|
|
|
|
|
| HOME | NEWS | DEAR REDIFF | |||
|
COMMENTARY
|
|
|
E-mail from readers the world over
Date sent: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 18:38:17 -0700 It is a good report, but the reason for writing this one is to emphasise that Jayalalitha should be punished -- whether or not she makes more demands. The corruption charges against her should be taken up for investigation without any further delay.
Date sent: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 05:47:19 -0700 (PDT) It's scandalous! And stupid. How can the BJP leadership be so blind? Jayalalitha is the sort of person, who if given even an inch, will demand a mile. Why a seemingly intelligent man like Vajpayee was so hungry to form a government is beyond me? Rather than agreeing to Jayalalitha's extortion and blackmail, he should have told her to take a long walk on a short pier. I recommend Thinking Strategically by Dixit & Nalebuff for Mr ABV -- or any other text on game theory for lessons on how to deal with rogues like Jayalalitha.
Date sent: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 14:11:01 +0530 It is good for India -- that like a teacher Jayalalitha keeps reminding the people in power about corrupt and chargesheeted politicians. That will go a long way in ensuring that the government does not derail from the path of anti-corruption. But pity India that the person who does all this is Ms J Jayalalitha, one of the pioneers in corruption. She can blame the present TN government for framing false charges against her, but how will she justify the things confiscated from her house during a raid? How will she justify the cost of the house itself? How will she justify the money spent on the marriage of her foster-son (Not her own son, if it was her own son god alone knows how much more she would have spent?) She might be considered a goddess by some people in Tamil Nadu but she can't expect that of people from other parts of the country. And after all this, the person who supports her in all these endeavours is none other than Dr Subramanian Swamy who himself might not know how many parties he has supported. He opposes a party today and tomorrow he is singing praises about the same party. (Take the case of AIADMK itself). What a pity that these people are the ones dictating terms today. The government can do precious little, but to concede to some of the demands otherwise the country will have to face another election which it can't afford. Let's hope that sense prevails with some politicians in the Opposition and they help the government. This way they will be saving the country from a big crises. Let's also not give a chance to Jayalalitha to teach us about anti-corruption as she has no right to raise her voice against corruption. Let her explain her misdeeds. Let her put that money back into the mainstream and then get ready to face the charges instead of criticising the government and the courts. Vinod Radhakrishnan
Date sent: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 12:52:00 -0700 Obviously, this is the work of the militants trained by the Pak ISI. I don't think the Kashmiri guys will go this far. Can humans go down to such an extent? No religion or ideal can condone such actions. If it does, it is a shame on itself and its followers. The perpetrators can only be classified as 'demons'. It's an eye-opener as to how religious bigotry and brain-washing can get men to perform such degrading acts on fellow humans. May God help these brutes. The objective seems to be to provoke a backlash and initiate a crisis. How is the BJP government at the Centre going to handle this? Such instances are going to continue, to accomplish the nefarious designs of the India (nee Hindu) haters? Rhetoric is not going to solve the problem. Does the common Kashmiri accept these instances? Is this what they want to show the world -- how the minority will be treated in a Muslim majority situation? It's a shame that they are encouraging these demons from across the border, killing innocents in the name of freedom. The Kashmiri Muslim has to wake up and think. He has to look beyond the narrow confines of his religion and the mass hypnosis of the mullahs. These acts are not going to help Kashmir in any way. My heartfelt condolences to the survivors (if any) and prayers for the souls of the victims to rest in peace at the Divine Lotus Feet. The perpetrators may escape human retribution, but can they escape from the Law of the Universe???
Date sent: Mon, 20 Apr 1998 23:30:49 -0700 The politically correct view would be to see the recent massacre of Hindu villagers in Jammu as an isolated incidence. But the frequency, regularity, and universality of violence in the Islamic world suggests that the social scholars should try to trace the causes of this violence in various theories of the Islamic religion itself. Violence of people against people in the Islamic world comes in various forms and shapes. But it comes with surety and regularity. In Algeria and Egypt it takes the form of militants killing moderates. In Saudi Arabia it takes the form of militants killing the marines. In Iraq it takes the form of rulers killing the dissidents. In Israel it takes the form of militants killing citizens. In Iran it takes the form of fundamentalists killing reformists. In Afghanistan it takes the form of rival factions of revolutionaries killing each other. In Pakistan it takes the form of immigrants and locals killing each other. In Britain it takes the form of State-supported Libyan terrorists killing unsuspecting airborne passengers. And, in Kashmir it takes the form of the majority killing the minority. Religion, often, is the cause of social virtues. Religion, often, also is the direct or indirect cause of social maladies. Scholars, the world over, have rightly blamed the theories and practices of the Hindu religion for the maladies of caste system. Scholars have also criticised the role played by the Christian church in various wrongs that plagued Europe at various historic times. Islam is a religion that meets certain spiritual needs of man. Islam is also a political and economic philosophy. Unfortunately, Islam does not distinguish between the two. I see no reason why the protection granted to the religious sensibilities should be extended to the political, economic, and social doctrines of Islam. I also see no reason why, the world should not blame the Muslim religious doctrines if there is a cause to believe that social maladies of the Islamic world are rooted in them. The 45% Hindus of Fiji have not yet divided Fiji on the lines of religion. Despite Bali, Indonesia is one nation. Egypt is still a united country in spite of a sizable Coptic Christian minority. European countries were hardly ever divided on the lines of religion. Why, then, is it so Important for Kashmir to be a separate nation? Why, then, Britain already has a Muslim parliament? Why, then, there is a need for Bosnia to be divided on the religious lines? Why, then, the "Nation of Islam" had to be the "Nation of Islam" in the United States of America. I think it is the social responsibility of Islamic as well as non-Islamic scholars to address these questions. Neeraj Bhatnagar
Date sent: Thu, 16 Apr 1998 16:53:12 +0100 The report has given an unbiased picture of the situation. I guess McDonalds is an alibi towards starting a new political issue. I completely agree with the owner of Ashirwad. I don't think there is any brand next to 'Natural' in Bombay. So the question of Baskin Robbins surviving in the competition does not arise. The interesting part is all hotel owners are ready for the competition. I guess involvement of these new brands in the market is good for competition. If someone wants to survive then they better give the consumer a better product. I guess I have started writing an article of my own. Anyway, the bottom line is that new brands will definitely bring in some competition. Sachin V Pawaskar
Date sent: Fri, 17 Apr 1998 14:16:42 PDT Is this why you people in India started opening your economy? So foreigners can come and sell meat? I never heard of any great useful technology entering India from the Western world. WHY? All we hear is McDonalds, Reebok, Pepsi, Coke and Michael Jackson. True McDonalds doesn't hurt anyone, but yes it does show one thing -- the weakness of the Indian mind to bow in front of ANYONE. First, develop your country, then bring McDonalds. With an economy like India DON'T YOU THINK YOU DESERVE MORE?
Date sent: Tue, 14 Apr 1998 13:08:39 -0700 Politics as usual? Milind Padki
Date sent: Tue, 14 Apr 1998 14:11:31 -0500 Our culture says: 'The entire world is your family, live and let live.' That's exactly the point you are forgetting godmen. In modern India there are so many educated people who have seen the world, (instead of sitting under a tree and trying to solve the problems of the world by contemplation) and understood the difference between modernism and westernism. Why then do we have this "organised envy" towards everything modern? The answer is simple -- a person who was born in a backward village and never got educated can never be a part of the modern world (Not to mention Western). This kind of a behaviour is only a natural outburst of their escapism. The result: 1. Brain drain -- and a lot that always scorns their own country. 2. Stagnation -- and massive man power wasted to resist something that is actually good. Ask this yourself -- why should my right to eat beef in a secular country be denied because some think the cow is holy? (Thank god there's that state called Kerala.) So keep up the good work gentlemen, though countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan have surpassed us in terms of the standard of living, there are still so many countries in Africa that are below us. Let's be broad minded and help them to surpass us. Sony
Date sent: Tue, 14 Apr 1998 13:06:40 -0500 I don't understand the concept of swadeshi from these so-called swadeshi people. Before they start out to educate the mass as they say, I think they need to educate themselves. When the world is going ahead with changes of all kinds, these illiterate people pull India down to the bottoms. Along this process, they spoil the name of the true sadhus and Hindus. There are so many restaurants in India that serve beef, but why single out McDonalds? Instead of wasting the youth on these utterly foolish matters, they could put some effort to improve the economy and the education of our country. Mansoor
Date sent: Sat, 18 Apr 1998 17:23:17 -0400 The term 'thundering sadhu' is an oxymoron. May I recommend a ritual circumcision for Ayatollah Ajit Mata? Durvasa
Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1998 14:57:21 -0400 (EDT) Your article on the Kumbh Mela, 'A grand spectacle' is awesome. The photographs really highlighted the impact of the article. Wonderful job. Hats off and keep it up! Chandrasekhar Puligandla
Date: Sat, 07 Mar 1998 09:40:19 -0800 I really appreciated this article about Holi, and hope to see it some day. I like Indian food very much, but as a non-Indian, it would be helpful if you could define a few more terms in those wonderful recipes. (Like "chana" in chana dal and "atta" in the Gujia recipe.) I'd really like to try these recipes. It brings back the three months I spent in India in my college years, and the Indian families I stayed with. Marie Castellano
Date: Mon, 16 Feb 1998 10:08:47 +0800 This feature is damn good. How Readers reacted to Amberish Diwanji's last column
|
||
|
HOME |
NEWS |
BUSINESS |
CRICKET |
MOVIES |
CHAT
INFOTECH | TRAVEL | LIFE/STYLE | FREEDOM | FEEDBACK |
||