Is it time for Asian Americans and Latino Americans to ask to be considered “white”? (a)

AnAn · November 6, 2018 · 18 comments

This is the next article in the series “Is it time for Asian Americans and Latino Americans to ask to be considered “white.” Please also read Razib’s  Hasan Minhaj’s Patriot Act on Affirmative Action.

This panel brought up the issue of affirmative action benefiting caucasians at the expense of people of Asian heritage. According to a 2004 analysis of 1990s data Asians on average needed 140 points more on the SAT (out of 1600) than caucasians all else being equal to have the same probability of admission to elite universities.

Do any readers support race base affirmative action that benefits caucasians at the expense of people of Asian ancestry? If so, can you please share why? I have rarely met Asians who give a strong intellectual case for race based  affirmative action that benefits caucasians at the expense of people of Asian ancestry other than the following arguments:

  • We don’t want to be personally called fascist, nazi, a supporter of the patriarchy, racist, bigoted, prejudiced, imperialist, colonialist, oppressor, hegemonic, exploiter, white supremacist (not joking, Asians are frequently called white supremacist . . . I don’t understand why) etc.
  • We don’t want Asians as a group being called fascist, nazi, supporter of the patriarchy, racist, bigoted, prejudiced, imperialist, colonialist, oppressor, hegemonic, exploiter, white supremacist etc.
  • We want to reduce the “evil eye” or jealousy towards Asians
  • We are guilty because of Asian privilege and Asian oppression of blacks and poor people (never met Asians over 22 who say this, but many K-12 rich Asians children believe this now)
  • This is our punishment because Asians are very fascist, nazi, supportive of the patriarchy, racist, bigoted, prejudiced, imperialist, colonialist, oppressive, hegemonic, exploitative, white supremacist etc. (never met Asians over 22 who say this, but many K-12 rich Asians children believe this now)
  • Xenophobic caucasians might attack us if we don’t support affirmative action.
  • Blacks might attack us if we don’t support affirmative action.

 

In the above discussion Asian Americans seemed afraid to share their actual views. Why are Asian Americans so scared?

To repeat, please share any other reasons you might have for supporting race based affirmative action that discriminates against Asians.

India Still Rising (a)

AnAn · November 6, 2018 · 1 comment

This is the second article in this series after India Still Rising.

India’s ministry of external affairs has little understanding of China, America, India or the world. The ministry of external affairs has little institutional understanding of economics, how global commons works, how global collaboration works; or the importance of:

  • execution
  • transparency
  • honesty

Part of the issue is that the ministry of external affairs lacks internal think tanks and doesn’t extensively use external think thanks. Another part of the problem is post modernist colonization of the mind, virtue signaling, risk averse careerist mindset. The ministry of external affairs needs to hire older experienced private sector Indians, ex-patriot Indians or Indians who have extensively interfaced with foreigners. They also need to learn to better use external resources such as external experts, academics, religious institutions and think thanks. Including foreign ones. [For example consulting wise friends of India such as Zachary Latif.] However to use or collaborate with foreign resources requires the ministry of external affairs to get its own house in order first . . . or it risks being played by various interest groups without a deep understanding of what these interest groups are.

India Still Rising

Why Pakistani liberals will always fail

X.T.M · November 3, 2018 · 65 comments

I wrote a longish post on Aasia Bibi which I summarily deleted.

Pakistani liberals are a toothless lot because they dare not challenge the best itself, Islam. There is no peaceful Islam, like any other man-made ideology it becomes cancerous when not checked.

One could accuse me of hypocrisy because I’m a Bahai. However it so happens that my religious body isn’t sanction death sentences on innocent women. If it did I would be equally scathing.

Unless Muslims stand up, attack Islam and have the freedom to call Mohammad a pedophile (whether he was one or both) in central square Mecca without any fears of retribution from either State or individuals, there can be no respite in the taming of Islam.

The Tory Party and Republicans instinctively understand this which is why all Hindus, Sikhs & non-Muslims familiar with Islam must vote with the Right.

I am very upset about the Aasia Bibi case and I find the response of Pakistanis of it to be simply bullshit. Shame on them and shame on Pakistan and shame on me.

Pakistan’s Hybrid Government and the Aasia Bibi Fiasco..

Omar Ali · November 2, 2018 · 25 comments

Aasia bibi is a poor Christian woman from a village in Punjab who was arrested for blasphemy in 2009. She got into an argument with some other women from the village while working in the fields (purportedly over her drinking from a cup of water and hence “polluting” it) and in the course of the argument she allegedly said something  “blasphemous” about the holy prophet of Islam. The details of the case are murky and no one seems to know for sure what blasphemous statement she actually made that day (the most commonly reported one is that she said something along the lines of “Jesus died for the sins of the world, what has your prophet done for humanity”; other versions exist; the investigating police officer claims that she said much more, but even quoting it wud be blasphemy, so look it up on wikipedia) but whatever the details, a case was registered under Pakistan’s uniquely harsh blasphemy law (a death sentence is mandatory in case guilt is proven) and she has been in prison ever since.

Related image

As usually happens in blasphemy cases, she was sentenced to death by the local court (local judges usually feel it safest to convict any and all accused blasphemers, expecting that the most egregiously wrong verdicts will be reversed by higher courts that have better security). Meanwhile her case had come to national attention and the governor of Punjab, Salman Taseer, visited her in prison and spoke of her getting a presidential pardon. He was attacked in the media as a supporter of blasphemers and one of his own body guards shot him dead. The body guard was arrested and eventually hanged, but his grave has become a religious shrine and several ministers (including some in the current Imran Khan government as well as the opposition PMLN) have visited the grave to pay respects to this “hero”. Continue reading Pakistan’s Hybrid Government and the Aasia Bibi Fiasco..

Why do nonmuslims treat muslims so badly (e)?

AnAn · November 2, 2018 · Comments Off on Why do nonmuslims treat muslims so badly (e)?

This is a follow up to:

The video of ISNA’s recently held meeting in Houston interviews many muslims supportive of, respectful of or interested in dialogue with atheist muslims and ex muslims. An accelerating trend among muslims who live in North America, India, South East Asia and Australasia.

Sadly many nonmuslims [anecdotally almost all caucasian] are interviewed who are deeply hostile to atheist muslims and ex muslims. The ex muslims are kicked out of Starbucks. The extent of hostility on the part of nonmuslims is hard to understand. Sadly this attitude of backing extremist Islamist or Jihadi muslims against reasonable muslims and reasonable people of muslim heritage is a serious “THING” among the world’s 6 billion nonmuslims. In this next clip Armin–protector of the Arya peoples–tries to engage in dialogue with many different hostile nonmuslims. Mostly unsuccessfully. Even atheist nonmuslims engage in xenophobic personal attacks against ex muslims and atheist muslims:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYhCm2sz-e0

Nonmuslims are also demonizing a moderate muslim, the fabulous Wajahat Ali:

Mr. Subramanian Swamy is one of the few prominent global nonmuslims who publicly acknowledges that moderate muslims are afraid of getting killed if they publicly critique extremists. Nonmuslims need to stand by moderate muslims and protect them from extremist muslims. So far Hindus (including Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs), Taoists, Christians, Jews, atheists and post modernists have been during a terrible job at it.

Continue reading Why do nonmuslims treat muslims so badly (e)?

Racing ahead..

X.T.M · October 31, 2018 · 7 comments

https://www.facebook.com/1534271790187013/posts/2206521042962081/

I have many swirling thoughts I want to write on but little time to write on them.

However the above graph is mesmerising to watch as they’ve cleverly made it into a race track competition. The story of China, Japan, US and Germany are the ones to watch.

It would have perhaps been better to aggregate the EU as a singular entity to give a better perspective on its relative size & importance.

Muslims have always known how weird Saudi Arabia is

Razib Khan · October 29, 2018 · 35 comments

I’m not a big fan of Hasan Minhaj’s “Millennial smug” style of comedy. What it really reminds me is Brad Stine’s “Christian comedy.” It’s aimed toward ingroups and comes off as tone-deaf and stupid to outgroups. So you know what you’re getting into.

That being said, as someone who is Muslim Minhaj has always “gotten” the issue with Saudi Arabia. Most Muslims I have known, from very conservative Salafi types to irreligious cultural varieties, have strange and strong attitudes toward Saudi Arabia. Even the most conservative often have mixed attitudes, because Saudi Arabia may sponsor Salafism worldwide, but no one can deny that the ruling family are hypocrites in their private practice.

Believing Muslims though have to admit that the Saudis are currently the guardians of Islam’s holy sites, and, the kingdom provides a great deal of money for various Muslim causes as well as Muslims more generally. And of course, Saudi Arabia has been a source of employment for many Muslims from outside the kingdom for many decades.

The fact that we are “having a discussion” about Saudi Arabia as if there is a discussion to have is a testament to the power of money in public discourse, and how one can buy elite complicity.

Great job to India

X.T.M · October 27, 2018 · 5 comments

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/oct/26/india-state-schools-revitalised-training-scheme-for-headteachers

I’m of the belief that Leadership drives everything. There is of course historical trends because of geography and deep-set cultural patterns however organisational and national success is often reliant on getting the best to the top.

At the end of Ancien Regime in Europe it was the mixed monarchy of the Hanoverians and the sustained + inspired leadership of the Prussians that really set the stage for Europe’s turbulent centuries ahead.

While Spain & Austria under the Hapsburg tottered on; the French under their Sun King eventually exhausted themselves into 2 centuries of Revolutions and Republics.

To tie it back into this piece; having inspirational school principals can obviously lift results. Also this program happens to be run by Isha Ambanis father-in-law so this could probably be a puff piece.

I do think that for India; Modi seems to be the best leader. Celibate, non-dynastic and ruthlessly focussed on the future of the country. I don’t like the man on a personal level but I respect him on a professional one.

I hold the inverse to be true for Imran Khan. I find him amusing and I’m sure he would be a charming dinner guest but I don’t think he has the ability to really lead Pakistan out of these choppy waters.

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