Ever since I had moved to Melbourne, the frequency with which I used to taken an Uber/Ola has drastically reduced. There are two reasons for this; primary one being that Melbourne has excellent public transportation system in the form or trams/trains and buses, secondarily that I don’t get an opportunity to attend much events here.

Recently, my friend had invited me to a small gathering at a nearby locality, which was roughly 6 kms away from the city centre (CBD). Although I had started for the gathering on time, there was a small incident that delayed my trip. A tram that was ahead of ours, collided with a car thereby creating a gridlock. The tram pilot suggested there could be a minimum of 30 minutes of delay and requested us to plan alternative arrangements for the time being.

I decided to walk ahead and taken an Uber for the gathering. In Melbourne whenever you book Uber you can most likely expect your driver to be one from the following origins; Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi or African. As expected, my driver ‘Said Ismail’, was on his way to pick me up with a five-minute ETA (estimated time of arrival)

Just after Ismail pulled over to pick me up, I noticed that I was probably wrong and he looking nothing like what I thought. Most Uber drivers in Melbourne are the first to strike a conversation on the trip.

Ismail: Hi, how are you? How is your day going?

Me: Good, not bad. There was an accident here at the parliament junction.

Ismail: Oh, is it so? Was it a tram and a car?

Me: Yea, good guess!!!

Now I thought it was time to talk about something more personal…

Me: So, how long have you been here?

Ismail: I have been here from 1984…

Me: Wow, that is more than quarter of a century. You must have quite a story to tell, so how do you find it here in Melbourne?

Ismail: Yea, I know. Life is pretty safe here, Capitalism is good. Communism is bad, it brings poverty into your home.

At this junction, I could just not control myself and just burst into a laughter!!!

Ismail: I am telling the truth. Communism brings poverty, it brings poverty into your houses.

Me: I am sorry for laughing but I was just surprised. You look like someone from a south east Asian background and I didn’t expect this comment on communism from you.

Ismail probably got a little offended by my words and strongly denied the background I mentioned. He went on to suggest that he is from Ethiopia. He also started talking about Chinese/Indian investment in Ethiopia. He was also quick to grab my Indian origin, nothing to be surprised though, an easy one.

Me: So you don’t like the Chinese much I suppose?

Ismail: It is the not the Chinese, it is that a generation of Chinese people are trained to be cunning and aggressive. Probably it is Communism!!!

He went on to suggest more about how Chinese companies flood the market with second rated products and how they build poor bridges outside their own country. He agreed with my views on how the current Pakistan Government is now a puppet of China, he went on to suggest that the Chinese Government in the past few decades were like British Colonists. They go to other countries with their money to ruin the market, take their culture everywhere, jack up the prices of property and create an economic mess.

As we reached my destination, I bid farewell to Ismail and thanked him for an enjoyable conversation.

A little glance on the effect of Communist Dictatorship on Ethiopia confirmed why Ismail was very angry with Communism. I have had similar conversations with Indians on Communism as well. Although it is not surprising to see the views of the average common man on Communism, the so-called pseudo intellectuals of India keep praising Communism for no particular reason.

So I was just curious, is it the pseudo intellectuals or that their Political Masters who have taught them to praise Communism for no reason?

This article was written by Prakash R

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SatyaVijayi.

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