Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site peora.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!vax135!petsd!peora!san From: san@peora.UUCP (Sanjay Tikku) Newsgroups: net.travel Subject: Re: Hedonism, visiting poor countries Message-ID: <799@peora.UUCP> Date: Tue, 9-Apr-85 14:19:40 EST Article-I.D.: peora.799 Posted: Tue Apr 9 14:19:40 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 10-Apr-85 06:00:48 EST References: <1452@decwrl.UUCP> <2351@mit-hermes.ARPA> Organization: Perkin-Elmer SDC, Orlando, Fl. Lines: 80 > D. Cherson had a unpleasant time at the Hedonism resort in Jamaica because > of the surrounding local people's poverty. I sympathize. An Indian friend > of mine has several times asked me to go and visit him in India, but my > feeling is that it would be like D. Cherson's experience. How can you spend > money on having a good time, knowing that the people around you are on the > verge of starvation? It's bad enough being well fed and having the option > of being well clothed while people elsewhere are starving and wear rags, > but I can't see going to their homes and flaunting my wealth. As my Indian > friend says, you get used to it, and perhaps it is hypocritical to allow > such poverty to exist in nearby countries--we don't make solving Jamaican > poverty an overly high priority--but there's a difference between knowing > that people are suffering and actually seeing them and ignoring them. > I couldn't enjoy Hedonism either. > > John Purbrick > decvax!genrad!mit-eddie!mit-hermes!jpexg > jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA As an Indian now living in USA I felt compelled to post a followup to the above simply because of its sweeping generalizations which in one swipe has covered America, Jamaica and India. It is apparent that the author's viewpoint is based on either limited or incorrect information. First of all, to encounter poverty, you don't have to travel to Jamaica or for that matter across the globe to India : New York will be sufficient. The plight of people at the lowest rung in this society is the same as the plight of people at that level in India. Ofcourse numerically there are more there but then for that matter the overall population is also 3 times more. The bottom line is that there are people starving in all countries including USA . This statement does not in any way include the current crisis in Africa because the situation there is abnormal. What irked me most in the above article was the impression it gives to the audience that India is a country where people are on the verge of starvation. No one will deny the fact that it is a poor country and the standards of living is much lower when compared to USA but the starving population is a minor percentage of the overall. Note that the population of poor people is not insignificant there but they are not starving. That society too has all kinds of level in the society : from the stinking rich to the starving people, but isn't it true of everyplace ? Many people are surprised to know that even the poor people ( not the starving ones) are content in their situation ! Can you imagine it , I guess not. The main problem in this country is that people have virtually no knowledge of the oriental countries beyond a superficial level and this is especially true of India. The main source of their information is the media and the less said about its biased projections and biased news items, the better it is. As a small example of the ignorance of the majority of American population, since the time I came to this country I have been asked countless number of times, as to how I was able to speak English. It shows that they don't know that English happens to be a major language of that country and the ONLY language which is understood in almost all parts of the country which has over 600 different languages and dialects. If you have read so far and are fuming over it then this article was intended for you. I have just one thing to say to John and other Americans of his thinking, If you want to see what the world looks like go out and visit some places beyond Western Europe also but please don't form sweeping generalizations from here because the image of the rest of the world is quite inaccurate. As far as enjoying in those places is concerned, well that depends on you : People who want to have a good time have it ( including in places like Jamaica) and those who don't, always keep cringing. -------------------------------------------------------------------- All opinions expressed in this article are strictly mine and do not reflect those of my employer. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanjay Tikku Perkin-Elmer,SDC,Orlando ..!pesnta!peora!san