Dear Cheriyan, You seem to be assuming that there is an essential anti CPIM core in me!! In fact I am trying my level best to remain neither anti-- nor pro CPIM and still live as a citizen in Kerala. The only choice today apear to be to be a 'consumer' of media entertainment and select from the alternatives provided by them!! Well that is an issue in itself which need to be discussed in detail.
"Tell the alternative for Smart city.. am with you" To quote Samir Amin from memory, "It is criminal to say that there are no alternatives.There are alternatives to every situation." There are several alternatives which people might find out. So, it is a big NO and several yes's . Both the decentralisation rhetoric of Janakeeyasuthrana sort as well as Centralisation discourse of Smart City variety fail miserably in allowing any participation to citizens in decision making process. Thus they both end up as effective steps in the neoliberal turn. Transparency mean nothing in the absence of decision making power. Let me quote Pierre Bourdieu [this time not from memory!!] on neo liberal utopia which prompts everybody to confuse the things of logic with the logic of things. "like Marxism of an earlier time , with which, in this regard, it has much in common , this utopia evokes powerful belief not only among those who live off it , such as financiers, the owners and managers of large corporations , etc, but also among those , such as high-level government officials and politicians , who derive their justification for existing from it.For they sanctify the power of markets in the name of economic efficiency , which requires the elimination of administrative or political barriers capable of inconveniencing the ownwers of capital in their individual quest for the maximisation of individual profit , which has been turned into a model of rationality.... Like it or not , the public interest will never emerge , even at the cost of a few mathematical errors, from the vision of accountants [ in earlier period one would have said of 'shopkeepers'] that the new belief system presents as the supreme form of human accomplishment" While asking for alternatives and arguing in terms of economic benefits we are not critiquing but participating in neoliberal discourse which is not one among other discourses but the "strong discourse" today.I find no difference between legitimising ADB loan by asking "Don't we need Money?" and rationalising SMART city project by saying 'Do you have alternatives to it?'.. It is not me or you but people who are capable of finding alternatives . Democracy mean nothing less to me. Warmly Dileep On 5/29/07, PJ Cherian <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Hi, strange why Dileep raj- can't address issues 'independently' and > forget the UDF - LDF sort of obvious. He tried in the beginning but soon got > lost with anti-CPM bla bla. don't accuse of being in service .......In fact > all of us are. Now to job talk .... was how the capital imprisoned the > world of both communists and anti communists alike, leave alone the > pro-capital, Yes to come out - you said it - democracy is the way. But the > democracy we know has accepted, legitimized and internalized the > accumulation through encroachment, and neo-liberals celebrate it. Don't get > frustrated when poor comrades try to do it with some transparency. Tell > the alternative for Smart city.. am with you. > pjc > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > > *From:* Dileep Raj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > *To:* [email protected] > *Sent:* Tuesday, May 29, 2007 6:50 PM > *Subject:* {greenyouth} Re: സ്മാര്ട്ട്സിറ്റിയും കേരളത്തിന്റെ ഐ.ടി നയവും > > > Hi, > > I was wondering at the reappearence of 'job talk' in order to legitimise > a move > made by the present government. In the age of industrial capitalism, the > EMS government brought Birla to Mavoor with the support of a crude version > of this argument. Now in > neoliberal times, intellectuals and experts are desperately relying on > this one and only only > 'pragmatic' excuse to rationalise their complacency in government > policies. > > The erstwhile Soviet Union [ under the leadership of Lenin and Stalin ] > was > praised by some intellectuals for the giant leaps made in industrial > development , job creation, economic growth etc.which was comparable to > Capitalist world. At hindsight we realise that people of that country were > not satisfied with such 'development' > and opportunities and demanded 'democracy' !!! > > It is high time we take democracy as criterion to assess policy decisions > and its consequences. While speaking of 'jobs being created' are we speaking > as beneficiaries or > 'speaking for others' ? If the second instance is the case, get lost with > your patronising blabla!!! This has long been the undemocratic strategy > followed by all experts > siding with undemocratic governmnets in order to nullify the struggles by > affected people > at umpteen number of locations including Narmada. > > Will anybody convince me why Smart city is to be welcomed? Mind you! I am > not > in the least interested in the future or past of CPIM!! So please spare me > of comparisons with UDF policy and the like. I wish experts and > intellectuals serving CPI M > could at least learn a language in which they could address publlic > instead of assuming everybody to be CPIM sympathisers. > > Regards > Dileep > > > On 5/29/07, [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > > > On May 28, 2:31 pm, Anivar Aravind < [EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > .."right to recall".. > > > > We need to be critical about this "right to recall". Indian > > subcontinent appears to be undergoing a constant demographic change, > > though its pace and extent varies from place to place. Legislators are > > now increasingly getting conscious and excited over the new found > > phenomenon that a *development initiative* is all what is needed to > > drive out their adversaries from their habitats. A new project > > inserted in such a premise would soon see a new demographic contour, > > whose appearance will be to the liking of every legislator, one that > > will fetch the legislator more rewards than punishment. > > > > Against this backdrop, a right to recall is worthless - especially > > since the antagonising voters would have already evicted their > > territory. The newly moved in *voters* would find nothing wrong with > > the legislator. > > > > If election commission came out with a report on how much voters have > > been effected during every franchise, the extent of this cunningness > > will get exposed. Till now, we were given to understand that its to > > incorporate the new eligible voters or make corrections on existing > > voters list that such an exercise is being carried out. Unless this > > comes, we may not be able to silence the development-pied-piper and > > its followers. > > CK Raju > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > Dileep Raj > Tel: 09447316701 > > > -- Dileep Raj Tel: 09447316701 --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ greenyouth mailinglist is the activist support mailinglist for kerala run by Global Alternate Information Applications (GAIA) To post to this group, send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
