Following the Sri Rama Sena outrage at a pub in Mangalore, chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa has announced that he will not allow the growth of “pub culture” in Karnataka. In almost identical comments yesterday, the Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot has said he wanted to end “pub culture” in the State. The booze culture had resulted in the rape of foreign tourists besides resulting in an increase in cases of road rage and violence among youth, he said.
“The government policy is not to promote liquor culture. The previous government encouraged drinking habits. The government feels continuing such official support to drinking through government policies would adversely affect the health of the citizens and the culture of Rajasthan,” Gehlot has been quoted as saying. “There is going to be no attempt to curb the individual’sfreedom of choices, which is a sacrosanct area.”
Questions: Merely because the Congress and BJP are both advocating it, is a ban on “pub culture” right? What is “pub culture”, and are governments right in seeking to curb it? Or are governments, which are so heavily dependent on revenue from liquor sales, running with the hares and hunting with the hounds? If the sale of liquor is all right, is consuming it wrong? Instead of tightening law and order, are governments transgressing on individual choices and opening the floodgates of harassment and extortion?
Also read: Hindutva’s patriarchal attitudes in Mangalore
All problems will have solutions. First, define what is a problem. Then one can find or try to find solutions. Where are we going? For us Satyam affairs is not a problem. Former President sri Venkataraman’s death go unnoticed. His contribution nobody remembers. It is a trivial matter for our media. Where are the priorities? And conduct a poll. What for? Your poll results will in no way alter the situation. Whether it is pubculture or otherwise there is lot of difference between civilization and culture. Just to divert the attnetion of people from pressing problems such a noise is made.
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I guess it’s time to outsource governance of our country. Time and again we realize that we are unfit to lead/manage our own nation..
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Define ‘Pub Culture’.
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It is the lax implementation of existing rules that is the problem. We saw what a drunk yuppie did to the senior citizens on the sidewalk recently.
What an individual does with his/her life is their choice so long as they don’t jeopardize the lives of others.
However it is silly that it has become a convenient stick to beat Yeddi with it. Just like the railway coach(which traveled safely all the way from UP) caught fire “accidentally” in Godhra back in 2002. How convenient that the cameras were in place to catch the “Talibanisation” live. The media didn’t think it was wise to alert the Police while they were all prepared for the TRP boosting footage. Now they choose to paint Yeddi’s Cheddi. IF they had alerted the police and they in turn had stood back and watched as instructed by the Govt (a la, Chennai law college incident), then Churumuri could add a few more Kissa Kursi moments.
Suddenly Satyam-Maytas is on the back-burner and the Hindu-Taliban is the Media Headline. (Before the “secular” moral police try to tar this as a Hindoo communal agenda, this is in no way defending the meddling goons of Mangalore).
When Taslima was assaulted in Hyderabad where was the media ?
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Ghelot went much beyond Pub culture. He said he is “against boys and girls walking hand in hand in pubs and malls.” ! This is much more dangerous than opposing pub-culture.
You are right- every state Govt is dependent on revenue from liquor. But when opposition punches, they take populist stand.
Congress did the same when Modi wanted to allow limited liquor in select hotels in Gujarat. Mamata, Cong do the same with CPIM in West Bengal……All thanks to perverted politics and media, we are seeing this.
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Actually, our problems are politicians who spend more time worrying about what young people do in pubs than how to stop terrorism in the country.
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What do they mean by a ban? If they’re advocating a complete ban on the sale of alcohol, that is neither feasible, nor practical. OTOH, if “not promoting” pub culture means, say, higher taxes on beer, then I’m all for such a plan. It will be nice if we can increase the taxes on liquor and pubs and use that money to reduce the price of petrol.
Reg. whether it’s wrong or not, each individual has to make these decisions for themselves. All I’ll say is that it seems to me like these folks are blindly aping the consumerism of the west.
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THE PROBLEM IS THE POLITICIANS, maybe a dictator rule would be seriously better!
Nachke ne illa appa. churu nachke..tam hendathi hathra, tande taayi, makkalu hathra nu bari sullu, kachra.
Please politicians do you work first, first dont create a stupid problem and then a stupid solution.
Third class people.
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This is the state of “secular” India.
Taslima can be assaulted in Hyderabad, for speaking against a religion. Protestors are not arrested.
Fatwas can be given against singing National song. Media is not bothered.
New words are coined called “Talibanization” Lets talk to “Oxford” (After all English is our national language) or should we ask Italy(our “Mother” land) to ask this word to be added to their official dictionary?
Where are our KRS brethren when it is being projected as “Karnataka’s shame” ?
Wrong deeds of one person can not be projected as “Karnataka’s shame”
Is Satyam issue Hyderabad shame? or India’s shame?
Cong govt is using media to divert public attention from Satyam issue, since the state govt(Cong) in Hyderabad’s role may come out.
Just a suspicion folks. I personally donot subscribe to any political view, and just my thoughts.
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It’s a case of pots calling the kettle black ! Guess a JH Patel or Anant Nag or Ambarish being drunk and utterly incapable, leave alone their not so famous yet more corrupt bretheren is any indicator, politicians are better off to not set such rules.
Someone ought to translate “Doddavarella Jaanaralaa Chikkavarella konaralla” to that moron Gehlot. Leave the youngsters alone…
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The politicians are answerable to the majority which votes. And that majority does not go to pubs and is naturally envious of those who do. Wouldnt you be if you dont have the means to enjoy and a few near you seem to be doing so every day.
If banning pubs or threatening to do so pleases the voting majority and does not cost the politicians must, they will play that game of course. Nobody wants to take hard decisions and stand up and do what is right, when there is an easy way out. Not professional politicians in our current set up at least. They will be out of their chairs if they did.
Get used to it.
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Polling is a democratic tool. If democracy is reduced to mean mere larger number (as shown by the majority voting in favour of pub-culture), churmuri poll proves that we are fit to be ruled by the rascals whom we have voted to power.
Try highlighting the socio-economic problems of drinking, rather than promote popular pub-culture, merely because more people approve it.
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Yediyurappa actually said ‘Plub culture’ in his statement to the media. I guess he does not know what exactly a pub means, how it is different from a ‘club’, and what the differences are between a pub, live band, disco and plain ol’ bar.
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Mr Yeddy, how about if we won’t allow a scumbag like you to tell us what what to do or what not to do ??
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Since there is a report in today’s paper that only .04% women drink, then one can safely say that:
1)Almost all Mother in laws who burn their daughter in laws don’t go to pubs.
2)Almost all be mothers who indulge in female infanticide don’t go to pubs.
3) Almost all female govt. employees who are corrupt, don’t go to pubs.
4) Almost all women who hire underage domestic help and in some cases physically abuse them, don’t go to pubs.
5) Almost all women who illegally evade tax, don’t go to pubs.
Virtually all the problems caused by women is NOT RELATED to pubs
So clearly PUB CULTURE is not the problem.
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@ Simple
Liked your logic..cool
@ Kadana
Outsource governance to whom ? Corporates ? Say, firms like Satyam ?
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The only reason politicians get away with nonsensical decisions is because the “fourth estate” has divested itself off the responsibility to improve quality of debate.
The “fourth estate” and particularly the MSM, now believes in the noble art of pamphleteering.
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lumpens of different shades form the ruling class. Be it Yeddi or Ghelot!
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I hate Bangalore Pubs and am against them. I just hate the loud music and clogged spaces in most Bangalore Pubs. I prefer silent dingy bars or the cool lawns of century club for the few relaxing pegs I down twice in a week. Down with pub culture.
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sophist,
Do you drink with Palahalli? Angry lonely men downing their drinks and cursing women and the world?
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Governments must not interfere in the private lives and personal rights of citizens. Boozing, sex, nudity etc are matters of individual freedom.
Those who want to booze must be allowed to distill their own and drink. Those who want sex must be allowed to have it wherever and whenever they want it. If it is a person’s preference to be nude, he or she has the right to do so.
I am with the globalised media and the paid human rights activists here.
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I agree with Sophist..Bangalore needs some Jazz clubs like in New Orleans..At least this would promote good music..
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“Time and again we realize that we are unfit to lead/manage our own nation” – Kadana Kuthuhala
Ok – I get it. You had issues wih local traditions followed by vilagers earlier calling them ‘stupid’. Now, you want outsiders to lead/manage our country. And, import some ‘good music’ from New Orleans!!
Is there anything else you would like add?
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@ Kadana kutuhala – You want something like British rule again? one more Gandhi?? THINK!!!
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I am not bothered whether Hinduism approves drinking or not. For that matter only ISLAM and JAINISM prohibits consumption of intoxicants of any kind. But we all witness the havoc of drinking ruining thousands of Families. Drinking should be discourages if not able to stop it. Surprisingly English media especially the visual media seems to be over enthusiastic in propagating Pub culture amongst the youngsters in the name of freedom. Mahatma Gandhi advocated prohibition throughout his life. In fact Directive principles of our Constitution Article 47 states”….in particular, the State shall endeavor to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purpose of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health”.
I condemn vehemently the method of using force in the Pub by some misguided youngsters. I do not understand why the affected persons did not file a case or come before the NCW member to complain. The entire episode smells fishy. The Government of Karnataka should find out these girls and find out the truth.
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I want a stance to be taken by our ” Indian culture conscious ” politicians on the several shops selling alcohol in shops on street corners and marketing places and the kind of crowd that hangs around these dens.
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Among Indian women, we must include Moslem women also.
The Hadith says: “Abdullah Bin Mas’ud reported the Prophet (pbuh) as saying: It is more excellent for a woman to pray in her house than in her courtyard, and more excellent for her to pray in her private chamber than in her house. [Sunan Abu Dawood Vol.1 Chapter 204 Hadith No.570]”
Indian Moslem women are not allowed to attend mosques in many parts of India, including most parts of enlightened Kerala.
I request the secularists and liberals who cry for women’s freedom to drink away in pubs to agitate to allow Moslem women to pray in mosques.
I do not think they would dare to do so. They are afraid of Islamic Jihadis.
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When Muslim women don’t have problem with that whats your problem Mr. R. Sajan??
When all the women are being targeted in the country you seem to be favouring only Muslim women’s rights.
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Woman – “When Muslim women don’t have problem with that whats your problem..”
– And Hindu women are raring to drink!
Screwed Secular-Liberal logic!
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I was quite surprising with the allegations after mangalore moral policing. Yes, that was unfortunate incident in now a days. But after that the media, woman societies had replied in a wrong manner.
What do they want really an India to be?
Can we allow everything from western contries irrespective of their impact on society.
Its an ironic thing that every woman society who have fighting against the pubs and liqour, they are also going beyond thier ethics to make comments on moral policing.
Before that they need to know What is freedom, its limits.
Freedom means having a misc things infront of the public?
Not only the people wants to get relationships to have sex but also some innocent people go there to dance and drink. So by the vulgar behaviour of some people they might also influenced badly.
So please, don’t encourage this at any moment.
Just think for a while before we are going to support such things.
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