Katrina versus Mumbai... Is that a comparison???
Inches of rain in New Orleans due to hurricane Katrina... 18
Inches of rain in Mumbai (July 27th).... 37.1
Population of New Orleans... 484,674
Population of Mumbai.... 12,622,500
Deaths in New Orleans within 48 hours of Katrina...100
Deaths in Mumbai within 48hours of rain.. 37.
Number of people to be evacuated in New Orleans... entire city.. wohh
Number of people evacuated in Mumbai...10,000
Cases of shooting and violence in New Orleans...Countless
Cases of shooting and violence in Mumbai.. NONE
Time taken for US army to reach New Orleans... 48hours
Time taken for Indian army and navy to reach Mumbai...12hours
Status 48hours later - New Orleans is still waiting for relief, army and electricity
Status 48hours later - Mumbai is back on its feet and is business is as usual
USA...world's most developed nation
India...third world country.. Oops...did i get the last fact wrong???
Well Done Mumbaikars
Here’s something I got as a forward. Its totally disgusting!!! I mean, how low can we ever stoop, that we are now taking pride in comparing our natural calamities with other countries?? Are we proud of the fact that less number of people died in Mumbai than in New Orleans? Or are we celebrating because there was violence and shooting in New Orleans?? Could we stop these comparisons for Christ's sake!!!
Inches of rain in Mumbai (July 27th).... 37.1
Population of New Orleans... 484,674
Population of Mumbai.... 12,622,500
Deaths in New Orleans within 48 hours of Katrina...100
Deaths in Mumbai within 48hours of rain.. 37.
Number of people to be evacuated in New Orleans... entire city.. wohh
Number of people evacuated in Mumbai...10,000
Cases of shooting and violence in New Orleans...Countless
Cases of shooting and violence in Mumbai.. NONE
Time taken for US army to reach New Orleans... 48hours
Time taken for Indian army and navy to reach Mumbai...12hours
Status 48hours later - New Orleans is still waiting for relief, army and electricity
Status 48hours later - Mumbai is back on its feet and is business is as usual
USA...world's most developed nation
India...third world country.. Oops...did i get the last fact wrong???
Well Done Mumbaikars
Here’s something I got as a forward. Its totally disgusting!!! I mean, how low can we ever stoop, that we are now taking pride in comparing our natural calamities with other countries?? Are we proud of the fact that less number of people died in Mumbai than in New Orleans? Or are we celebrating because there was violence and shooting in New Orleans?? Could we stop these comparisons for Christ's sake!!!
posted by Prakash at
9/10/2005 09:50:00 AM
7 Comments:
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Prakash, I guess u are getting the viewpoint wrong. Its not the comparison which is giving Sadistic pleasure to the Indians. I am sure no one likes to celebrate if somewhere else there are more deaths than his own place for a given calamity. I guess the comparison is to show how people fight and with what spirit they live.
(Apart from that, It might also have been intended to show how the so called advanced country deals (partially) with its people.. U think the figures wud have been similar had the catastrophe hit somewhere else in the US?)
Prak I think it was to show the spirit primarily , but i dont rule out the sadistic pleasure too..and tht does happen a lot of times..its sort of like a counter justification to why things r bad here..the two ways ppl deal with it r either saying things r bad there too..wich is wht the fwd says..or sayin tht we hv our morals etc etc..both of wich i feel r round abt ways to avoid thinking of why we go wrong! wich i feel is the one thing tht shud b concentrated on..
Echoes
If you like rooms that echo, is it that you like hearing your own voice and sounds being enhanced and elaborated upon? Is it that you are curious to hear what you sound like to the rest of the world and to have your sentiments communicated. Do you seek or feel some sort of response in the sound that continues and repeats itself? Is there something profound to be recovered/retained/remembered collectively?
First things first.. I can't see how people are demonstrating spirit and showing enthusiasm by forwarding such emails. I don't understand where the spirit 'n enthusiasm is justified in this particular email. You don't know how embarassing it was yesterday when my American friend read out this email in office. And this doesn't just end here. Many Indians out here have juz taken up this habit of comparing US life with life back in India, US culture with Indian culture and the like... For those Indians out here who can't stop complaining about the shoddy life here, buzz off... If you don't like it out here, why don't you go back to the place which soooo gives you everything... I can write an entire post on this..
@Bapat : Neither am I climbing the morality tree nor am I trying to prove that US/India is better in anyway. Fundamentally, I find it incorrect to compare two economies/countries on any point. Its so incorrect. And as far as selfishness is concerned, there is always an upper limit for selfishness. The selfishness demonstrated in this email is totally disgusting. I don't know how one could tolerate it.
I sincerely feel that we should take pride in a zillion other things of India rather than this cheap venture of comparison.
Hi Prakash,
Just happened to "trespass" :D
I couldn't stop myself from commenting on this. I wish I hadn't read this post. Pls take my comments in a light sense.
If you feel disgusted about this particular forward, why did you post this in the first place? You are giving more publicity for this by doing so! (For example, I'm reading this first in ur blog!)
You of course said that you don't like this comparison. But it sure will interest a good percentage of the society. God knows how many ppl happen to trespass ;)
About me, I would not like to comment; because, if I say I too am disgusted, it would be branded as vanity.
As in many cases, I think that in this case, the truth lies somewhere in between, although it's hard to say where. As for your opinion about comparisons, I think it's always worth comparing certain things and not comparing others. It's what to compare and what not to compare that really is always the point of contention. Secondly, sometimes, even though comparisons may not be valid, only by comparing can you make people think about issues in the first place. For such people (and I am not saying we are like them) perhaps comparison is the only thing that will force them to think about problems.
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