Some alternative views on the Great Event
For those of you who care to know what is going on - here are some links.As I have said earlier on posts here - there is a class of Indians who view the poor to be worthless nobodies to crush under the wheels of their cars - this "Great Event" (as Sanjay Srivastava calls it), is their creation. If Prime Minister Modi did it - it was to appease this bizarre segment of Indian society which he is convinced is responsible for bringing him to power.
Sanjay Srivastava - The Moral Project. (a great summary of the moral bullshit that covers an otherwise economically disastrous idea)
Mihir Sharma - India's Great Rupee Fail. (a great collection of views contradicting the prevailing twittergiest of India).
Appu Suresh - Why govt's demonetization may fail to win the war on black money (contains some details of the Fin Min view on how black money actually is hoarded in India).
Shivam Vij - Ways in which Indians will convert money black money to white after demonetization (note the heartbreaking story of a family that lost a newborn because the ambulance driver refused payment in old notes - this is inspite of the fact that everyone was assured hospitals could accept old notes).
posted by maverick @ 12:12 PM
6 Comments:
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Mav,
I am more worried that it may lead to creation of a famine in independent India. Have these guys really thought this thing through?
Dear Quantum Chaos,
No - they do not seem to have thought it through. As Sanjay Srivastava indicates - this is a "moral project" brought on by those whose minds are infested with an unhealthy obsession with "cleanliness".
You may be right.
The general belief in India that I have come across is that famines are a thing of the past. It was just a supply side issue and as long as GoI can import enough grain - the Army can be tasked with distributing it as needed. Given the IA's long record in disaster management it is easy to fall into such thinking.
The problem is that the IA can only spare enough resources for a highly localized disaster relief effort. If the affected area exceeds a few dozen districts or involves operations exceeding 45 days, I think the IA might find itself stretched thin. In any case no one has thought about the impact of such a move on the grain market prices as whole.
During times of great struggle Prime Minister Nehru and his family would forgo one meal a day as a symbol of solidarity with those that had suffered. I wonder if Sri. Modi will find it in him to do such a thing.
In a cash based economy - like the stock market where everything is tied to everything else at some level - demonetization has the same effect as a bad credit default swap. The risk of default on every transaction rises and that makes for toxic debts. While the wealth destroyed in a stock market crash can seem virtual - in cash only economy - the wealth destruction is too real to ignore.
A fast for ones own health is not the same as a fast to express solidarity with the suffering of others. When fasting for yogic health consciousness - one only cares about oneself - when fasting for others - one only thinks of others.
To conflate the two is to lose sight of a crucial quality that separates the selfish from the selfless.
If philandering and arrogance were criteria for comparison - then I think there is plenty of equivalence.
33 deaths after demonetization
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/demonetisation-suicides-heart-attacks-and-even-a-murder-among-33-deaths-since-decision-4378135/
Apparently poor peoples' children are dying because the don't have enough new notes.
Dear WiseAss,
As I indicated - these are alternative perspectives on the "Great Event".
You are welcome to dismiss them as untruths.
I feel Sri. Modi made a mistake when he released this policy without adequate consultation with the national security community and the agriculture ministry. In doing this - he put India's physical security and food security at risk.
I am happy to see that the Agriculture Ministry's suggestions to allow farmers the use of these old notes for seed purchases has been accepted. This should ward off the some of the famine threat that Quantum Chaos spoke about.
If in the future Sri. Modi takes decisions with the help of the agriculture ministry, then unnecessary friction withing the Govt. of India can be avoided.
Good luck with your Alt-Right agenda - FWIW when I heard about this agenda before the Modi Election - I told people there was little chance of making headway on this without a significant event that catalyzed public opinion.
I am still waiting for that event.
If it never comes - you can probably reach the same conclusion I will - i.e. Sri. Modi never intended to keep his promise to the alt-right anyway.
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