An Opinion Poll conducted by a newspaper[none other than our New Indian Express,NIE] asked randomly chosen people of 4 Indian cities a series of questions regarding India's response to 26/11 terror attack.
To the question
How should India respond to the Mumbai attacks by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba ?
an overwhelming 79 percent were against any air or land offensive against Pakistan.
To the question
Was Israel correct in attacking Gaza?
only 18 percent Indians said yes.
To a question
Has aggressive military action over the years reduced the security threat to Israel?
63 percent said, No it has not changed much
The result of the poll according to the newspaper
"come as a surprise to policymakers, politicians and voices in the media which have been clamouring for “action” against Pakistan for the Mumbai attack".
It might have been a surprise for the war mongers in the print and visual media[like NIE] but not to ordinary people of India.
Let me congratulate the New Indian Express for being brave enough to publish the opinion poll even though it produced a different result to what they wanted.
Showing posts with label war mongering. Show all posts
Showing posts with label war mongering. Show all posts
Friday, January 16, 2009
Friday, January 2, 2009
Why the New Indian Express is speaking in two Voices?
You may remember my criticism of New Indian Express[NIE] in the post titled Mr.Editor Why are you so blood thirsty?
Now the Newspaper has written an editorial about the Gaza massacre. Here are some excerpts.
"The brutal massacre of innocent Palestinians in Gaza by the Israeli military needs to be condemned. It is an assault that has no justification, despite the efforts by Israeli government leaders to insist that the military attack was in response to rockets being launched by the Hamas.. . ......
. . .The UPA government has left it to the Congress to criticise the action, with some sections even drawing parallels between the situation in Israel and India.
This is absurd, to say the least, as there is just no comparison between the two countries. Israel is the aggressor against a proud people who have been turned out of their homeland, and have been struggling to regain a life of dignity and justice.
The world has turned away from the Palestinians struggle, including friends like India, leaving Israel with a virtually free playing field.
. . .India must recall its days as a leader of the non-aligned movement, a voice for the developing world, and take the lead now to condemn Israel and urge the United Nations to broker immediate peace. Iraq and Afghanistan will continue to burn and peace will remain elusive until the Palestinian issue is resolved.. . .
Oooh...... I rechecked to see whether I am reading the New Indian Express or The Hindu. Yes it is New Indian Express. The same newspaper which headlined [on first page of December 28 issue] Israel strikes as India dithers, there by implying Israel and India are in similar position and that India should attack Pakistan....!
Why this sudden change of mind on the part of NIE?
There was another report about Indian response to Gaza strike in the same newspaper. This was in line with the hawkish headline of December 28.
Most of the headlines and Op-ed articles in NIE after 26/11 was hawkish, anti-minority and baying for blood and war[see 1 2 3 4].
As far as I can make out, Indian Express editorials speaks in a different voice than most of its headlines and Op-ed articles.
Are they sure that the people they want to incite will only read the headlines and not the editorials?
Do they feel that by writing a more sober viewpoint in editorials NIE can escape criticism of war mongering?
Now the Newspaper has written an editorial about the Gaza massacre. Here are some excerpts.
"The brutal massacre of innocent Palestinians in Gaza by the Israeli military needs to be condemned. It is an assault that has no justification, despite the efforts by Israeli government leaders to insist that the military attack was in response to rockets being launched by the Hamas.. . ......
. . .The UPA government has left it to the Congress to criticise the action, with some sections even drawing parallels between the situation in Israel and India.
This is absurd, to say the least, as there is just no comparison between the two countries. Israel is the aggressor against a proud people who have been turned out of their homeland, and have been struggling to regain a life of dignity and justice.
The world has turned away from the Palestinians struggle, including friends like India, leaving Israel with a virtually free playing field.
. . .India must recall its days as a leader of the non-aligned movement, a voice for the developing world, and take the lead now to condemn Israel and urge the United Nations to broker immediate peace. Iraq and Afghanistan will continue to burn and peace will remain elusive until the Palestinian issue is resolved.. . .
Oooh...... I rechecked to see whether I am reading the New Indian Express or The Hindu. Yes it is New Indian Express. The same newspaper which headlined [on first page of December 28 issue] Israel strikes as India dithers, there by implying Israel and India are in similar position and that India should attack Pakistan....!
Why this sudden change of mind on the part of NIE?
There was another report about Indian response to Gaza strike in the same newspaper. This was in line with the hawkish headline of December 28.
Most of the headlines and Op-ed articles in NIE after 26/11 was hawkish, anti-minority and baying for blood and war[see 1 2 3 4].
As far as I can make out, Indian Express editorials speaks in a different voice than most of its headlines and Op-ed articles.
Are they sure that the people they want to incite will only read the headlines and not the editorials?
Do they feel that by writing a more sober viewpoint in editorials NIE can escape criticism of war mongering?
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Mr Editor, Why are you so blood thirsty?
Israel strikes as India dithers is the provocative headline in one of our so called National Newspaper, The New Indian Express [NIE] today.
205 killed,300 injured is the proud proclamation below the headline.
The report is about the massacre of Palestinians living in Gaza by Israeli bombings. Contrast the NIE headline with that of London Times or Washington Post from countries who are staunch allies of Israel. No other newspaper in the World it seems is as blood thirsty as NIE.
NIE wants India to do an Israel.That is to bomb Pakistan. Or the Editor may want us to bomb Bangladesh and Afghanistan as well. He may be pleased if we bomb Iran also.
Now is there any rational in this malicious comparison between the situation in the Middle East with that of Indian subcontinent?
Israel-Palestine issue is the fight for the same piece of land in the Middle East between the Jews and Palestinians. It has no similarities to the issues in Indian Subcontinent.
A hallmark of the Israel-Palestine conflict has been the level of violence witnessed for virtually its entire duration. Fighting has been conducted by regular armies, paramilitary groups, and terror cells. Casualties have not been restricted to the military, with a large loss of civilian life on both sides. Even after so many years and deaths of millions no solution is in sight.
Is the NIE so blood thirsty as to make Indian subcontinent another Middle-East?
What will happen if India bombs Pakistan?
What is the purpose of bombing Pakistan?
Has pre emptive strikes reduced the threat of terror anywhere in the World?
Such attacks will only play in to the hands of extremists.Such an attack will destabilise the Civilian Government in Pakistan and Army and Islamists will take over.
Have the editor of the NIE thought about the events that will follow dragging India to a never ending conflict with a Islamist Military Government?
Since Mumbai terror attacks the NIE is baying for blood in its war-mongering pseudo patriotic fervour. I hope the readers of NIE will realise it and reject such ideology.
205 killed,300 injured is the proud proclamation below the headline.
The report is about the massacre of Palestinians living in Gaza by Israeli bombings. Contrast the NIE headline with that of London Times or Washington Post from countries who are staunch allies of Israel. No other newspaper in the World it seems is as blood thirsty as NIE.
NIE wants India to do an Israel.That is to bomb Pakistan. Or the Editor may want us to bomb Bangladesh and Afghanistan as well. He may be pleased if we bomb Iran also.
Now is there any rational in this malicious comparison between the situation in the Middle East with that of Indian subcontinent?
Israel-Palestine issue is the fight for the same piece of land in the Middle East between the Jews and Palestinians. It has no similarities to the issues in Indian Subcontinent.
A hallmark of the Israel-Palestine conflict has been the level of violence witnessed for virtually its entire duration. Fighting has been conducted by regular armies, paramilitary groups, and terror cells. Casualties have not been restricted to the military, with a large loss of civilian life on both sides. Even after so many years and deaths of millions no solution is in sight.
Is the NIE so blood thirsty as to make Indian subcontinent another Middle-East?
What will happen if India bombs Pakistan?
What is the purpose of bombing Pakistan?
Has pre emptive strikes reduced the threat of terror anywhere in the World?
Such attacks will only play in to the hands of extremists.Such an attack will destabilise the Civilian Government in Pakistan and Army and Islamists will take over.
Have the editor of the NIE thought about the events that will follow dragging India to a never ending conflict with a Islamist Military Government?
Since Mumbai terror attacks the NIE is baying for blood in its war-mongering pseudo patriotic fervour. I hope the readers of NIE will realise it and reject such ideology.
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