Discrimination

Letters to editor column of 7Days is littered with interesting thoughts on racial discrimination at work place in Dubai.

We are constantly subjected to discrimination almost on a daily basis in one way or the other….it may be a job advertisement, an interview, entry to a club, a look, a gesture; why, even a seemingly kind patronising is discrimination in disguise and can be the unkindest cut of all.

It is easy to understand this phenomenon when you are at the receiving end….For a white man/woman it would not be very apparent unless the act of discrimination is very pronounced, which do not normally surface in a politically correct environment where people live with enforced civility!!!

Unfortunately, discrimination is present everywhere and take many forms…, I think it is only human; and often the result of conditioning that exist in our sub-consious minds.

1. Gender Discrimination
2. Religious Discrimination
3. Racial Discrimination
4. Regional Discrimination (this is the strangest…have you witnessed the discrimination meted out to South Indians – otherwise known as Madrasis – by North Indians in Bombay – oops Mumbai !!!)
5. Linguistic Discrimination
6. Discrimination on the grounds of Nationality
7. Discrimination based on appearance / physique / height
8. Lifestyle Discrimination

The only difference is that in Dubai, where there is no real law against discrimination, this is practiced without any fear of retribution.

What has often surprised me is the discrimination between an Indian Boss and his Indian Office Boy. The request for tea is almost always “Eh...bring tea”.

On the other hand a European Manager always asks for a tea with a please!!!

One can live with all the other forms of discrimination. Sure it hurts, but, it really doesn’t matter if you are denied entry into a club or if you are given an unfriendly / indifferent treatment in an upper class shopping mall.

Unfortunately, you are hit the most when discrimination manifests as a huge disparity in earnings, even worse, when one is denied the opportunity to earn a livelihood!!!

Endosulfan

Thank you Maneesha, for your comments….and YES, you brought to focus the indiscriminate use of insecticides, Endosulfan in particular, and the need for organic farming.

Endosulfan is a pesticide that is banned in most parts of the world and yet in some third world countries like India it is widely used even today.


The effects of Endosulfan surfaced in 2001 when a story about the mysterious illnesses in villages in the district of Kasargode were reported.

Unfortunately, in these parts of the world, where poor people are a disposable liability, their voices against political and industry heavyweights (the pesticide industry in India is estimated to be worth around 1 Billion USD) are often muffled.

To Be or Not To Be ….. a VEGETARIAN

What do Mahatma Gandhi, Leonardo Da Vinci, Albert Einstien, Thomas Edison and even Adolf Hitler have in common with Dustin Hoffman, Martina Navratilova, Amitabh Bachan, Aishwarya Rai and Angela Besset…?

They were/are all VEGETARIANS…

Albert Einstein maintains that Vegetarianism is the result of evolutionary process. If one was to equate that in terms of evolutionary time scale of ape to man, consuming meat may be equated to being ape and vegetarianism to man.

According to China Health Report, 80 - 90% of all lifestyle deseases (eg., cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes) can be prevented if we would stick to quality plant based foods; and as much as $120 billion per year might be saved from the healthcare costs in the US alone.

Apart from the numerous heath benefits associated with being vegetarian – apparently the reason for Adolf Hitler to have turned into one – there are also spiritual benefits; definitely not the motivation behind Adolf Hitler’s vegetarian experiment!

Pythagoras, famous for his contributions to geometry and mathematics, said, "Oh, my fellow men, do not defile your bodies with sinful foods. We have corn, we have apples bending down the branches with their weight, and grapes swelling on the vines. There are sweet-flavored herbs, and vegetables which can be cooked and softened over the fire, nor are you denied mild or thyme-scented honey. The earth affords a lavish supply of riches of innocent foods, and offers you banquets that involve no bloodshed or slaughter, only beasts satisfy their hunger with flesh, and not even all of those, because horses, cattle, and sheep live on grass."

"I do not like eating meat because I have seen lambs and pigs killed. I saw and felt their pain. They felt the approaching death. I could not bear it. I cried like a child. I ran up a hill and could not breathe. I felt that I was choking. I felt the death of the lamb". --Vaslav Nijinsky (dancer and choreographer)