Hi Cornel, Thanks for your response to my post. To be specific to the points you raise, my (GL) reply to each of them follow your (CD) comments. I hope you have your 'humor button' switched-on.
Kind Regards, GL --------------- CORNEL DACOSTA wrote: CD: Hi Gilbert, delighted to see you back on Goanet after what seems like ages. GL: Thank you for your kind words. --------------- CD: You seem to recognise what "liberal" means. So I am not sure why you had asked me to define it recently including its core concepts. GL: I am not sure about these labels. As I pointed out both Dinesh and Christopher are conservatives politically, yet divergent in their religious views. To me a liberal is one who wants change just for the sake of change. Like quite a few Goans, I think you are 'liberal' (your admission below), while I tend to be a 'progressive'.:=)) ----------------- CD: Put simply, as you yourself do above, it is loosely referred to those not conservative and reactionary like those supporting the catastrophic American mistake of the war in Iraq. Earlier, you had also been dismissive and bemused by my position as a liberal politically. This is from memory but of course, as always, verifiable in the archives! GL: I do wish the "conservative and reactionary" George Bush was not led by his "liberal" Labor party poodle from across the pond. Thus you see, political / social labels of 'liberal' and 'conservative' may mean very little. -------------------- CD: However, pray what exactly do you mean by "those who sound intellectual by regurgitating atheistic theories?" Is this very different from those who regurgitate religious theories and rely on the Bible so much? GL: Individuals who regurgitate from the Bible are honest enough to call their views as their 'beliefs'. Those who "regurgitate atheistic theories" claim those views are '(scientific) facts'. This is the point some of us have made on Goanet where the (scientific) facts / conclusions on a frequent basis are 'massaged' by the biases or the underlying assumptions of the observers / scientists. And of course some scholars / scientists make it a virtue to know 'less and less' about 'more and more'. :=)) ----------------- CD: To say that Dinesh is an acclaimed Goan is surely to stretch the imagination especially over the substantial criticism of his earlier book as referred to above. GL: The above statement is another reflection of YOUR casteism - inflating your own ego by demeaning another Goan. Even though I do not agree with Dinesh on all his political views, my recognition of him is: "he is an acclaimed Goan." As an FYI, I would classify you as an "acclaimed Goan" too. ---------------- CD: My more recent reading of the Inquisition in Goa was that it was an instrument used with incredible brutality to force the converts to stay with their conversion when their inclination was to revert to Hinduism. GL: If I could borrow from Dinesh, the above is you "make a point here and a point there with a lot of bull in-between". I am glad to note your independent reading has also confirmed what I have been writing about the Goan inquisition - it was targeted against the Catholics - European and native. And to repeat again, the Goan inquisition was not primarily targeted against the Hindus (who were targets of much earlier colonial dictates). Perhaps the second part of your statement (on reverting back) is a slip of your thinking and writing. IMHO, The European padres were confused about the Goan Catholics continuing their Indian cultural practices in church and in their homes rather than the European religious and cultural traditions which the padres were familiar with. Some of these padres confused between religious and cultural practices. Yet the Goan Catholics managed to adopt and adapt (to a generation ago) to a combined 'western religious practices' and an 'indigenous cultural traditions'. While confusing, these are some of the conclusions of my study. Please do not be defensive. I specifically say "to a generation ago". I would call on you and other readers of this post to analyze (for themselves) their own religious and cultural practices today, as compared to the days when they were growing up. And is that something that we want to pass on to the next generation of Goans? ----------------- CD: Unfortunately, this made them half-baked Hindus and half-baked Catholics --- an unfortunate and sad legacy to this day. GL: I get your humor. I also think this is another of your statements that displays YOUR casteism - "inflating your own ego by demeaning other Goans". Regards, GL
