A Fundamental Disconnect

Ah yes, Nepal is on the road to peace. Stop being a pessimist, blogdai and get with the program, you say.

Well, let's just see what the "program" has to offer. Hmm. Today Richard Ragan of Nepal's brand of the World Food Program decried the petty transportation strike that is preventing vital food shipments from reaching the hungry in Jumla, Rolpa and Dolpo. So, where in our new government's agenda lies the resolution of this transport strike? Nowhere, that's where. The day-to-day issues facing Nepal are of no concern. We'll ignore them as always and maybe they'll go away.

And what about the fact that we seem to have two very different parties operating their own brand of government at the same time, without even a hint of compromise? Let it go. Things will work themselves out under this new atmosphere of hope. Just because none of these people have ever given the slightest indication of a willingness to compromise in the past does not mean that they won't now, miraculously, work out their differences and give up their individual power centers for the good of the common man, right?

Yes, let's get on the peace train with this new agreement with the Maoists, shall we? We in Nepal are so blind that we will trust these thugs again and again because we are too stupid to differentiate between what sounds hopeful and what the momentum of our own recent history has tried to teach us. Give the bums all the chances they want. They've never once gotten it right, but maybe this time....

Governments, democratic ones, allow for equal representation from all sectors of society through the election process. Elections? What are those? Forget the fact that the NC and the Maoists have unilaterally nominated--rather than elected--their own cronies to all governmental and interim government posts. The future is full of hope, who needs elections?

And what of democracy? We in Nepal think it means that we have the freedom to do whatever we want without responsibility to other members of society. Sounds like utopia! Governments, laws and Constitutions are mere formalities. If we truly want something, we take to the streets and throw stones until we get our way; how democratic!

Yes, this is the best chance for peace we've seen in a long time. So what if it turns out to be a shell-game to fool the UN and once all the moderators and peacekeepers are gone, Nepal goes back to the same ineffective "business as usual" corrupt government. Oh, and we'll just ignore the fact that Maoist atrocities are increasing; wouldn't want to put a gloomy face on such a historic and landmark peace agreement, would we?

I like democracy in Nepal. It's easy. All one has to do is give up. Let those with money and guns tell us what to do. Who cares if all the big democratic nations of the world are full of citizens who take a critical view of legislative actions and a keen interest in political ethics. That's just too much work for us Nepalis.

Blind trust is a lazy man's alternative to holding his government accountable.

-=blogdai