Thoughts, post the Paris Attacks

In what could only be termed as a barbaric, inhumane act in Paris, hundreds of innocent civilians have lost their life and multiple others remain injured, scared and scarred. While the group or groups of people responsible are yet to take “credit” for this, we can safely assume that this act alone will be enough to send the French Troops barging into multiple countries trying to smoke out those responsible with the French President already vowing vengeance.

The French people have received tremendous global support in the face of such audacious attacks, the chief being from President Obama who has termed the attack as an act not just against the French people but against humanity as a whole. All countries, rich or poor, small or big have voiced their support and solidarity with the French in this hour of grief.

The international outcry over the heinous crime got me thinking, however.
How valuable is a human life? Does its value depend on what continent you reside, what country you are from , what skin color you have or what nationality possess? To answer the question of, “Should It?”, of course it shouldn’t. All religions and beliefs teach us that all lives are sacred and that all are equal in the eye of God. So, then, why does an act of terror on European/American Soil produce global outrage whereas the acts of terror in the remaining parts of the world doesn’t even manage to produce a tiny fraction of that outrage and solidarity? Doesn’t this seem wrong? Doesn’t this clearly say that the life of the innocent kid that was killed by terrorists in France was worth more than that of the kid killed in the attack by Al-Qaeda or the American drone strikes in Pakistan?

According to the studies conducted by Brookings Institution, for every militant killed by the drone strikes in Pakistan, 10 civilians are killed. Each year, hundreds of innocent people are killed as a result of an act that they were no way connected to. When the bombing of a hospital in Afghanistan by the Americans, run by Médecins Sans Frontières, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, could not elicit a clear apology, what chance could the people have who live under constant threat of the Taliban/Al-Qaeda/ISIS and the American drones?

I’d like to further discuss about the swift and strong response from the American President, Mr. Obama. Yes, Mr. President, I agree with your statements entirely. However, Sorry to say this but you do not possess the moral mettle to speak about the act of war against humanity. America has historically been the largest exporter of violence and terror. There are documentary evidence of how the CIA created Al-Qaeda, how they have time and again used various terrorist groups and how they have supported dictatorial and extremist regimes as long as the American interest in the Natural resources and other Geo-political threats are addressed. Mr. President, please lecture the world on humanity when you have acted on the plight of millions of Palestinians living under the world’s largest open air prison, when the kids in Pakistan and Syria are not afraid to venture out in warm sunny days because they are afraid of the drones that you are using to kill “terrorists” and when the  Indian Government can no longer block the supply of daily necessities into Nepal.

In what has turned out to be almost a yearly process, an act of terrorism takes place in a Western country and the whole world comes together to condemn violence. However, the whole world either doesn’t care enough or is too scared to talk about the violence that those very countries are propagating. It’s ironic how in the name of the war on terror, by killing innocent civilians around the world, the Western countries are themselves creating the very thing they later have to fight.  It’s a hellish circle of death and destruction that is only fueled by the death of civilians, be it in the posh neighborhood of Paris or the dusty backyard of Damascus.

So, while strongly condemning the terrorist activities and the loss of lives in Paris, I would also like to condemn the blockade by India over Nepal, the act of terror unleashed by the “Democratic” western countries, the American policy of arming various militant groups for temporary gains, the inhumane blockade imposed upon Gaza and Palestine, the indiscriminate use of drones in Yemen, Syria, Pakistan et al. 

The first Impression paradox

Okay, so, let’s start with a simple fact.

How many times in your entire life have you heard the statement that “the first impression is the last impression?” Countless times, haven’t you? And most of us live our lives repeating this preposterous theory.

Let’s delve a little in the literal and practical implications of “first impression”. Going by the literal meaning, it sounds quite normal and practical even. It is supposedly unchangeable and thought to be a permanent marker against that person. Therefore, making a good first impression seems extremely important. Doesn't that play into our minds to somehow subconsciously affect our mannersims, the little quirks that actually supplement our personality?

The practical workings of a “first impression” is highly superficial and judgmental. The only thing you can possibly fathom about anyone from first sight is the looks and the way they speak and the way they behave with people in his/her immediate vicinity BUT with you, the observer, being in the picture. These things can, however, be quite misleading.

It is all about "appearances" in a first impression, the physical appearance of a person and the semblance of mannerisms. Let’s take a deep breath and think for a second. Did the person you see put on a show just for you or what you witnessed was the genuine side of the person? You just don’t have enough information to answer that, do you?

So, how about not letting an insane theory ruin anything even before it begins.

A fictional account of events that may or may not have happened.

[This is a story about a wealthy businessman named Golcha (fictional) and two of his hardworking labourers Mr. Chaudhary and Mr. Karki, (also fictional) in Biratnagar, lets say.]

Once, there was a huge "political" movement which crippled life in the entire region. Factories, schools, colleges everything was forcefully shutdown. Vehicles were burnt, passengers roughed up and shops vandalized. Through all this, the government seemed pretty sure that the misinformation used to create unrest would be decimated and that people on the roads would understand that they were being used as a political lifeline by some "leaders".The government failed to push the truth and hence the agitation kept going for more than 80 days and kept getting violent by the day. Now, returning to the main characters in this story; with his factory closed and nothing to do, Mr. Golcha headed for a Europe tour with his family. Mr. Chaudhary and Mr. Karki had no job and no source of income to feed their family. Their only hope for a better future, their kids, could not attend school and were losing interest in studies each passing day. Thereby, the hopes of a better future of both families were slowly fading into the foggy terai morning. Now, this here's a tricky part. Mr. Golcha, by virtue of being rich and powerful with a strong rich people union, was able to strong arm the government to waive any and all duties/taxes and even bank interest for the period of closure. Mr Chaudhary and Karki were, however, not fortunate enough to be rich. So, they did not get any of their interest(on smaller home loans) waived, nor did they get any salary for the days of closure. After another week of unrest and intense public pressure, the agitating parties signed an agreement with the government with multiple points which pretty much were already guaranteed by the same constitution they were protesting. But hey, in Nepal, we don't do introspection and we don't stop to reflect on our actions. All was worth it, right Mr Leader! So, normal routine started and the factories reopened and Mr. Golcha, Karki and Chaudhary all were back to work. But hey, Mr. Golcha is content. Who cares if the poor, helpless people are sad, am I right? Oh Shit! I forgot. That agitation was FOR these poor souls. Well who could begrudge that? Surely, "the Golchas" were the backwards, marginalized section of our community they all were fighting for, No? Surely now they are better off, right? Well, not quite. Turns out they are even worse off now. They were not paid for almost 3 months and their kids are now completely off their rails and do not want to go to school anymore. Well, tough luck! So, “what actually did the agitation accomplish?”, you might ask. The agitation was so successful that they managed to work out a system by which scholarships would be provided in higher education and quotas in Government jobs based, primarily, on the caste you fall. Later, while the sons of Mr. Karki and Mr. Chaudhary were scrambling in the bus depot to get passengers for their rickshaws, poor Mr. Golcha's daughter climbed aboard one of their rickshaw headed to the Medical college fully funded by the Government. OH CRAP! How did we get here?