He also asks some pointed questions about Indian cricket, including one directed at me. The question, slightly paraphrased, is: Why do Bengalis insist on supporting Ganguly, given his obvious incomptence as a batsman and his inability to captain the team to success?
It is an interesting question. Why indeed do Bengalis support Sourav Ganguly? I think there are two reasons.
Part of it is parochial regionalism laced with a healthy shot of narrow chauvinism. Who cares about the team, as long as a person from MY state gets to lead it, I suppose. And part of it is because Bengalis are idiots. Let me prove that second part.
When it becomes necessary to prove something true, it is sometimes easier to start with an assumption which is the opposite of what you believe, and prove that to be false.
Let us start with the assumption that Bengalis are NOT idiots.
Now picture this. It is the decade of the 70s in Bengal. The Mass of Bengalis (MOB, for short) who live there is doing its day job, sitting around, talking about cricket, scratching its ass, and generally getting on with life. Life is good. A few hiccups here and there, but the script is being mostly followed. One evening, as MOB is getting ready for dinner, it hears a knock on the door. A little ticked off, it being dinner time and all, it gets the door in a bit of a huff. And finds a greying old man, wearing a twinkle in his eyes and black horn-rimmed glasses on his nose, standing outside the door in the gloomy light of the late evening.
Five years pass. Bengalis are a little poorer, thanks in no small measure to the System. It is not too much cause for alarm yet, but a few large industries have closed their doors or moved their shops elsewhere because trade-unionism is getting just a wee bit out of hand. Adult literacy isn't even crawling slowly upwards, it's frozen. What was merely a trickle of illegal immigrants from across the Bangladesh border has become a steady and strong stream. Rumor has it that the old man is in the know and on the take about this immigration thing. He encourages it in exchange for support for his System by the immigrants. The state of West Bengal, which usually ranked in the company of a Maharashtra or a Gujarat when considering human development indices, is now increasingly being mentioned alongside a Bihar or a Uttar Pradesh.
Sure enough, after five years, Bengalis hear a knock on the door. The Old Man stands there, looking a little sheepish.
We know how this story ends, don't we? That Old Man is the Communist Party of India. And he has been in charge of Bengal's destiny for over two decades now, and counting. Bengal is near the bottom of the heap today--economically and culturally. Years of the Grand Old Man's dirigiste communism has beggared Bengal. Yet the Grand Old Man is in charge. Why? Because Bengalis have repeatedly elected him as their leader. And he didn't even have to resort to hard sell.
A group of clever, perceptive, foresighted people cannot keep choosing corrupt, rapacious goons to lead them. Goons that have made it a business of systematically impoverishing those that they rule. But Bengalis have repeatedly done this very same thing. Ergo, Bengalis are idiots. Not only that, they are masochists to boot.
IMHO, asking whether Bengalis are smart is like asking if the management of Apple Computer was smart. Both of these people took a promising something (a lead in technology in the case of Apple, an economy in the case of Bengalis) and totally blew it. Going by that rubric, no we are not smart.
Folk wisdom tells us that stupid people don't get rich. But how stupid do you have to be to actually travel in the reverse direction, to go from riches to rags?
At the time of independence, Bengal had a few things to boast of. What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow, and all that sort of thing. Or so I have been told.
And then we elected the Communists. And there was no looking ahead after that. Too, we didn't elect them just once, we elected them again. And again. And again. There are limits to how much one can flog himself, I would think. But no such luck here.
Today, Bengal is an economic basket case full of defeated people. It's industrial base is gone, thanks to rampant trade-unionism that has paralyzed manufacturing. Even it's much talked about "culture" is now flapping in the wind. I remember a time when Hindi cinema stole liberally from Bengali cinema (now they have switched to stealing from the South, the unoriginal bastards). Giants like Ritwick Ghatak, Bimal Roy, and Satyajit Ray strutted about. Now it's the reverse. Bengali cinema now looks to tired Bollywood movies for inspiration. Bengali literature hangs on, but only just. Adult literacy is barely over 50 percent.
There is glimmer of hope. The Leftists in Bengal are waking up, taking a whiff, and making noises about creating a pro-investment environment so that they don't miss out on the incumbent software boom. Having missed out on every other boom before this, they are not taking any chances with this one. But alas, I am a realist. Does the proverbial leopard change his spots? Nuh-uh. Do people really change? Nuh-uh. I have a feeling that the Commies are not quite done with Bengal yet.
Rather Lengthy Postscript:
(1) I do not write the above with any pride or glee. I am a Bengali and it brings tears to my eyes to see my people reduced. I have seen the hopelessness and helplessness. For quite some years, I lived it. So I know what I am talking about. And remember that I come from a background that is more privileged than most. I shudder to think of the Bengalis living close to subsistence under the Leftists.
(2) Any Bengalis reading this blog and intending to jump down my throat please note that starting to fix something is a two-step process. You have to first recognize that something is wrong with it, and then, determine what is wrong with it. And sometimes one must resort to rhetoric to get the first task done. The tale of the downfall of Bengal is not a splendid one. It cannot be told gently. I'm sorry.
Old Man: I'll get down to business without beating around. Guys, I don't know how to break it you gently; but you have made a frickin' mess of running things for yourselves here.
Bengalis: Beg pardon?
Old Man: A snafu, if I ever saw one. You, my dear misguided friends, need help. In my personal but studied opinion.
Bengalis: What the heck are you talking about? What mess? I think we've done quite well for ourselves. Our per-capita is among the highest in India. We have thriving heavy industries. It was a bit of bother losing that large chunk of land to East Pakistan during Partition because it was a good farmland and a source of raw material to feed the industry, but I think we'll live. Literacy is not great but increasing. It is in any case not significantly lower than any other state. Our educational institutions still rank among the best in India. So what gives?
Old Man: And that is your story?
Bengalis: Well, actually there's more. Not to boast, but our recent history is rather glorious, wot. We were considered to be the leaders in the fight for independence. From within us emerged veritable giants like Swami Vivekanada, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Sri Aurobindo Ghosh. Spiritually, politically, intellectually, economically, we were
pretty much swingin'. And the future looks good, we dare say.
Old Man: Snap out of it, guys. You haven't done squat. I have here with me what I call *fanfare* The System(TM). All I ask is that you try The System for sometime. Say about five years or so should do it. It takes a little time to work; what good thing doesn't? But if you think you are prosperous now, come meet me in five years after you've tried my System.
Bengalis: Well, okay.
Old Man (blinking): Huh? Okay? Did you just say ok?
Bengalis: Yeah, you heard us. Okay, we'll try it. You have an honest face.
Five years pass. Bengalis are a little poorer, thanks in no small measure to the System. It is not too much cause for alarm yet, but a few large industries have closed their doors or moved their shops elsewhere because trade-unionism is getting just a wee bit out of hand. Adult literacy isn't even crawling slowly upwards, it's frozen. What was merely a trickle of illegal immigrants from across the Bangladesh border has become a steady and strong stream. Rumor has it that the old man is in the know and on the take about this immigration thing. He encourages it in exchange for support for his System by the immigrants. The state of West Bengal, which usually ranked in the company of a Maharashtra or a Gujarat when considering human development indices, is now increasingly being mentioned alongside a Bihar or a Uttar Pradesh.
Sure enough, after five years, Bengalis hear a knock on the door. The Old Man stands there, looking a little sheepish.
Old Man: Okay, alright, before you jump down my throat, let me say it out loud myself. I know things are not so hot.
Bengalis: We wouldn't exactly put it that way.
Old Man: Alright, alright, go easy on me man. Sheesh. So things are super suckass. You happy now?
Bengalis: What's up with you? We think you've done a great job. Look around you. Things are so nice. We've never had it better. Here's our check, we'll buy another five year's supply of The System.
Old Man: (faints)
We know how this story ends, don't we? That Old Man is the Communist Party of India. And he has been in charge of Bengal's destiny for over two decades now, and counting. Bengal is near the bottom of the heap today--economically and culturally. Years of the Grand Old Man's dirigiste communism has beggared Bengal. Yet the Grand Old Man is in charge. Why? Because Bengalis have repeatedly elected him as their leader. And he didn't even have to resort to hard sell.
A group of clever, perceptive, foresighted people cannot keep choosing corrupt, rapacious goons to lead them. Goons that have made it a business of systematically impoverishing those that they rule. But Bengalis have repeatedly done this very same thing. Ergo, Bengalis are idiots. Not only that, they are masochists to boot.
IMHO, asking whether Bengalis are smart is like asking if the management of Apple Computer was smart. Both of these people took a promising something (a lead in technology in the case of Apple, an economy in the case of Bengalis) and totally blew it. Going by that rubric, no we are not smart.
Folk wisdom tells us that stupid people don't get rich. But how stupid do you have to be to actually travel in the reverse direction, to go from riches to rags?
At the time of independence, Bengal had a few things to boast of. What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow, and all that sort of thing. Or so I have been told.
And then we elected the Communists. And there was no looking ahead after that. Too, we didn't elect them just once, we elected them again. And again. And again. There are limits to how much one can flog himself, I would think. But no such luck here.
Today, Bengal is an economic basket case full of defeated people. It's industrial base is gone, thanks to rampant trade-unionism that has paralyzed manufacturing. Even it's much talked about "culture" is now flapping in the wind. I remember a time when Hindi cinema stole liberally from Bengali cinema (now they have switched to stealing from the South, the unoriginal bastards). Giants like Ritwick Ghatak, Bimal Roy, and Satyajit Ray strutted about. Now it's the reverse. Bengali cinema now looks to tired Bollywood movies for inspiration. Bengali literature hangs on, but only just. Adult literacy is barely over 50 percent.
There is glimmer of hope. The Leftists in Bengal are waking up, taking a whiff, and making noises about creating a pro-investment environment so that they don't miss out on the incumbent software boom. Having missed out on every other boom before this, they are not taking any chances with this one. But alas, I am a realist. Does the proverbial leopard change his spots? Nuh-uh. Do people really change? Nuh-uh. I have a feeling that the Commies are not quite done with Bengal yet.
Rather Lengthy Postscript:
(1) I do not write the above with any pride or glee. I am a Bengali and it brings tears to my eyes to see my people reduced. I have seen the hopelessness and helplessness. For quite some years, I lived it. So I know what I am talking about. And remember that I come from a background that is more privileged than most. I shudder to think of the Bengalis living close to subsistence under the Leftists.
(2) Any Bengalis reading this blog and intending to jump down my throat please note that starting to fix something is a two-step process. You have to first recognize that something is wrong with it, and then, determine what is wrong with it. And sometimes one must resort to rhetoric to get the first task done. The tale of the downfall of Bengal is not a splendid one. It cannot be told gently. I'm sorry.
(3) Rhetoric aside, this is what I truly believe. The intelligence of Bengalis is normally distributed with the same skew and kurtosis as the intelligence of any other group of people. Yes, I know my statistics; ha, ha. Put simply, they are no smarter or dumber than any other group of people. I would bet that if you took the normal curve of Bengali IQ and superimposed it on the normal curve of say, Bihari IQ, they would be indistinguishable. Nature is equally kind (or equally unkind, depending on your point of view) to every group of people. It is Nurture/Conditioning that makes our natural attributes appear different. And conditioning is a very powerful force. As a small example, consider the former East Germans and West Germans. Similar groups of people with similar natural attributes. Yet it took only two generations of good old Soviet-style conditioning to make them appear quite different from each other.
5 comments:
Hey Sougata,
That was brilliant - why don't you consider being an activist-writer? I think more people need to be shocked into knowing reality.
Cheers
Yikes.. that was a fairly simple question I thought.. I was expecting a response something to the effect of 'We're morons.. that's why..".. not a commentary on Bengali-hood!! In anycase, it was a hilarious read. You really should consider writing a book.
I am quite positive I can write about what morons Tamilians are. I suspect as we extrapolate this, we will find the people are morons in general. I infact believe we should have a Theory Z, which is- 'People are, Inherently, Bungling Idiots.'
Enjoyed this piece. Keep it coming!
Jyoti,
Thanks. I don't have you pegged as the kind of person who drips sarcasm, so I'll take your compliment at face value :-)
Flattering though it is to imagine myself so, I am neither an activist nor a writer. Bored, is what I am.
And a little amused at humankind in general. We are so excruciatingly funny.
BTW, are you back in Houston? Did Rita do any damage to your neighborhood?
Balajee,
I wouldn't really be Sougata Sarkar if I dispensed simple answers, would I?
:-)
A book? Balajee, you are my childhood friend. Quite possibly the only one. Do not be so unkindly funny.
Sougata.
Interesting reads Sougata and Balajee (must allow anon comments B). you sound fierce.
How about a post from you 2 to cool some of that rage, say, a post with a line or 2 commenting on these:
music that you like,
how you met your wife,
your fav pic of yourself-c'mon post just one,
if you had a million $$ would you still work where you do,
your pet peeve,
your high school sweetheart,
what you think death is,
if you could undo one thing...
Then we can seethe on....
Wonderful post.But now "we" are at a situation where the alternative is no better.The "systematic" degradation of everything - from industry to education to "mob culture" can not be reversed lik that - but where do we start?
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