Scream (long post)

ijaz:

this is what i wrote earlier:

***

…this in itself is a scream…albeit full of anguish and pathos…and screams have a short shelf life

…i fully agree with what you say…we in the diaspora should shove this in the face of our friends, acquaintances and politicians…am not sure of the four week window…but that is a minor quibble…

…however

…if we were to learn from past history…what we euphemistically refer to as ‘the world’ will largely forget this ‘quake in a very short time like it has forgotten equal or greater tragedies in its past...

…and again if history be the teacher…the locals can with grit and determination overcome this adversity...

…it is a long haul process…and our efforts and those of others with goodwill should be directed towards the long haul…and from within our (very limited) resources…

***

to reiterate...in the months and years to come the brunt of the job has to be borne by us...we need clear and long term commitment and thinking... the task is daunting and arduous...collectively we can do it...will we? that is a question no one can answer today...

ijaz, from the diaspora screaming can only achieve so much...it can lull us into a false sense of misplaced thinking that we are doing something...that ius not enough...what we really should be doing (in addtion to some screaming) is to think long haul:

* continue collecting funds here
* channelising them to accountable groups with proven track record with the help of you and others who are there
* cut down on our excessess and flauntings ( shaadis/clebrations/hajs) and redirect the savings toward rebuilding
* start thinking in terms of helping those rebuild their lives...e.g. sewing machines for widows... and more

rgds

t

Opaque Particles of Sunlit Sand Beej:

I have difficulty imagining sun-burnt grass next to the sea beach – can it even happen?

yes it can...i have seen it on several islands in the caribbean ...and in some places i have seen palm trees growing a few feet into the sea...don’t ask me how they survive....maybe their roots grow inland…maybe the regular rain fall helps…

re: kyla

she is right...poets ought to exercise greater respect for words (and punctuations)

rgds

t

Scream Umair:

…this in itself is a scream…albeit full of anguish and pathos…and screams have a short shelf life

…i fully agree with what you say…we in the diaspora should shove this in the face of our friends, acquaintances and politicians…am not sure of the four week window…but that is a minor quibble…

…however

…if we were to learn from past history…what we euphemistically refer to as ‘the world’ will largely forget this ‘quake in a very short time like it has forgotten equal or greater tragedies in its past...

…and again if history be the teacher…the locals can with grit and determination overcome this adversity...

…it is a long haul process…and our efforts and those of others with goodwill should be directed towards the long haul…and from within our (very limited) resources…

rgds

t

Linguistic Imperialism fuzair saheb:

qartaas e abaid

Chickens are Coming Home to Roost Haroon on Saddam and Bush

As Iraq becomes Vietnam, he blames the seemingly unstoppable insurgency on Al Qaeda and other Islamic militants, whom he has just compared to Stalin, Hitler and Pol Pot. But his own analysts peg their number at only a few hundred out of an estimated 10,000 insurgents.

He blames Iran and Syria and won`t rule out waging war on either or both. Yet suspected foreign militants caught in Iraq since April add up to a grand total of 312. Of them, the highest number, 78, hail from Egypt, about which he remains silent, as also about the other American ally, Saudi Arabia, whose apprehended citizens outnumber Iran`s, 32 to 13.

He crows about bringing democracy to Iraq but plans to veto a U.S. Senate vote ordering him to bring Guantanamo Bay and similar other holding pens under the rule of law.

Linguistic Imperialism Digressions:

Urdu - Hindi

the effort through fort william (college) to promote indian languages can also be seen and interpreted as an extension of the raj’s classic divide and rule dictum

the bazaar language in the cow-belt of India and Pakistan can (now) be described loosely as hindustani

the effort to palm them off as Hindi and Urdu in an organized fashion is a rather recent phenomenon…and should be seen in the context of rising nationalistic trends in the undivided India…(with Hindi relying on Sanskrit and Urdu on Persian, Arabic and Turkic roots)

in the 1850s the term hindi was applied to what Paksitanis now call Urdu as illustrated by this quote:

Mirza Ghalib wrote in a letter to Alauddin Ahmed Khan Alaai, `` Wallah mera kalam, Hindi ya Farsi kooch meray paas nahiN hay. Aaagay jou kooch haaf`zay maiN maujood thaa woh likh bhaija. Ab jou kooch yaad aagaya, woh likhtaa hooN.``

This is taken from Khatoot-e-Ghalib as compiled by Ghulam Rasool Mehr, published by Shaikh Ghulam Ali & Sons, fourth ed,1968, page 67, lines 5 & 6.

Devrai: Story of a Schizophrenic drlokraj:

hehehe...good observation!

achcha lagay haathouN #19 ka jawab bhee day daiN, meherbani hogi

Night Out soma:

concur with B, J and Z

Linguistic Imperialism Zia:

…written with passion and concern…. savored the reading…chuckled at many a places…despite rumours Urdu has shown a resiliency and adaptablity…as a bhasha am sure it will survive

khuda hafez

t

ps: good point about the quomi tarana with its overload of farsi tarakeebs, farsi masadirs…that in true pakistani fashion we rattafy… arey bhai agar qur’ani aayats ko hum rutt rutt ker bagahair maani kay paRhtay haiN tou quomi tarana cheh maani darud?

Why Democracy? sahara #77:

ok...then let me point #55....what is your take?

Devrai: Story of a Schizophrenic nb #21:

No one knows as yet what the answer is, why does this happens?

thanks...i hear you and lokraj

Devrai: Story of a Schizophrenic drlokraj #18:

yes mine was on an individual level!

... will you clarify if the assertion in your second paragraph pertains to societal or individual levels?

Why Democracy? Ghazia:

a belated welcome to chowk!

and a query

where would you place china in this debate?

lve

t

Devrai: Story of a Schizophrenic #13:

janab:

What you are refering to is not denial, it is lack of education. Denial is refusal to accept something while knowing fully about it.

in my mind we are in a grey area...here is a definition i’d lean more to:

“denial, in psychology, an ego defense mechanism that operates unconsciously to resolve emotional conflict, and to allay anxiety by refusing to perceive the more unpleasant aspects of external reality.”

and this:

…inspite of lack of resources and lack of awareness about scientific knowledge about the causation of mental disorders, the eastern countries are much better off in this aspect.............be it psychosis, neurosis,personality disorders or drug and alcohol dependence..........and the difference is because of the family system and the relationships, and values and the culture…

ok!…let me say it is not denial ( as I say) in the east but lack of education (as you put it)…even then i would find this claim of yours a little hard to digest…

…in the east more of these conditions are swept under the rug or mis-diagnosed and mistreated…(based on personal and anecodtal narrations)

...but then you are the expert in the field!

rgds

t

What Drives Men and Women of Indian Subcontinent to Infidelity? What drives men and women of Indian subcontinet to infidelity?

10: sex
9: garam masala
8: spirituality
7: bad english
6: lousy articulation
5: arranged marriages
4: mothers
3: arjun/urstruly types
2: money
1: sex

caveat for the author: the above in no way and by any stretch should be deemed a comment on the article itself. those comments might follow if and when i read it.

Devrai: Story of a Schizophrenic Drlokraj:

bhai saheb .. let me not go on a litany of what ails us desis…what afflicts us…and how we tend to become more superstitious as a result…

in simpler terms…instead of acknowledging a mental ailment it is easier to blame it on a ghosts and other ghostly factors ( denial)…in a certain sense it starts off early…mothers encouraging phobias in their children… ‘andhaira ho gaya hay, wahaN mut khailo, wahaaN jinn bhoot haiN’…or the instilling of the idea of ‘khauf’…

(try asking a kid to explain what is ‘durr’… arey bhaee agar aap ko durr lugta hay tou humain batai’yay durr kya hay?’)

of course a lot of psychosis (and neurosis) in desis can be attributed to lack of education resulting in lack of awareness, late detection and timely treatment…aapko tO yeh sub pata hee hoga

rgds

t