(a)Musings & not so (a)Musings

Saturday, August 26, 2006

The Indo-Dutch Drama

Phew! Feels a little weird, coming back from a long hiatus, to blog. (Isnt that the same thing I said the last time I posted?).

Well, with some of the things happening around the world, I feel compelled to get what is inside me out, and guess what is my favorite venting ground, to vent?

Yup, right here, (a)Musings & not so (a)Musings.

This time, the issue that seems to be riling me, is this whole drama that happened aboard Northwest Airlines, and the even bigger drama, that seems to be unfolding, after these individuals were let go.

Let us look at the facts here. A bunch of Indian guys, aboard a plane, start moving around and changing seats, and exchanging mobile phones (for whatever frickin' reason!). In this time and age, the Western leaders, have successfully, inculcated, a sense of fear in everybody, with their Terror and Threat Warning Systems.

So, shouldnt these goofballs, let better sense prevail, and stick to their seats, and not behave as if they were on a local train from Mumbai to Bandra?

If they didnt have the sensitivity to today's times and age, and the situation they are in, especially more so considering that they were Muslims, how do they expect Governments and Security agencies to exercise sensitivity?

Blaming the crew, and the security agencies, is one of the stupidest things, I ever hear from people, when they travel. For God's sake, these people have a job to do. They are trying to make sure that every passenger who is getting on a plane, reaches their destination safely, without losing their innocent lives. They do a thankless job.
And the least we can do, is facilitate, their job. Forget melodramatic moments of 'Oh, I'm a colored individual, I was singled out', or 'I'm a Muslim, and hence all this racial profiling'.

Now, this Indo-Dutch drama is reaching a higher plane - the Indian Government summoned the Dutch envoy for an explanation (are you frickin' kidding me?). The relatives of the passengers are lamenting that, they were targeted because they were Muslims, and want a written apology from the Dutch. Which, if I was the Dutch Government, I wouldnt even do! This whole drama, happened about, because these idiots, seemed to have forgotten the times we live in. The Indian Government wants an incident report on this.

Surprisingly, and to give credit to the parties involved, neither did the detained passengers lament about racism (at least not yet!), and they give credit to the Dutch for treating them well, during the whole interrogation. So, that is definitely one high note, in this whole mess.

We all live in a different time and world people. Whether, that different time and world, is completely staged, or out of reality, depends on if you buy any of the conspiracy theories floating around -911 Truth ; What Really Happened ; Muslim-Jewish-Christian Alliance for 9-11 Truth and a host of other sites.

But the reality is, no matter if the situation is real or devised, only we, as citizens, can help ourselves, in making our travel as trouble free as possible.

Stop blaming the Airlines, and the Security Agencies. They have the safety and well being of everybody concerned.
And give them a break. They do a thankless job. They are as much of a pawn in this whole system, as we are.

And, if it makes you feel any better, I'm an Indian, and a Muslim too.