Dear Vidyadhar, Although I am not well acquainted with the politics of Holland, I'd like to share a few of my perspectives on this subject.
I read somewhere that a recent poll shows almost 50% of the Dutch population has a negative imagine of Muslims. This intolerance has gained momentum after the brutal killing of Dutch film director Theo Van Gogh. Indeed, I am possibly not amiss in saying this anti-Muslim sentiment is rising in Europe, in a way that it is not in America. Perhaps America is too large a country to simmer such targeted hatred, perhaps in an ironic way America is more tolerant a country despite its shambles of a foreign policy in the Middle East. Anyway, I digress. The point I was going to make is that the west, although it places a huge emphasis on individualism at one end, (the right of the individual is supreme and not subordinate to anyone), at an other level its democratic institutions are symbiotically dependent on homogenization of thought and act. The sort of pluralistic society that coexists (albeit tenuously) in India or in Asian cultures is simply not encouraged in the West. It is in this context that I understand their desire to divest itself of what they perceive to be cultures alien to theirs. Selma ---------------------------------------------- --- Vidyadhar Gadgil <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > The Holland case is nothing but the fear of the > 'other' carried to silly > extremes, you start with the burqa and then move to > the saree and who > knows what next? And it is deplorable that a > cardinal, of all people, > had to join this clamour. What difference is there > between the > cardinal's statement and what the Bajrang Dal in > India says, that women > should not wear 'foreign' apparel like trousers and > skirts? All in the > name of 'respecting, traditions, culture' etc. > Beware the culture > police, whatever guise they appear under. > > > -- > Question everything -- Karl Marx > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Want to start your own business? Learn how on Yahoo! Small Business. http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-index ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Goanet supports BMX, the alumni network of Britto's, St Mary's and Xavier's -- three prominent institutions in Mapusa, Goa. Events scheduled from Dec 16 to 21, 2006 For more details visit http://www.bmxgoa.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------
