StyleSpeak For Goa Today June 2006 By Wendell Rodricks NEGATIVE TO POSITIVE
So all us Goans went up in arms for and against a film based on fiction, fact and fantasy. A thriller that may have sunk at the box office, if we were to practice restraint. Instead we have fueled the minds of the youth who are even more curious to know about the "Code". The book is now flying off shelves like hot poyees. It's good that the Catholic community found it's voice and unity. But I wish, instead of promoting Don Brown's book we stood together and protested with the same zeal when nuns were raped, churches attacked, priests humiliated and Graham Staines and his young sons burnt alive. Where were we then? Let's not fool ourselves about this book and film issue. Someone (and it may well be Sony) began beating the drum and without even seeing the film, we all followed like meek sheep. Some even went on a hunger strike. I wish it was for a better reason. After all, this film cannot shake the foundations of the Catholic world. Or are we so naive and weak to believe it can ?? What is central here is the same old devil. Money !!! Don Brown, at presumably even a dollar a book royalty, has raked in 40 million and more. If the book hadn't been such a bonanza at the bank, would the papacy have cared about this book ?? Now with the film's controversial publicity, Goan bookshops are briskly adding to Brown's wealth. A crying shame ! Also shameful is the undue importance to a great artist, Leonardo da Vinci is undoubtedly a Renaissance man with astounding talent. But does that make his paintings Gospel truth ? Ideally, we should not care about his spiritual beliefs. Ideally, we should concentrate on our belief. If we want to make a negative scenario into a positive, this is what we should do. Go back to the wonderful teachings of Christ, live the message as closely as we can and not bother about details that cannot change our lives or beliefs. Negative to Positive should also be the mantra for the Mopa airport. Everyone thinks that MLA Jeetendra Deshprabhu has lost. I think he unknowingly won a lot. All that beautiful pristine hand is worth so much. It can be maintained and sold to premium spa operators. Today, the world tourist wants peace and quiet. And Pernem has it ! Look at the facts: The Baga Sinquerim beach is destroyed. The south is on it's way to disaster. But the Viscount of Pernem has paradise on his hands. If it was in my hands, I would ensure that the government restore his beautiful palace (and all the other Goan "palatial" homes). They are our pride and joy. The crumbling Sondem royal palace at Nageshi and the splendid laterite stone mansions that dot the state should be restored by the Goa Government. They are our tourist wealth and cultural magnets. Preserve them please....... like we need to preserve the clear air, water and greenery of Pernem. Thank God the airport did not gobble the Deshprabhu hand. If the proposed highway is diverted away from Pernem, they will have further gold. Who needs a highway that is a noisy toxic fumes spewer......... in a green belt ? Why give up Goan land (so rare these days) for a paltry Central government rate so that a truck to peddle produce from Kanya Kumari to Haryana ? How is it benefiting Goa ? Let the four lane be for Goans. Build a new North-South highway on the border between Maharastra and Karnataka. And wall it please ! So that we Goans don't hear the sound of horns and roars, suffer road rage of bad drivers, fell the tremors each time a ten-ton truck rumbles by and breathe the toxic emissions that hover like a monsoon cloud over the NH 17. Talking of emissions, nothing is more foul that the stench at the Mandovi bridge. A dream, or nightmare, come true for a environment-concerned citizen like me. Did I not say we will welcome tourists very soon with the foul stench of garbage ? Well, it's a reality now. Very soon tourists will go South or North and give Goa the miss. If we do not preserve the unique quality of Goa, if we do not undo the negative we have inflicted, if we do not stand together......... this little place on earth will become a world lesson on how to ruin a paradise state. We all know that the rot has set in. Goa is being carved and sold to the highest bidder, like the slave trade of yore. Goans who earlier lived simple lives now ask "how much will I get for square meter?" from perfect strangers. So what can be done ? Instead of taking Da Vinci on the agenda of government meeting space, the Goa cabinet should set in motion a programme to save Goa's heritage and culture. Children in schools should be taught Goan music, poetry, dance and literature. We need to promote Konkani......... in both scripts. Our children need to be taught how to segregate garbage in the classroom. Each classroom should have wet and dry bins. School should have a common compost pit, maintained by the students. It's so easy to do. Why is it not on the agenda of the Minister of Education ? We must learn how to be less xenophobic, accept people from other lands and teach them Goan culture. Goans need to adapt to a changing world. To be more positive. To encourage growth and progress. To be assertive. Above all to be fiercely proud and preserve the unique Goan culture ethos. With monsoon on the way, may the parched earth of our minds bloom into fresh thought and bring new life to a people that deserve the best in this changing landscape. ===== _______________________________________________ Goanet mailing list Goanet@lists.goanet.org http://lists.goanet.org/listinfo.cgi/goanet-goanet.org
