"Bagger Vance" & Doniger on the Gita

[Bhadraiah Mallampalli]

>India is one of the most repressive and reprehensible  state as far >as
>freedom of speech is concerned and to claim otherwise and try to >compare
>with US is hypocritical at best.  Record of India is no >better than that
>of Iran or Afghanistan in this matter.

This can't be generalized because every ruling party was different. Mostly
when Congress party rules, you won't see any exciting news. When others rule
there is lot of news, either because they are in a hurry to show some
results, or they respect freedom of speech.

Some censorship is needed to protect innocent people. How about listening to
a Viromax ad driving with family? Sorry if this offends some one. While
Rushdie's book was censored, publishing of its most notorious contents in
national news papers was "NOT" censored and we read every word of it. A
discerning reader was never denied what he wants to read. It is upto you if
you compare to Pakistan or Afghanistan.

Journalism picked up well in Indian youth as an adventurous career  after
Gurumurthy's success. India may have a long way to go, but stereotypic
attitude and remarks of US and BBC reporters don't measure up.

>Victors always write history and demonize the losers.

That is precisely what I am saying. I don't want anybody to apologize for
past wrongs. But Prof Wendy Doniger seems to think that the present peace
and tranquility in developed world has just "happened" some how. On the
contrary it happened because of past victories and present deterrence. As a
activist for pacifism she has a right to say what she wants to say, and
pacifists even opposed world wars, but giving a one-sided presentation to
"students" is not a professional attitude. A professor has to give a
complete view, and state one's own views at the end of the class. It is a
role conflict (confusion about svadharma) between being an activist and a
professor.

Re: creation teaching in school:
Apologies if anybody took offence. My opinion is that such stories may not
mean what they appear to convey. It has to be studied by scholars, but told
to children as a mythology. I don't think semetic religions are kitabi, but
they were made so.
Regards
Bhadraiah
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