Wednesday, June 3, 2009

How many times must the cannonballs fly, before they are forever banned

Oh my god. The floodgates have opened.

I’m going to start with blog gore @ http://themindmeanders.blogspot.com/. Who has the most interesting take on racial attacks on Indians with Brown but not out.

I agree with him. On some stuff. One, the post below was not meant to be taken seriously. I don’t think that is the solution. That we procreate at the speed of light (though currently I think we’re managing to beat even that). And infiltrate the world with our kind of values, ideals, food, speech etc.

I don’t subscribe to it. Primarily because world domination reminds me of Hitler and we know where that went.

Second, because in a way we’d turn out to be just like the guys who beat up those Indian students. No place for anyone but ourselves.

In fact I agree with most of what he says, except probably the part about ahimsa. I know it’s a difficult choice. Here’s an example. My friend who blogs @ http://thisisthatsetup.blogspot.com. This is her story really.

Her son takes the bus to school. Everyday there are kids and their parents waiting at the bus-stop. Every day all the kids want to be the first to get on to the bus (yeah, kids are like us only).

Everyday there’s chaos there, because everyone is trying to push their kids in. So my friend decides to talk to the parents about sending the kids in, by turns. So everyday a different kid will be the first in.

The parents agree. Next day the bus comes, all the parents push their kids in. And my friend and her son are left waiting.

What should she do? Teach her son to fight, and push him in like all the other parents. Or explain to a 5 year old why being the first in is not a big deal. That in the long run, they’ll all just pass out with stress related illness and he’ll have the bus to himself.

I don’t know how it ended. It is a difficult choice. Ahimsa looks good on paper, and not in practice. Still, there must be something to it, if it helped us get rid of the British.

Problem is we’re not patient enough today. And that includes me. My first instinct would be stamp everyone’s feet, and get my kid in first.

Hit the guy who hit the Indian student.

Hang Kasab.

But violence begets violence. And even after this long post I have no definitive answer.

Just another question: Why aren’t we boycotting Australian universities from coming here to recruit students till their government doesn’t take serious steps to addressing this problem?

and finally, because it's always been so apt...
How many roads must a man walk down
Before they call him a man
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand
How many times must the cannonballs fly
Before they are forever banned
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
The answer is blowing in the wind
How many years must a mountain exist
Before it is washed to the sea
How many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free
How many times can a man turn his head
And pretend that he just doesn't see
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
The answer is blowing in the wind
How many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky
How many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry
How many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
The answer is blowing in the wind

~ bob dylan

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

It was not ahimsa that got us freedom; there were other factors too. Ahimsa only contributed to the British getting weary of holding onto a colony that had begun to wriggle out of its grasp.

--Hyde.

As the Mind Meanders said...

OK... I think we are going to go on for another five years... but your post me write another one...

@ Hyde... yes there were other reasons mate, the economic situation after the world war put the British in a very precarious position... but if it wasn't for Ahimsa... there would be very little to put pressure on the British to let go... it did contribute immensely..

♥ÐÅyÐяєÅмє®♥ said...

Non violence is best in the sense..because the other govt really can't put people behind bars for protesting and still u were able to disrupt supplies :)

people who think non violence is not sufficient they should know the basic politcal thing behind it :)

This is that said...

All I can say is that, I think the humans are still evolving, we are still figuring out the world we create. There are no easy answers. Problem at hand ? Solution at hand. I tried explaining to my boy , in explaining to him I was actually cutting open an entire diaspora. I was proud that my son got it. Made sure everyone stood in a line, very simply told them, the bus wont leave without us..it has to take us to school. Everyone seemed to get that, including the parents.But then sometimes they dont hear you. No human rights for school bus line. So non violence. But when they still do the same thing the next day, he just pushed them back. And sweetly apologised. No easy answers.

ani_aset said...

Defending is right , offence is not
..you handled the topic well