Right about now there is an intense competition for the Obama mindspace in the media/intellectual sphere. There are hundreds if not more intellectuals desperately fighting to outdo each other. Who liked Obama first? Who wrote the most frothy article? Who can suck up the most? Who is the mostest uberest super liberalest of them all?
Predictably it is leading to a lot of jealousy as well, almost like the multiple concubines of Mughal Emperors. They have even unearthed info that a Obama transition team member (a female economist) has RSS roots! Everyone panic! CNN-IBN posted a news story explaining how L K Advani is copying Obama by creating a website. This was a bit bizarre, this wasn't his first website and he couldn't possibly time his birthday to match the Obama victory. Neither is Obama the first politician to use websites - Narendra Modi has had dozens for years now (since before anyone knew there was such a dude called Barack). But then those were deemed as propaganda tools for fascist ideas - hence bad for mankind.
All this is leading to some pretty bizarre situations. It almost seems like Obama could do away with his PR team since Indian intellectuals are defending his every supposed gaffe even before they are made into issues by Obama's rivals in America. For instance a TOI article defended Obama's gaffes in his very first press conference. A critical post from Obama's rival quarters can be found here.
Perhaps the most amusing Obamania article came out in The outlook, the current lead story on the website.
First, let's look at the article in the spirit in which it is written, i.e. a farce. The article is very short for The Outlook standard and even compared to the past articles by the same author. Written up in a rambling tone, it profusely mixes up issues. Numerous articles in the past invariably compared Mayawati to Obama (correct contextual comparison) and concluded niet. This is the first time the situation is analyzed in the religious context (politically incorrect, shrouded with denial context by the dude himself - Freudian slip?).
It is quite clear that the author doesn't really believe or particularly want a Muslim as a PM of India. His main aim is to provoke. If you want a people to accept a leader they do not consider their own kind, calling them bigots is not, repeat NOT a good way to start.
(.....to be continued)
7 comments:
what fools! how does Obama's victory matter to India? because he is just as any other US president would, be first and last concerned only about US interests. at best we Indians can hope that just as all these years, we have managed to work together on common areas of interest, we continue working together. at present India isn't harboring any groups or weapons or capabilities that harm US interests, (Pakistan, Iran, etc) it does not have any economic capabilities either that harm US interests (like China), it does not have any strategic interests that clash with those of the US (like Russia). India has never been willing to be used as a launch pad purely to serve the US's strategic and military goals. So it is only to be expected that India will figure very low on Obama's priorities. And yes there are plenty of Indians in the US all of whom (OK at least 99%) aspire for US citizenship, so what is in it for India?
apart from that websites and all that are eye and ear candy. we have v.different problems, such as water, sanitation, food, and basic health. we aren't in the same league, and given the UPA's pro-poverty approach to governance won't be anywhere in the league of the US for about 300 years
http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/nov/14rape-charges-anand-jon-convicted.htm
That designer sex fiend? Obama will pardon him. Weren't his victims mostly racist Caucasian females?
but obama employs ex-VHP people.
Read the latest issue of Outlook India. Eminent Indians have spoken against the "allegations". The woman in question herself has penned a column. The only way she can keep her job now is to issue an apology for being from an inconvenient religion. Else she could turn "secular" and write a column against the Gujarat riots or something.
She has almost done that - she talks of the religious affiliation of some of her family members.
Anyone from Hindu background and on the progressive side is being a traitor to Hinduism ( okay, may be that is too strong a statement, but can't control ).
frog bhai,
Good one about the progressive ones being traitor. Only thing is, now we have learned to appreciate the humor but err on the side of caution.
We also note another team member apologized for his pappy's anti-Arab comments.
The point is there are 1.5B of them and 1 B of us - not to mention the importance of being in control of so many states and oil. Who do you think a populist leader will please?
Also Kashmir, but more on that later.
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