In Memory of Michael Bhatia
An acquaintance of mine, Michael Bhatia, was killed in an IED attack Wednesay in eastern Afghanistan. He was a civilian social scientist who was working alongside US soldiers in Afghanistan to assist them in being more effective in the mission to bring security, governance and reconstruction this country; two other soldiers died in the same attack and two more are critically injured (as of Thursay).
Though I have only known Michael a short time, I liked him a great deal. He was a scientist and humanitarian at once. He has spent more time working in Afghanistan than probably the miserable people who created - or influenced the creation of - the IED that took his life.
Michael was one of the more unique academics. He wasn't just concerned with publishing, papers, and tenure track; his interests and desires to show another side to conflict, and to teach others that nothing is cut and dry when it comes to war. People, and their motivations, are complex.
Academic Profile
Brown University Tribute
Intro to Photo Story, highly recommended read
His book, published recently
Audio interview, related to Afghanistan
I guess the reason I am writing this is because you might read that "two American soldiers were killed in a roadside attack in Afghanistan" in the papers today. Along with two soldiers, doing their job and serving their countries (and their loss is tremendous as well), there was an American civilian whose loss is not only tremendous for his family and friends, but for the world, and those dedicated to the cause of trying to bring peace, partly through understanding conflict.
Though I have only known Michael a short time, I liked him a great deal. He was a scientist and humanitarian at once. He has spent more time working in Afghanistan than probably the miserable people who created - or influenced the creation of - the IED that took his life.
Michael was one of the more unique academics. He wasn't just concerned with publishing, papers, and tenure track; his interests and desires to show another side to conflict, and to teach others that nothing is cut and dry when it comes to war. People, and their motivations, are complex.
Academic Profile
Brown University Tribute
Intro to Photo Story, highly recommended read
His book, published recently
Audio interview, related to Afghanistan
I guess the reason I am writing this is because you might read that "two American soldiers were killed in a roadside attack in Afghanistan" in the papers today. Along with two soldiers, doing their job and serving their countries (and their loss is tremendous as well), there was an American civilian whose loss is not only tremendous for his family and friends, but for the world, and those dedicated to the cause of trying to bring peace, partly through understanding conflict.
posted by Zohra at 10:06 AM
16 Comments:
Thanks for blogging this. Michael's friends in Oxford and across the world have been frantically trying to get more information about this tragic incident. But it has been difficult and until we didn't know anything about what happened to him.
Our college will fly the flag at half-mast today and will also arrange a memorial service for him.
So sorry to hear about this, hope you are well,
Paul
Rest in peace, Michael!
This was the man I knew:
1) He told me what a blog was - back in 2001. He said, go check Oxblog! (I still do.)
2) We wasted a countless number of hours reading the papers at Oxford Analytica and arguing about life.
3) He told me the fine differences between war and intervention in the White Horse, and that was before his book came out. He would pepper his arguments with references to what he saw in Kosovo, the Western Sahara, and East Timor. He did all that before writing his D.Phil! "Michael, why aren't you working on your D.Phil.?" "Haven't got time, man, I am busy finishing my book."
4) He also rowed in the Temptation, though I think that was before the recent successes of the boatclub.
Rest in peace, my man!
Marton
I lived with him in college for a year. We shared a room. The world has lost a good man and a bright light.
Frederick Melo
Thanks for this.
I wondered if you might be able to recommend a few organizations/charities in Afghanistan to donate to -- that Mike would have deemed worthy.
Christine Bustany
He was one of the most beautiful people I knew. I knew him less as an academic and more as a conpanion. He shared his love for the arts and cinema with me. He loved Krzysztof Kieslowski movies. I showed him Babbette's Feast which he loved. He is always in my mind.
-Gabrielle Reed
please check out
http://michaelvinaybhatia.blogspot.com/
and contribute
If you have photos of him please send them to gvlr69@gmail.com so I can post them.
thanks
I am his elder cousin and have always thought of him as a little baby. When he was to leave for Afghanistan, my mother and his father tried desperately to talk him out of this, but he was insistent that nothing would happen to him. This has shattered us. It is a consolation to read all the good things that are being written about him. The world has truly lost a light.
I advised Michael at Brown and he went abroad as an undergrad through an office I directed. He was an amazing student, very curious and driven and giving of his energy and time. He was one of the world's best and his loss is huge. Kirstin Moritz
I stumble upon the article in the Boston Globe this morning. The headline read, "Afghan bomb kills Mass. scholar." It wasn't until I read that he was an ex-Medway resident that I was drawn to the article. I thought to myself that it was probably someone older and that I wouldn't know who the person was. Then I read the name Michael Bhatia under the photo caption. I was in complete and utter shock. I could not believe what I had just read. I remember Michael from high school. He was a good friend of my sister's when they were students at Medway High. Even back then people knew that he was a very special person. His accomplishments and contributions are amazing to say the very least. My deepest and heartfelt condolences go out to his family and friends. The world has lost a truly wonderful and exceptional man.
I still cannot believe that Michael is gone. I always thought I would run into him again in Providence.
I'll never forget that night we went for ice-cream with my dog in tow and got caught in the rain on the way back home.
My condolences to his family, this must be unbearable.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend Michael Bhatia's funeral Mass on Friday, May 16 at 10 a.m. at St. Joseph’s Church, 151 Village St. in Medway, Massachusetts 02053, USA. Calling hours will be held on Thursday from 4- 8 p.m. at the Ginley-Crowley Funeral Home, 3 Barber St. in Medway, Massachusetts 02053, USA. Burial will take place at the family plot at the Valley View Cemetery in Ticonderoga, NY.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Michael’s memory may be made to the Michael V. Bhatia Memorial Fund c/o Rockland Trust Company, 288 Union St., Rockland, MA 02370, USA.
For the complete family placed obituary and guest book, go to:
http://www.ginleyfuneralhomes.com/Obituaries.html
Please pass the word along.
Thanks for this
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Demotix- The Citizen Wire
Dear Zohra,
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Demotix is a website for user-generated news, and a citizen ‘wire’ service. Think of it like Flickr or YouTube, but only for original photo/video news. You tell us what is going on, we tell the worldwide web and the world’s mainstream media. As of now, www.demotix.com is live.
Why are we doing it?
We believe citizen journalism – well-managed – can be a tremendous force in political participation, civil society, and freedom of speech around the world. And we believe the media needs rescuing.
• Only four US newspapers have foreign news desks (the NY Times, LA Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal), and there are only 141 US foreign correspondents currently working today (in print and broadcast media)
• In the UK, a 2006 study of the broadsheets showed that more than 50% of the news was directly attributable to press releases
• The world’s media (over 90%) relies on the wire services – the Associated Press and Reuters – for their news. But some 80 countries, or 40% of the world’s nations, have no bureau from either agency.
The news is shrinking daily. We hope Demotix can plug that gap, and more.
We hope to be giving a megaphone to the man and woman in the street with a story to tell. We hope to be able to change the news map – bringing real, raw, original information from countries and about issues the mainstream media haven’t touched in years.
Eventually we hope that Demotix will be THE place where anyone in the world can go, in safety, to upload news – major, minor, local, cultural, political, social... We already have agreements with the Daily Telegraph, Newsweek, La Repubblica, Prospect and others – and will now supply them with a daily wire and picture feed of 'citizen' news. We have also built partnerships with Amnesty, Reporters Sans Frontieres, Witness and many others.
But we need your help. We want to do in pictures/video what you do for text. If you think there is a cross-over and you like us, please write about us, link to us, spread the news. We're nothing without contributors, and your readers are exactly whom we want to be reaching out to. We can get their news out to the world, and in the process change what news is reported. And we'll charge the mainstream media for anything they use, splitting the fees 50:50 with our contributors.
Please be in touch! Are there other ways we might collaborate?
With all thanks
Turi
Turi Munthe
www.demotix.com
info@demotix.com
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I recently came accross your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Ruth
http://muffinsnow.com
good post :)
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