Dont suck up please!

All of us have seen the guy at the workplace (or in school) who sucks up to the boss (or the teacher) all the time in the hope hes always on the first page of the boss' good books. The eternal 'yeah'-man, who agrees with everything the boss proposes and abides by everything the boss asks him to do.
This is not actually about those people, although for the record, I hate them like crazy and usually let them know too. Cos people like me, who like to keep our noses and tongues in places where there is fresh air (as opposed to the boss' a**), realise sooner or later that being in the good books does matter when it comes to getting good grades on an assignment or getting that all-important pay hike, but its something we'd rather not do.

Ok, then whats this about? I am gonna scale this up a few notches, cos this is about my HomeLand sucking up to the Big Boss that is StrangeLand. In fact, HomeLand has been sucking it up for a long time now, and I dont understand why. We arent that gullible that we need to rely on others for our survival, we have never been. Its not like the Big Boss can stand up anytime and wave its magic wand and ensure we die of hunger or choke to death. Then, why do we always go down on our knees at one snap of a finger even when it comes to issues we firmly believe in? Is it a big gameplan our leaders have been playing forever? Something thats superficial so the Big Boss thinks we abide by the rules while we still ensure our own good? I think only time can tell, but it is really humiliating too see your own nation sometimes act like a hungry weasel on the world stage, one who's living off crumbs thrown off other's plates...when its all just an act.

A case in point is the recent nuclear issue between StrangeLand and Iran (yes, not UN and Iran, cos I firmly believe that the 'N' in the UN doesnt have any relevance - it could as easily be replaced with an 'S', the General Assembly has no powers and among the veto powers, StrangeLand being the strongest, runs the rule). HomeLand has always had great ties with Iran, and even the cultures are in a way bound to each other. When it came to us needing backing on the Kashmir issue in the UN in 1994, Iran was backing us with all its gusto. Why then, did HomeLand take a backward step, pull back its arm from around Iran's shoulders when it needed it the most, with IAEA sanctions apparently in the wait? All for some peanuts that go by the name of civilian nuclear technology relationship with StrangeLand? God knows we are independent when it comes to nuclear know-how. We have hardly needed any help developing our nuclear deterrent and we produce most of our nuclear energy through the use of pure indegenious technology. Still, the government has placed a big price on this latest deal and showed the world that we are ready to suck up for the little pat on the back, which we would get from StrangeLand.

This is not something new at all. This land was flourishing during the rule of the Mughal empire with most of the country under one rule, when the Europeans came knocking on the door as traders. Damn good trade I tell you, what a deal they got. They were welcomed with open arms and all they did was bite us where it hurts most. They asked for trade relations, we nodded. They asked to set up a trading company locally, we nodded again. When they were embedded in the economy, they took over politically too. And we still didnt mind, as we have always been a bunch of peace-loving people, and expect to get in return what we give, a true manifestation of karma. What happened later is history, and we still havent stopped acting in that way. I strongly recommend this read as it captures the economic history of the world in a capsule and lets you know why an economy is where it is today.

Prime Minister Nehru was the first Prime Minister of the country, and in a way, he set the trend for things to come (Those interested can get some of the blunders listed here). No doubt he was a good leader, but some of the things he did were totally uncalled for. Like pulling back his troops during the war with Pakistan when India could have resolved the Kashmir conflict then and there by allowing troops into Pak territory, at the behest of the UN which had no understanding of the issue whatsoever. Nehru, the architect of the Hindi-Chini bhai bhai festivity, had gone out of his way to propitiate communist China, accepting even the Chinese annexation of Tibet in a 1954 agreement without settling the Indo-Tibetan border. This famously led to the ignorance of troop build-up on the huge Indo-China border and the smack-on-the-face defeat of 1962 .

Even when it comes to trade and commerce, we have been given a raw deal all the time, but we suck it up. Big MNCs from StrangeLand wanna set up establishments here..go ahead. They wanna export electronics and consumer products to a nation with one of the biggest markets in the world ..red carpet, green signal. Ok, now we wanna send in our agricultural goods to StrangeLand in return...doesnt meet standards, too much pesticide, the "you are dumping stuff in our market and killing our local farmer" comments, heavy tariff duties, holding up perishables for inspection too long in ports to ensure they rot and are sent back. How about textiles, they will be at competitive prices...StrangeLand allows that but immediately triggers a media campaign showing that Indian imported textiles are inflammable! Dude that was cotton we sent you! And your mannequin is burning like it was doused in gasoline! No change in our response though, we still give Coke and Pepsi massive exposure to our markets, inspite of laboratory tests proving the presence of insecticides in them.

Nevertheless, the globalization process ensures that jobs and manufacturing and trade still flows into HomeLand. We are a prosperous country, with a growth rate only superceded by neighbours China. I have seen so many talk shows and speeches and lectures here in StrangeLand where they are talking about HomeLand and China as a superpower in the coming years, not respectfully, but with a touch of disdain. Like its something they cant prevent. Yet, our leaders fail to see this? An independent nation that stands on its own two feet still behaves like it needs the support of the whole world.. the eternal good boy of the world. StrangeLand never needs support, be it to march into a country with troops or decide the fate of economies of the smaller countries. They wield their power almost like dictators and its time for them to be overthrown. They have warmed their a**es enough on top of the world while everyone else burns.

I want to see my nation stand up for what it truly is and what it believes in. Dont just state that you deserve a place in the Security Council, thats like filling up an application form. Demand it and ensure the world finally realises what this country is all about. We arent a bunch of pushovers. Behold everyone, our time hath come!