Hypocrisy!

Recently, I see a lot of venom and hatred being pouted against the Indian American community in message boards in response to articles written on the success of the Indian American community, especially at Rediff. It is mostly related to Indian immigrants and their wonderful success (both absolute and vis-a-vis other immigrant groups) in the US in business and high technology industries. The following are the usual rants:

1. “You are trying to portray as if the Indian American community has started business in the US and that they are the most successful business group in the US.”

Here, you set up a strawman, that the IA community has started business in the US and that they are the most successful business group in the US, and then rant and rant against it. However, no one, neither the IA community nor the articles, portrays as if the IA community has started business in the US. No one is claiming that they are the most successful business group in the US. They are only pointing out and celebrating the success of the IA community in absolute terms and vis-a-vis other immigrant groups, a fact that is not an invention but something that is proved by various surveys in the US and in the UK. I dont see anything wrong with it. It should serve as an inspiration and a wake up call to their brothers and sisters back in India instead of a punching bag, an object of mostly negative criticism and a target to vent out frustration.

2. “No big deal. Indians are simply going there as low cost coolies to do hardwork for American companies and institutions.”

Mostly, you find this coming from people who have a Leftist bent of mind. It is very surprising and sad to see that a Leftist, who is usually a champion of labour rights and dignity of labour, is the one who refers to Indian immigrants as low cost coolies. This is very unfortunate. This also has racist connotations. Pure hardwork is being mistaken for low cost coolie work. Only those who have done the supposedly low cost coolie work understand what it means to be successful in the highly competitive environment in the US.

It is surprising to note that those who make offensive, offhand comments against successful and hardworking people like Indra Nooyi themselves are not as successful and are involved in relatively poorly paying jobs in call centres or IT companies in India. Perhaps, these people are simply jealous of the success of other people. That these successful people have worked extremely hard to get there and the fact that they all come from hardworking middle class families who cannot boast of great wealth and prestige doesnt seem to have any effect on the idiots who make comments.

Perhaps, by making such comments, they are simply venting out the frustration they have accumulated on account of the failures in their own lives. They cant stand the fact that an Indian, like you and me, can be as successful as any other businessman in the world. They probably relate their own position with that of these successful people and develop a sense of insecurity. That insecurity leads to lack of self respect and this lack of self respect translates into offensive and prejudiced comments against other successful people. Maybe these people should start looking at and examining their own capabilites and successes before making sweeping judgements on the capabilities and successes of other people. It reflects poorly on their intellect and personal integrity.

The success of Indian immigrants has shown that Indians are a smart and hardworking lot. Given the opportunity, they really excel. Their adaptability, intelligence, emphasis on the value of education, “thriftyness”, hardwork, entrepreneurial spirit, tolerance for other religions and societies and their secularism gives them an edge as compared to other immigrant groups. This fact cannot be disputed. It is proved by various govt. sponsored surveys in the US and in the UK.

Unfortunately, the tremendous potential of the Indian people has not been harnessed in their home country! It has been ruthlessly suppressed by a Nehruvian-Stalinist economic model. The Leftist shitheads who accuse Indians of abandoning their home country and working in a capitalist society like the US are themselves to blame for it. It is only because of the economic policies they espouse that hundreds of thousands of highly-skilled Indians have left their homeland to a country which is far more accepting of their abilities. It is a nation which promises unbridled freedom, both social and economic. Instead of ranting endlessly against the US and its perceived “imperialist policies”, Indians should accept and digest the hard fact that at present, the US has been far more successful in guaranteeing freedom to the individual, both social and economic. It is the lack of opportunities in India and abundance of the same in the US that has led Indian Americans to move to the US.

Of course, the scenario is changing. More and more Indians are returning to India as Indians have realized that earning money is not a bad thing and that “profit is a dirty word” is hypocrisy. But economic reforms are still at a nascent stage and they are vehemently opposed by a section of people who claim to be champions of such high ideals as “freedom”, “tolerance” and “secularism” and who, yet are the most intolerant lot when it comes to economic freedom. It is time Indians reflect on and learn from the experience and success of the Indian American community instead of endlessly ranting against the same. They should stop being hypocrites.

Hello!

Yes, I’m blogging after a long time. Three weeks. I dont feel like writing anything these days. I’m becoming sort of cynical. I’ve stopped taking things too seriously or reading something outrageous in the news and getting outraged. I’m conditioning myself not to be outraged at anything. Because if we start looking for logic and reason in everything, we’re going to go mad. Few things in this world work according to logic. This world works upside down. So no use ranting about it. I can rant and rant and rant and the world will continue to work upside down. Whatever I write or say or opine will be of little consequence. Good thing I realized it.

The world is too busy to care about what a good for nothing jobless person writes from his small room in Delhi. I’m too insignificant to make any difference. Full of morons, the world will continue to be that way. And frankly, I dont care as long as I dont behave like a moron or have to face morons myself. We all seem to be working towards an age in which there’d be “everlasting peace” with “harmony between nations” and “mutual understanding between different people” and the like. But it’s a day dream. Evidence? Simply flip through a history book.

Conflict is integral to human society. Human societies are complex adaptive systems and there’ll always be conflicts (like sandpile avalanches) – of all sizes – all following a unique power law (read Ubiquity by Mark Buchanan.) It’s like communism. Communism is about creating a world of equality in which one person need not envy another person. But the world has realized (except a few morons in India) it is impossible. Maybe we can redistribute resources and money and indeed make the world perfectly equal for all but one cannot redistribute things like love, friendship, intelligence, courage, power etc. It is simply impossible because we are, simply, human beings and no human being is the same as another. There’ll never be any two equal human beings. And the differences between individuals will always ensure that there’ll be some kind of competition between individuals and between societies that will ultimately lead to conflict. Hey (*shrugs…) that’s how nature works. There’s nothing you or I or Marx or Mao can do about it.

My Mains results are out. I did not clear. It’s of no consequence because I was not expecting to clear anyway. I’m already preparing for Prelims (yes, mark 2!) this year. But how’s the preparation? Not good. Have to pull up. And pull up a lot. Only two months are left. If I dont clear Prelims this time (having cleared it the first time), it’ll be horror of horrors. I have to wait another year. By that time, I’ll be a good 25 and of marriageable age – with no job and all.

Coming to marriage, I dont think I’ll marry soon. Maybe at 27 or 28 or 29 only after I settle down. But I’m afraid of marriage. Being a fairly independant person who likes to do much of his stuff alone, the thought of sharing my life with a person of the opposite sex, a person I may or may not like and strike a good rapport with [because most probably, it'll be an arranged marriage... family is strict about it ] really worries me. That’s why I’ve started praying that I get a good wife, someone who has got a life of her own, her own job etc. because I’ve realized recently that though I am confident I can take care of myself throughout my life, if there’s anything that can screw it all up, it’s got to be a bad and uncooperative wife!

Maybe I’m thinking too far. All this stuff is a good five years ahead. I shouldnt be thinking much about it but hey… it’s always good to have a picture of your future And these days, time really runs! Just yesterday, I was 21 out of college and all! And now, I’m waiting to turn 24 this April

But time goes on. Time is the most arrogant quantity that exists. Of all the fundamental quantities, time is the only quantity that is beyond control of anybody. You can convert energy, you can direct force, you can change temperature, you can vary mass but with time, all that you can do is measure! You may be the greatest and most powerful creature that ever existed but you cant do shit about time! Time is supreme. God? Who is he? Can he control time? But why do I waste so much time? Err… how did we come here all of a sudden… I guess that’s a topic for another day

Sometimes I feel I take my independance too far. Everybody I know here (those who are preparing for civils like me) lives in a shared room. But I live in a single room. A single room costs Rs. 4000 but if you share, it can come down to about 2500 or 3000. But I still live in a single room paying all that money. I require too much personal space. Even when I was at home, I used to hole up in some or the other room, close the door and do something while the rest of the people in the house were all together! I dont know what to make of it… whether it is good or bad. I guess it has its good things and bad things. I realized one of the bad things when I fell ill a few days back.

I had high fever, was feeling quite weak but I didnt call for help until one day passed! I have great friends here who take good care of me but the idea was to take care of myself and let it heal by itself. But by evening, I was feeling like I need to see a doctor. Fortunately, Shashank aka Bhaisaap called in the evening. So I told him about the fever and asked if he knew a good doctor. He told me about the doctor and asked me to talk to JD (as Bhaisaap was not here that day.) I called JD and asked him about the doctor. JD was actually outside having dinner at Mathur’s. So he finished his dinner, came to my place, picked me up, took me to a doctor and got me back! All the while, JD was like “KD, you’re stupid yaar! You should’ve called me earlier!” And indeed I was stupid. I should’ve gone to the doctor as soon as I realized I had fever. Lesson, the hardway: Living alone can be dangerous if you dont take good care of yourself.

Linked to my overemphasis on independance is this habbit of not taking help. I feel bad and sort of guilty if I take help. I dont know why. It’s a strange feeling. I guess I’m too arrogant. Basically my wallet ran out the other day. I called home and asked for a fresh deposit. So next day, I was checking to see if the money had been deposited at the ATM. My busy uncle forgot to deposit! That day, I managed because I did have Rs. 50. But they ran out. Next day, money in hand: Rs. 0. I called uncle again and asked him to deposit. He said he will do it. So, I was checking frequently at the ATM (I tried four times) and for some reason, the always alert folks at ICICI blocked the card! So, on one side, I had no money and on the other, I had no way of checking if the money got deposited! By this time, it was evening… about 4 pm. Yes, I starved myself the whole morning. I didnt know what to do. On top of that, I had a bit of washing (clothes) to do. It’s always a frustrating job. Moreover, it was a rainy day. It was damp all around. I was throwing the clothes around like anything in anger and a drop of water must’ve landed on the bulb, the bulb short circuited and blew! Now, the bathroom went dark. And there I was. In the midst of the washing job, needing a new bulb but having no money in hand to buy one! It was so frustrating. It was then that I decided to go to Chaitanya and Aditya (two friends here) and borrow some money. And I did borrow.

Why didnt I do this earlier? I was feeling like a fool really. I have four friends (including Bhaisaap and JD) close by and I dont take help when I really need it. What’s wrong with me? I should also tell you however that I rarely find myself helping others. I really love to help someone but nobody comes to me for help! This also worries me. Maybe I’m not thinking correctly but I’m not feeling good about myself these days. Ever since I went home on Feb. 12 and came back.

Anyway, I hope it’s just a passing phase. I got a lot of work to do in the next two months. I cant keep thinking about all this.

Tata Birla whatever.