Desi In Toronto

Did you see the Simpsons “same-sex” episode last night? It was a nightmare come true for most of the conservative’s morality!! Gays kissing, same-sex marriage left, right and centre, sex change etc. It was great watching the episode. I have been watching the Simpsons off and on in the past 3 years and each episode is unique in some way. Lately I have noticed that more and more social and political issues have been put into the stories. I think that’s a great way to promote an opinion although I am sure the conservatives probably cry “foul”. But is it more fun to ridicule conservative’s issue or liberal issues? What do you think?

I personally love it when a conservative tries to put across his/her views in morality terms. “Same-sex is illegal because it says so in the bible”, “Theory of evolution is no better than creation theory”. When I read and hear statements like this one I just laugh and hope that not many people believe this. Have you ever heard of Ann Coulter? I used to find her comments inflammatory but when I read her commentary now, all I do is laugh as to how can a person be so incredibly stupid. Some of the (incredibly stupid) comments from Ann Coulter are as follows :-

• The ethic of conservation is the explicit abnegation of man’s dominion over the Earth. The lower species are here for our use. God said so: Go forth, be fruitful, multiply, and rape the planet–it’s yours. That’s our job: drilling, mining and stripping. Sweaters are the anti-Biblical view. Big gas-guzzling cars with phones and CD players and wet bars — that’s the Biblical view.”
• My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times building
• It would be a much better country if women did not vote. That is simply a fact. In fact, in every presidential election since 1950 - except Goldwater in ‘64 - the Republican would have won, if only the men had voted
• They [Canadians] are lucky we allow them to exist on the same continent (ed - my favourite)

Look at this post on belmont club. This just goes to show how a large number of American think. When I read such blog enteries my blood just begins to boil and I want kick the crap out of these guys. But let’s cool down and think this through.

What is America’s position in the world today? Before you dismiss this silly question just ponder on it and you will probably come to the same conclusion that I did - America is at the helm. There is no other way to put it. It is at the forefront and all nations, no matter what the their position might be towards America, always look towards her for leadership. Why? Because we have recognised that She is the most technologically advanced, most enterprising and the most wealthy country in the world. These qualities give her power and the recent Iraq and Afghanistan escapades have only strengthened this outlook.

Before you dismiss the above statement, consider that Iraq and Afghanistan are slowly and steadily becoming stable. There are still a huge number of problems but there is no denying the fact that the two countries are beginning to find their feet. For all the wrong that America has done in the past 3 years (and for all the wrong that they are still doing), Iraq and Afghanistan are in a unique position to make something of their respective countries. This just boosts American power. And how is this power to be used? Tone things down a notch and use her “soft” power (the threat to use her power). That’s what is happening in America now. As much as I hate to say this but what America is doing now is what any country would do in their position. Use threats to get the right thing done.

Unfortunately, this threat is being used by the current administration in every situation possible. I mean what was the point of pulling out the US ambassador from Syria a few days ago? What is the point of raising tensions with Iran (reminds me of the spring of 2002 when similar thing was done against Iraq)? Instead of using Her soft power judiciously, the current administration is just raising tensions by misusing the power in every situation possible. And that is what most of the people in America don’t get. It just reminds me of the line from the Spiderman movie : “With great power comes great responsibility”. The current administration gives every signal of being an irresponsible “spiderman” and that’s what pisses me off.

The funniest movie scene :

Movie : Dragnet

Starring : Tom Hanks & Dan Arkyod

The Scene :
It is the last scene in the movie. DA (who plays an uptight cop) is waiting for TH (who plays a happy go lucky womanizer) to arrive in front of the police station. And when TH does arrive, he is riding on the back of a police motorcycle by driven by a policeman wearing the full gearing including a helmut. The rider parks the motorcycle and TH hops off and faces the rider. The rider takes off the helmut to reveal a beautiful woman who looks at TH seductively and asks

“Will I see you later?”

TH : “Oh I have to. I am wearing your underwear!!!”

********

What’s your favourite funniest scene?

My uncle came to Canada in Dec. 2004 from India. He is planning on going back in April 2005.

My friend came from Pakistan in Feb 2002. He plans to go look for work in the Middle East by the end of 2005.

A friend of a friend came to Canada and in two months went back.

My wife (a dentist) has been trying to get her licence for the last 2 years. To become a dentist an immigrant has to give an “entrance” exam to the 2 year fast-track dental program in the universities here. The entrance exam involves an intense exam, a 5 day long practical and an interview. If you don’t clear either one of the phases, next year you have to start all over again. In frustration, she is looking at universities south of the border. If she clears their (relatively easy) selection process, we will be moving to the US.

Why? Why is this happening? What’s so wrong with the system that an immigrant with a 18 year experience in the banking sector in India (and abroad) is wrapping Hershey chocolates here in Canada?

This aspect has been brought up again and again by the immigrants, commentators and government funded surveys. What happens after that…..Nothing. Until the cycle begins again in a month or two. It’s easy for the general population to read the articles on this problem and then ignore it but for the likes of me who have to see the above mentioned people everyday, living with extreme frustration, the head just spins with questions. The obvious ones are :-

1) Why can’t the immigration authorities be more clear during the selection process on the hardships that an immigrant might face?

2) Why can’t the business sector accept the fact that the immigrant would be a strong asset?

The less obvious ones are :-

1) After being told by friends and family in Canada about the hardships, the immigrants still pour into Canada. Why?

2) After coming over to Canada and seeing the situation with their own eyes, why cannot they go back?

The answers to the first set is best given by the Canadian government. At this point they are holding seminars, holding meetings etc. Will something become of these meetings, only time will tell.

The second set requires deeper understanding of the people involved. Generally speaking, people come to Canada to seek a better life. Better compared to what? If an immigrant is from a country persecuting a group of people then one can understand the statement. But for someone like my uncle who was well settled in India with a house of his own, a steadily rising affluence, why did he come to Canada? In such a situation you have to look at the personal circumstances. There could a number of circumstances under which a person choose to uproot himself from a settled life and move to a totally unknown place.

There is also a general reason why people are moving in droves from India to Canada. India has a lot going for it at this point and people in India are beginning to rise up to the fact that the country might actually have a future. But this is a “high level” thinking. The fact remains that the daily life in India is an extremely frustrating experience. There are problems with electricity, water, corruption, intense competition etc. Living in India is not easy. Period. The things that we take for granted here are not the norm in India. E.g. In Delhi for a toddler to get into a good school, he/she has to take an exam!! Wait that’s not it…the parents will be interviewed!!! Wait..that’s not it. The selection committee will discuss the toddler and the parents will be asked to show their finances!! And then the child is selected. What happens in Canada? You put in the papers to the school and they tell you when and where the child can start. Can you see how much of a relief this is for the parents from India? Since most of the children go to a public or catholic school, the competition to get into the “best” school does not exist in Canada.

This is just one example. There are literally hundred more. But as I mentioned earlier, with the growing affluence of India, the potential immigrants will reverse their decisions and this does not bode well for Canada which depends on immigrants on pratically everything. The other day I saw a headline saying that the number of immigrants buying homes is dropping and that is having an effect on the heated home market. That’s just one example of the impact that an immigrant may have on Canada. With the birth rate in Canada falling (click here) and with the average age steadily climbing (click here), Canada can ill afford to have a backlash in immigration.

These days I have been listening to The Velvet Underground. I love their music, their shocking lyrics, their unkempt sound and their total disdain of the boundaries of rock ‘N’ roll. And this was in the 60s and 70s!! Their music is raw…that’s the word that comes to mind when you hear them…RAW.

This fascination with VU started with Edgar Allen Poe. I have always been inclined to tragic stories or stories with “sad’ ending (weird, I know) which is why when I came across Poe, I was totally taken up by his writing. Then I found out that Lou Reed had released a CD titled “The Raven” which was a collection of stories, poems and songs from and based on the writings of Poe. After I brought the CD off eBay, I listened to it and was immediately struck by how effectively Reed (and other actors like William Dafoe and Steve Buscemi) were able to translate the horror and tragedy of Poe’s work to the listener. The opener, The Conqueror Worm, is awesome!! And the CD continued to build from there. I then purchased a couple of VU albums (again from eBay) and the journey has been fantastic. Each of the songs that I have listened to so far has been like a breath of fresh air. The best part of VU is that no subject is taboo. They discuss everything and anything under the sun. Their sheer audacity is best displayed in their music, though. According to the (faithful) allmusic.com all the four albums released by VU have been different and each one has laid the frame work for subsequent artists. I can’t wait to acquire all the VU work.

Japnaam’s post asks why are we enthralled by American politics? And why is the American president respected more than the Canadian prime minister? Japnaam and some of the comments make interesting reading but I think I can add a little bit more to the discussion.

My argument is that what happens in America touches everyone in the world. Be it her foreign policy, domestic policy, environment policy, garbage policy etc. etc. etc. The decisions that the American politicians make, in one form or the other, touch a poor farmer in the middle of India. But the converse is just not true. This is is one of the main reasons why American politics is followed so closely. And when an American administration starts to make controversial decisions that “following” turns into a deluge of opinions. Everyone has something to say about the Americans.

As regards to why the American president is “respected” more than the Canadian prime minister : For the same reasons above. An American president projects power; With an multi-million dollar PR machine behind him, the president is built up as an the ultimate authority on the state of the world. Such power demands respect. This is just not true in case of the Canadian prime minister. But to me that is a good thing. I would want to look across the restaurant and see an ex-pm eating like a normal guy. That tells me that a Canadian prime minister is accessible. This does not happen with a American president. He is the almighty figure and if you try to get too close to him then see you in Guantánamo Bay.