11-07-2008, 02:40 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-Bodhi+Nov 7 2008, 12:38 PM-->QUOTE(Bodhi @ Nov 7 2008, 12:38 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->Mudy, I was of the same opinion before, but had to change my view. va~Nga is as much Hindu to the very core, as any other parts of bhArata, maybe more. Only there is an apparent fear, tending towards cowardice, due to prolonged jihad, followed by colonial suppression, followed by commie terrorism, and a resulting mixture of shame of defeat and fear. All of this results in one easily turning to anti-Hindu/secularist/commie -- that is convenient. But, scratch a bit, and the Hindu flame is very much there unextinguished, although silent and latent.
<b>The samples you have met, or we all see in media, or in politics -- beleive me, they do not represent the majority of va~Nga, only vocal minority</b>.
[right][snapback]89871[/snapback][/right]
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I second that.
And one must remember, the Bengalis you meet abroad are the ones from the so-called "bhadralok" culture of Kolkata. They are the hardcore commies.
I'd even give a benefit of doubt to the original Naxalites of the 60s (the socio-economic conditions were really bad then), that they may have genuine grievances and they'll take to arms under any banner, red or saffron.
What excuse does the "bhadralok" class of Kolkata has? None.
The poor Bengali Hindu from remote countryside, that have been denied the chance of a good education (read...ban on English for almost 2 decades) will never make it to New York or London.
This distorted image of Bengalis unfortunately works in a peculiar way. Once you accuse an entire ethnicity, a siege mentality comes into picture. The commies have been cashing on this.
Remember the Sourav Ganguly episode? The commies MPs made a noise in the parliament. Its very easy after that. The commies can always say "they accuse you of many things, but see we stood for the Bengali interest".
The pseudo-sec media will have a real interest and benefit from this image. Will they ever risk the prospect of WB populace voting out the commies or effecting a split in CPI(M)? Never, hence any event that reinforces that image will be played with hype, whether it is Sourav or Nano. The more they do it, more will the general populace find a rallying point, which unfortunately the commies at the moment.
<b>The samples you have met, or we all see in media, or in politics -- beleive me, they do not represent the majority of va~Nga, only vocal minority</b>.
[right][snapback]89871[/snapback][/right]
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I second that.
And one must remember, the Bengalis you meet abroad are the ones from the so-called "bhadralok" culture of Kolkata. They are the hardcore commies.
I'd even give a benefit of doubt to the original Naxalites of the 60s (the socio-economic conditions were really bad then), that they may have genuine grievances and they'll take to arms under any banner, red or saffron.
What excuse does the "bhadralok" class of Kolkata has? None.
The poor Bengali Hindu from remote countryside, that have been denied the chance of a good education (read...ban on English for almost 2 decades) will never make it to New York or London.
This distorted image of Bengalis unfortunately works in a peculiar way. Once you accuse an entire ethnicity, a siege mentality comes into picture. The commies have been cashing on this.
Remember the Sourav Ganguly episode? The commies MPs made a noise in the parliament. Its very easy after that. The commies can always say "they accuse you of many things, but see we stood for the Bengali interest".
The pseudo-sec media will have a real interest and benefit from this image. Will they ever risk the prospect of WB populace voting out the commies or effecting a split in CPI(M)? Never, hence any event that reinforces that image will be played with hype, whether it is Sourav or Nano. The more they do it, more will the general populace find a rallying point, which unfortunately the commies at the moment.