- Patriotism IS about being concerned about your country, but it IS NOT about staying in another country, and ranting about what’s wrong in your own country.
- Even worse, patriotism is NOT about complaining that the people who still live in their country are making it “go through hell”. Yes, there are untruthful insincere people in Nepal. But there are people who do the best at whatever they do, and actually care about the country they live in, and it’s people. Sure, we can’t decrease the amount of loadshedding per week or make the availability of petrol better, but at least we’re not running away from the problem.
- What annoys me more about these cranky whiny NRNs (non residential Nepalis) is that they whine about things:
they don’t have to live with,
they don’t have a solution to,
they don’t even care about fixing. - The whiners should mind their own buisness. Or they should invest in Nepal. AND they should stop saying bullcrap about how “No lights, No Gas, No Security” correlates to “No King”. You know, those of you who live in forward un-StoneAge countries should know that most of the countries in the world (including our very own USA and France and Italy and Singapore and India and China and blah blah) are republics. Or at least you should know about Google and try to verify stuff before making statements.
- Of course I can understand the fun of working at a “gas station” (the thing that a petrol pump suddenly starts being called once you step into America) and whining about a country that’s literally on the other end of the world. But for those who have to listen to the amazing quantity and level of bullshit whining you do, it’s TORTURE.
Well, CLARIFICATION: I AM planing to go abroad to study. But I’m not gonna stay there forever, or whine about my country (and complain about how different people have contributed to it’s bad state) from a “gas station” abroad with no intentions of coming back.
Of course, Patriotism, the concept, is itself interesting. For some people, borders don’t matter. Borders are just for the rulers, the kings who capture lands to feed their own egos. They think that, at least to them, their SOCIETY is more important. Depending on the people, this may be ethnicity or caste or religion. But for someone who comes from a so-called “upper” caste (not that Brahmins have more to eat than anyone else in the same conditions) those don’t really count. For me, my society is more or less my country. (and then there’s Asia and then the World, but those come later.) Anyways, my thoughts on the “patriotism” issue also apply to other forms of “responsibilty towards one’s society”, which I think HAS TO exist.
Quite a heavy topic there, huh? Comments please.
Dear M,
A few things:
- You should start blogging seriously. You make some insightful comments about Nepal from the perspective of an educated high-schooler. Your comments as you come to the US soon to study will be equally insightful.
- Going along with the above. Can you link to the article you are complaining about? Or are you complaining about relatives? Frame it better. Introduce what they are saying first.
- The same standard you apply to residential Nepalis you should apply to NRNs. Just like there are people in Nepal that seem to be actively destroying it, and those working to fix it for the better, there are NRNs who care, and are looking for productive opportunities to come back for. You blanketly stereotype NRNs while complaining against blanket stereotyping of residential Nepalis (RNs). You need to be a little more complex in your argument.
- Whining from abroad is not utterly useless. Having had the opportunity to live in and understand two cultures, I understand that one of the most valuable things in life is to look at one thing from the perspective of another. Being overly negative and utterly inflammatory (correlating no lights etc… to no king is just stupid) doesn’t do this, but there can be productive whining. Having said that, I don’t think most whining is productive. But perhaps you should encourage productive whining instead of attacking all whining?
Not to say I’m patriotic. But perhaps one can be, without residing?
Comment by prabhu — December 28, 2008 @ 2:56 am |
Thanks Prabhu
for the comments. Means a lot to get such long comments, because it gives me the feeling that people read my blog carefully. And for the comments on the “insightful comments” and “educated high-schooler” thing too.
And the outburst is a reply to a cousin of Aama’s who thinks that reisdent Nepalis are not patriotic enough. High-command (the parents) “discouraged” me (more like instructed clearly) not to email him, so I decided to rant on the blog. Which is probably why I’m steriotyping NRNs. But I’m not complaining about NRNs in general, you know, just the ones who complain about how others are inactivewhen, like I’ve said, they don’t even CARE about fixing the problem, or have to live with it. What would be more effective would be their challenging corruption control (the lack of it actually) or the Government’s decision CONSTRUCTIVELY, and NOT do any of that “no lights no king” thing.
And I think you ARE a patriot. You’ve spent a large portion of your teenage (and life after that) abroad, but you were so interested in Nepal when you came year before last. I think what we need is people who will come back with expertise when they’re done studying. Good manpower. Efficient people who care.
Comment by malika47 — December 28, 2008 @ 11:02 pm |
“Going along with the above. Can you link to the article you are complaining about? Or are you complaining about relatives? Frame it better. Introduce what they are saying first.”
Are you a @#$!ing English 101 professori? It’s a blog. She can write whatever she wants and it doesn’t have to be some kind of a complaint about somebody!
Productive whining? Yes, it’s the same as fine dining! Okay. oops. Sorry , I am not supposed to comment on the comment(s) , am I ?
The kid is going to Amrika or wherever! I feel sorry for her! She will miss load shedding, nepal bandh, traffic jams… what not!
“You need to be a little more complex in your argument.”
What? Maybe, you need a Vitamin B-complex pills, prabhu dada (the dancing man from the South!)
Just kidding! I am not a patriot! I don’t know who is and who isn’t?
Life in Nepal vs US, UK, AUS, ???? You might not be independent as you would like but once you get used to load shedding and our political leaders and their bitching… then you don’t want to leave Nepal. I am not leaving Nepal anytime soon. I had had enough of that CNBC, PBS, NY1 shit.
For less than 5 bucks, you get HBO, Cinemax, some Russian/German/Korean/Chinese/Japanese/Bhutanese/Indian/Pahadi/Madeshi/JanJaati channels!
By 2010, I should be fluent in 5-6 foreign languages.
It’s 5:51 am. Time to milk the cows!
Comment by guffadi — December 29, 2008 @ 5:53 am |
Hey Guffadi,
Thanks for the long comment, and for sympathising with me becasue I am (NOT) going to miss load sheddings and traffic jams and nepal bandhs.
Although u’ve dedicated most part of ur comment to starting a cat-fight with Prabhu. (lol)
I didn’t understand- “For less than 5 bucks, you get HBO, Cinemax, some Russian/German/Korean/Chinese/Japanese/Bhutanese/Indian/Pahadi/Madeshi/JanJaati channels!” I pay 400 bucks per month for my cable channels, and would die to pay only 5. Hehe.
Comment by malika47 — December 29, 2008 @ 8:33 am |
Sorry.
5 Amriki bucks = approx. 400 Nepali bucks!
And wishing u all a Happy New Year!
Comment by guffadi — December 29, 2008 @ 6:45 pm |
Sometimes I hate the fact that need to sound so suck up ish to the kuireys in my essays…. one essay asked me: Please describe a daily routine or tradition of yours that may seem ordinary to others but holds special meaning for you. Why is this practice significant to you? as a student of sociology the question istotally wrong… first as intellectual people they need to understand that perceptions towards cultural traditions are geographically relative what is ordinary to us here might be extraordinary to them… lol
any way my sociological analysis of the reson why NRNs whine so much is because they are made to bear the status of 2nd class citizens there.. here they’re not citizens any more.. the duality of thier citizenship probably causes them a certain anguish that the pour on the relatively better residential nepalese here…. (Inspired by the Frankfurt school.. Theodor Adorno)
thanks
Comment by Gargi — December 30, 2008 @ 7:47 am |
http://www.hindu.com/mag/2008/12/21/stories/2008122150130300.htm
a different perspective
have a look
Comment by Gargi — December 30, 2008 @ 7:56 am |
Nice link, Gargi, thanks. Totally worth reading.
Comment by malika47 — January 3, 2009 @ 3:51 pm |
Hi, I loved this blog! I was referred to your site by a friend who reads your blog. I’m starting an online mag called VENT! (we’re on facebook under V.E.N.T.) and have a blog section. Wondering if you would be interested in featuring your blog on our site. The site is dedicated to emerging writers and visual artists in nepal and abroad (nepalis or people who lived in nepal).
Please contact me at yukomaskay@gmail.com. You can also find me on Facebook under Yuko Maskay or at the V.E.N.T. group.
Thanks!
Comment by Yuko — January 19, 2009 @ 6:33 pm |