| Username |
Post |
| ashu |
Posted
on 11-Jun-03 06:42 PM
This caught my attention:
>>>>>>>>>At a time when political concerns overwhelm our vision of the country, Kanak Mani Dixit will talk about present-day Nepal as reflected in the challenge of spinal injury. He will probe into societal issues while discussing: why women fall off trees and why porters slip off trails; the true challenge of mountain rescue; the dramatic increase in bus accidents; the link between road mishaps, unprepared youth and motorbike financing; the anti-public trend in public health. All this in the context of a national society in free fall. Finally, why are there now bullets lodged in some spines? <<<<<<<<
I have a lot of personal and professional respect for Kanak.
He is just an amazing/inspiring person.
But for purely academic reasons, I would be wary of any approach that valiantly tries to, say, EXPLAIN Nepali "national society" through the lens of spinal injury -- not that such an approach should/could not be adopted.
[Two years ago, I attended a program in Kathmandu that was titled "how to pull back the country from the brink of chaos"?]
Let's face it: Spinal injury itself is a SERIOUS ENOUGH of an issue in and of itself, and awareness about it must be raised, and it's in everyone's interest to understand why preventable spinal injuries happen anyway in Nepal, and what we can do to minimize injuries and deaths.
But to tie up such a serious issue with the so-called "society in free fall" (whatever that means!) notion, is stretching matters a bit too far. Let me explain.
I mean, it's one thing to talk -- with appropriate medical references -- ONLY about spinal injuries to retain the UNIQUENESS of this sipnal injuries issue and to underscore its importance, its gravity, why it needs money.
It's another to make it a part of some grand-sounding "society in free fall" notion,
which -- to me, anyway -- sounds like a bit forced connection.
Yes, for argument's sake, there may well be a connection between spinal injuries and society in free fall in Nepal. But if that is so, then there also exist similar connections between, say, AIDS and society in free fall in Nepal, TB and society in free fall, depression and society in free fall . . . and on and on.
If these all these connections are true too, then where is the UNIQUENESS of spinal injuries alone that allows us -- as per Kanak's topic -- to pay SPECIAL attention to them?
*********
On a larger level though, and this is a general remark, in recent times, in Nepal, I have seen famous journalists and op-ed writers (with almost no formal training in using social science methodologies, I might add) advocating, en masse, for an adoption of "social science approach".
Suddenly, you are made to feel that it's not enough to be a mere journalist,
honing your craft and reporting the truths as you see/find them.
Now to exert gravitas, you have to be a junior professor of anthropology/sociology on the side, and give your readers/audience an oh-so-serious "social science" perspective
on anything you write/talk about.
This social science path, often smacking of elitism, would have been justified had there been a system of peer reviews and evaluations and had it led to more knowledge.
Since there is no such system of peer reviews and so forth, the results -- let's be honest -- often become hilarious, confusing and earnestly boring and full of forced, false, tenuous connections, to say the least -- doing damage, I'd argue, to BOTH jounalism and social science research in Nepal.
Finally, journalists are journalists.
Trained social scientists are trained social scientists.
Being a good journalist is as good as being an good social scientist, and vice versa.
Sure, there are people who CAN indeed move from jounalism to social science research to back again to journalism and vice versa -- but those people are too few anywhere in the world.
Meantime, let's not confuse one field for the other, and let's stick to understanding one thing DEEPLY without rushing to put it in a context of something larger, which may or may not fit in with it.
oohi
"all in the interest of tossing and turning with ideas and thoughts"
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 11-Jun-03 07:56 PM
1. Kanak's spinal injuries rhyme with the nepali phrase"'Bhatkya Ghar ra Bigrya Manchhe Jata heryo ootai vwang". He may be right looking everything using that lense in the current Nepali context.
2. Most journalists= Jack of All, Master of None?? I would be surprised if they can't write or talk about Einstein's theories, etc. They just need some clues...ehehehe...
I don't think if there is a fine line between journalism with other disciplines.... I am more concerned about YELLOW Journalism that sometime leads to an accident like Shrisa Karki's suicide...
3. Peer reviews in local journals? I wonder how you got such radical view!! That thing exists when one want to publish in professional/scientific journals. It may also exist in worldly reknown journals like National Geography, News Week, Business Week but not in local patrikas... Did you mean peer reviews=censorship??
To my experience, peer reviewers grill authors when one submits a paper for journal publication...Though it could be a painful, but most enjoyable moment when things get published....
What I admire about Journalists is that they know how to craft stories....
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 11-Jun-03 10:51 PM
Bhunte wrote:
"Kanak's spinal injuries rhyme with the nepali phrase"'Bhatkya Ghar ra Bigrya Manchhe Jata heryo ootai vwang". He may be right looking everything using that lense in the current Nepali context."
Fair enough!
The analogy holds on a topical level, yes.
But whether the ANALYSIS too holds, I am not sure (and here would like to be proven wrong). And my posting -- with immense respect for Kanak intact -- was an attempt to point that out, to stimulate some thinking, and to bounce off some ideas.
And I do have some background to be making comments like this.
That's because the seminar I mentioned "how to pull to the country back from the brink of chaos" (Nepali title: Bheer bata desh lai kasari joa.gau.nay), was actually organized by Kanak two years ago in Kathmandu.
The seminar was attended by many social scientists and journalists with this supposed "social science" perspectives. Many solutions were offered at the time; many perspectives were offered with CERTAINTY -- but two years down the road, it has become crystal clear, to me anyway, that despite the tone of grave certainty at the time, the speakers just did not know what they were talking about in terms of problems and solutions. [And, you know what, that's OK, provided these people admitted their ignorance!]
In the last two years, the reality is that the country has moved FURTHER along the chaos curve, and my CONCEPTUAL point is that: journalists and social scientists in Nepal might as well START admitting that they just do NOT know ENOUGH about why things are happening in Nepal the way they are happening.
Such an admission of ignorance would be refreshing, and would actually be a blessing because then these people will be FREE, be child-like, to ask the relevant questions and
then search for answers. [After all, let's face it: how to account for uncertainties is actually ONE crucial thing that good social science research actually teaches us.]
And so, sooner that humility comes collectively to Nepal's high-end journalists and social scientists, the better and more ready will they be to ask searching questions and then start putting together evidence to find answers that make sense.
Until then, I am sorry -- barring a few first-rate exceptions (Pratyoush Onta and Seira Tamang, for instance) -- we in Nepal will continue to have:
a) social science research that starts and ends with closed certainties (and inspire no one to ask further questions) and
b) journalism that serves up true-sounding analogies as hard-nosed analyses.
And the result?
Bad social science research.
Pretentious journalism.
******************
Bhunte further wrote:
>>>>Peer reviews in local journals? I wonder how you got such radical view!! That thing exists when one want to publish in professional/scientific journals<<<
Again, let me cite one specific example.
When Khagendra Sangraula writes about -- as he has wrtten -- the need for journalists to maintain a social science perspective, he does not even care to define, much less explain, what he means by that. He just flings it out, as though it were a good thing in and of itself. Ditto for Kishore Nepal and others.
[The phrase "social science perspective" has become Nepali journalism's equivalent of Panchayati mantra "bikas ko mool foo.tau.nu parcha". True, yes; but what the hell
does it mean?]
Sangraula's editors apparently do not ask him just what this social science perspective
is; neither do his readers, it seems. And so it goes . . . the unchallenged, unexamined slogan that "journalists need to maintain a social science perspective."
Some sort of check needs to be there. This was my point; NOT that I, as a reader, would want Kantipur daily to read like the American Economic Review :-)
Finally, as a reader, my point to high-end Nepali journalists is this: Don't pretend that you are some social scientist. You are not. Don't have this "social science" millstone around your neck, and continue to suffer from a, well, "social science envy", so to
speak. Be the damn good journalist you can be, and you bring honor to your
profession.
All said and done, Nepal needs better journalists and better social scientists.
What Nepal does NOT need is first-rate journalists trying to pass themselves as third-rate social scientists by way of specious analogies, and, occasionally, competent
social scientists trying hard to be second-rate journalists.
That's all.
Again, let me make this clear: I am posting this only to provoke some thinking (a good social sciene tradition!), and NOT to disrespect anyone.
oohi
"neither a social scientist nor a journalist -- but friendly to the professions of both, and enjoy thinking about/discussing Nepal's various intellectual practices"
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| thapap |
Posted
on 11-Jun-03 10:59 PM
ashu dai,
i was looking for some answers and thought that you could help he out here.
how is the same family one brother be Communist, other brother be royal supporter and the third be congress
is this so common? or am i being too conceited. same parents. probably same upbringing and so-called political beliefs so apart.
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 05:19 AM
>>>how is the same family one brother be Communist, other brother be royal supporter and the third be congress <<<<
No idea, Thapa bhai.
No idea at all.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| allare |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 05:45 AM
Ashu wrote:
[The phrase "social science perspective" has become Nepali journalism's equivalent of Panchayati mantra "bikas ko mool foo.tau.nu parcha". True, yes; but what the hell does it mean?]
I do not want to go in detail due to lack of time, but just want to ask one thing about above line.
Ashu, if you do not know, what the hell does it mean in above sentence, then how could you say "True, yes;"
You might have asked How but not what.
|
| Deep |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 07:45 AM
"how is the same family one brother be Communist, other brother be royal supporter and the third be congress "
May not be always true but smells "awasarbad" or "smart move" to me in such scenario. No matter who rules, tyasko bau ko ghiu ta afnai bhag ma.
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 08:19 AM
>>>[The phrase "social science perspective" has become Nepali journalism's equivalent of Panchayati mantra "bikas ko mool foo.tau.nu parcha". True, yes; but what the hell does it mean?] <<<<
Allare,
The phrase "bikas ko mool foo.tau.nu parcha" is a truism.
Who in her right mind will ever disagree with that statement?
But what exactly is "bikas", and what exactly is its "mool"?
No one explained it -- and the slogan went on and on, until it died off.
Likewise, on the surface,"social science perspective" sounds good, grand,
academic and even rigorous. But what exactly does it mean in the context of
Nepali journalism?
An example:
About a month ago, Vijay Kumar, in his weekly TV program, departed from the usual format, and self-consciously -- and even pretentiously -- adopted what he said was
"a social science perspective". With a co-host, who I shall not name here, he went to some village, tried to play the role of an ethnographer, and attempted to interview villagers there.
Result?
Sappy questions followed by sappy answers.
The show was so intolerably bad that the main sponsor of the program later sent a stern letter of displeasure to Vijay Kumar. Vijay wised up, and returned to his usual format of inviting guests and then grilling them with questions -- in his usual - for better or worse -- trademark style.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| Poonte |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 08:24 AM
Euta ko aama Kaangresi holin; arko ko Maoist; ani arko ko Mandale...bau chai sab ko eutai...khalli bau...jo power ma ayeni aafno haat maha mai dubne...re kya ajha!
On a serious note, do the words like paristhiti, paribandha, bidambana, etc., [khai, khai...mero "Ramro Rachana Meeho Nepali" kataa paryo] make any sense?
|
| allare |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 08:37 AM
< Who in her right mind will ever disagree with that statement? >>
Ashu, I will surely disagree here, if i do not know the meaning of bikas and mool. Surya purva baat udaaunchha is also truism, but layman in village might not be agree with this, if he does not know whats the meaning of surya and purva.
btw, can you define surya and purva?
|
| NK |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 11:11 AM
Ashu,
I read your posting with interest. When I first saw the announcement I also thought "that is quite a topic there." Spinal injury and downfall of the country. In the first glance and even second, I guess, the connection between these two seeminly unrelated topic look a bit stretched. As you pointed out if theres is a connection between Spinal injury and the fall of the country then there also exist connections between AIDS and free fall, TB and free fall of the country and so on.
My answer is why not? Why should not he talk about his personal experience to expound on what he thinks is wrong with Nepal and what to do about it. Or, not even 'what to do aobut it', but just talking about what is happening. Name sells. kanak name sells. Dixit sells even better. People want to know what Kanak Mani Dixit has to say on spinal injury and this particular 'free fall.'
You may be right that you see too many journalists (in Nepal) posing as social scientists to give gravitas in their writings. I wouldn't know that. Living here has its limitation. [for instance, I am more anxious about Hillary and will she and won't she - you know :)]. An informed/intelligent readers such as yourself can sniff out any disingenuity and phoniness. But, to accuse/question/raise an eyebrow on Dixit's "grand-sounding" theory (?) on his supposed "forced" connection between spinal injury and society's free fall is jumping the gun a bit too fast, as they would say here.
Perhaps Dixit is drawing parallel between excruciating pain from a spinal cord injury and excruciating pain Nepal is going through. Dixit may be seeing similarity between his recovery and all the hinderances /set-backs he faced while recovering and Nepal's path to recovery from Maoists revolution, palace massacare, numerous bus accidents (yes, that too. why not??)and so on.
I would say let the guy speak looking through the lense of his life-defining-moment. He may be truly honest as opposed to showing connection between two areas (journalism and sociology) that may not exist. It is just one of the approaches to tackle some mighty big issues. Even you seem to agree on that.
|
| Arnico |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 11:25 AM
Ashu, your initial post stated, in clearer words, my initial reaction to reading about the Chhalfal topic.
I don't agree with the notion that we are a society in free fall. Yes, Nepal has gone through a whole series of crises in recent years, and there may be more to come... BUT... let's also look at the surprising amount of resilience shown by the common people... the ways people have adapted to the crises, and the ways this may open up new avenues in the future...
Take just as one example the huge increase in young people going to work overseas... much of that as a direct consequence of a temporary loss of opportunities and sense of safety in their home regions. With a million plus Nepalis overseas sending home money, that puts cash into distant remote corners of Nepal, leaves the overall economy afloat, perhaps growing even as the official economy may be in a severe recession... the money takes care not only of daily needs, but also creates hundreds of thousands of potential investors, people who dream of, and work towards building something better... whether by buing a goat or a truck or a plot of land, or spending it on education.... And starting in about a year or so, we'll see the return of hundreds of thousands of young people who have worked hard and who have "seen the world", and whose expectations of their future, of Nepal, even of the level of efficiency demanded of the state bureaucracy are shaped not just by what they grew up with in Nepal, but by what they've seen abroad...
Sure some of the remittance money gets wasted on alcohol, and lots of it may end up fueling real-estate bubbles... but I still think it has raised income in far-flung remote areas of the country far more than ALL foreign aid rural development projects combined.... we may yet need to rethink of ourselves as, not a cash-poor country, but rather, a place that needs good ideas for how to use the cash.
...and much of this comes as a consequence of the "shaking up" that our society has gone through due to recent crises. Free fall? What free-fall???
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 12:19 PM
hey Arnico,
I was looking for you. Are those beautiful pictures of Chitwan, Machhapuchhre, paddy fields, Bardia, etc., by you? timi sinchai eng ho??
bhunte
|
| suva chintak |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 02:03 PM
Ashuji,
Nice discussion thread going, and the topic is good too. But don't forget that this is a country where a person who graduates in Culture is sent to head the Department of Agriculture and a fellow who has a Psychology degree heads the Hydrology Bhivag. In other words, Nepal is a country where old adage 'lato desh me kanno tanneri' really applies.
I think it is in this spirit that our elite journalists are trying to don the social science hat as well. It is not enough to be just a journalist, by adding 'social science' name you add more power to your portfolio --now you are not only 'repoting', but also analyzing. I think this really ups your stocks with the foreign media and agencies...I suspect this is one reason why foreigners are regularly quoting Kanka Dixit or Kunda Dixit or some other high profile media baron in Nepal, irrespective of whether the issue is Nepali economy, Maoist insurgency, cultural practices, monarchy, literature or anything else. Their social science can handle anything! Scholars and experts in relevant fields are nowhere to be seen...either because of their own non-visibility or the inborn laziness of outsiders and insiders to go and find out the relevant disciplinary experts within the country.
I don't know why you made expections to P Onta and S Tamang, I think they are not journalists, they are academics, no? Or are they your buddies? I guess you must also be one of those buddhiman academics who is miffed by sundry hacks hawking and hijacking social science right from under your nose.
I also saw the Vijaya Kumar show...and I agree with your assessment...another social science wanna be that did not fly. By the way, why did you shy away from naming the other person...this is not like the fearless Ashu who is supposed to be brutally honest and frank, again, another close buddy in the line of fire?
But having said that, I think we have to accept it if Kanak Dixit wants to sell himself as social science or rocket science for that matter. After all, this is a free market and we will wrap ourselves into what we think sells. For now it seems social science is the in thing in Nepal. Thirty years ago it used to be Home Science. Guess what it will be in 20 years time: Tandoori Science!!
Back to backing...
|
| SITARA |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:33 PM
Kanak Dixit's is a true example of the evolving nature of a homogeneous journalism into critical journalism. With the impact of globalization and media-reporting, gravity, content as well as critical thought has taken center-stage in journalism. Ever since George Seldes (1900), a journalist started breaking the press ranks to question, probe and report, critical journalism has become the "intellectual norm" or fad if you please. CNN took it to a different proportion with "reporting live" while other media have followed suit with the Iraq war. However, critical journalism regressed into yellow journalism where critical thought/reporting was used for propaganda purposes.
However, I don't think Kanak Mani Dixit is using the occasion to spread any kind of misrepresentation of Nepal.
Fundraising, itself, has become a gigantic challenge; it has to involve information dissemination of the subject as well as the reasons for the crisis in the subject-matter, (especially) in a country like Nepal. A topic like spinal injury cannot exist in a medical vacuum; it has to be tied up with the cultural, social and economic environment surrounding and/or fostering any such serious issues.
The social sciences have become the backbone for any living being related research. Now, more than ever, observing/ recording/ analyzing and concluding such query utilize the tools of inquiry of social science. An ethnographer painstakingly pens down incidents, pre-incidental and post-incidental environments where quantitative data is not readily available. After a prolonged study, patterns in behavior and practices emerge to give the ethnographer a "credible" result. In fact, "objective" reporting has been abandoned, so much so that traditional anthropology has taken a back seat to a new discipline, Critical Anthropology.
Critical analysis (influenced by human behavior and tendencies) has spilled over on to journalism, medicine, education, politics .....and the list is long. So, I am not surprised that Kanak Mani Dixit is founding his presentation on the back bone of Nepal as a traditional, cultural and poverty-stricken entity where a subject matter such as spinal injury, (its gravity and the need for funding) will carry a credible clout!
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:36 PM
Top Media like CNN, BBC, Fox, MSNBC, AP, etc have subject matter specialists like financial, business, economic, political, medical, etc correspondances. I am not sure if we have similar arrangements, albeit at a lower level, in Kantipur, Ktm Post, Rising Nepal, Gorkhapatra, Nepali Times, Himal, etc.!!! But, I heard that there is a Center for Investigative Journalism in Ktm wher it does some basic research before bringing an issue to their media....Journalists in Nepal can't make an indepth analysis of any event, as they are limited by their training. Their analysis mostly remain superficial, and no follow up of what they wrote. However, I am personally gratified as one of my trainee presides the Fed of Nep Journalists....I wanted him to be a community leader serving poor fellow villagers, but he turned out to be a big shot while I am away.....eheheh
|
| SITARA |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:43 PM
"The social sciences have become the backbone for any living being related research. Now, more than ever, observing/ recording/ analyzing and concluding such query utilize the tools of inquiry of social science. An ethnographer painstakingly pens down incidents, pre-incidental and post-incidental environments where quantitative data is not readily available. After a prolonged study, patterns in behavior and practices emerge to give the ethnographer a "credible" result. In fact, "objective" reporting has been abandoned, so much so that traditional anthropology has taken a back seat to a new discipline, Critical Anthropology. ".... SITARA
This was in reference to Bijay Kumar's "attempts" at ethnography, not Dixit's representation.
|
| SITARA |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:45 PM
Oh Bhunte ji:
Little research and readup on the subject matter is better than non at all hoina ta?
hehe :)
|
| suva chintak |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:45 PM
Sitaraji,
With all due respect, I don't see any 'critical journalism' anywhere in sight, especially not here in the US or Nepal!! After the mainstream US media decided to "embedd" with the military, there is no critical journalism, not even objective! You can't expect honest stories after you decide to bed together with the person you are supposed to report on. As I have been saying for a long time, the bed can be a highly corrupting influence!!
So much for the embedded media!!
|
| SITARA |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:54 PM
Suva chintak ji:
I agree with you, ...especially here in US, critical journalism is a rarity. However, I was trying to give Kanak Dixit the benefit of doubt regarding his social scientific stance on Spinal injury. At least for me, it does not seem to be an outrageous and/or improper stance to take.
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 03:58 PM
Sitara ji, YES--an indicative change towards right direction. I heard that Nepali Times has initiated research based publications on some contemporary issues. Definitely they won't be able to afford an indepth research like "Honey Hunter" as published in the National Geography.....
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 12-Jun-03 05:44 PM
Kanak ji speaking at Harvard on June 16, but what is this fund rising for?? dhad sadkeko pidit, badhi pidit, mao pidit, etc. ko lagi chanda??...lol
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 09:47 AM
NK wrote:
"Why should not [Kanak] talk about his personal experience to expound on what he thinks is wrong with Nepal and what to do about it?"
My point was/is that the topic of spinal injury itself is IMPORTANT enough to deserve some serious attention in and of itself, without its serving as some sort of a device to talk about the oh-so-serious issues related to why Nepal as a whole is khattam and in
a state of free fall.
That's all.
*************
Arnico asked:
"Free fall? What free-fall???"
My sentiments exactly.
Despite Nepal's problems that do have solutions if we only looked harder, I, for one,
am tired of educated and knowledgeable Nepalis displaying what can only be called
"a chicken little syndrome" (that of 'the sky has fallen, the sky has fallen' notoriety!) when the realities in Nepal are complex and do not lend themselves to be divided
neatly into black and white.
**************************
Sitara wrote:
"However, I don't think Kanak Mani Dixit is using the occasion to spread any kind of misrepresentation of Nepal."
Nobody said he is.
That's not the point.
The point is how much of a (social, academic, psycological) connection there really is between the incidents of spinal injury in Nepal and the state of so-called "free fall" of
the Nepali state?
To use an analogy: That's like reading neurologist Oliver Sacks' books ("Anthropologist on Mars", or "The Man who mistook his wife for a hat"), or then trying to explain the country called America!!
****************
Suva Chintak wrote:
"P Onta and S Tamang, I think they are not journalists, they are academics, no? Or are they your buddies?"
Yes, they are friends. But they are also, as far as I am concerned, insightful thinkers, even though I have disagreed with some of their ideas on occasion.
Suva Chintak wrote:
"By the way, why did you shy away from naming the other person...this is not like the fearless Ashu who is supposed to be brutally honest and frank, again, another close buddy in the line of fire?"
I am afraid so.
Nepal is a frightfully small place . . . and I can't afford to have one too many enemies here, if you know what I mean.
That said, I have relayed my comments to the co-host :-)
Hope people have fun at Kanak's guff-session!!
oohi
"all in the interest to stimulate the little grey cells"
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| isolated freak |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 10:45 AM
Ok, real discussion/debate is back in sajha!!
I agree with Ashu and Arnico. Nepal isn't a failed state or a state in free fall. Having lived and worked in Nepal for almost 2 years now, I say, Nepal is not that bad as some of us think it to be. Everything's changing and changing for good. At this point, we need optimism, hope and upbeat attitude.. and if someone like Kanak goes on saying, hey we are a country in free fall or country suffering from spinal injury, its just disheartening. He should be saying all the good things that has happened in Nepal to all these best and the brightest Nepalis living abroad. He should be encouraging all those brilliant minds to come to Nepal and do something here. Believe me, there are oppurtunities in Nepal for everyone, even for the students who study liberal arts/social sciences.
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 02:03 PM
IF ji,
Let's be critical, but not too optimistic or pessimistic. Definitly Nepal is not a sate in free fall like Afganistan, and of course it is a failed state. Whether you believe it or not, but there are innumerable accounts to support this assertion. Where we stand among our peers? Doesn't it rank among the 10 least developed countries? During 1960s, Nepal used to export food to India. Forget about India, but with the smimilar resources and geo-political situation, where we stand before Bhutan? Unfortunately, our predecessors have been using the country's rank and status as a begging bowl or milching cow. Probably, Nepal hasn't gone through any crisis. If we don't realize where we are heading, I will be surprised if one won't say it a state in free fall.
Have any political institutions in the countries formally sought for best/brighest nepalis working overseas for its nation development? Defininitely some of them may be back home when it is time to use social security benefits....
just 2 cents
|
| Bond-007 |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 02:34 PM
Bhunte Ji,
I strongly agree with first part of your post however I disagree with the following:
---------Have any political institutions in the countries formally sought for best/brighest nepalis working overseas for its nation development? Defininitely some of them may be back home when it is time to use social security benefits-----------
I don't need a *chulhai nimta* to go home (that too from political institutions, yikes!!!). Even though I don't consider myself among best/brightest of Nepalese, still I have a well documented pledge to go back home at the end of 2005 and contribute towards Nation building with whatever I am worth.
IF ji,
hang in there
|
| Bond-007 |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 02:38 PM
IF ji,
Hang in there!! Help is on the way. We will reconcile our differences regarding the Monarchy and work together on nation building.
Jai Nepal!!!
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 03:39 PM
bond ji,
Not really 'chulha nimta', but brights/brains need to be inspired and be provided some minimal favorable environment for them to work there... natra bhane ooni haru Ratna Park ma badam fokera basnu paryo bhaneta sarai namaja hunchha ni sathi!
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 04:12 PM
Oops I didn't knew Kanak ji had a real spinal injury and the founder of The Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Center (SIRC). I think he is the best person to share how the pain feels like. The plights of majority of Nepali in rural area now and before should not be different from what he has coined as spinal injury....
Wish I am in DC metro or Boston to participate in his talk program....
|
| Bond-007 |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 04:26 PM
I heard he was in an accident while hiking Annapurna range. He was rescued three days after he went missing.
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 06:16 PM
IF,
My point was NOT that Kanak should serve as a cheerleader of Nepal. God knows that there are enough things wrong in Nepal, and those issues are worth discussing.
My point is that: isn't kura-kani about spinal injuries in Nepal interesting in and of itself, without our having to tie it up to the usual 'how Nepal has failed' angst?
That's all.
************************
Finally, I am struck that you make mention of "best and brightest" Nepalis. To that,
my question would be: Best and brightest Nepalis FOR WHAT? There are best and brightest FOR jobs in Korea. There are best and brightest Nepalis FOR rafting in
Nepal, and so forth.
But if you look carefully at the resume of most of these traditionally-defined "best and brightest" Nepalis (and here, I -- rather self-consciously include myself too; and this inclusion is important to make my point), you will discover that most of us are good at performing very well only WITHIN a closed system (schools, colleges and universities).
Our idea of achievement is: one safe and predictable success leading to another safe and predictabl success and so on and on througout our life, and we and others mistake this collection of hundreds of humdrum trophies as a life full of achievements. Our egos, unbelievably fragile, are tied up to this sense of mundane achievement.
Most of these people (again, myself included) RARELY take risks with their ideas and careers to follow their passions and interests. And they are always studying and achieveing to make other people (their parents, etc) happy, and, in most cases, whole life is spent like that.
And so, take these so-called best and brightest out of the closed system, and put them in an 'open system' such as, say, our Nepali society, which, by definition, is full of contradictory information, frustration, ambiguity, uncertainty and so on, and most
of these best and brightest people flounder, and flounder miserably (i.e. fail to make
a positive impact.)
All this goes on to show that: Unfortunately, high grades one earned at a closed-system of a big-name university (thereby justifying one's inclusion in the best and brightest category) and one's intellectual competence do NOT necessarily translate into real life success in and out of and for Nepal.
When that happens, we need to re-define our traditional notions of "best and brightest" Nepalis.
*********
Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about whether "best and brightest" Nepalis return to Nepal from Princeton and Harvard.
The challenge for us in Nepal is how to make the BEST use of the human resource we already have in Nepal to get the results that make life better for most people here.
*************
[Enough early-morning guff for today. It's time to go play squash now.
IF, 10 of us are going to see Matrix Reloaded tonight at 6:30.
Come, and re-watch it with us.]
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 13-Jun-03 11:06 PM
Oh, I just remembered that more than three years ago, Kanak was in Boston to rightly encourage, with examples drawn from various fields, many young Nepalis to return to Nepal. [He later gave a mini-version of that talk program at Martin Chautari.]
Though I could not attend the program in Boston then [I was away in New Hampshire that week-end], I think the title of the program held at MIT was "Farkay ra kay pai.n.cha?"
Friends later told me that the talk then was inspiring/interesting, and Rajesh Babu Shrestha had even set up an email list to discuss issues related to "desh farkanay
kura". [I do not know the status of the email list as of now.]
Now, three years later, especally as a US-returnee having, on the whole, a positive time in Nepal, I find it very perplexing Kanak is going to be in Boston to talk about, among others, the so-called state of free fall in Nepal.
Ironies, ironies . . . will they ever cease? :-)
Posted this in half-jest.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
|
| bhunte |
Posted
on 14-Jun-03 02:07 AM
Inspiring Nepali brains with a talk program like 'Farkera Ke Painchha' is very high spirited one. However, one should also think how much one had personally invested in getting US education. For example, it costs about $60,000 for an undergraduate degree, another plus $40,000 for a masters degree, and additional about $100,000 to $250,000 to get a Ph.D. degree in the states. I wonder if Kanak ji considered an individual student's rational behavior when he made the then inspiring talk program. Do you think one would be able to recover his educational expense in a reasonable time frame if he returns Nepal.
just my naive calculation.....
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 14-Jun-03 08:24 PM
Bhunte,
The question ultimately boils down to: "What should I do with my life?, answer that honestly and then set rough short, intermediate and long-term milestones, leaving
room for bits of chaos, uncertainty, ambiguity and chance.
If Nepal does figure --directly or indirectly-- within the scope of what one wants to do with his/her life, then there are many. many ways to contribute to Nepal, either by returning and working here or by staying abroad to help Nepal promote travel, trade and goodwill.
I myself thought that I was back for only two months before flying off to New York,
but one good thing led to another good thing and that led to another and another, and before I know it: I've been here for three years, and have been quite happy and productive, doing whatever I can.
Different strokes for different folks, as they say.
BTW, thanks to Pramod Mishra (he of TND fame and presently in Kathmandu!) who loaned me this book by Po Bronson, titled "What should I do with my life?", and,
having enjoyed reading it, I recommend it to all of you.
oohi
ashu
ktm,npal
|
| Bhunte |
Posted
on 14-Jun-03 09:36 PM
Ashu ji,
Thanks for the moral boost. What i was earlier talking about was about most other people's rational instinct. Definitely, I have set goals in my life (both personal and social). I can contribute more to LDC societies than here. I have already contributed earlier, enough of my share, to my nation at various capacities in the government, private, and international institutions. However, things are just not conducive to work in Nepal at present. Let's see how future guides. ....
|
