Culture Vulture OR Vulture Culture?

Some weeks ago when we wrote about the deteriorating culture in DehraDun, we had no idea that it would stick to so many people (Ref:Open letter to CM and MC). At, at least 2 different places; people picked up a conversation with me about my critical comments on certain people who are contributing to the ‘Muzzafarnagar-isation’ of Doon. The mention below is about one of those ‘interesting’ conversations.

The conversation started in the usual cordial tone of “Oh! I read your article, and liked it”, it then went into “but, I think you are stereo-typing people” and went on to “how can you call one culture better than the other?”

Well, I don’t. I can only compare cultures and leave the judgment to whoever cares to make one.

The last entire century was lead by dogmatic leaders who changed the world forever. Germans are better than Jews…Capitalism is better than communism…White is better than black…I can plunder your country’s oil, but you can’t…My religion is better than yours…Etc. (usually absolutely extreme ends) We saw so much of X is better than Y and the conflict arising out of it, that all discussion about comparisons slowly stopped (other than in closed rooms) and the world started to say what is always ‘politically correct’. It became so important to not get into conflict, that we stopped calling ‘a spade, a spade’. All this under the guise of ‘different people and cultures work differently and what is true for one may not be true for another”…so “all cultures are equal and should co-exist”. So far so good…not that conflict completely ceased.

Coming back to the conversation with this gentleman; I asked “Do you think that all people are equal?”

“Yes, of course” he replied.

“Do you think one culture is better than the other?”

“No, I think all cultures have their own ways and that those ways are not better or worse, just different”

“Do you think there might be ways by which one culture can be called better than the other?”

“No, no again…cultures are different, not better or worse; just different”

“Do you think a culture that generally respects women may be better than a culture that doesn’t?”

“Well…”

“Do you think a usually compassionate culture is better than a usually violent culture?”

“Well…”

“Do you think Dehradun’s culture is better than some other places around Dehradun?”

“Well…”

To people who have chosen to make DehraDun their home …”Guys; please be nice to your
town…this is the only one we have!”

Vineet Panchhi owns and runs Audio Wagon, his lifelong passion and now a music company. He blogs at Unplanned Journeys , and can be reached at: vineet.panchhi@audiowagon.com