Volume 35, Issue 6, March 2008 - Posoowa

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Drugs, An Unholy suffering Death, death, and only death! This is the only synonym one can think for drugs. Smaller than bullets, lighter than grenades, but they can kill a whole man, a whole human, slowly, very slowly, causing a very deadly and painful death. Everybody knows, the substances behind the five letters “drugs” are dangerous, but still addiction is increasing day by day. But, why? What is the reason behind it? A few months ago, I went to a friend’s place for a visit, but what I saw, when I entered his flat was really shocking. It shook the whole of my body—— it was a different picture, a totally different one…!!! The “evening time” atmosphere was quite sizzling. It was a fog of smoke, just like something extraterrestrial. I saw 10 young people, 19 to 25 years of age, including my friend, enjoying heaven. “Guns ‘n Roses” screamed out through the music system making the situation rock! They were passing - lighted cigarette to each other. Cigarette? Wait a minute! Not ordinary ones!! These are the cigarettes stuffed with dope—”bhang”, They took out the tobacco from the cigarettes and stuffed it with bhang. When I asked “But, why?” one of them replied, “I dope every weekend just to relax”. The other one said he is addicted. There were not only boys in the group, but girls as well. This was just a single scene in the world; there are thousands of similar scenes happening every minute around the world. Young people are attracted to charas, ganja, brown sugar, S.P (spasmoproxyvom), nitro (nitrosum) and other deadly weapons, all known as drugs. Most surprising is the fact is that, these things are easily available in the market; just, and you must have good contact. At first brokers who sell drugs, sell it cheap, but when one is addicted, they charge like anything. Consequently, once addicted, a youngster will do anything to get his or her fix, even stealing and ruining own and family’s life. And at last…. Page 6 * POSOOWA, March 2008 ”Death”-- on the Doorstep. The law is not able to trace it although it’s strict. Why? “We take it only to be relaxed with our heavy schedules at work”, “But end up in addiction?” When asked—— there was no answer. This alarmingly rising trend may be attributed to pressure, both at school and work, and peer pressure—trying to be cool among friends. Although they seem to be aware of the consequences of prolonged and sustain abuse, young men and women are using it. Most of them start as occasional users or when they try to be a part of a happening crowd. But alas! They end up regulars. There must be control over these activities. It is OK to be cool with them; family members should keep an eye on the activities of their children, but never be harsh with them. Most importantly, it is your “WILL”; you should be strong enough to avoid these “deadly weapons” and lead a happy and healthy life. A relief, a satisfaction for a few minutes, a few hours or a day can cause everlasting pain. “An unholy suffering leading to the hell of death” By, Pranjal Saikia, Pune, India Saraswati Puja Celebrated in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai Saraswati Puja, the annual worship of the Goddess of knowledge, music, speech and writing, was celebrated with great enthusiasm for the first time in Mumbai’s satellite city of Navi Mumbai. It was organized by Kingkhap Asomiya Mahila Samiti, the women’s wing of the Kharghar Asomiya Samaj, on Vasant Panchami Day, the 11 th February 2008. The puja began in the morning with pandits reciting slokas and mantras as the devotees watched. Everyone took the blessings of the Goddess and participated in the mass pushpanjali program that when flowers are offered at the feet of the Goddess Maa Saraswati; in return, she bestows them with the gift of knowledge. The pushpanjali program was followed by a traditional Assamese mah-prasad and finally bhog consisting of khichidi and payox (kheer) and other delicacies offered during the occasion. The serpentine queue that was seen in the post-puja session bore testimony to the huge turnout that thronged the Tirupati Arcade Campus. After successful organization of Saraswati Puja, the Kingkhap Asomiya Mahila Samiti, made plans to celebrate International Women’s Day on 8 th March 2008. By Rubi Borgohain, Mumbai, India
Indian souls. Our Mother Country is Britain, Our Parents’ is India Ihave nothing new to say to those who heard this before, but sometimes repetition reinforces sad truths and calls for change of pace. Some may accuse me of tarring all with the same brush but in social anthropology one has to generalize. Exceptions do not break the rule. Some might have heard from their children (raised in the West) that India was nothing but a land of half-naked fakirs before the British went there and colonized it. Some children and adults might go on to list of facts to buttress their claims - like bringing in the railroad to link various parts of India and modern technology, and of course democracy. Of course, it is sad but true that railroad and the steam engine were not invented in India. They were invented in Great Britain. It is also deplorable that Indians talk only about the glorious past (which anyway many historians dispute - like Harvard’s Indology Prof. Witzel). It is also sad that while many first generation NRIs or NRAs have visions of a civilized land of their forefathers, many in the second generation contend that it was no way superior to that of the Britain or the United Kingdom - their Mother Country. America’s Mother Country! As part of Americanization, it is the duty of all citizens to uphold the concept of Mother Nation. India has no Mother Country. USA has a mother country - Great Britain. In this context, what should be expected from second or third generation Indian Americans? Should they be expected to uphold the interests of their Mother Country or that of India - the land of their forefathers? WHY MOTHER COUNTRY BRITAIN IS A BETTER DEAL It is true that Mother Country provides a more welcoming smile - better colleges (like Rhodes scholarship to Oxford University to Piyush “Bobby” Jindal, the new governor of Louisiana) which result in more acclaim when they return to the US. The stay there makes their accent even better - British accent is favored even above the New England one. What does India have to offer besides a visit to Grandma’s home? Further, Mother Country Britain helped the USA during the World Wars and current Iraq War. What did land of forefathers, India, do? Nothing! No wait - it is taking away American jobs through outsourcing. Now some second generation Indian Americans are forced to work or do internships in Bangalore. None wants to go to IITs to study or teach. SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES FOR 2 nd GENERATION NRI CHILDREN It is true that if a child has to grow up in an immigrant family in the USA or anywhere else, it is a great challenge, since the s/he has no support network of a large family - the way these kids have who have all their grandparents and all their relatives in the USA. Those Indian American kids have it tough - who have no support network or endowment backing their trip to elite colleges or helping them get jobs in top firms where a phone call from “someone you know” lands jobs (ceteris paribus - all else remaining equal). Thus, Indian Americans turn to top quality education to open closed doors to success. And success is generally defined in a very materialistic sense for most Indian Americans. Materialistic people should not be expected to go out and save the BRAIN GAIN OR BRAIN DRAIN OR SOUL IN THE DRAIN Maybe some have indeed gone to India to save souls - in the spiritual sense. However, none seem to remain for their entire lives (like Mother Teresa) to take care of the Indian economy. The World Bank was formed for the reconstruction of Europe following World War Two. It was the USA who wanted to help the land of its Mother Country and other European nations. Which Indian American organization is there to help the cause? Which organization is there which can counter the claim by top economists (like Harvard Business School professor Mihir Desai - second generation Indian American) that India is losing ten percent of its national income because a million of their educated elite (including perhaps his parents) have seen it fit to head West (Desai, 2002). Some at ILO (International Labor Organization) said thing along the same lines - that Indians should remain in India or the brain drain would damage Indian economy (www.ilo.org/dyn/idea/ ideasheet.display?p_idea_id=20). I wonder how many of the Indian Americans have thought of calculating how much did Britain lose when its citizens left its shores to head for the USA. Why such step-motherly attitude towards the Mother Country of USA? No one in the USA accuses a Frenchman of being a FOB or then why do some look down on anything Indian? Russell Peters is a shining example youtube.com/watch?v=Nn5jlrxcpkI - though some are quite interestingly done - making fun of cricket, Indian food, Yoga, Hare Krishna youtube.com/watch?v= owK5tHjL0aE 12 days of Christmas. Any comments? Umesh Sharma Washington DC Page 7 * POSOOWA, March 2008
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Volume 35, Issue 6, March 2008 - Posoowa

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