India-baiting desi gets top Time job

[Guest dada_rocks]

India-baiting desi gets top Time job Pioneer News Service | New Delhi The appointment of Aparisim 'Bobby' Ghosh as world editor of Time would no doubt be hailed as a first of its kind since he will be the first Indian and the first non-American to hold the post. It is also the first time that a person who thinks gobbledygook makes eminent sense simply because it runs down India, shall hold this exalted post. Few readers of Time would recall that some time in 2001 Bobby Ghosh, the name he uses for his penmanship that appears in the American news weekly and its online edition, had 'organised' an essay competition, asking Indian and Pakistani readers for their views on the single greatest achievement in their country. The 'best' entries featured in his column, Subcontinental Drift, which appeared on timesasia.com. Bobby Ghosh was impressed by the following entry on India's achievements, of which only a few lines have been quoted, to select it for 'special mention': "Aelifgj0 r9814 a;kcr349m cpw lkdkj92l,g oewihv 620myj09v o568 oi4556u0 mov4598 ov96 pv59886 spviog qkjnd aoifng'ort a pokjtyb kjnvn clkfb xxq9c slrtv7c2 93c8u lfkn349 8u sl,cx m;'z'gi ;oesoityiu mpsporek psa9I u4302 pow95u w;4e9ie5 ;owetiuie r pqoiu 4w(pq34 o234q9 v;weoi 4ru0otoq;lorwiutrpo43jlrew98 wo9er7ov o349re87oa 9 9 7o..." The 'essay' had an explanatory note: "What I mean to say from the above is that the achievements are nil and whatever they tried to achieve they made into mess, like the above." The writer whose entry Bobby Ghosh thought merited 'special mention' was a certain FDSFASDFA from India. Gibberish, Bobby Ghosh believes -- as also presumably do his employers -- make for quality journalism. But Bobby Ghosh has been stacking his chips for some time now. His over-rated coverage of the war in Iraq is not the only reason why he has been awarded with a plum post over which some of his desi professional colleagues are going green with envy or delirious with joy. During the NDA years, Bobby Ghosh indulged in unrestrained Vajpayee-bashing and was scathing about most things Indian, which helped him establish his 'credentials' with those in charge of Time's affairs. As did his columns denouncing the NDA Government for not joining the US-led war against terror in which he made out India lacks the guts to slug it out. Never mind what the rest of the world thinks of Atal Bihari Vajpayee's innovative initiatives on Jammu & Kashmir, Bobby Ghosh -- how could he not! -- thought otherwise. "Vajpayee's Kashmir policy may be summed up thus: Don't Shoot, Don't Talk, Don't Act. Apparently, the Prime Minister hopes that if he buries his head in the sand, the problems ... will simply go away," he wrote in a particularly vitriolic column, adding, "Vajpayee's inaction is not just unsatisfactory; it is downright dangerous. Ostriches, when they eventually remove their heads from the sand, usually find themselves in a more precarious situation than before. So too will Vajpayee." Similarly, he lashed out at Vajpayee for seeking to protect the Bamiyan Buddhas from the Taliban: "The land of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru is being lectured on religious tolerance by Afghanistan's Taliban. For this, as with so many recent ignominies, India has Atal Behari Vajpayee to thank. Yet again the Prime Minister's desire to be seen the world statesman has left his country shamed... The response from Kabul -- and from leaders of India's Muslim minority -- was a stinging slap in the face. The trouble is, it's hard to do a good impression of statesmanship when you're hopping about on one foot -- the other being lodged in your mouth." Aggressive in tone and offensive in tenor, Bobby Ghosh is particularly fond of berating the Indian Army for its anti-terror operations in Jammu & Kashmir (although, strangely, he thinks the US-led war on terror is a good idea): "When under pressure, the Indian Army tends to drop any consideration of human rights and lash out in all directions, taking a heavy toll on the civilian populace... The recent strengthening of Indian troop concentrations in Kashmir and the belligerent statements from Army brass as well as political leaders suggests Delhi is preparing to step up its military operations in the disputed territory...". Presuming to speak on behalf of the US Administration, but getting it all utterly so very wrong, Bobby Ghosh once pompously declared, "The US doesn't need Indian air bases, and were it not inappropriate to guffaw in these sombre times, Washington would probably laugh at Delhi's offer of intelligence on the Taliban and bin Laden. (My own contacts in the Indian intelligence community assure me that Delhi has little practical, up-to-date information to offer.)" With such access to information and such insight into America's strategic interests, it is only right that Bobby Ghosh should be Time's world editor.

[karina]

Gibberish, Bobby Ghosh believes -- as also presumably do his employers -- make for quality journalism. .

Isn't Time supposed to be the govt's mouthpiece? Hardly surprising then.

[yoda]

Isn't Time supposed to be the govt's mouthpiece?

I didn't know that.

[karina]

I didn't know that.

I'm just going by what others tell me. I don't read it, prefer Newsweek. Maybe 'govt mouthpiece' is the wrong word, more like pro establishment.

[apocalypse]

I think some Indian was appointed as BBC head or some main editor some time back and she was also known for criticizing Indian policies and actions