Mad Dogs And Englishmen

[poliphilo]

When I was at prep school in the early 60s we used to be treated to film shows once or twice a term. The films were mostly produced by big corporations like Shell and they were about how big corporations were improving the lives of colourful but backward native peoples by establishing rubber plantations and building dams and oil rigs. The abiding image is of cheerful chaps in dhotis shinning up palm trees.

The headmaster and deputy head were both old Indian Army men; Col Gracey, Col Easton (good kind men- I don’t mean to mock.) So I suppose the object was to get us to consider taking up the White Man’s Burden as a career.

This was before colour TV. The films were mostly in colour. Therefore they were wonderful. QED.

I was reminded of this formative experience while watching Michael Palin’s new series about the Himalaya. It is instructive to note that, in spite of the best efforts of Shell et al, the world is still full of colourful, native peoples. You should see the huge moustaches they wear in the tribal lands of Pakistan! Tee-hee! And they race bulls because they haven’t invented horses yet.

How good of Michael to go out in the midday sun to film these simple people for our entertainment and edification!

Comments

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

The Prince's moustache (I think he was a prince) was particularly splendid. I'm very very tempted to buy the book.

[sorenr.livejournal.com]

When the white man rides every native hides in glee,
Because the simple creatures hope he will impale his solar topee on a tree...

[morrison-maiden.livejournal.com]

Sounds like you had some interesting experiences at the prep school. Lol, I happen to really like those big moustaches!

[archyena.livejournal.com]

That reminds me of my trip to Indonesia. I was there playing tag-a-long with a Phillips Petroleum Company delegation to negotiate drilling and transport rights. Technically my job was to watch and then fax paperwork to the head office, but mostly it was to absorb the idea of what high-level negotiations looked like. I had a fascination with corporate power and my stepfather, being assigned at the time to negotiations (a path he tested when they subcontracted his favorite part of his own department, leaving him with little interest in work), had decided to indulge me. I looked about the right age for an intern and as long as I kept my best formal attitude about me, I blended into the delegation well enough. At any rate, it was just before the fall of the Suharto government and I was saying much the same sort of thing as the film did, that this deal will bring prosperity and progress to the people. I was kindly humored by everyone but another member of the delegation who informed me that this project will mean little to these people, Phillips will take its fair share but Suharto and his circle will keep most of the rest. My own dream that the proceeds would fund schools and libraries and clinics evaporated. According to him, this is why many oil companies are engaged in less notable charity work and why many of the delegates had their own life-improving charity projects, there is a certain guilt involved in being an accessory to the theft of people's futures. The rest of the time was spent in ever more nervous negotiations, ever more strident demands for up front payments (ie bribes). On the third day, Suharto was gone.