[Assam] ANT & GRASS HOPPER

[Chan Mahanta]

I saw this miserable piece in more than one forum. Looks like like it 
is a big hit among the  desi-yuppies.,particularly among those 
self-made, hardworking scions of the establishment, who got where 
they did, often out of the largesse of a reverse-Robinhoodism 
practising  desi govt. that steals from the many to enrich the chosen 
few.

Is there any substance to it? Perhaps there is. But it eludes this responder.

So how do Medha Patkar and Arundhati Roy get into  the picture? Hmmm! 
That is a mystery. But then again, perhaps it is because they have 
the gall to speak out for  all those  who do not count in the image 
of a shining India which is built on the backs of the great unwashed, 
who must not work hard enough to succeed like the hardworking sons 
and  daughters of the establishment, who attend schools with 
Christian saints' names paying huge fees,  go to IITs and IIMs and 
AIIMs, get H1B visas and go to enjoy their hard-won fortunes  in the 
west, or at the very least  enjoy the good life at Gurgaon .

So is it at least a noteworthy piece of  satire?

Perhaps, to those who are stuck in a sophomoric rut.

cm










At 5:07 PM +0530 6/26/07, bg wrote:
>India-today
>
>ANT & GRASS HOPPER
>An old fable, earlier retold in the US and now adapted to Indian situation.
>
>ANT & GRASS HOPPER
>
>OLD VERSION...
>
>The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long building his
>house and laying up supplies for the winter.
>The grasshopper thinks the ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays
>the summer away.
>Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no 
>food or shelter so he dies out in the cold.
>
>
>MODERN VERSION
>The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building 
>his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper 
>thinks the ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
>Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands
>to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while 
>others are cold and starving.
>
>NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering 
>grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with 
>a table filled with food.
>The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that 
>this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
>
>Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house.
>Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other grasshoppers demanding 
>that grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter.
>Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for not
>upholding the fundamental rights of the grasshopper.
>The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the 
>grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt 
>support as against
>the wrath of God for non-compliance) .
>Opposition MP's stage a walkout. Left parties call for "Bharat 
>Bandh" in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry.CPM in 
>Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in 
>the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among ants and 
>grasshoppers.
>Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian
>Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'.
>
>Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the Prevention of Terrorism
>against Grasshoppers Act [POTAGA]", with effect from the beginning 
>of the winter.
>
>Arjun Singh makes Special Reservation for Grass Hopper in educational
>Institutions & in Govt Services.
>
>The ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and, having 
>nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated 
>by the Government and handed over to the grasshopper in a ceremony 
>covered by NDTV.
>
>Arundhati Roy calls it "a triumph of justice". Lalu calls it
>'Socialistic Justice'. CPM calls it the 'revolutionary resurgence
>of the downtrodden' Kofi Annan invites the grasshopper to address the
>UN General Assembly.
>
>Many years later...The ant has since migrated to the US and set up a 
>multi billion dollar company in Silicon valley.100s of grasshoppers 
>still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India ...
>
>As a result losing lot of hard working ants and feeding the grasshoppers,
>
>India is still a developing country..
>
>
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