As the city sank, Chennai became the definition of the idea of India
- Thread starter v.Na5h
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An article written by a politician conveniently ignoring the reality of the situation.
There will always be some good Samaritans every where and such people do not allow their religion or anything else to come in the way of helping people,
but do also consider this
What about the govt that that tried to stop volunteer work and supplies unless its branded in their own name. What about the scrimmaging for credit by everyone.
What about the plight of the guy who warned about the danger long before it happened and dared to expose and penalize the contractors responsible for the shoddy repair work that made this extent of damage possible and got a transfer handed out reward for doing that.
http://www.catchnews.com/chennai-ne...ning-about-the-chennai-floods-1449389949.html
What about people spreading hate on social media. Some North Indians commenting on the lines "Black negros of TN need to drown and die because they are a blot on Indian culture". Then there are those asking people to boycott Sharukh Khan movies because he apparently did not do anything for the flood victims.
What about the extortion by hotels, transport providers, stores and the lot. Floods? no problem. Its good for business. Its prime time to create artificial shortage and mark up the price on everything and make a tidy profit.
What about people providing rescue services with boats to the highest bidders.
Do these sort of things really happen any where else in a country that could be termed as decent? While we remember the good done by a few people, lets not forget the really ugly side as well and begin reveling in the false notion of greatness.
There will always be some good Samaritans every where and such people do not allow their religion or anything else to come in the way of helping people,
but do also consider this
What about the govt that that tried to stop volunteer work and supplies unless its branded in their own name. What about the scrimmaging for credit by everyone.
What about the plight of the guy who warned about the danger long before it happened and dared to expose and penalize the contractors responsible for the shoddy repair work that made this extent of damage possible and got a transfer handed out reward for doing that.
http://www.catchnews.com/chennai-ne...ning-about-the-chennai-floods-1449389949.html
What about people spreading hate on social media. Some North Indians commenting on the lines "Black negros of TN need to drown and die because they are a blot on Indian culture". Then there are those asking people to boycott Sharukh Khan movies because he apparently did not do anything for the flood victims.
What about the extortion by hotels, transport providers, stores and the lot. Floods? no problem. Its good for business. Its prime time to create artificial shortage and mark up the price on everything and make a tidy profit.
What about people providing rescue services with boats to the highest bidders.
Do these sort of things really happen any where else in a country that could be termed as decent? While we remember the good done by a few people, lets not forget the really ugly side as well and begin reveling in the false notion of greatness.
psyph3r
Skilled
^^ You really think he donated after seeing those Facebook posts? He is ranked among the top 50 philanthropists in India and has apparently donated over 25 crore for various causes in India last year Those posts were nothing more than blind hate mongering.
psyph3r
Skilled
Lol you take the internet too seriously man.
It's obviously done to earn some goodwill since Dilwale releases this month, he was also slammed earlier for voicing his opinions on that intolerance BS so this is just PR work not something totally out of kindness. Any contribution is good ofc but my point was not everything is so benevolent as it is portrayed.
This is straight from the letter to Amma.
"On behalf of Red Chillies Entertainment and Team Dilwale, please accept our contribution of Rs 1 crore to the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund."
We all know about Bollywood's underworld connection and how it is a front for converting black money to white, he's known to inflate box office collections especially in the case of CE and Happy New Year and I don't really have to mention the irregularities with KKR.
Most of it is done to get tax sops while also improving public perception, you must also think that Zuckerberg donated 99% of his wealth to charity or how Bhai is helping the poor with the Being Human initiative.
If anyone has to be commended over this flood thing, it's this guy.
It's obviously done to earn some goodwill since Dilwale releases this month, he was also slammed earlier for voicing his opinions on that intolerance BS so this is just PR work not something totally out of kindness. Any contribution is good ofc but my point was not everything is so benevolent as it is portrayed.
This is straight from the letter to Amma.
"On behalf of Red Chillies Entertainment and Team Dilwale, please accept our contribution of Rs 1 crore to the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund."
We all know about Bollywood's underworld connection and how it is a front for converting black money to white, he's known to inflate box office collections especially in the case of CE and Happy New Year and I don't really have to mention the irregularities with KKR.
Most of it is done to get tax sops while also improving public perception, you must also think that Zuckerberg donated 99% of his wealth to charity or how Bhai is helping the poor with the Being Human initiative.
If anyone has to be commended over this flood thing, it's this guy.
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derp
Disciple
Various causes? You mean to say movie promotions??
In that case, Amir Khan is the numero uno!
^^That's fine by me as as long as this money is getting used for a meaningful purpose ultimately. That is still one way that money is getting put to good use regardless of what he is getting in return.
I know perfectly well that all philanthropy ultimately has ulterior motives behind it. People always expect something in return.
There are those who do it to get rid of excess black money or to stash black money. There are those who do it for fame and recognition. For instance, I have seen colleagues who donated 1000 bucks to a charitable trust for the construction of an orphanage and a school and then they collected some sort of certificates that they were providing and put them up for display at their desks. Some of them even have framed mementos related to some other contribution up for display. Then there are those who get 80G for the donations and avail tax exemptions. Lastly the most common return people expect is to score some brownie points from their God so that they can gain entry to heaven or at least in general to obtain a favorable after-life.
If you go by the definition of giving something without expecting anything in return, people benefiting in any of the ways above have no high ground compared to this guy.
I know perfectly well that all philanthropy ultimately has ulterior motives behind it. People always expect something in return.
There are those who do it to get rid of excess black money or to stash black money. There are those who do it for fame and recognition. For instance, I have seen colleagues who donated 1000 bucks to a charitable trust for the construction of an orphanage and a school and then they collected some sort of certificates that they were providing and put them up for display at their desks. Some of them even have framed mementos related to some other contribution up for display. Then there are those who get 80G for the donations and avail tax exemptions. Lastly the most common return people expect is to score some brownie points from their God so that they can gain entry to heaven or at least in general to obtain a favorable after-life.
If you go by the definition of giving something without expecting anything in return, people benefiting in any of the ways above have no high ground compared to this guy.
As far as I know, from the first hand accounts of various friends and relatives who were stranded in Chennai, the common public overwhelmingly put aside all differences in terms of caste, creed, religion, wealth, and everything else and came together to brave the odds. I feel it is not right to belittle their contribution and ignore them. I totally agree with what you mentioned about politicians and party workers.. They were their usual shameless selves. They will always be like that. But that doesn't mean you talk only about them and ignore the ground reality.
People came together to help their fellow beings like no other time. Almost every place of worship, irrespective of religion, opened its doors to accommodate the homeless. Even malls and schools and universities opened their doors to let people stay sheltered from rain. People in safe places cooked hundreds or thousands of parcels of food to distribute to the needy. As an example, the local branch of docs in my town had sent a few truck loads of relief material like clothes, blankets, rice and milk powder and such stuff in the past week. People from every other major town and city have been doing the same. In fact, the businessmen from whom materials were sourced were happy to help. Most of the items were provided at less than cost price. Transporters agreed to send the relief material by lorries without charging a single paisa.
I am sure most people in the state know all these. But the rest, who rely entirely on media for news about Chennai/TN rains, might not be aware of the extent of help that came from the common man, just for the sake of helping out his fellow people. Check out a message that were circulating in whatsapp:
If you see, most of the names in that message are unknowns. There were hundreds of such messages with so many people coming forward to help. That was really heart warming, and restored my faith in humanity a little.
P.S: A little optimism doesn't hurt anyone. Rather than focusing on where things went wrong, let us also appreciate the little rights that do happen every time.
P.P.S: That article was a POS. There were no politicians helping out anywhere. All they did was take credit for someone else's work. And every party was the same.
And regarding the contributions by actors and sportspersons and businessmen, I pray to God it really reaches the public. I would have been happy if these people had organized some sort of camps and provided help directly, rather than add money to the relief funds.
^^ Yes, A lot of places and individuals did start opening their doors to others after a point, but not every one was lucky enough to see such generosity.
One of my Aunts former colleague (a teacher) and her sons family who lived in Chennai were not so lucky. After their house got submerged, they could not find accommodation in any hotel or any other place they tried and ultimately had to travel to Sullurpet in a boat with little more than the clothes that they were wearing. To add to their misfortune, this is the second time that they have lost a house.
My Uncle and aunt who were also in Chennai were lucky enough that their flat had no issues and the flooding in their area was no where near bad and the only thing they had to face was inflated prices. They apparently had to buy drinking water bottles at more than 10 times the normal cost even when the stocks were freely available.
Also have few other distant relatives in Chennai about whom I have yet to hear.
One of my Aunts former colleague (a teacher) and her sons family who lived in Chennai were not so lucky. After their house got submerged, they could not find accommodation in any hotel or any other place they tried and ultimately had to travel to Sullurpet in a boat with little more than the clothes that they were wearing. To add to their misfortune, this is the second time that they have lost a house.
My Uncle and aunt who were also in Chennai were lucky enough that their flat had no issues and the flooding in their area was no where near bad and the only thing they had to face was inflated prices. They apparently had to buy drinking water bottles at more than 10 times the normal cost even when the stocks were freely available.
Also have few other distant relatives in Chennai about whom I have yet to hear.
derp
Disciple
So you do concede that religion, willingly or unwillingly makes a man philanthropic...by fear or by will....
derp
Disciple
Why are you so pessimistic? Why are you glorifying the deeds of few miscreants and overshadowing the hard work of good people? You views are no better than that of some extremist who to brainwash others, overlooks the good existing in the society and paints a portrait with the bad bits!! It is pretty common in all your posts. You highlight the negatives....
Actually No.
First of all, It ceases to be philanthropy when you expect or get some favor in return. At best its a bribe or a trade.
Secondly, most people donate to religious institutions than more meaningful purposes when they are trying to score some points with their Gods. The volume of donations that temples get in contrast to that of any charitable cause is proof of that fact. Donations for religious institutions are not considered as philanthropy at all. The definition of the word itself means that you are putting your effort/money for the betterment of fellow people (by trying to solve some problem) and not for your own or your Gods.
Technically speaking, Sharukh's donations are also not philanthropy if he is doing it for promoting his movies and the only reason its getting counted as philanthropy is because he is donating it for social causes.
What I was trying to say is that its fine by me even as a fair trade if that money is getting put to good use. Its still better than giving that money to a religious institution. I am not saying that its philanthropy. On the same note, it would be great if more people start donating to meaningful causes than to religious institutions even if its with the expectation of scoring some points with your Gods.
The problem with people like you is that you try to only acknowledge the occasional good even if you find it only here and there after looking through a microscope while totally ignoring all the wrong abound that is glaringly visible.
I on the other hand like to acknowledge both the good and bad things. We should acknowledge and appreciate the good things (not brag about it) and at the same time acknowledge and absolutely criticize the bad things that we see. Acknowledging and pointing out a problem is the most fundamental prerequisite to do something about it.
You hold the country to a very low and rather cheap standard and then try to brag as if its the greatest in the world when in reality its no where close and getting worse each day due to this kind of attitude. You close your eyes to things that are wrong with our country and expect that nobody else is able see it because its not visible to you anymore. Rest assured you are not the only one doing it either as most people in our country are like that.
Unlike you, I hold the country to a higher standard. I don't care how bad US or Saudi or Pak or whatever other country is compared to India in whatever category. Another country being a shit hole is not an excuse for our country to remain one too. So, I only care about how better our country needs to be to come anywhere close to justifying all that bragging that our countrymen do on a regular basis.
derp
Disciple
Lol! How did I miss this post I wonder. Maybe my alert system has started to filter out ludicrous posts. Anyways,
You post glorifies the fact that whatever happens, you want to and will nitpick about something or the other. Your relationship is like a mitherinlaw- daughter in law sorts , where no matter how good the other is, or whatever the other does, one of them would compare it with some utopian example. Well, allow me to remind you that the grass is greener on the other side as it is fertilized with bullshit!
You talk about American tolerance and Indian ignorance. If you are following the news, which I doubt, you will come to know about the atrocious remarks made against Muslims by a republican candidate. Also, the abhorrent disregard to other cultures still falsely claiming to be the original melting pot. This is the level of grave ignorance which exists, not everywhere though, but I am striking the same chord, revealing the same level of reality which you are referring to in case of India. Lastly, if you find so much faults in this nation, why don't you do something about it, rather than pouring irrelevant and biased views anonymously on forums. From your posts, it is pretty evident that you would love to live your life as a second class citizen with limited rights in some distant "utopian" land of your dreams. Mull over it...