[Assam] From the AT
http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=oct0507\City City to join global campaign against poverty on Oct 17By A City Correspondent GUWAHATI, Oct 4 – Students of Guwahati will take part in a worldwide campaign against poverty to be jointly launched by The Art of Living and United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC) on October 17.The joint effort is aimed at eradicating poverty and inching towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set by the United Nations. The MDGs include achieving universal primary education, promotion of gender equality and empowering women, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensuring sustainability and developing a global partnership for development.Art of Living’s North East coordinator Pinki Hazarika said that along with the rest of the world, the students of the city will take the pledge to eradicate poverty by standing up for two minutes.The ‘Stand Up’ campaign would seek to mobilise public opinion to support the UNMC’s initiative to achieve a poverty-free world by 2015. The Art of Living has taken the lead to mobilise over four million people across the globe to support the vision to defeat poverty.The Art of Living is going to organize several public events in over 100 countries for people from all walks of life to take the pledge. The ‘Stand Up’ events would be held all over the world, from the busiest square in the world, New York’s Times Square to the smallest school in the tsunami-struck Ache province in Indonesia. The events would be in different forms such as simple public gatherings, music concerts, group dances, rallies, carnivals, street theatres and satsangs. The idea behind the ‘Stand Up’ campaign is to remind the world leaders of their promise of achieving the MDGs and urge them to show the necessary political will. The rich countries would be enjoined to provide more aid, cancel debts and practice fair trade, whereas the poor countries would be requested to save the lives of the poorest citizens and achieve real transparency and accountability in utilization of resources.“In the North East we are mainly targeting the schools,” said Pinki. Schools with more than 500 students in the city are being approached for the forthcoming programme.The Art of Living, North East has requested the people of the region to come forward and make the world a more beautiful place to live.The ensuing event is a follow-up to an alliance finalised in May 2007 between the Art of Living and UNMC. “In order to make spiritual progress you must be patient like a tree and humble like a blade of grass” - Lakshmana _ Boo! Scare away worms, viruses and so much more! Try Windows Live OneCare! http://onecare.live.com/standard/en-us/purchase/trial.aspx?s_cid=wl_hotmailnews___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
What you miss Ram is that INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed
uprising, in the pursuit of POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of.
In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely
wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been
ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections.
That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices
militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what
it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military
dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic
values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance.
I wholeheartedly support the underlined statement. We all should understand
that they are our brothers and sisters. Even if they have committed some
mistakes, the onus is on us to advise them to amend their ways and try to find
a suitable solution agrreable to all (even if it is a arduous task). Admit it
or not, GoI did never give a damn about what happens to the people of Assam and
will never do that in future too.
Mridul Bhuyan
Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:What you miss Ram is that
INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of
POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of.
In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely
wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been
ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections.
That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices
militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what
it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military
dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic
values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance.
At 10:07 AM -0600 10/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote:
A! The use of language to deny the humanity of 'insurgents' , as if
they are NOT people. Not Nagas, not Shans, not Manipuris, not
Oxomiyas---they are just INSURGENTS and so fair game. C'da, I doubt if
any sane government will just allow insurgents to do what they please - hole up
in neighboring countries and blow up their citizens. To that end, India is
frequently reminded of the humanity that insurgents frequently dole out to
Indian citizens in Assam, Manipur etc. You tout the 'just cause' on behalf
of insurgents, of their sacrifices, their aspirations etc. Fair enough.
Similarly, India and Indians also think that their cause is just, and that the
Indian democracy (at least thats what they think - even if you disagree) is
being hijacked, its citizens killed, and insurgents are causing a reign of
terror among common citizens in Assam That is why, whatever the
causes/aspirations are, in the end, peace is what both sides need to aspire
for. If peace is not on the table nothing else matters. --Ram
10/4/07, Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
He is upset that the GOI would reach across the border to seek the help of
Burma/Bhutan with the insurgency problem.
A! The use of language to deny the humanity of 'insurgents' , as if
they are NOT people. Not Nagas, not Shans, not Manipuris, not Oxomiyas---they
are just INSURGENTS and so fair game.
That is what desi-demokray obviously stands for and is defended so
staunchly, uncritically by its devotees. And my pointing it out causes the
discomfiture it does.
Again, small wonder why desi-demokrasy's quality remains in the dismal
condition it does, and gets worse by the day.
At 8:50 AM -0600 10/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote:
This is probably the reason why Sri Ram Sarangapani did not understand the
dig if any.
Oh!. I understood the dig alright (I've known C'da for many years now:)).
But what he fails to undersatand is that the GOI may on the one hand seek
help from the military Junta with a couple of goals in mind ( (a) to flush
insurgents and (b) to curtail drug trafficking into India from Burma ) and on
the other hand condemn the Burmese Govt. for its attrocities on the monks.
Is this hypocritical on the part of the GOI? Obviously, the GOI does not
think the peaceful protesting monks are the same as militant insurgents.
And I understand this has struck a 'raw nerve' in C'da. He is upset that the
GOI would reach across the border to seek the help of Burma/Bhutan with the
insurgency problem.
--Ram
On 10/4/07, uttam borthakur [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
People of India may demand that its Govt should exert its influence over the
Myanmar Junta so that it does not resort to repression.
[Assam] Media body supports Burmese cause
http://mizzima.com/MizzimaNews/News/2007/Oct/20-Oct-2007.html Media body supports Burmese cause Nava Thakuria Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com ) October 4, 2007 - Guwahati - The Journalists' Forum, Assam on Thursday urged the Government of India to mount diplomatic pressure on the Burmese military junta to refrain from resorting to repressive measures against protesters carrying on the movement for democracy in the country. In a citizens' meeting at the Guwahati Press Club with JFA President Rupam Baruah in chair, the newsmen's body asked the Union Government not to remain a silent spectator to the happenings in the neighbouring country and do what is in its power to facilitate a peaceful transition to democracy. Extending its whole-hearted support to the movement, the Forum demanded that Aung San Suu Kyi, globally feted pro-democracy leader and Noble Peace Laureate, be immediately released from prolonged detention. It deplored the brutal killing of protesting citizens and a foreign journalist. The meeting expressed solidarity with the proposed Global Action Day for Free Burma to be observed on October 6. The meeting was addressed among others by Dr Amalendu Guha, Hemanta Barman, Dr Abdul Mannan, Nilamoni Sen Deka, Hiten Mahanta, Nava Thakuria, Jayanta Gogoi, Jawaharlal Saha and Satish Tahbildar. ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
What about Naxalite movements in various parts of India? It has been said that
those groups hold sway over a big chunk of India. Moreover, I fail to
understand one thing. The INSURGENTS calling for secession and being at WAR
with India can avail of procedures like habeas corpus through Indian Courts.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of their courts where we come to know
about death penalty etc. after those are carried out. Why do they seek justice
under Indian constitution when they do not conform to it? I do not say they
should not, but I find a dichotomy:-).
Mridul Bhuyan [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:What you miss Ram is that
INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of
POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of.
In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely
wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been
ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections.
That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices
militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what
it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military
dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic
values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance.
I wholeheartedly support the underlined statement. We all should understand
that they are our brothers and sisters. Even if they have committed some
mistakes, the onus is on us to advise them to amend their ways and try to find
a suitable solution agrreable to all (even if it is a arduous task). Admit it
or not, GoI did never give a damn about what happens to the people of Assam and
will never do that in future too.
Mridul Bhuyan
Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: What you miss Ram is that
INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of
POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of.
In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely
wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been
ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections.
That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices
militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what
it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military
dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic
values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance.
At 10:07 AM -0600 10/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote:
A! The use of language to deny the humanity of 'insurgents' , as if
they are NOT people. Not Nagas, not Shans, not Manipuris, not
Oxomiyas---they are just INSURGENTS and so fair game. C'da, I doubt if
any sane government will just allow insurgents to do what they please - hole up
in neighboring countries and blow up their citizens. To that end, India is
frequently reminded of the humanity that insurgents frequently dole out to
Indian citizens in Assam, Manipur etc. You tout the 'just cause' on behalf
of insurgents, of their sacrifices, their aspirations etc. Fair enough.
Similarly, India and Indians also think that their cause is just, and that the
Indian democracy (at least thats what they think - even if you disagree) is
being hijacked, its citizens killed, and insurgents are causing a reign of
terror among common citizens in Assam That is why, whatever the
causes/aspirations are, in the end, peace is what both sides need to aspire
for. If peace is not on the table nothing else matters. --Ram
10/4/07, Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
He is upset that the GOI would reach across the border to seek the help of
Burma/Bhutan with the insurgency problem.
A! The use of language to deny the humanity of 'insurgents' , as if
they are NOT people. Not Nagas, not Shans, not Manipuris, not Oxomiyas---they
are just INSURGENTS and so fair game.
That is what desi-demokray obviously stands for and is defended so
staunchly, uncritically by its devotees. And my pointing it out causes the
discomfiture it does.
Again, small wonder why desi-demokrasy's quality remains in the dismal
condition it does, and gets worse by the day.
At 8:50 AM -0600 10/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote:
This is probably the reason why Sri Ram Sarangapani did not understand the
dig if any.
Oh!. I understood the dig alright (I've known C'da for many years now:)).
But what he fails to undersatand is that the GOI may on the one hand seek
help from the military Junta with a couple of goals in mind ( (a) to flush
insurgents and (b) to curtail drug trafficking into India from Burma )
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
The basic question (as I understood it from C'da's posting) was the accordance (lack of it) of humanity by the Govt. No one really says that insurgents should NOT be given due process of the law and NOT be treated humanely. But shouldn't there also be a quid quo pro? Shouldn't the so many innocent people and children killed also be be given some of that? Do common people deserve some humanity, be left alone to go about their business? I just don't know any more! ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
*** First off, WHAT does that have to do with HOW ordinary, meek Oxomiyas turned into INSURGENTS ? Where was India's democracy then? Or even now? Or for that matter of other Indians turning into NAXALITES? Were they born that way? Spoilt brats of rich people turning into violence as a hobby perhaps? Where were the courts with habeas corpus or what have you to listen to their grievances or giving them a hand in their struggles to survive? *** Secondly, is it not patently disingenuous to expect a band of rag-tag guerillas, being hounded by the world's second largest standing army, to provide uniform justice ; while the same folks bear mute witness to their supposedly legitimate GOVT's wanton disregard for its own laws, tacitly, if not overtly accept such abominations as AFSPA as something inevitable or even desirable; while never missing a chance to wave to the world how civilized their 'democracy' is? *** Thirdly, these insurgents do no go seeking JUSTICE from India. If they had ANY faith in it, they would not go take up arms against it, knowing full well that they are courting death, as the hundreds of thousands of Nagas, Mizos, Bodos, Oxomiyas, and Manipuris' killings would amply illustrate. But what about those who spout 'democratic values', do THEY care? Do they seek it? Have they ever lifted a finger demanding reforms, demanding changes to what have spawned the numerous insurgencies and Maoist rebellions? What do THEY have to show for? When trouble began, had Indian intelligentsia demanded action of their govts., put the offenders on trial, let the issues come into full public view about who did what and why, that would have gone a long way towards stemming the proliferation of violence. Does Indian intelligentsia even KNOW of what has been going on in our nook of the world for this past half century and more, much less raise their voices in support of ordinary justice? Knowing we cannot dwell on the past, is it reasonable to expect at least NOW some action? Does the intelligentsia , the pillars of society, have the wherewithal to put their money where their mouths are? Will they ask the hard questions they need to, of those who are in power? And demand the changes that are direly needed? Do they have the courage to do that? Can those, who are quick to join the hola gosot baagi kuthar moraa mohabeers and chase the ULFA dispatcher like a bunch of barking mongrels or go applauding from the sidelines ask hard questions of a minister who controls the purse strings of where they feed from? Think about that? At 10:52 AM +0100 10/5/07, uttam borthakur wrote: What about Naxalite movements in various parts of India? It has been said that those groups hold sway over a big chunk of India. Moreover, I fail to understand one thing. The INSURGENTS calling for secession and being at WAR with India can avail of procedures like habeas corpus through Indian Courts. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of their courts where we come to know about death penalty etc. after those are carried out. Why do they seek justice under Indian constitution when they do not conform to it? I do not say they should not, but I find a dichotomy:-). Mridul Bhuyan [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: What you miss Ram is that INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of. In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections. That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance. I wholeheartedly support the underlined statement. We all should understand that they are our brothers and sisters. Even if they have committed some mistakes, the onus is on us to advise them to amend their ways and try to find a suitable solution agrreable to all (even if it is a arduous task). Admit it or not, GoI did never give a damn about what happens to the people of Assam and will never do that in future too. Mridul Bhuyan Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: What you miss Ram is that INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of. In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections. That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
Your confusions Ram, is a result of a self induced inability to separate effects from causes. That simple. At 6:50 AM -0600 10/5/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote: The basic question (as I understood it from C'da's posting) was the accordance (lack of it) of humanity by the Govt. No one really says that insurgents should NOT be given due process of the law and NOT be treated humanely. But shouldn't there also be a quid quo pro? Shouldn't the so many innocent people and children killed also be be given some of that? Do common people deserve some humanity, be left alone to go about their business? I just don't know any more! ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
Very well said Mridul. At 12:11 AM -0700 10/5/07, Mridul Bhuyan wrote: What you miss Ram is that INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of. In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections. That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance. I wholeheartedly support the underlined statement. We all should understand that they are our brothers and sisters. Even if they have committed some mistakes, the onus is on us to advise them to amend their ways and try to find a suitable solution agrreable to all (even if it is a arduous task). Admit it or not, GoI did never give a damn about what happens to the people of Assam and will never do that in future too. Mridul Bhuyan Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: What you miss Ram is that INSURGENTS are PEOPLE, who are driven to armed uprising, in the pursuit of POLITICAL RIGHTS, which they are deprived of. In a real, functioning democracy, run by people who BELIEVE in it, not merely wave as a facade at those whose approval they so seek, there would have been ways to find a peaceful solution to such disaffections. That India has remained buried in its effort to squelch these voices militarily for over half a century, annihilating hundreds of thousands of what it calls their very OWN people , and now with connivance of a brutal military dictatorship in Burma, points to its fake commitments to real democratic values and its intelligentsia's cluelessness and absence from its governance. At 10:07 AM -0600 10/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote: A! The use of language to deny the humanity of 'insurgents' , as if they are NOT people. Not Nagas, not Shans, not Manipuris, not Oxomiyas---they are just INSURGENTS and so fair game. C'da, I doubt if any sane government will just allow insurgents to do what they please - hole up in neighboring countries and blow up their citizens. To that end, India is frequently reminded of the humanity that insurgents frequently dole out to Indian citizens in Assam, Manipur etc. You tout the 'just cause' on behalf of insurgents, of their sacrifices, their aspirations etc. Fair enough. Similarly, India and Indians also think that their cause is just, and that the Indian democracy (at least thats what they think - even if you disagree) is being hijacked, its citizens killed, and insurgents are causing a reign of terror among common citizens in Assam That is why, whatever the causes/aspirations are, in the end, peace is what both sides need to aspire for. If peace is not on the table nothing else matters. --Ram 10/4/07, Chan Mahanta mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED][EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: He is upset that the GOI would reach across the border to seek the help of Burma/Bhutan with the insurgency problem. A! The use of language to deny the humanity of 'insurgents' , as if they are NOT people. Not Nagas, not Shans, not Manipuris, not Oxomiyas---they are just INSURGENTS and so fair game. That is what desi-demokray obviously stands for and is defended so staunchly, uncritically by its devotees. And my pointing it out causes the discomfiture it does. Again, small wonder why desi-demokrasy's quality remains in the dismal condition it does, and gets worse by the day. At 8:50 AM -0600 10/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote: This is probably the reason why Sri Ram Sarangapani did not understand the dig if any. Oh!. I understood the dig alright (I've known C'da for many years now:)). But what he fails to undersatand is that the GOI may on the one hand seek help from the military Junta with a couple of goals in mind ( (a) to flush insurgents and (b) to curtail drug trafficking into India from Burma ) and on the other hand condemn the Burmese Govt. for its attrocities on the monks. Is this hypocritical on the part of the GOI? Obviously, the GOI does not think the peaceful protesting monks are the same as militant insurgents. And I understand this has struck a 'raw nerve' in C'da. He is upset that the GOI would reach across the border to seek the help of Burma/Bhutan with the insurgency problem. --Ram On 10/4/07, uttam borthakur mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED][EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: People of India may demand that its Govt should exert its influence over the Myanmar Junta so
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
No, C'da, I see only effects. After all, to those affected it would seem *'damn the causes, I have a dead son/daughter/wife/husband. here'* and to others it might be *'damn the dead, lets find out who can blame here?'* --Ram On 10/5/07, Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Your confusions Ram, is a result of a self induced inability to separate*effects * from* cause*s. That simple. At 6:50 AM -0600 10/5/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote: The basic question (as I understood it from C'da's posting) was the accordance (lack of it) of humanity by the Govt. No one really says that insurgents should NOT be given due process of the law and NOT be treated humanely. But shouldn't there also be a quid quo pro? Shouldn't the so many innocent people and children killed also be be given some of that? Do common people deserve some humanity, be left alone to go about their business? I just don't know any more! ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] Burmese cause
At 7:55 AM -0600 10/5/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote: No, C'da, I see only effects. *** But having willfully discarded the curiosity to learn about the causes, you have lost the most important tool you need to be a part of the solution. After all, to those affected it would seem 'damn the causes, I have a dead son/daughter/wife/husband. here' and to others it might be 'damn the dead, lets find out who can blame here?' --Ram On 10/5/07, Chan Mahanta mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED][EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Your confusions Ram, is a result of a self induced inability to separate effects from causes. That simple. At 6:50 AM -0600 10/5/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote: The basic question (as I understood it from C'da's posting) was the accordance (lack of it) of humanity by the Govt. No one really says that insurgents should NOT be given due process of the law and NOT be treated humanely. But shouldn't there also be a quid quo pro? Shouldn't the so many innocent people and children killed also be be given some of that? Do common people deserve some humanity, be left alone to go about their business? I just don't know any more! ___ assam mailing list mailto:assam@assamnet.orgassam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.orghttp://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list mailto:assam@assamnet.orgassam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.orghttp://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] Freedom from mother-tongue - TOI
This is an interesting piece from the TOI. Recently, while talking to a Kharkhowa in Europe (whom I had never met), I immediately deduced the gentleman was a product of St. Edmunds, Shillong, and he was taken aback. For a long time, I had thought, I had 'no accent' as Americans often state, until, I heard myself off of a recorded speech - I was speechless:). It was a clearly desi accent, and its funny you don't really know it youself. Nowadays, I really don't care one way or the other how accentuated I sound. So, I wonder if these 'perfect your accent' classes going on in India is important. I understand it would be for call centers. But would be interested to know how it makes it any better for a speaker in the Indian setting, speaking to an Indian audience, who also speak and hear the Indian accent all the time to speak in an American or English accent? --Ram 30 Sep 2007, 0319 hrs IST,Ketan Tanna SMS NEWS to 5 for latest updates It is not just the Malayalee who has the problem. Most Indians speak English with the peculiar sounds of their mother tongues. 'When' often sounds like 'ven' and 'vine' becomes 'wine'. We also tend to speak fast without stretching the vowel sounds. In Orissa and other parts of eastern India, b is freely used for w and v, while across the South, prize sounds like price, and rise sounds like rice. Gujaratis and Rajasthanis make 'wis' out of wish and their 'shirts' are 'sirts'. And a marriage hall is, poignantly or prophetically, marriage hole. Maharashtrians threaten to become 'voilent' and not violent. And those from MP and UP have a perpetual problem with starting a word with 's' even if they have been to the 'eskool'. There is, however, a cure. And increasingly, Indians are seeking this cure. In the last few years, it is not just BPO employees who have been learning to speak correctly but also scores of housewives businessmen, senior citizens, middle level executives and many more who cannot be described. They are taking the help of voice trainers to get rid of various flaws in how they speak English. Forty-eight-year-old Vijaya Sailopal, a Punjabi housewife who lives in Mumbai, and mother of two, is an affluent upper middle class social worker who volunteers with a non governmental organization. Her job profile entails holding various meetings and events where she needs to communicate with a small audience. Nobody has told her, but very often Sailopal was conscious of her Punjabi accent. She enrolled in a voice training class conducted by Anil Mani, who is a professional voice-over artiste. Her classes lasted seven weeks and came at a price tag of Rs 7,000. It has been two years since she attended the classes and she says it's worth it because it gave her confidence a tremendous boost. Pratap Sharma who is a veteran in this field says that an 86-year-old Parsi woman, Jeannie Naoroji, landed at his classes. At her age, Naoroji's aim was to speak to small groups and audiences effectively. All kinds of people are coming to him these days, he says, to improve the way they speak in English. There are scores of middle level and even senior corporate chieftains who attend classes because even though they have achieved a lot in life, their accents always worked to their disadvantage. Dr Sadhana Nayak, a Dadar-based voice and phonetics specialist, says that 42-year-old Murli Nair (name changed), a graduate from IIT and IIM and a regional head in a pharmaceutical company, came to him to cure his heavy Malayalee accent. He was ribbed about it throughout his student days. His 10-year-old daughter studying in an English school often corrected his pronunciation. He was professionally on the rise and looking for a high level position in another firm. He felt his accent came in the way. During the break between jobs he came for accent training. Then there was the case of Mahesh Iyer, a 49-year-old Dubai- based professional working with an oil major. He felt very self-conscious during presentations and meetings as he was often asked to repeat himself. Also he had developed an inferiority complex due to his accent. In fact, he said he was better than most of them at his work but they communicated with greater confidence than him, says Dr Nayak. His vacation was spent correcting his pronunciation and his diction. With the boom in the economy and the rising aspirations of Indians, there has been a steep rise in the number of people enrolling in such classes. Each one has a different purpose for enrolling. Some want to get rid of their accents, some want to modulate their voices and some want to make a career as voice artists. Not surprisingly, Mumbai's voice trainers are raking in a lot. I have seen a 100% rise since last year in the number of executives coming for accent neutralisation or modification training and almost a 300% rise in the number of enquiries I get on my website, says Nayak. ___ assam mailing list
[Assam] A New Documentary on Kashmir
There is a provocative new documentary film on Kashmir. The following review in Outlook magazine may be of interest to Assamnet. http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20071004fname=ananyasid=1pn=1 October 12 2007. Azadi: Theirs And Ours By the logic of the Indian state, India is free and Kashmir is a part of India, ergo, Kashmir too, must be free. But Sanjay Kaks documentary provides visual attestation for something diametrically opposed to this logic: the reality of occupation. Sanjay Kaks new documentary Jashn-e-Azadi (How we celebrate freedom) is aimed primarily at an Indian audience. This two-part film, 138 min long, explores what Kak calls the sentiment, namely azadi (literally freedom) driving the conflict in the India controlled part of Kashmir for the past 18 years. This sentiment is inchoate: it does not have a unified movement, a symbol, a flag, a map, a slogan, a leader or any one party associated with it. Sometimes it means full territorial independence, and sometimes it means other things. Yet it is real, with a reality that neither outright repression nor fitful persuasion from India has managed to dissipate for almost two decades. Howsoever unclear its political shape, Kashmiris know the emotional charge of azadi, its ability to keep alive in every Kashmiri heart a sense of struggle, of dissent, of hope. It is for Indians who do not know about this sentiment, or do not know how to react to it, that Kak has made his difficult, powerful film. And it is with Indian audiences that Kak has already had, and is likely to continue having, the most heated debate. Between 1989 and 2007, nearly 100,000 people--soldiers and civilians, armed militants and unarmed citizens, Kashmiris and non-Kashmiris--lost their lives to the violence in Kashmir. 700,000 Indian military and paramilitary troops are stationed there, the largest such armed presence in what is supposedly peace time, anywhere in the world. Both residents of and visitors to Kashmir in recent years already know what Kaks film brings home to the viewer: how thoroughly militarized the Valley is, criss-crossed by barbed wire, littered with bunkers and sand-bags, dotted with men in uniform carrying guns, its roads bearing an unending stream of armoured vehicles up and down a landscape that used to be called, echoing the words of the Mughal Emperor Jehangir, Paradise on earth. Other places so mangled by a security apparatus as to make it impossible for life to proceed normally immediately come to mind: occupied Palestine, occupied Iraq. Locals, especially young men, must produce identification at all the check-posts that punctuate the land, or during sudden and frequent operations described by the dreaded words crackdown and cordon and search. Kaks camera shows us that even the most ordinary attempt to cross the city of Srinagar, or travel from one village to another is fraught with these security checks, as though the entire Valley were a gigantic airport terminal and every man were a threat to every other. As soldiers insultingly frisk folks for walking about in their own places, the expressions in their eyes--anger, fear, resignation, frustration, irritation, or just plain embarrassment--say it all. In one scene men are lined up, and some of them get their clothes pulled and their faces slapped while they are being searched. Somewhere beneath all these daily humiliations burns the unnamed sentiment: azadi. One reason that there is no Indian tolerance for this word in the context of Kashmir is that the desire for freedom immediately implies that its opposite is the case: Kashmir is not free. By the logic of the Indian state, India is free and Kashmir is a part of India, ergo, Kashmir too, must be free. But Kaks images provide visual attestation for something diametrically opposed to this logic: the reality of occupation. Kashmir is occupied by Indian troops, somewhat like Palestine is by Israeli troops, and Iraq is by American and coalition troops. But wait, objects the Indian viewer. Palestinians are Muslims and Israelis are Jews; Iraqis are Iraqis and Americans are Americans--how are their dynamics comparable to the situation in Kashmir? Indians and Kashmiris are all Indian; Muslims and non-Muslims in Kashmir (or anywhere in India) are all Indian. Neither the criterion of nationality nor the criterion of religion is applicable to explain what it is that puts Indian troops and Kashmiri citizens on either side of a line of hostility. How can we speak of an occupation when there are no enemies, no foreigners and no outsiders in the picture at all? And if occupation makes no sense, then how can azadi make any sense? Kak explained to an audience at a recent screening of his film in Boston (23/09) that he could only begin to approach the subject of his film, azadi, after he had made it past three barriers to understanding that stand in the way of an Indian mind trying to
Re: [Assam] A New Documentary on Kashmir
I just read the review Baruah. Can't wait to see it. Any idea how I can get in touch with Kak? I obtained his video on Arunachal years ago, after you wrote about it in assamnet. m At 4:44 PM -0400 10/5/07, Sanjib Baruah wrote: There is a provocative new documentary film on Kashmir. The following review in Outlook magazine may be of interest to Assamnet. http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20071004fname=ananyasid=1pn=1 October 12 2007. Azadi: Theirs And Ours By the logic of the Indian state, India is free and Kashmir is a part of India, ergo, Kashmir too, must be free. But Sanjay Kaks documentary provides visual attestation for something diametrically opposed to this logic: the reality of occupation. Sanjay Kaks new documentary Jashn-e-Azadi (How we celebrate freedom) is aimed primarily at an Indian audience. This two-part film, 138 min long, explores what Kak calls the sentiment, namely azadi (literally freedom) driving the conflict in the India controlled part of Kashmir for the past 18 years. This sentiment is inchoate: it does not have a unified movement, a symbol, a flag, a map, a slogan, a leader or any one party associated with it. Sometimes it means full territorial independence, and sometimes it means other things. Yet it is real, with a reality that neither outright repression nor fitful persuasion from India has managed to dissipate for almost two decades. Howsoever unclear its political shape, Kashmiris know the emotional charge of azadi, its ability to keep alive in every Kashmiri heart a sense of struggle, of dissent, of hope. It is for Indians who do not know about this sentiment, or do not know how to react to it, that Kak has made his difficult, powerful film. And it is with Indian audiences that Kak has already had, and is likely to continue having, the most heated debate. Between 1989 and 2007, nearly 100,000 people--soldiers and civilians, armed militants and unarmed citizens, Kashmiris and non-Kashmiris--lost their lives to the violence in Kashmir. 700,000 Indian military and paramilitary troops are stationed there, the largest such armed presence in what is supposedly peace time, anywhere in the world. Both residents of and visitors to Kashmir in recent years already know what Kaks film brings home to the viewer: how thoroughly militarized the Valley is, criss-crossed by barbed wire, littered with bunkers and sand-bags, dotted with men in uniform carrying guns, its roads bearing an unending stream of armoured vehicles up and down a landscape that used to be called, echoing the words of the Mughal Emperor Jehangir, Paradise on earth. Other places so mangled by a security apparatus as to make it impossible for life to proceed normally immediately come to mind: occupied Palestine, occupied Iraq. Locals, especially young men, must produce identification at all the check-posts that punctuate the land, or during sudden and frequent operations described by the dreaded words crackdown and cordon and search. Kaks camera shows us that even the most ordinary attempt to cross the city of Srinagar, or travel from one village to another is fraught with these security checks, as though the entire Valley were a gigantic airport terminal and every man were a threat to every other. As soldiers insultingly frisk folks for walking about in their own places, the expressions in their eyes--anger, fear, resignation, frustration, irritation, or just plain embarrassment--say it all. In one scene men are lined up, and some of them get their clothes pulled and their faces slapped while they are being searched. Somewhere beneath all these daily humiliations burns the unnamed sentiment: azadi. One reason that there is no Indian tolerance for this word in the context of Kashmir is that the desire for freedom immediately implies that its opposite is the case: Kashmir is not free. By the logic of the Indian state, India is free and Kashmir is a part of India, ergo, Kashmir too, must be free. But Kaks images provide visual attestation for something diametrically opposed to this logic: the reality of occupation. Kashmir is occupied by Indian troops, somewhat like Palestine is by Israeli troops, and Iraq is by American and coalition troops. But wait, objects the Indian viewer. Palestinians are Muslims and Israelis are Jews; Iraqis are Iraqis and Americans are Americans--how are their dynamics comparable to the situation in Kashmir? Indians and Kashmiris are all Indian; Muslims and non-Muslims in Kashmir (or anywhere in India) are all Indian. Neither the criterion of nationality nor the criterion of religion is applicable to explain what it is that puts Indian troops and Kashmiri citizens on either side of a line of hostility. How can we speak of an occupation when there are no enemies, no foreigners and no outsiders in the picture at all? And if occupation makes no sense, then how can azadi make any sense? Kak explained to an audience at a recent screening of his film in Boston (23/09)
Re: [Assam] What a response!!
Next time whenever any one has a query, the questioner would have to qualify each question with the rationale behind each question. I think I would give your argument to the Students' Union so that they can agitate that in future, every question paper in examinations must have a page explaining what the question setter had in mind while setting the question. Wah.When you have no answers to Uttam's questions, you first insist what is the purpose without which you are not willing to answer. But I' will give you one more chance to redeem yourself. We all make bad decisions every now and then. So, even though you have been evading the points I raised, you can correct yourself, and tell us, that Utpal's ploy was not a constructive one. A far better one would have been to engage in a sincere DIALOGUE, of give and take; ask, answer and vice-versa. I have much more important and better things to do than to redeem myself before you. Our purpose was a DIALOGUE, and that too of the sincere variety and the best way we could have started was by seeking answers to questions that are plaguing the minds of most educated, middle class Assamese people. You took the responsibility of holding the fort on their behalf while, as it seems, they have scooted, leaving you to hold the baby. Well, you deserve our pity, which we extend in unbound lots. Its not that we did not get all the answers. One we got right from the horse's mouth was the boundary of the Independent Assam, where curiously Bangladesh did not feature. Is it because the Independent Assam you are extolling would be a part of Bangladesh, so how does it matter? Second answer YOU gave was that the purpose behind all the mayhem, disturbance of peace, killing of innocent daily labourers, is to liberate Assam..obviously from the poor people who are being regularly killed, or to liberate Assam from peace and tranquility in which case it may be difficult to sustain the comfort zones in which the leaders (and their cohorts) are dwelling? Lot of netters have patience, I being sixty, do not have it. Also, time. Shantikam hazarika On 10/5/07, Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Dear Hazarika: I am sorry that you , a well educated man, a pillar of your society, is unable to deal with a very simple issue: *** Why can't Utpal or yourself, or anybody else, are able to tell us what objective they had? Why can't you admit the truth with the COURAGE of your convictions? Not that it is a secret. Anyone with half a working brain can see right thru it. And if it was not so, and had a more honorable objective, you and a bunch of others here in this forum would have come out baying for my blood, for having the temerity to doubt the inquisitors' integrity. They have NOT, only because they can't. And if you all had a good explanation, you would have come out swinging, telling the world how wrong I am in suggesting that a reasonable person could have concluded that Utpal's AIM was not solely for proving ULFA wrong and devalue their goals, and that they had no intention of engaging in a DIALOGUE, just an inquisition. But I' will give you one more chance to redeem yourself. We all make bad decisions every now and then. So, even though you have been evading the points I raised, you can correct yourself, and tell us, that Utpal's ploy was not a constructive one. A far better one would have been to engage in a sincere DIALOGUE, of give and take; ask, answer and vice-versa. The choice is yours. Best regards. m PS: I take all your accusations, wild and sad as they are, in good humor, and hold absolutely no hard feelings. At 6:30 AM +0530 10/5/07, Shantikam Hazarika wrote: I am not willing to get into an exercise of explaining the rainbow to the blind. If you do not have answers to the questions, just keep quiet, unless you have been appointed to deflect the main issues. It seems they have already run away from the filed, leaving their ilks of you to hold the illegitimate baby. Or, is it that you already know they do not have the answers or are not capable of answering legitimate questions which any normal human being would like to ask? BTW Mahanta, if you are thinking that I am trying to reach out to those whose apologist you are, forget about it, Frankly I have no time like you to split hairs and develop my mastery of deflection. You have time, go ahead, from your comfort zone, what else can you do? Shantikam Hazarika On 10/4/07, Chan Mahanta [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: But levity aside, allow me ask you and other wise folks once more, IF Utpal's aim was merely to assert that ULFA 's aims have no validity, WHY on earth does he or his fan club need Ruby Bhuyan or whoever to answer anything? They already know they are right and ULFA is wrong. They can go right on with their monologs
Re: [Assam] What a response!!
Gentlemen, I am sorry to say that it is degenerating into personal attack. Is there a need to continue it? let's stop and count how many are arguing for Assam's sovereignty in this net and how many are against. I count two for (not counting Rubi Bhuyan), and many against. What amazes me is how the big group that is against is allowing the two to rile them up. Is the big group trying to reach unanimity? Differences will always exist, and it is also a great quality to agree to disagree and move on. As for debating on facts, It does not seem to stick, on this subject. It looks like a cat and mouse game. Is the debate worth the hurt feelings it is causing? I have my doubts. How about you? Dilip Deka === Shantikam Hazarika [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Next time whenever any one has a query, the questioner would have to qualify each question with the rationale behind each question. I think I would give your argument to the Students' Union so that they can agitate that in future, every question paper in examinations must have a page explaining what the question setter had in mind while setting the question. Wah.When you have no answers to Uttam's questions, you first insist what is the purpose without which you are not willing to answer. But I' will give you one more chance to redeem yourself. We all make bad decisions every now and then. So, even though you have been evading the points I raised, you can correct yourself, and tell us, that Utpal's ploy was not a constructive one. A far better one would have been to engage in a sincere DIALOGUE, of give and take; ask, answer and vice-versa. I have much more important and better things to do than to redeem myself before you. Our purpose was a DIALOGUE, and that too of the sincere variety and the best way we could have started was by seeking answers to questions that are plaguing the minds of most educated, middle class Assamese people. You took the responsibility of holding the fort on their behalf while, as it seems, they have scooted, leaving you to hold the baby. Well, you deserve our pity, which we extend in unbound lots. Its not that we did not get all the answers. One we got right from the horse's mouth was the boundary of the Independent Assam, where curiously Bangladesh did not feature. Is it because the Independent Assam you are extolling would be a part of Bangladesh, so how does it matter? Second answer YOU gave was that the purpose behind all the mayhem, disturbance of peace, killing of innocent daily labourers, is to liberate Assam..obviously from the poor people who are being regularly killed, or to liberate Assam from peace and tranquility in which case it may be difficult to sustain the comfort zones in which the leaders (and their cohorts) are dwelling? Lot of netters have patience, I being sixty, do not have it. Also, time. Shantikam hazarika On 10/5/07, Chan Mahanta wrote: Dear Hazarika: I am sorry that you , a well educated man, a pillar of your society, is unable to deal with a very simple issue: *** Why can't Utpal or yourself, or anybody else, are able to tell us what objective they had? Why can't you admit the truth with the COURAGE of your convictions? Not that it is a secret. Anyone with half a working brain can see right thru it. And if it was not so, and had a more honorable objective, you and a bunch of others here in this forum would have come out baying for my blood, for having the temerity to doubt the inquisitors' integrity. They have NOT, only because they can't. And if you all had a good explanation, you would have come out swinging, telling the world how wrong I am in suggesting that a reasonable person could have concluded that Utpal's AIM was not solely for proving ULFA wrong and devalue their goals, and that they had no intention of engaging in a DIALOGUE, just an inquisition. But I' will give you one more chance to redeem yourself. We all make bad decisions every now and then. So, even though you have been evading the points I raised, you can correct yourself, and tell us, that Utpal's ploy was not a constructive one. A far better one would have been to engage in a sincere DIALOGUE, of give and take; ask, answer and vice-versa. The choice is yours. Best regards. m PS: I take all your accusations, wild and sad as they are, in good humor, and hold absolutely no hard feelings. At 6:30 AM +0530 10/5/07, Shantikam Hazarika wrote: I am not willing to get into an exercise of explaining the rainbow to the blind. If you do not have answers to the questions, just keep quiet, unless you have been appointed to deflect the main issues. It seems they have already run away from the filed, leaving their ilks of you to hold the illegitimate baby. Or, is it that you already know they do not have the answers or are not capable of answering legitimate questions which any normal human being
Re: [Assam] A New Documentary on Kashmir
Does India have a state called Kashmir ? If I am not seriously mistaken,the name of the state is Jammu and Kashmir that comprises of three distinct zones---Ladakh ( Buddhist-majority), Jammu ( Hindu-majority) and Kashmir valley ( Muslim-majority).I don't see similar uprising in Ladakh and Jammu.Ain't those two regions part of the state,known as JK ? Shouldn't the point of view of those people,living in that two regions be heard ? Why must anyone force the choice of one segment of the state's population upon others ? Should we assume that the people of Ladakh and Jammu are not KASHMIRIS ? KJD On 10/5/07, Sanjib Baruah [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: There is a provocative new documentary film on Kashmir. The following review in Outlook magazine may be of interest to Assamnet. http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20071004fname=ananyasid=1pn=1 October 12 2007.. Azadi: Theirs And Ours By the logic of the Indian state, India is free and Kashmir is a part of India, ergo, Kashmir too, must be free. But Sanjay Kaks documentary provides visual attestation for something diametrically opposed to this logic: the reality of occupation. Sanjay Kaks new documentary Jashn-e-Azadi (How we celebrate freedom) is aimed primarily at an Indian audience. This two-part film, 138 min long, explores what Kak calls the sentiment, namely azadi (literally freedom) driving the conflict in the India controlled part of Kashmir for the past 18 years. This sentiment is inchoate: it does not have a unified movement, a symbol, a flag, a map, a slogan, a leader or any one party associated with it. Sometimes it means full territorial independence, and sometimes it means other things. Yet it is real, with a reality that neither outright repression nor fitful persuasion from India has managed to dissipate for almost two decades. Howsoever unclear its political shape, Kashmiris know the emotional charge of azadi, its ability to keep alive in every Kashmiri heart a sense of struggle, of dissent, of hope. It is for Indians who do not know about this sentiment, or do not know how to react to it, that Kak has made his difficult, powerful film. And it is with Indian audiences that Kak has already had, and is likely to continue having, the most heated debate. Between 1989 and 2007, nearly 100,000 people--soldiers and civilians, armed militants and unarmed citizens, Kashmiris and non-Kashmiris--lost their lives to the violence in Kashmir. 700,000 Indian military and paramilitary troops are stationed there, the largest such armed presence in what is supposedly peace time, anywhere in the world. Both residents of and visitors to Kashmir in recent years already know what Kaks film brings home to the viewer: how thoroughly militarized the Valley is, criss-crossed by barbed wire, littered with bunkers and sand-bags, dotted with men in uniform carrying guns, its roads bearing an unending stream of armoured vehicles up and down a landscape that used to be called, echoing the words of the Mughal Emperor Jehangir, Paradise on earth. Other places so mangled by a security apparatus as to make it impossible for life to proceed normally immediately come to mind: occupied Palestine, occupied Iraq. Locals, especially young men, must produce identification at all the check-posts that punctuate the land, or during sudden and frequent operations described by the dreaded words crackdown and cordon and search. Kaks camera shows us that even the most ordinary attempt to cross the city of Srinagar, or travel from one village to another is fraught with these security checks, as though the entire Valley were a gigantic airport terminal and every man were a threat to every other. As soldiers insultingly frisk folks for walking about in their own places, the expressions in their eyes--anger, fear, resignation, frustration, irritation, or just plain embarrassment--say it all. In one scene men are lined up, and some of them get their clothes pulled and their faces slapped while they are being searched. Somewhere beneath all these daily humiliations burns the unnamed sentiment: azadi. One reason that there is no Indian tolerance for this word in the context of Kashmir is that the desire for freedom immediately implies that its opposite is the case: Kashmir is not free. By the logic of the Indian state, India is free and Kashmir is a part of India, ergo, Kashmir too, must be free. But Kaks images provide visual attestation for something diametrically opposed to this logic: the reality of occupation. Kashmir is occupied by Indian troops, somewhat like Palestine is by Israeli troops, and Iraq is by American and coalition troops. But wait, objects the Indian viewer. Palestinians are Muslims and Israelis are Jews; Iraqis are Iraqis and Americans are Americans--how are their dynamics comparable to the situation in Kashmir? Indians and Kashmiris are all Indian; Muslims and non-Muslims in Kashmir (or
[Assam] Lord Ram and the secular Taliban
Brigandage of the secular Taliban!By Col (retd) Anil Athale | Col. (retd) Anil A Athale is a Fellow at the Centre for Armed Forces Historical Research. A former Joint Director (History Division) and infantryman, he has been running an NGO, Peace and Disarmament, based in Pune for the past 10 years. As a military historian he specialises in insurgency and peace process. The roots of slavish mentality of our so-called intellectuals goes deeper to the British days. On December 1, 1783, while speaking on the India Bill in British Parliament, the British liberal, Edmund Burke, launched a scathing attack on the English rule in India. Virtually saying that we are trying to enslave people who are far more civilised than us. As the British empire in India expanded, the English became aware of the rich Indian cultural heritage and its ancient past. Any memory of that past was an obstacle for the British to spread and sustain their rule. There began a systematic campaign to deny Indian antiquity. Lord Macaulay once famously stated that the entire literature of India cannot fill but a single shelf in a respectable European library. Either uneducated or devious, Macaulay thus rubbished Indian heritage from vedas to astronomy to ayurveda to mathematics (algebra, calculus and the numbers). Since then the vast Indian middle class intellectuals have been groomed in the Macaulay tradition of being good clerks with no independent thinking faculties. It is this that enabled the handful of British to rule millions of Indians. Indian historians deny any credit to the great Indian oral tradition. They ignore folklore, physical evidence and available Indian sources. Most Indian histories are written based on foreign sources. The organised Semitic faiths proclaim monopoly of truth and have labelled all pre-history (that is all that existed before the time of their favourite Prophet) as mythology. It would interest the readers to know that right till 1990 when existence of the city of Troy was decisively proved (Times News Network, June 24, 2004). Homers Iliad was regarded as pure mythology with no proof! Valmikis Ramayan and later Raghuvansh by Kalidas seems to be meeting the same fate as Iliad at the hands of grandchildren of Macaulay and Marx. It would interest readers that in the Bible belt of the US, historicity of Buddha is not accepted so Ram stands no chance in our Anglophile community of historians. The project to deny the existence of Ram and his historicity began way back even before 1992 (Ayodhya demolition). As usual the eminent historians of JNU were in the forefront. There is a very close parallel with the Afghan Taliban and our home-grown Taliban (secularists). The Afghan variety deny any other past except Islamic and demolished the Bamiyan Buddha while the Indian variety wants to deny Rams historicity and demolish Ram Sethu. There is of course much in common between the two, blind faith in a book (the Das Capital), prophet Marx and his close followers (kind of companions of the Prophet) like Engels, Lenin, Stalin the mass murderer and Mao Ze Dong. There is very little to choose between them and religious fundamentalists. Indian rich heritage is an inconvenient obstacle in their path of ushering in Marxist utopia and must be fought at all times. Unlike their Chinese counterparts, they have no knowledge of Indian past and are not only proud of the Indian heritage but are ashamed of it. Even practice of yoga or ayurveda is anathema to them. Some time ago the yoga guru, Baba Ramdev, was the target of their ire and an attempt was made to fix him by instigating some workers in his establishment. It is undoubtedly true that the original story of Ram and his times has seen many interpolations and mythification, like the tribal army being described as vanar (monkeys). But any historian with an open mind can find enough evidence to prove the essential historicity of Ramayana. In the year 1992, a surgeon, late Dr. SV Bhave of Pune, flew over the entire path of Rams journey from Lanka to Ayodhya as described by Rishi Valmiki and Kalidas. He was no historian but far more innovative than our bookish historians. He found every single place described in Ramayana. Finally one wishes to ask a simple question, did Valmiki and countless others merely conjured up a fiction! If that is so then he was possibly the greatest fiction writer of all times, since his book has survived over two thousand years. When our Supreme Court deliberates on this issue (I really pity our honourable judges who have to decide on issues ranging from whether Ram existed to cricket team selection) they would consult a wide body of persons from diverse fields and not the JNU mafia. The views expressed in the article are the author's and not of Sify.com - Building a website is a piece of cake.
[Assam] Moby Dick versus Microsoft schools
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/118/microsofts-class-action.html Lockheed Martin needs engineers, and they know what the standards are for producing people who can go on to engineering school and become successful, says Paul Vallas, until recently the CEO of the School District of Philadelphia. He goes on, ticking off other business partners that have opened their own public schools in Philadelphia: Sunoco hires students from the city. They know what they need in potential employees. But it is precisely that utilitarian approach that has some parents and teachers concerned. They've long acknowledged--insisted, even--that schools need to prepare kids for the modern working world. But many still want them to do something more, something more subtle. That's why they like to see their kids reading Moby-Dick rather than The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Still, says Mary Cullinane, director of Microsoft's U.S. Partners in Learning program, the old mode of instruction--what she derides as the stand and deliver method--simply has to evolve. We push all the kids into this big funnel, she says, and then we're surprised when it doesn't work. Umesh Sharma Washington D.C. 1-202-215-4328 [Cell] Ed.M. - International Education Policy Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, Class of 2005 http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/index.html (Edu info) http://hbswk.hbs.edu/ (Management Info) www.gse.harvard.edu/iep (where the above 2 are used ) http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/ - For ideas on reducing your carbon footprint visit Yahoo! For Good this month.___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
