of hypes and realities
This is probably an apt article/blog for today... Y'day... in our library the police made an arrest of a person on charges of "voyeurism, assault and criminal trespass"...the incident was widely covered in all the news papers and all news channels (local)...it appeared on the universities news paper too...but the question is whether it required such a high media attention and or was it really a "worthy" news..that people spend considerable amount if time
I am glad that the UC police nabbed the "culprit" and without much ado...but, everyone seems to be petrified! there have been series of mails warning of such incidents and to keep an "open eye" for such behaviors in future...I don't have any objection to "warning" mails..but I am perplexed as to these kind of warnings time and again would lead to the story of "boy and the tiger"...
I have utmost concern for "human beings" be it in the US or Somalia or in my native land India...I was always under the impression that the "developed" nations would go to any extent to save one life... (not that developing nations do not...) but they at least project to the world that way...there is a clear distinction here..whose life and how much? (we have seen the war waged by the US on Afghanistan and the Taliban only for the reason that they attacked the twin towers...I would not like to make any comments on the Iraq war in this blog...)
The response of the government in the time of "crises" seems to be different to different sets of people...when a man made disaster struck in the form of 9/11 whole of US (predominantly the incumbent government) got enraged and waged a war...but the response to the natural disaster Katrina is entirely different...I've been to New Orleans and I still see (after 3 years) there is little or no change in the situation of the lives of people in Louisiana...the emergency response system (under Federal Emergency Management Agency/FEMA) utterly failed the people of Louisiana and I have no clear answer as to why is this "different" approach...
Till date people are debating as to what need to be done to the victims of Katrina, aid has not completely reached to the needy, and the insurance rates are sky rocketing thus dissuading the poor to access to better living conditions....I can not describe the amount of agony and pain the people of Louisiana are still facing...and the government response to it is pittance...of course the US government is ready to deliver "aid" to the Burmese and Chinese for their recent natural catastrophes...I am not against the US trying to help other countries..but I would like to question as to why do they want to "help" or project that they are helping the world while they really are not!
Instances such as Katrina always raise the question in my mind as to why certain people are indifferent to other people...even in their own country...and try to project image of an angel in the world and savior of the world...why do they pretend as if they are gods...I am not singling out the US..but all the "developed nations" with an exception of Japan. I am in no position to comment on Japanese because I hear/read so little about their track record.
There is a huge amount of hype that these countries try to generate...if they lend a helping hand they show that this is the best that they are doing and even the "native" country ('s government) is doing little to help their own country....I have a friend who always thinks that where ever he is..weather he works, lives, or has any business to do with...is always the best in the world...and rest of the "other" are insignificant... although he was previously "related" to that same place...I see the hype generated by the "donor" countries similar to what my friend feels...
This kind of hyped version is becoming a way of life in the world...no one is concerned about the reality... every one is creating hype about he global food scarcity..but there are little steps that are being taken to curb the same...(of course every one is talking about taking some measures...but in reality..nothing is materializing) ...here I would like to take a dig at Indian government too..Inflation is over 7% and is showing no signs of mitigation ...but the government keeps on assuring the people that it would come down...it does not say how!...and taking this as an opportune moment..the opposition is taking full political mileage of the scenario...I have no clue as to what the government or the opposition is really doing to curb inflation? I think that Indian government should stop pretending and start acting...there needs to be a "common course of action" based on economic logic and a strategy to curb it..rather than just looking at the skies for answers...Indian government has one of the best economists on board...the prime minister himself is a great policy enabler, as is the deputy chairperson of the planning commission, and the finance minister is no less.
I have no clue as to how political consensus can be achieved in the diverse Indian political arena... unless we come up with a "formula" to take decisions that would not be reverted back by the next government there can be no political and economic stability...I can probably safely say that the current economic trends of Indian markets and the economy are also much hyped and there needs to be a reality check...every one wants to ride on the bandwagon...but it is also important to know the health of the bandwagon and the dependability of the same...now that the "Brettonwoods institutions" are projecting a stable government/ economic trends every one seems to be happy...but is this a reality? and how sustainable/robust is this growth...needs to be assessed...and measures to make it sustainable have to be taken... India is probably enjoying the fruits of economic liberalization taken in the 1990s ...but I've not seen any measures that would ensure the sustainability of the current economic "hype" ...
let me stop here as my allocated time for today is up...
more later...
(grounded) Avadhani
I am glad that the UC police nabbed the "culprit" and without much ado...but, everyone seems to be petrified! there have been series of mails warning of such incidents and to keep an "open eye" for such behaviors in future...I don't have any objection to "warning" mails..but I am perplexed as to these kind of warnings time and again would lead to the story of "boy and the tiger"...
I have utmost concern for "human beings" be it in the US or Somalia or in my native land India...I was always under the impression that the "developed" nations would go to any extent to save one life... (not that developing nations do not...) but they at least project to the world that way...there is a clear distinction here..whose life and how much? (we have seen the war waged by the US on Afghanistan and the Taliban only for the reason that they attacked the twin towers...I would not like to make any comments on the Iraq war in this blog...)
The response of the government in the time of "crises" seems to be different to different sets of people...when a man made disaster struck in the form of 9/11 whole of US (predominantly the incumbent government) got enraged and waged a war...but the response to the natural disaster Katrina is entirely different...I've been to New Orleans and I still see (after 3 years) there is little or no change in the situation of the lives of people in Louisiana...the emergency response system (under Federal Emergency Management Agency/FEMA) utterly failed the people of Louisiana and I have no clear answer as to why is this "different" approach...
Till date people are debating as to what need to be done to the victims of Katrina, aid has not completely reached to the needy, and the insurance rates are sky rocketing thus dissuading the poor to access to better living conditions....I can not describe the amount of agony and pain the people of Louisiana are still facing...and the government response to it is pittance...of course the US government is ready to deliver "aid" to the Burmese and Chinese for their recent natural catastrophes...I am not against the US trying to help other countries..but I would like to question as to why do they want to "help" or project that they are helping the world while they really are not!
Instances such as Katrina always raise the question in my mind as to why certain people are indifferent to other people...even in their own country...and try to project image of an angel in the world and savior of the world...why do they pretend as if they are gods...I am not singling out the US..but all the "developed nations" with an exception of Japan. I am in no position to comment on Japanese because I hear/read so little about their track record.
There is a huge amount of hype that these countries try to generate...if they lend a helping hand they show that this is the best that they are doing and even the "native" country ('s government) is doing little to help their own country....I have a friend who always thinks that where ever he is..weather he works, lives, or has any business to do with...is always the best in the world...and rest of the "other" are insignificant... although he was previously "related" to that same place...I see the hype generated by the "donor" countries similar to what my friend feels...
This kind of hyped version is becoming a way of life in the world...no one is concerned about the reality... every one is creating hype about he global food scarcity..but there are little steps that are being taken to curb the same...(of course every one is talking about taking some measures...but in reality..nothing is materializing) ...here I would like to take a dig at Indian government too..Inflation is over 7% and is showing no signs of mitigation ...but the government keeps on assuring the people that it would come down...it does not say how!...and taking this as an opportune moment..the opposition is taking full political mileage of the scenario...I have no clue as to what the government or the opposition is really doing to curb inflation? I think that Indian government should stop pretending and start acting...there needs to be a "common course of action" based on economic logic and a strategy to curb it..rather than just looking at the skies for answers...Indian government has one of the best economists on board...the prime minister himself is a great policy enabler, as is the deputy chairperson of the planning commission, and the finance minister is no less.
I have no clue as to how political consensus can be achieved in the diverse Indian political arena... unless we come up with a "formula" to take decisions that would not be reverted back by the next government there can be no political and economic stability...I can probably safely say that the current economic trends of Indian markets and the economy are also much hyped and there needs to be a reality check...every one wants to ride on the bandwagon...but it is also important to know the health of the bandwagon and the dependability of the same...now that the "Brettonwoods institutions" are projecting a stable government/ economic trends every one seems to be happy...but is this a reality? and how sustainable/robust is this growth...needs to be assessed...and measures to make it sustainable have to be taken... India is probably enjoying the fruits of economic liberalization taken in the 1990s ...but I've not seen any measures that would ensure the sustainability of the current economic "hype" ...
let me stop here as my allocated time for today is up...
more later...
(grounded) Avadhani
posted by Avadhani at
10:39 PM
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