....USCIRF@USCIRF Hindu Nationalist Group Seeking to Cleanse Christian Presence From #India Is Not Unlike ISIS, Watchdog Group Warns......David B. Cohen@DavidBCohen1"Watchdog" group likens BJP to ISIS, proving they've no moral compass. Moral equivalence is not moral, nor is @USCIRF......
....
People will continue to argue about the curious case that was the US ban imposed on Modi. Certainly it was unique in its application and needs in-depth probing. There have been many speculations as to how it came about. Our methodology is crude but simple: who benefits?
Certainly the goal was to make Modi unacceptable to...Indians. But indeed the opposite happened. His own people saw him as a victim and circled the wagons (and delivered three in a row victories in Gujarat).
....
As a result, at the national level, Modi was able to sell the story of a successful executive who could deliver on growth. This became a major point of contention between rival camps of economists (Amartya Sen against, Jagadish Bhawati in favor). Other people pointed out the poor human development indices for Gujarat. It was noted (correctly) that for disadvantaged people, Tamil Nadu is a much better place to be than Gujarat.
Our feeling is that people went ahead with gut feeling. The true battleground was Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Huge numbers of migrant workers from these states (and others) work in Gujarat. They are made welcome in a way (not a very good way admittedly) that they will not be in Tamil Nadu. As a result people accepted the Gujarat growth story at face value. It was going to be vote for Modi (as opposed to a vote for the BJP).
Then there were the issues of corruption and safety of women. Modi is clean in a way Tamil politicians are emphatically not. Chennai is pretty safe for women but Ahmedabad ranks #1 (and has done so consistently).
Eventually in the elections the DMK was wiped out...even the most solid forts crumbled. Corruption is not a killer under normal circumstances because the people accept the fact that both sides are equally corrupt. However this election we believe was different (it felt different). People, uncommitted neutrals, not fire-breathing bigots were simply furious.
We saw the evidence of this in the polling booth and (as we pointed out on these pages) it was the first time we were convinced that Modi will win in a big way. The VISA ban had backfired, badly.
Back to the question as to who really intended to benefit. Rajeev Srinivasan is (ideologically) on the right but it does not mean that his analysis is wrong. RS claims that it was a push from US based evangelists which convinced the US political establishment. Is this a valid claim?
The US Christian Leadership was indeed worried (justified in our opinion) that a Modi sarkar would clamp down on conversions (and as it is now been made clear) would try to re-convert people via the "Ghar Wapsi" program. The pogroms directed against the tribal Christians in Odisha (2008-2009) have certainly confirmed such fears.
The battle is now being fought in the open. The US Commission on Internal Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has fired the first salvo.
USCIRF@USCIRF Hindu Nationalist Group Seeking to Cleanse Christian Presence From #India Is Not Unlike ISIS, Watchdog Group Warns http://bit.ly/1AqCYSh
The fire has been returned, not by Hindutva-vadis but Americans keen on building economic (and political) bridges with India
David B. Cohen@DavidBCohen1"Watchdog" group likens BJP to ISIS, proving they've no moral compass. Moral equivalence is not moral, nor is @USCIRF
The US Christian Leadership must be very worried right now, if it came to a competition between dollars and bibles, the Americans will always settle for dollars. As proof, they have really turned on the charm offensive. If active persecution of Christians was bothersome to America they would never do business with China, Egypt, and Pakistan.
We are not suggesting that persecution of Christians have to rise to Caliphate levels for people in India to start complaining. The point is that USCIRF and the US Christian Leadership are picking a wrong battle to fight (and they will lose badly). If America turns its back on India today, why China is waiting with open arms (we just have to give them Arunachal Pradesh and the no-limit ATM will be turned on instantly).
The uncomfortable reality is that you will catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Comparing India to the Caliphate is not the way. The Bible advises us to turn the other cheek to violence. This implies it is moral courage and not brute force that will eventually win out. If the US Christian Leadership believes that God is on their side (and why not) then they will need to play the long game. They need to act like proper Christians and be patient and the kingdom on earth will soon be theirs.
...
Link: firstpost.com/modis-us-visit-will-be-all-pomp-and-of-little-circumstance
....
regards
....
People will continue to argue about the curious case that was the US ban imposed on Modi. Certainly it was unique in its application and needs in-depth probing. There have been many speculations as to how it came about. Our methodology is crude but simple: who benefits?
Certainly the goal was to make Modi unacceptable to...Indians. But indeed the opposite happened. His own people saw him as a victim and circled the wagons (and delivered three in a row victories in Gujarat).
....
As a result, at the national level, Modi was able to sell the story of a successful executive who could deliver on growth. This became a major point of contention between rival camps of economists (Amartya Sen against, Jagadish Bhawati in favor). Other people pointed out the poor human development indices for Gujarat. It was noted (correctly) that for disadvantaged people, Tamil Nadu is a much better place to be than Gujarat.
Our feeling is that people went ahead with gut feeling. The true battleground was Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Huge numbers of migrant workers from these states (and others) work in Gujarat. They are made welcome in a way (not a very good way admittedly) that they will not be in Tamil Nadu. As a result people accepted the Gujarat growth story at face value. It was going to be vote for Modi (as opposed to a vote for the BJP).
Then there were the issues of corruption and safety of women. Modi is clean in a way Tamil politicians are emphatically not. Chennai is pretty safe for women but Ahmedabad ranks #1 (and has done so consistently).
Eventually in the elections the DMK was wiped out...even the most solid forts crumbled. Corruption is not a killer under normal circumstances because the people accept the fact that both sides are equally corrupt. However this election we believe was different (it felt different). People, uncommitted neutrals, not fire-breathing bigots were simply furious.
We saw the evidence of this in the polling booth and (as we pointed out on these pages) it was the first time we were convinced that Modi will win in a big way. The VISA ban had backfired, badly.
Back to the question as to who really intended to benefit. Rajeev Srinivasan is (ideologically) on the right but it does not mean that his analysis is wrong. RS claims that it was a push from US based evangelists which convinced the US political establishment. Is this a valid claim?
The US Christian Leadership was indeed worried (justified in our opinion) that a Modi sarkar would clamp down on conversions (and as it is now been made clear) would try to re-convert people via the "Ghar Wapsi" program. The pogroms directed against the tribal Christians in Odisha (2008-2009) have certainly confirmed such fears.
The battle is now being fought in the open. The US Commission on Internal Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has fired the first salvo.
USCIRF@USCIRF Hindu Nationalist Group Seeking to Cleanse Christian Presence From #India Is Not Unlike ISIS, Watchdog Group Warns http://bit.ly/1AqCYSh
The fire has been returned, not by Hindutva-vadis but Americans keen on building economic (and political) bridges with India
David B. Cohen@DavidBCohen1"Watchdog" group likens BJP to ISIS, proving they've no moral compass. Moral equivalence is not moral, nor is @USCIRF
The US Christian Leadership must be very worried right now, if it came to a competition between dollars and bibles, the Americans will always settle for dollars. As proof, they have really turned on the charm offensive. If active persecution of Christians was bothersome to America they would never do business with China, Egypt, and Pakistan.
We are not suggesting that persecution of Christians have to rise to Caliphate levels for people in India to start complaining. The point is that USCIRF and the US Christian Leadership are picking a wrong battle to fight (and they will lose badly). If America turns its back on India today, why China is waiting with open arms (we just have to give them Arunachal Pradesh and the no-limit ATM will be turned on instantly).
The uncomfortable reality is that you will catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Comparing India to the Caliphate is not the way. The Bible advises us to turn the other cheek to violence. This implies it is moral courage and not brute force that will eventually win out. If the US Christian Leadership believes that God is on their side (and why not) then they will need to play the long game. They need to act like proper Christians and be patient and the kingdom on earth will soon be theirs.
...
Link: firstpost.com/modis-us-visit-will-be-all-pomp-and-of-little-circumstance
....
regards