Western Europe – The Decline In Economic Power

The interesting statistic (graphical representation by Catherine@Visualizing Economics) in this chart is the cycle of Western Europe GDP. This, you will note, largely tracks the rise and fall of slavery and its proxy, colonialism. The rise of the West has been a case of ‘consumption’ of slaves to fuel their economic rise. Note the rapid fall in Western Europe incomes and GDP after loss of slaves and colonies – starting from 1850s (decline in slavery begins) till the 1950 (when decline in colonialism begins).

The current share of Western European GDP is also a statistical miracle based on the Bretton Woods financial topology – and the statistical lag between reality and its measures. Having painted themselves, in a corner, with a high cost economy, a bloated welfare state, an aging population (again, a side effect of the slavery on social structures; who would want a wife, if one can have a slave instead), Western Europe is terminally sick.

Combine the declining share of the economic pie and the rise in neo-con clamour, calls for increased vigilance against Western adventurism in the Middle East, Africa and maybe Asia too.

Is Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the shape of things to come?

St.Barnum Computes The Cost Of Dining Alone

On April 29, 1962, John F. Kennedy, from the American Royal House of Kennedy, gathered 49 Nobel Prize winners at his palace, called the White House – to remind the Nobel Prize winners that it was “probably the greatest concentration of talent and genius in this house except for those times when Thomas Jefferson dined alone.” Many understood many unexplained chapters of American History – after reading this. John F. Kennedy was assassinated because he unveiled this secret.

St.Barnum Explains

St.Barnum of course, explained to me the importance of dining alone in American History. Each time Jefferson dined alone, he got some great ideas – and that St.Barnum explained to me, lucidly, is the secret of American Success.

All Men Are Created Equal

His first great idea was excluding the Native Americans and the African Americans from the ‘all men are created equal’ clause. I am not even started on exclusion of women. This was a direct result of dining alone.

The Consent Of The Governed

Next time he dined alone, talk started about ‘the consent of the governed‘. He obtained ’secret consent’ from the Native Americans – a result of dining alone. Of course, his great work of fiction, called the American Constitution, allowed his successors to continue with this – there was ’secret consent’ also in the cases of Haiti, Philippines, Cuba, Grenada, Panama. And recently in Iraq also. Modern liberals, peaceniks and other such flotsam and jetsam, don’t know anything about these ’secret consents.’

His Greatest Idea – Liberia

Another time, he dined alone, the idea of sending freed slaves back – to Liberia. Never mind the cost to the local Africans – and the transplanted Blacks.

Sally Hemmings Was A Black Secret Agent

A cabal of Black conspirators sniffed out Jefferson’s secret – his greatest ideas (listed above) came when he dined alone.What followed was diabolical.To stop further such ideas, they recruited Sally Hemmings on a suicide mission.

I have secret papers which prove this. This talk about slavery is just that – it is talk. And thereafter, Sally Hemmings was assigned the role of ensuring that Jefferson was never alone. Ian Fleming patterned James Bond after Sally Hemmings.

The Death Of JFK

This Black conspiracy against my Aryan brothers was exposed when I shared these secret documents with JFK – based on which he made this famous comment. His subsequent death obscured this conspiracy.

I am today in a position to reveal this, because, I have been given 20 Marine Commandos by George Bush personally – for my protection. This conspiracy has to be brought out in daylight.

I write this, safely, deep inside a cave, (which ‘Kikazaru’ Hillary Clinton cant bomb).
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The Urbanisation Experience – The World & India

Post colonial India, in the last 60 years has seen the shift of 30 crore (300 million) people from villages to cities – which is nearly the population of the entire USA. In 1947, India’s urban population was 6 cores (60 million) – and in 2008, it is estimated to have crossed 36 crores (360 million). Another 500 million are expected to move in the next 20 years.

It is the largest demographic shift in the history of mankind – without wars, revolts or persecution. Most revolts, wars and upheavals have been accompanied by urbanization. Urbanization as the cause or an enabler of the revolutions is a matter of debate, research and conjecture.

India is different.

Indian culture started with urban centres like Harrapa and Mohenjodaro (dated between 2000-4000 BC). India has gone through many cycles of urbanization and rural migration. Ashoka the Great resolved to build monasteries “in 84,000 of the cities of Jambudwipa”

The last de-urbanization happened at the the start of British Colonialism during the 1800-1850 period. Cities like Dhaka lost between 50% to80% of its population. British Colonialism immediately started flooding India with its Manchester & Lancaster wares – and restricted Indian handloom weavers from competing with Manchester & Lancaster.

The Renewal Of Mumbai

In 1982, Dr.Datta Samant called for strike by the textile workers in Mumbai. The strike went on for a year. Textile industry in Mumbai, tethering on the brink of collapse, went bankrupt.

Half of Mumbai’s population (my estimate) was, directly or indirectly, dependent on these mills. In one of the most heroic renewals in modern urban history, Mumbai re-invented itself. From the manufacturing capital of the country, Mumbai has become the services capital of the country. It is this spirit which has made the Indian urban growth a remarkable story in the urbanization of the world’s population.

Many Religions

The largest Islamic population to co-exist peacefully with another religion, in the world, now lives in India. While the West has been demonizing Islam, Indians Muslims have been getting ahead. In the last 10 years, Indian Muslims have become the richest (Azim Premji), occupied the highest office in the land (APJ Kalam) in this country.

Europe – Revolution & Civil War

In 1800, 23 European cities boasted of a 100,000 population. By 1900, there were 135 cities with over 100,000 citizens. Amongst other causes, increased urbanization was a feature of the French Revolution – which started a chain of revolutions for the next 125 years.

The Russian Revolution by the Communists succeeded due to the rapid urbanization of Russia. Urban Russian population doubled from 7.3 to 14.6 million between 1867 and 1897. Expansion of railways between 1892-1903 made migration and travel to cities easier. Tsarist Russia, built on the support an land owning nobility, with serfs used for production, found that the urbanized industrial workers supported the Communists.

With increasing urbanization and the decline of colonies, Spain slipped into a civil war.

The Balkans Civil War, now running in its 100th year, with intermittent breaks and under different names, started with the urbanization.

South America

Among other things, urbanization played a major feature in South American 150 years after de-colonization. From 1820 – 1970, South America went through de-colonization, urbanization, revolts, revolutions – and crime.

The tipping point in South America was initially de-colonization, peasant and slave revolts and thereafter urbanization.

Why Are Cities The Focal Point

Cities provided spaces where large numbers of people could gather – and a ‘change process’ can start. Red Square in Moscow, Champs de Mars (where the first public meeting after the French Revolution) took place, the Tian An Men in Beijing, or the Shivaji Park in Mumbai are places where such meetings can happen.

Marx famously dismissed peasants as “a sack of potatoes” – and saw the urban worker as the base for the workers’ revolution. Peasant revolts are more difficult to organize as the population is spread over vast areas.

Where Do We Go From Here

This urban growth in unprecedented – and unparalleled. It shows the tremendous adaptability and resilience of the Indian. The Indian urban concept aspires towards foreign idiom – and that is the problem.

Mumbai wants to become another Shanghai, says Chief Minister, Vilas Rao Deshmukh. This aspiration is something that is mostly referred in a derisive manner by others – thankfully.

What Indian cities need instead, is to learn from the home grown examples. For instance, the Mumbai urban train transport system. For a monthly cost of Rs.70-200 (US$2-US$5), people in Mumbai can travel any number of times, in relative discomfort. It is a safe mode of transport – unlike the legacy rail system of the Colonial Britain, which India modernised over 35 years. Accidents on this system happen due to its popularity – overcrowded trains. It is also profitable – and devoid of subsidies. Similar metros (not in scale or traffic though) have come up in Kolkatta and New Delhi.

What Indian cities needs are an Indian idiom – to solve the problems of these Indian cities. Will Indian planners deliver!

The World Financial System – Shape of Things To Come …

The US President, flanked by Treasury Secretary, Jack Fleischacker, and Paul M.Gruber, Governor, European Central Bank, in a stunning move, announced the merger and re-capitalisation of the IMF and World Bank – a plan to rescue world economy.

IMAR

The new entity has been named as International Monetary Authority & Reserve (IMAR) – and will operate from Paris. It has been given the responsibility for world’s economic stabilisation.

The Governing Council Members will initially comprise of 3 internationally respected financial authorities and investors. The Chairman is likely to be Barran Wolfet and his team members are Sorg Goros and Rim Joggers. “The selection of the Governing Board was done on the basis of consensus and the expertise of the incumbents. This is not the time for being narrow – when the future of the global financial system is at stake.”, said Governor Gruber.

Capital Subscriptions

The US has subscribed to promissory notes worth 25,000 tons of gold, currently held at Fort Knox. The ECB will subscribe to the tune of 20,000 tons of gold – to be held at various European national Government vaults. Australia and Canada have also announced subscriptions to the tune of 10,000 tons of gold each to be held in bonded vaults at Montreal and Canberra respectively. Britain and Switzerland have committed 5000 tons – out of the Bank of England and Schweizerische Nationalbank (SNB) reserves. These countries will be allocated voting rights proportionately, based on IMAR gold reserve subscriptions.

The US dollar will now be backed by IMAR promisorry notes – which President Jack Boucher, asserted will create confidence in the US dollar – and in the world financial system.

Governor Gruber remarked,”The Bretton Woods Agreement has facilitated a “historic economic expansion in the global trade” – and this new measure will further strengthen the Bretton Woods system. IMAR single-point agenda is stabilization of the global economy.” Country reserves will be nominated on the basis of IMAR promissory notes – and countries will report on these regularly. Total monetary aggregates for the national economy will also see a change. “Old economic measures like M3 money figures will no longer be relevant in the era of derivatives and options”, said Gruber.

The ASEAN, Chinese and Japanese Governments have cautiously welcomed this move, with a joint declaration saying “this will hopefully lend some stability to the US dollar – and the trillions of reserves that we maintain”. The new martial law administrators in the South African Government are due to the announce their subscriptions soon. Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE and Singapore have announced that they will be committing substantial assets towards their share of subscriptions. Russia is still undecided - and expected to approve soon.

Criticism

India has criticised the move strongly. Prime Minister, Sonia Gandhi said, “this new system will perpetuate existing economic systems and divisions.” Iran’s President, Mohammed Hussaini bluntly dismissed this development and said, “the developing world will not have a voice in the new organization.”

The new Indian Finance Minister Banta Singh said,”This will not help in restructuring the international finacial systems. This is not the ‘new financial architecture’ that we are want.” When asked what his ideas were were declined to reveal them, as “it too premature.”

The IMAR Governor, Wolfet rejected the criticism, saying, “IMAR will be a international body – for implementing a rescue plan for the world economy. Developing Countries will have 50% representation on the Director’s Register. They, can get even higher voting rights by increased subscriptions. Our past experience shows that countries print currency – and risk global financial equilibrium. We cannot allow that to happen again.”

US and the EU have also announced a doubling in aid allocations. Instead of outright grants in aid, transfers will now be based on mutual trade norms. African countries, for instance, will be able to develop trade with the West – while receiving aid. EU and USA will commit to specific trade volumes, such that Africa will be able to develop, for instance, its mining and resource based industries.

Currency Fluctuations

Governor Gruber claimed that “currency fluctuations are a thing of the past, as trade will now be denominated by currency demand and supply. International currency acceptance will be determined by IMAR reserves of each currency system.”

Gold Reserves

The most interesting part of this development is the quantum of gold being committed by the subscribers. The ECB and the Federal Reserve have been able to fulfill their subscriptions based on gold reserves that they have enhanced in the last few months.

It is being whispered that Barran Wolfet and his team members, Sorg Goros and Rim Joggers had played a major role in the enhancement of these gold stocks – and the formation of IMAR. Initially named as Global Financial Reserve Authority for Development, the IMAR idea was first tossed out over a dinner at the famous Les Ambassadeurs eatery – which offers a classic cuisine by the Ducasse-trained chef, Jean-François Piege.

Want to decode this news? What this really means for you! Ask St.Barnum, The Propaganda Slayer.

Post Script

On 8th October, 2008, it was reported, that both the Republican and Democratic  candidates concede that Warren Buffet …

would be a good replacement for current Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson who is standing down at the end of the current administration.

“I think the first criteria, would have to be somebody who immediately Americans identify with. Immediately say we can trust that individual,” said McCain. Buffett, chief of the Berkshire Hathaway holding company, has supported Obama in the race for the White House.

PT Barnum – Pope Announces Cannonisation

The US has the world’s largest body of believers and followers of PT Barnum. To gain market share in the USA, the Pope has recently received a proposal to declare PT Barnum as a Saint. This was revealed when the original draft of Honest Abe’s speech was discovered under the Bush & Bush podium (more on that later).

Honest Abe made a stirring speech and said “that this nation, under our Patron Saint PT Barnum, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the White people, by the White people, for the White people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Subsequently, some devious Black Supremacist historians (in a conspiracy with the Native Americans, then aka ‘The Red Indians’) re-wrote the speech. They removed PT Barnum and inserted God. They also went ahead and removed the three most important words, white, white and white.

This changed history. Over the next 100 years, the Blacks slowly subverted the American Constitution, gained voting rights, admission into schools and colleges, could live in cities, own property – in short, completely subvert the American way of life.

So much so, their life expectancy has also increased.

I think similar acts of vandalism has been perpetrated by the Afro-Americans and Native Americans in the case of Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson and Emma Lazarus (given below). President George Bush has agreed to support my efforts – and I can call the American Marines any time I want. My sternous efforts to uncover such acts continue.

“I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!” declared Patrick Henry, speaking on behalf of the Whites. Enslaved Afro-Americans and all the Native Americans marked for genocide – conspired and claimed that Patrick Henry had included them in this declaration.

Jefferson, (when he was dining alone), wrote that ‘all White men are created equal’, in the Declaration of Independence. The conspirators removed the word White.

Emma Lazarus said …

Give me your tired, your poor whites, Your huddled white masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched white refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the white homeless, tempest-tossed, to me: I lift my lamp for these whites beside the golden door.

I think the rest of us, (the browns, yellows and blacks) are dismissive of these crimes of the conspirators. It is clear to all those who matter (the whites, who else) that this was never meant to be. We the devious (browns, blacks and yellows) are ignorant, backward and don’t understand these truths – and are subverting the natural order of the Whites.

Some may call it hypocrisy, but I think it is unfair – to the hypocrites. These ‘great men’ had deliberately put the important word, White. Even after the removal of the important parts of these writings and declarations, the writers and their followers remained faithful to the original.

Honest mistake? Wrong!

It is all one big Black Supremacist conspiracy – with the Native Americans. Al Qaeda also seems to have joined this conspiracy. Await updates.

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Greenspan & Bernanke share Nobel for eCONomics

Thus Spake Ben Bernanke

U.S. dollars have value only to the extent that they are strictly limited in supply. But the U.S. government has a technology, called a printing press … that allows it to produce as many U.S. dollars as it wishes at essentially no cost. … …the Fed could find other ways of injecting money into the system–for example, by making low-interest-rate loans to banks or cooperating with the fiscal authorities … If we do fall into deflation, however, we can take comfort that the logic of the printing press example must assert itself, and sufficient injections of money will ultimately always reverse a deflation. Remarks by Governor Ben S. Bernanke, Before the National Economists Club, Washington, D.C. November 21, 2002 (ellipsis mine)

Let The Games Begin

US Debt to GDP Ratio

In the last 5 years, more than US$10 trillion were printed and the world is awash with dollars. Where did this money go? How was this used? “Lendings by US commercial banks in the period 2000 to 2004 soared by altogether USD 1,500bn to USD 6,750bn. In the European Monetary Union lending to the private sector by monetary financial institutions (MFI) climbed from roughly EUR 6,200bn end-1999 to not quite EUR 8,700bn at the end of last year.” - Allianz Report, Dresdner Bank. The recipients of this largesse, mainly Western banks have made (it is whispered) bad loans worth 300-400 billions dollars. I am confident that the actual figure is much higher.

The loans story does not end there.

These loans were in turn sold and re-sold, then packaged and mortgaged, derived and contrived - finally ballooning into the ’sub-prime’ crisis. Welfare payouts by another name? Who will pay for this “lending”? US Consumers are not repaying their housing loans.

Some one has to!

Billions Are Not Big Anymore

The ICBC IPO received subscriptions of half a trillion dollars! IMF estimates of funds with Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) is US$2-3 trillion – and “foreign assets under management of SWFs could reach US$6–10 trillion by 2013“. The same IMF study also estimates that global financial assets are currently valued at US$190 trillion. Commodity prices are going through the roof.

Very soon, major movements will be measured in trillions – thanks to the humongous printing presses, that the US has used in the last few years. Daily trading volumes total US$1.5 trillion in the Forex Markets. To that add trading volumes of debt markets, stock markets and commodity markets. Combined global trading volumes now cross US$3.0 trillion – and growing. This degree of hysterical trading had made the US$ into a giant wrecking ball – which goes out of control very few years.

Asians Are Funding The US

Total US debt has crossed 300% of GDP (all sectors). What this means is that if every income earning member of the US were to assign 30% of their income, every year, for the next 25 years (at current interest rates and borrowing rates) ), US debt will come to possible close to zero level. Government debt in comparison to GDP is fluctuating between 50% to now nearly 100%. Some claim that the debt burden is actually declining.

Who is stuck with this hoard of dollars – getting devalued daily. China (with more than 1 trillion dollars), Japan (another trillion dollars), Russia (400 billion dollars), India (300 billion dollars) are the top 4 countries.

I hereby nominate the US Federal Reserve for the Nobel Prize for Conmanship. They truly deserve it.

Meet Joe Black … An Indian Story

I finished seeing the re-run of movie, “Meet Joe Black” – and it is the second time I am seeing this movie. I am stuck with the ‘Indian-ness’ of this movie. I am intrigued – and decide to Google for more.

What Do I Find

I discover it is a remake of an old movie – the Wikipedia informs me that it is a 1998 remake of the 1934 film, Death Takes A Holiday. It was remade in 1971 under the 1934 original title. The film stars Brad Pitt (a Joe Black), Anthony Hopkins (as Bill Parish) and Claire Forlani.

Interestingly (not surprisingly), Wikipedia tells me this film did well overseas and not in the USA.

This Story Is A Lift …

This film could have been titled Savitri and Satyavan in New York. How so?

Savitri meets Satyavan (Brad Pitt as Joe Black) in a coffee shop – and it is love at first sight. After the meeting a ‘lost’ Satyavan meets with an accident and dies – of which Savitri knows nothing.

Savitri (Claire Forlani) is the perfect daughter of Bill Parish (Anthony Hopkins, as a rich business tycoon) – instead of the royal father in law. Yamaraj (Brad Pitt) takes the form of Satyavan (Brad Pitt again) and comes visiting Earth, to take away Bill Parish whose time has come.

But Yamaraj, offers Bill Parish a deal, whereby Bill Parsh will get some ‘extra time’ in return for giving Yamaraj a guided tour of life on earth.

While the guided tour is on, Bill Parish loses his kingdom – just like the original Indian story. Yamaraj is maha-impressed by Savitri – like the original Mahabharat story. Yamaraj restores life to Satyavan – just like the original story. Yamraj also helps the father (instead of the father in law) to get back his kingdom.

The differences

Bill Parish is the father instead of the father in law. It is set in New York – instead of India. The West may find it maudlin or cloying – since, Women (Eve) are the root of all evil. But, from an Indian perspective, it was well done. The focus was more on Bill Parish and Joe Black – than on Savitri, which figures.

Rather like the Bappi Lahiri vs Dr.Dre case, I thought.

As Long As You Are White …

Thus Spake Patrick Henry

“I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!” declared Patrick Henry.

And Americans promptly enslaved many Africans and gave death to the Native Americans. Africans (later to become the Afro-Americans) and all the Native Americans marked for slavery and genocide, in the glory of the White Race – conspired and claimed that Patrick Henry had included them in this declaration.

Jefferson, (when he was dining alone), wrote that ‘all White men are created equal’, in the Declaration of Independence – and excluded all ‘Blacks’, ‘Reds’ and others from being equal.

Emma Lazarus said …

Give me your tired, your poor whites,
Your huddled white masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched white refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the white homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp for these whites beside the golden door.

The Conspiracy

The conspirators removed the word White from these important documents authored by Jefferson and Emma Lazarus – and claimed undue benefits robbing poor Whites of their rightful free labor and land.

I think the rest of us, (the browns, yellows and blacks) are dismissive of these crimes by the conspirators. It is clear to all those who matter (the Whites, who else) that this was never meant to be. We the devious (browns, blacks and yellows) are ignorant, backward and don’t understand these truths – and are subverting the natural order of the Whites. We reduce the great achievements of these ‘great’ men’ and do not appreciate their ’spirit’.

It is clear to all those who matter (the whites, who else) that this conspiracy was never imagined by these poor authors – but is now read without the important missing words. If we (browns, blacks and yellows) are ignorant, backward and don’t understand these subtleties, we can not take away the ‘greatness’ from these people.

Faithful Followers

Some may call it hypocrisy, but I think it is unfair – to the hypocrites. These ‘great men’ had deliberately put the important word, White. Even after the removal of the important parts of these writings and declarations, the writers and their followers remained faithful to the original. These ‘great men’ wrote genuinely clear documents – with these important words.

You will agree it is not their mistake!

The Crime Of Slavery – Buying & Selling People

“They bought them from other Africans. As someone said, you can’t get much lower than someone who sells his brother.” A reader’s comment reg. slavery on my blog.

I agree it is low to sell one’s own brother. Is that the lowest one can go to? What can be the lowest anyone go to? If there is a dispute for a position at the bottom of the moral cess pit, to answer this question … I need help.

You see, I have a problem – honestly, I must blame my backward country and my backward education for this. We were taught that all humans were equals.

I was also told that this value of the individual makes the West different – and is enshrined in the Greco-Roman-Euro history, culture, literature, thinking, renaissance, enlightenment, religion, leadership …

We were told that we from India did not consider others as brothers – and that was our problem.

So, in my warped thinking, a question rose!

Low To Sell – Lower Still To Buy, Trade, Legalize Slavery

Is it not lower to buy one’s own brother – even lower than to sell. And to create laws, institutions, precedents to promote, popularize slavery?

Does the fact that a family member sells manifestly stolen ‘goods’ (in this case human beings) stolen from the family wealth, allow the buyer to buy ’stolen’ goods. Is trade in ’stolen goods’ acceptable if the robber happens to rob his own family? But then, if the skin is black or yellow or brown, I presume these rules do not apply.

“the inconvenient fact that the Arab world played at least as large a part in the slave trade as any Western power, for instance; or the uncomfortable truth that African chieftains were all too willing to sell other Africans to Western and Arab slave dealers. In the light of this, what are we to make of allegations that ‘racism’ lay at the heart of the slave trade?” From a book review of The Slave Trade By Jeremy Black, at The Social Affaits Unit.

Vatican Supported Slavery

When the followers of Mani (a teacher of Buddhist and Christian teachings) were rooting for the slaves to revolt and declare themselves free, administrators of the teachings of the “Lord of lords, and King of kings.” (Revelation 17: 14) at the Council Of Gangra approved of slavery.

Jefferson Forgot

The Great White Chief in the Sky, Thomas Jefferson declared ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal’ We can’t hold his feet to the fire, if he forgot to add (possibly in the hurry to dine alone), as long as they are white.

India Lowers Guard

1990

A ‘orientalist’ writer from Belgium, Koenraad Elst, waded into India. His books on Hinduism, Aryan culture, Islamic history in India were avidly lapped up by a section which was eager for Western approval. Elst’s blatant anti-Islamic agenda warmed the cockles of many hearts. LK Advani released Elst’s book in India. BJP’s proximity has given Elst’s ideas high visibility which imbalances the discussion.

1991

Rajiv Gandhi had come back from Sriperumbudur in a coffin. The common Indian had given up on Punjab. The 1984 anti Sikh riots only strengthened the negative outlook. Assam problem seemed beyond resolution. Kashmir was simmering. The Indian electorate had given a fractured mandate. A hung Parliament. Corruption was endemic and every politician was an Untouchable – nobody or anything could touch them. It seemed there were no laws.

Indian economy was going downhill – and nothing seemed to get the economy out of the “Hindu rate of growth”. India was on the verge of a debt default. Indian debt was downgraded by Western rating agencies.

The Asian Tigers had done wonders – under US tutelage. China was furiously reforming – and succeeding at it. USSR 2 years ago had decided to retreat from Afghanistan. India’s faithful ally, Russia was breaking up. Many across the world shook their head and could be heard saying, “I knew … I told you … It had to happen …”

All bets on India were off.

1992

In this siege mentality, one fine day, a US Senator, Larry Pressler, announced at a press conference in New Delhi, that India was encircled by an Islamic coalition of 9 countries. The proxy war against India by Pakistan was at its height. This ‘Islamic Crescent’ (as Larry Pressler called it) first stunned India – and then stampeded its foreign policy.

Larry Pressler was seen as a friend of India - by Indians. He got some well-paying corporate board room positions – and he has kept in the back ground after that. But his press conference still rings. And Pressler’s proximity to Indian liberal establishment (which is close to both the BJP and the Congress), flanks India’s movement towards Western paranoia from the opposite direction. (Strangely, Google search, Yahoo search, Indiatimes search, websites of newspapers like The Hindu, cannot find any newspaper coverage for that press conference.)

Soon thereafter, India upgraded its relationship with Israel, (practically) abandoned the Palestinians (not to ignore West Asia’s own desire to cosy with the West) – and started getting closer to the US. The Vajpayee Government (with a historic tendency) continued with this rush to embrace the US.

There is too much tradition and culture for India to go down the demonization path, but recent developments do call for consciousness on this account. Is India falling prey to Western case-building and logic for Islamic deminization?

India’s Record – And the Reversal

India and its Government was in the vanguard of opposition to Apartheid, neo-colonialism, (especially in the Middle East). However, in the last 15 years, under the garb of ‘geo-strategic interests /initiatives /imperatives’, changed ’super power equations,’ ‘uni-polar world,’ India is losing its moral initiative – and equally importantly its long term interests. It is getting sucked into uni-directional relationships – which are going down.

Western Adventurism - The Imperative

Without slavery, the West does not enjoy the manpower edge that it had till 1900. The loss of colonies from 1900-1950 has taken away the resource base and captive markets for Western dominance.

Now with the collapse of Bretton Woods, the opacity in financial systems is diminished. The welfare state has put a significant burden on an aging Western population.

With fading prowess on one side, and a resurgent Asia on the other, the US and EU are now at the cross roads. Is the West prepared to quietly fade away in the sunset?

Unlikely.

Indian Perceptions – Preparedness and Paranoia

Will this loss of power encourage some adventurism by the West? Are the various ‘co-operation’ agreements a sign of India becoming a client state of the West – again? What is the threat magnitude of this ‘cowboy imperative’? Does India need to prepare itself against a misadventure of the ‘desert bloc’?

While the activities of these Western ‘friends’, sensitised India to the Islamic ‘threat’, it more importantly, has lowered the Indian guard against the resurgent Western encirclement.

American forces are based in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Diego Garcia – and of course Iraq. The wolf pack behaviour of pursuit of quarry does not allow co-operation between packs – but within the pack itself. So, while the Islamic crescent perception has some validity, the threat of The Star and The Cross is equal, if not greater.

Sometimes, ‘friends’ are more dangerous than a recognised opposition.

Moral Stature

Equally, India should not acquire the practices or memberships that have made recent history bloody and exploitative. While many civilisations have stumbled (Greeks, Romans, Egypt) and fallen by the wayside, India’s many comebacks, have been based on never losing moral stature – and it is late in the day to start down that path.

Concerns! Questions?

Is the ‘Islamic demonisation’ an attempt by the ‘wolf pack’ to separate a member of the herd and then go for the kill – like Iraq.

Is India getting co-opted in this ‘wolf pack hunt’?

What Followed

PS – A few days after this post I found his cartoon (linked on the right), which is possibly truer than one would have imagined.

And then this book review by Vivek Chibber – an assistant professor of sociology at New York University. In this article, he reviews a book by a neo-CON, Niall Ferguson (yes, yet another one). The drift of this book is that America should declare itself as an empire – and go about ruling countries just the way Britain did – is what Ferguson has written in Colossus: The Price of America’s Empire by Niall Ferguson.

But the best of all this was the post by Gurcharan Das, an ex-MNC CEO, who started writing in various newspapers. His latest post in The Times Of India, plumbs the depth of misdirected warmth towards Western democracies. He writes,

“thanks to the treaty, which paved the way for closer ties with the Western democracies. The West stood by India during its times of trouble and eventually India went on to balance power in Asia and the world”.

Gurcharan Das’ gullibility on matters of international relations is worth a bucketful of tears. Why would any country (let us keep Western powers aside for a minute) support India (or any other country) – except if it in their self interest? After 300 years of pillage, loot, murder, genocide, slavery are Western nations going to suddenly change become God Samaritans, Mr.Das?

Your naivete makes me squirm.
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