Columbia

re. #14 by amit:
A sprained ankle and nothing much on Star Movies tonight have combined to keep me from taking a pass on commenting on some remarks of yours. You write:
``This tragedy is a grim reminder of our limitations as human beings. We fight, argue and try to accomplish all that we can but everything comes to an end anyway. Makes you wonder, why bother ? What is the point of all this useless hindu-muslim squabbles, when all of us are going to turn into dust some day?``
Amit, tragedies such as these, or the death of one near-and-dear, do help to put into perspective the meaning of our livesand help us rethink how we should live it. Mostly, it has the effect of seeing the futility and silliness of our squabbles.
However, your ``but everything comes to an end anyway`` comment could easily be interpreted as a call to a fatalistic resignation from life. (It certainly is a logical conclusion.) I would hate to think that you are suggesting that, were we all not ``to turn to dust some day``, these hindu-muslim squabbles might actually be of come use. :)
I guess the point I`m making is that deriving a conclusion of futility from the reality of our mortality, even as a race, is just not on. It`s the eternal ``Why are we here?`` problem dressed differently. We could never know logically or rationally because there will ALWYAS be an antecedent `WHY` to every because. So, like the man said in his song (the song I`m going to write :)) ``Don`t ask why! You already know you ARE. So just DO!``
rgds,
PM

re. #16 by ferozk
Doth not the good man protesteth a teeny weeny bit too much?!
:)

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Farzana #1,
you are right on the mark with your comments.

What a tragedy. But still people dont hesitate to get some political use

out of it.

Ras

#26 by AmericanExpress on February 4, 2003 10:37am PT

Do you mention yours every time you post? And if education is so important, let’s start with yours.

#23 by jay on February 4, 2003 5:58am PT

<<<>>>

So what? I would still express my opinion. And what makes you think it is born out of ignorance? As if and arguing and squabbling is a sign of great intellect.


#23 by jay on February 4, 2003 5:58am PT

<<<>>>

Do you mention yours every time you post? And if education is so important, let’s start with yours.

American Express # 24

I have been thinking for the past few days, since the Columbia exploded, why I did not feel a thing this time. Whereas when Challenger had an accident I sobbed with tears in my eyes. I was thinking on the lines that may be I have become morally bankrupt since I have stopped feeling strongly about the loss of human life. But then I remembered that I usually do not feel a thing whenever there are news of God-made disasters like accidents, floods, earthquakes, derailing of trains and famine etc. However, man made disasters like wars, genocides, and murders on the other hand break me down. I think over the years after surviving through a civil war and watching death and mayhem on the TV on daily basis sitting on my lazy-boy seat has ``desensitized`` me to death. I dread the day when I will be desensitized to the man-made disasters as well. I fear that I will have no moral value as regards to human suffering like so many others I see around me. Will I have moral values even when I won`t feel a thing for others?

harish 12,

May be it is time that you read some religious books. There are people who seek death, there are priests who implore their listeners to seek death, one religion even says that the only way to secure space in heaven is to get killed, to become a martyr.

Noble sentiments backed by ignorence is plain stupidity, to be exploited by others. Murder and death is celebration to many billions of humans. Read some where on the responses to this article the statements by the maulavi in an mosque in england - reflect on it before writing another similar post on chowk

...12-head is just pissed because some short, stocky bengali jihadi has never been to space, but some indians have....

#19 by qusman1 on February 3, 2003 2:53pm PT

What! An Indian with a Hindu name expressing noble sentiments on Chowk!

Well qusman1, the stupidity of your logic is laughable at best, appalling at worst. In any case, if you have not been able to understand (which is obvious) the import of the sentiment I expressed, the loss, unfortunately, is only yours.

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#12 by harish_hyd on February 2, 2003 10:18pm PT
Do these India-Pakistan arguments really matter?``

What! An Indian with a Hindu name expressing noble sentiments on Chowk!

What next will befall us from the sky!

:-)

I thought I might throw this in (lines from Horatio at the Gates by McCauley):
``To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his gods,
And for the tender mother
Who dandled him to rest,
And for the wife who nurses
His baby at her breast``

Horatio died fighting for all of the above perhaps two thousand years ago. We need to update the poem, as follows:

``To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds...``

And this is where we part company with the original above with all its infighting among different communities, and which hopefully will belong to the past, and continue

``For taking life on earth,
On a journey beyond the stars,
For bringing about the birth,
Of a future we claim as ours``.

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Re: Amit # 14 & harish_hyd #12

Bravo!

No, it makes no difference and those who think otherwise, are fools!

I greive for Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Zorastrians, Christians, Ahmedis, Sikhs, Buddist, all nations of the world and the individual. I cry for the man, the woman and the child, who suffers. No flag ever bade me to deny my humanity and I refuse to acknowledge that the armalite is my national anthem. I am an immigrant in the dispora of humanity cast upon the earth like a weed upon the ocean and like the wind, I have no place, but like the tree, I know my place on this earth. My enemy is my friend and my friend is my enemy and those that I guard, I do not admire and those that I fight, I do not dislike. My alliance is with hope and my foe is dispair and I cry, because my allies have made a pact with my foe - death, are eager to do its biddings.

I am a human being and I grieve for all who die, because a part of me also dies with them and because of their death, there is less for me to rejoice.

Ciao