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Can you get rid of the alienation of a people through development? Can the Metropolis buy loyalty”and, with luck, affection”by pumping a few billion dollars into the Periphery? (If that were the case, there should by now have been at least ten people in Pakistan who would publicly admit to liking the USA.) Or does the answer lie in cultural symbols”language, sacred monuments, the presence (or, at least, pictures) of a wildly popular religious leader, and respect for the history and culture of the Periphery? It is true that identities based on religion and language are a”what expression did Uncle Karl call use?”false consciousness. Why, then, are they so pervasive? But, hey! That`s not what this book is like ”or about. We figured that since you are in for an extremely easy read”a mere travelogue that asks questions”we could use fancy language at least on the flap. Sidharth and Parvez have the objectivity of outsiders. And yet, having lived and worked in LadA¢kh and Bhutan, where people have the same religion, race, script and culture, it was like moving to another room within the same house”the sacred room.
ISBN 8182901316
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Pages : 183
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