Ed India going down the Dictatorship road fast...

[catsmate]

It appears that Modi and his sycophants are engaged in organised lying about the level of Indian Covid-19 deaths.
Several surveys, the most recent by the Center for Global Development, indicates that excess deaths during the pandemic number at least three million and perhaps as high as five million, more than ten time the official death toll.
Recently many Indian states have been drastically revising their Covid related death figures; most recent testing shows that two-thirds of the population have Covid antibodies, while approximately one-eighth have been fully vaccinated.

 

[dudalb]

Let's face it, the people who killed Gandhi...right wing Hindus...are now running the country.
And running it right off the cliff apparently.

 

[Susheel]

Anyone want to see what blind devotion at a cult level is? Just talk to a Modi sycophant...it doesn't matter if he is the CEO in an IT firm or a bus boy at a local diner. The racist bigotry is palpable.

 

[The Atheist]

Anyone want to see what blind devotion at a cult level is? Just talk to a Modi sycophant...it doesn't matter if he is the CEO in an IT firm or a bus boy at a local diner. The racist bigotry is palpable.

The saddest part is Dudalb's comment:

Let's face it, the people who killed Gandhi...right wing Hindus...are now running the country.

It's been there right from the start, but only really taken over this century.

It's no surprise to me so many people want to leave.

 

[Susheel]

Attempts by the savarna (collective term for the caste hindus, as opposed to avarna, those who are considered not even worthy of inclusion in the casteist hierarchy) neo-liberal to reimagine casteism as a artifact introduced by the British, or even the “Muslim invaders” (there seems to be no consensus on who is responsible) is basically revisionist face-saving agenda that the hindutva right-wing has latched on to with glee. For a community with no sense of historicity, this serves as a sufficient apologetic for the prevalence of casteism in India. However, even as they condemn casteism as having been introduced by foreigners, they have no qualms in continuing to practice its regressive and violent excesses, more often than not with the validation by government.
Let us, for the moment, ignore the fact that instances of violent casteism does not merely exist in the mythos of the country, but that it is unapologetically celebrated in various classical texts. The myth of its existence as a profession-based classification that allowed for social upward mobility is pure fiction. Consider the fact that the access to mediums of knowledge acquisition was very vehemently curtailed by the Brahminic castes. The situation was similar to the right-wing Christian groups, particularly in America, re-labeling creationism as intelligent design and trying to push it as science in schools.
However, the reasoning in the above paragraph and the apologetic for casteism as a “foreign” introduction is moot when the practice continues to be followed in the country. The savarnas continue to fight tooth and nail to sabotage any attempts at affirmative action to uplift the historically underprivileged communities, in certain instances, even resorting to targeted violence, rapes, mass-murders, continued curtailing of access to education, and more to show “these people” their place. Ultimately, the discourse is just like a splash of perfume to hide the stink of casteism by seasoning the narrative with words like ‘tradition’, ‘culture’, ‘respect’, ‘honor’ and other similar dog-whistles.

 

[The Atheist]

Marvellous summary & nominated!

 

[Susheel]

Marvellous summary & nominated!

Thank you...

 

[dudalb]

Anyone want to see what blind devotion at a cult level is? Just talk to a Modi sycophant...it doesn't matter if he is the CEO in an IT firm or a bus boy at a local diner. The racist bigotry is palpable.

Change Modi is Trump and you have a perfect description of Trump supporter in the US. Exact same mentality.

 

[dudalb]

The saddest part is Dudalb's comment:



It's been there right from the start, but only really taken over this century.

It's no surprise to me so many people want to leave.

Scariest part is these kooks have Nukes...and someone I doubt they have the kind of built in restraint about using it you have in the US, Russia, and China.

 

[Roboramma]

Let us, for the moment, ignore the fact that instances of violent casteism does not merely exist in the mythos of the country, but that it is unapologetically celebrated in various classical texts.

This reminded me of a bit near the end of the Ramayana where a lower caste guy is practicing yoga, and Rama goes and cuts his head off, because he's doing something that should be reserved for Brahmins and, basically, he's destroying the order in the world by doing so.

 

[Susheel]

This reminded me of a bit near the end of the Ramayana where a lower caste guy is practicing yoga, and Rama goes and cuts his head off, because he's doing something that should be reserved for Brahmins and, basically, he's destroying the order in the world by doing so.

Not familiar with that story. Some information would be welcome. However, there are various other instances...Rama killing off an entire forest community so Brahmins can set up their own community there, His murder of a true king through guile so a crony can ascend the throne, a lot of the story lets in the epic deal with punishment of the lower castes for daring to subvert established authority...

 

[Roboramma]

I didn't quite remember it exactly, and I'm reading a not exact translation, but anyway, from my copy of the Ramayana, A Modern Retelling of the Great Indian Epic, by Ramesh Menon:

(It seems to be creative on the use of language, but relatively accurate on what's being depicted):
Book Seven, part 34: The death of a Sudra:

At last he turned the pushpka vimana to the south. Drawn surely by instinct, the enchanted ship came to the Saivala mountain, upon whose northern shoulder a Great Lake sparkled as if its waters were strewn with a million gemstones. Peerig down, Rama saw a nyagrodha tree, a sire of its race that grew beside the water. And standing upon his head in sirsasana below that tree, in intense tapasya, he saw an emaciated ascetic, with Java and a long beard and his eyes shut fast.

Rama set the vimana down on the ground. He alighted from it and approached the strange hermit. Folding his hands to the yogin, Rama said, "I am Rama of Ayodhya. Tell me, Sannyasi, why do you perform such a trying tapasya? Is it for some boon? Or to attain Devalooka? You stand on your head, O Yogin; your tapasya is rare and stern. Tell me, are you a brahmana or a Kshatriyas? Or are you, perhaps, a Vaisya? You could not be a Sudra, Muni, for a Sudra never sits in dhyana."
The ascetic did not move from his asana. But he opened his deep black eyes briefly, and answered Rama in a level voice, "I am a Sudra, Rama; my name is Sambuka. And I stand upon my head in dhyana because I want to conquer Devaloka and be Lord of the four quarters."
Sambuka **** his eyes again and was lost in meditation. Rama stood numb before the hermit. Then he folded his hands once more to the absorbed Sambuka, drew his sword, and cleanly severed the sudra's head from his body.
Suddenly the sky was full of lustrous presences. Indra, Agni, and the entire host of Devaloka appeared as bright shadows on high. Fragrant petal rain fell on the avenging Avatara. The Devas cried that he had done well to end Sambuka's dreadful sin. But as he wiped his blade clean on some long grass, Rama had tears in his eyes.
Bowing to destiny, he said aloud, "If I have done well, let the brahman's son have life again."
Agni Deva said to Rama, "The moment the Sudra was killed the brahmana's son breathed again. But now Rama, we want to visit [...]"

 

[Roboramma]

Not familiar with that story. Some information would be welcome. However, there are various other instances...Rama killing off an entire forest community so Brahmins can set up their own community there, His murder of a true king through guile so a crony can ascend the throne, a lot of the story lets in the epic deal with punishment of the lower castes for daring to subvert established authority...

The thing that really bothered me the most in the story is the treatment of Sita.

 

[Susheel]

I didn't quite remember it exactly, and I'm reading a not exact translation, but anyway, from my copy of the Ramayana, A Modern Retelling of the Great Indian Epic, by Ramesh Menon:

(It seems to be creative on the use of language, but relatively accurate on what's being depicted):
Book Seven, part 34: The death of a Sudra:

Thank you for that...

 

[Susheel]

The thing that really bothered me the most in the story is the treatment of Sita.

There is a proto-myth of Sita in the southern Tamil tribal tradition, where she is made to go through the "fire ritual" as a test of chastity twice. Once immediately after she is rescued and secondly when Rama after meeting his sons goes to meet her in her forest abode.

In both instances, Rama insists that it is not to convince him, but to convince "society". However, in the second instance, she crosses the fire and then turns to Rama from across the flames:

"Woyi... ini neer va"...difficult to translate tone but literally "Hey you....now it's your turn." The word "Woyi" is generally a desrespectful way of addressing a person...and it is a really big issue when it is used to address the husband.

Rama according to this rendering hesitates and she turns her back on him and walks off into the jungle. Essentially cultural anthropologists tend to read it as an allegory of the traditional matriarchal traditions being replaced by the Vedic patriarchal tradition.

 

[Susheel]

This is the bizarre state India is in now. Essentially, the head of the Indian Medical Association had, in one of those wierd television discussions with the current star godman Baba Ramdev, made some mention of linking allopathy, christianity and the west. It was a pretty dumb rambling discussion with Ramdev where the godman was making quack claims about "ayurvedic" treatments and trying to push a quack tonic developed by his company.
As is often the case a local "activist" decided to file a suit against the IMA head stating that he had offended Hindu sentiments, and it was immediately challenged by the head of the IMA and a petition to fdissmiss the case was filed. However, the court has decided to rule in favour of the plaintiff, claiming that the IMA head should not have used his official position to promote religion.
Delhi High Court Dismisses IMA President's Appeal Against Trial Court's Order Asking Him Not To Use IMA Platform To Propagate Religion

 

[Susheel]

Just like the right-wing in the US getting their knickers in a twist over the US women's football team, this is what is happening in India:
Casteist Abuses Hurled at Hockey Player Vandana Katariya’s Family After SF Loss at Tokyo Olympics

Meanwhile...the population is very ecstatic that the Men's hockey team managed to get a bronze.

 

[The Atheist]

Just like the right-wing in the US getting their knickers in a twist over the US women's football team, this is what is happening in India:

I see one of them has been arrested at least. Whether it goes anywhere is another question.

This story, however, does not have a happy ending.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/8/4/dalit-girl-raped-forcibly-cremated-india-new-delhi

 

[Susheel]

Ah yes...
Apart from the apathy of the police, the opposition parties are currently using it to target the BJP government. None of them are addressing the real caste issues that is actually at the root of all this.

 

[KDLarsen]

An absolutely infuriating read, courtesy of the Guardian:

The Guardian: The unravelling of a conspiracy: were the 16 charged with plotting to kill India’s prime minister framed?

Detailing the case, or rather lack thereof, of the fallout from the Bhima Koregaon protests, where 16 critics of Modi and the BJP suddenly found themselves charged with conspiring to assassinate him.