The most telling aspect of President Barack Obama's trip to India in early November is his planned visit to all the sites targeted in the Mumbai attacks of November 28, 2008. He will also stay at the Taj Hotel. Commentators have been quick to gloat that this move will corroborate American support to India's battle against terror.
This is the vile game the US is so adept at. Its one major encounter with terrorism has been transformed into a metaphor for world militancy. It is a myopic and inadequate example if we take note of the different kinds of terrorism being unleashed in various parts of the world, including by the American establishment under the garb of ‘support for democracy’. This has often translated in ruining thriving societies or pushing them into ‘backward’ mode as a reaction to the US standard McDonald idea of franchising its version of liberty.
-->More here at the Op-ed, Khaleej Times...
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=/data/opinion/2010/October/opinion_October146.xml§ion=opinion
Hi Farzana,
ReplyDeleteInteresting piece. Perhaps predictably, lol, it brought these lines from Act I, Scene II, of Shakespeare's As You Like It to mind:
Touchstone
Mistress, you must come away to your father.
Celia
Were you made the messenger?
Touchstone
No, by mine honour; but I was bid to come for you.
Rosalind
Where learned you that oath, fool?
Touchstone
Of a certain knight that swore by his honour they were good pancakes, and swore by his honour the mustard was naught; now, I'll stand to it, the pancakes were naught and the mustard was good: and yet was not the knight forsworn.
Celia
How prove you that, in the great heap of your knowledge?
Rosalind
Ay, marry; now unmuzzle your wisdom.
Touchstone
Stand you both forth now: stroke your chins, and swear by your beards that I am a knave.
Celia
By our beards, if we had them, thou art.
Touchstone
By my knavery, if I had it, then I were: but if you swear by that that is not, you are not forsworn: no more was this knight, swearing by his honour, for he never had any; or if he had, he had sworn it away before ever he saw those pancakes or that mustard . . .
Glad to see you back and in fine form. :)
Mark
Hi Mark:
ReplyDeleteDoes mot Shakespeare find resonance in almost everything? Apt quote, and I got one, more limited, from King Lear:
Legitimate Edgar, I must have your land.
Our father’s love is to the bastard Edmund
As to the legitimate. Fine word—“legitimate”!
Well, my legitimate, if this letter speed,
And my invention thrive, Edmund the base
Shall top the legitimate. I grow; I prosper.
Now, gods, stand up for bastards!
PS: When did I leave? Well, yes, I am on self-imposed non-deadline writing and a bit drained, but seems am not doing too bad even in this state :)
Just in case I don't pop in soon, have a great weekend to you and whoever stops by. (Copyright of basic greeting: our other friend here, Mahesh!)
Farzana,
ReplyDeleteFrom your Khaleej Times article ....
"The end game is simple: India glows for being legitimised as a cash-rich buyer; Pakistan gets a reprieve by being bought out. The American salesman once again sells an empty dream."
Excellent. And moreover - lot of Americans are realising , it was just a empty dream afterall.
Cheers,
Mahesh.
p.s.: In case you are goingt to be a regular commentator at Khaleej Times - please feel free to insist that the Comments be enabled for your columns.
p.p.s.: Have a nice - whatever is left of it - weekend. And btw, thanks for conferring on me IP Rights for the Greetings. :-)
Farzana,
ReplyDeleteOn a somewhat related Note.....
Sharing a hilarious blogpost at Krugman's NYT blog - aptly titled "Sex and Drugs and Markets" (http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/30/sex-and-drugs-and-markets-role/).
Enjoy - and feel scared. Story in our land may not be entirely different , OK the age demographics may be different.
Cheers,
Mahesh.
Mahesh:
ReplyDeleteThank you…and also for the link!
PS: I did not see any comment box, and not sure about my plans…
PPS: You are welcome. I am rather particular about intellectual property :) You might also think this is pigeonholing you, but the intention is that I notice the peculiar mannerisms of people here…