The tragic Air India crash report has led to some serious violations at many fronts. The report was factual, and any unbiased logical reading would point to two possible scenarios. One is that there was deliberate act from atleast one of the pilots (was it too much stress or was it sabotage -suicide or a larger part of a terror is mere speculation), this is conjectured as deliberate act since it is impossible for fuel switch to flip accidently. Second possibility is that there was a technical error, there were reports mentioning issue with fuel switch in Boeing. Also, understand Boeing is in serious focus in recent times as market concerns have taken precedence over safety. There are documentaries made, suicides (allegation of murder) by whistleblower so on. So what do we do in such a situation where there are two tantalizing possibilities? There is something called ethics.
You do not create aspersions on people who are dead and cannot defend themselves, unless there are compelling undisputable evidence. They must always be given benefit of doubt. It is not about misplaced nationalism but basic humanity, be gentle. Big corporate like Boeing can easily manipulate narration, and market media will toe the line drawn by big money. Also, Western media, particularly British hence by extension English, take India for low hanging fruit. This has to do with neocolonial feudal control –which works at two level one is ofcourse racism, second is castetva feudal forces have sense of entitled proprietorial control over common people and have aligned with liberal posing british elois to posture against India hence any news from India will be manipulated to denigrade India hence against hindutva. Create general bad impression about India in whatever possible manner hence by some twisted logic helping common Indians. Ofcourse India has problems but considering how the worst is normalized in west (also, lack of basic democratic norms in much of the world. Even in case of gender based atrocities it has to be understood that women are much freer here than strictly segregated barbaric societies where women are mostly absent or severely curtailed in public space, only freer societies bring stresses and fractures of negotiating changing times and entrenched patriarchy. Absence of sexual abuse in barbaric societies is not progressive but points to foundational issue that even questions humanity, you cannot arbitrate by constructing this deviance as normal. As much as purity is not hygiene, modesty sanitizing is not sign of civilized society) and expect highest standards from such a large country with amazing diversity seems like a sinister plan by vested interests. Incidents from India are exaggerated to create a narration. It also is power display. Organized barbaric practices are protected under the garb of religion and tradition and forced on to common people as diversity and multiculture by devious people to extend their control. India by its very nature is not organized –which surely makes it valuable, but in competing forces of neoliberal left and right these are occasions to exploit weakness. Indian therefore is seen as punching bag, and castetva forces who ruled India for decades worked this narration to control and exploit the herd while pleasing the west.
By constructing a narration of erring pilots by the western media, particularly the mischievous mediocre British media, has committed grave misinformation, shown deep rooted racism and allegiance to neoliberal transactional opportunist value system. Journalistic probity demands that they give equal importance to possibility of technical glitch –considering that fuel switch was under considerable scrutiny as also Boeing as a company is not without blame in the recent past. Ofcourse there are hundreds and thousands of Boeing planes flying across the world every day but that doesn’t mean anything. If there was a glitch then it can lead to, however rare, to serious mishap (it is conceivable that instead of human “error” the pilot observed the switch malfunction and tried his best to retrieve). Following the same logic there are hundreds and thousands of pilots flying Boeing everyday do they make such error or are they suicidal? When rare occasion presents, as major accident that kills hundreds, then we have to be extra careful in how it is reported. Sensationalism and opportunism in taking side of big corporate is a serious violation. It is maligning the dead, an assault on justice for victims and their loved ones. Considering the context it is a serious disinformation. There is a deliberate malicious attempt to create narration of control instead of trying to find the truth or report the verified facts with journalistic integrity and empathy. Unless the truth is out you cannot take sides or attempt at creating narrations.
An instance of constructing narration by media
Defunct Kerala model
Kerala for its prized spices like pepper and cardamom had influence from various parts of the world for more than 2000years, and was an important trading route for centuries. Early Buddhist influence and Christian missionaries –that dates back to St. Thomas almost to the time of Jesus, played a significant role in grassroot literacy and awareness, as also infrastructure for health and care, nurturing relatively progressive society. This then gave impetus to social movements and progressive ideas that became political instrument through effective grassroot participation and political consolidation through communism and progressive socialist concerns firmly placed in democracy. Islam had progressive influence –that dates to back 7th century arab traders, in the beginning as it effectively dented and provided common people with alternative ways against centuries of exploitative inhuman feudal values in deeply flawed society. Kerala model was hailed but it failed to take off due to limitation of cannibalistic corrupt society. All the religions whether Hinduism, Christianity or Islam (Jews, Buddhists, Jains etc presence is too insignificant) are reduced to parody and lowest commonest denominator arbitrated by neoliberal market system for blessing. Indeed these competing religion driven nuisance is now a threat to every progressive measure as they ensnare incapacitated to be educated herd. Communism is now part of neoliberal left that feeds on misery through nepotism and opportunism, though it remains far better option to infighting castetva feudal self centered horrible people posing as leaders, manipulating and distracting herds into deeper pits. Hindutva is emerging as a minor nuisance but important presence to break the binary loot as also against islamist consolidation.
Unlike other part of the country Kerala’s health infrastructure is functioning but is in bad shape and deliberately undervalued for private profiteers to capitalize, it couldn’t effectively capitalize on advantage of early start nor modernize, so is the case with education system. Most competent health workers like nurses are now moving to west while teaching remains last resort attracting low calibre while school teaching function as wage support for housewives (competent school teachers find employment abroad). Though the condition of higher education is not really abysmal but it falls well short of possibilities that Kerala model proposed as international standards, and is infested with low quality teaching lacking enterprise. Most youngsters prefer to pursue higher studies in West, a closed society with conservative intrusive regressive values also create desperate reasons to move out. Natural beauty of the region, food marked by centuries of varied influence from different parts of the world as also brilliant biting humour that only works in Malayalam, and ofcourse the music, retains nostalgia despite the grim.
