London Calling
I was very happy that London was awarded the 2012 Olympics, but this was quickly overshadowed by tragedy. Although I was sickened by the events that took place in London on the 7th, I admire the courage, stoicism, and resilience of Londoners. London Bloggers are calling for protests and solidarity.
Like my brother Robi, I was most concerned for my friends and family that reside there. Fortunately, no one close to me was hurt. My cousin missed the bomb at King's Cross by one hour during his daily commute to work.
London holds a very special place in my heart. I have lived for short periods in London and traveled the "Tubes", hundreds if not thousands of times. My heart goes out to all of those who lost their lives or their loved ones. We can all help by donating anything we can to The British Red Cross.
posted by Neel at 11:58 PM
30 Comments:
yeah its a tragedy but then I guess.. for us Indians in India .. its just another blast... SIGH.. at the risk of sounding blase.. here every second day we here something like this... and well it has become something of a routine for us.. for my brother who is serving in the army.. ik Kashmir.. .its like brushing your teeth everyday.. he says... :( SIGH
I hope all is well.. I have friends there and they seem to be doing ok :)..
7:20 AM
hey, neel. glad your loved ones are okay. thanks for posting this. my heart goes out to all of london.
8:14 AM
Pallavi, I have many relatives in India and they never see a blast. As you know, I India is a very vast country and there is fighting in Kashmir so naturally there will be explosions there. I hope your brother is safe and allright.
Thank you for your comment.
Transience, my pleasure! I thank you as well.
11:48 AM
here here! my parents already donated, they're just happy their siblings are safe and healthy, unlike so many unfortunate souls that day. terrible. glad your family is safe too.
4:57 PM
glad your friends are safe, neel.
thanks for this post.
6:51 AM
glad to know your family is safe and sound. its a terrible feeling to worry about loved ones.
hope your back is better now
9:45 AM
Allison, thanks for visiting.
Corinna, thanks very much.
Mitz, I didnt know you had family there, did you tell me that? Well you know about my Alzheimers, it's kicking in. Thanks for your well wishes.
Deem, My new friend. No, thank you!
Gulnaz, my back is a day by day thing, but thanks for asking. Thanks for your kind words.
3:52 PM
hey neel :) yeah but I am not talking about Kashmir.. that is a very prone area... Mumbai, Delhi, North east.. almost all the areas in North east in the hills.. Shillong.. where I come from..
I guess its a bad coincidence that I have been touched by these incidents.. in some way or the other.. '
yeah there are many who does not even know or hear about stuff like this.. god bless them..
Its just that when there were some demands... in taking action.. for this very reason that it would spread in the manner that it was... it was ignored... SIGH..
Anyway.. its personal I guess.. :) there is lot of talk going on here ... about the blast.. and we told you so statements...
Anyway.. this discussion can go on nad on.. what matters is that this incident will definitely give the powers that be a push to do something about it hopefully :)
Hope you have a nice day :)
3:07 AM
Death becomes real when it hits closer and closer to home. Glad your family and friends are OK.
9:56 AM
Just found out that my ex-boss was caught in one of the blasts. He's still in hospital but is stable an expected to make not quite a full recovery but nearly so (the blast has left him with a couple of minor permanent injuries).
Nice post from you, Neel, and I'm glad that your family and friends are safe.
11:54 AM
Pallavi, you are right there is a huge amount of this type of thing that takes place in India, but you may not realize how much it takes place in the UK. The IRA alone has made numerous attacks dating back to the 1940s. Per capita there have been more recorded attacks on British soil than in India.
Here is a list of some of those attacks dating back to 1968:
http://tkb.org/IncidentRegionModule.jsp?startDate=01%2F01%2F1968&endDate=07%2F11%2F2005&imageField.x=64&imageField.y=4&imageField=filter+results&pagemode=incident®ionid=3&countryid=UK&sortby=
I too have been touched by this type of thing (in England). In 1991 I was on my way to Victoria Station when it was hit. In 1996 my uncle and I had decided not to go to the Arndale Center In Manchester until the following day, we turned on the news and it had been hit.
I may write something about this. You are right that we could go on and on, but that is because it is an interesting topic with a lot of history.
Thank you for your stimulating comments, we are very lucky to both live in democracies where we can discuss this type of thing.
11:55 AM
Mermaid, yes you are right, and this is a second home for me. I was in England from December 04 until March of this year, and was considering moving back to London this year, this will not deter me but it will depend on work etc.
Sara, I am sorry to hear about your ex-boss, even if the injuries are minor, they should not have been, that being said I suppose he is lucky to be alive.
Thank you for your comments, and well wishes. I am glad you stopped by again, I always enjoy your posts.
12:00 PM
your message is one of hope and courage. thanks! =)
12:37 PM
awww....you're moving to London? well actually that's a good thing....better than Seattle, I actually may visit London. ;)
thx Neel, for the kind sentiments and yes, you're Alzheimer's may be kicking in a bit...it's ok.
1:13 PM
i'm so impressed with the over-all resolve. this leads me to believe.. honestly in my heart of hearts.. that londoners.. are tough bastards.
4:21 PM
Stella, thank you, your words are encouraging. Obviously, this is a difficult subject for all of us.
Mitzzee, I didnt say I was moving to London, but rather that I would like to. I am planning to make a move and NY is actually at the top of my list (at the moment). Sorry about my memory issues, I'm just getting old!
Sarah, yes they are, there is no doubt about that.
Robi, you know far more about the details than I do however, perhaps Pallavi and I have been talking at cross purposes. I began thinking today about what she said, and once again I agree, but I think there is a massive difference in media coverage. In the Western World we often do not hear about attacks that take place on Third World nations. When we do here of such attacks, we are not saturated with information the way are if the attacks occur here in the West.
I look forward to your post at http://windsofchange.net, as well as the one on your own site. I too will be writing more about this subject. I will check out that link, thanks.
9:56 AM
well, Neel, even better, NY afterall is a hop skip and a jump from Toronto.... ;)
12:16 PM
Its been long since i visited your blog..London is very multicultural place..I have some family there too. Though no one's hurt but a number got hurt..they are someone's sister, some's daughter, someone's son ...etc
Shame on us
We reach this length of hate
1:15 PM
new york wants neel.
8:25 AM
Thought you may be interested in reading his latest post:
http://blacksheep1982.blogspot.com/
9:51 AM
Mitzzee, yes... that is true and I have never really been to Toronto (just the airport and a hotel near by.)
Nasra, I agree. Thanks for stopping by and glad to see you have a new blog up!
Allison, my pleasure. I will do the same, thanks!
STELLA!!! I'm sure you have heard about the new Steetcar named Desire production at Studio 54, what a cool venue! I am trying to get things worked out for a move. Tell NY I said, thanks!
Mermaid, thank you for that, I read it, but havent posted yet, I'm a bit worn out.
5:43 PM
nice comment neal..
But in a recent survey India was the second most-targetted country by terrorist...Only after Iraq
For me it seems London for GB is what Mumbai is to India....
Its a city the whole country loves..
Mumbai suffered many bomb blasts and riots...but the spirit, like Londonners , to get back to normal life is appreaciable....
This is our best way to get back at Terrorists that we are not afraid....
NO MORE TERROR
Carry On Living
9:52 PM
Any updates on your back? I hope it's feeling better.
BTW - You've been tagged. ;-)
10:39 PM
all these hot chicks leaving comments on your site and you still think you're just a geek..
12:58 PM
i need a break, i will be back in a week or so.
1:44 AM
apparently I am still here.
4:21 PM
Mitzzee with your ever changing avatar you keep us visually stimulated.
Yogesh, perhaps you didnt notice the spelling of my name, its Bengali. Also, I dont know if you read what I wrote, because I have never discounted the bombings, or their frequency, in anything I have written.
Sk8r, mmm tag, fun game. I'll be tagging you soon.
Sarah, I dont think there is anything wrong with being a geek. I am very flattered at the attention of all the "hot chicks," yourself included.
Robi, I will look into it. I think we are scaring people away from this post.
4:28 PM
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
1:18 AM
When you were kids, did you ever cover someones house with TP, shaving cream, that kind of stuff?? Last nigth someone did that to my blog. Funny huh?
1:53 PM
Yes, i have. Thanks
2:25 AM
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