Disturbing Bee-haviour

Unlike those who call themselves journalists, ordinary people can see misfits immediately. They are able to spot silliness instantly while the so-called journalists thrive in bootlicking the most absurd.

There is a movie called “Lamhe” from the 1990s with Anil Kapoor and Sridevi. There was someone else in that movie; Deepak Malhotra. Now Deepak was a top model of that time and very successful but in an emotional love scene in the movie he fondly calls Pallavi (Sridevi) as “Pallo” and that one utterance was the end of his career. His utterance of “Pallo” was so comic and laughable that Deepak totally disappeared from the media, never to be seen again. In recent times Priyanka Chopra’s boyfriend made his debut in “Love story 2050” and people could again spot a dud. It’s not only Harman Baweja’s movie career that ended but also, unfortunately, his relationship with Priyanka Chopra. Love’s unkind, you could say. But what does it say about our media morons who still crow about Rahul Gandhi’s greatness? What does it say about our political analysts, the ‘Numero Unos & Unees’ who still can’t accept that they couldn’t spot a dud?

In this one, let’s just stick to one group: the wiseguys from TV18. And the best place to start is Rajdeep Sardesai himself, the “Boss” of CNN-IBN group. Youngsters at their first jobs are entitled to a fair bit of latitude. They are allowed to make mistakes and are expected to learn from those. So Rahul Gandhi enters active politics at age 32 which must be at least after an 8-year stint in some other domain. Right? RG probably entered politics partly out of his “DNA” and partly because he must have bombed at his previous endeavours. Because the Congress won 22 seats in UP in the 2009 general elections CNN-IBN bestowed upon him the “Indian of the year” award. Here’s what they said:

So Rajdeep the “Boss” had concluded back then that RG was IOTY material merely because Congress won 22 seats and then had to realise the horror of UP in 2012 under the same campaigner. So who lacks “vision and insight” Rajdeep or Rahul? The citation in the pic erroneously says “CNN-IBN facilitates RG” (instead of felicitates). I know it’s an error but it seems quite appropriate because that is precisely what Rajdeep & Co. have been doing all this while: “Facilitating RG”.

Many ordinary men and women (and I dare say that may include Congressmen), including yours truly, have seen absolutely nothing in RahulG’s words or actions that merit anything less than the #PappuCII trend that he got on April 4. Remember, if there is real substance it is not easy to deny and those who lie will be exposed. And political astuteness? Where did CNN-IBN find that in RG? He has not shown being involved in any decision making, any policies, has not confronted any opposition or agitation and doesn’t speak of anything except in vague terms and Rajdeep sees “astuteness” in the guy? Every time RG has opened his mouth he has only demonstrated more comic genius than political astuteness. So once again Rajdeep sees some non-existent first principles in RG’s CII speech on April 4. Facilitating? Even a regular economics panellist like Surjit Bhalla had to ask Rajdeep which principles he’s talking about.

The so-called “journos” are being fooled very badly or maybe they genuinely are. Here’s another one from the IBN group. Ashutosh found RG’s speech brilliant, very modern and introspective. This guy is dumbness personified and it will remain an eternal mystery how he became a journalist. Or is that the norm? I guess nobody taught Ashutosh that it’s not possible to trend topics on Twitter unless a whole lot of people join in. Trends by ordinary people are not a conspiracy against RahulG or anyone at all. They just reflect the instant reaction to an event or incident. In this case even international journals have recognised that the speech was without substance and the “beehive” was a major gaffe. If Ashutosh, calling himself a journo, finds it brilliant it is only possible if he is a die-hard Congress supporter. He doesn’t stop there. When others point out that he’s being silly he claims they are “paid supporters” out to demolish RG. Ashutosh doesn’t realise that by making such comic allegations he almost confirms that he himself is a “paid media” supporter of Congress. It never occurs to the likes of Ashutosh and his gang at IBN that if RG had indeed turned out a good thinker, leader and politician then even his most trenchant critic would have to admit he has talent and skill. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

Someone accurately pointed out on Twitter (I think Vijay @centerofright) that had it not been for the social media a few reporters closeted in the CII hall would have splashed headlines all over the place calling it the “speech of the century” and how RahulG was ready to lead India to being a global super-power. This is the same reason why Rajiv Gandhi was awarded the ‘Bharat Ratna’ despite the Sikh genocide under his watch. If social media were around back then the lies of MSM around many events and individuals would have been exposed quite badly. And the fun is never over until the ‘Social Genius’ certifies herself as “neutral”. I think she has already forgotten her gluttony tour of Gujarat before the elections. She is truly the jewel in the crown of the IBN group. And I doubt whether Congress or BJP really want her endorsement at all.

In the ten years that RahulG has been in active politics he really has had nothing to show but frequent silly utterances. It’s even possible he’s a good guy and his cronies are forcing him to play a role he definitely doesn’t want. In politics, all that RahulG has demonstrated so far is ‘Disturbing Bee-haviour’ but cronies like Ashutosh or Rajdeep seem unwilling to see it. The obvious reason for this blindness is not such a big secret. There is someone disturbing the sleep of the MSM as much he is making the Congress burn midnight oil. Don’t take my word for it. It comes from none other than Pallavi Ghosh, who is CNN-IBN’s embedded reporter with the Congress party. That’s what disturbs Ashutosh and the rest in the MSM too.

Modi Vs Gandhi

True case: A new progressive school decided that along with students from very well-off families it will also take in some slum kids. The school was founded by people passionate about improving school education. Parents of the well-off families had some reservations but the school went ahead and enrolled quite a few slum kids. Since the school was far from the town, all students had to commute by the regular school bus. The students would be picked up and dropped back at their regular stops from where the parents picked up their children and got home. Sometimes the parents of the well-off kids would be late and the kids would get nervous and start crying on seeing no one to pick them up. But the slum kids, they usually didn’t have anyone to pick them up from the stop. They just danced and waltzed their way home without the slightest worry or fear. The slum kids were conditioned that way to move around without much fear while the well-off kids lived a good protected life. The children from well-off families too come into their own at some point and learn life skills.

Ever wondered what the most protective traditional Indian parents tell their children? No, it’s not about being safe. It’s not about don’t play with firecrackers. It’s not about eating too many chocolates. None of that! They often tell the kids going away for studies or first-jobs “Don’t play or go out too much in the sun, you’ll become black”. I’m not joking, there’s even a movie song: “Dhoop me nikla na karo roop ki rani, tera rang kaala na pad jaaye” (watch it on Youtube). Is it any surprise so many spurious fairness creams are endorsed and sold in India? I’m positive Rahul Gandhi never needed such an advice from his parents because he never had to slog in the sun or be troubled too much by Indian heat at any point in his life so far. His trips to slums are those of a tourist, for the slum-dwellers it’s life. His stunts on Mumbai local trains may be good for a slave media but for the regular commuters it’s life. Like an actor he can act their lives for a few minutes without having to pay the price for it.

Rahul Gandhi won’t need fairness creams and he’s no slum kid either. None of his family members ever were. They were born and lived with great comfort and protection. Even children from well-off families go through a lot of life experiences which I doubt RG has ever gone through. I am not sure he even carried his own bag to school considering he had home tuitions at some point. He does have other experiences of people being killed in his family which can be devastating. But did that make him a tougher man? I don’t know because I haven’t seen any signs of anything from the man. So for the MSM and their “intellectuals” to suggest that RG showed a ‘broad vision’ during his speech at the CII on April 4 must take extraordinary wisdom or predictable ass-licking. These guys fail to see what ordinary Indians can plainly see.

Rajdeep Sardesai, Meghnad Desai, S. Varadarajan and many more have been desperate to cover up the lack of intelligence or vision from RG. I am discounting politicians since their views will be politically coloured. It is fun to laugh at his gaffes like Girish the painter or carpenter or Rani ki Jhansi or India being a Beehive but there is something far more dangerous. Is India some kind of toy that some dimwit kid can play with? This is the serious question both the Congress party and the media will need to honestly answer.

If one looks at the journey of past PMs who weren’t from the Nehru-Gandhi clan even they too have had tough journeys through their life. Even Manmohan Singh who is rated poorly as a PM has made his way up from humble beginnings. There is nothing about RG that suggests he has learnt anything about India. Nobody even knows where he is half the time. His parliamentary attendance is probably among the worst. And some in the media find this guy “inspirational”? I guess slavery hasn’t ended yet in India. RG visits a slum woman and her kids. One of them aspires to be an IAS officer and our little boy says “Not happening”! They find this inspirational? And then he tells the audience nobody is gonna come riding on a horse. Does he believe Indians are stupid enough to wait for the Knight in shining armour who will come to their emotional rescue? That is a Mick Jagger fantasy. He refers to The Buddha as a "gentleman from Bihar who changed Japan 3000 years ago" as if The Buddha was a regular cabinet colleague. That's how "Indian" he is!

What does it say about a 42 year old man who reads from a written speech (which is not a sin) but can’t even get his papers right. In the middle of the speech he hunts for the pages which have anecdotes about women. Seriously, you recall anecdotes from printed pages? This is the moment which should have told India this man has absolutely no life experience, empathy or understanding of any kind. Take a look:

 

“I lost it”? No dear Rahul, I think it’s the people at CII who invited you to speak who have really lost it. The top guns of Indian business wanted to be lectured by a person who has absolutely no record of any accomplishment or performance? Even the late bandit-queen-turned-MP Phoolan Devi could have spoken more realistically and passionately about women issues. In any keynote address there’s at least one (or two) thing that indicates a decisive direction or stand that the speaker takes and it marks his policy statement. There was absolutely nothing. ZERO! RG took 37 minutes to answer two questions after his speech which amounted to nothing more than stand-up comedy. Sunetra Chaudhary of NDTV was cooing about RG’s new “walking style” and everybody echoed how it was so different and informal. Really? Was this supposed to be an informal CII meet? I didn’t see the audience in party-wear or tight jeans. RG’s “walkabout” reminded me of Bill Maher’s stand-up shows. Take a look and see how similar it is. That Indian stand-up guy “Pehchan Kaun” could have done it much better.

I believe everyone knows the CII guys were just being kind in not lampooning RG after his speech and stand-up. As hosts I don’t expect them to speak unkindly of their guest, it’s not fair. But that doesn’t alter the fact they knowingly invited a person unqualified to address them merely out of political equations and persuasions. Nothing more, nothing less! So that brings us to the important question. Why is a man like RahulG, who is reluctant to take on any responsibility, doesn’t want any accountability, is not seeking to be PM and doesn’t even think he can solve any problems being touted as a contestant against Narendra Modi? If Modi were the Apple, it’s not even an Orange to Apple comparison it’s a Peanut to Apple comparison which no sensible person would ever make. This is quite intriguing. So suppose there is indeed a Modi V Gandhi contest I don’t think that Gandhi is Rahul Gandhi. That Gandhi pretty much remains Sonia Gandhi which her party and media are trying their best to mask. Rahul Gandhi is just a decoy to make the country believe it’s NaMo V RaGa. It is not!

The whole MSM idea which has been fed to them by the Congress party is to flank the “Queen Bee”. This is not the first time I am mentioning it. Do read “Flanking The Queen & Protecting Her Secrets” written in October 2012. Modi has rarely attacked any Congress member or even RahulG. His severest attacks have always been reserved for Sonia Gandhi. In the process of projecting a Rahul V Modi combat the media is cleverly again flanking SoniaG from all the attention. The slave media is sworn to protect their “crumbs-giver”. This helps to keep SoniaG from scrutiny and attention from the BJP and the general public. Clever, isn’t it? Many elections have proved beyond doubt that SoniaG remains the Congress’s best vote-catcher. Any exposure of SoniaG to any kind of attack or scrutiny can dent the prospects substantially. So throw in RahulG who aspires for nothing as the “defender” whom they hope Modi will challenge. They will make RahulG appear more frequently in public hoping he will improve with time so that when the final battle comes he would be washed of as much criticism as possible and there is nothing at all against Sonia Gandhi. 

On the public front no other Congress member even warrants or gets any attention, so a Gandhi, even if it’s Rahul, is handy to presently combat all the attention that Modi is running away with. But the whole Rahul Gandhi V Modi is a great farce being played out by the MSM. In the real Modi V Gandhi contest it’s not Rahul but Sonia Gandhi who will be the defender. Mark these words. If RahulG said “I am irrelevant” a bit thoughtfully, I believe he is right even politically and factually.