"Let's stop beating around Bush"

Here is a great article about a good reason why what happened in India last week, happened. I'll copy paste the entire piece in entirety.
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In 2004, top-20 contributors to Bush's election campaign included Citigroup, Bank of America, Microsoft, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. In 2005, Citigroup India collected $38 million in fees from Indian companies and is now India's second largest investment banking entity (with 25 offices and branches across 18 Indian cities). Bank of America has Continuum Solutions Pvt. Ltd., its wholly owned subsidiary based in Hyderabad, which processes the Bank's back-office operations (Bank of America has moved hundreds of jobs from the UK to Hyderabad).

Microsoft has just one software development centre outside the US and that is in Hyderabad. Microsoft India has presence in Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai and Gurgoan. In 2002, Microsoft committed $400 million for India. In 2005, $1.7 billion was committed.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has offices in Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bhubaneshwar and Pune. DSP Merrill Lynch Limited is now India's largest investment banking entity with offices in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore. Morgan Stanley runs India Magnum Fund and India Investment Fund.

Besides the top campaign contributors, Corporate America sees India as a strategic partner. Pepsi, Ford, IBM, Kodak, Coca Cola, Microsoft, Motorola, Heinz, Monsanto, Warner Bros, Federal Express, Bankers Trust, Parke Davis, Intel, JP Morgan, Kellogg, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, American Int'l Group, Exxon-Mobil, Delta, Boston Consulting, Oracle, Unocal, Xerox, Lockheed, Raytheon, Rockwell, Honeywell, Adobe, AES, Alcoa, American Express, Northrop, McKinsey, Amway, Polaroid, Caterpillar, Dell, Sun, Texas Instruments, NCR, Hewlett Packard, Lucent, Novell, Ingersoll-Rand, American Data, MetLife, Cognizant, Caltex, Tenneco, Covansys and Diebold already have offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai.

US corporate giants are now dependent on Tata Consultancy, Infosys Technologies, Wipro, Satyam Computer Services, HCL Technologies, Patni Computer Systems, Silverline Technologies, Mahindra, Pentasoft, Mascot, Mascom, Mastek, Polaris, L&T and Hexaware (all Indian software giants). Furthermore, US exports to India were up over 30 per cent last year, making India one of America's fastest growing major export markets.

In Washington, the India Caucus has become a lobby to be reckoned with. Out of a total of 435 representatives elected to the 109th Congress around 120 are official members of the India Caucus (the Congressional Caucus on Pakistan claims to have 55 members of which at least 12 are also members of the India Caucus).

From a geo-strategic standpoint, the Pentagon has already moved China from a 'friendly competitor' to a 'strategic adversary'. And, the Pentagon needs India to counterbalance China; a democratic India which could become an economic as well as a military counterweight to China. An India that will also buy billions of dollars of American weapons systems. Deep down, Indian elite also craves to stand up to China and that India cannot do without American help. In effect, Indo-US relationship is economic, political and strategic.

Then there is the 'Great Game in Central Asia' where Russia and China both long for ending America's 'monopoly in world affairs'. The Russia-China axis is propagating the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a challenge to America's central Asian strategy. The Moscow-Beijing nexus has brought Iran and Uzbekistan under its tent. America is actively courting India (is it courting or is a wedding in progress?) after having brought Georgia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan under her tent. Where does Pakistan stand in this 'Great Game'?

Islamabad is a mere 425 miles from New Delhi but Pak-US relationship is neither economic nor political. In Islamabad, Bush's top-5 agenda items were terrorism, terrorism, cross-border terrorism, non-proliferation and democracy. America sees Islamabad's misnamed 'Constitution Avenue' sitting on top of several fault lines; a civil-military fault line, a fundamental-moderate fault line and a whole host of ethnic fault lines (all besides the tectonic one). For Bush, Islamabad is all about challenges.

America looks at India and sees economic buoyancy-cum-political stability. America looks at Pakistan and finds neither. America looks at India and sees opportunities. America looks at Pakistan and sees nothing but challenges.

Should I be mad at Bush because Bush does not treat us as India's equal?
--

Oh! the questions I have

Oh Condi, My Condi,
Thou art beautiful – why art thou not mine,
Even if thou art not mine, that doesn’t mean I can’t have an eyeful.
Like India’s presidential palaces, thou stand tall, and graceful.
Like India’s multitude, thou art colorful and smart.

Oh Condi, My Condi,
Where did thou get that dress?
Did thou have it when we leave our great country?
Or did thou ask Singh to have one sewn for thou.
Why doesn’t the lady next to me wear anything like that – ever?

Oh Condi, My Condi,
The questions I have, can anyone answer?
Oh Condi, My Condi,
Why art thou not mine? 

What a Shame

What a site it was – Communists and Muslims holding rallies and mass protests – complete with Osama posters and claims that Osama is our leader – and more dear to us than our parents. Who says India does not have al-qaeda. Seems like a claim 5 years ago that said India does not have people with HIV or AIDS.

What were they demonstrating for? Agreed – that the US (and its leaders) have done a plethora of bad stuff around the world – and in their own country as well. So – what should India say – thank you all – we don’t need any power to light our homes and roads and factories? Lord Palmerston, the famous 19th century British Foreign Minister once said, nations have no permanent friends or allies (or permanent enemies). They only have permanent interests.

That is the problem in India. All kinds of people live together. Every kind vying for complete control over the other kinds. No kind wants to give any ground to the other kind. People of 10 different religions, communists, socialists, capitalists, rich, poor eat in the same thaali, each trying to get a larger piece of the chapati, and while one is engaged in breaking of a larger chunk of the bread – the other tries to gobble all the Daal. Then there are also people who are trying to drill a hole in the thaali as well. In the end – some go to sleep with their stomachs bursting – while the others sleep hungry.

Excuse me for this poor analogy – but this is what India is.

But maybe – this is what a bottom up, free society is like. Had Bush been in China – all the protestors would have been locked up 100 days before his visit – and never freed again.

India V China

Every where (most recently, Washington Post, Newsweek and Times Online) you read and listen, people are comparing India and China and the fact that India is a democracy while China is not. Whether the Indian democratic society that is bound by leftist leaders and by a need of having to please a coalition will be able to compete with a more flexible, focused Chinese autocracy that is not hesitant in wiping out everything that comes in its way. Which model do you think would you choose? Which is a better model to have for the long term?

May God bless India and Pakistan, and may God continue to bless the United States

Thank God for President Bush. He said these important words today. (Read the last line from http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/22/international/asia/22cnd-prexy.html )

He requested God to bless India and Pakistan today while requesting Him to continue to bless the United States. He wouldn’t have lost some blessings for the United States if he had simply said “May God continue to bless the United States, India and Pakistan”. But that would have meant that God is already blessing India and Pakistan and hence no need for a special recommendation from the only person on this planet closest to God (as we all know God speaks to him directly and takes important advice from him every now and then). Also – we, the commoners, wouldn’t have a clue as to how much blessings HE has – so maybe He has to be conservative in his blessings.

And so as the president makes a special request on our behalf, all Indians and Pakistanis should bow down and say thank you Mr. President, for you remembered us in your prayers today. May God ALWAYS bless you, continue to bless the United States and bless India and Pakistan every now and then.

Our Farmer's Market.

Every Saturdays, apart from the regular habits of getting up late, a relaxed tea in bed and the likes, we have developed a love for our local farmer’s market which is not far from where we live. We make sure we have some cash in out pockets and we head to the large shed where the local farmers display and sell their produce. From a distance of more than a hundred meters, we could make out the hustle bustle inside the place.

After I parked the car this past Saturday, my wife mentioned a strange feeling that she gets – something that I agreed I have too – that of a strange nervousness and a strange excitement. In that large open building (I’ll take my camera the next time we go there) we interact with at least 2 to 3 dozen people, sharing our vegies and fruits, asking for change, asking for bags etc. Its an activity that takes some courage and getting used to if you haven’t done it before.

We get a lot of fresh vegies and at a very nominal price but the best thing of all is the sight of so many people at one place.

Valentine's Day!

So what exactly is this Valentine’s Day? Restaurants, Greeting Cards companies (think Hallmark), flower companies (think FTD) make a killing on this day – I read somewhere that it’s the 2^nd busiest day for the restaurants (Mother’s Day taking the top spot here). I guess it makes sense to assign days when you think about a certain member of your family. Like a program tells a mechanical robot when to blink, a set program on the calendar tells a materialistic and overly indulged society to stop and take some time out for their loved ones. So we have Mother’s Day, Father’s Day & Valentine’s Day. But wait - what about the poor brothers and sisters? Lets not even think about the grandparents, uncles and aunts.

Of course, being a materialistic society, it would have been blasphemous to leave the money factor out from the equation.

Actually, we discovered it’s a great day to do your groceries and do any other mundane tasks. The stores were practically empty and cashiers cheerful!

What did we do? We got a bottle of red and celebrated at home. In the day, we had a great laugh exchanging emails (me and my brother) about what each of us would write to our wives if we were to write a Valentine’s Day email .

Bob Cesca: EXCLUSIVE: First Photo of Cheney Shooting Victim - Yahoo! News

Here is the latest on the Cheney Shooting incident.
I somehow knew that there is something more than what is apparent in this whole incident.

Bob Cesca: EXCLUSIVE: First Photo of Cheney Shooting Victim - Yahoo! News

Today's Links:

As if enough hasn’t already been said about the cartoons of the Prophet – so I am not going to say much.

For the inquisitive – who have looked on Google and failed – the cartoons can be viewed here:

http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/698

The Philly Enquirer published one of the cartoons – and gave an explanation here:

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/13805804.htm

I also found this article of interest.

http://livecurrent.latimes.com/livecurrent/2006/02/kill_the_cartoo.html

Watch Inzamam obstructing the field

Here’s Inzi obstructing the field in the last One Day International against India (Feb 5^th 2006 in Pakistan). Somebody please tell him the rules first – Cricket is not just a game where a bunch of boys put bat on ball and run.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7291827629213340346&q=inzamam

This has got to be it!

This has got to be the funniest spam I received in a loooooong time:

“Former President Bill Klinton uses Voagra!”

What measures people take to get around my spam filters!

And sometimes they succeed – and I don’t really mind. Keep trying ...

The Australian: India pushes its own barrow [February 09, 2006]

An intersting comparison of an 'open' and a 'closed' society. Indeed, we don't hear much of what's going on inside China. Most of the time it's all positive news coming out - which is hardly realistic. For an investor, this paints a false picture as there is very less to properly judge the advantages and the disadvantages of investing in that country.

""Contradictions within the people," a Maoist euphemism covering anything from small, peace protests to riots involving thousands, are admitted to have totalled 87,000 last year, up from an already remarkable 74,000 in 2004. Beyond efforts to stop the news travelling by tightening internet censorship and clamping down on the more outspoken publications, the leadership cannot work out how to contain them. "

I did not hear about even 1 protest!

The Australian: India pushes its own barrow [February 09, 2006]

Two new galleries at Museum soon : HindustanTimes.com

Allahabad has a museum - and its in good hands it seems!
Two new galleries at Museum soon : HindustanTimes.com

Casting of an Indian Soap

The entire casting of Kyon Ki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. Complete with the lead actors and extras. Taken from a gathering at 5, Ponappa Road. 

Mussoorie

Shruti and I in Mussoorie. This was taken on the 24th of November '05. We took the ropeway to Gunhill from near Picture Palace (on the Mall). The beauty of the mountains is visible in this photo. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the 'Queen of Hills'. Unorganised, anaesthetic and unplanned construction and development, commercialization and over-population has made mussoorie simply unpalatable. 

Interesting Blog..

Ever seen a Chinese girl wandering in the by-lanes of Varanasi – or any city of India for that matter – well – I have seen many in Allahabad. Here’s a blog from one such courageous girl who ventured to India and then took the land route back to China – through Pakistan! http://www.leylop.com/2005/05/meeting-tibetans-in-india.html

There are a few interesting jottings on this site – along with some wonderful pictures. Also read the one describing her tête-à-tête with the dude in Varanasi.

And how did I chance on her site? Looking up ‘democracy’ on http://www.google.cn/ !

Churmura!

For those who've had it know what it is. Allahabad's famous churmura corner and the famous churmura wala (no - those are not his bikes). Civil Lines, Allahabad. 

St. Joseph's College, Allahabad

The principal's office and the quadrangle. Do you also notice the TANK! Who put the tank there? 

St. Joseph's College, Allahabad

The swimming pool (I still wonder why I never learnt how to swim!), the gymnasium (in front of the clock tower of our chapel) and the junior section. 

St. Joseph's College Allahabad

I visited my school on my visit to Allahabad this December. On the left is the main building of the senior section. The right is the principal’s office and the quadrangle where we used to gather for our morning assembly and prayers. 

India V Pakistan

To those who don’t know – India is in Pakistan playing 3 tests and some one day games later. The first 2 tests are over and the scoreboard reads 0-0. Apparently the pitches were prepared so that all the games are drawn and there is no way Pakistan loses any games - for obvious reasons. I bet the coin used is also rigged (Pakistan won both the tosses).

Anyway – I came across this blog (http://indiauncut.blogspot.com/ ) from Amit Varma. He is there covering the series for Gaurdian, NDTV and BBC. He has some pretty nice stuff.

Back again!

Sorry guys,

Been out for a long time. (you know its kind of weird – for all I know there are, in all of 6 billion souls on this planet, 2 people who read this blog. Shruti is one and the other is the random person who chance upon this site by no fault of his – so to apologize for not writing is funny).

Actually – I was in India for the holidays and attend a wedding – but I have been here a long time ago now and I should have written.

Visited my hometown and had the time of my life. Must say – Allahabad is not the same it was. Many more cars, lot more cell phones, crowded streets, more unplanned construction, stray dogs and cows and plenty of dust. The weather was mild and there was enough sun.

Throughout my stay there was one day when it rained. The dust settled down a bit on that day – but the streets became clogged. I wish it rained once every week – for about half an hour or about half an inch. It will help have a fresher look to the plants and trees and the surroundings in general – but its just that – a wish. But its not like it doesn’t happen anywhere in the world – entire Europe gets rain like that – the US gets rain that is evenly divided throughout the year.

Sometimes I think that to make smaller Indian cities better places to live, you should start from the very basic things – like proper drainage.

Anyways – enough of wishful thinking – so my trip to India began from where it begins every time! Indira Gandhi International Airport at New Delhi. The continental airlines flight takes you directly to Delhi from NJ in about 13 hours. I recommend that flight to everybody. No connecting flights to worry about and no missed baggage – and best of all – you can sleep for a good 5-6 hours at a stretch without worrying about missing a meal or that ice cream. It lands at a very convenient time as well – at about 9:30PM instead of the usual time of 1AM or something like that. India is a lot closer to the USA now.

Easy..

Wouldn't you want to buy something like this? When things get hard, just press the 'Easy' button!

Here's what I mean..

Another view of the Boston Public Garden. Pictures taken on the 7th of August 2005. 

Boston Public Gardens

Home to the "Make Way for Ducklings" sculpture, the Boston Public Gardens are unique. With the highrises as a backdrop and a beutiful lake in its midst, the gardens have a delightful mix of trees and flowering seasonals. Not just a 'A must visit', but a must 'spend a lot of time there' place! 

What's going on?

First the Tsunami (South, East Asia), then the deluge in Mumbai (India), then Katrina and other hurricanes (USA), then this earthquake (Indian Subcontinent) and the mudslide and hurricane (Central America).
Did I miss any?

And we still have 80 days left in this year!

Add to it all the manmade disasters in Iraq, Bali etc..

Reminds me of a line from King Lear:

“As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods. They kill us for their sport.”

This has got to be the most disastrous year in recent memory.

Qoutes..

Here are some nice quotes I got from Neville’s blog:

Good things come to those who wait, better things come to those who try.

Dig the well before you are thirsty.

A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner.

Group Photo

Told him not to move! Group photo taken at Swamy's place. We gathered there to give a farewell to Abhijit (guy in Red and white stripes). He is going to Memphis. It was a lot of fun with him around. We will miss you Abhi. The party was a lot of fun with great music and a lot of dance! Great food too.

Online Banking..

CNN had a piece on online banking the other day. Seems like the trend is catching up with a lot of people here - and why not? It doesn’t hurt to earn 3%-4% interest on cash that’s sitting in your checking account gathering dust. No matter the amount.

2 of the specific ones that was mentioned in the article were ING Direct (3.4%) and Emigrant Direct (4%).

BTW – if any of you are interested in opening an account at ING-Direct, they will credit you account with $25 if you are referred by an existing customer. So drop me a line and I’d be glad to do the needful.

Post Rita..

This one was a breeze as compared to Katrina. Gas prices have gone up only marginally around where we live – nothing in comparison to the surge we saw post Katrina, but still way above what we paid for a gallon last year around this time of the year.

It’s amazing how nature is packing in a few serious body blows – right where it matters – almost like to wake everybody up and make everybody realize how volatile oil is and how much it matters to this country – or rather – how much the country is dependent on oil.

Another One!

So there is another one heading this way. One has to wonder if the USA is the only country that is getting hit so frequently by this deadly force of nature. Seems straight out of some movie in which all the UFOs and asteroids are headed towards the USA.

Hurricane Ophelia

Ophelia update from one who has weathered a few storms.

 

*************************************************
Ophelia has been quite a lot of fun- 3 days of no school! and then we had power outage yesterday night- all night. The kids had a camp out in Dhruv's room. Today it's beautiful and still windy. We went out for a long walk to see our neighborhood. Except for a few little trees and tree limbs on the ground there is not much damage. Now Dhruv is outside, cleaning up the mess.There are a lot of leaves to be swept and picked up! We will go join him later. Two of our backyard chairs got pushed by the wind into the pool. They are in the deep end and it would be fun taking them out. Those were the only things we forgot to put inside before the hurricane. The power was back on at five in the morning and so were my kids - as they went to sleep early yesterday and also because they knew there was no school! So that's that as far as hurricane Ophelia goes. I think it pays to give them such nice names, unlike Katrina!

Love,

Mini/ Jiji

PS. Except for schools, everything else is open, so my husband had only yesterday off. Madhur is back to work today.

*******************************************************************************

It's Ophelia's turn now!

First Katrina, now Ophelia. I don’t know how they choose these names – but they sure are getting more and more exotic. Katrina’s kiss was a killer. Ophelia’s waltz seems to be slightly easier to manage. But who knows how and where she is going to land her right foot tomorrow.

What’s next? Cecilia? Or Raveena? Margaret, Mary, Martina, or God forbid, Martha?

Merrimack River and Pawtucket falls - about a 100 meters from our apartment in Lowell, MA. Its now time for us to go. Another 2 weeks.

100 mln Internet users in India by 2007-2008

100 mln Internet users in India by 2007-2008 by ZDNet's ZDNet -- India currently has 25 mln internet users, which is expected to grow to grow to 100 mln by 2007-08, says Internet and Online Association of India.

Have a Happy Fourth.

Us on July 4, 2005.

Some Fireworks!

July 4th celebrations on the Charles River in Boston. Some of the most spectacular fireworks I have ever seen in my life. I was looking at ways to upload some video files - but to no avail.

Grand Central

On our way back. Shruti and Piyush, my cousin, host and friend, at Grand Central. NY's main railway station. It beats the daylights out of most of India's airports.
If Shruti is sitting on the floor, it means:
a) She is very tired and
b) The place is pretty neat and clean.

They could have run a movie on those screens. I doubt even that would have stopped some of those in the ever moving, ever thirsty crowd. June 25, 2005, 10:40 pm

Quite easily the busiest place on this earth. If you believe in worldly things, it doesn't get any better than this! If you want to find proof that life is what we see and feel, come to Time Square. I only dread to imagine what this place would look like on New Year's eve. June 25, 2005 10:30 PM.

TIME SQUARE!

It was no Independance Day, no thanksgiving, no Christmas nor New Year's Day - but still, Time Square was a place like no place else. Hustling, bustling, day in the middle of the night. June 25, 2005, 10:30 PM.

Columbus Circle, NYC.

New York City from inside the Time Warner Center at the Columbus Circle. On the left hand side (with all the trees) is the Central Park.

Met.

On the steps of the Met, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. I will post some of the interesting photos from inside the musuem after verifying their authenticity.. just kidding. Lets just say - soon. June 25, 2005, 1:00 PM

New York City

This time to the relatively unknown, and obscure city of New York. We wondered why nobody comes here. It looked like a perfectly decent and friendly place. I am sure people will at least know that such a place exists after reading this entry. Who said blogs are useless? Here is a link to some of the statistics that some very bored person who does not know what to do with his time has collected. http://www.nycvisit.com/content/index.cfm?pagePkey=57
This view is from inside the train at the Harlem - 125th Street Station. Noon, June 25, 2005.

Where to now?

After a quiet weekend, we were on the move again.

A quiet week

Spent a quiet week at home and work. Was down with a little flu in the beginning of the week – it could just have been the heat as I recovered as soon as the temperature dropped.

We are back in our jackets and comforters - and its much better this way!

The Statue of Three Lies.

Notice the shine on the left shoe. A good number of tourists and graduates make sure that no dust settles on the shoe as they rub it for luck.

John Harvard, Founder, 1638.

With John Harvard, the founder of Harvard College. . Just kidding. This statue is located in front of the University Hall. Even thought the inscription on it says, John Harvard, Founder, 1638, none of those statements are true - as per the information provided here. It was graduation time and we waited about 30 minutes for our chance to touch his boots. Yes - its a tradition to place your hands on his left boot while posing for the picture.

Penang!

OK - so here we are - Penang, the restaurant. If you have nothing else to see and do at Harvard Square, just go there to eat at this restaurant. The Roti Canai will not last 5 minutes on the table. I assure you. Here, Shruti is devouring some of the stir fried noodles we had as well. yummmmm..

Another view from Penang, the Malasian restaurant, of a busy intersection. Boston and its surroundings are no place to drive. There is one predominant sign everywhere 'Road Work Ahead'. I think you can see one here too.

Bright colored buildings on JFK street close to Harvard Sq. We are sitting in a restaurant that serves one of the most delicious Malaysian food. More on that later. Notice individual ACs. This part of the country does not have central ACs. I bet they start putting in some after this year.

Harvard Square

Harvard Square last weekend. Its a couple of minutes away from Harvard University, very lively and a great place to hang out.

About the weather..

They say here in New England, ‘if you don’t like the weather, wait a minute.’

We have been on a roller coaster ride here as far as the weather is concerned. We had 40 degs F when we came here first, and raining 24 x 7.

Then we had a couple of days of good dry sunny days with 60 degs. Then a couple of days with 90 degs. One of those days, the evening temperature dropped by almost 30 degs to 60!

Now we are back to 85-90 deg range. How we wish we had rain. Both of us have promised we won’t complain.

Lowell

Lowell is an old historical town west of Boston. Famous for its textile and other mills, the Merrimack river that flows through the center of the city, University of Mass at Lowell and an old and pretty big downtown.

We are in the part of town that used to be called ‘Pawtucketville’. Everything around here has a ‘Pawtucket’ in it.
Another interesting trivia is that there is no way in this world that if you throw a stone in any direction - it won't hit a Dunkin Donut store. Within a radius of ten miles, there must be about 100 Dunkin Donut stores, not to mention a ton of other Mom and Pop Donut corner shops.

When they say that America is going over-weight, they are not wrong. I can see it here.
And yes, every road has at least 3 or 4 funeral homes here. Go figure.

Boston in one picture

Bad weather, great buildings, and construction everywhere.

The Old and the New. A great amalgam that is Boston.

On the Freedom Trail!

For those who didn't know!!
The freedom trail runs through the downtown Boston through most if not all the important and historic sites from the 17th to the 20th century.

Boston Common

The heart of Boston, with the high rises in the background. We are here for a 12 week period for an internship at a company based in Chelmsford, close to Lowell, MA.

Another Toll

For entering the New York State Thruway (I-95 N). We ended up paying nearly $25 in toll throughout the trip.

Entering New York City.

Stuck for a couple of hours before the George Washington Bridge toll on I-95.
We are on our way to Boston, MA!

Why its still a long way to go

Its still a very very loooong way to go for India before we can start calling it a civilized and cultured society, where people feel proud to be called Indians 7 days a week and 365 days a year, not just when India beats Pakistan at the world cup.

Most of the times, the culprit are the very leaders that are supposed to set example for the rest of us to follow. The custodians of the law, the lawmakers themselves.

The victims are those who want to do the right thing as proven by this story: http://www.ndtv.com/morenews/showmorestory.asp?slug=Rail+official+pays+for+questioning+RJD+men&id=72413

At least we get to hear about these things. Making India slightly better than places like Zimbabwe, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

India - China - USA

An interesting dynamics is emerging on the horizon of world politics.

Here are some links that corroborate this..

Asian giants help reshape our world

China and India are emerging as future superpowers, both independently and in unison in a few cases.

By JOSEPH S. NYE

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/19Apr2005_news32.php

''Courting New Delhi: Washington and Beijing Compete for Influence''

By Adam Wolfe

http://www.pinr.com/report.php?ac=view_report&report_id=290&language_id=1

Today's links..

Vibrant India keeps a traveler on his toes

Bruce Ramsey, Seattle Times.

A journalist’s travelogue ..

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2002246356_rams20.html

For future escapades, I suggest he take a copy of the ‘Lonely Planet’ on India..

Letter From India: 100 million dialing out: That leaves 900 million

Amelia Gentleman, International Herald Tribune

India’s tele-density, the other side of the story..

http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/04/20/news/letter.html

India makes tracks for the train

The fast-growing country upgrades its rail services to
meet travel demands, even as other infrastructure
lags.
-The Christian Science Monitor

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0420/p07s01-wosc.html

got some time on you?

Then read this:

It's a Flat World, After All

By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/03/magazine/03DOMINANCE.html

Don’t forget to see the video on the right under the Multimedia heading.

Friend's blog:

BRAD, a great friend from Australia has his blog at http://superbrudd.blogspot.com

Good stuff there mate!

Today's links

How To Build A Tin Can Waveguide WiFi Antenna

Curveball the Goofball

“As the commission's co-chairman, Laurence Silberman, put it: "Our executive order did not direct us to deal with the use of intelligence by policy makers, and all of us were agreed that that was not part of our inquiry."

Huh? That's like an investigation into steroids in baseball that looks only at the drug companies, not the players who muscled up.”

-Maureen Dowd, New York Times. Link here.

Interesting photos..

http://www.snopes.com/photos/

Quote of the Day

God answers every prayer, a preacher once said.
Sometimes, the answer is no.

Quote of the Day

"The president, who couldn't be dragged outdoors to talk about the more than a hundred thousand people who died in the horrific tsunami, was willing to be dragged out of bed to sign a bill about one woman his base had fixated on."
-Maureen Dowd, New York Times, 03.24.2005, Link here

India's teledensity reaches 9%

That's 9 phones between every 100 people. Compare that with 1 phone for every 100 people 10 years ago.
Interesting.
Also notable is that of the total 97.03 million phone connections in India by February end, 51.44 million were mobiles. Thats more than 50%.

The world teledensity average is 15 phones for every 100 people.
China's teledensity is 42 while the US and western Europe is
more than 50%. Another interesting fact is that India's teledensity will more than double to 18% by the end of 2008 and 25% by 2010.

India's neighbor Pakistan has a teledensity of approximately 5%.

Some links:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1046429.cms
http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=142285
http://www.itudaily.com/new/home.asp?articleid=4090802

What's wrong with Indian Politics?

It’s not a pretty sight. Or should I say – it’s pretty shameless. What we have seen happen in Goa and Jharkhand and about to see in Bihar is not at all democracy. Even a novice to Indian politics would be able to point out what’s wrong – and who is doing the wrong –and what should be done to correct that wrong. It’s not that hard really, just a matter of doing your job. Here are the basic rules of the game.

- The governor is a non-partisan person i.e. he does not belong to a party. He is not answerable to anybody – except the President of the Republic of India.

- The governor should talk to all the leaders before making a decision. Not just the leaders who he (or his boss) wants to invite to form a government.

- He should be a man (or a woman) who should be able to do the math. If it’s a 81 seat parliament and there are 41 members who say that they are forming a coalition – and are ready to provide the proof in writing – then they become the majority.

and lastly:

- He should be able to think. He should not give 20 days to prove a simple majority. He should know that in 20 days, Bill Gates can buy India, if he wanted to.

That’s it. It’s that simple. But then you would say – we know this. I agree. It’s not that hard to not know all of this. I am writing; simply because, I just cannot sit back and watch this drama unfold. Not any longer, I mean.

We are witnessing some unusual things – and I think that things are still not totally out of control. We can address the problem and do something to correct it. To do that lets understand where the trouble is and what we should do.

Here’s my list.

• There is something inherently wrong with politics. Especially in India. Leaders make it a habit to be in power. (I have a problem with the word ‘power’ itself – but more on that later). When they are voted out, they don’t accept the decision of the masses and scramble to get back their chair. Why do they do this? Because, I think, that they are good in nothing else – and they know that as well. Barring a few, we don’t have economist, lawyers, doctors, scientists, engineers and academicians as politicians. Once they are voted out of power, they just simply cannot find a job. And that leads very many to try tooth and nails to be around people who are in power and grab something. In the United States, people are employed as advisors, professors – and some others just relax and write books about their experiences after being in power.
• Put a cap on how many times you can be minister/chief-minister/any political office. You should be able to represent your people as many times as you want, but cannot hold an office for more than 2 – maybe 3 terms. Take Buta Singh. If he cannot be given a suitable ministry – he was handed the job of being the governor of Bihar! It was just a matter of accommodating somebody somewhere.
• We should also have minimum criteria about the educational qualification of the candidates. Actually, on second thoughts, it’s very hard to implement this rule. What’s to say that you cannot have a Munna Bhai produce a certificate from IIT saying that he is a graduate. But nonetheless, we should have this rule. People should understand that a certain minimum is required to do this job.
• Remove the possibility of horse-trading. Declare your allegiance before the elections. A very important point if you want to remove opportunists from the scene. The election commissioner should have this in writing from all the parties involved. Even independent candidates. Everybody involved should understand that forming a government is not the name of the game. It’s not the end result. The end result is that you are contesting an election to be a representative of the people of that area. You are doing this because you are interested in their upliftment and the development of that area. There are people, cunning people, who have the art of joining camps that are in power and are never out of a ministerial position. Ram Bilas Paswan comes to the mind.
• Remove the possibility of ‘adding portfolios’ at the drop of a hat. This has to be the number one most important thing on the ‘to do’ list. When there is a Ministry of Mines and Minerals, what’s the need of a Ministry of Coal? Here are some other ministries that defy explanation. Food Processing Industries, Panchayati Raj, Small Scale Industries, Tribal Affairs, Water Resources, Statistics and Programme Implementation, NRI.Ministry, Urban Development, Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation. I can assure the government needs a Ministry of Efficiency and another Ministry of Making more Ministries. This is at the national level – let’s not even go to the state level. Things become really sad there. There should be 7 to 10 main ministries, with secretaries and additional secretaries dealing with other pressing issues. Want to have another ministry – both houses of parliament should vote instead of just adding another name in the long list hoping nobody notices.
• Stop the possibility of taking up a job at the state level after you are installed as a federal level minister. A minister is handed a particular job because he is capable to handle that job well. Significant recourses are invested in this effort. There should be a rule of not being able to switch jobs with the ease Shibu Soren just demonstrated.
• Put a time limit before which you should prove your majority – say 2 days after you are asked by the governor. And don’t swear in a CM before he can prove a majority. People tend to fallow a man with a marigold garland around his neck.

These are just very few, very important steps that we should take if we want the world, and more importantly, us Indians, to keep believing in the system. Stop this farce if you want a democracy. Otherwise we would rather have the Chinese way of governance.

Please add to this list. I would like to have a list that is as comprehensible as possible and then take it to the next level. I dont know what that next level might be.

Some Links..

Daily Drink Helps Keep Brain Sharp, Data Suggest

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21693-2005Jan19.html

(There is some hope – after all!!)

 

India Takes Major Role In Sri Lanka Relief Effort

Aid Is Sign of Nation's Emergence as Regional Power

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22194-2005Jan19.html

(The world sits up and notices)

 

India conjures powerful vision of 'pipeline diplomacy'

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/14c026f8-6a8a-11d9-858c-00000e2511c8.html

(India prepares for the future)

 

 

India's coming of age:

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1105917010924&call_pageid=970599119419

 

 

Tsunami Relief

Hi,

Here are some sites that have some in-depth information about the Earthquake and Tsunami aftermath and what you can do to help.

http://tsunamihelp.blogspot.com/

http://worldchanging.com/

 

This site is a reliable place to donate.

https://www.aidindia.org/aidadmin/DonateToRRF.jsp

 

Hope all of you and your loved ones are safe.