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DATEXX, 1998
SPECIALS
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How Readers reacted to Amberish K Diwanji's recent columns
Date sent: Thu, 28 May 1998 09:56:52 -0500
Readers may have thought nobody could better Dilip D'Souza and his ganne ka rasvaala. But this one by Diwanji who wants to survey beggars in front of restaurants proves that to be wrong. Where did you find these writers? Is this an attempt to get negative reaction from most of your readers, who obviously have to be middle class or upper class? The whole idea of economic reforms are centred around the middle class. The MNCs are eyeing the Indian middle class and the government is expecting that to have a trickle-down effect on the lower class. If we don't have missiles to reach Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong we need to develop them. I believe Agni has the capacity to reach many Chinese cities. The idea of nuclear deterrence is to discourage the enemy not to attack for fear of losing their biggest cities. If the Chinese attack the entire Gangetic belt, we could take out at least their major cities in defence. Prosperity is always relative and you can't ignore national security because there are few beggars. As long as your columnists are obsessed with opposing anything done by the Sangh Parivar, Rediff is going to look like an anti-BJP propaganda machine. In spite of your excellent coverage of the recent nuclear tests, your credibility took a severe beating because you gave more importance to the opposition, when the overwhelming majority supported the tests. In fact, it was a no-brainer for me. Unable to bear this rhetoric, your readers may find other sites for Indian news.
Date sent: Sat, 30 May 1998 09:30:49 -0700
Amberish you are right when you talk about the opinion polls on the bomb and the people who answered the poll. But a poor beggar does not understand what a nuclear bomb is. Just as he does not understand what democracy is. A beggar in Pakistan or China will do just as well as he is doing in India and democracy. By the way, those farmers who committed suicide in Andhra Pradesh happened to die because of lack of rain, so their opinion could not be garnered. Amberish, how old were you in 1974? Did anyone dare ask the Congress and the tyrant Indira Gandhi what we were doing with the bomb? I did not read of the Times or the Indian Express asking about the poor people. There were just as many homeless kids and beggars in Bombay. India's poverty can be solved only by breeding less Indians. The poor find having kids a way of enhancing their living conditions. As long as we let the poor breed unhindered there will be no real progress in India. We cannot control the rain and the sunshine, but we can control population. The poor may have been exploited, but a part of the blame rests with them.
Date sent: Fri, 29 May 1998 16:51:11 -0600
I have to agree with several of your points regarding what needs to be done in India. All of that needed to be done for a long time and will need to be done for some time to come. However, I still feel the decision to go nuclear can be justified. No matter what, the nukes are a deterrent, as many experts have affirmed in the international press. This may be the best opportunity in years for India and Pakistan to sit across a table. At least now, both countries have to face the reality that war causes devastation. This is a region of the world that has produced great minds, but we have not been able to harness them because of the time, energy and money we foolishly spend on defence. But then, it takes two hands to clap. So unless we have some kind of comprehensive peace treaty in the region that includes China, I guess one cannot pick on any one country or political party. The BJP still has to prove itself, but I am willing to give it time. It's only fair. The Congress was around for donkey's years and only the Rao/Singh combine did anything worthwhile. S Iyer
Date sent: Fri, 29 May 1998 14:07:01 -0500
It is pathetic to read articles by Amberish. I think one should remember that to eradicate poverty one has to have strength and money, but where do you get money? Do you know that majority of the developed countries sell arms to make money for their nation, without which they would be more bankrupt than India? Do you know that without a deterrent, no economy is safe? How do you think that America can get oil from the Middle East for as little as $ 1 per gallon whereas in India we are paying four times that price, even though we buy from the same countries? Did you know that in the name of protecting Kuwait, the US and the allies made a profit by collecting money for the war from the Middle Eastern countries? They can arm-twist others; we cannot. We need to at least show that we cannot be bullied into submitting. Did you also know that the investments by the Americans in the East Asian economies helped them grow and their sudden withdrawal brought down their economies, and the US again provided IMF bailout and now demanded 20 per cent share in the banks in these countries?? Don't you think it is arm-twisting? Remember, the wealth that the whole of Europe went looking for was in India. They were vying with one another to find the best route to the Land of Wealth and this is what led to the discovery of America by Columbus. What did they do? They destroyed the native inhabitants of the land now called America to such an extent that today you can hardly find any natives. They have now become an extinct species. You know why, they could not protect themselves from the white rogues. What happened to the wealth of India? Bharathvarsh, as this piece of land was called earlier, had no shortage of wealth and happiness. Science was developed to a great extent. Art was at its peak -- you can see it in the temples. Also architecture, if you care to see some architectural wonders in our country. A rich medical science was also developed which looked at humans as humans and not as a masses of flesh. Today medicine is slowly coming to terms at this idea. Philosophy also developed and this nation was a treasure house of all you could expect to find in a land of abundance. People never lived in fear. When did this land run into problems? When its defence failed! The Muslims conquered and destroyed temples (secular blind men do not care to see it), looted the wealth and carried it away. What did the British do to our country? You think they brought prosperity? Read old articles in Young India by Mahatma Gandhi you will know what was done to India by the so-called good white men. Remember they are out there only to make money and not to take care of you. They will provide aid only if it benefits them, similarly they will give you technology if it benefits them. They will not allow you to get the best deak. I can go on like this, but what is the use. These are hawks who are out to sell India and portray it as a weak country which can be sold. There are others who want to portray our country as weak. Well anyway what is the use of writing all this? Amberish claimed India would disintegrate without English and I think he is not knowledgeable enough to have read history. I would like to tell him that it is time to find our own solution to the problem and not seek solutions from some other country. Swami Vivekananda used to tell the story of a lion brought up by sheep and which learned to live like a sheep till it met another lion and was told that it was a lion. The time has come for us to wake up from the dream, a weak dream, and realise our own strength. I am sure that we have enough strength in our country to overcome internal enemies. Jai Hind
Date sent: Wed, 27 May 1998 15:15:54
Diwanji provides an illustrative example of someone who has to fill a few pages for an article, lacks the knowledge for it, and goes cock-eyed in 10 different directions, without a coherent thread or factual base. One can take issue with an opposing perspective when the article has some semblance of coherence and credence. Sadly, these are consistently lacking in Mr. Diwanji's article. That he is an assistant editor of Rediff On The NeT is an eye opener! Srinivas Peeta
Date sent: Tue, 26 May 1998 18:12:22 -0700 (PDT)
Diwanji's incisive analysis of the BJP and its agenda is the need of the hour, especially at a time when more and more of the "educated" are falling prey to the divisive rabble-rousing, jingoistic propaganda and blatant demagoguery of the party and its allies. I would like Diwanji to write an article about another aspect. In this day and age, I find it rather strange that we haven't seen the BJP debating the issues on a medium such as television, which is expanding rapidly in India. I suspect that there is no dearth of people who are willing to take on the BJP in such debates. It would be very interesting to know whether any overtures have been made to the BJP regarding this, and what its response was. Perhaps Diwanji can write at length about this.
Date sent: Wed, 27 May 1998 15:44:59 -0400
Shri Amberish Diwanji ,
I suppose you have no clue of what you are talking. You ask what is the risk India faces. The answer:
You also argue, India is a poor country and the poor man is affected. Well, there are poorer people in China , Pakistan and even in western countries. But this does not stop China, North Korea and almost all other countries to pursue their nuclear weapons programme. You argue what is the need right now to carry on the explosions when relations with Pakistan and China were at their best? Well, relations between China and Nehru before 1962 were also excellent. China snatched India's Aksai Chin and the rest is history. But you will still argue that right now China had excellent relations with India. Let me tell you that if I take away Rs 10 million from you and refuse to pay you back, relations will still be great between you and me unless you start demanding your money back. China has happily taken India's part and wants to maintain good relations with India. Should India keep quiet and forget about the whole episode ever occurred? Sonia Gandhi and the rest of the bandwagon are doing exactly what China, Pakistan and the Western powers want. To oppose the government going in the right direction. To deny a country its right of self-respect in the world community. I can understand her talk. She seems to be taking the Western view because she is a Westerner by birth. But I can't understand Rediff taking this stand. Durgesh Mantri
Date sent: Wed, 27 May 1998 15:22:25
I disagree with this writer again, In the beginning, when nuclear tests were conducted by India, no newspaper or writer in India wanted to criticise the government decision as public opinion (91 per cent) was in favour of it. Poor Sonia Gandhi changed her stand several times and still does not know what she and her Congress stands for on this issue, the Left parties criticised as usual but then congratulated the scientists so not to miss the boat. Then came some dime-a-dozen writers like Diwanji who are professional partisan and biased to express their opinion in various news columns against the bold decision taken by the present government. Sure, there was going to be some economic fallout but the government stated that the risks were taken into consideration. The key reason of taking this step was for national security and the people of India agree to that. That is what matters. Now when these anti-establishment type newspapers, writers and politicians saw that the ruling parties were getting public support and might improve their chances in the polls, they suddenly changed their tune. It is a simple case of politicking, forget about their cries for the eradication of Indian poverty first before worrying about nuclear capability. This is just to divert people's attention. The fact is that these news writers and Opposition politicians were caught off guard, because they were all trying to concentrate on the inaction of the prime minister and his Cabinet, and not paying attention to other issues. Now they are angry, and so are using their pens against the government. Sorry guys, the majority of people do not agree with you.
Date sent: Wed, 27 May 1998 17:06:01 EDT
I agree 100 per cent with Diwanji's article. If Islamic Pakistan can secure the friendship and help of Communist China, why couldn't India be more flexible on the border problems with China, and thus neutralise the Pakistan-China axis? And why can't George Fernandes and the fanatic Advani shut their mouths and let Vajpayee or Kumaramangalam speak? S Subramanyan
Date sent: Wed, 27 May 1998 16:27:15 -0400
Hi Diwanji, "Was the collective wisdom of persons such as Indira Gandhi (during whose government the first explosion was conducted on May 18, 1974), Morarji Desai, Charan Singh, Rajiv Gandhi, V P Singh, Chandra Shekhar, P V Narasimha Rao, H D Deve Gowda and I K Gujral less than A B Vajpayee," you asked. Who do you think among the above-mentioned jokers has wisdom other than A B Vajpayee? Other than Indira, the rest simply do not have the guts to take such a momentous decision. It is a shame that India is in such a pathetic state because of people like you with their defeatist mentalities. I wish you shut up and make no more noise on these nuclear tests. Because you do not know what the hell is happening.
Date sent: Wed, 27 May 1998 13:40:25 -0700
Maybe Diwanji is right in pointing out that we must not gloat over our nuke testing. It won't make poverty go away, nor will it scare off the terrorists in PoK, much less bring back the farmers who committed suicide back to life. Diwanji writes good English, but he is confused. This is not utopia, it is a world with a mixture of both misery and happiness. Bettering the life of the common man (poor or rich) has to be a continuous process and requires the proactive involvement of both politician and polity. Internal security is another thing altogether. The A-bomb is a powerful deterrent only if the tests culminate in deployment of the armed ballistic missiles, ready to be launched into the heart of enemy territory. Tests by themselves are not going to keep you safe. I agree with Diwanji when he says that defence forces must be strengthened and their budgets continually increased. China is clearly a threat and it is true also that they are far, far ahead of us in almost any area of technology. Let us continue strengthening of our defence preparedness and not give in to international bullying. Let us also work towards strengthening our economy. If the earlier governments had not squabbled so much we might had a very strong economy by now and the sanctions would not have much of an impact. Maybe the sanctions wouldn't have been imposed in the first place. Eashwer |
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