The Silver Tint

“.. Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt…
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,
It's when things seem worse,
That you must not quit.” – Anon

The attacks in Mumbai have stunned and saddened us. I cannot even begin to contemplate the value of the lives lost, measure the grief of the family and the sense of insecurity to the nation. Yet, I also think that there is a fast emerging silver lining to the dark clouds of gloom that threatened us two weeks ago. The quiet nationalistic spirit has been rekindled as a response to the attacks. You can see it in the human chains holding candles. In people celebrating the victory of the NSG commandos. In the nation bereaving its brave soldiers. In the political consensus (or perhaps, less of blind opposition). In the common household, where families are grateful for another day together. In the restraint against innocent minorities. In crowds thronging to watch cricket when India was all but out of the game. In that one thump-in-the-air of Sachin when he hit the winning runs. However, all these are mere glimpses of the truth and one can never be too certain of the intensity of the patriotism experienced by a nation. But it has been observed since historical times, that the feeling of patriotism is at its greatest when a country is at war. Does patriotism have its advantages? At the risk of annoying the spirit of Tagore, patriotism is what makes a country win wars. It makes NRI’s come back home to contribute to the development of the country. It creates a state that has its foundations in altruism. It makes people of the country come together to face a challenge just like wild animals want to stay together when they are threatened. And, this patriotism is unlike the one that Tagore dreamt that would spillover into violence. It is open to the winds of the world. In fact, the winds of the world want to flow through it.

India is in conflict with the terrorists without the war-like costs involved. Yes, costs are incurred. In the present case, the loss of close to two hundred precious lives. In modernizing the police and installing CCTV’s. In setting up the NIA. Yet, these are drops compared to the oceanic costs of war. The benefits of war are that it leads to a possibility of victory. Yes, this may be the only option available if all diplomatic channels are exhausted. The international community has come out in full support of India (which it would not have done had India declared war). Co-operation between Indian and American intelligence agencies has grown to levels never seen before and India is being offered anti-terrorist training by UK.

The terrorists are indeed rational in how they attack. Their aim is to destabilize the nation. But their understanding suffers from not taking into account the renewal force. These patriotic renewals are not unique to India. Recent studies by Chris Blattman and Edward Miguel have noticed that Uganda, Sierra Leone and Angola are standing fast on their feet after civil wars crushed them. It may take a long time to come back to the original development path, yet the adjusting forces seem to be within us. Civil wars are the most conservative examples of this surge in pride (proxied by political participation). Inter-country conflicts generate an even greater patriotism and the time needed to overcome destruction may be far less. The force that built Vietnam after it was savaged by war with America. The resilience of the Japanese when Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed. The silver tint is shining already but if the terrorists realize this, they would lose their jobs of ‘calling’ or calling for jobs.