I am saving this article for future reference.
I have always maintained that 1/10th of 1% of Muslims, Hindus, Christian or Jews are intolerant extremists. Thank God, the 99.90% Hindus or Muslims don't care about, and I hope, sincerly hope you are one of th 99.9%. There are a few more good pieces on the topic, I would like to post here in the archives.
Mike Ghouse
Haj Subsidy, Anyone?
by Mohib Ahmad on January 18, 2006 in
9,681 views
http://indianmuslims.in/haj-subsidy-anyone/
Google the words Haj Subsidy and the top three results are from the rabid right wing Muslim-bashers. All the first 30 results are related to India and that means it is a big issue for Indian and Indians.
Since, the Haj pilgrimage has just concluded, it is the right time to ask this question, are we really getting a Haj subsidy?
First, let us analyze what exactly this so-called Haj subsidy entails. An Indian Muslim, who chooses to go to Haj through government run Haj committees, gets a subsidy of around Rs. 20,000 on their Air India ticket of Rs. 32,000. That is it ! The minimum cost of a Haj package through the Haj committees is around Rs. 92,000, of which Rs. 20,000 is paid by the Indian government to Air India as a subsidy on the Hajis ticket. The total Haj airline ticket subsidy was around Rs. 150 crore for the year 2001 and has been enmarked to Rs. 225 crores for the year 2005. It is interesting to note that the normal ticket to Saudi Arabia costs around Rs. 25,000 but Air India charges Rs. 34,000 from the Hajis. So, effectively the government is giving a subsidy of Rs. 12,000 only !The Sangh Parivar zealots make is sound like that the Indian government sponspors an Annual-Go-To-Haj trip for anyone who is interested. Why this is such a big issue for them? I don’t think the amount involved (Rs. 225 crores) is the itching factor. They are more piqued at the fact that it allows Muslims to go to Mecca and Medina, their holy cities which are outside India, out there is some land called Arabia.
The usual argument of these fanatics is that India and India alone should be the pitrabhuumi (fatherland) and punyabhuumi (holyland) of all Indians and since the holy places of Muslims and Christians are elsewhere, they can never be patriotic enough. This argument would have been plain ridiculous had it not been so malevolent. So, what they are trying to say is that a Hindu born and brought up in USA can not be patriotic enough to USA, if he chooses to visit the Somnath mandir in India as a pilgrim.
A Swede, who converts to Hinduism, can not be loyal to Sweden if he scouts Mathura and Varanasi in search of spiritual salvation. The patriotism of all Sikhs who visit Nankana sahab in Pakistan is somehow suspect and all Hindus who undergo the arduous Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage can not be termed Indians anymore because that site is under Chinese dominion. Welcome to Ram Rajya 2.0, as espoused by a few hate mongers. But then, these gentlemen hardly talk or understand a five lettered word, ’sense’. We would let them go for the time being.
Coming back to the Haj subsidy, Haj is obligatory only on those who are physically and financially capable of performing the journey. So, all the expenses should be incurred by the Hajis himself and the government should not pay any part of that. Fair enough. But is the government actually providing any financial support to the Hajis? I don’t think so.
The government is only subsidising their air tickets because the airlines they are travelling with belongs to the government. In other words it is a discount on an overpriced product. There are many companies that provide discounts to their regular users. What we fail to appreciate is that these Hajis are providing atleast 84 crores as revenue to Air India per year, year after year for the pathetic service they receive in return. Is it merely a rumour that the worst Air India carriers are employed by Air India for the Haj travel? Last year, on its way back, one of the Air India plane broke down. It has to be grounded in Sharjah for a full night. The Hajis were told that they would have to spend the entire night in the plane. Customer service anyone? After protests from the passengers, Air India finally relented and issued boarding passes to the passengers. Which traveller in his right mind would prefer travelling with Air India with so many airlines providing world-class service at comptetitive rates, nowadays?
More than 1,20,000 Indians went for Haj in the year 2001. That is a big big number and the that too within a specific time schedule. Out of these, around 50,000 chose to go with private tour operators. Why? Because there are many private tour operators that offer Haj packages for as low as Rs. 68,000, without any government subsidy (yes, the government gives subsidy only on the Air India ticket, not to the Hajis per se). What does that tells us? Let me make a guess, these tour operators are more efficient?
So, the goverment of India, in order to cover for their awful management of Air India, to hold on to a constant (and unquestioning) source of revenue (year, after year) want Indian Muslims to believe that it is doing a lot of favour by doling out some subsidy on an overpriced air ticket. That too for its own vote bank politics. Come on !
The consecutive governments in India have only used symbolism in the name of minority policies. Instead of focusing on the real issues, as to why Indian Muslims are at the bottom of the social rung, why the literacy rate of Muslims is the lowest, what are the reasons that Muslims fail to enrol their kids for school, what can be done to utilise the tremendous skills of business and entrepreneurship, all we are given is a pathetic subsidy on an overpriced airline ticket and that too, mainly for its own good. Symbolism sells, in India, it sells big.
The fact that it also gives an issue to perennial Muslim-haters like Togadia, Singhal and Giriraj Kishore, is of no concern to it. Afterall, when these people bark, and occasionally bite, which way the terrified Muslim would turn to? Is it just a co-incidence or a well though strategy, that the BJP led government did not abolish the Haj subisidy in its 6 years of power because that would deprive its core Muslim-bashing constituency one of the favourite issues? Even Muslim leaders such as Syed Shahabuddin (not that Siwan hoodlum, but the ex-diplomat) has been demanding for 20 years that the Indian government should do away with the so-called Haj subsidy. He also claims that no Muslim leader ever asked for it.
The bottomline is this, Indian Muslims should reject the subsidized Air India ticket, if not for anything else then for common sense only. Once the Haj market opens and this forced monopoly of Air India goes, I would not be surprised if other airlines start offering discounts to the Hajis. Afterall, which company wouldn’t want to tap in an yearly market in excess of Rs. 350 crores, and that too, just for the airfare.
Mohib
~~~~
Monday, February 8, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Forbes India: How Aamir sold 3 Idiots
Forbes India: How Aamir sold 3 Idiots
Elizabeth Flock / Forbes India
Published on Fri, Feb 05, 2010 at 13:16, Updated on Sat, Feb 06, 2010 at 09:19 in Business section
When Aamir Khan, producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra, and director Rajkumar Hirani, sat down and watched the first half of the first cut of 3 Idiots together, they knew they were watching something that had the potential to go “big timeâ€. A boisterous drama about three friends dealing with the pressures of engineering school, and one friend teaching them how to dream, was a story they knew would stick. They guessed multiplexes in cities would overflow. They figured they had a fair chance at beating Ghajini, an Aamir Khan starrer and the biggest grossing Hindi film of all time.
But something bothered them. In smaller towns, regional cinema was still king and Hindi cinema just a joker. In Gujarat, a star like Vikram Thakur at his peak, could bring in close to Rs 7 crore. A top grossing Hindi film on the other hand could hope to rake in just Rs 3 crore.
“We felt we aren’t connecting enough with our audience… There’s a business capacity of seven, but we are only doing three. So there’s a lot of business we aren’t reaching out to,†says Khan as he talks to us from his Pali Hill apartment in Bandra, a Mumbai suburb. He’s wincing from a leg injury sustained earlier during the day, but is intent we hear what he’s saying.
“Do they want to be entertained? Yes. Do they like watching films? Yes. But are they watching our films? No. They’re watching regional films.†It could only mean two things, he reasoned. One, Hindi films aren’t marketed well. And two, film makers from Mumbai don’t understand small town India. Khan was determined to figure out both answers. But how?
The ball begins to roll
When a team of 25 marketing people met in August 2009, led by Prabhat Choudhary of Spice PR, who helped market four of the top five all time hits of Hindi cinema, the team didn’t know what the central idea to market 3 Idiots could possibly be. Khan’s brief though was clear. Whatever they did, they had to get to the man in Bhopal, and the man in Varanasi.
For a while, Khan had been toying with a rather vague idea. The movie starts with Aamir Khan, who essays the role of the central protagonist, having disappeared into oblivion. The rest of the flick is about his friends looking for clues to find him. How, Khan wondered, would people react if he disappeared in real life? Would people wonder where he was? Would the media write speculative stories on Khan’s whereabouts? But more importantly, how could the whole thing be orchestrated?
Through all of August last year, they debated on the plan. They tied up with online gaming firm Zapak. And that was where they found the answer: A-R-G, or Alternate Reality Gaming. Participants in these games interact directly with characters in the game, work with other participants to solve challenges, analyse the story and stay connected on email, telephones, and the internet. The main narrative for this form of gaming is usually based in the real world.
By September, ARG took over 60 percent of 3 Idiots’ marketing efforts. A Facebook profile “Amir the Pucca Idiot†was created, a page that would be controlled and updated entirely by Khan. It became a talking point because it was the first time an Indian celebrity had done this. People wondered whether it really was Aamir Khan’s page. His status updates appeared in the papers. “Aamir the Pucca Idiot†would be an instrumental part of Khan’s disappearance to remote B towns, too.
By October, the 3 Idiots team had to activate the game. Before that, teams needed to be dispatched to do a recce of all the places Khan would visit during his disappearing act. They would be dispatched to small towns in Gujarat, Punjab, Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh, among others. It would be expensive and logistics would be a nightmare. “We’d only marketed to 6-8 metros,†Chaudhary told Khan. “But there are 80 towns with at least one multiplex we had never even marketed to.â€
Of doodles and bum chairs
By October, two months before the release of 3 Idiots, no one knew much about the movie. There were no hoardings. No signs at theaters. And to build the suspense, multiplexes were sent bum chairs (like the ones the 3 Idiots sit on in the film); stickers that read “You are the 4th idiotâ€. No one knew what it all meant.
But on October 30, the 3 Idiots team made their first break of communication. They launched the film’s trailer to a gathering of trade people, multiplexes, and media. Ghajini was in the media for a year and a half before it released. 3 Idiots would only be in the media for two months.
In December, Khan was also busy designing T-shirts. “I said I can’t design, I’m not a designer, but I can give you my doodles,†says Khan. Pantaloon created a T-shirt line with the doodles, and 3 Idiots Converse sneakers.
Featuring Khan’s doodles instead of just replica merchandise worked. Pantaloon sold more than 1000 pieces per day in its opening week, and then sold out of the merchandise twice. The doodle T-shirt was also created as a gift friends could send to one another on “Aamir the Pucca Idiot†Facebook page, whose profile now had almost 2 lakh fans.
BusinessofCinema (BoC), who did the digital marketing, launched the Pantaloon gifts on Facebook, plus ticketing applications, and 3 Idiots videos and songs. Most of all, BoC readied themselves for the launch of the ARG game. And then, on December 12, Aamir Khan disappeared.
Director Hirani and Producer Chopra claimed not to know where he was. All that was left behind was a video on the film’s website, idiotsacademy.com. “I shot a video, and I said, ‘If you want to be a part of this of game, well... For two weeks, I will be traveling around the country. I will appear seven places, will give you seven clues to find me. For the first clue you need to get it from Sachin Tendulkar.’ And then I kiss my wife goodbye and walk out the door,†says Khan.
I am not here
Khan first reappeared in Varanasi, disguised as an old man. “I couldn’t tell anyone who I was,†he says. The 3I team shot footage of what he was doing, but no TV stations could find him. Choudhary worried, “How will media take it? Will they think it’s a gimmick to ignore?†And at every stage, someone on the team said this would not work.
It didn’t help that a lot of the 3I recce team’s planning didn’t work out. Choudhary broke his collarbone in a rickshaw accident. Instead of spending the night at Varanasi station as planned, Khan decided to find his mother’s home in Varanasi.
“I really went to Varanasi to make friends over there. It had to be a genuine process. I didn’t know who I would meet or how they would react to me. It was happening organically,†explains Khan. He talks for more than an hour about Varanasi, recounting the story of a rickshaw driver he calls “damn funnyâ€, and the four men who help him find his mother’s house.
After Khan left Varanasi, he let it be known he was there. 20,000 people trampled the tea shop where Khan had just been. The local media went crazy. “They found the story fascinating because they saw how unplanned the whole thing was. The English media picked it up only four times in those two weeks, but Hindi news channels and local print and TV media went ballistic. I was on the front page. They would report every new clue we announced, and interview the people I had met,†says Khan.
Khan not only evaded the media, but also goaded them. “I had been given the names of 15 editors in each city. So when I left their city, I wrote each of them handwritten letters on my letterhead that said ‘I was passing through your city and felt like having sweets. So I bought some mithai and got you some as well. Love, Aamir’. It was a like a tease,†Khan says and smiles.
Khan gave only four interviews to TV stations during the entire tour, all to regional TV stations. Regional stars were selected to interview Khan. On Mahua TV in UP, for example, Bhojpuri star Ravi Kishnan interviewed Khan. “Other than those four, I thought TV stations shouldn’t get me. All they get is what I shoot and send to them. I don’t have a deal with them, so I don’t know if they will bite. But I had not been available, so I knew they were thirsty for me,†says Khan.
The strategy was deployed for the print media as well. He stayed clear of mainstream English dailies and spoke very selectively to regional newspapers. For the first time in recent history, B towns were clamouring for an upcoming Hindi film.
Final notes
When they started, the ARG game was just a small part of Khan’s disappearance. It was more like a contact program, “something like what Obama would have undertaken,†explains Choudhary. But soon, many fans found out about idiotsacademy.com. They learned to play the ARG (a first ever for a Hindi film), competing against one another to find out where Khan was. Fans played other games on the website, too, racking up around 4.5 million plays, says Rohit Sharma of Zapak, which designed the game.
And not once during Khan’s journey was 3 Idiots mentioned. When he went to a girls’ school in Palanpur, Gujarat, to highlight the importance of the girl child’s education, Khan asked the girls to shout their message to TV cameras. “The girls didn’t say ‘3 Idiots releases on December 25!†Khan laughs. Instead, they said girls need as much a chance to go to school as boys do. “Now people will either connect to that or say the guy is bullshitting. I think we made a strong emotional connect.â€While Khan was in the middle of this journey, and excitement was at a peak, “Aamir Khan the Pucca Idiot†decided to hold a Facebook live chat with fans. Khan would be on video, and fans could type in from Twitter, Facebook, and Youstream.
The BoC guys expected Khan’s live chat to happen from Mumbai. At the last minute, they were told to take their hi-tech equipment to Delhi and then set it up in a small village outside.
On December 19th, without a single hitch in streaming, more than 1 lakh users chatted with Khan from Pakistan, Bangladesh, the US, and cities and many B towns in India. It was the first time an Indian celebrity had done something like this. Over 300,000 status updates were shared that day, according to Facebook’s international communications team. On Twitter, #AamirKhanLive was the sixth most buzzed keyword in the world.
Six days after the chat, 3 Idiots was finally released.
How much could all of this have worked? The biggest opening any film had ever had was Ghajini, with a first day collection across India of 9 crore. 3 Idiots’ collected Rs. 13 crore on the first day. Over that weekend, the collections added up to Rs. 100 crore. The film was watched in 40 countries. Nineteen days after release, the film set a box office record for the industry, grossing Rs. 315 crore worldwide. It is the highest grossing Bollywood film of all time, not adjusted for inflation. As we go to print, 3 Idiots had grossed Rs. 365 crore.
Khan didn’t forget Vikram Thakur and his magic number: Rs. 7 crore. 3 Idiots beat it by a mile at Rs. 9 crore. Choudhary says from Ghajini to 3 Idiots there’s been a 30 percent jump in collections in B towns like Benares, Bhopal, and in Faridkot.
Last weekend, Chance pe Dance was released. Its net collections on the first day release were 2.15 crore for all India. 3 Idiots got 2.75 crore that day, meaning it’s still number one three weeks after release.
Elizabeth Flock / Forbes India
Published on Fri, Feb 05, 2010 at 13:16, Updated on Sat, Feb 06, 2010 at 09:19 in Business section
When Aamir Khan, producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra, and director Rajkumar Hirani, sat down and watched the first half of the first cut of 3 Idiots together, they knew they were watching something that had the potential to go “big timeâ€. A boisterous drama about three friends dealing with the pressures of engineering school, and one friend teaching them how to dream, was a story they knew would stick. They guessed multiplexes in cities would overflow. They figured they had a fair chance at beating Ghajini, an Aamir Khan starrer and the biggest grossing Hindi film of all time.
But something bothered them. In smaller towns, regional cinema was still king and Hindi cinema just a joker. In Gujarat, a star like Vikram Thakur at his peak, could bring in close to Rs 7 crore. A top grossing Hindi film on the other hand could hope to rake in just Rs 3 crore.
“We felt we aren’t connecting enough with our audience… There’s a business capacity of seven, but we are only doing three. So there’s a lot of business we aren’t reaching out to,†says Khan as he talks to us from his Pali Hill apartment in Bandra, a Mumbai suburb. He’s wincing from a leg injury sustained earlier during the day, but is intent we hear what he’s saying.
“Do they want to be entertained? Yes. Do they like watching films? Yes. But are they watching our films? No. They’re watching regional films.†It could only mean two things, he reasoned. One, Hindi films aren’t marketed well. And two, film makers from Mumbai don’t understand small town India. Khan was determined to figure out both answers. But how?
The ball begins to roll
When a team of 25 marketing people met in August 2009, led by Prabhat Choudhary of Spice PR, who helped market four of the top five all time hits of Hindi cinema, the team didn’t know what the central idea to market 3 Idiots could possibly be. Khan’s brief though was clear. Whatever they did, they had to get to the man in Bhopal, and the man in Varanasi.
For a while, Khan had been toying with a rather vague idea. The movie starts with Aamir Khan, who essays the role of the central protagonist, having disappeared into oblivion. The rest of the flick is about his friends looking for clues to find him. How, Khan wondered, would people react if he disappeared in real life? Would people wonder where he was? Would the media write speculative stories on Khan’s whereabouts? But more importantly, how could the whole thing be orchestrated?
Through all of August last year, they debated on the plan. They tied up with online gaming firm Zapak. And that was where they found the answer: A-R-G, or Alternate Reality Gaming. Participants in these games interact directly with characters in the game, work with other participants to solve challenges, analyse the story and stay connected on email, telephones, and the internet. The main narrative for this form of gaming is usually based in the real world.
By September, ARG took over 60 percent of 3 Idiots’ marketing efforts. A Facebook profile “Amir the Pucca Idiot†was created, a page that would be controlled and updated entirely by Khan. It became a talking point because it was the first time an Indian celebrity had done this. People wondered whether it really was Aamir Khan’s page. His status updates appeared in the papers. “Aamir the Pucca Idiot†would be an instrumental part of Khan’s disappearance to remote B towns, too.
By October, the 3 Idiots team had to activate the game. Before that, teams needed to be dispatched to do a recce of all the places Khan would visit during his disappearing act. They would be dispatched to small towns in Gujarat, Punjab, Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh, among others. It would be expensive and logistics would be a nightmare. “We’d only marketed to 6-8 metros,†Chaudhary told Khan. “But there are 80 towns with at least one multiplex we had never even marketed to.â€
Of doodles and bum chairs
By October, two months before the release of 3 Idiots, no one knew much about the movie. There were no hoardings. No signs at theaters. And to build the suspense, multiplexes were sent bum chairs (like the ones the 3 Idiots sit on in the film); stickers that read “You are the 4th idiotâ€. No one knew what it all meant.
But on October 30, the 3 Idiots team made their first break of communication. They launched the film’s trailer to a gathering of trade people, multiplexes, and media. Ghajini was in the media for a year and a half before it released. 3 Idiots would only be in the media for two months.
In December, Khan was also busy designing T-shirts. “I said I can’t design, I’m not a designer, but I can give you my doodles,†says Khan. Pantaloon created a T-shirt line with the doodles, and 3 Idiots Converse sneakers.
Featuring Khan’s doodles instead of just replica merchandise worked. Pantaloon sold more than 1000 pieces per day in its opening week, and then sold out of the merchandise twice. The doodle T-shirt was also created as a gift friends could send to one another on “Aamir the Pucca Idiot†Facebook page, whose profile now had almost 2 lakh fans.
BusinessofCinema (BoC), who did the digital marketing, launched the Pantaloon gifts on Facebook, plus ticketing applications, and 3 Idiots videos and songs. Most of all, BoC readied themselves for the launch of the ARG game. And then, on December 12, Aamir Khan disappeared.
Director Hirani and Producer Chopra claimed not to know where he was. All that was left behind was a video on the film’s website, idiotsacademy.com. “I shot a video, and I said, ‘If you want to be a part of this of game, well... For two weeks, I will be traveling around the country. I will appear seven places, will give you seven clues to find me. For the first clue you need to get it from Sachin Tendulkar.’ And then I kiss my wife goodbye and walk out the door,†says Khan.
I am not here
Khan first reappeared in Varanasi, disguised as an old man. “I couldn’t tell anyone who I was,†he says. The 3I team shot footage of what he was doing, but no TV stations could find him. Choudhary worried, “How will media take it? Will they think it’s a gimmick to ignore?†And at every stage, someone on the team said this would not work.
It didn’t help that a lot of the 3I recce team’s planning didn’t work out. Choudhary broke his collarbone in a rickshaw accident. Instead of spending the night at Varanasi station as planned, Khan decided to find his mother’s home in Varanasi.
“I really went to Varanasi to make friends over there. It had to be a genuine process. I didn’t know who I would meet or how they would react to me. It was happening organically,†explains Khan. He talks for more than an hour about Varanasi, recounting the story of a rickshaw driver he calls “damn funnyâ€, and the four men who help him find his mother’s house.
After Khan left Varanasi, he let it be known he was there. 20,000 people trampled the tea shop where Khan had just been. The local media went crazy. “They found the story fascinating because they saw how unplanned the whole thing was. The English media picked it up only four times in those two weeks, but Hindi news channels and local print and TV media went ballistic. I was on the front page. They would report every new clue we announced, and interview the people I had met,†says Khan.
Khan not only evaded the media, but also goaded them. “I had been given the names of 15 editors in each city. So when I left their city, I wrote each of them handwritten letters on my letterhead that said ‘I was passing through your city and felt like having sweets. So I bought some mithai and got you some as well. Love, Aamir’. It was a like a tease,†Khan says and smiles.
Khan gave only four interviews to TV stations during the entire tour, all to regional TV stations. Regional stars were selected to interview Khan. On Mahua TV in UP, for example, Bhojpuri star Ravi Kishnan interviewed Khan. “Other than those four, I thought TV stations shouldn’t get me. All they get is what I shoot and send to them. I don’t have a deal with them, so I don’t know if they will bite. But I had not been available, so I knew they were thirsty for me,†says Khan.
The strategy was deployed for the print media as well. He stayed clear of mainstream English dailies and spoke very selectively to regional newspapers. For the first time in recent history, B towns were clamouring for an upcoming Hindi film.
Final notes
When they started, the ARG game was just a small part of Khan’s disappearance. It was more like a contact program, “something like what Obama would have undertaken,†explains Choudhary. But soon, many fans found out about idiotsacademy.com. They learned to play the ARG (a first ever for a Hindi film), competing against one another to find out where Khan was. Fans played other games on the website, too, racking up around 4.5 million plays, says Rohit Sharma of Zapak, which designed the game.
And not once during Khan’s journey was 3 Idiots mentioned. When he went to a girls’ school in Palanpur, Gujarat, to highlight the importance of the girl child’s education, Khan asked the girls to shout their message to TV cameras. “The girls didn’t say ‘3 Idiots releases on December 25!†Khan laughs. Instead, they said girls need as much a chance to go to school as boys do. “Now people will either connect to that or say the guy is bullshitting. I think we made a strong emotional connect.â€While Khan was in the middle of this journey, and excitement was at a peak, “Aamir Khan the Pucca Idiot†decided to hold a Facebook live chat with fans. Khan would be on video, and fans could type in from Twitter, Facebook, and Youstream.
The BoC guys expected Khan’s live chat to happen from Mumbai. At the last minute, they were told to take their hi-tech equipment to Delhi and then set it up in a small village outside.
On December 19th, without a single hitch in streaming, more than 1 lakh users chatted with Khan from Pakistan, Bangladesh, the US, and cities and many B towns in India. It was the first time an Indian celebrity had done something like this. Over 300,000 status updates were shared that day, according to Facebook’s international communications team. On Twitter, #AamirKhanLive was the sixth most buzzed keyword in the world.
Six days after the chat, 3 Idiots was finally released.
How much could all of this have worked? The biggest opening any film had ever had was Ghajini, with a first day collection across India of 9 crore. 3 Idiots’ collected Rs. 13 crore on the first day. Over that weekend, the collections added up to Rs. 100 crore. The film was watched in 40 countries. Nineteen days after release, the film set a box office record for the industry, grossing Rs. 315 crore worldwide. It is the highest grossing Bollywood film of all time, not adjusted for inflation. As we go to print, 3 Idiots had grossed Rs. 365 crore.
Khan didn’t forget Vikram Thakur and his magic number: Rs. 7 crore. 3 Idiots beat it by a mile at Rs. 9 crore. Choudhary says from Ghajini to 3 Idiots there’s been a 30 percent jump in collections in B towns like Benares, Bhopal, and in Faridkot.
Last weekend, Chance pe Dance was released. Its net collections on the first day release were 2.15 crore for all India. 3 Idiots got 2.75 crore that day, meaning it’s still number one three weeks after release.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Mother is Mother
I choke every time I read this story about the Mother. It reminds me how precarious life is and how precious it is to tie the lose ends of the life, and recieve blessings from your mother. Don't let a moment go by, pick up the phone and give her a call or better yet, go visit her. If she is not alive, there is a friends mother or a stranger that you can give that affection to.Nine Februaries ago, on a Saturday Morning in 2002, I received a call from my Mother from India; she started telling me to carry on with life and take care of myself and my family. I sensed her last moment had come and I started crying a like a baby with my late wife, son and daughter around me. It will not amaze Indians and Perhaps Pakistanis’ and Bangladeshis of my generation (born in 50’s) that culturally we rarely verbalize our affection for parents or even say thank you in words, it is all non-verbal communication through caring and doing things for them.
I want to thank God for giving me the sense to tell her in time that I loved her, and thanked her for making me whoever I am today, it is because of her I am who I am today. It was the first time I have said those words in my life to my mother and turned out to be the only time I ever said. Thank God for that. I would have been a farmer in Irgampalli had it not been for my mother. I told her like they say in the Indian Movies, Ma, I am coming, and you are not going anywhere until I see you. Damn it, my eyes are wet now.
I reached Bangalore Airport at 2:00 AM, none of my three brothers were there to receive me, finally I took the taxi and reached my home about 6:00 AM – my Mother’s body was placed in the middle of the house. I sat next to her…. And every one was figuring out what was happening to me as I was smiling at her beautiful face, admiring her for tying all the loose ends of life, she had called every one for the whole week to forgive and be forgiven.
Prophet Muhammad was asked by his associates, who is the most important person in one's life. He says, Mother, they asked him again, who is next, he repeats Mother, they ask him again and for the third time he says, it is your mother and on the 4th call he says, it is your father. The importance of mother is stressed in every faith and culture and indeed, the Prophet said, the paradise is under your monthers feet. Such is the prominence given to mother. In Jewish tradition it is the Mother through whom the Jewish tradition continues, in Hindu tradtion Mother is venerated to nearly the status of God, there is a beautiful song, " o ma, your face is nothing different than God" ( us ko nahin dekha hum nay kabhi, per us ki zaroorat kya hogi, ai ma, teri soorat say alag, bhagwan ki soorat kya hogi - song link below) you find similar values in all traditions.
She was the mother of my town, as my Dad was a Mayor once, she had earned her own place in the community, all her Hindu, Christian, Jain, Parsee and Muslim friends were visiting her and doing their own prayers for her soul to rest in peace. I was admiring her for leaving a beautiful lesson for me to learn… tying the loose ends and going in peace, what a way to go!
And when I read the following story, which my fiancé sent to me, my whole life went back to Saturday, February 23, 2002. I am yet to tie all the loose ends. However, one of the most pleasant parts of my life was the way my late wife Najma departed on her eternal journey – we cleaned each others’ slate, tied the loose ends and had the luxury of saying bye to each other. May God bless her soul, she is in peace and I am in peace, it was a perfect Michami Dukkadam, a greeting phrase the followers of Jain faith say to each other – Michami Dukkadam, simply meaning, let’s clean each other’s spiritual slate and refresh our lives for the next year. I have simplified my life by reducing all my goals and things to do in writing… It is a reminder for me to keep the life as clean as I can, and as simple as I can.
Amma, here I am, I will continue to tie the loose ends of life and when I go, I will have few things or none left to be done and God willing I will be smiling as you did. Amen!
A PIECE OF ADVICE
I learned that arguing with mother is the dumbest thing to do, she wants the best for you and why do you want to disagree in a conversation that gives her joy and you lose nothing. I realized that little late in my life, but was able to have a happy relationship with her in the last several times I visited her including the one in 2001, I would go home and sit next to her for the whole day, and let her talk and I would listen, it was a feast to her that I'd listen to her without interrupting. One time she slapped me ( Ofcourse with affection and I was 48!) when she realized that I had gone to sleep while she was talking. But she was the happiest woman seeing her son spend time with her. Please do that for your mother, she would love that and you'd be blessed for the rest of your life. They say, Mother's wishes (prayers) are a boon in one's life.
Mike Ghouse
http://www.mikeghouse.net/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
IT IS ABOUT YOUR MOTHER
After 21 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie. She said, 'I love you, but I know this other woman loves you and would Love to spend some time with you.'
The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my Mother, who has been a widow for 19 years, but the demands of my work and my three children had made it possible to visit her only occasionally.
That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie. 'What's wrong, are you well,' she asked? My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign of bad news.
'I thought that it would be pleasant to spend some time with you,' I responded 'just the two of us.' She thought about it for a moment, and then said, 'I would like that very much.'
That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous about our date. She waited in the door with her coat on. She had curled her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary. She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an angel's. 'I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son, and they were impressed,' she said, as she got into the car. 'They can't wait to hear about our meeting.'
We went to a restaurant that, although not elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady.
After we sat down, I had to read the menu.. Her eyes could only read large print. Half-way through the entrees, I lifted my eyes and saw Mother sitting there staring at me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips.
'It was I who used to have to read the menu when you were small,' she said. 'Then it's time that you relax and let me return the favor,' I responded. During the dinner , we had an agreeable conversation nothing extraordinary but catching up on recent events of each other's life. We talked so much that we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, 'I'll go out with you again, but only if you let me invite you.' I agreed.
'How was your dinner date?' asked my wife when I got home. 'Very nice, much more so than I could have imagined,' I answered.
A few days later, my mother died of a massive heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn't have a chance to do anything for her. Sometime later, I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place Mother and I had dined. An attached note said: 'I paid this bill in advance. I wasn't sure that I could be there; but, nevertheless, I paid for two plates - one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know what that night meant for me.
'I love you, son'
At that moment, I understood the importance of saying in time: 'I love YOU' and to give our loved ones the time that they deserve. Nothing in life is more important than your family. Give them the time they deserve, because these things cannot be put off till some 'other' time.
Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby... somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, 'normal' is history.
Somebody said you can't love the second child as much as you love the first... somebody doesn't have two or more children.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery....somebody never watched her 'baby' get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten... or on a plane headed for military 'boot camp.'
Somebody said a Mother can stop worrying after her child gets married... somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings..
Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home... somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her.... somebody isn't a mother.
Pass this along to all theGREAT'mothers' in your life and to everyone who ever had a mother.
This isn't just about being a mother; it's about appreciating the people in your lives while you have them... no matter who that person is!
The Indian song praising the mother - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XquVaTHY6nY
~~~
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Happy Republic Day
India's Republic Day, Best WishesShare
Today at 12:36am
Although India's democracy is secular by constitution, in reality it has been a pluralistic democracy. The idea of democracy is deep rooted in our psyche and it runs in our veins. It has been tested a few times, but the democracy has stood like a rock. The Republic Day of India marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution of India and the transition of India from a British Dominion to a republic on January 26, 1950.
Thanks to my parents for planning my birth on such an occassion. The day coincided with two more events - it was Prophet Muhammad's birthday per the lunar calendar and my Dad was elected Mayor of the Town of Yelahanka on that day. I was born 10lb 4oz in Victoria Hospital, Bangalore.
We are proud of our heritage - a multi-faith, multi-cultural, multi-regional and multi-linguistic society, where we have come to accept and respect every which way people have lived their lives.
For over 5000 years, India has been a beacon of pluralism - it has embraced Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Baha’i and Zoroastrianism to include in the array of the indigenous religions; Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism.
India led the way to the freedom movement, since 1947 just about every country in the world has been liberated from colonialism. Indian democracy is a shining example to the world, where the people have peacefully transferred the powers.
Indians are inherently secular and economically capitalistic. They believe in "live-and-let-live" life style, which is the essence of capitalism.Through the years we have expressed the highest degree of maturity on handling extreme situations; the more divergent opinions we hear, the larger our heart grows, the bigger our embrace would be and we can cushion more differences. Let’s continue to honor the concept that there is always another side to the story, as finding the truth is our own responsibility.I am proud of my heritage and am proud to be an Indian-American.
Mike Ghouse
Here is more information about our Republic:
The Republic Day of India marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution of India and the transition of India from a British Dominion to a republic on January 26, 1950.
Although India obtained its independence on August 15, 1947, it did not yet have a permanent constitution; instead, its laws were based on the modified colonial Government of India Act 1935, and the country was a Dominion, with George VI as head of state and Earl Mountbatten as Governor General. On August 29, 1947, the Drafting Committee was appointed to draft a permanent constitution, with Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar as chairman.
A draft Constitution was prepared by the committee and submitted to the Assembly on November 4, 1947. The Assembly met, in sessions open to public, for 166 days, spread over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 18 days before adopting the Constitution. After many deliberations and some modifications, the 308 members of the Assembly signed two hand-written copies of the document (one each in Hindi and English) on January 24, 1950. Two days later, the Constitution of India became the law of all the Indian lands. The Constitution of India came into effect only on January 26, 1950, 10.18 AM IST. Following elections on January 21, 1950, Rajendra Prasad was elected as the president of India. The Indian National Congress and other parties had been celebrating January 26th as a symbol of Independence, even before India actually became independent. Thus, signing the constitution on January 26, to mark and respect January 26 and the freedom struggle and the freedom fighters.
Granville Austin has described the Indian Constitution drafted by Ambedkar as 'first and foremost a social document.' ... 'The majority of India's constitutional provisions are either directly arrived at furthering the aim of social revolution or attempt to foster this revolution by establishing conditions necessary for its achievement.'
The amending mechanism was lauded even at the time of introduction by Ambedkar in the following words: "We can therefore safely say that the Indian federation will not suffer from the faults of rigidity or legalism. Its distinguished feature is that it is a flexible federation.
"The three mechanisms of the system derived by the Assembly, contrary to the predictions, have made the constitution flexible at the same time protected the rights of the states. They have worked better than the amending process in any other country where Federalism and the British Parliamentary system jointly formed the basis of the constitution"
What Sir Anthony Eden, the Prime Minister of Britain (April 1955 to January 1957), said at the time of the emergence of Indian Republic is relevant in this context. He said, ‘Of all the experiments in government, which have been attempted since the beginning of time, I believe that the Indian venture into parliamentary government is the most exciting. A vast subcontinent is attempting to apply to its tens and thousands of millions a system of free democracy... It is a brave thing to try to do so. The Indian venture is not a pale imitation of our practice at home, but a magnified and multiplied reproduction on a scale we have never dreamt of. If it succeeds, its influence on Asia is incalculable for good. Whatever the outcome we must honour those who attempt it. Even more meaningful was the opinion expressed by an American Constitutional authority, Granville Austin, who wrote that what the Indian Constituent Assembly began was ‘perhaps the greatest political venture since that originated in Philadelphia in 1787.’
"During recent years, it has become fashionable among some citizens to disparage the founders and their document. These individuals disappointed by the developments in the country since 1950, have called for changing the constitution explaining that it has not 'worked'. Such thinking, in my view, is misguided. Constitutions do not 'work', they are inert, dependent upon being 'worked' by citizens and elected and appointed leaders"
It is one of the three national holidays in India
Courtesy of wiki.
OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7399792002477900458
OUR NATIONAL SONGS
More at
www.http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/
Vande Mataram -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFKJirsFJmA&NR=1
Saray Jahan say Accha -
http://www.youtube.com/watchv=s09MoVYMYhw&feature=related
Jahan Daal Daal Pay -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OM--V8roElM&feature=related
Hum Laye Hein Toofan say - http://www.youtube.com/watchv=Dgax5HQoJ6k&feature=related
Mere Desh Ki Dharti - http://www.youtube.com/watchv=mxpNCgT6AzI&feature=PlayList&p=11804D049D6DA550&index=0
Apni Azaadi ko hargiz - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93NLol3gXm8
A desh hai veer jawanon ka -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWnPJY_o7tw&feature=related
Mike Ghouse
Today at 12:36am
Although India's democracy is secular by constitution, in reality it has been a pluralistic democracy. The idea of democracy is deep rooted in our psyche and it runs in our veins. It has been tested a few times, but the democracy has stood like a rock. The Republic Day of India marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution of India and the transition of India from a British Dominion to a republic on January 26, 1950.
Thanks to my parents for planning my birth on such an occassion. The day coincided with two more events - it was Prophet Muhammad's birthday per the lunar calendar and my Dad was elected Mayor of the Town of Yelahanka on that day. I was born 10lb 4oz in Victoria Hospital, Bangalore.
We are proud of our heritage - a multi-faith, multi-cultural, multi-regional and multi-linguistic society, where we have come to accept and respect every which way people have lived their lives.
For over 5000 years, India has been a beacon of pluralism - it has embraced Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Baha’i and Zoroastrianism to include in the array of the indigenous religions; Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism.
India led the way to the freedom movement, since 1947 just about every country in the world has been liberated from colonialism. Indian democracy is a shining example to the world, where the people have peacefully transferred the powers.
Indians are inherently secular and economically capitalistic. They believe in "live-and-let-live" life style, which is the essence of capitalism.Through the years we have expressed the highest degree of maturity on handling extreme situations; the more divergent opinions we hear, the larger our heart grows, the bigger our embrace would be and we can cushion more differences. Let’s continue to honor the concept that there is always another side to the story, as finding the truth is our own responsibility.I am proud of my heritage and am proud to be an Indian-American.
Mike Ghouse
Here is more information about our Republic:
The Republic Day of India marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution of India and the transition of India from a British Dominion to a republic on January 26, 1950.
Although India obtained its independence on August 15, 1947, it did not yet have a permanent constitution; instead, its laws were based on the modified colonial Government of India Act 1935, and the country was a Dominion, with George VI as head of state and Earl Mountbatten as Governor General. On August 29, 1947, the Drafting Committee was appointed to draft a permanent constitution, with Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar as chairman.
A draft Constitution was prepared by the committee and submitted to the Assembly on November 4, 1947. The Assembly met, in sessions open to public, for 166 days, spread over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 18 days before adopting the Constitution. After many deliberations and some modifications, the 308 members of the Assembly signed two hand-written copies of the document (one each in Hindi and English) on January 24, 1950. Two days later, the Constitution of India became the law of all the Indian lands. The Constitution of India came into effect only on January 26, 1950, 10.18 AM IST. Following elections on January 21, 1950, Rajendra Prasad was elected as the president of India. The Indian National Congress and other parties had been celebrating January 26th as a symbol of Independence, even before India actually became independent. Thus, signing the constitution on January 26, to mark and respect January 26 and the freedom struggle and the freedom fighters.
Granville Austin has described the Indian Constitution drafted by Ambedkar as 'first and foremost a social document.' ... 'The majority of India's constitutional provisions are either directly arrived at furthering the aim of social revolution or attempt to foster this revolution by establishing conditions necessary for its achievement.'
The amending mechanism was lauded even at the time of introduction by Ambedkar in the following words: "We can therefore safely say that the Indian federation will not suffer from the faults of rigidity or legalism. Its distinguished feature is that it is a flexible federation.
"The three mechanisms of the system derived by the Assembly, contrary to the predictions, have made the constitution flexible at the same time protected the rights of the states. They have worked better than the amending process in any other country where Federalism and the British Parliamentary system jointly formed the basis of the constitution"
What Sir Anthony Eden, the Prime Minister of Britain (April 1955 to January 1957), said at the time of the emergence of Indian Republic is relevant in this context. He said, ‘Of all the experiments in government, which have been attempted since the beginning of time, I believe that the Indian venture into parliamentary government is the most exciting. A vast subcontinent is attempting to apply to its tens and thousands of millions a system of free democracy... It is a brave thing to try to do so. The Indian venture is not a pale imitation of our practice at home, but a magnified and multiplied reproduction on a scale we have never dreamt of. If it succeeds, its influence on Asia is incalculable for good. Whatever the outcome we must honour those who attempt it. Even more meaningful was the opinion expressed by an American Constitutional authority, Granville Austin, who wrote that what the Indian Constituent Assembly began was ‘perhaps the greatest political venture since that originated in Philadelphia in 1787.’
"During recent years, it has become fashionable among some citizens to disparage the founders and their document. These individuals disappointed by the developments in the country since 1950, have called for changing the constitution explaining that it has not 'worked'. Such thinking, in my view, is misguided. Constitutions do not 'work', they are inert, dependent upon being 'worked' by citizens and elected and appointed leaders"
It is one of the three national holidays in India
Courtesy of wiki.
OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7399792002477900458
OUR NATIONAL SONGS
More at
www.http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/
Vande Mataram -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFKJirsFJmA&NR=1
Saray Jahan say Accha -
http://www.youtube.com/watchv=s09MoVYMYhw&feature=related
Jahan Daal Daal Pay -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OM--V8roElM&feature=related
Hum Laye Hein Toofan say - http://www.youtube.com/watchv=Dgax5HQoJ6k&feature=related
Mere Desh Ki Dharti - http://www.youtube.com/watchv=mxpNCgT6AzI&feature=PlayList&p=11804D049D6DA550&index=0
Apni Azaadi ko hargiz - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93NLol3gXm8
A desh hai veer jawanon ka -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWnPJY_o7tw&feature=related
Mike Ghouse
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Press Release, Holocaust and Genocides in Dallas
PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Mike Ghouse (214) 325-1916,
email: MikeGhouse@aol.com
event email: HolocaustandGenocides@gmail.com
Website: http://www.holocaustandgenocides.com/
III ANNUAL REFELCTIONS ON THE HOLOCAUST AND GENOCIDES
DALLAS – (January 14, 2010) –The Foundation for Pluralism announces the 7/7 speakers Panel to reflect upon the Holocaust and Genocides event at 5:00 PM on Sunday, January 24, 2010 at the Center for Spiritual Center, 4801 Spring Valley Road, Dallas, TX. 75244.
Each individual in the seven member panel would acknowledge the inhumanity in each one of us and reflect upon the solutions for co-existence. It is a purposeful event to learn, acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things, that we humans have inflicted upon each other.
What can you do as individual?
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Casting Prinyanka Gandhi
Creating an image for Priyanka Gandhi, grand daughter of Indira Gandhi.
The first thought would be, it is the new Indian woman,
it ain't, Indira Gandhi has similar looks in 50's with her hair cut and trimmed.
Zeenat Aman has that hair going too in the mid sixties.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Political Linguistics in America
Political Linguistics in America
My comments follow the article by Prof. John Kozy, the article not only brings out the political linguistic gymnastics, but also the ideas about governance and his challenges to traditional narratives – Mike Ghouse
Political Linguistics in America
The American Kleptocratic "Necrocracy": A "Democracy" that Kills
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16469
by Prof. John Kozy
Languages are called living because they constantly change. There's no way to stop that, of course; people use languages as they will. Linguists often speak approvingly of the change, citing the richness it adds to language and inventiveness of the human mind, but the change also has unintended consequences that are often overlooked. The change, after all, is what makes works written in old and even middle English unintelligible to modern speakers of English.
Some attempts have been made to control linguistic change; they have not had much success. L'Académie française, for example, has continuously fought a loosing battle against changes in French, and even the U.S. governments attempts to advocate Simplified English show few positive results. Yet attempts to control linguistic change arise because of an irrefutable fact, namely, that linguistic change often makes speech and writing ambiguous which obscures meaning and leads to muddled thinking.
Take the word 'democracy,' for instance. It has come to mean something like a government whose agents are 'elected by the people.' But that's a slippery definition. Democracy originally meant rule by the people, but the people do not rule in governments whose agents are merely elected.
If there are legal or financial restrictions on who can seek office, what is called democracy can be any one of a number of different kinds of government. If only clerics of a specific religious sect can seek office, the government that results is really an ecclesiocracy. If only the affluent can seek office, it would be a plutocracy. If only geniuses are allowed to seek office, it would be a geniocracy, and there are numerous other types. Merely calling a nation democratic is so ambiguous it has no real meaning.
When President Wilson went before Congress on April 2, 1917, to seek a Declaration of War against Germany in order that the world "be made safe for democracy," exactly what was he pleading for? Almost a dozen major and numerous minor wars since have apparently not made the world safe for anything, no less, democracy. The world is more dangerous for nations and their peoples than ever.
When US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with more than 20 Arab foreign ministers in Marrakesh, Morocco to promote democracy in the region, what exactly what was she promoting? After all, the Iranians hold regular elections.
When President Bush told a gathering of the Asian American Heritage month in Washington that "We're working with India to promote democracy and the peace it yields throughout the continent, " exactly what was he promoting, especially since Arundhati Roy, an Indian woman, writes in Listening to Grasshoppers; Field Notes on Democracy, that democracy has "metastasized into something dangerous." She argues that democracy in India is not for, of and by the people but "designed to uphold the consensus of the elite for market growth," which is, of course, exactly what American democracy has become.
P.R. Sarkar, the founder of Prout, the Progressive Utilization Theory, is cited as saying that democracy can never be successful unless the majority of the population are moralists, that there needs to be a trend that supports humanistic values, and that capitalism breaks down whatever remains of those very values. "In its relentless quest for individual material acquisitions and selfish comfort it makes us all insensitive to the suffering of others and prone to divisive tendencies." Sarkar is right, of course. After all, even the Papacy has been corrupted at various times in history. Any system can be corrupted when it is controlled by the immoral.
Roy claims that this late phase of mature capitalism is headed for hell. But people living in capitalist economies have always lived in hell. Dante's Inferno has seven levels; today's capitalist democracies have many more, and only the level distinguishes one capitalist hell from others.
Roy approves of violence as a means of people's resistance to injustice. She claims that many of the poor are "crossing over... to another side; the side of armed struggle." Certainly that observation is true, but the crossover has not yet occurred within capitalist democracies, and the Western democratic attempt to "promote democracy" is merely an attempt to extend the boundaries of this hell to other regions. Yet, success may be illusory.
Victor Davis Hanson, a patrician, conservative, American historian, who writes on war but has never himself served, claims that "the usual checks on the tradition of Western warfare are magnified in our time." He argues that there are there are five traditional checks on it. One is the Western tendency to limit the ferocity of war through rules and regulations. Second, there is no monolithic West; the U.S. and its allies often can't agree. Third, it is very easy to acquire and use weapons. Four, there are ever-present anti-war movements in the West, extending all the way back to Classical Greece, citing Euripides' Trojan Women and Aristophanes' Lysistrata, and fifth, it's not easy to convince someone who has the good life to fight against someone who doesn't.
Although all of these are true, Hanson, like many historians, fails to probe deeply by asking, Why? The why may lie in the increasing recognition of the insight President Eisenhower described when he said, "I hate war, as only a soldier who has lived it can, as one who has seen its brutality, it futility, its stupidity . . . every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense atheft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed." That recognition may in the end be the ultimate check on the Western way of war, and patricians like Hanson are right to be concerned. The time that the poor are willing to fight to preserve the patrician lifestyles of the wealthy may come to an end as the perpetual war of Western nations against the rest of humanity is exposed by the stream of people in body bags returned to their homelands for burial.
The democracy being promoted and made safe is not the one of rule by the people. It is a kleptocratic necrocracy that kills so that it can scavenge the carcasses of the dead and dying so that America can continue to be the largest consumer of the world's resources. Such is the democracy that the youth of Western nations are being asked to fight and die for, and it is made possible by the ambiguity in the word democracy what has made the term meaningless.
Napoleon is cited as having said that religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich. As the poor grow more and more numerous, being stripped of their meager holdings by kleoptocratic capitalist political economies whose greed knows no bounds, this may change, and Arundhati Roy may be right in believing that many of the poor will cross over to the side of armed struggle. If so, the Western patrician class has good reason to be concerned.
------------------------
John Kozy is a frequent contributor to Global Research. Global Research Articles by John Kozy. John Kozy is a retired professor of philosophy and logic who blogs on social, political, and economic issues. After serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, he spent 20 years as a university professor and another 20 years working as a writer. He has published a textbook in formal logic commercially, in academic journals and a small number of commercial magazines, and has written a number of guest editorials for newspapers.
Comments by Mike Ghouse
"One is the Western tendency to limit the ferocity of war through rules and regulations."
Up till the above statement, the writer was doing well finding holes to each one of the earlier statements, I was looking to read about the ferocity of "shock and awe" of Bush and Ferocity in Iraq.
"Napoleon is cited as having said that religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich." Indeed, that has been my argument, it is because of religion we have less chaos in the world, and lack of it would have been disastrous. Most of the conflicts are directly attributable to greed (which goes against religions) and arrogance (against religion) of the individuals.
"Arundhati Roy may be right in believing that many of the poor will cross over to the side of armed struggle. If so, the Western patrician class has good reason to be concerned."
I have always wondered about this, when the disparities get intensified and goes completely out of balance and out of management, would it lead to a revolt big enough to justify communistic idea of forcing equality onto every one. What will happen in Pakistan? Is communism a product of disparity beyond the threshold of bearing?
My comments follow the article by Prof. John Kozy, the article not only brings out the political linguistic gymnastics, but also the ideas about governance and his challenges to traditional narratives – Mike Ghouse
Political Linguistics in America
The American Kleptocratic "Necrocracy": A "Democracy" that Kills
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16469
by Prof. John Kozy
Languages are called living because they constantly change. There's no way to stop that, of course; people use languages as they will. Linguists often speak approvingly of the change, citing the richness it adds to language and inventiveness of the human mind, but the change also has unintended consequences that are often overlooked. The change, after all, is what makes works written in old and even middle English unintelligible to modern speakers of English.
Some attempts have been made to control linguistic change; they have not had much success. L'Académie française, for example, has continuously fought a loosing battle against changes in French, and even the U.S. governments attempts to advocate Simplified English show few positive results. Yet attempts to control linguistic change arise because of an irrefutable fact, namely, that linguistic change often makes speech and writing ambiguous which obscures meaning and leads to muddled thinking.
Take the word 'democracy,' for instance. It has come to mean something like a government whose agents are 'elected by the people.' But that's a slippery definition. Democracy originally meant rule by the people, but the people do not rule in governments whose agents are merely elected.
If there are legal or financial restrictions on who can seek office, what is called democracy can be any one of a number of different kinds of government. If only clerics of a specific religious sect can seek office, the government that results is really an ecclesiocracy. If only the affluent can seek office, it would be a plutocracy. If only geniuses are allowed to seek office, it would be a geniocracy, and there are numerous other types. Merely calling a nation democratic is so ambiguous it has no real meaning.
When President Wilson went before Congress on April 2, 1917, to seek a Declaration of War against Germany in order that the world "be made safe for democracy," exactly what was he pleading for? Almost a dozen major and numerous minor wars since have apparently not made the world safe for anything, no less, democracy. The world is more dangerous for nations and their peoples than ever.
When US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with more than 20 Arab foreign ministers in Marrakesh, Morocco to promote democracy in the region, what exactly what was she promoting? After all, the Iranians hold regular elections.
When President Bush told a gathering of the Asian American Heritage month in Washington that "We're working with India to promote democracy and the peace it yields throughout the continent, " exactly what was he promoting, especially since Arundhati Roy, an Indian woman, writes in Listening to Grasshoppers; Field Notes on Democracy, that democracy has "metastasized into something dangerous." She argues that democracy in India is not for, of and by the people but "designed to uphold the consensus of the elite for market growth," which is, of course, exactly what American democracy has become.
P.R. Sarkar, the founder of Prout, the Progressive Utilization Theory, is cited as saying that democracy can never be successful unless the majority of the population are moralists, that there needs to be a trend that supports humanistic values, and that capitalism breaks down whatever remains of those very values. "In its relentless quest for individual material acquisitions and selfish comfort it makes us all insensitive to the suffering of others and prone to divisive tendencies." Sarkar is right, of course. After all, even the Papacy has been corrupted at various times in history. Any system can be corrupted when it is controlled by the immoral.
Roy claims that this late phase of mature capitalism is headed for hell. But people living in capitalist economies have always lived in hell. Dante's Inferno has seven levels; today's capitalist democracies have many more, and only the level distinguishes one capitalist hell from others.
Roy approves of violence as a means of people's resistance to injustice. She claims that many of the poor are "crossing over... to another side; the side of armed struggle." Certainly that observation is true, but the crossover has not yet occurred within capitalist democracies, and the Western democratic attempt to "promote democracy" is merely an attempt to extend the boundaries of this hell to other regions. Yet, success may be illusory.
Victor Davis Hanson, a patrician, conservative, American historian, who writes on war but has never himself served, claims that "the usual checks on the tradition of Western warfare are magnified in our time." He argues that there are there are five traditional checks on it. One is the Western tendency to limit the ferocity of war through rules and regulations. Second, there is no monolithic West; the U.S. and its allies often can't agree. Third, it is very easy to acquire and use weapons. Four, there are ever-present anti-war movements in the West, extending all the way back to Classical Greece, citing Euripides' Trojan Women and Aristophanes' Lysistrata, and fifth, it's not easy to convince someone who has the good life to fight against someone who doesn't.
Although all of these are true, Hanson, like many historians, fails to probe deeply by asking, Why? The why may lie in the increasing recognition of the insight President Eisenhower described when he said, "I hate war, as only a soldier who has lived it can, as one who has seen its brutality, it futility, its stupidity . . . every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense atheft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed." That recognition may in the end be the ultimate check on the Western way of war, and patricians like Hanson are right to be concerned. The time that the poor are willing to fight to preserve the patrician lifestyles of the wealthy may come to an end as the perpetual war of Western nations against the rest of humanity is exposed by the stream of people in body bags returned to their homelands for burial.
The democracy being promoted and made safe is not the one of rule by the people. It is a kleptocratic necrocracy that kills so that it can scavenge the carcasses of the dead and dying so that America can continue to be the largest consumer of the world's resources. Such is the democracy that the youth of Western nations are being asked to fight and die for, and it is made possible by the ambiguity in the word democracy what has made the term meaningless.
Napoleon is cited as having said that religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich. As the poor grow more and more numerous, being stripped of their meager holdings by kleoptocratic capitalist political economies whose greed knows no bounds, this may change, and Arundhati Roy may be right in believing that many of the poor will cross over to the side of armed struggle. If so, the Western patrician class has good reason to be concerned.
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John Kozy is a frequent contributor to Global Research. Global Research Articles by John Kozy. John Kozy is a retired professor of philosophy and logic who blogs on social, political, and economic issues. After serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, he spent 20 years as a university professor and another 20 years working as a writer. He has published a textbook in formal logic commercially, in academic journals and a small number of commercial magazines, and has written a number of guest editorials for newspapers.
Comments by Mike Ghouse
"One is the Western tendency to limit the ferocity of war through rules and regulations."
Up till the above statement, the writer was doing well finding holes to each one of the earlier statements, I was looking to read about the ferocity of "shock and awe" of Bush and Ferocity in Iraq.
"Napoleon is cited as having said that religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich." Indeed, that has been my argument, it is because of religion we have less chaos in the world, and lack of it would have been disastrous. Most of the conflicts are directly attributable to greed (which goes against religions) and arrogance (against religion) of the individuals.
"Arundhati Roy may be right in believing that many of the poor will cross over to the side of armed struggle. If so, the Western patrician class has good reason to be concerned."
I have always wondered about this, when the disparities get intensified and goes completely out of balance and out of management, would it lead to a revolt big enough to justify communistic idea of forcing equality onto every one. What will happen in Pakistan? Is communism a product of disparity beyond the threshold of bearing?
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