Much space has been devoted to the rise and rise of Obama. Being an eternal cynic, I wonder what this is all about. Before opening the champagne bottles and before letting the fizz out, we need to pause for a cause. Obama has proved himself in rhetoric and political posturing. Yes, undoubtedly he is qualified for the job and does bring in a whiff of fresh air. He is THE proof of empowerment of the downtrodden and also he is THE living example of how great things can be achieved by even the under privileged.
He might be, as many claim him to be, the "Dark Knight" (sic). But as history has shown -ad nauseam, there is many a slip between the cup and the lip.
His campaign-the whole hog of debates, policies, and ideas- was well thought and relatively free of any jarring incidents (Remember his jibes at Hillary earned him the wrath of Indian Americans). His whole approach looked more inclusive and more progressive than McCain’s right-on-your-face, provocative approach.
I would like to quote the oft-abused proverb here: “A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step". Obama has won the first round and an important one at that. Credit should be given where it is due but with all due respects, a big crisis looming in front of him. Thanks to the profligacy of the previous government, the US economy is bleeding. There is no solution in sight. US has lost the respect of the world. And it is here Obama has to perform. He might be the first afro-American president, but he needs more than that to be remembered in history. He needs to perform else history will bracket him with his predecessor. The world economy hinges on one country and Obama being the president-elect of that country has to pull up his socks and get to work. He has captured the hearts of the American citizens and it is time he captured their minds with a slew of policies, which will shore up the economy. This is the battle he has to win, as the stakes are too high. He needs to prove himself as to be a capable leader, as someone who is willing not only to think & speak but also to act. Till then any celebration is permature.
Indian polity needs to be distinguished from the American one. The Indian one is a "mobocracy" while the American institution is a functional democracy. The Indian democracy died way back in 1960's. It was upsurged by a heady cocktail of crooks, bootleggers, anti-nationals, pseudo seculars and last but not the least "white-ass-lickers". The hangover from the cocktail can be felt even today and I personally feel that the hangover is stronger than ever. Any escape from this anathema?. Wish there were a button which could be pushed and presto everything is hunky-dory. What we need is a systemic change- a French Revolution of sorts, and as anyone worth his/her salt would say, a systemic change in not brought by an individual, but by collective effort. India has many "Obamas", but greedy, unscrupulous and selfish individuals overshadow them. The nation builders are few whereas the parasites abound. The Indian polity is like a malignant tumor. What it needs is not a single prescription pill, but a radiation therapy. A Hero is not the order of the day. The current need is more of masses of ordinary individuals but with extraordinary sense of justice, equality, understanding and a will to excel against all odds. We have long believed in individuals like Rajiv Gandhi-who could have been an Indian Obama, only to be let down. Instead of searching for Obamas in our country we need a bottom-up exercise of such a huge scale that even the current corrupt individuals are forced to change. Until a revolution of enlightened minds occurs inefficient, inept and selfish despots will rule the country.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Cry countrymen Cry
Cry countrymen cry:
Blasts in Imphal, 13 killed, says, a report by Rediff. No major news channel worth its name covered this news. I am wondering is Imphal-where the bomb blasts occurred, the one in India or is it in some other country. Why is this pathetic indifference to our own countrymen? Is it because we just don’t care about our brethren in NE or is it because they lack the political clout or is it because the NE part of the country has been historically neglected? Why are NE Indians treated like children of lesser gods? Is it too much for them to ask for protection from insurgents, terrorist and anti-nationals? Be it insurgency in Assam or Nagaland or Manipur the reaction of the political bosses in Delhi is of utter neglect. In a non-chalant way reports attributing to slow destruction of NE parts of India is dismissed. The motto being “Ignorance is bliss”. The media as of today is more focused on “Raj Thackeray to spend night in Jail”, “Amitabh Discharged” or “Chandrayaan 10 hours and counting”. Who needs all this? One does not know whether a weekend shopping will turn nightmarish or not, thanks to anti-nationals. And here we are indulging in trivial pursuits.
We should be ashamed to say that we are human beings. We are a 10000-year-old country and still have not learnt to treat every other Indian as our own. We divide the country at every given opportunity. Goons like Raj Thackeray, Stalin, Laloo, and Ram vilas paswan are heralded as torchbearers of a new India, as being the face of urban India et al. They are elevated to the level of “management gurus”, to “messiahs of the downtrodden” and what not. Where do these torchbearers go when people are killed with impunity?
In my opinion the people of NE India are gentle souls. A trip to NE India is a heart-warming experience. Nowhere in India are the people so warm, friendly and unaffected.
And it is exactly here where anti-nationals are growing in power. Soon we will reach a state where NE India will no longer be a part of India.
Bangladeshi insurgents hoisted the Pakistani national flag in Assam, which led to widespread clashes leaving close to 50 dead, and many more maimed. What did we do? Nothing. A big nothing. We were watching “Big Boss 2” or one of those long-running soaps on the idiot box.
Who cares if someone hoists Pakistani flag or a Bangladeshi flag? We are more interested in seeing which celebrity is marrying whom, who split with whom and more retarded WTF news.
Is it what the citizenry in NE bargain for?
Can we blame any person from NE for being anti-India if he is treated like one?
Can anyone from the mainland go to NE India and ask why they do not have a nationalistic feeling?
A crumbling NE India is a Frankenstein which we have created and very soon this monster will come back to haunt us. I personally see the disintegration of NE India as the heralding of the end of a once glorious country.
Cry countrymen cry for we have let the people in NE down time and again. Our heads should bow not due to sadness but due to shame!!
Blasts in Imphal, 13 killed, says, a report by Rediff. No major news channel worth its name covered this news. I am wondering is Imphal-where the bomb blasts occurred, the one in India or is it in some other country. Why is this pathetic indifference to our own countrymen? Is it because we just don’t care about our brethren in NE or is it because they lack the political clout or is it because the NE part of the country has been historically neglected? Why are NE Indians treated like children of lesser gods? Is it too much for them to ask for protection from insurgents, terrorist and anti-nationals? Be it insurgency in Assam or Nagaland or Manipur the reaction of the political bosses in Delhi is of utter neglect. In a non-chalant way reports attributing to slow destruction of NE parts of India is dismissed. The motto being “Ignorance is bliss”. The media as of today is more focused on “Raj Thackeray to spend night in Jail”, “Amitabh Discharged” or “Chandrayaan 10 hours and counting”. Who needs all this? One does not know whether a weekend shopping will turn nightmarish or not, thanks to anti-nationals. And here we are indulging in trivial pursuits.
We should be ashamed to say that we are human beings. We are a 10000-year-old country and still have not learnt to treat every other Indian as our own. We divide the country at every given opportunity. Goons like Raj Thackeray, Stalin, Laloo, and Ram vilas paswan are heralded as torchbearers of a new India, as being the face of urban India et al. They are elevated to the level of “management gurus”, to “messiahs of the downtrodden” and what not. Where do these torchbearers go when people are killed with impunity?
In my opinion the people of NE India are gentle souls. A trip to NE India is a heart-warming experience. Nowhere in India are the people so warm, friendly and unaffected.
And it is exactly here where anti-nationals are growing in power. Soon we will reach a state where NE India will no longer be a part of India.
Bangladeshi insurgents hoisted the Pakistani national flag in Assam, which led to widespread clashes leaving close to 50 dead, and many more maimed. What did we do? Nothing. A big nothing. We were watching “Big Boss 2” or one of those long-running soaps on the idiot box.
Who cares if someone hoists Pakistani flag or a Bangladeshi flag? We are more interested in seeing which celebrity is marrying whom, who split with whom and more retarded WTF news.
Is it what the citizenry in NE bargain for?
Can we blame any person from NE for being anti-India if he is treated like one?
Can anyone from the mainland go to NE India and ask why they do not have a nationalistic feeling?
A crumbling NE India is a Frankenstein which we have created and very soon this monster will come back to haunt us. I personally see the disintegration of NE India as the heralding of the end of a once glorious country.
Cry countrymen cry for we have let the people in NE down time and again. Our heads should bow not due to sadness but due to shame!!
Monday, October 20, 2008
"Chandrayawn"
A Horror show called “India”:
Macaulay, after touring India, is said to have remarked that India was remarkably rich country and there were no thieves. Little did he know that, we have an uncanny knack of proving everyone incorrect.
At the last count 30% of the world's poor live in India. More than 70% Indians don’t have access to healthcare, sanitation and clean water. In the last 5 years there has been no major infrastructure projects to better the pathetic state of national highways. The gap between the haves and the have-nots is increasing at a huge pace. Farmers are committing suicides with every passing day, in spite of the much famed “bailout” package. We are staring at a huge resource crunch and the fiscal deficit is burgeoning. When all this is happening, ISRO, India’s main research organization is indulging in an Rs 425 Cr moon-mission. For the uninitiated, the mission is called “Chandrayaan”. But coming back to the crux of the issue, my question is: Is this all needed? (And if so: Why?)
More on the lunar mission:
The objective of the mission, as posted on ISRO website, is to try and discover traces of water on the moon. This is the second in the series of experiments and this experiment will last 2 years. All sounds good. With the risk of being repetitive, I wonder: Is this all needed?
My viewpoint:
Any activity if done with a concrete, well-thought goal yields results. The key operative here is “goal”. The goal should be achievable, should produce tangible results and the results should be visible within a reasonable timeframe. The lunar mission fails on all these counts.
Tangibility: Finding water on Moon. A short, simple, tangible goal. Either you find evidence of water or you don’t. There is no middle ground.
Let me not answer it straightaway. I would like to answer this with a couple of questions of my own .A question which has haunted me for a few weeks “Have we done anything in the last few decades, leave alone a few years, to restore our rivers, lakes and other water-bodies to ensure we have enough water for the ever growing population? ”.
The answer is a resounding “NO”.
“Have we developed the nation to such an extent that we now can think of realms outside our world?”
The answer is again a “NO”.
Since the answers are in the negative, isn’t it against common sense to get our act right here, conserve water in India (Still on Earth) first, find new water bodies and then try to find water on the moon?
I have not seen any initiative of the government to link the rivers in India, clean up the Ganges or even restore our dying lakes. The water table across the country is dropping at an alarming rate and we are nowhere in a position to prevent it let alone reverse it. Cant this 425 crores do a bit of all these instead of trying to find water on the Moon which the Americans, Soviets, Chinese have not been able to do so?
Achievable: What if we find water on the moon? Are we (Indians) ready to set up a factory out there to export water to Earth or are we in a position to setup lunar colonies?
I don’t think so and no sane person worth his/her salt thinks so too.
Reasonable timeframe: One might argue that in the next 50 years India will be developed and will set up lunar colonies. Okay. But is this not optimism bordering on idiocy? Let me explain with some hard facts.
Last week a study predicted that the entire world is staring at a recession, if not a depression. This translates to FII’s, foreign investors not putting any more money in India. What this means is, India which is dependent on other economies-due to lack of internal consumption, will have to bear the brunt of outflow of dollars. This translates to tightening of purse strings at a corporate level as well as at the personal level. The job loss figures could run into a few thousands. Added to these we are staring at a huge energy crunch, which could cripple our basic existence. And did I say Global warming?
Well-developed suburbs, let alone lunar colonies, need a huge commitment of people, money and resources. We have not built suburbs, which boast of all required amenities - which are world-class in all aspects, in the last 6 decades after independence. Will we now leapfrog to build lunar colonies? A tall order, when one comes to think of it.
Also add these facts to the ones at the start of my blog. Don’t these make one realize we are barking up the wrong tree? Should we not use this money on something more beneficial and showing tangible results in real time, than for something, which might take a few decades at the least?
Personally, the juxtaposition of an impending recession & the current economic scenario with a moon-mission is jarring.
Alternate Theories:
These theories, as proposed by a few people I know, try to explain the need for a lunar mission.
Sentimental value aka armchair patriot syndrome:
One of my friends said, “Lunar-mission will enhance our status in global community”. I said, “Humor me”. We don’t have enough food to feed all the hungry mouths, we rank a notorious 72 in the most corrupt countries list, we rank an ignominious first in defecating in public places, our human development index is worse than that of Pakistan and more people die in India due to militancy than those who die in Iraq due to the same reason. Did I miss some development index on which we have not been scaled?
All this pending and a single lunar mission will change the way world looks at us. A laughable thought indeed!
For this miracle has to happen then the lunar mission should:
Elevate the 90 million poor people in India, from BPL, to above poverty line
Ensure that majority of the Indians get 2 square meals a day, every single day
Ensure that our infrastructure is improvised to handle traffic for the next 20 years
Ensure that no Indian gets killed due to anti-national activity for years to come
Oops, I realized the list is too big to fit in here!!! The lunar mission cannot achieve even a part of what I mentioned here. Then what is all this brouhaha about? Is it a whimsical plan of some crackpot scientist to defraud the nation of a few hundred crores?
Leave you brains at home syndrome:
This is related to the syndrome mentioned above, but here the symptoms of idiotic optimism are more pronounced.
a. Soon common man in India will be traveling to and fro to moon. Lunar travel will be as commonplace as air travel
b. India will be a developed country by 2020 and this is a precursor
c. The lunar mission will enthuse Indians to work hard and be model citizens
d. Lunar mission will usher in a revolution, a la IT
I will not debate more on these. I feel these “eye-ball popping” theories do not merit a second look, let alone a response.
To summarize:
My main grouse is about the way in which money is being spent. Can’t we use Rs 425 crores on something more useful? Do we have dearth of developmental projects or have we run out of ideas? .
A simple question would answer: If the people of this country were given a Rs 425 crore bailout package what would they choose: a lunar mission with a possibility of finding water or a food-for-all/water-for-all/sanitation-for-all mission?
The writing is on the wall.
I now rest my case.
P.S:
One might argue that it is just Rs 425 crores. The expenditure is “peanuts” if we were a developed country. But sadly we are not and we are nowhere near reaching it.
I say, that the lunar experiment, can at best make some armchair patriots feel happy. Maybe happy for a few moments, until the news channels move on to a more sensational topic. Maybe an Indian victory in the 2nd test will replace this lunar mission on “Breaking News”. To conclude, I feel this experiment is a joke, and sadly the joke is on us Indians.
Macaulay, after touring India, is said to have remarked that India was remarkably rich country and there were no thieves. Little did he know that, we have an uncanny knack of proving everyone incorrect.
At the last count 30% of the world's poor live in India. More than 70% Indians don’t have access to healthcare, sanitation and clean water. In the last 5 years there has been no major infrastructure projects to better the pathetic state of national highways. The gap between the haves and the have-nots is increasing at a huge pace. Farmers are committing suicides with every passing day, in spite of the much famed “bailout” package. We are staring at a huge resource crunch and the fiscal deficit is burgeoning. When all this is happening, ISRO, India’s main research organization is indulging in an Rs 425 Cr moon-mission. For the uninitiated, the mission is called “Chandrayaan”. But coming back to the crux of the issue, my question is: Is this all needed? (And if so: Why?)
More on the lunar mission:
The objective of the mission, as posted on ISRO website, is to try and discover traces of water on the moon. This is the second in the series of experiments and this experiment will last 2 years. All sounds good. With the risk of being repetitive, I wonder: Is this all needed?
My viewpoint:
Any activity if done with a concrete, well-thought goal yields results. The key operative here is “goal”. The goal should be achievable, should produce tangible results and the results should be visible within a reasonable timeframe. The lunar mission fails on all these counts.
Tangibility: Finding water on Moon. A short, simple, tangible goal. Either you find evidence of water or you don’t. There is no middle ground.
Let me not answer it straightaway. I would like to answer this with a couple of questions of my own .A question which has haunted me for a few weeks “Have we done anything in the last few decades, leave alone a few years, to restore our rivers, lakes and other water-bodies to ensure we have enough water for the ever growing population? ”.
The answer is a resounding “NO”.
“Have we developed the nation to such an extent that we now can think of realms outside our world?”
The answer is again a “NO”.
Since the answers are in the negative, isn’t it against common sense to get our act right here, conserve water in India (Still on Earth) first, find new water bodies and then try to find water on the moon?
I have not seen any initiative of the government to link the rivers in India, clean up the Ganges or even restore our dying lakes. The water table across the country is dropping at an alarming rate and we are nowhere in a position to prevent it let alone reverse it. Cant this 425 crores do a bit of all these instead of trying to find water on the Moon which the Americans, Soviets, Chinese have not been able to do so?
Achievable: What if we find water on the moon? Are we (Indians) ready to set up a factory out there to export water to Earth or are we in a position to setup lunar colonies?
I don’t think so and no sane person worth his/her salt thinks so too.
Reasonable timeframe: One might argue that in the next 50 years India will be developed and will set up lunar colonies. Okay. But is this not optimism bordering on idiocy? Let me explain with some hard facts.
Last week a study predicted that the entire world is staring at a recession, if not a depression. This translates to FII’s, foreign investors not putting any more money in India. What this means is, India which is dependent on other economies-due to lack of internal consumption, will have to bear the brunt of outflow of dollars. This translates to tightening of purse strings at a corporate level as well as at the personal level. The job loss figures could run into a few thousands. Added to these we are staring at a huge energy crunch, which could cripple our basic existence. And did I say Global warming?
Well-developed suburbs, let alone lunar colonies, need a huge commitment of people, money and resources. We have not built suburbs, which boast of all required amenities - which are world-class in all aspects, in the last 6 decades after independence. Will we now leapfrog to build lunar colonies? A tall order, when one comes to think of it.
Also add these facts to the ones at the start of my blog. Don’t these make one realize we are barking up the wrong tree? Should we not use this money on something more beneficial and showing tangible results in real time, than for something, which might take a few decades at the least?
Personally, the juxtaposition of an impending recession & the current economic scenario with a moon-mission is jarring.
Alternate Theories:
These theories, as proposed by a few people I know, try to explain the need for a lunar mission.
Sentimental value aka armchair patriot syndrome:
One of my friends said, “Lunar-mission will enhance our status in global community”. I said, “Humor me”. We don’t have enough food to feed all the hungry mouths, we rank a notorious 72 in the most corrupt countries list, we rank an ignominious first in defecating in public places, our human development index is worse than that of Pakistan and more people die in India due to militancy than those who die in Iraq due to the same reason. Did I miss some development index on which we have not been scaled?
All this pending and a single lunar mission will change the way world looks at us. A laughable thought indeed!
For this miracle has to happen then the lunar mission should:
Elevate the 90 million poor people in India, from BPL, to above poverty line
Ensure that majority of the Indians get 2 square meals a day, every single day
Ensure that our infrastructure is improvised to handle traffic for the next 20 years
Ensure that no Indian gets killed due to anti-national activity for years to come
Oops, I realized the list is too big to fit in here!!! The lunar mission cannot achieve even a part of what I mentioned here. Then what is all this brouhaha about? Is it a whimsical plan of some crackpot scientist to defraud the nation of a few hundred crores?
Leave you brains at home syndrome:
This is related to the syndrome mentioned above, but here the symptoms of idiotic optimism are more pronounced.
a. Soon common man in India will be traveling to and fro to moon. Lunar travel will be as commonplace as air travel
b. India will be a developed country by 2020 and this is a precursor
c. The lunar mission will enthuse Indians to work hard and be model citizens
d. Lunar mission will usher in a revolution, a la IT
I will not debate more on these. I feel these “eye-ball popping” theories do not merit a second look, let alone a response.
To summarize:
My main grouse is about the way in which money is being spent. Can’t we use Rs 425 crores on something more useful? Do we have dearth of developmental projects or have we run out of ideas? .
A simple question would answer: If the people of this country were given a Rs 425 crore bailout package what would they choose: a lunar mission with a possibility of finding water or a food-for-all/water-for-all/sanitation-for-all mission?
The writing is on the wall.
I now rest my case.
P.S:
One might argue that it is just Rs 425 crores. The expenditure is “peanuts” if we were a developed country. But sadly we are not and we are nowhere near reaching it.
I say, that the lunar experiment, can at best make some armchair patriots feel happy. Maybe happy for a few moments, until the news channels move on to a more sensational topic. Maybe an Indian victory in the 2nd test will replace this lunar mission on “Breaking News”. To conclude, I feel this experiment is a joke, and sadly the joke is on us Indians.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Laws of Pseduo-secularism
An animal called “Pseudo-Secularism”:
Laloo -true to his name, exclaimed “Ban VHP, Ban RSS, Ban BD”. His friend in deed, Paswan exhorted “Provide citizenship to illegal immigrants from Bangladesh”. Little did he realize that his statement was an oxymoron. I am highly amused.
These poor guys are ranting for the last decade or so in order to have all the organizations mentioned above, banned. They are honorable men as they protect minorities in this land infested with “Hindu majority”. They are not alone in their search for their “holy grail”. Many intellectuals, activists, politicians and also hordes of unsuspecting Indians assist them. They call themselves secular and I call them sickular, as sick is the only word, which aptly describes them.
In my opinion the afore-mentioned are more dangerous than terrorists. One knows the ideology behind terrorists, the agenda and so on. But with sickulars, what is preached is not followed, what is followed is not disclosed and finally what is disclosed is an insult to the right-thinking brain. They claim not to support any particular religion but their adherence to the claim is suspect. They take utmost pleasure in majority bashing in the garb of protecting minorities. Some great man likened them to certain intellectual Jews before Hitler’s Gestapo started running amuck. And finally do they protect minorities, a cause which they espouse? That is anybody’s guess. They do not tolerate other castes, other sects in their own religion. Expecting them to tolerate other religions is akin to Osama Bin Laden personally visiting Dubya at his ranch for Thanksgiving.
If one chanced upon their “10 commandments”, my guess is here is how it would read:
Thou shalt not praise Hindus
Thou shalt always praise minorities
Thou shalt support anti-Hindu activity at any given opportunity
Thou shalt make statements form time to time to insult Hindus
Thou shalt love thy neighbors aka Pakistan, Bangladesh
Thou shalt always murder democracy and the spirit of righteousness
The other 4 have not yet been written. Then are currently being penned, even as I write. Zealots, bigots, anti-nationals are in a race to fill the void. But I am willing to wager that the next 4 commandments will not be very different than the ones already stated.
It is sad to note that of late ELM, the mainstream newspapers have jumped into this bandwagon in an enthusiastic way. The cause for this would be probably the high TRP’s, which they garner.
The sensationalism crazy media is an ideal platform to host these sickular individuals. We are to hear from Madame Azmi or her hubby on how difficult it is for a Muslim to get a home, or how Hindus are narrow minded and so on. Most of this should ideally be dismissed as a madman’s/madwoman’s’ rant. But sadly such views are heard across the globe. So we are now forced to hear from a “Hitler youth” enlisted pope, on the demerits of Hindu activism. Irony cannot get more ironical. The joke is Hindu activism is not a pro-active phenomenon but “vigilante” justice-something which I have always maintained. Sadly, the joke is on us.
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa used to narrate a story about a holy man and a Snake. We, Hindus need to be reminded of that story. History has been unkind to us, thanks to a multitude of reasons. But the time has come when we have to act, to save ourselves and save our country from a moral implosion. I sincerely hope that a day will come when sickulars are treated like relics of a bygone era instead of being worshipped as messiahs of the downtrodden.
Laloo -true to his name, exclaimed “Ban VHP, Ban RSS, Ban BD”. His friend in deed, Paswan exhorted “Provide citizenship to illegal immigrants from Bangladesh”. Little did he realize that his statement was an oxymoron. I am highly amused.
These poor guys are ranting for the last decade or so in order to have all the organizations mentioned above, banned. They are honorable men as they protect minorities in this land infested with “Hindu majority”. They are not alone in their search for their “holy grail”. Many intellectuals, activists, politicians and also hordes of unsuspecting Indians assist them. They call themselves secular and I call them sickular, as sick is the only word, which aptly describes them.
In my opinion the afore-mentioned are more dangerous than terrorists. One knows the ideology behind terrorists, the agenda and so on. But with sickulars, what is preached is not followed, what is followed is not disclosed and finally what is disclosed is an insult to the right-thinking brain. They claim not to support any particular religion but their adherence to the claim is suspect. They take utmost pleasure in majority bashing in the garb of protecting minorities. Some great man likened them to certain intellectual Jews before Hitler’s Gestapo started running amuck. And finally do they protect minorities, a cause which they espouse? That is anybody’s guess. They do not tolerate other castes, other sects in their own religion. Expecting them to tolerate other religions is akin to Osama Bin Laden personally visiting Dubya at his ranch for Thanksgiving.
If one chanced upon their “10 commandments”, my guess is here is how it would read:
Thou shalt not praise Hindus
Thou shalt always praise minorities
Thou shalt support anti-Hindu activity at any given opportunity
Thou shalt make statements form time to time to insult Hindus
Thou shalt love thy neighbors aka Pakistan, Bangladesh
Thou shalt always murder democracy and the spirit of righteousness
The other 4 have not yet been written. Then are currently being penned, even as I write. Zealots, bigots, anti-nationals are in a race to fill the void. But I am willing to wager that the next 4 commandments will not be very different than the ones already stated.
It is sad to note that of late ELM, the mainstream newspapers have jumped into this bandwagon in an enthusiastic way. The cause for this would be probably the high TRP’s, which they garner.
The sensationalism crazy media is an ideal platform to host these sickular individuals. We are to hear from Madame Azmi or her hubby on how difficult it is for a Muslim to get a home, or how Hindus are narrow minded and so on. Most of this should ideally be dismissed as a madman’s/madwoman’s’ rant. But sadly such views are heard across the globe. So we are now forced to hear from a “Hitler youth” enlisted pope, on the demerits of Hindu activism. Irony cannot get more ironical. The joke is Hindu activism is not a pro-active phenomenon but “vigilante” justice-something which I have always maintained. Sadly, the joke is on us.
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa used to narrate a story about a holy man and a Snake. We, Hindus need to be reminded of that story. History has been unkind to us, thanks to a multitude of reasons. But the time has come when we have to act, to save ourselves and save our country from a moral implosion. I sincerely hope that a day will come when sickulars are treated like relics of a bygone era instead of being worshipped as messiahs of the downtrodden.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Arise, Awake and...
Note: A recent spate of articles in the online editions of ELM prompted me to write this note.
It is sad to note that these days all and the sundry are questioning Hindus in their motherland. Worst of all these entities is Vatican, whose credentials on secularism are highly questionable (Read ‘Holy Blood, Holy Grail”, “ Templar Revelation”). The questions range from whether Hindus are intolerant to whether Hindu organizations like BD, VHP should be banned. Some even go further and compare BD with SIMI.
Let us consider a few facts: SIMI is an organization, which is anti-Indian in nature. Their purpose is destruction of India through a methodical process. They owe their allegiance to militant groups outside India and also receive enormous amount of funds for furthering their cause i.e. destruction of India. Furthermore they dream of India being subjugated to the caliphate aka an “Islamic” India through Jihad. It is to this effect that we have seen a spate of terrorist attacks on Indian soil.
On the other hand BD is a "vigilante" organization. It is an organization which aims to correct the injustice meted out to Hindus at the hands of anti-Indian (or anti-Hindu) elements. When the government, which is supposed to bring equality among people, decides to divide the nation for its political benefits, you can expect many more organizations like BD. People who condemn BD need to understand that the current government of India is leaving no stone unturned to make a mockery out of Hindus at every given opportunity. Be it the land transfer issue in Jammu, be it Ram setu controversy, be it the current crisis in Assam or be it in Orissa, be it the Gujarat carnage or destruction of temples in Goa, the government at the centre has ensured that the acts of hate against Hindus go unnoticed, but acts of vengeance get blown out of proportion. Why is it that every one asks for tolerance on the part of Hindus? Is it that Hindus are children of lesser gods or is it that the only purpose Hindus serve is to be killed?
If one cares to keep a tab on current affairs almost all the Islamic countries are carrying out unspeakable acts on minorities in their respective soil. Have we seen any tolerance from the Muslim majority in Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh or the Middle East? They are systematically destroying any un-Islamic culture in their midst. I have not seen articles, which condemn their acts. But when the Hindus in their own country raise their voice all these tin pot Muslim ruled states make hue and cry about their brethren in India, their ill-treatment and so on.
On another note, the Vatican is pumping more money into Asia for the “enlightenment” -an euphemistic term for soul harvesting, of Asians. When the Pope was in Asia in 2005, he openly exclaimed that “Jesus” alone could save Asia. This amounted to nothing short of encouraging conversions, act of buying “Faith” in return for goodies. But no one dared to raise a finger in protest!!!
Cut to the current day scenario. The ELM in India has indulged in partisan reporting at best. This is a complement. My actual description of the likes of ibnlive, rediff etc are not printable. After the attack on the Hindu leader in Orissa and his subsequent death nothing much was reported. It was a resounding silence. But when Hindus decided to take matters into their own hands, thanks to the pseudo-secular government and the so-called intellectuals, all hell broke loose. It was as though Hindus were committing genocide in Orissa. Even the government, whose home minister spends more time at the tailor’s than at his office, went on overdrive. All the atrocities against Hindus in J&K, Kerala, Karnataka, TN, AP, Gujarat and Orissa were forgotten. Sound bytes were devoted to equating Islamic terrorism with Hindu terrorism. The archbishop, the imams, secular (??) politicians were interviewed and as on cue they were all displeased with the affairs. None of them bothered to delve into the root causes - of course to further their own agenda.
I did not have high expectations from the earlier mentioned motley crew. But what I did not expect to see was lack of any criticism from the archbishop about forced conversions in Orissa. Instead provocative acts against Hindus were brushed under the carpet as a minor incident. . The Cart was tied in front of the Horse in trying to explain how Hindus have become intolerantJ
It is so shameful to note that even after 6 decades of independence we are more interested in anti-national selfish interests, the same ones that led to our downfall repeatedly at the hands of invaders. Nothing has been learnt from mistakes of the past. If this continues soon a day will come when we will back as slaves, albeit to a new order. And this time round we will not have a Mahatma to come to our aid. As Swami Vivekananda had said a few decades back, it is high time we Hindus woke up, got united and made the country a nation worth living for and worth dying for.
It is sad to note that these days all and the sundry are questioning Hindus in their motherland. Worst of all these entities is Vatican, whose credentials on secularism are highly questionable (Read ‘Holy Blood, Holy Grail”, “ Templar Revelation”). The questions range from whether Hindus are intolerant to whether Hindu organizations like BD, VHP should be banned. Some even go further and compare BD with SIMI.
Let us consider a few facts: SIMI is an organization, which is anti-Indian in nature. Their purpose is destruction of India through a methodical process. They owe their allegiance to militant groups outside India and also receive enormous amount of funds for furthering their cause i.e. destruction of India. Furthermore they dream of India being subjugated to the caliphate aka an “Islamic” India through Jihad. It is to this effect that we have seen a spate of terrorist attacks on Indian soil.
On the other hand BD is a "vigilante" organization. It is an organization which aims to correct the injustice meted out to Hindus at the hands of anti-Indian (or anti-Hindu) elements. When the government, which is supposed to bring equality among people, decides to divide the nation for its political benefits, you can expect many more organizations like BD. People who condemn BD need to understand that the current government of India is leaving no stone unturned to make a mockery out of Hindus at every given opportunity. Be it the land transfer issue in Jammu, be it Ram setu controversy, be it the current crisis in Assam or be it in Orissa, be it the Gujarat carnage or destruction of temples in Goa, the government at the centre has ensured that the acts of hate against Hindus go unnoticed, but acts of vengeance get blown out of proportion. Why is it that every one asks for tolerance on the part of Hindus? Is it that Hindus are children of lesser gods or is it that the only purpose Hindus serve is to be killed?
If one cares to keep a tab on current affairs almost all the Islamic countries are carrying out unspeakable acts on minorities in their respective soil. Have we seen any tolerance from the Muslim majority in Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh or the Middle East? They are systematically destroying any un-Islamic culture in their midst. I have not seen articles, which condemn their acts. But when the Hindus in their own country raise their voice all these tin pot Muslim ruled states make hue and cry about their brethren in India, their ill-treatment and so on.
On another note, the Vatican is pumping more money into Asia for the “enlightenment” -an euphemistic term for soul harvesting, of Asians. When the Pope was in Asia in 2005, he openly exclaimed that “Jesus” alone could save Asia. This amounted to nothing short of encouraging conversions, act of buying “Faith” in return for goodies. But no one dared to raise a finger in protest!!!
Cut to the current day scenario. The ELM in India has indulged in partisan reporting at best. This is a complement. My actual description of the likes of ibnlive, rediff etc are not printable. After the attack on the Hindu leader in Orissa and his subsequent death nothing much was reported. It was a resounding silence. But when Hindus decided to take matters into their own hands, thanks to the pseudo-secular government and the so-called intellectuals, all hell broke loose. It was as though Hindus were committing genocide in Orissa. Even the government, whose home minister spends more time at the tailor’s than at his office, went on overdrive. All the atrocities against Hindus in J&K, Kerala, Karnataka, TN, AP, Gujarat and Orissa were forgotten. Sound bytes were devoted to equating Islamic terrorism with Hindu terrorism. The archbishop, the imams, secular (??) politicians were interviewed and as on cue they were all displeased with the affairs. None of them bothered to delve into the root causes - of course to further their own agenda.
I did not have high expectations from the earlier mentioned motley crew. But what I did not expect to see was lack of any criticism from the archbishop about forced conversions in Orissa. Instead provocative acts against Hindus were brushed under the carpet as a minor incident. . The Cart was tied in front of the Horse in trying to explain how Hindus have become intolerantJ
It is so shameful to note that even after 6 decades of independence we are more interested in anti-national selfish interests, the same ones that led to our downfall repeatedly at the hands of invaders. Nothing has been learnt from mistakes of the past. If this continues soon a day will come when we will back as slaves, albeit to a new order. And this time round we will not have a Mahatma to come to our aid. As Swami Vivekananda had said a few decades back, it is high time we Hindus woke up, got united and made the country a nation worth living for and worth dying for.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Oct 2nd 2008 in my Life
Another temple, another stampede and ~ 0.000002% of the population is dead. Blame game started and ended. Jaswant singh made a "honorable" statement of taking the blame as he is the chief trustee.The opposition made some noise ,as much as needed, with elections round the corner. Media covered it until a much juicier tragedy came along. Then all the brouhaha ended just as fast as it had started. Everyone concerned has bigger fish to fry like n-deal, why "terrorism" might not be due to Muslims at all in India and so on.Life goes on. No lessons learnt. The same exercise will happen ad nauseum.
Switch to Delhi.This time a journalist was shot through the head.One more added to the count of unsolved crimes in the NCR region. Once again as on cue Media covered it with all "masala", everyone made comments on how a young life was lost and so on. But the CM of Delhi, Madam Dikshit, took the cake and icing too for her comments. She laid the responsibility fair and square on the dead girl. She said and I quote "One should not be adventurous,blah blah blah. She was travelling in the early hours of the morning, so I think we need to take greater care. She was driving all by herself at 3 o clock in the morning in a city which people believe is not very safe for women after dark". Adding insult to injury she added an advice, "Delhi is not a very safe city". I say "Thanks but no thanks".
Going by the comments mentioned above, we are now expected to stay to the confines of our houses/offices because anti-social elements need their own space. I am thinking days are not far wherein someone who is the victim of an anti-social activity might be sued, chargesheeted because the "so called" responsible people, did not act as their responsibility dictates them to.
These are 2 glaring examples of what ails India. The lack of accountablity and responsibility.I am at a loss as to whether I need to approve of the above mentioned actions or to pay lip service(as most do) and get on with my life.
Reams can be written on how things are mis-managed in India. We survive somehow and it is a point to ponder as to how we even exist. Irresponsibility thrives at all levels in this country. People from the lowest strata of the society to the highest strata are in a stiff competition in being irresponsible. Starting from the common man to civic authorities to the rulers in North block, no one wants a share in the things which are needed to make the above 2 incidents a irregular occurence and not a daily affair.
I personally feel people in the lower strata can be excused for "anything goes" due to the multitude of problems they face for their survival.My ire is against the people who are in authority, who are in the know of things and who have various tools to get things done.But alas they do NOT care, as they know that their positions are not governed by performance.
In my opinion, as long as I,me,myself,my family come first and not my nation, we will be like this only. A great nation is not created in a jiffy. It is made by the masses doing the right thing at the right time and taking pride in things they do for thier country. As long as the attitude "I am safe, who cares" exists we will have tragedies due to terrorism, anti-social elements and what not. And as long as we do NOT hold authorities responsible for what they DON'T DO the nation will suffer. I see that these feelings are not mine alone. The current generation is seething with the injustice in this country. I hope that this generation and the ones to come will take a hint of where their fore-fathers screwed up royally and make this country a better place to be in.
A sad note to write on the Mahatma's birthday, but I am sure his opinions would have been the same, if he were there.
TATA Nano- My 2 Cents
Nano has cocupied the centrestage in the last few weeks for all the wrong reasons. A pet project of Ratan Tata -which made the entire world sit up and take notice, being stalled thanks to a maverick politican makes a good joke.
It is a sad state of politics in this country that businesses are held to ransom by all and the sundry. What started as a demonstration against TATA having excess land snowballed into TATAs exiting from Singur, WB.Last heard, TATAs are scouting for land in Karnataka and another southern state, AP.
More about this in another blog.
Personally speaking, I too am not happy with the Nano. (No offence to Mr Tata. My ire rests solely on the khadi brigade.)Before being branded a lunatic let me explain. Reasons for that are simple:
TAKE 1. I live in Bangalore, a city known not only for size zero roads(as BANGALORE MIRROR ad states), but also for drivers with size zero brains. They are adept at converting a neat 2 lane road to one with 4 lanes. I am also told that the driving habits of fellow drivers in other cities are not much different.
TAKE 2. Of late there has been a shift in the dowry taking habits of male Indians of certain communities. Dowry which was being given in the form of vehicles, jewellery etc is now being given in the form of "parking slots". More fuel is spent on finding a parking space than reaching the destination
TAKE 3. The car looks good. No doubt. But it is truly a tin pot car. We Indians never cared for personal safety while driving. This car is a boon to such thought process. I suspect insurance companies might not insure neither the car nor the occupants.
TAKE 4. This point is not in opposition to the Nano per-se but more towards the strategy around the target group. I suspect the Nano aims to cater to a segment of people which uses a motorcycle as of now, but wants to own a car. I dont think a person who owns an A-list car would say "Hey the Nano looks cool.Let me buy one". Sorry does not look possible. If it caters to the motorcycle owners, what about the mileage. Even the gas guzzlers among 2 wheelers, notch up 30-40 kmpl. The nano falls short by say 10kmpl or even more. This is very healthy for a car but still not a two thumbs-up for switching. Add to this rising fuel cost, we have sundries like maintenance ,cost of spares which might be more than one can afford.And now did someone talk about using it in villages? Stop kidding me.
TAKE 5. In developed countries, infrastructure was the pre-cursor to having a large scale personalized transport aka the Nano. Americans on an average own 3 cars per household today. They did not own so many during 1950's. Thanks to Sloan and his GM centric policies cars are a necessary evil in the USA. But still the infrastructure exists to handle the same. It is also being constantly upgraded to meet the demand for cars. Do we have that capaibility in infrastructure? Sadly the answer is a resounding NO. Our existing infrastructure is bursting at its seams. At this juncture we could do without a few more cars .
The need of the hour is to have a mass rapid transport system in all of the metros and not a nano. There was a wonderful article written in Forbes which pointed out why the Nano might not be a good idea at all. I suggest everyone to read through it as the author, speaks at length with very valid reasons.
To conclude I say that we are putting the cart before the Horse. In a few years to come maybe I will start from home, reach office in the afternoon and start back to reach home before evening. Who knows IT folks in Bangalore might be asked to WFH always and this might prompt them to build a temple for "Nano Maa" :))
It is a sad state of politics in this country that businesses are held to ransom by all and the sundry. What started as a demonstration against TATA having excess land snowballed into TATAs exiting from Singur, WB.Last heard, TATAs are scouting for land in Karnataka and another southern state, AP.
More about this in another blog.
Personally speaking, I too am not happy with the Nano. (No offence to Mr Tata. My ire rests solely on the khadi brigade.)Before being branded a lunatic let me explain. Reasons for that are simple:
TAKE 1. I live in Bangalore, a city known not only for size zero roads(as BANGALORE MIRROR ad states), but also for drivers with size zero brains. They are adept at converting a neat 2 lane road to one with 4 lanes. I am also told that the driving habits of fellow drivers in other cities are not much different.
TAKE 2. Of late there has been a shift in the dowry taking habits of male Indians of certain communities. Dowry which was being given in the form of vehicles, jewellery etc is now being given in the form of "parking slots". More fuel is spent on finding a parking space than reaching the destination
TAKE 3. The car looks good. No doubt. But it is truly a tin pot car. We Indians never cared for personal safety while driving. This car is a boon to such thought process. I suspect insurance companies might not insure neither the car nor the occupants.
TAKE 4. This point is not in opposition to the Nano per-se but more towards the strategy around the target group. I suspect the Nano aims to cater to a segment of people which uses a motorcycle as of now, but wants to own a car. I dont think a person who owns an A-list car would say "Hey the Nano looks cool.Let me buy one". Sorry does not look possible. If it caters to the motorcycle owners, what about the mileage. Even the gas guzzlers among 2 wheelers, notch up 30-40 kmpl. The nano falls short by say 10kmpl or even more. This is very healthy for a car but still not a two thumbs-up for switching. Add to this rising fuel cost, we have sundries like maintenance ,cost of spares which might be more than one can afford.And now did someone talk about using it in villages? Stop kidding me.
TAKE 5. In developed countries, infrastructure was the pre-cursor to having a large scale personalized transport aka the Nano. Americans on an average own 3 cars per household today. They did not own so many during 1950's. Thanks to Sloan and his GM centric policies cars are a necessary evil in the USA. But still the infrastructure exists to handle the same. It is also being constantly upgraded to meet the demand for cars. Do we have that capaibility in infrastructure? Sadly the answer is a resounding NO. Our existing infrastructure is bursting at its seams. At this juncture we could do without a few more cars .
The need of the hour is to have a mass rapid transport system in all of the metros and not a nano. There was a wonderful article written in Forbes which pointed out why the Nano might not be a good idea at all. I suggest everyone to read through it as the author, speaks at length with very valid reasons.
To conclude I say that we are putting the cart before the Horse. In a few years to come maybe I will start from home, reach office in the afternoon and start back to reach home before evening. Who knows IT folks in Bangalore might be asked to WFH always and this might prompt them to build a temple for "Nano Maa" :))
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