautiful post by Indyeah.

CONSIDER IT CRASHED: Why do I love India?:)

The Two Faces of Media

Lately, I've been pretty appalled by the two-faced nature of media (print, television, even radio) not just in India, but around the world. You hear the media's version of the story, which is often far, far from the factual sequence of actions. Take the pink chaddi campaign for instance. There are two sides to the coin, but the completely pseudo-secular Indian media took its own 180º take on it.

So, my sources for news used to be (notice the past tense) mainly:

• Times of India
• The Hindu
• The New York Times
• Wall Street Journal
• CNN
• BBC
  

I'd stopped reading the BBC website a long time ago, because most of the information on there is unreliable. You see, a couple of years ago, I didn't know any better. I assumed, like most people, that the media is credible, and that its the best source of correct information.

I have come to know better. These days, I may click on the above websites a total of a couple of times a month, if at all. There are in fact, several factually correct, reliable and informative sources online, which I am happily discovering. Some of them are blogs (long live blogging!) and others are non-mainstream websites.

When a newspaper can give expensive valuable word count to radicalized elements like Arundhati Roy, who not only do not project a mainstream Indian view, but actually defend terrorist activities on Indian soil and after each incident, find ways to justify terrorism and loose treatment to terrorists/murders, then I lose all respect for that news source, and that newspaper quickly loses my business.

Lately, I've been engrossed in a whole new genre of blogs which I've been discovering one by one (links to the right), with a wealth of information. For example, Indians who are really interested in knowing about the security situation of India should read ex-RAW Chief Vikram Sood's Perspectives or ex-Indian Police Officer KPS Gill's website SATP.org (instead of listening to the lunatic Barkha Dutts on NDTV).

Barkha Dutt deserves a whole post dedicated to her non-existent professionalism, and shoddy journalism, which resulted in the loss of a woman's life in the 26/11 Massacre. But several more knowledgeable bloggers have already ripped her journalistic incapabilities to pieces - so I will leave her alone for now.

I have no doubt that false-news reporting media are close to extinction. But we need to accelerate the process and put them out of their misery sooner rather than later.

Long live the bloggers of the world!

Progression?

Its soon going to be two years since I've been in Barcelona. Strange how time flies, and strange how life progresses. I was reading over this blog, when it was in its early stages. It was a strange feeling. I know I wrote that stuff (early 2007 posts, especially while I was travelling) but it seems as though someone else wrote it. It seems like a little girl speaking. Those writings almost seem childish to me now, similar to a little child opening wrapped gifts and explaining all that she got. Yet, it was me just two years ago.

Now I feel more aware, and possibly less capable to just let go the way I used to. They say that the more you know, the harder life is, or that 'ignorance is bliss.' I'm starting to wonder whether there is any truth to the saying. Because, its true, I do feel more aware. I've also become very sporadic writing here, and when I do, its something or the other that I have to vent about.

The economic crisis is at its peak. Spain has more lay-offs than any other EU country. Those of us still working are being told we're lucky to have our jobs. I'm started to wonder though if I've been sucked into the grind. Why do I feel so insignificant? As though I'm really not contributing one useful thing to the world?

I hope whatever it is, it passes. The winter has already been going on for too long.

The Blame Game

I’ve been caught up in life’s struggles, and haven’t been able to dedicate time to the Bodeguita for a while. Today, I’d like to link to François Gautier’s Cry O My Beloved India (Chapter II), written about five to six years ago, but still holds as true today, as it did then. Here he rightly points out that each time a bomb explodes in India, we are quick to point a finger at Pakistan. Each time a natural calamity occurs, the NGO’s cry about not having adequate prevention mechanisms and blame everyone. Each time a politician ignores, belittles and humiliates the majority masses and creates special laws and quotas for the “minorities,” we blame the politician. Each time we blame someone, who in turn blames someone else, and the chain goes on. That has become our national past-time. But the truth is friends, that we ourselves are to blame. We, the majority of Indian citizens sit back and allow a pocketful of Nehruvian Marxists to hijack and rewrite our ten thousand year long recorded history - Romila Thaper, leading the pack of these fraudulent so-called historians – along with Satish Chandra, K.M. Shrimali, K.M.Pannikar, R.S. Sharma, D. N. Jha, Gyanendra Pandey, and Irfan Habib – who have blatantly lied to the nation, making us mimickers, and chasers of the West, and ashamed of our own greatness. We, who allow the press and the 24/7 news channels to dish out grossly misinformed stories, and we sit at home and watch the manipulated, agenda-ridden lies thrown at us. As François Gautier rightly says below, India’s greatest enemy is the passivity of the 850 million Hindu majority, one billion worldwide, inheritors of the most ancient civilization still alive on this planet, holders of the last true spirituality on this earth. Read the full article here. 

Evolution

Some people who read this blog may have noticed that lately I have become focused on India-related topics. I think this is just natural evolution. I've always found that the further I live from India, the more Indian I am, and the more I love my country. I've also become sensitive to what are constant and regular attacks on India, from its long-time, 1000 year old enemy. I'm taking a stance that few take. But I've decided to speak out, rationally, about the great danger that looms above the Hindu Motherland. I hope to be able to influence younger Indians to be proud of their homeland and to be ready to vote, and by voting have your say in the political and economic development of your nation. I recommend Indians to watch Rang de Basanti and learn from it. To take inspiration from Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Jhansi Ki Rani, Sardar Patel, Chandrashekhar Azad and other freedom fighters, to believe in ideals and live them. To take responsibility for your actions, and for the power that you hold in the form of your vote. Your vote is your single most powerful tool that enables you to take a direct stance in the future growth of India.

I want to educate Indians about the crime that the Left-Wing is guilty of: that of whitewashing our history. They are guilty of following the Nehru style Marxist philosophy that creates an illusional curtain of mystical co-existence of Islam in India over the last 1000 years. That is pure myth and a great lie, although your CBSE history books tell you otherwise. People like Romila Thaper and her gang of so-called historians should be tried in international courts, for having mis-represented to a nation of a billion people a manipulated version of history, for having manipulated facts, evidence and for utterly lying to Indians. We must know that a Hindu Holocaust was systematically carried out by Islamic invadors. We must read true Indian history, (widely available online) because unless we do that, we are not going to be able to confront and determine the real identity of the threat we face today: it is in fact, the unfinished business of the Moghuls.

I also want to direct this blog towards building bridges with the West, namely the US, which can learn a lot from the sad situation where India finds herself today by being politically correct and appeasing war-mongers. They can also learn from their mistake of siding with two-faced Pakistan, giving it $10 billion of aid since 9/11, and making it an ally on the "war on terror." The world now knows that while it takes US aid from one hand, the other hand passes it on to the Jihadists fighting the holy war against Indian infidels.

Again, this is a plea to young Indians everywhere. Take responsibility, visit sites such as Faith Freedom, Negationism in India, World Monitor, and articles such as this, this, and this, and inform yourselves and those around you. We have this tendency to forget the past, to just go on the way we are, to forgive, and forget... and our politicians have abused this quality of the Indian people to the max. Its time we wake up and take our destinies in our own hands.

MOST IMPORTANTLY - GO OUT THERE ON ELECTION DAY, AND VOTE!

Welcome 2009!

Last month, a flood of memories came back as I went to Atlanta for my cousin's wedding. It was so lovely to catch up with that side of my family. Shoutout to S, a beautiful, intelligent, courageous young woman, as she embarks on a new life. 

I got to spend a good bit of time with my other family too, my UGA Family. One day we even drove to Athens for old times' sake and visited our campus buildings, strolled all over, took pictures everywhere, especially at the GA Arch and Sanford Stadium (many a tickets had been scalped there lol). We visited all the North Campus buildings, the business school, the Tate student center, the library I used to work at... We lay in the grass like we used to, watching the squirrels. We ate at our fave place The Grit. Such a flood of memories. I do believe that through my years in college, I may or may not recall much of what I learned in the classroom, but for sure I made myself a family out there. I miss you guys already N, N, A, D, A, C :(

As we go into 2009 in a crisis, economic recession in many countries, higher cost of living, an upturned state of events in the world, lets not forget to be grateful for everything and everyone we have in our lives, near and far, and for everything good that is yet to come. 

Happy New Year everyone!

Tuesday Thoughts

I just walked into the door of my flat. After work I stopped by one of the vegetable and fruit shops in the neighborhood to buy some veggies. I mentioned earlier on the blog that there is a sizable Pakistani population here in Barcelona. A couple of young Pakistani boys work at the vegetable and fruit shop where I generally go. They should be about 20-22 years old, pretty young really.

Today when I stepped into the shop, there were tons of people and a long line at the counter. There was an old Hindi song playing in the background, I think from the movie Aashiqui, many many years ago. The song goes like this: tu (uuuuuu) meri zindagi hai....... tuuuuuuu meri har khushi hai.......

As I was picking tomatoes, I don't know what happened. The song was playing in the background, and I saw those guys, my eyes filled with tears. I looked at them working, carrying crates here and there, working hard. And then I thought that if I had a little brother he would probably resemble them. These people are the same as me. We're made of the same soil. We are brothers and sisters at the end of the day.

I wanted to talk to them, ask them where they're from, how long since they've been here. I think I have asked one of them that in the past. Since then, he recognizes me and greets me when I enter. But since the Bombay attacks, something has stopped me from going into the Pakistani shops around here. I avoid going there, and on the one occassion when I have, I haven't been able to look them in the eye. Is it because they never really say "we're sorry that so and so happened" ? Is it because in the small talk I've often expressed solitude with them when the earthquake happened in Quetta, or when the Marriot bombings happened in Islamabad, but during the eight major terrorist incidents in India in 2008, they have not so much as condemned one? Am I over-reacting? I know they have nothing to do with it. But then why is there so much hate between the two nations?

We are not superior to them, we don't want to impose ourselves on them. We wish the Pakistanis progress and prosperity. I sincerely believe thats true. As a country, India hasn't done any harm to them. Their main grevience is Kashmir, but why can't we let that issue aside and just focus on ourselves, on building a bright future for the coming generations? Why why why is there so much tension and hatred?

I want to believe that it is a political matter, that politicians and generals in Pakistan have hijacked the people's psyches, that they make them believe that Pakistan's progress lies in India's destruction? I want to believe that its not the people, atleast those I see around me.