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Rui Collaco, Unless you are new to the goanet this isn't a new topic of discussion - in fact we are now flogging a very dead and decomposed horse! When this rotten carcass makes its odiferous presence felt on the net occasionally (probably from winter cabin fever) I tend to ignore it because I do not have anything new to contribute to its decay. But this time I felt I should set straight a few misconceptions that I did not know that Goan-Portuguese or Portuguese -Goans had about Indians who live in Goa. Like many others who you are arguing with these days I too lived and was educated in Goa, spoke Portuguese because my parents were educated in Goa but was too young to 'appreciate' the loss and void that you think the Portuguese left behind. However as some others have already impressed upon you we were never 'brainwashed' into thinking ill of our colonizers. Maybe you should explain what you really mean by brainwashed for I have heard it been used pretty broadly! Could it mean what the Ohm and Asahara cult did to brilliant Tokyo Univ graduates - sent high voltage shocks to their brains so they could work to make his sarin gas? I hope not. Just plain barraging with misinformation like many dictators tend to do? Maybe? Well just to set you straight neither of this happened - no one in my school and in my college ever told me that Portugal was the backwaters of prosperous Europe and that the Portuguese were a bunch of clods who ate only dried cod. In fact and perhaps I should be complaining about this no one told me anything about Portugal except perhaps in Geography class. So I had absolutely no opinion about it. I have plenty of cousins and two uncles in Lisbon - the former visited a lot and we loved to practice our Portuguese on them but that is about it! So it follows that your second accusation that we gave up our identify is also incorrect. Fear not, we have a great sense of identify more than we need perhaps and are very self assured. Perhaps we do not have the identify that you would like us to have but this is in itself negates the meaning of identify doesnt it - am I seeing an oxymoron here? I have no problems being raised an Indian, reading Indian literature, listening to Indian food, hanging with my Indian friends and relishing our wonderful cuisine just like I am sure you enjoy your life in Portugal! So let us be - do not foist on us something we do not feel. Have a great life! Yes, I did go to Portugal in 1998 to give a talk on remote sensing and oceanography at a very well attended conference in Belem organized by NASA and the European space agency when your country was celebrating its 'Year of the oceans'. The European Union pumped a lot of money as did the Portuguese government to put up a great show including the construction of a very beautiful aquarium with if I remember right had at least 6 biomes - the aquarium was conceptualized and designed by an American - yes the same people who eat junk food and drive gas guzzlers. But I digress. Considering that Portugal has been land of navigators and explorers I was surprised to see that there were no Portuguese oceanographers giving talks and taking a lead in discussions. I did feel hopeful when I some great and very eager students all of who were trained in the US and the UK who were very eager to jump on the bandwagon! Good for them - one has to move on. I was very impressed with the National Institute of Oceanography, Goa which put up a great show with a very well attended pavilion and a very well received book written by an Indian woman on old fishing practices in I think but I could be wrong the Lakhshadeep. After the conference I traveled all over Portugal and it was a great holiday not only for the old churches, the wine and the good food but also for the old friends and many relatives although the later tired me with their American and Japanese bashing but I can live with that. I just tune off and think about my next meal! However, at no point did I feel I was part of that world - it was great to be able to speak the language it always is in any country but it was just that - another country. My visit certainly was more enjoyable than yours was to Goa and unlike you I am sure to go again but I would like to go to many other countries too. Do I make sense? Its late in the night so I could be rambling! -- Helga do Rosario Gomes >Mr. Pinto, you talk about looking at Portugal. Well, indeed, why not? I >invite you and all other brainwashed Goans to take a good look at Portugal. >Have you ever set foot in this country? Thall, India is one of the poorest and most >backward countries on earth, a world champion in mass poverty and social >injustice. >They welcomed the "liberators", they accepted being brainwashed, >they gave up their distinct identity (which even Nehru talked of >preserving), so I think they got what they deserved in a big way. I would >rather talk about East Timor and how a valiant people conquered their >freedom and created a new nation (with Portugal's unswerving support). > I wish to assure you that I don't have the slightest intention of moving >to the US, inspite of its superpower status. I would never trade Europe for >America. I don't get impressed with skyscrapers and aircraft carriers, I >hate junk food and prefer to have wine at meals, rather than coke. I prefer >a continent where people don't go around with guns, and cowboys don't run >for presidents, and cars are not gas-guzzlers. I prefer a continent where >there is heritage, monuments, castles, medieval towns, history and >tradition. You ask in Europe how many people want to move to America.You >wouldn't form even a small army with them. It is very pretentious of you to >say that those who settled in Europe made a "terrible mistake".Maybe such an >assertion is understandable from people who go from India to the US (perhaps >your case). Indians tend to be fascinated with America, for obvious reasons. >Europeans don't. I live in Lisbon, Portugal, and have a very good life. I >enjoy one intangible thing which you may never have heard about: the >pleasures of european living. If you ask some cultured Americans who have >lived in Europe about this you may come to learn a couple of things about >"relatively backward Europe". >There have been a number of Goan >judges, university professors, medical doctors, high Govt. officials, >ambassadors (there are probably more Goans as ambassadors of Portugal than >as ambassadors of India),etc.from the 19th century onwards, working all >across the then portuguese empire.The colonisation of Mozambique was done by >Europeans and Goans, side by side.Today there are thousands of goans (or >rather, citizens of goan origin, like myself) in the Govt. departments, ere have been otehrs who hol the same opinon as you as you and that is fine with me - all i ask is for yuo to let us be! Let us _______________________________________________ Goanet mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.goanet.org/mailman/listinfo/goanet
