The NOT-SO ''beautiful''

REVIEW OF A SPEECH BY P.SAINATH, ON "GLOBALIZATION OF INEQUALITY" :

GOOSEBUMPS, accompanied me all throughout this video. And even a 'tinge' of bitterness. It took me an hour and a half to digest what I just heard. And probably more to reduce my temper and feeling of 'feeling sick'.

The title grabbed my attention. "Globalization Of Inequalities" . It was honestly, a striking title. I could decode it in two ways, One that inequalities are now Gobally prevelant. Second, Globalisation has lead to a considerable rise in inequalities. Which way? You have to decide.

First of all the '59 mins' , at the bottom of that window slunk my patience. Probably , you'll feel the same too :P. But still, it somehow started off. Suman sir asked us to write some points down. I tried scribbling somethings, but trust me. I hardly wrote a few words..I was gaping at the speaker!

The contrasting situations in the today's world was the essence of his talk, flavoured by striking examples almost of which I was highly unaware of. Starting with alarming situation in Vayanad ( I hope i spelt it rite) , where farmer's suicides have become an everyday's-news, he contrasted with the exposure of oppulence in the Metro city of Delhi, where theme wedddings (ONE acre of land---ONE Model of a monument---ONE wedding---for only ONE half of a day---spending so much money which I probably can't earn for ONE whole lifetime !). HUH. First rise in temper.

Unfolding 'The Seattle', he showed how , this heart-breaking incident had risen the indices of five major stock markets to their 'historic-high'. People rejoiced the leap , while the-affected suffered. One man's joy, another's life. The life's of the hundreds were meaningless to the stock market, yet they were meaningful in rising it. How?Smell of reconstruction dollars, he says. The greater the misery ,the better the stock exchange. How insane can that be?! Sensex, is the misery index, he says. He says with bitterness and sarcasm, that the generosity was deeply genuine, and was deeply appreciated by the fishermen who were wondering what to do with the 'neck-ties' given to them! Heights of insanity.

Forcibly destroying around 84,000 huts was a barbaric act, in Mumbai , of which I never heard of, till I saw this video. Why isn't it covered in the news?! The Govt. , a scared-cat as,their voting rights were also suspened. Heights of Injustice. Second rise of temper. Bitterness started. The saddest part was when a Bulldozer driver was feeling so bad to destroy their huts, but was forced to do it. I hate the Govt. Simply, hate it was the first thought which came to my mind. Bastards, our politicians are. There was a astonishing but true mail I had got a few years back. Where it quoted a question. "Which the organisation in our country, where 99% of its members involed in scams, 80% had illegal wealth, 96% involved in aqusition of Govt lands, them and their off-springs involving in murders, violation of human rights ,rapes , drugs and alcohol?" I was wondering.. After scrolling down, it said "The Parliament"

Generosity, had reached its essence when bed-nets had been sent to people who dint have beds. Globalisation of communicable diseases, he says. SARS had come into the news because it affected the ''beautiful" people. But severe cold which affected many 'old' and 'not-so-beautiful' people did'nt even make a bottom corner in the newspapers. Providing cheapest drugs for anti AIDS provided by an Indian company, was again intervened by the MNC's (in Pharmacy) and prices rose. And we wait to get placed in such MNC''s.

The top 20 % consumed EIGHTY-SIX % bottom 5% live using only 1.2% . These inequalities have been growing faster in the last 15 years , than the last FIFTY years . The top 20% of the world have doubled their net-worth in the last four years.Alarming such examples, he stated. Couldnt believe they almost shook me up, totally.

He ended his speech narrating the stunning story of Nero, an inhuman King, who burnt prisoners alive to provide light to a dinner-party to all kinds of people to win their hearts. I thought how could people stand and have dinner when others are dying of pain?! But when he said "WE are Nero's guests", I was taken aback. The whole speech dint strike me as much as this one line did. Yeah, YOU and I. WE are Nero's guests. We eat at not 42 rupees a kilo of rice, but at the cost of a farmer's death. At the cost of hundreds of hungry, working to reach the morsel to our mouths. INHUMAN, aren't we?