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--------------------------------------------- ATTENTION THINKERS: The postings through has been termporarily interrupted at yahoogroups. the.moderator India Thinkers Net ---------------------------------------- [1] http://www.countercurrents.org/dalit-mountain200306.htm Why Do India's Dalits Hate Gandhi? By Thomas C. Mountain 20 March, 2006 Countercurrents.org In India, supposedly the worlds largest democracy, the leadership of the rapidly growing Dalit movement have nothing good to say about Mohandas K. Gandhi. To be honest, Gandhi is actually one of the most hated Indian leaders in the hierarchy of those considered enemies of India's Dalits or "untouchables" by the leadership of India's Dalits. Many have questioned how could I dare say such a thing.. In reply I urge people outside of India to try and keep in mind my role as the messenger in this matter. I am the publisher of the Ambedkar Journal, founded in 1996, which was the first publication on the internet to address the Dalit question from the Dalits viewpoint. My co-editor is M. Gopinath, who includes in his c.v. being Managing Editor of the Dalit Voice newspaper and then going on to found Times of Bahujan, national newspaper of the Bahujan Samaj Party, India's Dalit party and India's youngest and third largest national party. The founding President of the Ambedkar Journal was Dr. Velu Annamalai, the first Dalit in history to achieve a Ph.d in Engineering. My work with the Dalit movement in India started in 1991 and I have been serving as one of the messengers to those outside of India from the Dalit leaders who are in the very rapid process of organizing India's Dalits into a national movement. The Dalit leadership I work with recieved many tens of millions of votes in the last national election in India. With that out of the way, lets get back to the 850 million person question, why do Dalits hate M.K. Gandhi? To start, Gandhi was a so called "high caste". High castes represent a small minority in India, some 10-15% of the population, yet dominate Indian society in much the same way whites ruled South Africa during the official period of Apartheid. Dalits often use the phrase Apartheid in India when speaking about their problems. The Indian Constitution was authored by Gandhi's main critic and political opponent, Dr.Ambedkar, for whom our journal is named and the first Dalit in history to receive an education (if you have never heard of Dr. Ambedkar I would urge you to try and keep an open mind about what I am saying for it is a bit like me talking to you about the founding of the USA when you have never heard of Thomas Jefferson). Most readers are familiar with Gandhi's great hunger strike against the so called Poona Pact in 1933. The matter which Gandhi was protesting, nearly unto death at that, was the inclusion in the draft Indian Constitution, proposed by the British, that reserved the right of Dalits to elect their own leaders. Dr. Ambedkar, with his degree in Law from Cambridge, had been choosen by the British to write the new constitution for India. Having spent his life overcoming caste based discrimination, Dr. Ambedkar had come to the conclusion that the only way Dalits could improve their lives is if they had the exclusive right to vote for their leaders, that a portion or reserved section of all elected positions were only for Dalits and only Dalits could vote for these reserved positions. Gandhi was determined to prevent this and went on hunger strike to change this article in the draft constitution. After many communal riots, where tens of thousands of Dalits were slaughtered, and with a leap in such violence predicted if Gandhi died, Dr. Ambedkar agreed, with Gandhi on his death bed, to give up the Dalits right to exclusively elect their own leaders and Gandhi ended his hunger strike.Later, on his own death bed, Dr. Ambedkar would say this was the biggest mistake in his life, that if he had to do it all over again, he would have refused to give up Dalit only representation, even if it meant Gandhi's death. As history has shown, life for the overwhelming majority of Dalits in India has changed little since the arrival of Indian independence over 50 years ago. The laws written into the Indian Constitution by Dr. Ambedkar, many patterned after the laws introduced into the former Confederate or slave states in the USA during reconstruction after the Civil War to protect the freed black Americans, have never been enforced by the high caste dominated Indian court system and legislatures. A tiny fraction of the "quotas" or reservations for Dalits in education and government jobs have been filled. Dalits are still discriminated against in all aspect of life in India's 650,000 villages despite laws specifically outlawing such acts. Dalits are the victims of economic embargos, denial of basic human rights such as access to drinking water, use of public facilities and education and even entry to Hindu temples. To this day, most Indians still believe, and this includes a majority of Dalits, that Dalits are being punished by God for sins in a previous life. Under the religious codes of Hinduism, a Dalit's only hope is to be a good servant of the high castes and upon death and rebirth they will be reincarnated a high caste. This is called varna in Sanskrit, the language of the original Aryans who imposed Hinduism on India beginning some 3,500 years ago. Interestingly, the word "varna" translates literally into the word "color" from Sanskrit. This is one of the golden rules of Dalit liberation, that varna means color, and that Hinduism is a form of racially based oppression and as such is the equivalent of Apartheid in India. Dalits feel that if they had the right to elect their own leaders they would have been able to start challenging the domination of the high castes in Indian society and would have begun the long walk to freedom so to speak. They blame Gandhi and his hunger strike for preventing this. So there it is, in as few words as possible, why in todays India the leaders of India's Dalits hate M.K. Gandhi. This is, of course, an oversimplification. India's social problems remain the most pressing in the world and a few paragraphs are not going to really explain matters to anyones satisfaction. The word Dalit and the movement of a crushed and broken people, the "untouchables" of India, is just beginning to become known to most of the people concerned about human rights in the world. As Dalits organize themselves and begin to challenge caste based rule in India, it behooves all people of good conscience to start to find out what the Dalits and their leadership are fighting for. A good place to start is with M.K. Gandhi and why he is so hated by Dalits in India. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thomas C. Mountain is the publisher of the Ambedkar Journal on India's Dalits, founded in 1996. His writing has been featured in Dalit publications across India, including the Dalit Voice and the Times of Bahujan as well as on the front pages of the mainstream, high caste owned, Indian press. He would recommend viewing of the award winning film "Bandit Queen" as the best example of life for women and Dalits in India's villages, which is the story of the life of the late, brutally murdered, Phoolan Devi, of whose international defense committee Thomas C. Mountain was a founding member. He can be reached at tmountain@hawaii.rr.com ----------------------- [2] Verichips: An Invasion Of Privacy? By Stephanie Puder 20 March, 2006 Countercurrents.org Recently while doing research for an oral presentation, I came across very important information that everyone needs to be aware of due to the fact that it poses a threat to us all. Surprisingly this threat has not been covered very much by the media, so many are completely unaware of its existence; this is why I??™m writing so everyone can know before it??™s to late. Although it sounds like science fiction, microchips meant to be implanted into human beings are here, they are being marketed world wide, and have even been approved by the FDA, and yes people have already begun to get them implanted. They work by giving off a unique radio signal that can be read by a compatible scanner. They are about the size of a grain of rice and are implanted with an injection just like a flu shot. They are being sold on the free market for affordable prices. These microchips are being presented as a miracle technology that can only do remarkable good; however, they will actually cause much more harm than good. These chips are being manufactured by the VeriChip Corporation which is a subsidiary of the Applied Digital Solutions Corporation. At the time being these chips have only been approved by the FDA to retrieve medical history. For example if someone were to come into a hospital unconscious a chip in their arm could be scanned in order to know their medical history. However this is only in America other countries are using these chips for things such as bar tabs and VIP passes like at a European night club the Baja Beech Club and as security passes in a Mexican crime database. Although in America these chips have only been approved for one thing, Applied Digital Solutions and the VeriChip Corporation have many more plans for them. Keith Boltan the Vice President of VeriChip Corporation hopes to use these chips in a global identification system one day. Applied Digital Solutions also hopes to use them to replace credit cards, social security cards, security passes and more. They want to use them to track kidnap victims, criminals, and government employees as well. The CEO of Applied Digital Solutions, Scott Silverman, expects these chips to be the only means of accessing any information within 10-15 years. These scenarios have to do with some type of enforcement whether it is voluntary or by force, and that is exactly what people against these chips fear. These chips have the capability of doing great harm that far exceeds their benefits; they need to be subjected to either extreme regulation or even prohibition in order to prevent very real and horrible possibilities around the world. Applied Digital Solution??™s plans to use these chips will cause dire consequences and violations of our rights and liberties. If these chips have the GPS tracking capabilities then our 1st, 4th, and 5th amendment rights along with our privacy rights will be violated. Even if there are no tracking capabilities our privacy rights will still be violated due to the fact that anyone with a compatible scanner from as far away as 3-30 feet (according to different sources) could scan your information without your permission. If these chips are made mandatory for anything like employment or education then our 14th amendment rights and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 will be violated for anyone who doesn??™t want a chip. Our first amendment rights of free exercise and the establishment clause will also be violated due to the fact that groups such as Christians are extremely against these chips because they are similar to something prophesized about in the book of Revelations. Revelations 13:16-18 describes people being forced to receive the mark of the beast in order to buy or sell anything which sounds a lot like Scott Silverman??™s plan. If these chips are enforced then Christians and others will not be able to freely exercise their religion. You might be thinking there is no way our government could enforce these chips due to our rights; however, government employees, felons, prisoners, and people on probation often have to sign away many of their rights. Children and the elderly are usually under someone else??™s control through parental rights and powers of attorney. We??™ve also seen from the Patriot Act and the Japanese American Relocation during WWII that many of our rights can be drastically curtailed during an emergency or wartime situation. What will happen in other countries where they don??™t necessarily have Constitutions and Bill of Rights to hold these chips back? What would someone like Saddam Hussein have done with this technology? Then there is Scott Silverman??™s plan: one day all of the documents necessary to do anything in this country (social security cards, licenses, birth certificates, bank account information, etc.) are held within microchips. At the time being Applied Digital Solutions maintains a strict voluntary rule when it comes to these chips; however, if there is no way to access any information without one what choice do we really have? These chips need to be prevented from having the capability to take away our rights. These chips have been proposed to track criminals, x-criminals, and kidnap victims; however, criminals can adapt to this technology just as they have towards security systems today. Criminals will realize that they can cut their own chips out, and even worse attack someone and cut out their chip for the perfect fake identity. The reason most people give for supporting these chips is because of the possibility of tracking kidnap victims and runaways; however, this application will fail as well. Once these chips are common kidnappers will know about them; they will know that they are placed in the right triceps as a standard. If they want to kidnap someone they could just cut the chip out or find a way to scramble the signal. When it comes to runaways we must remember that many are trying to escape an unsafe environment; tracking them down and dragging them back could prevent them from ever getting the chance to ask for help. Even these chip??™s proposed applications have negative effects and consequences; even what the FDA has approved them for has consequences. When the FDA approved these chips for the retrieval of medical information they also expressed some concerns for the possibilities of adverse tissue reaction, chip migration throughout the body, and the unknown effects from the radio signal it gives off; however, they were the most concerned about MRIs. MRIs are those big x-ray machines; they use pulsed radio frequencies and magnetic fields which the FDA fears could induce conductive metal implants to cause severe patient burns. The FDA also expressed concern for the easily accessible information in the chips which could be scanned and duplicated without your permission. The chips and scanners are sold on the free market right now to anyone and can scan from at least 3 feet away. This is an identity thief and stalkers dream. Some claim these chips will prevent crime when they will actually worsen it or fail to prevent it. When it comes to these chips we need to decide what is more important: possibly reaping from the benefits or preventing the very serious consequences. These chips will not stop at voluntary medical information retrieval unless they are extremely regulated or prohibited all together. We need to be cautious and aware of these chips and their possibilities. I honestly do not believe our government will enforce these chips; however, I do believe that Scott Silverman??™s plan is a very real possibility. Right now our children, the future voters of this country, are being desensitized to this idea. These chips are being used in their Elementary School Student IDs, in the products they use as a type of bar code, and even in their pets: ???to keep them safe.??? Imagine for a moment that Scott Silverman??™s dream came true and there was no way to access any information without a microchip. Would you be able to enter your place of work, or access the money in your bank account, or buy groceries? Would you be able to do anything that is necessary to survive in our society? We have to reject these chips and encourage extreme regulation or prohibition, or we will allow them the ability to strip away our most basic and natural of human rights: the right of choice. That is because if these chips are enforced, by law or necessity, then we will only be given two choices: get chipped or don??™t survive, and what choice does that really leave us with? So once these chips start coming out into the public eye in sheep??™s clothing remember what??™s really growling beneath. Want to know more? Just type VeriChip into a search engine like www.google.com and you will see tons of information. ----------------------------------- [3] Are You About To Nuke Iran? By Ingmar Lee 17 March, 2006 Countercurrents.org The ramp-up rhetoric to an Iran attack now issuing from the White House is reaching an all too familiar fever pitch. Can anybody doubt that BushCo. is preparing to attack Iran? From what we've heard before, the White House Neocon cabal is telling us very clearly that they have planned, and are about to execute an attack on Iran any day now. We've all heard this same rhetoric before, which culminated in the unilateral 2003 attack, invasion, victory declaration, subsequent occupation and ongoing torture and masssacre, and now spiralling descent into the morass of the BushCo forces in Iraq. The history of BushCo. tells us that, having lost its case for multilateral action at the UN Security Council, the USA will proceed, once again without UN sanction, to attack. This attack may well include a nuclear component for which they have been preparing. Two weeks ago, British and American physicists detonated a brand new kind of nuclear blast, "Operation Krakatoa" in Nevada. Do Americans really want to be responsible for another nuclear attack?? A quick comparison of today's swirling current of spin demonstrates clearly that America is, RIGHT NOW, being sucked into the vortex of an imminent, mushrooming maelstrom over Iran. First, check out what the Neocon architects of the Iraq quagmire, Bush, Blair, Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld, Powell, Wolfowitz and and their quisling counterparts, Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman said leading up to the Iraq-attack in this 2003 CounterPunch compilation. And here's the manufactured consent: ~USA "Bush Stenographer" Today, Poll February 7-9 2003: POLL QUESTION: Would you favor or oppose invading Iraq with U.S. ground troops in an attempt to remove Saddam Hussein from power? Yes: 63% No: 34% Here's what these same Neocons are saying NOW leading up to an attack on Iran: ~George "Newcuelar" Bush, speaking in Afghanistan, March 1st, 2006: BUSH: Iran must not have a nuclear weapon. The most destabilizing thing that can happen in this region and in the world is for Iran to develop a nuclear weapon. ~Condoleeza "Mushroom Cloud" Rice, US Department of State Briefing, January 12, 2006: RICE: We're gravely concerned by Iran's long history of hiding sensitive nuclear activities from the IAEA, in violation of its obligations, its refusal to cooperate with the IAEA's investigation, its rejection of diplomatic initiatives offered by the EU and Russia and now its dangerous defiance of the entire international community. ~Dick "Chickenhawk" Cheney AIPEC speech, March 7, 2006: CHENEY: The Iranian regime needs to know that if it stays on its present course, the international community is prepared to impose meaningful consequences. For our part, the United States is keeping all options on the table in addressing the irresponsible conduct of the regime. And we join other nations in sending that regime a clear message: We will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon. ~Donald "Rubberstamp" Rumsfeld at the World Nuclear Panel Security Conference, Munich, February 4 2006 RUMSFELD: The Iranian regime is today the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism. The world does not want, and must work together to prevent, a nuclear Iran. ~John "Mad Dog" Bolton, UN Security Council debate, March 15, 2006: BOLTON: "Every day that goes by is a day that permits the Iranians to get closer to a nuclear weapons capability." ~ Joe "Bush Buddy" Lieberman CBS "Face the Nation."January 22, 2006: LIEBERMAN: The U.S. is prepared to deal with the Iranian nuclear crisis militarily - even if the war in Iraq continues to require a substantial American troop commitment. We have the most powerful military in the history of the world. We are capable, if necessary, of continuing to pursue our aims militarily in Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere and, if necessary, conduct a military attack on Iran. ~Hillary "Hawk" Clinton, Princeton, January 23, 2006: CLINTON: I believe that we lost critical time in dealing with Iran, because the White House chose to downplay the threats, and to outsource the negotiations. I don't believe you face threats like Iran or North Korea by outsourcing it to others, and standing on the sidelines. We cannot, and should not, must not, permit Iran to build or acquire nuclear weapons. And here's the manufactured consent: ~USA "Bush Spinmeister" Today Poll -February 14, 2006 USA TODAY POLL: Americans not only think Iran will develop nuclear weapons but also use them against the United States. Americans fear the Bush administration will be too quick to order military action against Iran. 8 out of 10 respondents predicted Iran would provide a nuclear weapon to terrorists to attack the United States or Israel. Six out of 10 respondents said Iran itself would deploy nuclear weapons against the United States. Will someone please ask Bushco these questions??: ... ... ... ... ... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~Time Out~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (Not a Joke) With America at the brink of unleashing unspeakable violence and terror on the world, and to fully reflect the immense gravity of this situation, Bush's handlers must give him the basic language coaching he needs to discuss this issue. Here's a basic language training lesson suggestion: "Mr. President say the word "new." Repeat again, "new." Goooood!! Now Mr. President, say the word "clear." That's right, "clear." Once again, "clear." Gooood! Now put them together, "new+clear." No Mr. President, not "newcuelar," "new+ clear," Goooood!! "new+clear, again, new+clear, once more, new+clear, now try "newclear" again, newclear, again, newclear, great!! You're doing it!!! One more time. -Noooooooooo, NOT NEWCUELAR!!!!, OK, Mr. President, start again...." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~Here's the questions:~ Mr. President, will the USA attack Iran? Mr. President, will Israel attack Iran? Mr. President, will the USA or Israel attack Iran's nuclear installations? Mr. President, will you use nuclear weapons of any kind in an attack on Iran? Mr. President, will you discuss the use of nuclear weapons on Iran, beforehand, with the American people? Mr. President, will you warn the people of Iran before attacking them with nuclear weapons? Ingmar Lee believes that Iran's intention to start selling its oil in Euros next week will precipitate the collapse of the American economy. Ingmar can be reached at ingmarz@gmail.com http://www.countercurrents.org/lee170306.htm |
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March21, 2006 - [India Thinkers Net]Call centers,Girl child education,Desi testing for LDs >> |
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