2009/6/11 Indrajit Gupta <[email protected]> > > I have to mention that this refreshing freedom from jingoism and > self-serving cant is what endears Silk List to me.
I don't really see how Vinayak's statement can be classified as jingoism or self-serving cant, though the comparison to debilitating medical conditions might be a tad extreme. Are you seriously equating the condition of India and Pakistan today? The Maoist threat is very real in India currently, but not even close to what Islamic extremists are unleashing in Pakistan. A few weeks ago, Newsweek had an article in which the scenario of the Taliban capturing Islamabad and controlling Pakistan's nuclear arsenal was considered very much possible. Even the motivations for the Maoists in India (being left out of the economic boom of the last decade or so) and that of the Taliban (seemingly wiping out all "infidels") are in sharp contrast. All the three countries might have suffered from bad leadership, but are definitely not in the same state now. As I write this, just saw your update. "My complaint was not an equalisation of the two countries, I repeat. It was about the leadership, and not about equality between the two polities, nor about the respective institutions, nor yet about the processes both use". I just didn't want to waste what I typed up. Kiran
