Vanuatu

Crack

NB: This post was written about two months back. I didn't publish it at that point simply because I was a bit taken aback by the comments I had received about the blog. But over time, even after toning down on a lot of stuff I wanted to write, I continue to get the same comments. So I figure, if I'm scaring people even when I try not to, might as well don't worry about holding back.

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"Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything, That's how the light gets in."

Leonard Cohen from "Anthem"
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I have no idea what context this quote was said in; I simply read it at the end of some anti-racism mailing list and in classic style, I'm going to assume the context was what I predict it to be.

This post is more of a clarification for all readers:

DON'T CAUSE RIPPLES
I realize the importance of being politicially correct; I also realise that the very characteristic of collective socieities that I praise very often is something I am failing to follow i.e. not causing any problems on the superficial level by avoiding overt "confrontation."

THE HUNTER BECOMES THE HUNTED
I believe that those who fight against prejudice are the most gullible to falling into the trap of being prejudiced against the other. From the looks of it, that has happened to me: I was told by a very close friend and fellow volunteer here in Vanuatu, that she found my blog "intense", because of the over-use of the word "hate" and the blatant referrals to "white people" vs. those who aren't. I have tried reading the blog, but unfortunately, I am unable to pick up the exact posts or lines she is referring to. I apologize for any friends I have offended. Please know that if I personally gave you the blog address, than it was a after very serious consideration on whether or not I thought you would be able to understand that I write only about my daily reality and nobody elses. If my daily reality is colored by a race-perspective, or that of those-with-power vs. those-without, than all I can do is accurately re-tell it all to the best of my ability and hope that somehow, getting to know about this different perspective will make it easier for us as people to get along harmoniously.

JUDGING ME BY MY POSTS
My issue with blogging: people, automatically, will assume that the only thing to you is what you write about. What I'd like to remind *all* readers is that we are human beings; that implies we have complex, non-standardized and usually subjective behaviour, morals and life-policies. So, if I decide to focus all my attention on a few certain issues, it's simply because I personally feel that those issues are what deserve the most attention or those issues are the ones with the least attention being afforded to them. Besides, the activity of predicting somebody's entire composition based on a few lines written by them doesn't seem all that fair or exciting.

MY BOOGEY-MAN
We all need scapegoats, I will readily accept that I use the "white man" as mine. But in all fairness, with all the privelege, power, access and safety that is afforded to us as Westerners, and those with lighter skins, I feel that if anybody can afford being labelled as the boogey-man, it would be this population. While I would strongly say that it is not your fault, as an individual, for the oppresive past actions of nations, I would also like to remind *us* all that we, by virtue of our ancestral past, are in a current position of power or otherwise. Therefore, even though it is not our fault on what our great-grand-fathers did, in my humble opinion, if we are able to reap the dividends for their actios by automatically being able to stake claim to world's 90% riches, than we also should be held accountable for the cost of where these dividends come from. Also, if it's any consolation, I can firmly say that I hold myself to similar stringent standards.

posted by faa-T @ 9:11 AM