So we passed the Women's Bill... So what??

So, we passed the bill for Women's reservation in the upper house of parliament. Yay!! Ok, now that the rejoicing is done, let's look at the story. Rediff had a good piece giving the gist of this whole hullabaloo. Why people are against it and why it is a good step. Our PM says that the passage of the bill shows that in India democracy is still alive.

But let's look at it this way. It took 14 years to see daylight. Why? Because ruling coalitions were afraid to push the bill for fear of hurting dissenters who incidentally were on the ruling coalition. And back then, most of our time in Parliament was spent in no-confidence motions! So, every time a government tried to push for the bill, it faced dissent from within and it had to scuttle the bill for fear of scuttling the government! The usual process is - introduce the bill in the Lower house - the Lok Sabha, get approval and then go to the Rajya Sabha and then back to the Lok Sabha. Having faced obstacles at each and every step while trying the Lok Sabha, this time, the Government got smart and introduced it first in the Rajya Sabha. The dramas in the lower house are still to come.

We need to note that the RS is still an elitist house, since members are not elected, but rather appointed. So, passage here, actually does not mean much! Yes, the elite part of society sees the benefits of reservation for women. They are educated and so may be expected to stay away from the sways of political groupthink! May.. I am not sure, but this is my guess, based on the membership of the house. The Lok Sabha, in comparison, is larger in number, it has a greater proportion of dissenting members, and in the past, the dramas in the Lok Sabha have been LEGENDARY! So, I feel, that the crux is yet to be reached. Yes, it is a step in the right direction, and something at least, which has not been achieved this far has been achieved.

Yet the question remains, why the dissent? The model has worked as we've seen at the Panchayat and local self-government levels. I am traditionally not someone who supports reservations, but when situations are so lopsided, as to not allow a certain faction of society to find its true calling, reservations are necessary. Just like how, beyond a threshold, affirmative action was necessary to make life livable for African Americans! Just like how, after years of condemnation, reservation managed to bring some glimmer of hope for Dalits in India. Although that part has been grossly exploited politically of late. So, reserving seats for women, would certainly empower women at large. They have an empathetic ear to voice their concerns to.

But on the other hand, you can have a man and a woman from a certain area contesting for 2 seats. Think Laloo and Rabri contesting for 2 different seats in Bihar. Both win. No prizes for guessing the direction of policies in that scenario. Unless the bill is made water-tight, preventing any form of exploitation, the process could fall flat. Women in households in North India, are already suppressed. It wouldn't be hard to imagine a time when despite reservation, a woman MP is a dummy thumb-printing a personal agenda of her husband's in Parliament. Yes, that is a gory thought, and one needs to factor all of these into law making.

But Indian democracy is young, and we learn every step of the way. Till the bill gets passed in the Lok Sabha and gets ratified by the states, the job is as well as unfinished. Even after passing the bill, we need to proactively guard against exploitation and the media certainly has a responsible role to play in the same. But till then - a good start and a strong hope for the future defines the state as of now.

2009 - a year that was

Ok, almost everyone chronicles the past year. On thing I like, is the one liner event history that figures on Wikipedia or the year round-up in the economist. But for me, the events come to mind at the top of my head at the end of the year, hold most consequence. Here's the roundup of things that defined the past year -

This year marked many things. It began with a bush fire in Australia and surprisingly ended with one in the same place as well - almost setting the tone for the fiery year in politics and the world ahead. Barack Obama became the 44th US President - after a well crafted, technologically and ideologically vibrant campaign. Although post election a number of factors have called into question the success of his presidency. Parleys on whether we were looking at a recession, or a depression, or whether countries like India were in a recession at all, occupied intellectual coffee table talks for a greater part of the year, while countries like Iceland collapsed, Dubai stared at sovereign default in the face, China boosted spending and India recorded 7.9% GDP growth.

Some things stayed staid, with a miscarriage of democracy in Iran and Afghanistan, which felt as though democratizing the Middle-East, an area famous for its tribal population suddenly were forced into something that they did not know how to handle! The Israel - Palestine conflicts continued. Zimbabwe saw the semblance of order with the power sharing deal to form a government, before a deadly car crash wounded the new President and killed his wife. The LTTE was finally defeated with the death of Prabhakaran, thus ending decades of civil war in Sri Lanka, opening a new can of worms related to human rights violations, displaced Tamils and alleged excesses by the Sri Lankan army. The Air France flight from Rio crashed into the middle of the Atlantic in one of the worst air crashes in history, killing all of 228 on board. The UNESCO launched the World Digital Library. Michael Jackson is gone - the music scene will never be the same ever again. This year also marked the 20 year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, which was much less the fall of an Iron Curtain, as it was the triumph of capitalism over communism.

Typhoons and hurricanes continued. India saw drought in the first half of the year followed by terrible floods in South India that almost wiped out portions of age-old villages. Climate change was becoming a reality and countries had to act really fast. Copenhagen came along, resulting in an eyewash of a climate treaty, which many hailed as at least a step in the right direction. Whether tangible benefits would come out of it, or whether the 'cold' war on who needs to blink first between the developed and the developing world would continue remains to be seen.

Sport faced several disgraceful moments with Lewis Hamilton and McLaren caught spying on Ferrari's technical documents, Flavio Briatore and Nelson Piquet Jr caught in crashgate, only to be topped by the great Tiger Woods proving he loved something more than the 18 holes of golf! Then again, the FedEx - Nadal duel got better, with Fed-Ex snatching sweet revenge thanks to an out of form Nadal. The Indian cricket scene never looked better, but the overdose of the willow implied that cricket now became almost akin to a 9-5 corporate job, with weekends off!! And then came the icing on the cake - the final and sure return of Michael Schumacher to competitive racing, thrilling several Schumi fans across the world.

2010 is not just a new year. It marks the start of a new decade. A decade that began with a promise post Y2K, saw the rise and fall of several governments, terrorism rise to its peak, economic crises of enormous proportions, a new Pope, an American President from a minority community, Saddam Hussein, Benazir Bhutto gone, shards of democracy in the middle east, strife in Pakistan, growth in the BRIC nations, the sudden rise and rise of China, the lost decade in Japan and a lottttt more. I could go on and on, but I'd perhaps reserve all that for another post. That said, hopes abound for 2010. Hope the economic downturn swings into an upturn. Hope there is peace in this world, with none of the disgruntled nations engaging in conflict. Hope that the blue moon that showed its face in India yesterday heralds a new beginning for everyone. Happy New Year everyone!

Unfaithfully yours

Saw this piece of news on the Satyam fiasco today, that some top execs at Satyam were trying to undercut the firm, by pitching their own services, or that of rival firms, which perhaps they would join in the near future. I was aghast. It just can't get any lower. I mean, whatever happened to loyalty towards a firm? OK, ethics are the last things to talk about, when Satyam is in question here. Of course a scamster is anything but ethical. Just a few days before the notorious confession, came news of massive insider trading. And now, while 53,000 - some xyz people wonder where else they can find a job, since this scam has come at a time of a global meltdown, and the loss of a job for them means the prospect of a default on a house EMI, or extended working hours for the spouse, here are some xyz people busy sabotaging any chances of Satyam's survival, for their personal gain.

I then wondered whether this was an Indian phenomenon? The gross lack of ethics, and anything ethical. Well, a hijack of ethics happens everywhere. Martha Stewart. But she was jailed for insider trading. Thain and his multi-million dollar office makeover, got him a lot of negative publicity. So he went on air to say he'd reimburse the amount in full! So does that mean that non-Indians mess up, and then somehow atone for the wrongdoing? While we Indians screw up and feel happy ever after? Maybe yes. Its usually Indians who generally believe in one's own benefit, unmindful of the consequences. If you go and ask the erring Satyam execs, they'd say that Ramalinga Raju never bothered about them while siphoning out money into his sons' firm, and so why should they now care? Touche! Maybe our corporate honchos took lessons from our politicos, for whom poll speak is all about seat numbers, irrespective of the alliances. So, forget ideology, forget common minimum programmes, its all about numbers. That's why perhaps, now, in the run up to the elections, we see alliances after alliances being inked, we see clandestine meetings which apparently mean nothing more than a back thump between old buddies! But then where do such tactics leave the image of corporate India? Certainly nowhere near pretty and rosy.

SOS - Jai Hanuman

Obama's cabinet is struggling with the worst economy ever. Predictions say that we haven't hit rock bottom yet. And at such a time, comes news of tax evasions and ideological differences in his cabinet. People start wondering whether Obama will truly deliver and some cynics even say that the dream period is over! And Obama comes on air and says - "I screwed up." Wow! Lochas notwithstanding, my respect for this guy actually went up a notch. He took on the mantle of President, fully aware of the circumstances and built a strong team to advise him on how to proceed. And when issues from the Rod Blagojevich scandal through Tim Geithner and now Judd Gregg, his Commerce secretary who wishes to withdraw his nomination citing ideological differences, cropped up, he has the guts to say he made a mistake, when his predecessor, in his farewell speech claimed that his presidency actually was great and brought about so many good things!!!! Yeah! Right!!! But people and the media were quick to blast this claim!

What I like here , is the fact that Obama considers himself responsible and accountable to the office he has been elected to. Although not much can be claimed about Dubyaman, to a great extent, democracy in the United States is strong. How representative, or how equal, is something only the Americans who live a daily life there would know. But to an outsider, watching the media, it looks pretty rosy and powerful indeed.

India, though is lauded for its belief in democracy. But look. It's election year, and everyone is out poaching, scoring brownie points at the expense of the common man. Convicts and criminals are given tickets to fight elections. Seats are bartered between parties for power. Even election commissioners are said to be partisan. A sudden moral police with primitive ideas goes rampant with its own personal agenda, and tongues wag about which political party the said moral brigade bears allegiance to. I just wonder, are WE truly being represented there? I mean, are we murderers, rapists, corrupt, chauvinists?

We invite terrorists with open arms, on account of the gross miscarriage of our intelligence and security infrastructure. Our neighbors claim to have been eroded by the Taliban. Our own policy makers are too busy haggling with each other to make it to the corridors of power. At such a time, who does the common man turn to? Hanuman.... Like how Mumbai did today - Chant Mumbai for a Shant Mumbai. Hanuman Chaleesa chanting by common men, to invoke the Lord's protection. Since finally only He can DELIVER US FROM EVIL.... AMEN..................

2008 : The year that was

It is almost new year and for many, this is a year better, best forgotten. The world has been hit by one of the worst ever economic crises since decades, with no clear sight in view, about when the mood will begin to be bullish again. However, this has been a year that can actually be remembered for some good reasons as well. So while we do indeed have the bad news, we do have the good news as well.

The start of the year, for Indians began with a slump in GDP. Perhaps we should have taken a hint from that piece of news, but we were quick to reassure all and sundry that everything was fine. The months went on, and as America sneezed, everyone in Asia began slowly catching the bug.

Britney Spears went through an awful year swinging in and out of insanity.

The American Presidential election became prime time watch for people all over the world. Lipstick, pit bulls, war veterans and the bridge to nowhere became commonplace topics to talk about.

The Indian embassy in Afghanistan was bombed and 44 were killed and another 140 innocent civilians were injured. Terrorism still showed that it had the upper hand in the world.

Madonna divorced Guy Ritchie and paid a fortune in settlements!

The phenomenon called the Olympics happened. In China. People had finally awakened to China. The arrangement and the organization was phenomenal. The gross disregard for human rights was totally condoned. But this was China. How could anyone care?!? India as usual went in with a teeny tiny contingent, in gross discord. Not even a uniform dress code!

But who cared about Ms Mirza? We won one GOLD in shooting courtesy Abhinav Bindra and two bronzes. Boxing and wrestling - Vijender Kumar and Sushil Kumar, respectively. Consistency was missing, since Rajvardhan Rathore, failed to impress.

Consistency showed elsewhere, since Nadal won French open and an Olympic Gold. AND ALSO WIMBLEDON. In matches that can thrill generations of YouTube watchers, history was written. Federer displayed chinks in his armor, but still went on to win the doubles gold at the Olympics.

The Marriott in Islamabad was bombed my suspected Al Qaeda operatives with a truckload of RDX, killing foreign nationals, and destroying the building. PoK was shook by a massive earthquake that killed thousands. Zardari became President. (I don't know whether I can say elected, since democracy and Pakistan don't sound good together). Musharraf had to run for his life, (expected).

THE DARK KNIGHT RELEASED. A cult film by any standards, setting a new threshold for villainy in the late great Heath Ledger. A terribly underrated actor, who starred in Brokeback mountain and A Knight's tale, The Joker was a new high for him. Unfortunately another form of going high, killed him, and the world lost a fine actor.

Barack Obama became President. Racial prejudices went to the dogs. Analysts, bloggers, people all wondered whether America would be able to take a wise well-informed decision, and no one was ready to bet either way. The economy by election day was teetering on the edge and no one knew which way the scales would tip.

Michael Jackson became Mikaeel.

The world lost Lehman Brothers. Merill Lynch went to Bank of America. Bear Stearns was gobbled up by JPMC. AIG almost went kaput, only to be rescued by the government.700 billion dollars was earmarked as a TARP bailout fund. We still don't know how that will be spent. American auto manufacturers are now paying the price for not having been prudent by going green and small. They now beseech the American Congress to bail them out.

Lewis Hamilton won the F1 World Championship. I don't want to speak much on that, since I still feel that was unfair.

Mumbai was attacked by terrorists who actually ran amok wielding AK-47 weapons and killing innocent people in a train station, and in key five star hotels in Mumbai's posh South Mumbai area. This set into action a whole host of events right from restructuring by the government to key steps to up the security in the country.

Vishwanathan Anand retained the World Champion crown. Yay!!!

Thwarting appeals by separatists to boycott elections, a 62% voter turnout in J&K showed the triumph of democracy. I kinda feel proud of that. In spite of all kinds of nonsense, Indians still have the power to elect their own leaders.

Israelis launched an all out yet retaliatory attack on Hamas in the Gaza strip, in one of the bloodiest attacks of all time.

Ugandan rebels are being fatally tackled in DR Congo. Zimbabwe is going through an economic breakdown with a terrible attack of cholera debilitating the country. Almost all of Africa is going through a humanitarian crisis.

A student was accidentally shot dead by police in Greece, and riots are still on in Athens. I guess the simmering dissent just needed one tiny burst of the bubble to just erupt like a volcano. A youth was killed in Bangalore by army personnel in a case of mistaken identity. Nothing happened.

India beat the Brits in the test series that comprised an almost lost test match as well. Australia lost the Boxing Day test to South Africa in a thrilling encounter.

Bittersweet year? I guess. A great year for Obama, sport in general, and a terrible year for the economy, Africa, Mumbai (thanks to BSE and the terror attacks). How will next year be? Who knows! But what else can we do, except look to the new year with hope and anticipation for a new beginning. Happy New Year everyone......

J&K Polls - what India reads into them

This whole year has been one of high importance for Kashmir. Rather Jammu and Kashmir. J&K has been in the news for all the wrong reasons all these years. And just as other issues in the country gathered a lot of momentum and edged the Kashmir issue into the sidelines (I am tempted to say that the issue calmed down, but the sporadic militant attacks and incursions by Pakistani terrorists cannot allow us to wish away the Kasmir problem), this year J&K was in the news again.

It all began with the Amarnath Land row, whose chronology can be seen here.

In the middle of all the ruckus surrounding the Amarnath Land Row, this year on the 15th of August, Separatists pulled down the Indian flag, soon after it was hoisted and flouted the Separatist flag amidst cheers by youth who had embraced the 'Separate Kashmir' issue. Till the end, no amicable solution could actually be arrived at.

So, J&K has been in the news for all the wrong reasons all this while, and suddenly, it was election time. Now, separatists had called for a boycott of the polls, and suddenly, as though delivering a slap on the face as happens in almost all Premchand novels, the people who are tired of the continuous tension, and harping of communal divide by partisan politicians, came out to vote, in drones, to get what a government should actually provide. BIJLI, SADAK, PANI, ROZGAAR. Electricity, roads, water and employment. The turnout in the turmoil-struck state was at 62%, showing that people and daily issues count more than ideology. Roads and peace mean more than religion. Employment and the ability to survive the next day means more than political ideology.

This year has seen the victory of democracy. Obama against racial prejudices, in favor of a change from further monotony and J&K voting against Pakistan, against separatists, against personal agenda - in favor of growth and development. Cheers to democracy. Hope the new government delivers.....

Miscellaneous Monday.... Of cricket, politics and of course a Monday...

1976. Magic number - 406. The opponents - Windies - then considered invincible. History was made. 2008. Magic number - 387. Against the Brits. Sehwag, Yuvi and Tendulkar went ahead and proved why they are feted across the world by anyone with an affinity to the willow! Till late yesterday, India was written off, in terms of drawing this test match let alone winning it. And what makes this victory even more special is the fact that the victory was snatched from the jaws of defeat. I was kinda disgusted at the way we kinda squandered a victory toward the start, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the victory flag.

Cheers to the Indian team...

Bush was booted and rebooted!!!

Some Iraqi journo had the nerve to hit the most powerful man in the world with not one, but two shoes... Yikes!! I agree, Iraqis may be miffed with Dubya for whatever reason, but shoes????????????? This just goes on to show that democracy and civilization don't belong to the world of the barbaric!

And now the Monday moment - This Monday was mixed. I noticed parts of the workplace I had never noticed so far. I cherished my friends and our lunch in the 'training room' more than I did on other days. I looked at my terrace like I never had before. I walked an extra time on the terrace. I noticed portions of my commute I'd never paid attention to before. Kids in a playground, playing as usual - yet another day in their life, thinking, knowing that tomorrow would be similar. The school would remain, and so would the park. Somehow, Enya's 'only time', when juxtaposed with the contrast between what I saw and what I was going through, appealed to me, and stayed with me all day long. For the first time - Cheers to this Monday. I'll remember it forever..................

The aftermath of the terror attacks - Eyewash Part 1

It's a lazy Sunday evening and as happens with all Sunday evenings, the mood is reflective. All said and done, tomorrow is a Monday, and tomorrow has to be spent at work. Along with a whole host of nostalgic thoughts that go to not too long ago, is a thought about where we as a country are going to go! It's a period of flux everywhere. Changes at work, changes in life, changes in actions, changes in my rocking city! It's change change everywhere. Do I like it? Well, whether I like it or not, I have to live with it.

For instance, soon after the attacks commenced on Mumbai's icons, I was downcast and angry for a very very long time. I had to attend a Sangeet ceremony of one of my close friends, but somehow did not find the mood or the mind to 'celebrate'. I confided in one of my oldest friends. I told her that I was so low, that I was in no mood to celebrate since so many of my people have been decimated, and all the city faces is political apathy and jeering on the world stage of the political circus. Her immediate response was, as usual - "Sindhu you think too much and you think nonsense". I was bewildered. She continued, " You think so much about political apathy. But will you or any one of our current generation who finds it appalling to handle office politics want to step into Mantralaya and run the state? No! You say so much about revamping the defence system, and internal security, did it strike you that almost everyone is thinking the same? Then why is there no action? Since there seem to be other more 'pressing matters' for our 'leaders' to handle. And now this mayhem has grabbed headlines, and these will stay till the next new media spectacle comes up for all to see."

At that time, I was aghast at her apparent indifference. But as time spanned out, look what happened....

Head politicians of the state resigned citing 'moral compulsions'. Can the new people deliver? Who knows? It will perhaps take them some time to understand the past ramblings before they decide to do something new, and by the time they deliberate and decide to do something new, it's poll time and poll jargon will start riding the airwaves. Then what? Back to square 1.

Pakistan has pledged support. How many times have they done that? And how many times has the world community been assured by the government of their unending co-operation? And is India so gullible? So immature to be treated like a weakling time and time again? Why? Are we not strong enough? No. How much should we put up with to prove our patience to the world? Granted, war is never a solution, but why try Satyagraha on hooligans??????? There has to be a better way to handle matters. UNSC certified terrorists are still at home under a farcical 'house arrest'. How does that help matters? A number of terrorist outfits like the Hizbul Mujahideen, today's Times reports, have disbanded. Really? Perhaps only to regroup like how the LeT did as JuD. People who have committed crimes against our country are being provided a safe haven in a neighboring country, and India has to be patient and diplomatic. I ask, 'Would US be so patient, if Osama was in Mexico?' So going totally filmy, I ask...'Unka Khoon Khoon, aur Hamaara Khoon Paani?'

Yes, we have slipped up in places too. Perpetrators of the Parliament attack are still breathing thanks to the slow moving wheels of clemency pleas. Intelligence is perhaps not as smoothly connected as it should be - so say the papers.

At the end of the day, we have had young people who have laid down their lives so that we may see another day. And the army chief has said that even more number of brave youths are more than willing to step up to the challenge. But unfortunately, it ends there. Like in the case of the Parliament attack, where India's blood boiled for a while. Like in the case of Kanishka, where India seethed. For a while. Like in the case of the serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in '93, the Gateway bomb blast in 2003, the train blasts in 2006, where Mumbai was angry. For a while. But then the years would pass, and new issues would spring up, new communities would need to be given reservations somewhere, one religion's beliefs would need to be questioned, and all that would remain would be the lifelong gloom in the houses of the martyrs and in those houses alone......

The Disillusion

The blood stains have all been wiped away. The fires have been doused, only charred walls remain to remind us of the hurt, pain and agony we've suffered. The dead have reached peace but those left behind will need to hunt for peace for the rest of their lives. Politicians have provided terribly disgusting sound bites here and there, and the already disillusioned people are flabbergasted. Hitherto unknown celebrities want to 'burst into tears' and express their sorrow at the tragedy as long as a pouty picture of theirs will be published alongside. So called 'daredevil journalists' went ahead jeopardizing their lives and the rescue missions in an attempt to be a part of the action. Morbid indeed! In brazen acts of conscience-deprived politics, people are still fighting against the opposite political party, since polls are around the corner. And the poor common man on the street is feeling as scared, as insecure, as possible. Suddenly something akin to the 'Dark Ages' seems to have descended on us. We have no faith in the security system, no belief that the government will do something beyond political rhetoric, full belief that the terror attacks are a reality and can strike any time.

A terrorist is someone who is absolutely not amenable to thought, conscience or reason. He has no remorse or regret towards the mass murder he brings upon civilization. There is no use trying to reform such maniacs. The only way out is to prevent the mushrooming of such sociopaths. But you can be caught unawares once, twice maybe. But almost 20 times, in different parts of the country over the last 15 years? One must realize that before claiming that India is the next economic superpower, or a powerhouse of economic growth that would set the direction of world economy in the years to come, one must remember that no matter what the economic potential, no one invests in a war zone. What prosperity can you grant to a non-existent population? And what use is a government that can't protect its own population? Bashing the West and its stifling security policies is a favorite pastime in this part of the world. But at least post 9/11 touch wood, there have been no terror attacks there! In spite of scratching the wounds of the Islamic population in the Middle East. And here, we are a 'patient nation' who can and will put up with torture forever!

Pakistan - our worthy neighbors

When was the last time we trusted Pakistan and they lived up to the trust? I can't remember a single instance. Lies, deceit and betrayal are almost second nature to the way that country deals with India. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation. Every time India extended the olive branch, the tree was chopped down. And we have lost precious Jawans and army personnel while trying to counter the Pakistanis. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation.

We signed the Lahore bus pact and sent a friendly bus to Lahore. Then PM Vajpayee travelled to Pakistan. Musharraf visited India and took pictures with his wife against the backdrop of the Taj, and all the while silently a sinister terror plot was being hatched against India. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation. Kargil. Infiltrators entered in hordes, captured major portions of Kashmir and jeopardized our sovereignty and all the while, we were believing the friendly gestures of our neighbors. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation. We lost young men in the line of fire, and the infiltration was supported entirely by the Pakistani army. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation.

Flight IC 814 was hijacked. A passenger was murdered. The hijackers demanded the release of Maulana Masood Azhar - a captured dreaded Pakistani terrorist. India negotiated, and finally gave in to the demands. Masood Azhar was a free man. He returned to Pakistan and started off with inflamed speeches against India, declaring Jihad on India. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation. He floated the terrorist outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad which was responsible for the attacks on India's Parliament house in 2004. The terrorists were completely supported and funded by Pakistan. India's prestige and honor was challenged once again by Pakistan. Again we lost men to the Pakistani terrorists. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation.

Almost everyday families are attacked in Kashmir. Kashmiri Pandits have fled Srinagar ages ago and started life from scratch elsewhere, though they are free by constitutional rights to live in peace wherever they wish to in the country. Women raped, children killed indiscriminately by Pakistani terrorists. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation. Impressionable Kashmiri youths are brainwashed on Pakistani training grounds and converted into terrorists - Fidayeen - suicide attackers. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation.

Mumbai was rocked by serial blasts in 1993. The perpetrators are hiding in Pakistan -say intelligence sources. Dawood Ibrahim, wanted for scores of underworld and terrorist activities in India, is in Pakistan - say intelligence sources. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation. Bomb blasts near the Taj Hotel in 2003, bomb blasts in trains in 2006 led to mass massacre of Indians. The attacks were all linked to Pakistani terrorists. Yet Pakistan is an honorable nation.

The current attacks on Mumbai - at the Taj, the Oberoi-Trident and Nariman house, sources claim, carry a Pakistani footprint. Pakistan vociferously denies any involvement. Because after all, Pakistan is an honorable nation.

The PM has asked the chief of the ISI to come to India to offer 'intelligence'. Maybe the welcome party must include the widows of ATS chief Hemant Karkare, top cops Vijay Salaskar and Ashok Kamte and perhaps the loved ones of all those who have lost their lives in this attack. Since Pakistan is an honorable nation. And such a visit deserves such honor.....

International conFLAGration

The other day, there was a heated debate on BBC about oceanic waters and the vast territory that is covered by sea. In school we learnt that over two thirds of the earth is covered by sea and so, the earth is called the blue planet. This debate spoke of an event that happened a year ago, wherein Russia sent two submarines into the Arctic Ocean bed, and planted a titanium flag down there. An official report is here...

Anyway, the panel comprised of people from all countries that border the Arctic Ocean. Everyone conceded that the issue is of great importance, since in the light of the energy crisis, new places for exploration are a necessity. And what better place than an ocean floor, that has remained snow capped for so long!! The Russian representative in the debate was vehement in saying that nothing should be read between the lines in the whole action, since Russia just wanted to show that its subs could go pretty deep down and stay there for a while as well.

So far maritime issues are generally dealt with on the basis of a tacit, implicit agreement of goodwill between all parties involved. But the issue of how to divide unexplored sea bed and the natural treasures it holds, can actually keep simmering and no one would be able to make out when it breaks out into a boil!

The funniest thing however, was the timing of this debate. India had launched Chandrayaan, its moon mission, and had successfully planted the Indian flag-bearing Moon Impact Probe near the Shackleton crater on the Moon's South Pole on 14th November 2008 - India's presence on uncharted territory and here there was a renewed debate on a flag planted on the Arctic sea bed a year ago - Russia's so called claim on uncharted territory. Shakespeare said, " What's in a name"... I ask, " What's in a flag?".... Time will tell, a hundred years later.........

A hilarious look at the campaign that was.............

As we step into the final few hours of the US Presidential race 2008, here are a few hilarious moments of the campaign that was.....

Terrible economy, huge losses in wars, racial and sexist prejudices, swing states, undecided people, experience, divas, Obamican (a Long time Republican voting for Obama), Muslim, Socialist... a very variegated race, but one thing that has been invariant, is the humor..... Here are unquotable quotes by the hopefuls - McCain, Palin, Obama, Biden and Hillary Clinton.

John McCain

"I was looking at the Sturgis schedule, and noticed that you had a beauty pageant, so I encouraged Cindy to compete. I told her [that] with a little luck, she could be the only woman to serve as both the First Lady and Miss Buffalo Chip." --on the annual Miss Buffalo Chip Pageant, which features topless (and occasionally bottomless) contestants, Sturgis, South Dakota, Aug. 4, 2008

"Across this country this is the agenda I have set before my fellow prisoners. And the same standards of clarity and candor must now be applied to my opponent." --Bethlehem, Penn., Oct. 8, 2008

"You know, I think you may have noticed that Senator Obama's supporters have been saying some pretty nasty things about Western Pennsylvania lately. And you know, I couldn't agree with them more. I couldn't disagree with you. I couldn't agree with you more than the fact that Western Pennsylvania is the most patriotic, most god-loving, most, most patriotic part of America, and this is a great part of the country." --Moon Township, Penn., Oct. 21, 2008 - I was reminded of the legendary answer in the 1994 Miss USA pageant - Question: If you could live forever, would you and why? Answer: "I would not live forever, because we should not live forever, because if we were supposed to live forever, then we would live forever, but we cannot live forever, which is why I would not live forever,"
- Miss Alabama.

"Our economy, I think, is still -- the fundamentals of our economy are strong." --Jacksonville, Fla., Sept. 15, 2008

"You know that old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran? Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran." --breaking into song after being asked at a VFW meeting about whether it was time to send a message to Iran, Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, April 18, 2007

"There was an energy bill on the floor of the Senate loaded down with goodies, billions for the oil companies, and it was sponsored by Bush and Cheney. You know who voted for it? You might never know. That one." --referring to Barack Obama during the second presidential debate, Nashville, Tennessee, Oct. 7, 2008

"I think -- I'll have my staff get to you. It's condominiums where -- I'll have them get to you." --after being asked how many houses he and his wife, Cindy, own, interview with Politico, Las Cruces, N.M., Aug. 20, 2008

"Make it a hundred...That would be fine with me." --to a questioner who asked if he supported President Bush's vision for keeping U.S. troops in Iraq for 50 years, Derry, New Hampshire, Jan. 3, 2008

"The chairman of the SEC serves at the appointment of the president and, in my view, has betrayed the public's trust. If I were president today, I would fire him." --apparently unaware of the fact that the SEC chairman, as a commissioner of an independent regulatory commission, cannot be removed by the president, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Sept. 18, 2008

"I understand the economy. I was chairman of the Commerce Committee that oversights every part of our economy." --ignoring the fact that it is actually the Senate Banking Committee which is responsible for credit, financial services, and housing -- the very areas currently in crisis, CNBC interview, Sept. 16, 2008

"I might have to rely on a vice president that I select’ for expertise on economic issues." --GOP debate, Nov. 28, 2007

"The issue of economics is not something I've understood as well as I should. I've got Greenspan's book." --as quoted in the Boston Globe, Dec. 17, 2007

"Sure. Technically, I don't know." --asked if the U.S. is in a recession, "60 Minutes" interview, Sept. 21, 2008


Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin boasted about her foreign policy experience to Katie Couric by saying, "As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where– where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border."

"They're our next door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska." --Sarah Palin, on her foreign policy insights into Russia, ABC News interview, Sept. 11, 2008

"We realize that more and more Americans are starting to see the light there and understand the contrast. And we talk a lot about, OK, we’re confident that we’re going to win on Tuesday, so from there, the first 100 days, how are we going to kick in the plan that will get this economy back on the right track and really shore up the strategies that we need over in Iraq and Iran to win these wars?" --Sarah Palin, suggesting we are at war with Iran, FOX News interview, Nov. 1, 2008

"If [the media] convince enough voters that that is negative campaigning, for me to call Barack Obama out on his associations then I don't know what the future of our country would be in terms of First Amendment rights and our ability to ask questions without fear of attacks by the mainstream media." --Sarah Palin, getting first amendment rights backwards while claiming that criticism of her is unconstitutional, radio interview with WMAL-AM, Oct. 31, 2008

"[T]hey're in charge of the U.S. Senate so if they want to they can really get in there with the senators and make a lot of good policy changes that will make life better for Brandon and his family and his classroom." --Sarah Palin, getting the vice president's constitutional role wrong after being asked by a third grader what the vice president does, interview with NBC affiliate KUSA in Colorado, Oct. 21, 2008

"We believe that the best of America is not all in Washington, D.C. ...We believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard working very patriotic, um, very, um, pro-America areas of this great nation." --Sarah Palin, speaking at a fundraiser in Greensoboro, N.C., Oct. 16, 2008

"I would hope at least that those protesters have the courage and the honor of thanking our veterans for giving them the right to protest!" --Sarah Palin, confusing supporters at a campaign rally who had shouted "We can't hear you!" and "Louder!", Richmond, Va., Oct. 13, 2008

"That's exactly what we're going to do in a Palin and McCain administration." --Sarah Palin, elevating herself to the top of the ticket, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Sept. 18, 2008

"I'm very, very pleased to be cleared of any legal wrongdoing ... any hint of any kind of unethical activity there. Very pleased to be cleared of any of that." --Sarah Palin, after an Alaska legislative report found she had broken the state's ethics law and abused her power in the Troopergate scandal, conference call with Alaska reporters, Oct. 12, 2008

"They are also building schools for the Afghan children so that there is hope and opportunity in our neighboring country of Afghanistan." --Sarah Palin, speaking at a fundraiser in San Francisco, Oct. 5, 2008

"All of 'em, any of 'em that have been in front of me over all these years." --Sarah Palin, unable to name a single newspaper or magazine she reads, interview with Katie Couric, CBS News, Oct. 1, 2008

"Nucular." --Sarah Palin, mispronouncing the word "nuclear" twice, ABC News interview, Sept. 11, 2008

"Perhaps so." --Sarah Palin, when asked if we may need to go to war with Russia because of the Georgia crisis, ABC News interview, Sept. 11, 2008

"I have not, and I think if you go back in history and if you ask that question of many vice presidents, they may have the same answer that I just gave you." --Sarah Palin, after being asked if she had never met a foreign head of state, despite the fact that every vice president in the last 32 years had met a foreign head of state prior to taking office, ABC News interview, Sept. 11, 2008

"I told the Congress, 'Thanks, but no thanks,' on that Bridge to Nowhere." --Sarah Palin, who was for the Bridge to Nowhere before she was against it.

"As for that VP talk all the time, I'll tell you, I still can't answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it exactly that the VP does every day?" --Sarah Palin, interview with CNBC's "Kudlow & Co", July 2008

"I'll try to find you some and I'll bring them to you." --Sarah Palin, asked by Katie Couric to cite specific examples of how John McCain has pushed for more regulation in his 26 years in the Senate, CBS News interview, Sept. 24, 2008

Barack Obama

"Let me introduce to you the next President -- the next Vice President of the United States of America, Joe Biden." --slipping up while introducing Joe Biden at their first joint campaign rally, Springfield, Illinois, Aug. 23, 2008

"Let me be absolutely clear. Israel is a strong friend of Israel's. It will be a strong friend of Israel's under a McCain...administration. It will be a strong friend of Israel's under an Obama administration. So that policy is not going to change." --Amman, Jordan, July 22, 2008

"How's it going, Sunshine?" --campaigning in Sunrise, Florida

"On this Memorial Day, as our nation honors its unbroken line of fallen heroes -- and I see many of them in the audience here today -- our sense of patriotism is particularly strong."

"I've now been in 57 states -- I think one left to go." --at a campaign event in Beaverton, Oregon

"It's not surprising, then, they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations." --explaining his troubles winning over some working-class voters

"In case you missed it, this week, there was a tragedy in Kansas. Ten thousand people died -- an entire town destroyed." --on a Kansas tornado that killed 12 people


Joe Biden

"Look, John's last-minute economic plan does nothing to tackle the number-one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S, jobs." --Joe Biden

"A man I'm proud to call my friend. A man who will be the next President of the United States — Barack America!" --Joe Biden, at his first campaign rally with Barack Obama

"When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened." –Joe Biden, apparently unaware that FDR wasn't president when the stock market crashed in 1929 and that only experimental TV sets were in use at that time

"Stand up, Chuck, let 'em see ya." –-Joe Biden, to Missouri state Sen. Chuck Graham, who is in a wheelchair, Columbia, Missouri, Sept. 12, 2008


Miscellaneous

Clinton's Bosnia Adventure

The number one biggest gaffe of the 2008 Presidential election was Hillary Clinton's dramatic exaggeration of her landing in Bosnia in 1996, "under sniper fire." Was it an attempt to bolster her "experience" claim? Or was it a legitimate "misstatement"? We may never know for sure, but the video of the actual event sure did contradict much of her very descriptive story.

Clinton refers to RFK

'My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. I don't understand it,' she said, dismissing calls to drop out."

The American Presidential Election 2008 - My take on the story so far...

The American Presidential race. Well, just googling it up will yield a whole cartload of information. I could write for hours and hours on the way the whole thing has shaped up so far.


But there are a few reasons why this race for Presidency is unique.

First of all, the race comes at a time when America is in dire need of a shot in the arm to extricate itself from a recession that is ominously compared time and again to the Great Depression. People are tired of the so called aimless Government of George W Bush. Bush’s welcome party included a hit on WTC and the American perception of safety was dealt a literal bolt from the blue. During his tenure, a war was declared on Iraq and Afghanistan, a number of American youth were sent to war and Saddam was executed.

Traditionally, the Republicans have been more ‘ideological’, with ideology winning over fact, winning over science, winning over truth even – as told to me by some friends in the USA. True – as the firm belief that Iraq was out to destroy America, led to the fabrication of the whole concept of Weapons of Mass Destruction – ideology over truth! In 2004, President Bush managed to win the race by hitching on to ‘the WMD, war on Iraq, imminent terror strike’ horse. But, the absence of WMD, a fact which in effect falsified the whole reason why the war was started in the first place, and the futile loss of American lives in the flawed war coupled with a lack of a clear direction on whether the troops would be pulled out in an attempt to put an end to the continuous loss of life on Iraqi soil, have further resulted in despair among the American people. To add on to it, the Bush administration took their ideology of ‘free hand to business’ a bit too far, thereby leading to a situation of complete turmoil in the American economy. Lax laws to control banking and finance, a free hand to investment banks like Lehman, the darlings of the American Economy, complicated investment instruments, and a very strong hankering behind the bottom line, have all just seemed to ruin Bush’s farewell party as well. So much so, that people resent anything ‘Bush’. The fact that a Republican administration has been responsible for the breakdown of the economy and has been the cause of the maligned image of America in the eyes of the world has built up a strong anti-incumbency factor that McCain has had to make a very strong effort to try to distance himself from the current President and his policies.

The Democrats have traditionally been ‘for government regulation’. So they have so long been touting the fact that better regulation could have averted the whole economic meltdown. Which is true to an extent. They have also been speaking about moving out of Iraq. In a way they have put all their words in the right place, and have essentially spoken what America wanted to hear. Whether these factors can translate into a Democratic leadership at the White house, only today’s result can tell. Again, whether the new President can actually effect sufficient change to resurrect the flagging economy - only time will tell. So much for the socio-political milieu where this election is being held!

Now for the whole race in itself. Prominently, this race had more to do with a kind of ‘American awakening’, as the Democrats dared the people to challenge their prejudices. Both the Democrat candidates signified that at least one of America’s deep rooted prejudices would need to be challenged. America would need to vote either for an African American man or for a woman, if they decided to side with the Democrats. Imagine the quandary – to escape from a probable continuation of ‘terrible’ governance, they would need to fight their prejudices. They need to choose between a racial prejudice and a sexist prejudice to escape the status quo! Frying pan to the fire indeed.

This is just ideological. Look at the actual candidates.

The Republicans all along supported McCain. The Democrats were busy fighting prejudices. So while McCain began building a strong base, Obama and Hillary locked horns on who was better. It was almost as if they were the two presidential candidates fighting for the White House. Finally, whether it was on account of core issues or because one prejudice was more deep-rooted than another, Hillary quietly moved into the shadows. I remember once that Oprah Winfrey was slammed by numerous women for being vocal about her support for Obama as against Hillary, since many women took this as an affront to feminism! Whoa!!!

The candidates themselves. A 72 year old a war veteran – a PoW for five and a half years v/s a comparatively very young man who is said to be inexperienced. Both of them want to be the harbingers of change. On the charisma department, Barack certainly scores. He knows how to speak, how to connect his racial background to change, how to connect everyone by a common story. What he says, more often than not, sounds like a welcome change America needs. On the other hand, a rather resigned face of the Republicans is forced to contend with comments like ‘Obama is a Muslim’, ‘Obama is socialist’. ‘That One’ and so on. Verbal bandies, more like our very own Indian politicos!

Then come the Vice-Presidential candidates. Joe Biden and Sarah Palin. The vice president is generally someone with capacity to be President, if the situation so demands. But Ms. Palin! She still thinks that the VP heads the Senate!! Her take on foreign policy is legendary – she can see Putin fly over her house! She can’t name a newspaper she reads, or a Supreme Court judgment she disagreed with other than Roe vs Wade, or a policy decision McCain voted for! Joe Biden, not a lot is spoken about him generally. At least not in the global media, but that is perhaps because he is outshone by Diva Palin for all the wrong reasons.

Even the way in which the campaign has been conducted is different. While McCain depended on the age old Public Campaign Finance mechanism for funds, by drawing on Federal funds for his campaign, Obama, worked outside the system – from the grassroots level. Small donations by small time people who will not expect the typical huge favors for the money paid, ended up collecting into a huge ocean of resources. The result – McCain had $84 million dollars, at his disposal, while Obama managed around $150 million in September alone. So Obama could manage to get prime time slots for $4 million dollars one week prior to election day, while McCain appealed to his supporters to please help him out! Does all this really matter? Well, for a candidate who is trying to be America’s first President with African roots that extend all the way to the color of his skin, yes. The more he appears, the more he tries to break the intangible screen that lies at the heart of the racial divide, the better it is. The more confidence in his manner of operation, he can instill into the ‘America = White Republican’ population, the better it is for his chances. The fact remains that if only Obama were white, he would have won hands down. But the whole quandary of administration and the country’s future on one hand v/s racial prejudice on the other, has added a lot of spice to the American Presidential Race of 2008.

But can America really put aside age old beliefs and look to the future? Can they really allow logic to prevail and not be swayed by prejudices when they are all alone in that polling booth with an all important choice to make? Can they really think and take a wise decision for the country? I guess we’d need to wait a few more hours to see how America decides…..

Speaking of Presidents.............

This happens to be one of my all time favorite forwards.

An Interesting Conversation
An atheist professor of philosophy speaks to his class on the problem science has with God, The Almighty. He asks one of his new students to stand and.....

Prof : So you believe in God?
Student: Absolutely, sir.

Prof: Is God good?
Student: Sure.

Prof: Is God all-powerful?
Student: Yes.

Prof: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to God to heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But God didn't. How is this God good then? Hmm?
Student is silent.

Prof: You can't answer, can you?
Let's start again, young fellow. Is God good?
Student: Yes.



Prof: Is Satan good?
Student: No.

Prof: Where does Satan come from?
Student: From...God...

Prof: That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?
Student: Yes.

Prof: Evil is everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything. Correct?
Student: Yes.

Prof: So who created evil?
Student does not answer.

Prof: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don't they?
Student: Yes, sir.

Prof: So, who created them?
Student has no answer.

Prof: Science says you have 5 senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son...Have you ever seen God?
Student: No, sir.

Prof: Tell us if you have ever heard your God?
Student: No, sir.

Prof: Have you ever felt your God, tasted your God, smelt your God? Have you ever had any sensory perception of God for that matter?
Student: No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.

Prof: Yet you still believe in Him?
Student: Yes.

Prof: According to empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your GOD doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?
Student: Nothing. I only have my faith.

Prof: Yes Faith. And that is the problem science has.

Now the student said can I ask something to you Professor.

Student: Professor, is there such a thing as heat?
Prof: Yes.

Student : And is there such a thing as cold?
Prof: Yes.

Student: No sir. There isn't.

(The lecture theatre becomes very quiet with this turn of events.)

Student: Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don't have anything called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.

(There is pin-drop silence in the lecture theatre.)

Student: What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?
Prof: Yes. What is night if there isn't darkness?

Student: You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something.
You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light... But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and its called darkness, isn't it? In reality, darkness isn't. If it were you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?
Prof: So what is the point you are making, young man?

Student: Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed.
Prof: Flawed? Can you explain how?

Student: Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is life and then there is death, a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?


Prof: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of course, I do.


Student: Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?


(The Professor shakes his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument is going.)

Student: Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a scientist but a preacher?

(The class is in uproar.)

Student: Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor's brain?


(The class breaks out into laughter.)

Student: Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures, sir?

(The room is silent. The professor stares at the student, his face unfathomable.)

Prof: I guess you'll have to take them on faith, son.
Student: That is it sir... The link between man & god is FAITH. That is all that keeps things moving & alive. .


WANT TO KNOW WHO THAT STUDENT WAS?

This is a true story, and the student was none other than

DR. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. The whole world is talking of Presidents. This student is India's ex - President. When America goes to the polls today, they will be elcting a new person to enter the White House and make Dubyaman, America's ex-President.....

Mortal Combat - Annihilation!!!!

Who said the final annihilation is ages away? As politicians are tremendously busy playing sectarian politics and law enforcement is busy deciding what to do, the young blood out there is busy playing tit-for-tat. Putting aside any chance of trying to do something constructive (besides sanctioning projects for digging holes on all major roads, making any road commuter's life hell, while not showing any decent progress or result for those digging activities) everyone is busy riding the regionalism wave. Bravo! UP kill Marathi, Marathi kill UP. Awesome!!! At the end of the annihilation, everyone would end wiped out! And then, in the bevy of corpses, one really wouldn't be able to know who started it all. But then again, at that time, it really wouldn't matter....

Something Saturday : Politics....

The wretchedness of the human nature comes to the fore only in politics. The extent to which the thirst for power can literally bring out the conniving, scheming Iago within a human being can be seen in politics today. It almost looks like one waits for the first stumble of a person to make it into a 100 ft fall. And this is the fallacy of politics. Gone are the days when politicians wanted to do something for the country. Remember the age old – ‘What do you want to be when you grow up’ essay? Prime minister was once on top of that list. There was once a time when Gandhiji, Nehru, Patel were lauded for their vision, their mission to build India. They had stars in their eyes and a wish to make a difference. And now, when asked to name a profession for which I would say, “Don’t pick me”, I emphatically say ‘Politics’. Why? Either I have opened my eyes to reality or there has been a decadence of politics over the years, or perhaps both! I remember this old Malayalam movie – don’t recall the name though, where a group of crooks manage to lay their hands on a huge loot and wonder how they can spend so much money while growing it without attracting attention. They think of various ways – from social service to trade till finally they settle on…. Politics. So that is what this is all about – kickbacks, ‘kitna taka mera’, under the table, over the table and everywhere else – just ways to make a bundle – and a big one at that. So no wonder then that power corrupts.

And when it comes to swaying the electorate, they’ll stop at nothing to pull out any and all tricks out of the bag to win. A terrible past, a criminal offence, a foreigner by birth, the lack of a cell phone, a pregnant teenage daughter - the list is endless. 2 days after Palin’s nomination comes news that her teenager daughter is five months pregnant. Wham! To all those conservative Republicans. Did Ms Palin suddenly realize this???? I remember the movie Sweet Home Alabama. Patrick Dempsey’s mother is a politician, and the minute her son breaks news of his engagement to a small known NY fashion designer – Reese Witherspoon to his mother, she calls a quick meeting to pull all skeletons out of the Reese’s closet, before her rivals get wind of it all. This was comedy in the movie. But this really happens in India. As if politics is all about scandals and glitzy gossip. No wonder then that politics can be likened to movies and many film stars and crooks have excelled at politics! Indian politics provides a continuous news feed to the 24x7 news channels. When we have bandits, gangsters, accused murderers, even convicts – who file nominations from prison, politics in India is nothing short of drama on a massive scale. One truly wonders when Condoleeza Rice talks of the alliance between US and India as an alliance between 2 democracies – the oldest and the largest! We are the most populous country with a ‘democratic’ form of Government, no doubt. But to what extent is our population enfranchised? And to what extent are we exploiting a very exclusive right? I remember a report on Afghanistan soon after the Taliban government was ousted. Men and women were dancing on the streets overjoyed at the fact that they could finally have a say in the government. And here, abstaining from voting seems to be the best thing we can do for the country.

Take for instance the newest political drama in Maharashtra.

A fervor that when unbridled in unemployed youth can blow up into something unmanageable! There are scores of issues facing the country these days. Unemployment, creaky infrastructure, poverty, a global economic meltdown. This is a time that calls for unity, calls for a united effort to solve common ills. Dividing a state under the garb of regionalism will not lead us anywhere near progress. The issue was the fact that railway vacancies in Maharashtra were not advertised locally. Ok, the issue is a legitimate one. But beating candidates? What will that achieve? Other party people swoop in and gather brownie points on the sympathy that follows these victims. Another theatrical arrest in the dead of the night. Yet again newspapers and TV channels get enough for a 24x7 unique feed! Irony comes to the fore, as newspapers hunt out Maharashtrians whose property was damaged in an offshoot of the violence. Pages and pages are dedicated to the cause of Marathi! Language is supposed to bind people through literature. The USP of India has been ‘unity in diversity’. A Muslim celebrating Diwali, a Hindu wishing a Muslim on Eid, Hindus, Muslims, Parsis, Christians coming together on Christmas. Somewhere in the murkiness of politics, all that beauty has been lost to regional, sectarian and communal divide. A regression of sorts, indeed. Extrapolate this situation a little bit, and you have a cartoon that is doing the rounds these days – Think about it…..

I think it is high time we started acting like civilized, educated human beings with a mission and a purpose in life. Just being called an ‘emerging economy’ will not ensure sustained investment and growth. But frivolous destruction and hurdles to progress will almost certainly stop any chances of growth!

Tata says tata

Tata leaves Singur for greener pastures – literally. As a rather strong proponent of capitalism, like most of the younger generation these days, I feel vindicated again. For enterprise to grow and thus foster growth of a nation, the answer does not lie in Communism! Look where Left Bengal has gone!

Politics is a media circus. The whole US Presidential election 2008 replete with moose, pigs, makeup, racial sentiments, feminism, and blockhead politics is testimony to that fact. But that a political party would ditch potential growth for those measly 15 seconds of fame, leaves me wondering whether India has been hit by another syndrome post the global economic meltdown. A syndrome called ‘idiocy in politics’!

The scene in West Bengal - A friend of mine who has lived his life in Calcutta says that the sleepy city is in no way comparable to a metropolis. He’d been to Cal for around 10 days on an assignment, and when he came back, he said that he was happy to be back, since had he continued there, he would have become lazy and lethargic. His case you can argue, is an exception, but who can argue against the number of stirs and strikes that are commonplace in WB? Every other day, shutters are down for some reason or the other. But with a growing population, and more number of graduates the dearth of jobs is a reality. Where do they go? Move to other cities. Brain drain on a smaller scale. But what does that do to the state and its infrastructure? Every state, no matter how small or inconsequential, has state machinery that needs to run. And for that the state needs investment. An investment to the scale of the kind that Tata envisioned, would have opened up the floodgates of investment. Maybe Reliance, Vodafone? Daimler Benz for all you know??!!!?? Ironically ,the Communist government in WB noticed that fact, which Ms Banerjee chose to ignore. She went on and on hammering into the heads of anyone who would listen and also those who wouldn’t, that she wanted to protect the farmers, whose rights had been cruelly snatched by the alligators of corporate capitalism! Whoa, and this poor alligator could have given jobs, much needed tax revenues to the desirous millions in West Bengal. India is an agrarian economy, no doubt, but somewhere one needs to move on. Agriculture alone cannot feed, clothe, house and develop the zillions of people. Khmer Rouge and Polpot had such nefarious intentions – a complete regression to farming and the ways of the olden times man. The result – a wipe out of a whole generation in Cambodia. Which again brings me back to wonder how one woman could have been so foolish???

Two instances make me believe that perhaps West Bengal is opposed to anything new. They abhor change of any sort! Traditionally the Left with roots in West Bengal, have been very good ‘opposition’. No, I don’t mean it as a compliment to their political methods, but they operate in the true sense of the word – oppose anything that comes your way. The government said – ‘Without nuclear energy we would literally be left groping in the dark. So support the nuclear deal’ The Politburo said – ‘we hate America and all things American. So shoo the nuclear deal.’ I wish someone had then told them that nuclear energy does not belong to one country! It is property of the world community, scientific community, rather. Second, an Indian company made bold and decided to set up shop in WB. Two years ago. Why did the agitation begin to reach feverish levels only just now? Where were the protests before this? Save for a few breaks of the gate and screams here and there all this while, why protest now when the plant is at a stage where relocation costs are exorbitantly high? Where were these disgruntled farmers for so long? Spending the money they received as compensation? And when the moneybag ran dry, they found a reason to ask more? Has greed reached such abysmal levels? Ms Banerjee perhaps never imagined that the man of steel – Ratan Tata would move lock stock and barrel. She thought she could formulate a truce plan that would benefit her so called oppressed farmers and also bolster her long lost plans of becoming the CM next year. Unfortunately, the whole plan backfired. Now the youth are aghast, since much needed employment is gone. The state as a whole is disgruntled with her, and the glacier between her and the ruling government has received 10 more layers of ice! And irrespective of what Mr Tata may say to anyone, any future investor would think a billion times before embarking on a project in hinterlands of Mamtaland.

The biggest loser, however is West Bengal. They were legendary for being thought leaders. Rabindranath Tagore, Shantiniketan, Bengal Chemicals, a majority of the freedom fighters, all have their roots in West Bengal. With the advent of the Left government, the state started sinking into the oblivion. Blame it on policies, or the lack of it, reticence towards development, a cushy comfort in the status quo or whatever. But now, such cruel selfish politics has managed to sound the way downward for one of India’s once most illustrious states.

Stop this nonsense

Here we are, celebrating 61 years of independence, and there, in the Kashmir valley, we have separatists flaunting their flags, their dissension and their dissatisfaction at being a part of India! Now, when we need a united India to fight her bigger problems of corruption, inflation, poverty, illiteracy and gender and caste discrimination, here are some people tagging onto the separation agenda. All the time, so many people keep harping, literally that the USP of India is her unity in diversity. So many cultures, so many languages, dialects. India is the bedrock of 3 independent religions - Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainisim. We have embraced all religions and everyone is allowed to practise what they want to, as long as they don't end up being a menace for someone else. Now, in what way is this stance 'not secular'? In what way is the essence of Kashmiris jeopardized here? They seek independence you say? And we have journalists and columnists calling the Kashmiri struggle similar to the Indian struggle against the Raj! Now, does India bleed Kashmir for revenues? Does India milk Kashmir for industrial output and natural resources, and divert all such revenues to other places, leaving Kashmir high and dry, writhing in pain and suffering? Not really. India pumps in a huge amount of money into Kashmir, and prosperity is evident. We have figures that say that Kashmir has the lowest poverty rate in India! Now, I don't really think the Raj did that to India.

The biggest canker in the Indian soul is the politicization of democracy. In the name of democracy, almost everyone is given a free hand. We want to honor the words of everyone. But at what cost? We have Hurriyat leaders who are ostentatiously pro Pakistan. By opening up of the Muzaffarabad highway, we are inviting terrorists through other routes, terrorists who already have a free terrorism visa stamped by ISI and the Pakistan army. And who endorses these views? Politicians, all with their own vote-monging agenda! They have their own personal agenda, and who better supporters than gullible youths, who can quite comfortably be brainwashed into believing what is best for them? The world condemns terrorism, and some people see personal gains in the act. Is democracy and patience justified in condoning such acts? How long should we as a nation brook such nonsense? How many more jawans and majors, true sons of the soil who are sacrificing their lives for the sovereignty of the nation, should we lose? How many more war widows must we create? How many more orphans must we leave in the wake of the J&K issue?

Separation and partisan politics, if it were the solution, 61 years ago, Patel and Nehru wouldn't have embarked on a mammoth mission to integrate the nation. They wouldn't have gone on discussion after discussion with every princely state and whimsical ruler to integrate with India. Today, if we were to acquiesce to the separation requirements of Kashmiris, tomorrow, Punjab will say they want a separate Khalistan. Can we live without our Punjabi and Sardarji brothers? Next, Tamil Nadu will say they want to go their own way. Would we allow that? Forget those states, if Mumbai and Bangalore decide to be independent, fending for themselves, feeding only themselves and protecting their frontiers, without contributing a cent to the center, would J&K, Punjab, AP, Karnataka, MP survive?

A nation is built by unity. Unity in spite of being poles apart. It is a marriage. A marriage of ideologies. A compromise and a willingness to co-exist. If a Hindu-Muslim marriage can survive the odds, in spite of family pressures, why can't a nation full of discerning young people stand up and speak sense to the separatists and the politicians who provide their tacit approval? Why not find a way to live in peace, without bringing religion in the way. If tomorrow the USA were to declare Pakistan a terrorist state and deploy troops all over Pakistan, would Kashmir still want to join Pakistan. And if they were so 'islam-friendly' and 'Indian secularism averse', does Saudi Arabia want them to renounce Kashmir and come over en masse to stay in Saudi Arabia?

I don't speak as a Hindu. I speak as an Indian. I myself have very close friends from all religions. We share our joys, our events and we understand that life is beyond all such petty things as religion, community and hatred! But there is a limit to what India can bear. A limit to her tolerance. She is after all a woman and 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'. So do not speak separation and independence. Prosperity and happiness lie in togetherness and unity. No Jai Kashmir and Jai Madhya Pradesh. But Jai Hind, Jai Bharat - One India at all time.

The Lie

Over the past few days, in what appears to be a dire attempt at grabbing media attention, two so called ‘powerful’ people have been dragging poor Lord Ram into the dirty world of politics. As if the political moves he was subjected to in his lifetime by his step mother Kaikeyi were not enough! Remember how Kaikeyi quoted an age old promise made unto her by her husband in an attempt to have her own son crowned king instead of Rama?! But now, we have people questioning his very existence, his character, him, as a person.

Someone goes on to say that the Ram Setu, was not built by Lord Ram, although the bridge for some weird reason appears to bear his name! And why was it not built by the said God? Because according to that person, Lord Ram was a figment of a person’s imagination. Wonder how Kamba, and Valmiki imagined the same characters at the same time! Poor Kavya Vishwanathan, a few years ago, innocently ‘internalized’ a few lines from Megan McAfferty’s book, only to face approbation and disapproval from the entire world! And here, a plagiarized character is worshipped!

So Rama does not exist. All that my grandma and all grandmas before her said are all lies, untruths. The very religion is a hoax! The Himalayas are just another range of mountains, not the abode of Lord Shiva. The Ganga is just another river and not the sin purifier that she is perceived to be. In spite of that, millions of dumb people undertake strenuous pilgrimages to Mt. Kailash, Manasarovar, Badri-Kedar, Hrishikesh and Varanasi. I am not saying this, but these are some implied pearls of ‘wisdom’ from some specific prominent people. Apparently one mocking statement goes thus. ‘Who gave Rama a degree in civil engineering that empowered him to build a bridge?’ Well, who gave architecture degrees to Shah Jahan? To the Egyptians who built pyramids?

Hinduism is by nature, a very tolerant religion. Hindus by nature tolerate a lot of injustice done to them without retaliating at the outset. Tolerance is one of the principles taught by the religion itself. But this should not be misconstrued as cowardice or meekness. If the time demands it, we can also come up with an Ashoka or a Chandragupta Maurya! Or maybe they are fictitious too! I don’t know, maybe our non-believer friend can comment on the very frivolity of history itself. Try walking into Mecca and saying Allah is a hoax. Try going to the Vatican and screaming that Jesus is a lie. Why try telling followers of the Republican party of India that Buddha never existed. If you come back alive, it is an achievement. But Hindus will tolerate anything. Questioning the language while living in the birthplace of the religion itself.

Our non-believer friend does not believe in God. His horoscope is under the influence of Jupiter now. So the yellow shawl. But he does not believe in God. Everyday he drives his car a few steps towards a Krishna temple near his house before leaving for work. But he does not believe in God. Tomorrow if something were to happen to him, his family will run to the closest temple. But they do not believe in God. His dearest daughter said that anything that comes in the way of development needs to be questioned, like say the caste system. Now, even a child knows that the caste system was a man-made set of rules unlike…. God. She thought she made a profound statement when she said that no non-believer created a hue and cry if his non-belief was questioned! What exactly did that mean? Guess the abstractness of their so-called modern day literature was creeping into their everyday conversations as well!

If Rama was a lie, then all Gods are lies. Then why is all of Maharashtra and more so Mumbai celebrating Ganeshotsav with such fervor? Why do we celebrate Dashera which is the day our fiction hero killed his enemy Ravan? Now did Ravan exist? I don’t know. Why do we celebrate Diwali which is supposed to mark the homecoming of our fiction hero? If the Mahabharata is also just a story book, poor Ganesha broke a tusk jotting it down from Vedavyasa. On hindsight, poor Ganesha must be regretting it.

I am not trying to preach the presence of God. If you are an atheist, so be it. Just like how believers keep idols and pictures at home to pray, you can keep your non-belief at home as well. India is proud of its cultural heritage. We are a secular country allowing followers to practice Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, all the way up to Kabbalah. You be what you are and let others be what they are. Politics is a dirty place. People and their beliefs are better off staying aloof.

Human Resource (Anything but) Development

Countless instances in history have shown the number 13 to be an unlucky number. Starting right from the Last Supper to even the Friday the 13th virus!!! But whoever thought that 13 would render such a mortal blow to India's future? And even more saddening is the fact that this monster is being bred by our very own HRD minister. Well, in this case, the 13 is a 13-letter anathema that has the potency of wiping away the very existence of meritocracy, a 13-letter word that has the power of sending a nation into frustration, a 13-letter word that has the strength to spread a cloak of darkness over the future of the Indian youth! This 13-letter curse goes by the name of 'Mandalization' - splitting the youth on the basis of caste! The name Mandal brings back gory images of protests and self-immolation. And today 16 years after having walked through the coal-bed, it looks like we are treading the hot bed again.

There was a time, close to the 'cave-man' era, it seems today, when people belonging to the higher castes enjoyed certain privileges in life. The very initial demarkation, came about on account of the occupation and way of life of the higher castes, on account of a cultured conduct that the higer castes used to adhere to. Situations did get out of hand after a time and the lower castes began to be treated worse than dirt. Fair enough! By the law of means, society needs to put a severly tipped balance back on plane. Granted! But has anyone ever thought that by pushing any measure too far, we are just tipping the scales the other way round? Reservations were initially brought in to instill a degree of confidence in the youth of the then-called 'lower castes' to be unafraid in seeking education, to try and send a message across that they too could boldly come forth and take a seat in the same class as a Brahmin boy and be assured of of the same treatment. Now, because a certain ABC's great great great grandfather was treated like an untouchable by Brahmin PQR's great great great grandfather, should PQR be refused a seat at AIIMS after scoring 95%? According to Mr. Arjun Singh, YES! they say that in the Kalyug, the controlling God - Kali, will exact atonement for a sin in the person's lifetime itself. He doesn't even wait for the same person's next birth. But our very own Human Resource Decimation minister wants to go a step further than Kali. He wants to make the 'higher classes' suffer through the ages, for generations to come, only making way for a similar movement say 30 years down the line, when a certain Suryanarayanan Sivramakrishnan will fight for the rights of OFCs - Other Forward Castes! Who are we kidding here?

The constitution of India, gives a human being freedom of speech. one can voice his protest and be assured of an ear at the other end. But i guess that is the definition of Freedom of Speech in a Utopia, not India, because here, our Government elected to address OUR issues and think of OUR development, can assure us of lathis, water cannons and tear gar over and above a deaf ear at the other end. And this kind of oppression was what we learned about in our history books about the kind of ill-treatment meted out to the Indians, by the British. But today, such atrocities are being dealt out on the youth, the rising sun of India. This is not only the asphyxiation of the future of the Indian youth, it is pure murder of democracy at a point where it is to be nurtured.

A question to be asked here is, do we need reservations at all? the answer is Yes, we do. When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, we saw Blacks die, we saw Blacks fight within the Louisiana Superdome, we saw blacks, poor blacks, who were stuck in their homes , waiting for their welfare checks from the government, traumatized with nowhere to go. Reason, racial discrimination. By ensuring reservations at the primary level, we have ensured that the backward classes are not denied a chance to uplift themselves. We have taken one step towards ensuring a uniform social system. This is like adding salt to a dish to ensure a balance in the culinary requirements. If a dish lacks salt, we add a pinch to make it palatable. But that does not mean that salt is the only panacea, and therefore 10 cups of it will make any dish great to taste. It will not only ruin the dish, but also kill the eater. the current decision of the government to introduce higher level of reservation is a case in point. We are simply ensuring the annihilation of the Indian youth. So what if they want to introduce more number of general category seats? that is not goiong to palliate all the aspiring indian masses. The number of candidiates for the general category is far far more than the number of OBCs, and the distance between their cup and their lip is longer than that in the case of the OBCs. So a few more seats is not going to be the solution, instead it is like a slap on the face, wherein, the government wants to try and shut the protesting mouths with a gag, and the students are left vigorously trying to scream out, but are unable to do so!

Deprived of opportunities, the blacks in the west take to crime. Transpose that here; devoid of opportunity, a member of the higher class youth will soon be a petty thief, while his OBC doctor colleague will be busy cutting off a person's pancreas, because the patient had appendicitis. the fortunate few, will board the first flight out to the US, where Indians are still looked upon with respect, still considered over-achievers, where hailing from the same land as Lakshmi Mittal is something to be proud of.

Our beloved Human Resource Division minister has assured an increase in the number of general category seats. But will it assure Ramesh Trivedi from Benaras, a poor priest's sone, with do Jodi kapda and a torn shoe, a seat in AIIMS with 95.7% in Std 12? No, but Ramesh Kardak, a poor OBC with 55% in std 12 can definitely fly first class to Delhi from Mumbai, to pick up his admit letter. Incidentally he got dropped by his chauffer in his personal yellow Mercedes from his home at Peddar Road!

The most important question to be asked here is whether reservation was necessary to be picked up right now, when there are many more glaring issues at hand, and when there are myriad other ways to ensure social upliftment? This is so cleaarly a case wherein the Government wants to make a huge deposit into its OBC-rich vote-bank. Ironically, the Mandal Commission report also deals with many other issues other than reservation. Whether this particular move by the HRD minister will bring about an egalitarian society, is for all to see. but one thing it will surely augment is the firm faith in the minds of the youth that voting is most definitely not going to bring about a change, and so no matter what we can expect in the years to come, we can definitely expect a wave of disillusion in the young minds accompanied by a whole tsunami of brain drain!