Dancing with Dogs: Katrina and South Asian Blogs

Katrina and South Asian Blogs

I should kick myself and just go for a walk now - just google “Katrina vs Mumbai Flood” and see the responses of most South Asian blogs - typical responses deal with “racism” (yeah, it is’nt like we don’t have a caste system), “looting” (we are so much more crime-free - especially since our people don’t wait till a hurricane to loot around or rape people) - almost every single mention I have seen of the hurricane is a smug response deriding the US while claiming to feel “oh-so-sorry” about the victims. I have been to thousands of American blogs that raised tons of money on their own initiative for the tsunami - not in one place did I hear this kind of barely-concealed-glee at being able to lecture a country in need. What is it? some kind of an inferiority complex?

What is it about South Asians and Indians in general that makes us think we can kick someone when they are down while we are feeling all smug and morally superior about it? These are the same people mind you, who get their panties in a wad when another blog makes a stupid joke at their cost and shriek, “racism”! Excuse me, while I don’t get too offended about our delicate sensibilities when we ourselves don’t waste a minute trying to take advantage of another’s bad luck.

Epilogue: I am exhausted by this hate - I am going out to the Oktoberfest to get sozzled out on some good Hefeweizen - you all have a good weekend too!

Posted by shanti at September 16, 2005 3:14 PM

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Comments

Shanti,

As much as I too hate such smug comparisons after such a human disaster, I would like to point out that ‘South Asian’ blogs are’nt the only one to point out. In fact, there are worser bullies.

A sample of the European press will show a even more harsh line, ex. the French papers. Mind you this is from a country where 15000 elderly died in 2002 just out of heat wave since most emergency/medical workers were out on vacation! In Germany, the Gerhard Schroeder has been using images of Katrina and dead US marines in Iraq in his election campaign! This is to show that this will what happen if you follow neo-liberal policies of US.

In India, even the much-hated commies are’nt making any anti-American moves at this time of tragedy. These are just a few blogs of private citizens having their own 10 minites of fame (which they perceive as just since they feel India has been on the receiving end from the batterings of Western media for a long time). They’ll soon realize and go back to their woods when NO comes back alive.

A holier-than-thou attitude is something a lot of Indians have huge surplus of (this is the same attitude that led to non-alignment, and ‘superpower’ pretensions when people in Kalahandi starve and farmers in AP commit suicide).

Of course, for good or bad, this is not just limited to India; I’m reading this coincidentally just after reading this post on Medienkritik and he raises some very similar questions on the Katrina response in Germany.

It is sad that some idiots are gloating over which country had the more dead people because of a tragedy. But this isn’t some exclusive South Asian trait. Idiots exist everywhere and the internet (god bless it) gives a forum for these idiots to express their thoughts and others to read their rantings. I remember a number of conservatives falling over themselves to mock the french during the heat wave that killed a lot of elderly people there 2-3 years ago.

Even during this hurricane tragedy, there are some people comparing the number of deaths due to the hurrican and the number in france, and that US is somehow superior because Katrina killed fewer people than the heat wave in France.

Talking about feeling superior to others, how can you not notice the “Western Civilization is vastly superior to the East” mantra of the conservatives. Greeks and Romans are the pinnacle of civilization to them and its all been downhill ever since. Conservatives celebrate the book “Bell Curve” like it was gospel. Its most controversial thesis was that blacks are genetically inferior (based on data on IQ tests) to caucasians.

To summarize, idiots exist eveywhere. Idiots make idiotic statements and get noticed. This, however, doesn’t implicate everyone that belongs to the same community as the idiot.

Metlin, sad but true. I have emailed a certain Indian “assistant professor” about his blog post - he gave me the usual pap and brushed off a follow-up email - this guy of course, was one of the people who jumped up and down about the Boing Boing stupidity.

As for Municheweizen - gotta try it - will let you know if I think it meets the mark over the Hefeweizen ;)

MD, thanks - sometimes, it is just too hard to wach the gloating and not say anything about it.