So I was writing a diary, that was deemed as divisive because I quoted someone whose comment was deemed divisive. So let me start somewhere else.
Ive seen this before. We argue, we are bitter and we call each other names. I don't want to argue the nitty gritty, I don't want to parse the meaning of individual words right now. Those things are important things to do. But not now in this diary. If you want to talk about positive things, this diary is for you. No pie fights please.
So let me start here: my father, a very conservative Hindu told me this story several times. It's of a Hindu king long ago who fought an invader. This invader attacked the Hindu king, I think around 20 times. Each time, the invader lost, and ran. But rather than destroying him, the defending king let him go.The invader would regroup and invade again. The defending king always showed mercy. Every single time. Except the only time that the invader won. The invader killed him and plundered the nation.
I don't know exactly how true this story is, since history sometimes gets mixed up with mythology and glorification, but that's not the point. It's kind of depressing, because we lost. But it's also strengthening to know that we never abandoned our principles. And that's what made that king great. No one respects that invader- he was an opportunist. But as Indians, we have utmost respect of that King and still tell his story.
And that's what I want to get at, if you think that we lost this battle, and we gave away too much to the Republicans- that's fine, go ahead. Your point is reasonable, and understandable.
But always remember, the Republicans only win when they hold the middle class hostage. That's not principled, that is despicable. We, as the defenders of the Middle Class and the Poor, don't do that. We lose when we give away our bargaining power to save the hostage.
But our compassion for the hostage is what separates us from the Republicans. Im not arguing about policy or politics right now. Im arguing about principles.
So even if you are disappointed that Obama caved, hold your head high. Republicans can't do that. They cannot call themselves anything but the party of the rich. They are nothing but a party willing to hurt everyone to help a few. But not us, we are the compassionate party. Even if that means we lose political battles occasionally.
And I think that's a label we should be proud to have. All of us.
Edit:
As an aside, when I was a kid I always complained about these stories, where my ancestors stood proudly against invaders but still lost. And my dad told me dozens of such stories (some childhood huh? haha). I wanted to hear the stories where we won, but I never heard those. Tippu Sultan, Bhagat Singh, Bobilli Yudham (everyone in a city), Alluri Sitaramaraju, Chandrashekar Azad. I can tick these names off. They all died, never achieving their goals. But as a kid, what I never understood is that courage and principle are more important than victory. That is where Indians have pride. And these stories are an integral part of our culture.
I might write another diary later, explaining a few stories, if anyone is interested. I still tear up thinking about them. I sing their songs before walking into an exam, so I can have courage.