As I was scoffing down my lunch (I jest; I actually eat really healthy food) a thought came into my mind that a good book title would be “The Post-White World.”
Since 1492 (when Granada fell and Columbus set off) there has been an increasing consolidation of the West. It reached its apogee in the Victorian Era, where it was unabashed racial hegemony, and it took two World Wars to really shake it off. It’s interesting that Islam experienced so much “innovation” in the 19th century simply because the incursion of the West was finally being internalised. Continue reading The Post-White World
One of the interesting things about asking people whether they would come on this blog’s podcast is that they often say “I don’t know if I’d be that interesting to the audience….” More specifically, there isn’t always a South Asian “hook” to some of the episodes.
But the name of the podcast is “Brown Pundits” because this podcast was started by a few brown guys. Not because we discuss purely “brown” things.
One of the most interesting things I have experienced over the past 15 years or so interacting with young Indian Americans, usually of Hindu background, is the disjunction between the scripts that they are inculcated with in their education in broader society, and the quite nationalistic/parochial perspectives that are imparted to them by their parents.
You can say many things about me, but there isn’t much of a disjunction in what I will say you to privately about controversial topics and what I will say in public about controversial topics (the main skeptics of this view are some Hindu nationalists and Zionists, who are convinced that I’m an Islamic supremacist sleeper agent).
So, I when I began to spend some time around Indian Americans one of the peculiar things I was a bit surprised by his how different their extremely social justice Left external presentation could be from what they might say privately over some drinks, or if they perceived you to be an intimate acquaintance. Since my views on Islam were well known many of them felt quite free to openly state their privately skeptical views on the religion of Islam and the practices of Muslims, which reflected what their parents had told them, while in public these people might still denounce Islamophobia. People who would criticize caste privilege in public forums might still be privately smugly proud of their family’s caste background. And, the same people who might perceive American patriotism as to be jingoistic and declasse would express Indian nationalism that they had absorbed with their mother’s milk in private in the crassest of terms.
But there does come a time when you leave your parents’ home, and their influence. And I don’t interact much with Indian Americans on a day to day basis, but I do wonder if many progressive Indian Americans are bringing their two aspects into alignment, and shedding their private chauvinistic reflexes?
An analogy here might be young American Jews, who until recently were quite liberal in the American context, but might align with more ethnonationalist views in relation to Israel (even if they supported the Left parties in Israel, those parties are still more nationalistic than similar parties in the United States). Today the two views are coming into coherence, as most younger American Jews who are not orthodox are starting to distance themselves from Israel.
Opposition politicians genuinely co-operating cross party today to listen to @GretaThunberg and key voices from #Youthstrike4climate about what needs to happen to tackle our climate emergency.
I had posted this last night but saved it in the draft. I just heard a story about a Bursar of a Cambridge College telling an *Asian* lighting Engineer that he should watch out with the lighting because otherwise you can’t see “black people in the dark except for their teeth.” Continue reading The unconscious whiteness of Britain-
There were plenty of indications that some kind of incident was going to occur. Some Muslim Leaders/Politicians had warned the govt of possible terror attack, some even naming possible suspects*. The incidents or information were either ignored or worse perpetrators were released.
*This is quite different from main stream Tamil politicians who kept shielding at minimum or encouraging the LTTE who were referred to as our “boys”. eg SJV Chelvanayagam, Amirthalingam etc who finally were assassinated by the “boys”.
Possible reasons for Inaction by the Govt
a) In fighting within the govt and finger pointing at the previous Rajapakse regime.
b) Current govt and President were elected on a minority vote and reluctance to clamp down on a segment of their constituency.
A simple timeline
a) December 2018. Buddhist Statues vandalized in Mawanella
d) March 2019: Mohamed Razak Taslim, Minister Kabir Hasims’s Coordinating Secretary is shot by muslim extremists. Taslim had been assisting the CID in investigating December 2018 vandalizing of Buddhist statutes.
e) April 2019: Easter Sunday Massacre targeting Christians and Westerners: 300+ killed.
**Wanathavilluwa is kind of middle of nowhere, big (for SL) rolling coconut Farms/estates and scrub jungle, but still a center. 10 km from Wilpattu National Park (Jungle). 140 km from the Colombo center. From nearby Kalpitiya or Karaithivu by boat approx 100 km to Dhanuskodi or Toothukudi
Ancillary Information
a) National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ) and leader Mohamed Zahran (Abu Ubaida) also called Moulvi Zahran Hashim were responsible for the massacre.
Mohamed Zahran (Abu Ubaida) also called Moulvi Zahran Hashim
b) Note there is Sri Lanka Towheeth Jamaath (SLTJ)., Ceylon Towheeth Jamaath (CTJ) and a Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamaath.
c) Apparently Moulvi Zahran Hashim and NTJ have/had YouTube videos in Tamil calling for killing of Kafirs (non Muslims) and jihad. The local villagers say those videos were common and had watched at least some of them.
What can be done
a) Stop teaching of Arabic after school.
All the Muslim children in this village do two hours of Arabic lessons after school. Prevention is better than cure
b) Moulavi/Lebbes/Imams visiting Pakistan or Saudi Arabia should be kept under investigation.
c) Madrassas should be investigated.
d) Either heavy military presence in mono ethnic enclaves, including Jaffna. Or change in population composition, if needs be by State intervention, so be it.
e) Foreign Aid, donations cannot be to a single ethnic group or religion.
Some excerpts from News http://www.ft.lk/top-story/Blame-game-over-terror-attacks/26-676853 Meanwhile, Highways and Road Development Minister Kabir Hashim claimed that some of the members linked to the NTJ and suspected to be responsible for the terror attacks on Sunday had earlier been arrested over the Wanathawilluwa explosives raid on 18 January but were later released. “I have been informed that one or two persons that were arrested during Wanathawilluwa explosive haul were released by the Police because of political influence. There is speculation that one person that got released was involved in a suicide attack on Sunday,” he added. However, Hashim said that he could only confirm this information within the next couple of days. Police also identified the suicide bomber of the Shangri-La Hotel as Imzaan Seelavan. Presenting evidence before the Colombo Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, Police said that Seelavan’s wife, his brother and two children had died in the explosion in Dematagoda on Sunday. Seelavan, who was an owner of a factory in the Wellmapitiya area, had about 100 people in his employment, Police told courts. Nine of his employees had been arrested during a joint operation by the Colombo Crimes Division and Terrorist Investigation Department (TID). The nine suspects were remanded till 6 May. Court ordered Police to conduct an in-depth investigation and present the findings to Court. The magistrate also gave permission for Police to obtain phone records of the nine suspects. The three Policemen who died in the Dematagoda blasts were posthumously awarded promotions.
There it is, guys. The seemingly secular Razib Khan let's slip that he holds hatred towards "self-righteous white saviors" (by which he means white Christians). But would that hatred go away if they were brown Christians? Not on your life.
— Vikram K. Chatterjee ?????? (@VikChatterjee) April 21, 2019
You people. You people….
I specifically avoid using the term “secular” because I long ago learned what that means to Indians (just like we all know what “family values” meant in the 1990s in America).
(also, this idiot follows me on Twitter…at least as of when I posted this)
More than 137 people have been killed and more than 150 injured after coordinated bomb blasts hit a number of high-end hotels and churches in Sri Lanka on Sunday.
The blasts, reported to have occurred in the cities of Negombo, Batticalo and the capital Colombo, targeted at least three hotels and three churches as worshippers attended Easter services.
Bodies of the dead have been received at Colombo National Hospital, according to hospital sources. Most of those injured were also taken there, hospital officials said.
Please post updates in the comments.
Update: New York Times seems to be reporting Islamists.
87 years ago in a small village outside yazd called Hossein Abad
“Just to tell you a little story, the gentleman in the middle with white beard is my great grandfather who’s holding my mum in his arm.
His father had seven sons and they were Zoroastrian and one day he told his sons that he has seen a sign that Shah Barham has come and he asked them to investigate and they all did and became Baha’is,”
I came across this on social media and I found it amusing in light of the discussion on the Kalash of Pakistan. Continue reading The Kalash of Iran
This was something that was suggested on Twitter (or emerged out of a discussion on Twitter): why can’t the Kalash have the option of relocating to Ladakh? It’s not that different of an ecosystem, and there would be less cultural pressure to change and/or threat of assimilation.
The Indian government imposes a no-contact policy for the Sentinelese for the sake of their cultural and biological integrity (they would probably die of disease). I’m not proposing this for the Kalash, but at least bringing them to Ladakh would prevent the imminent threat of assimilation, though the individual appeal of Delhi would still be there.
There’s a lot of anger from Hindu nationalists online. Often toward Muslims. I get the reasons. But this is something that is constructive and positive. The Kalash are not a fossil race. But they preserve something that is unique and soon to be lost to the world.
One of the most interesting things I have experienced over the past 15 years or so interacting with young Indian Americans, usually of Hindu background, is the disjunction between the scripts that they are inculcated with in their education in broader society, and the quite nationalistic/parochial perspectives that are imparted to them by their parents.
Pats the head of a little child before he walks into the church and detonates the bomb.
https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2019/04/22/sri-lanka-attack-new-surveillance-video-kiley-pkg-lead-vpx.cnnAnswer to Indthings, whatever/whoever that is.
Not quite. for the post cannot link to YouTube.
Listen to the words, Purusha, Sayura Mauri, Safari.
Mali so distant away seems so like Like a desert Sri Lanka.