Absolutely. A prime example of that is India - with our erstwhile and current communist (aka whiny) leadership, have we not ridden the crest of some kickass world-sympathy tsunami?

PS: Sathish, wrong entry to comment on. The one you want is above this one.

(or aren’t you angry any more?)

I am not asking for free publicity. Just asking you to recognise the existence of counter-points. There is nothing right or wrong in ideology. Whatever succeeds at the grassroots must be welcomed.
BTW, I am not against any person. I am just against ideas.

Madman,

I adore Arundati, just because of her daringness to speak-out and her acceptance of Chomsky. I maynot agree with whatever she says.

The ‘correct entry’ to comment on - was posted AFTER I’d commented. So, can’t help it. :-)

Ravi,

Thanks for the discussion on Pareto.

All,

I would write on what I think about ideologies and where I stand - in my blog, very soon. Please hold your attributions and judgements till then. Thanks.

— Sathish

Just asking you to recognise the existence of counter-points. There is nothing right or wrong in ideology. Whatever succeeds at the grassroots must be welcomed.
BTW, I am not against any person. I am just against ideas.

…but i will go ahead and give my opinion on it anyway ;-). I think there are right and wrong ideologies, even if having an ideology in itself maynot be wrong. Also it is not neccessary to jump in and embrace an ideological fallacy just because it has grass-roots success. Evidently AP voted for free-electricity, that does not validate Populism as a legitimate or even honest and ethical policy programme.

You also mention Chomsky (yuck..), I might say about Chomsky and his left leaning ilk, that they might still make noises about equality and fairness, but when it comes to tolerating contesting opinions they seem to shy away when push comes to shove. People who contest their views or beliefs have to pay a heavy price, especially in academia which is the only domain over which they have a degree of control.

Most people like the Verbal Terrorist and the Resident Idiot, believe something with their hearts and try to project the ideas as if they come from their heads. I think everyone who is making statements that will impact the whole nation or the world should consider what they are saying exclusively with their head, with suitable references to their heart and more importantly they should read Road to Serfdom before they say anything at all :-).

1. Ideological solutions are always simple to arrive at. But not necessarily correct. World is more complex than an ideologist would like it to be.

2. By being ideological we intentionally blind ourselves from looking at other viewpoints. My request for Yazad was not to do exactly this. Issues merit independent look and unbiased evaluation. Not ideologically biased solutions.

3. Grassroots success is the only measure of economic development. If a policy suceeds on the ground, it must be welcomed, FULLSTOP. I strongly believe discussing issues with an ideology and taking such discussions to the extremes of ethics is going to help none. We need action, not ideas. We already have enough ideas.

– Sathish