The Maoists

There are Maoists in India. Maybe there are Stalinists in Iran too, who knows. This week they attacked a government building west of Kolkata and hijacked a train (no one was hurt besides getting hit by broken windows). But the Maoists are the least of my worries.

In a couple of hours, I have a train leaving for Lucknow. I'm running a little late, but that's not the issue. I booked the ticket online through the government agency, like I've done a bunch of times. I got a confirmation email. I was billed. Yet, no e-ticket has ever shown itself on the website. I went into my booked history it shows only 3 random trains, leaving out this one and many others. It does show the first one I booked. Whenever I look at my booked history, it usually shows different trains. So I hope that, in order of least bad to worst, I don't get charged an extra 50 rupees for not having my e-ticket, get thrown off the train, get thrown off at the first stop, get fed to the Maoists.

The guy at the metro seemed to beem with pride at our smooth transaction (it was a different guy than last night). A kid, who had the whole sidewalk (I was pinned to the wall), slammed right into me, but apologized. I was thinking about my run-ins. It seems like there's a battle between foreigners vs. India and Indians vs. foreigners. That's way too simplistic though. It's important to remember than India is a nation of a billion individuals, tons of different ethnicities, religions, tribes, languages, and classes. Some people see you as a foreigner and not as a person. These are the people who are fighting a misplaced battle. It might just be an innocent drawn out stare. Or it might be pushing you out of the way and when you push back, yelling at you. It might be screaming obscenities because someone, who happens to be foreign-born, doesn't take your advice. Yet, this is a small group. One that I encounter to a disproportionate degree.

We must not forget that foreigners' ignorance plays a role too. While one foreigner's ignorance should not lead to assumptions, people here must encounter a lot of ignorance and arrogance. It's a vicious cycle of misunderstanding.

As for me, I've been torn between the belief that violence is wrong in every circumstance and that one must always stand up for themselves. It's something I haven't figured out yet.