Should we pick ears with the tail of a tiger?
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Maswood Alam Khan
When you are weak physically there is possibility according to medical science that you are weak mentally too and vice versa. But we often confuse our physical weakness with some disabilities. To my personal opinion, if one is healthy both physically and psychologically---no matter the person is a he or a she, a dwarf or a lanky, or a deaf or a dumb---he or she should not be bracketed together with the weak unless she or he is too crippled even to think.
We all have observed that those who are dwarf or blind or physically a little disadvantaged are hugely sharp, intelligent and extra careful compared to any able-bodied person; if they could be given the opportunity and proper scope to employ their knowledge our society could have been blessed with many more prodigies who could invest many additional contributions in all the fields of science or arts.
My conviction about the power of the disadvantaged got reinforced back in the early 1980s when I worked as private secretary to Mr. Mohammad Hossain, then Managing Director of Agrani Bank, who had passed away in 1992. Mr. Hossain suffered from polio in his childhood and had to limp while walking plus he was too lean and too short.
Mr. Hossain was deputed in Agrani Bank with the status of a Joint Secretary. Though he never worked as a mainstream banker in the field he is still revered as one of the most successful managing directors of any state-owned bank. A small man in stature, he knew how to radiate charisma and wield power.
Mr. Hossain was in fact a terror in Agrani Bank. No mother's son---inside or outside of the bank---could ever dare to have a luxury to differ with what he dreamt in a dream, planned about an issue, decided over a project loan or sentenced on the fate of a bank employee. He had the mastery of overpowering a man who could be much bigger in size than his physical stature and much more muscled politically than he was bureaucratically.
I could read the language of Mr. Hossain's face, his tone, his variety of smiles and his body movements. And, thanks to my chair, I knew the precise moment when to approach him for what and how to get a job done, however difficult that was.
My long attachment with Mr. Hossain for a couple of years has equipped me, I wildly imagine, with an extrasensory power to deal with the powerful. Of course, my power so gained failed me on many an occasion when I applied the rule on someone who happened to be way smarter than me. From Mr. Mohammad Hossain I also picked a mania for using a folksy maxim "Don't pick your ear with the tail of a tiger!" in a situation where I needed to unnerve a person. This maxim served me alright, like a magic wand, while bargaining with a small fry like a peddler or a lowly employee. But, I was on the verge of being packed off on an occasion when I threw these words of warning on a wrong target.
Many of us are surprised at how audaciously some politicians of our country and a handful of others are trying to portray India as a culprit and Bangladesh as a victim, especially in the context of our prime minister's recent state visit to India. I can't say how much those politicians, who blurt out lofty lectures in open fields, could have pulled off from India had they been in power.
Critics have dissected, diagnosed and disparaged the gives and takes between India and Bangladesh that were determined during our premier's state visit to Delhi. But it is shocking that we did not read much words in newspapers eulogizing our prime minister who attained a global stature and statesmanship to qualify for '2009 Indira Gandhi Peace Award', a prestigious award that is normally conferred in recognition of one's contribution to peace, disarmament and development---an award that in previous years was conferred upon no less than figures like former Soviet Union Leader Mikhail Gorbachev, the 7th UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and many more. Shouldn't we be satisfied and remain grateful for such an honour awarded to our prime minister instead of grudging what we can export to and import from India?
Why should we be dependent on India for export and import in this age of free economy? If India adopts protectionist measures we should look elsewhere without irking India.
It is lamentable that some observers point their fingers to the prime minister while complaining about discriminatory deals between India and Bangladesh. Is it prime minister's job to tick the list of importable and exportable items? If there are absurdities in the list the blame should rest squarely on the bureaucrats of the concerned ministries who were supposed to double-check the list months before the prime minister's state visit. It is customary that the nitty-gritty are ironed out at ministerial levels well before heads of governments go for finalizing a deal.
Today's India is not yesterday's India. The country has come of age. India is now poised on the edge of becoming a superpower. Every nation cares India. Even the United States of America! We should also care India and carry on our relentless efforts to resolve the burning issues that are souring are friendly equation. I am sure, if our diplomats are smart in negotiation across the table, trivial issues like skirmishes in the borders and major issues like sharing rivers can easily be resolved at ministerial level meetings.
We should live on the ground of reality; we must not live in the world of fantasy. It is a daylight reality that India is a big power and also a big nation politically, economically and militarily. We are of course a big nation but not a big power. We should not fight with someone we cannot get our teeth into. Before we attain the power we have to be a little accommodative; we should even adopt a policy of appeasement, if necessary.
When you have to live with a powerful neighbour you have to move tactfully in the neighbourhood. Don't bare your teeth. Rather absorb shocks that come along, don't resist. Everything will come right in the end, if you are a little patient, a little resilient. You have to imagine that your next-door neighbour is a ferocious tiger who has to be cajoled into believing that you respect him and you are afraid of him. You may pat the tiger on the head and caress the back of his neck, but never ever attempt to pick your ears with his tail. Behave the way Mohammad Ali acted while fighting with George Foreman in the 1974 World Heavyweight Championship.
October 30, 1974. George Foreman, none of whose opponents had lasted more than three rounds in the ring, was the strongest and the hardest hitting boxer of his generation. Mohammad Ali, though not as powerful as Foreman, had a slightly faster punch and was lighter on his feet.
When the bell rang just after 4:00 a.m. in Kinshasa, something completely unexpected happened. In round two, instead of moving into the ring to meet Foreman, Ali appeared to cower against the ropes. Foreman, now confident of victory, pounded him again and again, while Ali whispered hoarse taunts: "George, you're not hitting me", "George, you are disappointing me." Foreman lost his temper, and his punches became furious. To spectators, unaware that the elastic ring ropes were absorbing much of the force of Foreman's blows, it looked as if Ali would surely fall. By the fifth round, however, Foreman was worn out. And in round eight, as stunned commentators and a delirious crowd looked on, Muhammad Ali knocked George Foreman to the canvas, and the fight was over. A fight that should have been over in three rounds went eight, and Foreman's prodigious punches proved useless against Ali's rope-a-dope strategy.
History suggests: Weak actors sometimes do win.
The writer can be reached at
e-mail: maswood@hotmail.com
When you are weak physically there is possibility according to medical science that you are weak mentally too and vice versa. But we often confuse our physical weakness with some disabilities. To my personal opinion, if one is healthy both physically and psychologically---no matter the person is a he or a she, a dwarf or a lanky, or a deaf or a dumb---he or she should not be bracketed together with the weak unless she or he is too crippled even to think.
We all have observed that those who are dwarf or blind or physically a little disadvantaged are hugely sharp, intelligent and extra careful compared to any able-bodied person; if they could be given the opportunity and proper scope to employ their knowledge our society could have been blessed with many more prodigies who could invest many additional contributions in all the fields of science or arts.
My conviction about the power of the disadvantaged got reinforced back in the early 1980s when I worked as private secretary to Mr. Mohammad Hossain, then Managing Director of Agrani Bank, who had passed away in 1992. Mr. Hossain suffered from polio in his childhood and had to limp while walking plus he was too lean and too short.
Mr. Hossain was deputed in Agrani Bank with the status of a Joint Secretary. Though he never worked as a mainstream banker in the field he is still revered as one of the most successful managing directors of any state-owned bank. A small man in stature, he knew how to radiate charisma and wield power.
Mr. Hossain was in fact a terror in Agrani Bank. No mother's son---inside or outside of the bank---could ever dare to have a luxury to differ with what he dreamt in a dream, planned about an issue, decided over a project loan or sentenced on the fate of a bank employee. He had the mastery of overpowering a man who could be much bigger in size than his physical stature and much more muscled politically than he was bureaucratically.
I could read the language of Mr. Hossain's face, his tone, his variety of smiles and his body movements. And, thanks to my chair, I knew the precise moment when to approach him for what and how to get a job done, however difficult that was.
My long attachment with Mr. Hossain for a couple of years has equipped me, I wildly imagine, with an extrasensory power to deal with the powerful. Of course, my power so gained failed me on many an occasion when I applied the rule on someone who happened to be way smarter than me. From Mr. Mohammad Hossain I also picked a mania for using a folksy maxim "Don't pick your ear with the tail of a tiger!" in a situation where I needed to unnerve a person. This maxim served me alright, like a magic wand, while bargaining with a small fry like a peddler or a lowly employee. But, I was on the verge of being packed off on an occasion when I threw these words of warning on a wrong target.
Many of us are surprised at how audaciously some politicians of our country and a handful of others are trying to portray India as a culprit and Bangladesh as a victim, especially in the context of our prime minister's recent state visit to India. I can't say how much those politicians, who blurt out lofty lectures in open fields, could have pulled off from India had they been in power.
Critics have dissected, diagnosed and disparaged the gives and takes between India and Bangladesh that were determined during our premier's state visit to Delhi. But it is shocking that we did not read much words in newspapers eulogizing our prime minister who attained a global stature and statesmanship to qualify for '2009 Indira Gandhi Peace Award', a prestigious award that is normally conferred in recognition of one's contribution to peace, disarmament and development---an award that in previous years was conferred upon no less than figures like former Soviet Union Leader Mikhail Gorbachev, the 7th UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and many more. Shouldn't we be satisfied and remain grateful for such an honour awarded to our prime minister instead of grudging what we can export to and import from India?
Why should we be dependent on India for export and import in this age of free economy? If India adopts protectionist measures we should look elsewhere without irking India.
It is lamentable that some observers point their fingers to the prime minister while complaining about discriminatory deals between India and Bangladesh. Is it prime minister's job to tick the list of importable and exportable items? If there are absurdities in the list the blame should rest squarely on the bureaucrats of the concerned ministries who were supposed to double-check the list months before the prime minister's state visit. It is customary that the nitty-gritty are ironed out at ministerial levels well before heads of governments go for finalizing a deal.
Today's India is not yesterday's India. The country has come of age. India is now poised on the edge of becoming a superpower. Every nation cares India. Even the United States of America! We should also care India and carry on our relentless efforts to resolve the burning issues that are souring are friendly equation. I am sure, if our diplomats are smart in negotiation across the table, trivial issues like skirmishes in the borders and major issues like sharing rivers can easily be resolved at ministerial level meetings.
We should live on the ground of reality; we must not live in the world of fantasy. It is a daylight reality that India is a big power and also a big nation politically, economically and militarily. We are of course a big nation but not a big power. We should not fight with someone we cannot get our teeth into. Before we attain the power we have to be a little accommodative; we should even adopt a policy of appeasement, if necessary.
When you have to live with a powerful neighbour you have to move tactfully in the neighbourhood. Don't bare your teeth. Rather absorb shocks that come along, don't resist. Everything will come right in the end, if you are a little patient, a little resilient. You have to imagine that your next-door neighbour is a ferocious tiger who has to be cajoled into believing that you respect him and you are afraid of him. You may pat the tiger on the head and caress the back of his neck, but never ever attempt to pick your ears with his tail. Behave the way Mohammad Ali acted while fighting with George Foreman in the 1974 World Heavyweight Championship.
October 30, 1974. George Foreman, none of whose opponents had lasted more than three rounds in the ring, was the strongest and the hardest hitting boxer of his generation. Mohammad Ali, though not as powerful as Foreman, had a slightly faster punch and was lighter on his feet.
When the bell rang just after 4:00 a.m. in Kinshasa, something completely unexpected happened. In round two, instead of moving into the ring to meet Foreman, Ali appeared to cower against the ropes. Foreman, now confident of victory, pounded him again and again, while Ali whispered hoarse taunts: "George, you're not hitting me", "George, you are disappointing me." Foreman lost his temper, and his punches became furious. To spectators, unaware that the elastic ring ropes were absorbing much of the force of Foreman's blows, it looked as if Ali would surely fall. By the fifth round, however, Foreman was worn out. And in round eight, as stunned commentators and a delirious crowd looked on, Muhammad Ali knocked George Foreman to the canvas, and the fight was over. A fight that should have been over in three rounds went eight, and Foreman's prodigious punches proved useless against Ali's rope-a-dope strategy.
History suggests: Weak actors sometimes do win.
The writer can be reached at
e-mail: maswood@hotmail.com