A lot of uproar and hulla-baloo has been made about the recent findings of the CSF, regarding the levels of pesticides in the popular soft drink brands.And not only that, the point to note is that the level was more than 30 times the specified level is , a matter of greater concern.It is a known fact that the soft drink which we get in Atlanta----home of Coca Cola is very very different from the one which we get in Anand----Gujrat(For those who are perplexed by this nondescript name,it is the home of white revolution--Brainchild of Dr Vergheese Kurian).This is an example of GLARING DOUBLE STANDARDS ,which we hav had come to associate the United States of America with.Had the same findings been released in the US, people would have rushed to the courts filing lawsuits andseeking compensations for watever ills or danger to their lives .
In India, ""aisa nahi hota hai yaar"".Let me tell u what will happen.Firstly, some states , not all will impose ban on the sale of cool drinks.Secondly, a fact finding and fact verification committee will be set up.Thirdly , after 5-6 months (commissions hav gone on for about 15-20 years in india),and lastly everthing will be forgotten till the CSF comes out with the findings again next year.So why do people keep drinking soft drinks then????.let me give you my reasons and more importently -------Why do we allow us to be treated as second class citizens who can accept anything substandard compared to what exists in other countries-----
The main reason for such discrimination is WE ACT THIRD WORLDLY
or maybe to demonstrate our so called RESILIENCE---may it be in the case of mumbai bomb blasts , on the cricket field or for that matter, ON THE BATTLEFIELD.
A very good example to prove this observation of mine would be the case of cross border terrorism and the idea of bringing the perpetrators of crime against humanity , to justice.
We have been telling the World , by shouting at the top of our voice , calling for the need to bring
Pakistan(with all due respect to all those who are no way related to the activities of the terrorists ,that is to say the comman man) and we hav been giving evidence for substantiating our claims of these acts, but the entire so called FIRST WORLD OR THE CIVILIZED WORLD(TO SAY), has been turning a blind eye to our accusations.Only when the world felt the ""pinch of terror"", have they woken up to this fact.
They did not care to take action against the same people when we were being attacked ,they kept mum when our stock exchange and the air india building was bombed , they kept telling us to maintain calm after each incident of terror in Jammu and Kashmir,but woke up only when the horrifying incidents on the Sept 11 and to say July bombings of the London metro took place.
How does it matter to them if innocent lives of the people of asia ,africa and to an extent south america are lost.And the recent announcement of the British airport authorities to cross examine only those people"--- who are most likely to look like terrorists---",that is asian immigrants and people from africa who go to the Queen's Land in search of a better life.This is a gross violation of the very human rights of an individual or to say A PARTICULAR SECT OR GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS.
Add to it the phrases such as
SMOKE EM OUT(by GWB after 9/11)
IF YOU ARE NOT WITH US,YOU ARE WITH THEM
WE FEEL SORRY FOR THE ACT OF TERROR ON YOUR COUNTRY , BUT HEY MAN LOOK AT THE FLIP SIDE .
YOUR COUNTRY HAS TOO MUCH POPULATION,HOW DOES IT MATTER IF A FEW THOUSAND ARE REDUCED.(i made up the last one)
only corroborate their lack of respect and their lack of regard to the concerns of India
8 comments:
Good one! U started off with cola and then slowly shifted to teh topic of America. it would have been bettter u would have put the subject as Double standards because, that is what u summarise at the end
Hmm A nice article to say the least.. But quite openly put for a debate.
First things first.. Dont know much about the Cola thingy(I dont even care about it). But about the terrorist topic that you raised and say that the US government is not helping you. Food for thought but, what are you? Are you (meaning..Indian govt.) so gay enough that you cannot protect your own people and at every slightest of actions sob around saying US didnt help us. US attacked Afghan, they Attacked Iraq, because they had faced terrorism(Iraq is a total case all together). Why cant you(Indian govt. again) do something when terror strikes your own house why would you want a teesri galli ka goonda to help you in your problem. You have been seeing this dDOUBLE STANDARDS from USA for ohh-so-long, and you still wanna crib about it.!!! I dont understand!!!!!!!!
Sumeet
Vikram and sumeet's comment make a valid point for your blog.
I like your viewpoint being anti-west, but lets go through what u said:
1) Coca cola would not be such a financial conglomerate if it intentionally discrminates between various markets, i think(iam not sure though) that coca cola has regional offices to take care of each market autonomously. Regarding the quality of drinks in Atlanta and Anand, well it does depend upon the financial and social conditions(the amount you are willing to pay for each drink). Well as you said, the MNC operating in USA would be more pragmatic with the option of lawsuits/compensations etc and inturn willing to maintain the safety standards.
so does that mean that western people are more social conscious and goverenment do respond for their rights? what about us - Indians?.
2) Well the second part, it's a different story. So do u blame USA for not helping with the militancy in India. Well you need to protect your home and not blame others for not helping you. So i guess it comes to this argument - do u want to respond like India(showing restaint) or Isreal(being offensive) and both have their consequences. Regarding lack of respect, i think you need to earn Respect.
Economically, we are climbing the ladder when compared with so called civilized western world, socially iam not sure though.
I like the views you bring to the table, so why don't you write something on Reservation policy, eductaion standards etc.
Ravi
well , i certainly dont want US to fight our war or surely dont want them to interfere with what i consider our internal aafairs,but let us accept it ,even a small hint of support by US, is a great confidence booster.look at israel.
i am just sayin that they turn a blind eye to all the attrocities that befall us
one good example wud be that i dont think there would not be much hulla baloo ,,wen we commemorate the 1 yr anniversary of mumbai blasts than that which happened wen london bombings 1 yr anniversary.
well i am not personally into cola but would like to bring out a few points
1. a fw weeks back noted economist gurcharan das wrote in sunday times of india that one cup of tea in india has pesticides equivalent to 3000 bottles of cola . there was no hoopla created over it because these facts were never publiscied and the fact that almost all inidans have tea daily is an irony ..
2. we should not blame the cola companies , if we cannot effectively ban ciggrates and tobaaco from the country which being much harmful than colas we have no right to ban colas
3. it ultimately becomes a matter of choice but wisdom comes at an age when one no longer needs it . one must abstain from taking cola ourselves rather than wait for the government to take some action. if everyone is so serious about their health, one must abstain .
4. this typically shows our mentality of hating MNCs for no apparent reason we still have not come out of the nehruvian socialism era of public good etc.ask any indian to give up tea and just see his face
there was so much more to say
anyways a good blog nevertheless .. keep bloging
ya i agree that it is ones own decision wat one shud do regarding his or her own health.but the issuse here is of a larger scope.thi is not regaring to cola or terror.it is an issue of equality of humans.the west in my view make a lot of noises for however small the matter may be but in india this is very commanplace thing.same as the case with cola too
buddy, I accept wat u said...
I must say nice observation..
But wat can we do for this.
We can just add some more silence to it.
The thing is that we can revolutionize all this...but need to think wat can work-out.
and the heck i thought bout all these time and again....
only one thing stands talll
u can jst criticize all this...ntn more.
wat the heck of thinking all this.
U may feel it all to be very rude.
But i feel practically it goes this way only.
great write up dude.. btw, its not CSF its CSE.. ur points were downright pertinent.. Keep them coming..
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