The troubled and controversial writer D.H. Lawrence who was also misinterpreted as a sexual pervert wrote this fine novel. This novel was partly autobiographical and is majorly about Paul Morel's love for his mother to such an extent that he grapples with his other youthful love affairs. This was the first insinuation of Oedipus Complex by Lawrence's own account: "as her sons grow up she selects them as lovers--first the eldest, then the second. These sons are urged into life by their reciprocal love of their mother--urged on and on. But when they come to manhood, they can't love, because their mother is the strongest power in their lives."
It seems rather absurd but it is a modern portrayal of Freud's concept of Oedipus complex. Paul's mother Mrs. Morel gradually detaches herself from the passion for his husband after repeated fights and also due to occasional violent behaviour of her husband resisted by the elder son. They separate finally. She gets totally absorbed in the lives of her sons. The elder son William Morel dies early and the heartbroken mother now starts doting on the younger one. Paul Morel grapples with his youthful desires and gets entangled in two failed love affairs- earlier with his childhood sweetheart and a farm girl Miriam and later with a divorced suffragette Clara who fulfils his physical needs. Both these affairs fall apart because Paul Morel is more attached with his mother and discards any other attachment. His mother dies in the end and he is left alone.
A strange but good novel. Paul Morel is a sensitive character who is always troubled with himself and appears detached to others. After his mother's death his tragedy is decribed thus in the novel:
"When he turned away he felt the last hold for him had gone. The town,
as he sat upon the car, stretched away over the bay of railway, a
level fume of lights. Beyond the town the country, little smouldering
spots for more towns--the sea--the night--on and on! And he had no
place in it! Whatever spot he stood on, there he stood alone.
From his breast, from his mouth, sprang the endless space, and it
was there behind him, everywhere. The people hurrying along the
streets offered no obstruction to the void in which he found himself.
They were small shadows whose footsteps and voices could be heard,
but in each of them the same night, the same silence. He got off
the car. In the country all was dead still. Little stars shone high up;
little stars spread far away in the flood-waters, a firmament below.
Everywhere the vastness and terror of the immense night which is
roused and stirred for a brief while by the day, but which returns,
and will remain at last eternal, holding everything in its silence
and its living gloom. There was no Time, only Space. Who could say
his mother had lived and did not live? She had been in one place,
and was in another; that was all. And his soul could not leave her,
wherever she was. Now she was gone abroad into the night, and he
was with her still. They were together. But yet there was his body,
his chest, that leaned against the stile, his hands on the wooden bar.
They seemed something. Where was he?--one tiny upright speck of flesh,
less than an ear of wheat lost in the field. He could not bear it.
On every side the immense dark silence seemed pressing him, so tiny
a spark, into extinction, and yet, almost nothing, he could not
be extinct. Night, in which everything was lost, went reaching out,
beyond stars and sun. Stars and sun, a few bright grains, went spinning
round for terror, and holding each other in embrace, there in a
darkness that outpassed them all, and left them tiny and daunted.
So much, and himself, infinitesimal, at the core a nothingness,
and yet not nothing.
"Mother!" he whispered--"mother!"
She was the only thing that held him up, himself, amid all this.
And she was gone, intermingled herself. He wanted her to touch him,
have him alongside with her.
But no, he would not give in. Turning sharply, he walked
towards the city's gold phosphorescence. His fists were shut,
his mouth set fast. He would not take that direction, to the
darkness, to follow her. He walked towards the faintly humming,
glowing town, quickly."
A nice novel.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Monday, March 3, 2008
carnage on halaal street today.:)
I am not a finance guy. However, I am trying to be more knowledgeable about it by listening to CNBC and trying to comprehend,recapitulate, and paraphrase(not copy and paste)the nuances. It can be full of bloopers.
It was a bad day for the market with a loss of 900 plus points. The dampeners can be prevelance of STT and higher short-term capital gains tax. Global cues remain disappointing. The banking sector took the beating as well after assurances of refund of farm loans. The recession worries are still persisting but there are speculations that the US market could rebound in Q3CY08. The post-budget wishlist is very much there and the FM is clarifying that it is not a case of 'Heads I win and tails you lose!'. Chidambaram has defended his budgetary loan waivers by citing the examples of legendary Rajaji in the late 30s and later of Janardan Pujari who fought for similar causes.
Many Maharashtrian farmers are not happy with the 5 acres ceiling and are saying that it is a case of too little too late.
On the other fronts there is news of maverick moves of maverick Branson's Virgin Atlantis and Tata group JV in telecom domain. It is now under DoT scanner. I could not comprehend the reason behind the glitch.
Vodafone too is involved in a litigation over tax related issues with the tax department. This appeared a bit nebulous too to my comprehension.
The tax holidays have not yet been extended to STPI's. This can lead to STPI's spaces being utilized by non-IT companies and will impact metros or mini-metros like NCR, Hyderabad, Pune or Bangalore.
Warren Buffet speaks on CNBC and is now candid about US recession. The motown is not happy as it finds that very little has been done to larger cars and small car segment is getting the advantage. Small wonders Maruti was the sole gainer with other auto scrips feeling the heat today.
I hope my efforts to learn a bit about finance were not a debacle!:)
It was a bad day for the market with a loss of 900 plus points. The dampeners can be prevelance of STT and higher short-term capital gains tax. Global cues remain disappointing. The banking sector took the beating as well after assurances of refund of farm loans. The recession worries are still persisting but there are speculations that the US market could rebound in Q3CY08. The post-budget wishlist is very much there and the FM is clarifying that it is not a case of 'Heads I win and tails you lose!'. Chidambaram has defended his budgetary loan waivers by citing the examples of legendary Rajaji in the late 30s and later of Janardan Pujari who fought for similar causes.
Many Maharashtrian farmers are not happy with the 5 acres ceiling and are saying that it is a case of too little too late.
On the other fronts there is news of maverick moves of maverick Branson's Virgin Atlantis and Tata group JV in telecom domain. It is now under DoT scanner. I could not comprehend the reason behind the glitch.
Vodafone too is involved in a litigation over tax related issues with the tax department. This appeared a bit nebulous too to my comprehension.
The tax holidays have not yet been extended to STPI's. This can lead to STPI's spaces being utilized by non-IT companies and will impact metros or mini-metros like NCR, Hyderabad, Pune or Bangalore.
Warren Buffet speaks on CNBC and is now candid about US recession. The motown is not happy as it finds that very little has been done to larger cars and small car segment is getting the advantage. Small wonders Maruti was the sole gainer with other auto scrips feeling the heat today.
I hope my efforts to learn a bit about finance were not a debacle!:)
Friday, February 29, 2008
A user friendly budget this time!
We used to be told in Technical Writing that writing has to be user friendly. We must take care of the fact,"What is there in it for me?" Something similar is happening in the budgets. The rail budget was hailed as the 'aam admi ka budget' with quite a few loopholes to plug in. For example as opposed to 3000 plus old coaches sops were offered for mere 200 odd new coaches. Lies, damned lies and statistics! However, the silver lining was the promise of putting an end to the serpentine queues for tickets at railway stations. E-ticketing was a nice concept and getting tickets through mobile is even better a concept in the face of the impending telecom revolution.
Mr. Chidambaram has offered a better one. Though the finance minister has budgeted for a 2.5 per cent fiscal deficit for 2008-09, many believe he'll overshoot this, given the loan waiver, impending Sixth Pay Commission awards and off-Budget liabilities.
The 60000 crore loan waiver is not being currently accounted for. The farmers can also heave a sigh of relief with 2 plus crore loan waiver on cards. This might curb the suicide rate of the farmers. Then again the Income tax cuts can ensure a 4k-5k savings of any professional. To curb inconsistencies in the secondary market tax on on short term capital gains has been increased by 15%. FM has also promised retaining of 9% growth. More impetus has been given on increase in capital for education and healthcare sectors. The lack of it happened to be India's nemesis earlier. The plan to open more IITs and IIMs will solve a bit the problem of shortage of skilled manpower in India.
A lot has been done keeping the upcoming elections in mind. UPA can go for the Indo-US nuke deal in June and all efforts have been made to lure the middle class. The timing is just right. However, FMCG has been given a shorter shrift. The bourgeoise and the proletariat is more concerned with consumable items like sugar,soyaban oil,dal,rise,wheat etc. and there is no price decrease on these. Luxury items could have been targeted for price increase thereby slightly impacting only the rich blokes. The common man in India still prays daily, "To this day Lord give us our daily bread." There is another flaw in the loan waiver of farmers. Very few farmers approach the banks for loans. They procure it from moneylenders mostly. Now it can goad them to approach banks for loans and can be trapped further. It makes them vulnerable. Besides, NREG was planned to be implemented only in 593 districts. It has not kickstarted the way it was planned by our visionaries like Rahul Gandhi.
All said and done, it is a political budget crafted dexterously by a few good men- Mr. Chidambaram, Mr. Manmohan Singh, Mr. Montek Singh Ahluwahlia just to name a few.
All said and done, it is not such a bad budget either.
Mr. Chidambaram has offered a better one. Though the finance minister has budgeted for a 2.5 per cent fiscal deficit for 2008-09, many believe he'll overshoot this, given the loan waiver, impending Sixth Pay Commission awards and off-Budget liabilities.
The 60000 crore loan waiver is not being currently accounted for. The farmers can also heave a sigh of relief with 2 plus crore loan waiver on cards. This might curb the suicide rate of the farmers. Then again the Income tax cuts can ensure a 4k-5k savings of any professional. To curb inconsistencies in the secondary market tax on on short term capital gains has been increased by 15%. FM has also promised retaining of 9% growth. More impetus has been given on increase in capital for education and healthcare sectors. The lack of it happened to be India's nemesis earlier. The plan to open more IITs and IIMs will solve a bit the problem of shortage of skilled manpower in India.
A lot has been done keeping the upcoming elections in mind. UPA can go for the Indo-US nuke deal in June and all efforts have been made to lure the middle class. The timing is just right. However, FMCG has been given a shorter shrift. The bourgeoise and the proletariat is more concerned with consumable items like sugar,soyaban oil,dal,rise,wheat etc. and there is no price decrease on these. Luxury items could have been targeted for price increase thereby slightly impacting only the rich blokes. The common man in India still prays daily, "To this day Lord give us our daily bread." There is another flaw in the loan waiver of farmers. Very few farmers approach the banks for loans. They procure it from moneylenders mostly. Now it can goad them to approach banks for loans and can be trapped further. It makes them vulnerable. Besides, NREG was planned to be implemented only in 593 districts. It has not kickstarted the way it was planned by our visionaries like Rahul Gandhi.
All said and done, it is a political budget crafted dexterously by a few good men- Mr. Chidambaram, Mr. Manmohan Singh, Mr. Montek Singh Ahluwahlia just to name a few.
All said and done, it is not such a bad budget either.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Quirkyalone
What a blog did I come across as I signed in my blog account. It was about International Quirkyalone Day, which is not anti-valentine day despite falling on the same date and being opposed in nature. It actually glorifies the feeling of being single and not being ready to mingle just for the heck of it. Verily, quite a few like me are confused nowadays as to what crime they have committed in being single. Just because they did not attest importance to the thought of comanionship after an age makes them vulnerable. There can be a not-so-daffy definition of the portmanteau Quirkyalone.
quirk•y•a•lone n. a person who enjoys being single (but is not opposed to being in a relationship) and generally prefers to be alone rather than date for the sake of being in a couple. With unique traits and an optimistic spirit; a sensibility that transcends relationship status. Also adj. Of, relating to, or embodying quirkyalones.
Then there is good quote:
Language has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone, and the word solitude to express the glory of being alone.
-Paul Tillich
Indeed, one can be alone without any problems and not think much about how one is being perceived in the society. Quirkyalones are like that and quirky along with alone best glorifies the singleton status. The blog goes on to ratify that this independence also makes quirkyalones good at long-distance relationships.It is not that Quirkyalones do not get lonely sometimes, just like everybody else. They take it as solitude. Some people need constant interaction to feel like they're fully living, but some of us have to have enough solitude to let us regenerate on a regular basis.
Ergo, there isn't much need to worry about what a married couple is thinking of you if you are a Quirkyalone. There isn't much need to answer when you are planning to get married. There isn't much need of not going for occasinal drinks for the fear of bad smell. The examples in the favour of quirkyalones are also manifold. As long as one is a Quirkyalone one need not be much too worried about the stigma or refactor oneself back into the fold every now and then. After all, solitude is a euphemism for isolation.
quirk•y•a•lone n. a person who enjoys being single (but is not opposed to being in a relationship) and generally prefers to be alone rather than date for the sake of being in a couple. With unique traits and an optimistic spirit; a sensibility that transcends relationship status. Also adj. Of, relating to, or embodying quirkyalones.
Then there is good quote:
Language has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone, and the word solitude to express the glory of being alone.
-Paul Tillich
Indeed, one can be alone without any problems and not think much about how one is being perceived in the society. Quirkyalones are like that and quirky along with alone best glorifies the singleton status. The blog goes on to ratify that this independence also makes quirkyalones good at long-distance relationships.It is not that Quirkyalones do not get lonely sometimes, just like everybody else. They take it as solitude. Some people need constant interaction to feel like they're fully living, but some of us have to have enough solitude to let us regenerate on a regular basis.
Ergo, there isn't much need to worry about what a married couple is thinking of you if you are a Quirkyalone. There isn't much need to answer when you are planning to get married. There isn't much need of not going for occasinal drinks for the fear of bad smell. The examples in the favour of quirkyalones are also manifold. As long as one is a Quirkyalone one need not be much too worried about the stigma or refactor oneself back into the fold every now and then. After all, solitude is a euphemism for isolation.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
India fighting at Adelaide
Yuvraj has made a comeback in his signature style. Let us hope he finishes off the game in a similar style. It was disappointing that India failed to take advantage of the initial crucial breaks when Sri Lanka was struggling at 6/2. The bowlers failed to capitalise on the initial breakthrough. Ishant Sharma seems to be overused. He needs a break as too much of dependency might lead to an immature exit or to a performance akin to that of Shoaib Akhtar. All pace and little guile. The pace battery is erratic in temperament and not always piercing. Sangakkara is a real crisis man and bails his team out in crunch situations. His century was great. His huge partnership wih the captain saw Sri Lanka posting a fighting total of 238. In reply, Sachin got out on a duck. That can raise hackles as to when should he plan his retirement. Gilly decided that in a flash and it is high time Sachin decided the same and avoided a disgraced exit. As a die-hard Sachin fan I will never love that. Ergo, it will be tough for a sachin fan like me to see the idol retire but in the larger interest of the idol and the game I feel that his retirement must come in his prime. The old order changes in favour of the newer ones and one has to reconcile to the bitter truth of change.
In the end, hats off to Yuvi for his resilient comeback!
In the end, hats off to Yuvi for his resilient comeback!
Sunday, February 17, 2008
The Woodlanders
It is a lesser known novel from Thomas Hardy. However, it touched my heart the most. I was in the flushes of romance during my early 20s when others were busy firming up their career path.:) In that process I even wrote a novel after my B.E., which few of my friends hail as a national comedy.:)
I chanced to read this novel and found it too captivating and unputdownable. The character of Winterborne seemed attractive because of his unflinching love for Grace Mulbery.
First, let me give you the plot summary as per wikipedia:
The story takes place in a small woodland village called Little Hintock, and concerns the efforts of an honest woodsman, Giles Winterbourne, to marry his childhood sweetheart, Grace Melbury. Although they have been informally betrothed for some time, her father has made financial sacrifices to give his adored only child a superior education and no longer considers Giles good enough for her. When the new doctor – a well-born and handsome young man named Edred Fitzpiers – takes an interest in Grace, her father does all he can to make Grace forget Giles, and to encourage what he sees as a brilliant match. Grace has more awe than love for Fitzpiers, but marries him nonetheless. After the honeymoon, the couple take up residence in an unused wing of Melbury's house. Soon, however, he begins an affair with a rich widow named Mrs. Charmond, takes to treating Grace coldly, and finally deserts her one night after he accidentally reveals his true character to his father-in-law.
Melbury tries to procure a divorce for his daughter so she can marry Giles after all, but in vain. When Fitzpiers quarrels with Mrs. Charmond and returns to Little Hintock to try to reconcile with his wife, she flees the house and turns to Giles for help. He is still convalescing from a dangerous illness, but nobly allows her to sleep in his hut during stormy weather, whilst he insists on sleeping outside. As a result, he dies. Grace later allows herself to be won back to the at least temporarily repentant Fitzpiers, thus sealing her fate as the wife of an unworthy man. No one is left to mourn Giles except a courageous peasant girl named Marty South, who all along has been the overlooked but perfect mate for him, and who has always loved him.
What a novel! I used to fantasise of my position as that of Winterborne. Now it seems that what a silly thing it was to think like that. But then it is probably another way to live. On the contrary in my musings I find that I was more in love with life sans everything else. My muse still exists and I am truly a Winterborne now involved in a sinecure in the eyes of the world! I do not mind that anymore. But will reflecting on my past loving memories at least provide me an objective to live further?
The poem in the novel was touching,
‘ If I forget,
The salt creek may forget the ocean;
If I forget
The heart whence flowed my heart’s bright motion,
May I sink meanlier than the worst,
Abandoned, outcast, crushed, accurst,
If I forget.
Though you forget,
No word of mine shall mar your pleasure;
Though you forget,-
You filled my barren life with treasure;
You may withdraw the gift you gave,
You still are queen, I still am slave,
Though you forget.’
There is a movie on the novel directed by Phil Agland and it won a few good awards and nominations.
The cast was as follows:
Emily Woof ... Grace Melbury
Rufus Sewell ... Giles Winterbourne
Cal Macaninch ... Dr. FitzPiers
Tony Haygarth ... Mr. Melbury
Jodhi May ... Marty South
Polly Walker ... Mrs. Charmond
Walter Sparrow ... Old Creedle
Sheila Burrell ... Grandma Oliver
I chanced to read this novel and found it too captivating and unputdownable. The character of Winterborne seemed attractive because of his unflinching love for Grace Mulbery.
First, let me give you the plot summary as per wikipedia:
The story takes place in a small woodland village called Little Hintock, and concerns the efforts of an honest woodsman, Giles Winterbourne, to marry his childhood sweetheart, Grace Melbury. Although they have been informally betrothed for some time, her father has made financial sacrifices to give his adored only child a superior education and no longer considers Giles good enough for her. When the new doctor – a well-born and handsome young man named Edred Fitzpiers – takes an interest in Grace, her father does all he can to make Grace forget Giles, and to encourage what he sees as a brilliant match. Grace has more awe than love for Fitzpiers, but marries him nonetheless. After the honeymoon, the couple take up residence in an unused wing of Melbury's house. Soon, however, he begins an affair with a rich widow named Mrs. Charmond, takes to treating Grace coldly, and finally deserts her one night after he accidentally reveals his true character to his father-in-law.
Melbury tries to procure a divorce for his daughter so she can marry Giles after all, but in vain. When Fitzpiers quarrels with Mrs. Charmond and returns to Little Hintock to try to reconcile with his wife, she flees the house and turns to Giles for help. He is still convalescing from a dangerous illness, but nobly allows her to sleep in his hut during stormy weather, whilst he insists on sleeping outside. As a result, he dies. Grace later allows herself to be won back to the at least temporarily repentant Fitzpiers, thus sealing her fate as the wife of an unworthy man. No one is left to mourn Giles except a courageous peasant girl named Marty South, who all along has been the overlooked but perfect mate for him, and who has always loved him.
What a novel! I used to fantasise of my position as that of Winterborne. Now it seems that what a silly thing it was to think like that. But then it is probably another way to live. On the contrary in my musings I find that I was more in love with life sans everything else. My muse still exists and I am truly a Winterborne now involved in a sinecure in the eyes of the world! I do not mind that anymore. But will reflecting on my past loving memories at least provide me an objective to live further?
The poem in the novel was touching,
‘ If I forget,
The salt creek may forget the ocean;
If I forget
The heart whence flowed my heart’s bright motion,
May I sink meanlier than the worst,
Abandoned, outcast, crushed, accurst,
If I forget.
Though you forget,
No word of mine shall mar your pleasure;
Though you forget,-
You filled my barren life with treasure;
You may withdraw the gift you gave,
You still are queen, I still am slave,
Though you forget.’
There is a movie on the novel directed by Phil Agland and it won a few good awards and nominations.
The cast was as follows:
Emily Woof ... Grace Melbury
Rufus Sewell ... Giles Winterbourne
Cal Macaninch ... Dr. FitzPiers
Tony Haygarth ... Mr. Melbury
Jodhi May ... Marty South
Polly Walker ... Mrs. Charmond
Walter Sparrow ... Old Creedle
Sheila Burrell ... Grandma Oliver
Jab we met!
It is probably the time when one feels like writing for oneself. just for oneself with little regards for anything else. i feel like crooning 'tera na hona jane kyon hona hi hai'! The movie Jab We met is great for me because it made me realize one thing missing in our everyday lives- the music in work. Forget all the cliched motivational craps of our thought gurus. They all are baseless and are meant to elevate the sagging spirits of the white collared slaves. It was great for a jilted lover in the movie to have found out what life is from a very-2 loud and peurile babe who inadvertently shows him a new way to live- by loving oneself and life. If only we could do that! Let us love ourselves first. How much suffocation surrounds us! Who is resonsible? It is us. And why do we do that? The loft designations, fat paypackets, pseudo-pride, and all the negativity that we gather in the name of urbansation and progress. And look what gets the beating? Love and life. We are not filling our moments with beauty but are rather taking away the beauty from it. That is sacrifice and the killing of spirits just to appease others. When will we live for ourselves? I do not like getting up in the mornings. I do that to conform to the societal norms. What do I get in return? Just a lil bit of satisfaction that others have noticed my getting up for some damned task.
Let us enjoy first whatever we like if it does not border on profanity and pleases us without displeasing others.
We say that we must work as per a pattern. Why so? Why a pattern in everything? Is that how lives are supposed to be?
We were born without our consent. We were sent to schools without our consent. We join a college without our consent. We join a job or our work without our consent. We marry and have kids without our consent. The only thing that we can do with our consent is to die. That is because lives nowadays are not lives. They are deaths. There is nothing like a 'free' man. Believe me, with all your riches and status you will be always be embroiled in the vicious circle. No break from that.
Let us try to break free from the fetters. Let us love first and live later.
Yes, Jab We Met was quite interesting and Kareena was especially tantalizing in that.
Synopsis:
Aditya Kashyap (Shahid Kapoor), a demoralized industrialist, gets even more depressed after attending the marriage of the girl he loves the most. Feeling ashamed to face the world, he walks out of the marriage gathering and boards a train in the night. Over there, he meets Geet Dhillon (Kareena Kapoor), a beautiful talkative girl who is leaving Mumbai to go to her hometown - Bhatinda (Punjab).
In the beginning, Geet irritates Aditya to a large extent and every meeting becomes mental torture for him. She discloses big plans to him of eloping with her boyfriend Anshuman (Tarun Arora) as she fears resentment from her parents. Geet irritates Aditya to the point of getting him to leave the train. As she tries to get him back on the train, she ends up missing it and the two find themselves stranded on a desolate station with no luggage or money. Geet confronts Aditya and tells him that he is now responsible of reaching her safely to her house in Punjab. Both of them begin an idyllic journey through the exuberant North Indian heartland, and make their way through buses, taxis and camel-carts to reach her house.
Kareena Kapoor as Geet Dhillon in the filmOn arrival, Geet's family (Pawan Malhotra, Dara Singh and Kiran Juneja) mistakens the two for lovers. Before this misconception can be cleared, Geet escapes to her boyfriend in Manali. Aditya leaves with her, confirming the suspicion that they are lovers. In Manali, Aditya feels empowered to return to Mumbai and resurrect his ailing business.
Destiny despises Geet's love story as Anshuman avoids and dumps her. On the other hand, Aditya begins to do well in life after he resurrects his failing business empire. One day, Geet's family, who think that she is with him, confronts Aditya. He is shocked to learn that Geet has not returned home. He takes it upon himself to find her and tells her family that he will bring her home in ten days.
Aditya finally tracks her down in a Himalayan town and is traumatized to learn about Geet's misfortune. Consoling her to face the circumstances, he manages in patching up the relationship of Geet and Anshuman, and they decide to travel back to Bhatinda. Back in Bhatinda, Geet's family again mistaken the two for lovers. Trying to clear the misconception, situations make Geet realise that she is in love with Aditya not Anshuman, and therefore they get married.
What a movie! Great dialogues, songs, scenes, climaxes et al. Kareena slips into two different characters with consummate ease. Shahid is good. He is a cutie-pie with bagloads of talent. Director Imtiaz Ali has done a wonderful job.
Let us enjoy first whatever we like if it does not border on profanity and pleases us without displeasing others.
We say that we must work as per a pattern. Why so? Why a pattern in everything? Is that how lives are supposed to be?
We were born without our consent. We were sent to schools without our consent. We join a college without our consent. We join a job or our work without our consent. We marry and have kids without our consent. The only thing that we can do with our consent is to die. That is because lives nowadays are not lives. They are deaths. There is nothing like a 'free' man. Believe me, with all your riches and status you will be always be embroiled in the vicious circle. No break from that.
Let us try to break free from the fetters. Let us love first and live later.
Yes, Jab We Met was quite interesting and Kareena was especially tantalizing in that.
Synopsis:
Aditya Kashyap (Shahid Kapoor), a demoralized industrialist, gets even more depressed after attending the marriage of the girl he loves the most. Feeling ashamed to face the world, he walks out of the marriage gathering and boards a train in the night. Over there, he meets Geet Dhillon (Kareena Kapoor), a beautiful talkative girl who is leaving Mumbai to go to her hometown - Bhatinda (Punjab).
In the beginning, Geet irritates Aditya to a large extent and every meeting becomes mental torture for him. She discloses big plans to him of eloping with her boyfriend Anshuman (Tarun Arora) as she fears resentment from her parents. Geet irritates Aditya to the point of getting him to leave the train. As she tries to get him back on the train, she ends up missing it and the two find themselves stranded on a desolate station with no luggage or money. Geet confronts Aditya and tells him that he is now responsible of reaching her safely to her house in Punjab. Both of them begin an idyllic journey through the exuberant North Indian heartland, and make their way through buses, taxis and camel-carts to reach her house.
Kareena Kapoor as Geet Dhillon in the filmOn arrival, Geet's family (Pawan Malhotra, Dara Singh and Kiran Juneja) mistakens the two for lovers. Before this misconception can be cleared, Geet escapes to her boyfriend in Manali. Aditya leaves with her, confirming the suspicion that they are lovers. In Manali, Aditya feels empowered to return to Mumbai and resurrect his ailing business.
Destiny despises Geet's love story as Anshuman avoids and dumps her. On the other hand, Aditya begins to do well in life after he resurrects his failing business empire. One day, Geet's family, who think that she is with him, confronts Aditya. He is shocked to learn that Geet has not returned home. He takes it upon himself to find her and tells her family that he will bring her home in ten days.
Aditya finally tracks her down in a Himalayan town and is traumatized to learn about Geet's misfortune. Consoling her to face the circumstances, he manages in patching up the relationship of Geet and Anshuman, and they decide to travel back to Bhatinda. Back in Bhatinda, Geet's family again mistaken the two for lovers. Trying to clear the misconception, situations make Geet realise that she is in love with Aditya not Anshuman, and therefore they get married.
What a movie! Great dialogues, songs, scenes, climaxes et al. Kareena slips into two different characters with consummate ease. Shahid is good. He is a cutie-pie with bagloads of talent. Director Imtiaz Ali has done a wonderful job.
Friday, February 15, 2008
pyar tera dilli ki sardi!
Delhi is a massive metropolis with an enormously enchanting past. It has been the capital city for so many of India's rulers that every bit of its landscape speaks of a glorious past. It is indeed the city that symbolizes India's myriad and turbulent history.
Sometimes Delhi evokes nostalgia even if you have been away from the capital for a long, long time. Delhi winters are special. Designers love to flaunt their fall winter collections and that makes Delhi a special place to showcase the designer stuff for the fashionistas. Delhi is also very much a city for the common man who has enough money to buy food, have a shelter, and access to basic amenities. It has a large heart. The chics are awesome irrespective of the fact that quite a few are 'Behenji' types as Mumbaikers love to call them. There is no gainsaying the fact that their beauty gives others an inferiority complex. It is not good for those afflicted with Venustaphobia (the fear of beautiful women)! But for the die-hard romantics Delhi is just the right place to live in. One can enjoy the warmth of Delhi in the airs. The ancient monuments are reminiscent of the Raj and also of the romance surrounding the city of djinns.
This is how wikipedia describes Delhi:
Delhi (Hindi: दिल्ली, Punjabi: ਦਿੱਲੀ, Urdu: دلی, IPA: [d̪ɪlːiː]) sometimes referred to as Dilli, is the second-largest metropolis in India, after Mumbai, with a population of 11.5 million, and with an extended metropolitan population of almost 22 million. Located in northern India on the banks of the River Yamuna, Delhi has the political status of a federally-administered union territory known as the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT), which in itself is part of National Capital Region. A constitutional amendment in 1991 gave Delhi a special status among the Union Territories; Delhi has its own legislative assembly with limited powers. The National Capital Territory of Delhi comprises nine districts, 27 tehsils, three statutory towns viz. Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB), 59 census towns and 165 villages.
Delhi is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world. Having been the capital of several empires in ancient India, Delhi was a major city in the old trade routes from northwest India to the Gangetic Plains. Many ancient monuments, archaeological sites and remains of national importance have been erected in its history. The Mughals built a section of the city (now known as Old City or Old Delhi) that served as the capital of Mughal Empire for a long period. During the British Raj, New Delhi was built as an administrative quarter of the city. New Delhi was declared the capital of India after India gained independence from British rule in 1947. As the seat of the Government of India, New Delhi houses important offices of the federal government, including the Parliament of India, making Delhi a powerhouse of Indian politics.
Delhi has grown up to be a cosmopolitan city owing to the immigration of people from across the country. Like many other large cities of the world, Delhi suffers from urbanisation problems such as pollution, traffic congestion, and scarcity of resources. The rapid development and urbanisation of Delhi and surrounding areas coupled with the high average income of the populace has largely eclipsed socio-cultural traits that used to represent Delhi until a few years after independence. Today, Delhi is a major cultural, political, and commercial center of India."
Every city has a character. It has a form and a vignette of its own.
Small wonders that a novel City of Djinns (1994), which is a travelogue by William Dalrymple about the historical capital of India, Delhi, proved to be a bestseller.
Sometimes Delhi evokes nostalgia even if you have been away from the capital for a long, long time. Delhi winters are special. Designers love to flaunt their fall winter collections and that makes Delhi a special place to showcase the designer stuff for the fashionistas. Delhi is also very much a city for the common man who has enough money to buy food, have a shelter, and access to basic amenities. It has a large heart. The chics are awesome irrespective of the fact that quite a few are 'Behenji' types as Mumbaikers love to call them. There is no gainsaying the fact that their beauty gives others an inferiority complex. It is not good for those afflicted with Venustaphobia (the fear of beautiful women)! But for the die-hard romantics Delhi is just the right place to live in. One can enjoy the warmth of Delhi in the airs. The ancient monuments are reminiscent of the Raj and also of the romance surrounding the city of djinns.
This is how wikipedia describes Delhi:
Delhi (Hindi: दिल्ली, Punjabi: ਦਿੱਲੀ, Urdu: دلی, IPA: [d̪ɪlːiː]) sometimes referred to as Dilli, is the second-largest metropolis in India, after Mumbai, with a population of 11.5 million, and with an extended metropolitan population of almost 22 million. Located in northern India on the banks of the River Yamuna, Delhi has the political status of a federally-administered union territory known as the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT), which in itself is part of National Capital Region. A constitutional amendment in 1991 gave Delhi a special status among the Union Territories; Delhi has its own legislative assembly with limited powers. The National Capital Territory of Delhi comprises nine districts, 27 tehsils, three statutory towns viz. Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB), 59 census towns and 165 villages.
Delhi is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world. Having been the capital of several empires in ancient India, Delhi was a major city in the old trade routes from northwest India to the Gangetic Plains. Many ancient monuments, archaeological sites and remains of national importance have been erected in its history. The Mughals built a section of the city (now known as Old City or Old Delhi) that served as the capital of Mughal Empire for a long period. During the British Raj, New Delhi was built as an administrative quarter of the city. New Delhi was declared the capital of India after India gained independence from British rule in 1947. As the seat of the Government of India, New Delhi houses important offices of the federal government, including the Parliament of India, making Delhi a powerhouse of Indian politics.
Delhi has grown up to be a cosmopolitan city owing to the immigration of people from across the country. Like many other large cities of the world, Delhi suffers from urbanisation problems such as pollution, traffic congestion, and scarcity of resources. The rapid development and urbanisation of Delhi and surrounding areas coupled with the high average income of the populace has largely eclipsed socio-cultural traits that used to represent Delhi until a few years after independence. Today, Delhi is a major cultural, political, and commercial center of India."
Every city has a character. It has a form and a vignette of its own.
Small wonders that a novel City of Djinns (1994), which is a travelogue by William Dalrymple about the historical capital of India, Delhi, proved to be a bestseller.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Entrepreneurship on a new high in India Inc as per BS!
Things seem to be getting rosier for those who hate watch-clockers and typically the period of 9-5. The first-generation professional is also realising more and more of hid dreams by foraying carefully in the domain of entrepreneurship. The year 2006-07 has been special because the BS 1000 list has never before seen so many new entrants. For 2006-07, there were as many as 120 debutants.
However, we do feel that that the word entrepereneurship is sometimes a misnomer.
Merriam-Webster defines an entrepreneur thus:
One who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.
Now, the gamut of the word 'enterprise' is quite large and is not necessarily defined by the moolah factor. A paanwallah selling a very special, delicious and a different kind of 'paan' is an entrpreneur. A roadside Dosa vendor selling quality dosa at a premium is also one. A salesman in the bus managing to sell his ensemble of unique item/s is also an entrepreneur. Do we have specific benchmarks or parameters to define an entrepreneur? I believe that nowadays an entrepreneur is recognized not just because of the ROI factor but also because of the quality of the enterprise. Infosys making a mark as the numero uno in the Indian IT sector was not a flash in the pan and also not an extension of a legacy. It was an example of how such a huge corpus can be built with a meagre 10k rupees. Non-pareil is the word that describes NR Narayan Murthy's persona. But there are several others residing in the backwaters who did not have so much of an ROI but managed to do a mundane task differently and wonderfully so despite all hiccups and stigma involved.
We need to salute an average face of India who tries to alienate himself from the Sisyphean tasks set out by the society. Let us now master the Zen and the art of ......
It is an open-ended FIB(fill in the blanks).
However, we do feel that that the word entrepereneurship is sometimes a misnomer.
Merriam-Webster defines an entrepreneur thus:
One who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.
Now, the gamut of the word 'enterprise' is quite large and is not necessarily defined by the moolah factor. A paanwallah selling a very special, delicious and a different kind of 'paan' is an entrpreneur. A roadside Dosa vendor selling quality dosa at a premium is also one. A salesman in the bus managing to sell his ensemble of unique item/s is also an entrepreneur. Do we have specific benchmarks or parameters to define an entrepreneur? I believe that nowadays an entrepreneur is recognized not just because of the ROI factor but also because of the quality of the enterprise. Infosys making a mark as the numero uno in the Indian IT sector was not a flash in the pan and also not an extension of a legacy. It was an example of how such a huge corpus can be built with a meagre 10k rupees. Non-pareil is the word that describes NR Narayan Murthy's persona. But there are several others residing in the backwaters who did not have so much of an ROI but managed to do a mundane task differently and wonderfully so despite all hiccups and stigma involved.
We need to salute an average face of India who tries to alienate himself from the Sisyphean tasks set out by the society. Let us now master the Zen and the art of ......
It is an open-ended FIB(fill in the blanks).
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Just remebered what IO had written 6 yrs, back. Now it seems kitschy!
We must read something fully before cocking a snook at places. Moreover rationality comes easily to us sitting at better places. but think of those actually undergoing the trauma in love. Its true that sentimental alcoholism must not be given too much importance, but the thing is if in a society one is not free to chose one's own bride or career what damned use is it to live like a saint or a hero. In west u all cannot feel how much gut is required in rebelling against the society. i feel to undestand the character of devdas one has to be as grey as him. I believe in realism much more than any such idea of heroism. people are sadistic to enjoy such movies much more becz almost every day in India u cannot talk to someone u love becz of numerous constraints. it needs a psychoanalysis and mockery is only superficial. We know that people r not 'black' or 'white' and still decry them as if we ourselves have lived like a saint. jane austen is the antithesis of charlotte bronte. She is slightly contemptuous of bronte's pessimism. but 'meri bimari mansik hi sahi par bimari to hai' funda is good. one must be sympathetic over it. It ll heal more. and i genuinely believe that majority is pessimist and like devdas in one matter or the other. No, no sorry that i ve become idealistic but since i cannot forget my own debacle i dont love the rhetoric in such matters. If u read dostoyesky or even dickens u llsee that their heroes were amongst the sinners, self-seekers, dacoits and the fallen ones. maybe i too try to penetratebehind any debacle and then get exposed to a pristine sentimantilaty, passion, idelaism or emotion. lovers like devdas ve a deceptive laid-back approach towards life that confuses many. they r not exactly suicidal. circumstances simply go out of control. and if v cannot alter the circumstances let us at least leave them in their graves resting in peace.
An article replete with sensitivity first of all is bound to be philosophical in part. At times I fail to comprehend what seperates life and philosophy. I used to think that life is in itself a philosophy. But even when I utter a single plain fact of life like, 'life without a solid objecive is a waste', my father snubs me that I am being philosophical. One cannot extricate oneself totally from philosophy. In the very outset of my shortlived professional life, I had decided to block every single philosophical thought to salvage my practicality, as both are diametrically opposed in nature in this very modern world of ours. But a big confusion ensued since the inception of this resolution.My life became a hodge-podge. Sometimes I mused over my practiclaity and at times I also fought to curb my philosophical monologues. I failed in both. Right now I have lost most of the things from the materialistic point of view. But philosphy is there. Ergo, try as we may, we cannot alienate ourselves from philosophy. That way it is very useful in our lives. Call it 'majboori', call it 'thinking' or whatever, philosophy is our raison' d etre. I ve read Nietsche, Kant, Hegel, Spinoza, Osho, Krishnamurthi and the rest too, to no avail. I still cannot conform myself to any of the philosopher, although Osho is my favourite. Osho differs from the rest because he does not ordain one to become a 'superman' to enjoy life in toto. He simply loves one to 'be' one's original self. I cannot recount all that I loved in his philosophy but few points are there which really need to be mentioned. Whenever I see people mourning over the deceased I fail to empathise and start remebering Osho who says to celebrate death. Yes, we are presented a very morbid picture of death. If it was treated indifferently, just as a happening, we would have feared it less. I will tell you story. A man asked a milk-vendor his name. "Shakespeare' pat came the reply. 'He was the no. 1 writer of the world.' 'For three years every morning I have been delivering milk at your doorstep. Is not it as good as writing a book?" True it is. Why bother about becoming a Shakespeare? There are varied opinions I admit and I know every philosophy is bound to be jeered by many. Why to mind it? The motley lover will enjoy every bit of it. But I bear grudges against philoophy too. Like when one of my friends took me to a meeting in Theosophical Society and I was not in the mood. I left it in the middle and my friend asked me the reason. I retorted that I don't want to become a philosopher. I continued that I want to become a realist and thus Thomas Hardy attracts me more than Ramakrishna Paramhans. Becz I dont ve enough money to sit on Internet(that darned practicality making inroad again!)I will logout. But given a free Internet connection I suppose I can write the whole day in one stretch about philosophy and the next day I may perhaps steal cigarettes from the nearest shop vendor. Plz do not mind my content because I am living a very confused life that vacillates frequently from humor to seriousness and I suppz philosophy addresses more to the latter.
Strange are our thoughts as a function of time!
We must read something fully before cocking a snook at places. Moreover rationality comes easily to us sitting at better places. but think of those actually undergoing the trauma in love. Its true that sentimental alcoholism must not be given too much importance, but the thing is if in a society one is not free to chose one's own bride or career what damned use is it to live like a saint or a hero. In west u all cannot feel how much gut is required in rebelling against the society. i feel to undestand the character of devdas one has to be as grey as him. I believe in realism much more than any such idea of heroism. people are sadistic to enjoy such movies much more becz almost every day in India u cannot talk to someone u love becz of numerous constraints. it needs a psychoanalysis and mockery is only superficial. We know that people r not 'black' or 'white' and still decry them as if we ourselves have lived like a saint. jane austen is the antithesis of charlotte bronte. She is slightly contemptuous of bronte's pessimism. but 'meri bimari mansik hi sahi par bimari to hai' funda is good. one must be sympathetic over it. It ll heal more. and i genuinely believe that majority is pessimist and like devdas in one matter or the other. No, no sorry that i ve become idealistic but since i cannot forget my own debacle i dont love the rhetoric in such matters. If u read dostoyesky or even dickens u llsee that their heroes were amongst the sinners, self-seekers, dacoits and the fallen ones. maybe i too try to penetratebehind any debacle and then get exposed to a pristine sentimantilaty, passion, idelaism or emotion. lovers like devdas ve a deceptive laid-back approach towards life that confuses many. they r not exactly suicidal. circumstances simply go out of control. and if v cannot alter the circumstances let us at least leave them in their graves resting in peace.
An article replete with sensitivity first of all is bound to be philosophical in part. At times I fail to comprehend what seperates life and philosophy. I used to think that life is in itself a philosophy. But even when I utter a single plain fact of life like, 'life without a solid objecive is a waste', my father snubs me that I am being philosophical. One cannot extricate oneself totally from philosophy. In the very outset of my shortlived professional life, I had decided to block every single philosophical thought to salvage my practicality, as both are diametrically opposed in nature in this very modern world of ours. But a big confusion ensued since the inception of this resolution.My life became a hodge-podge. Sometimes I mused over my practiclaity and at times I also fought to curb my philosophical monologues. I failed in both. Right now I have lost most of the things from the materialistic point of view. But philosphy is there. Ergo, try as we may, we cannot alienate ourselves from philosophy. That way it is very useful in our lives. Call it 'majboori', call it 'thinking' or whatever, philosophy is our raison' d etre. I ve read Nietsche, Kant, Hegel, Spinoza, Osho, Krishnamurthi and the rest too, to no avail. I still cannot conform myself to any of the philosopher, although Osho is my favourite. Osho differs from the rest because he does not ordain one to become a 'superman' to enjoy life in toto. He simply loves one to 'be' one's original self. I cannot recount all that I loved in his philosophy but few points are there which really need to be mentioned. Whenever I see people mourning over the deceased I fail to empathise and start remebering Osho who says to celebrate death. Yes, we are presented a very morbid picture of death. If it was treated indifferently, just as a happening, we would have feared it less. I will tell you story. A man asked a milk-vendor his name. "Shakespeare' pat came the reply. 'He was the no. 1 writer of the world.' 'For three years every morning I have been delivering milk at your doorstep. Is not it as good as writing a book?" True it is. Why bother about becoming a Shakespeare? There are varied opinions I admit and I know every philosophy is bound to be jeered by many. Why to mind it? The motley lover will enjoy every bit of it. But I bear grudges against philoophy too. Like when one of my friends took me to a meeting in Theosophical Society and I was not in the mood. I left it in the middle and my friend asked me the reason. I retorted that I don't want to become a philosopher. I continued that I want to become a realist and thus Thomas Hardy attracts me more than Ramakrishna Paramhans. Becz I dont ve enough money to sit on Internet(that darned practicality making inroad again!)I will logout. But given a free Internet connection I suppose I can write the whole day in one stretch about philosophy and the next day I may perhaps steal cigarettes from the nearest shop vendor. Plz do not mind my content because I am living a very confused life that vacillates frequently from humor to seriousness and I suppz philosophy addresses more to the latter.
Strange are our thoughts as a function of time!
ONE!
Okay, like any other day in any typical office, big or small, one can be confused. Now, the confusion can be because one hates 9-5 system and the world majorly loves it. One can be constantly reminded that this is one decent way of sustenance for the kayastha community. In a Kayastha family the dictum is that " Lala ka ladka pada bhala ya mara bhala". One need not buy this logic and feel more oriented towards independence. But, being born in an educated community, one can feel that maybe that one is suffering from a DNA defect. Just the other day, I was reading an article on schizophrenia and was surprised to know that 1% of the global population is afflicted by it and 58% of the writers have it. That remains undetected though, if at all it is there. If that is the case, then one might be having an excuse why does one get pissed off by the corporate. But then, this will detrimentally affect one's life simply anywhere and not just the corporate. One may be acting like an escapist hypochondraic or a malingerer. However, the confusion reigns large.
One can live in an obscure place trying to find what suits right to one and one's life...
And what is good and what is not good, do we need anyone to tell us that?
One can live in an obscure place trying to find what suits right to one and one's life...
And what is good and what is not good, do we need anyone to tell us that?
Monday, February 4, 2008
When loneliness is the companion...
A very small percentage of the population is schizophrenic. However, a large percentage is lonely many-a-times. Just how difficult or different it feels to be a lonely person!
Loneliness is a bitter truth that we cannot digest. It is a companion always ready to be by your side when needed. When you are lonely you do not let go of everything. You simply slip away from everything. You are unable to decide what is real- the world outside you or your inner self. You are in communion with just your inner self. All outer connections fail and sometimes you wonder if you would be able to manage maintaining contact with the outer world anymore. What to say of forging newer contacts!
You detest it all the more because you have been indoctrinated against it. It is said that man is a social animal and when you do not feel the urge to socialize you feel that something has gone wrong with you.
Even if loneliness leads to depression we must recognize the presence of depression as much as we attest enough importance to ecstacy. We must not attach any stigma to it. It is just another feeling and we fall further into this because all the time we incriminate ourselves for falling into its trap. It is a vicious circle.
I read a post in an orkut forum and found it good:
"yes, i have been shifting sides with beautiful aloneness and damaging loneliness.. the thin line between these two things get tress passed often now.. more often that not i feel unexpressed and confined..
may be i have come far from the roots.. on one hand i have left touch with world, literally cutting myself from friends, extended family and my musical world too.. i am not playing my musical instrument for long now, and not meditating as well..
i can see myself pretty much answering my question in the above said lines.. but i guess i needed to express myself n needed a vent.. i did that by writing here, where i never see hopelessness i.e. world of osho..
thats true that i have filtered out of what i achieved so far with a conclusion to find something real.. but yes, i am not rich.. i have to work and work to a level which can support me to have time n space to meditate.. working can't be ruled out, so zorba the buddha path.. the funny thing is that i am not being zorba nor a buddha in these past couple of weeks.. "
Loneliness is a bitter truth that we cannot digest. It is a companion always ready to be by your side when needed. When you are lonely you do not let go of everything. You simply slip away from everything. You are unable to decide what is real- the world outside you or your inner self. You are in communion with just your inner self. All outer connections fail and sometimes you wonder if you would be able to manage maintaining contact with the outer world anymore. What to say of forging newer contacts!
You detest it all the more because you have been indoctrinated against it. It is said that man is a social animal and when you do not feel the urge to socialize you feel that something has gone wrong with you.
Even if loneliness leads to depression we must recognize the presence of depression as much as we attest enough importance to ecstacy. We must not attach any stigma to it. It is just another feeling and we fall further into this because all the time we incriminate ourselves for falling into its trap. It is a vicious circle.
I read a post in an orkut forum and found it good:
"yes, i have been shifting sides with beautiful aloneness and damaging loneliness.. the thin line between these two things get tress passed often now.. more often that not i feel unexpressed and confined..
may be i have come far from the roots.. on one hand i have left touch with world, literally cutting myself from friends, extended family and my musical world too.. i am not playing my musical instrument for long now, and not meditating as well..
i can see myself pretty much answering my question in the above said lines.. but i guess i needed to express myself n needed a vent.. i did that by writing here, where i never see hopelessness i.e. world of osho..
thats true that i have filtered out of what i achieved so far with a conclusion to find something real.. but yes, i am not rich.. i have to work and work to a level which can support me to have time n space to meditate.. working can't be ruled out, so zorba the buddha path.. the funny thing is that i am not being zorba nor a buddha in these past couple of weeks.. "
Mumbai on alert after violent incidents in the tinsel town
Early in the morning today two persons hurled glass bottles in the direction of Big B's residence Prateeksha. It has become debatable now whether nationalism should get the upper of regionalism or vice-versa. It should not have been debatable at all. But a famous scholar once said of India that for every thing that is true in India, the opposite is equally true.
Now it is a case of Marathis vis-a-vis Non-marathis. The term non-marathis has been existent years before too but it has gained prominence off late. Tension is simmering all across the country and more so in Mumbai and the state of Maharashtra. Raj Sena is of the radical view that migrants from Uttar Bharat have come as guests and they must not have the audacity of assuming or amusing themeselves as hosts in any way. The allegations are manifold. The row is majorly over the fact that the migrants have blind allegiance towards their roots and that they are not loyal to Maharashtra. It seems to be nonsensical to think on these lines. Even in UP we know that Sindhis, Bengalis, Sardars, Punjabis et al love to be in their own flock and vehemently celebrate their own festivals and not so much the local festivals of UP. We do not cry hoarse about that. In the US of A, the Indians are infamous for showing off their loyalty towards India and the Indian Independence Day is celebrated by the Indians in US with more gaity and fervour than the American Independence Day. Probably an Indian child in America may forget 4th July as the American Independence Day but ask him the Indian Republic or Independence day and quickly will the correct answer pop up. Does America take umbrage of it?
No. This is perhaps because they are truly global and cosmopolitan in outlook than us despite all our efforts to globalise or to ape the westerners. Mumbai is supposed to be the most western or pseudo-western city in India. We believe in the oriental backdrop we can only manage to be pseudo-western. We used to be skeptical of Delhi's ambition of becoming a world-class city because of so many reasons and perhaps a tad justifiably so. It is supposed by few that Delhiites are uncouth, rapists, criminals, dirty politians, garish, parochial ans so on and so forth. The only city that was good in India as per the western standards too was Mumbai and not even Blore, which is somewhat sleepy in comparison.
I can recall the horror with which I and my Purabiya friends used to witness at times a Bihari being beaten on Delhi roads by a dominant Jat. And we used to shrug off and say that this happens only in Delhi. Little were we aware that Delhi is perhaps a lot more respectful of its migrants than Mumbai or ay Chennai. Barring a few cases, we never felt that we are not in the mainstream of Delhi. I do not mean to eulogise Delhi as it has too many weak points of its own. But the status of a migrant is better in North India despite all our failigs on other fronts. We play a perfect host. That we are loud is not because of our illiteracy. It is because we are warm. That North India is more corrupt and crime prone is not because an average North Indian is bad. It is because of the dominance of a selected few and because of the infamous politician-mafia nexus. An average north indian is still possibly a better person than an average Indian. We do not deserve this kind of maulings on foreign shores. It is high time we gave them back the taste of their medicine.
Now it is a case of Marathis vis-a-vis Non-marathis. The term non-marathis has been existent years before too but it has gained prominence off late. Tension is simmering all across the country and more so in Mumbai and the state of Maharashtra. Raj Sena is of the radical view that migrants from Uttar Bharat have come as guests and they must not have the audacity of assuming or amusing themeselves as hosts in any way. The allegations are manifold. The row is majorly over the fact that the migrants have blind allegiance towards their roots and that they are not loyal to Maharashtra. It seems to be nonsensical to think on these lines. Even in UP we know that Sindhis, Bengalis, Sardars, Punjabis et al love to be in their own flock and vehemently celebrate their own festivals and not so much the local festivals of UP. We do not cry hoarse about that. In the US of A, the Indians are infamous for showing off their loyalty towards India and the Indian Independence Day is celebrated by the Indians in US with more gaity and fervour than the American Independence Day. Probably an Indian child in America may forget 4th July as the American Independence Day but ask him the Indian Republic or Independence day and quickly will the correct answer pop up. Does America take umbrage of it?
No. This is perhaps because they are truly global and cosmopolitan in outlook than us despite all our efforts to globalise or to ape the westerners. Mumbai is supposed to be the most western or pseudo-western city in India. We believe in the oriental backdrop we can only manage to be pseudo-western. We used to be skeptical of Delhi's ambition of becoming a world-class city because of so many reasons and perhaps a tad justifiably so. It is supposed by few that Delhiites are uncouth, rapists, criminals, dirty politians, garish, parochial ans so on and so forth. The only city that was good in India as per the western standards too was Mumbai and not even Blore, which is somewhat sleepy in comparison.
I can recall the horror with which I and my Purabiya friends used to witness at times a Bihari being beaten on Delhi roads by a dominant Jat. And we used to shrug off and say that this happens only in Delhi. Little were we aware that Delhi is perhaps a lot more respectful of its migrants than Mumbai or ay Chennai. Barring a few cases, we never felt that we are not in the mainstream of Delhi. I do not mean to eulogise Delhi as it has too many weak points of its own. But the status of a migrant is better in North India despite all our failigs on other fronts. We play a perfect host. That we are loud is not because of our illiteracy. It is because we are warm. That North India is more corrupt and crime prone is not because an average North Indian is bad. It is because of the dominance of a selected few and because of the infamous politician-mafia nexus. An average north indian is still possibly a better person than an average Indian. We do not deserve this kind of maulings on foreign shores. It is high time we gave them back the taste of their medicine.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Whose Mumbai is it anyway?
We never knew that a cosmopolitan city belonged to any particular community. Mumbai's ugly face showed in yesterday's violence when Raj Thakeray's followers went on a rampage mauling several North Indians (specially Purabiyas) and went on to gut several shops in fire. Maharashtra Nav Nirman Sena is taking potshots at Samjwadi Party (read Purabiyas) and vice-versa.
The city that never stops is witnessing a bandh called by Uttar Bhartiya Vikas Manch. Strange are the ways of metros.
It was a bizzare spectacle yesterday. What does it have in store for future?
Now this may lead the punjabis in Delhi to think that delhi is being undone by the Biharis. Ergo, they must be thrown out. They too will forget how dependent is Delhi on the Bihari migrants. Who will run the PCO's? Who will pull the rickshaws that provide succour to the rich ones in smeltering Delhi heat? Who will work as the security guard? They have several vocations which cannot be done with elitist notions.
It is strange what premium we give to migration just for the heck of it at times. After all, what is the shame in carrying a similar voaction in your familiar surroundings? metros are El Dorados for quite a few but not for those who are at the bottom of the pyramid. The society has given a nod to migration per se, which leads to forced migration at times. At the macro-level some work is being done on reverse migration. At the grassroot level it scores a zilch. Why cannot we stay put in our familiar surroundings with heads held high? It is paradoxical but true that we have created our own nemesis.
The city that never stops is witnessing a bandh called by Uttar Bhartiya Vikas Manch. Strange are the ways of metros.
It was a bizzare spectacle yesterday. What does it have in store for future?
Now this may lead the punjabis in Delhi to think that delhi is being undone by the Biharis. Ergo, they must be thrown out. They too will forget how dependent is Delhi on the Bihari migrants. Who will run the PCO's? Who will pull the rickshaws that provide succour to the rich ones in smeltering Delhi heat? Who will work as the security guard? They have several vocations which cannot be done with elitist notions.
It is strange what premium we give to migration just for the heck of it at times. After all, what is the shame in carrying a similar voaction in your familiar surroundings? metros are El Dorados for quite a few but not for those who are at the bottom of the pyramid. The society has given a nod to migration per se, which leads to forced migration at times. At the macro-level some work is being done on reverse migration. At the grassroot level it scores a zilch. Why cannot we stay put in our familiar surroundings with heads held high? It is paradoxical but true that we have created our own nemesis.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Die another day!
It was another sad display of batting performance by the Indians at the Brisbane's Gabba stadium today. The rain gods have been lavish in our support and play has long been stopped because of rains. With India struggling at 128 for 6 it seems that a double century for the Indian team today might be a distant possibility. Bret Lee broke our back by taking the prized scalps of Sehwag and Sachin in that order. Sachin was unfortunate again. Blame it on rains or on the rubber spikes or sheer ingnorance or whatever, he got out hit-wicket of Lee's delivery. Strange dismissal it was! Gambhir and Rohit Sharma showed a nice tepmerament and it was a good tale of two cities- Delhi and Mumbai- working in tandem for the country. The partnership broke with Gambhir departing on a gritty 39 runs on board and Sharma on an equally gritty 29 runs. This match might not turn India's way but signs of progress are visible in the Indian guns.
However, this is the take of cricinfo.com on today's match so far:
India's selectors picked an athletic but inexperienced side for the tri-series, and the merits and demerits of that decision were on display in the opening game in Brisbane as the visitors were in danger of getting bowled out inside 50 overs. The running between the wickets was the sharpest it's been for a while but the raw middle-order crumbled against an all-pace attack led by Brett Lee, who once again emphasised that he was at the peak of his powers. His hostile spell was instrumental in India slipping to 6 for 128 before rain interrupted play after the 36th over.
There was heavy overnight rain in Brisbane and then some more this morning but the excellent drainage facilities at the Gabba ensured that play started on time. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, like the captains in 16 out of the last 18 matches in Brisbane, chose to bat despite the overcast conditions and the greenish pitch.
The pitch offered bounce to Lee while Nathan Bracken swung the ball into the right-handers. It was one such inswinger from Bracken which cramped Virender Sehwag for room, forcing him to play on, and gave Australia their first breakthrough in the fourth over. Sehwag innings was brief but he and Sachin Tendulkar had signalled India's intent by dropping the ball with soft hands and running sharp singles.
Lee won the battle against Tendulkar yet again, although, this time he was lucky. Tendulkar nudged off the back foot towards square leg but moved too deep into the crease and hit his stumps with the heel of his boot. It was the first time that he had been dismissed hit-wicket in his 408-match career.
At 2 for 26, with the experienced openers gone, Australia had exposed India's middle order, which was weakened by Yuvraj Singh's absence. Gambhir and Sharma, however, eased the pressure by stealing singles at every opportunity.
Johnson, who vented his frustration after the dropped catches, trapped Gambhir leg before for 39 with one that slanted into the left-hander before Lee's double-strike ripped through the middle order. Sharma edged a wide ball from Lee to Gilchrist and Tiwary, who was set up by a series of bouncers, had no answer to a yorker that burst through his defences.
The flurry of wickets allowed Ponting to give Noffke a second spell and the move gave him his maiden ODI wicket. Noffke surprised Robin Uthappa with a short ball and the edge was comfortably taken by Michael Clarke at point. India had slipped from 2 for 92 to 6 for 102. The collapse forced Dhoni and Irfan Pathan to consolidate watchfully and they had added 26 runs off ten overs before rain halted play.
However, this is the take of cricinfo.com on today's match so far:
India's selectors picked an athletic but inexperienced side for the tri-series, and the merits and demerits of that decision were on display in the opening game in Brisbane as the visitors were in danger of getting bowled out inside 50 overs. The running between the wickets was the sharpest it's been for a while but the raw middle-order crumbled against an all-pace attack led by Brett Lee, who once again emphasised that he was at the peak of his powers. His hostile spell was instrumental in India slipping to 6 for 128 before rain interrupted play after the 36th over.
There was heavy overnight rain in Brisbane and then some more this morning but the excellent drainage facilities at the Gabba ensured that play started on time. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, like the captains in 16 out of the last 18 matches in Brisbane, chose to bat despite the overcast conditions and the greenish pitch.
The pitch offered bounce to Lee while Nathan Bracken swung the ball into the right-handers. It was one such inswinger from Bracken which cramped Virender Sehwag for room, forcing him to play on, and gave Australia their first breakthrough in the fourth over. Sehwag innings was brief but he and Sachin Tendulkar had signalled India's intent by dropping the ball with soft hands and running sharp singles.
Lee won the battle against Tendulkar yet again, although, this time he was lucky. Tendulkar nudged off the back foot towards square leg but moved too deep into the crease and hit his stumps with the heel of his boot. It was the first time that he had been dismissed hit-wicket in his 408-match career.
At 2 for 26, with the experienced openers gone, Australia had exposed India's middle order, which was weakened by Yuvraj Singh's absence. Gambhir and Sharma, however, eased the pressure by stealing singles at every opportunity.
Johnson, who vented his frustration after the dropped catches, trapped Gambhir leg before for 39 with one that slanted into the left-hander before Lee's double-strike ripped through the middle order. Sharma edged a wide ball from Lee to Gilchrist and Tiwary, who was set up by a series of bouncers, had no answer to a yorker that burst through his defences.
The flurry of wickets allowed Ponting to give Noffke a second spell and the move gave him his maiden ODI wicket. Noffke surprised Robin Uthappa with a short ball and the edge was comfortably taken by Michael Clarke at point. India had slipped from 2 for 92 to 6 for 102. The collapse forced Dhoni and Irfan Pathan to consolidate watchfully and they had added 26 runs off ten overs before rain halted play.
Indian young guns ready to be fired on all cyliners!!!
Tomorrow will come like a breath of fresh air with the first ODI match of the triangular series to be played on Sunday. Life me ek Sunday miss nahin hoga.
Let us see how the youngsters fare tomorrow. Aussies captain Ponting has started playing the mind game by saying that Ganguly's exclusion will prove to be a big mistake in the upcoming series to which Yuvi has reacted by saying that the present team is just right to take on any challenges. It is doubtful how highly Ponting rates Dada but it is all about exposing the chinks in the armour of the opponent. The infighting in Indian cricket leagues has lead to a psychological break-down, which is not visible from the looks of it.
However, the young Indian batsmen, many of whom have joined the team only for the T20 and tri-series, will be keen to make amends for the ordinary batting display in Melbourne where the team was shot out for a paltry 74 in 17.3 overs. Lack of practice might be one of the reasons behind the poor show, something which Dhoni had previously alluded to. In India, both the aftereffects-the euphoria after a win or the repurcussions after a loss- are intense in the extremes.
The Indian team can hope that Gilly's swansong will not be the one that befits him.
Something about the wicket!
The wicket, despite having slowed down a bit over the years, is still one of the livelier tracks of Australia and the humidity because of inclement weather is only going to add sting in the tails of the home pacemen.
It rained considerably in Brisbane on Saturday and more thunderstorms are predicted for Sunday.
We hope that this will not play a spolisport.
On-the-neighbour's-front, unlike the Government, Pakistan's cricket team should earn plaudits for completing a 5-0 whitewash of Zimbabwe in the ODI's in the Mobilink Cup.
A new-look Pakistan, without a handful of senior players, drove Zimbabwe into the ground with a comprehensive seven-wicket victory in the final one-dayer in Sheikhupura to clean sweep the Mobilink Cup 5-0. The overcast and bitterly cold conditions didn't faze debutant Khurram Manzoor and Younis Khan as they chased down a meagre target of 182 with 19 overs to spare.
What bodes well for the shpe of things to come insofar as Pakistan's cricket team is concerned is the emergence of spright youngsters who are ably complelmenting the experienced ones like Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq!
We Indians can also take a cue from Pakistan's line-up and must not rely on 'Josh' alone but on 'Josh with Hosh'.
All said and done, one match debacle does not sound a death knell for anyone. It can be one-off case in the one-off TT match. Let us hope for the best!
Let us see how the youngsters fare tomorrow. Aussies captain Ponting has started playing the mind game by saying that Ganguly's exclusion will prove to be a big mistake in the upcoming series to which Yuvi has reacted by saying that the present team is just right to take on any challenges. It is doubtful how highly Ponting rates Dada but it is all about exposing the chinks in the armour of the opponent. The infighting in Indian cricket leagues has lead to a psychological break-down, which is not visible from the looks of it.
However, the young Indian batsmen, many of whom have joined the team only for the T20 and tri-series, will be keen to make amends for the ordinary batting display in Melbourne where the team was shot out for a paltry 74 in 17.3 overs. Lack of practice might be one of the reasons behind the poor show, something which Dhoni had previously alluded to. In India, both the aftereffects-the euphoria after a win or the repurcussions after a loss- are intense in the extremes.
The Indian team can hope that Gilly's swansong will not be the one that befits him.
Something about the wicket!
The wicket, despite having slowed down a bit over the years, is still one of the livelier tracks of Australia and the humidity because of inclement weather is only going to add sting in the tails of the home pacemen.
It rained considerably in Brisbane on Saturday and more thunderstorms are predicted for Sunday.
We hope that this will not play a spolisport.
On-the-neighbour's-front, unlike the Government, Pakistan's cricket team should earn plaudits for completing a 5-0 whitewash of Zimbabwe in the ODI's in the Mobilink Cup.
A new-look Pakistan, without a handful of senior players, drove Zimbabwe into the ground with a comprehensive seven-wicket victory in the final one-dayer in Sheikhupura to clean sweep the Mobilink Cup 5-0. The overcast and bitterly cold conditions didn't faze debutant Khurram Manzoor and Younis Khan as they chased down a meagre target of 182 with 19 overs to spare.
What bodes well for the shpe of things to come insofar as Pakistan's cricket team is concerned is the emergence of spright youngsters who are ably complelmenting the experienced ones like Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq!
We Indians can also take a cue from Pakistan's line-up and must not rely on 'Josh' alone but on 'Josh with Hosh'.
All said and done, one match debacle does not sound a death knell for anyone. It can be one-off case in the one-off TT match. Let us hope for the best!
Friday, February 1, 2008
India crash to embarrassing loss in TT today
World champions India were brought down to earth, thrashed by a ruthless Australia by nine wickets in a low-scoring Twenty20 cricket international at a packed Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday.
The Indians were bundled out for a paltry 74 in 17.3 overs and the home team rattled up the required runs in just 11.2 overs
It seems that we are done in becz we are too many! The selectors must be nonplussed even more now that the young side's performance against the toughest host as well as the team proved to be a damp squib. The inexperience was palpable. The captain was leading a lost battle, albeit in an unimpressive way. Look at Dhoni's stats in today's TT match.
R M B 4s 6s SR
9 30 27 0 0 33.33
Now if this is a match saving effort then God save the Indian cricket team. Sachin is always the soft target for many and today too Dhoni commented after the loss that it was good for Sachin to take the break. What does that mean?
The young Indianj brigade seems to be struggling on a quality pitch and against a quality attack. Is TT really not the right test of one's cricketing abilities?
If it is so, then our being a TT World Cup champ was a fluke! Dhoni and quite a few amassed fortunes out of it.
It was perhaps the absence of Yuvi who is Ausralia's nemesis in the quicker format. Yuvi happens to be the saviour for Dhoni's captaincy and Dhoni must be reuing his absence.
The Indians were bundled out for a paltry 74 in 17.3 overs and the home team rattled up the required runs in just 11.2 overs
It seems that we are done in becz we are too many! The selectors must be nonplussed even more now that the young side's performance against the toughest host as well as the team proved to be a damp squib. The inexperience was palpable. The captain was leading a lost battle, albeit in an unimpressive way. Look at Dhoni's stats in today's TT match.
R M B 4s 6s SR
9 30 27 0 0 33.33
Now if this is a match saving effort then God save the Indian cricket team. Sachin is always the soft target for many and today too Dhoni commented after the loss that it was good for Sachin to take the break. What does that mean?
The young Indianj brigade seems to be struggling on a quality pitch and against a quality attack. Is TT really not the right test of one's cricketing abilities?
If it is so, then our being a TT World Cup champ was a fluke! Dhoni and quite a few amassed fortunes out of it.
It was perhaps the absence of Yuvi who is Ausralia's nemesis in the quicker format. Yuvi happens to be the saviour for Dhoni's captaincy and Dhoni must be reuing his absence.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Chilly winters have now charmed us!
It is now time we recognized the aestheticism in a chilly misty morning. Let us rememeber our youthful days when mist was synonymous with small town dating because the elders were unable to catch sight due to mist. The previous few days were quite tough as they were fraught with anticipation of withdrawal symptoms. They still are but now they have been accepted per se. However, morning brought an old english song on my lips after a long, long time. 'Nothing's gonna change my love for you....'. It is somewhat true. The proportion is quite miniature though. The 'shiddat' is not that much. But it exists.
It appears to be a transition from the intoxicated to the normal and then from the normal to the romantic. It is not smooth and seems to be almost a roller-coaster ride. But the happy end, if it occurs, fascinates a lot to be able to cope with the trials and tribulations.
It appears to be a transition from the intoxicated to the normal and then from the normal to the romantic. It is not smooth and seems to be almost a roller-coaster ride. But the happy end, if it occurs, fascinates a lot to be able to cope with the trials and tribulations.
Monday, January 28, 2008
It is high time I stopped something
After suffering from an overdose of wine yesterday, it was hard drying up today. Getting up in the morning I realized that ecstacy is better natural and not pushed by a stimulant. Perchance getting a high in an inebriated state creates the low in the sober state. Temperence does not gratify instantly but does not at least make life a rollercoaster ride.
Ergo, a word of caution to all tipplers will be fine if they carry it to excess at times. How good it would be if the breath of fresh air acts as an intoxicant in our daily lives. With due apologies to the metro denizens if the air is just not fresh!
It is surprising how we can create a virtual reality wherein a mind is transported to a different realm! Is it real if not surreal?
Resolutions are meant to broken like records. The willpower seems to intoxicated too and does not act naturally at times. The funda for the ensuing days will be to work lesser and party lesser as it offers a better substitute to me at this point of time.
It is rehab time folks.
All the best to myself!
Ergo, a word of caution to all tipplers will be fine if they carry it to excess at times. How good it would be if the breath of fresh air acts as an intoxicant in our daily lives. With due apologies to the metro denizens if the air is just not fresh!
It is surprising how we can create a virtual reality wherein a mind is transported to a different realm! Is it real if not surreal?
Resolutions are meant to broken like records. The willpower seems to intoxicated too and does not act naturally at times. The funda for the ensuing days will be to work lesser and party lesser as it offers a better substitute to me at this point of time.
It is rehab time folks.
All the best to myself!
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Is the Adelaide Test heading for a draw?
This is about a structured effort to outline what happened after the recent Perthquake test in which Australia lost to India after notching 16 Test wins in a row. Taking a lot from what I had previously wriiten, it is more about about Day 2 and Day 4 and the ripple effect it had on quite a few good men:
Perth Test 2K8, Day 2:
Every underdog has its day:
Talking of cricket, it was a great day 2 for India at Perth test match at the WACA stadium.
The crowd enjoyed real cricket bereft of any unsportsmanship antic. Aussies were skittled to a paltry score of 212 in reply to the India's first innings total of 330. Symonds was again threatening to be India's nemesis but fell short of that just in time. Gilly was also intimidating the Indian pace attack. He too did not last that long. In the end, the bowlers were able to mop up the tails.
This test will almost surely have a result if the rain gods do not intervene. However, the paradox is that in the attempt to play true cricket, the mighty Oz have crumbled, which brings forth the question if cricket is not just a mind game. Can true cricket be played without employing the mind game, so as to enjoy it in toto? Certainly sensationalism or sensitizing adds a wee bit of spice to everything. But the question is how far is too far?
All said and done, Aussies deserve kudos for behaving with such restraint and even if they lose the match, they will win so many hearts. With due respect to the Indian who have come as underdogs, they have been doing this since so many years.
After Day 4's historic win and the Indian selectors announcing the latest ODI squad:
BushWACA by Team India:
India has won the Perth test in a cliffhanger and without taking a cue from it the new ODI has been announced in which Dada and Dravid do not find a place. It has really been a bold but controversial decision of the selectors. Few have even gone to the extent of calling them names.
Yesterday, I was going through a World Cup TT match in which the young Indian side ousted the mighty Proteans in a tantalizing and gritty display of raw and fearless cricketing talent. It was a match in which Rohit Sharma from Mumbai excelled as a batter as well as a fielder. His devicing an impossible run-out was awesome. It made me realize that we need supple cricketers in the quicker format- the ODI's or TT. Dada has been awesome in the year 2007, amassing the highest ODI runs for Team India. However, he and Dravid do not carry the spark of Jonty Rhodes or our very own Dinesh Kartick, Yuvi, Robin Utthapa or for that matter Rohit Sharma. Fielding can be ignited by inspiration and if batting and bowling matter, let us not forget that fielding is given a short shrift. It also matters. Do not forget that catches win matches. Here, Team India has always been weak. For the first time, we have a team comprinsing the young blood that is raring to go for or after any shot in the stadium. We will have to supress our emotions for the larger good. A young and promising team is in the making. Personally, I idolize Sachin. However, for the sake of the larger good, if Sachin is axed once in a while to retun into fold later or take some rest temporarily, I will supress my love for the God of Indian cricket.
Let us think of a befitting team for the would be economic superpower-INDIA!!
A bit about the Adelaide Test 2K8:
It seems that the selectors have got the timing of announcement of the latest ODI squad wrong and Kumble seems to be right in pointing that. It has perchance played on the psyche of Dada and Dravid as they were out cheaply. Sachin and Kumble played like the virtuosi. A brilliant century (153) by Sachin, an ably lead example by Kumble who scored 85, and a scintillating batting diplay by the tailenders saw India amass more than 500 runs on the batsman friendly pitch. The Aussies are resilient and have started off quite well with Hayden scoring yet another century in the series like Sachin did and Ponting breathing down the neck of Sachin in terms of number of centuries. Hayden is not far behind too. More than 300 runs have been scored by the Aussies for the loss of 3 wickets. Ponting andClarke seem are consolidating the middle order. This seems to be a level playing field.
India can still take a sense of pride if this match draws in the worst case scenario. The Sydney match is not being seen as a genuine one because of bad umpiring in favour of the Aussies by Steve Bucknor, who is back to the Caribbean islands and it serves him right.
Despite Aussies being 2-1 up in records if this test is drawn, it should be perceived as a 1-1 draw in actuality by the honest blokes.
Let us see what happens.
Perth Test 2K8, Day 2:
Every underdog has its day:
Talking of cricket, it was a great day 2 for India at Perth test match at the WACA stadium.
The crowd enjoyed real cricket bereft of any unsportsmanship antic. Aussies were skittled to a paltry score of 212 in reply to the India's first innings total of 330. Symonds was again threatening to be India's nemesis but fell short of that just in time. Gilly was also intimidating the Indian pace attack. He too did not last that long. In the end, the bowlers were able to mop up the tails.
This test will almost surely have a result if the rain gods do not intervene. However, the paradox is that in the attempt to play true cricket, the mighty Oz have crumbled, which brings forth the question if cricket is not just a mind game. Can true cricket be played without employing the mind game, so as to enjoy it in toto? Certainly sensationalism or sensitizing adds a wee bit of spice to everything. But the question is how far is too far?
All said and done, Aussies deserve kudos for behaving with such restraint and even if they lose the match, they will win so many hearts. With due respect to the Indian who have come as underdogs, they have been doing this since so many years.
After Day 4's historic win and the Indian selectors announcing the latest ODI squad:
BushWACA by Team India:
India has won the Perth test in a cliffhanger and without taking a cue from it the new ODI has been announced in which Dada and Dravid do not find a place. It has really been a bold but controversial decision of the selectors. Few have even gone to the extent of calling them names.
Yesterday, I was going through a World Cup TT match in which the young Indian side ousted the mighty Proteans in a tantalizing and gritty display of raw and fearless cricketing talent. It was a match in which Rohit Sharma from Mumbai excelled as a batter as well as a fielder. His devicing an impossible run-out was awesome. It made me realize that we need supple cricketers in the quicker format- the ODI's or TT. Dada has been awesome in the year 2007, amassing the highest ODI runs for Team India. However, he and Dravid do not carry the spark of Jonty Rhodes or our very own Dinesh Kartick, Yuvi, Robin Utthapa or for that matter Rohit Sharma. Fielding can be ignited by inspiration and if batting and bowling matter, let us not forget that fielding is given a short shrift. It also matters. Do not forget that catches win matches. Here, Team India has always been weak. For the first time, we have a team comprinsing the young blood that is raring to go for or after any shot in the stadium. We will have to supress our emotions for the larger good. A young and promising team is in the making. Personally, I idolize Sachin. However, for the sake of the larger good, if Sachin is axed once in a while to retun into fold later or take some rest temporarily, I will supress my love for the God of Indian cricket.
Let us think of a befitting team for the would be economic superpower-INDIA!!
A bit about the Adelaide Test 2K8:
It seems that the selectors have got the timing of announcement of the latest ODI squad wrong and Kumble seems to be right in pointing that. It has perchance played on the psyche of Dada and Dravid as they were out cheaply. Sachin and Kumble played like the virtuosi. A brilliant century (153) by Sachin, an ably lead example by Kumble who scored 85, and a scintillating batting diplay by the tailenders saw India amass more than 500 runs on the batsman friendly pitch. The Aussies are resilient and have started off quite well with Hayden scoring yet another century in the series like Sachin did and Ponting breathing down the neck of Sachin in terms of number of centuries. Hayden is not far behind too. More than 300 runs have been scored by the Aussies for the loss of 3 wickets. Ponting andClarke seem are consolidating the middle order. This seems to be a level playing field.
India can still take a sense of pride if this match draws in the worst case scenario. The Sydney match is not being seen as a genuine one because of bad umpiring in favour of the Aussies by Steve Bucknor, who is back to the Caribbean islands and it serves him right.
Despite Aussies being 2-1 up in records if this test is drawn, it should be perceived as a 1-1 draw in actuality by the honest blokes.
Let us see what happens.
Monday, January 21, 2008
BushWACA by India!
India has won the Perth test in a cliffhanger and without taking a cue from it the new ODI has been announced in which Dada and Dravid do not find a place. It has really been a bold but controversial decision of the selectors. Few have even gone to the extent of calling them names.
Yesterday, I was going through a World Cup TT match in which the young Indian side ousted the mighty Proteans in a tantalizing and gritty display of raw and fearless cricketing talent. It was a match in which Rohit Sharma from Mumbai excelled as a batter as well as a fielder. His devicing an impossible run-out was awesome. It made me realize that we need supple cricketers in the quicker format- the ODI's or TT. Dada has been awesome in the year 2007 amassing the highest ODI runs for Team India. However, he and Dravid do not carry the spark of Jonty Rhodes or our very own Dinesh Kartick, Yuvi, Robin Utthapa or for that matter Rohit Sharma. Fielding can be ignited by inspiration and if batting and bowling matter, let us not forget that fielding is given a short shrift. It also matters. Do not forget that catches win matches. Here, Team India has always been weak. For the first time, we have a team comprinsing the young blood that is raring to go for any shot in the stadium. We will have to supress our emotions for the larger good. A young and promising team is in the making. Personally, I idolize Sachin. However, for the sake of the larger good, if Sachin is axed once in a while to retun into fold later or take some rest temporarily, I will supress my love for the God of Indian cricket.
Let us think of a befitting team for the would be economic superpower-INDIA!!!
Yesterday, I was going through a World Cup TT match in which the young Indian side ousted the mighty Proteans in a tantalizing and gritty display of raw and fearless cricketing talent. It was a match in which Rohit Sharma from Mumbai excelled as a batter as well as a fielder. His devicing an impossible run-out was awesome. It made me realize that we need supple cricketers in the quicker format- the ODI's or TT. Dada has been awesome in the year 2007 amassing the highest ODI runs for Team India. However, he and Dravid do not carry the spark of Jonty Rhodes or our very own Dinesh Kartick, Yuvi, Robin Utthapa or for that matter Rohit Sharma. Fielding can be ignited by inspiration and if batting and bowling matter, let us not forget that fielding is given a short shrift. It also matters. Do not forget that catches win matches. Here, Team India has always been weak. For the first time, we have a team comprinsing the young blood that is raring to go for any shot in the stadium. We will have to supress our emotions for the larger good. A young and promising team is in the making. Personally, I idolize Sachin. However, for the sake of the larger good, if Sachin is axed once in a while to retun into fold later or take some rest temporarily, I will supress my love for the God of Indian cricket.
Let us think of a befitting team for the would be economic superpower-INDIA!!!
Do the bones age faster than the mind?
It is bones vs mind for quite a few. Now what gets older fast is the issue. Weakness with passage of time in both is a given-gradual and inevitable. Can we have a technological paraphernalia that is able to quantify the strength quotient in both?
I have been around quite a few oldies who are suffering from osteo-arthritis and still have a very nimble mind. I wonder if old age has caught up with them just to decide how much sorry shall I feel for them. It goes without saying that on some other moments someone else will be contemplating a similar conundrum for me.
However, when I perceive the mental alacrity of these oldies I wish I could have returned into the fold similarly.
I have been around quite a few oldies who are suffering from osteo-arthritis and still have a very nimble mind. I wonder if old age has caught up with them just to decide how much sorry shall I feel for them. It goes without saying that on some other moments someone else will be contemplating a similar conundrum for me.
However, when I perceive the mental alacrity of these oldies I wish I could have returned into the fold similarly.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Every dog has its day!
Today was one of those usual days when I was left grappling for words and there was simply so much incoherence in my communcation. Rarely nowadays do I have a day when I am my usual self- verbally articulate. It is an anamoly that might be afflicting quite a few. A cricketer missing his hand-eye coordination is completely screwed. A person missing the heart and soul coordination is similarly screwed.
Talking of cricket, it was a great day 2 for India at Perth test match on WACA stadium.
The crowd enjoyed real cricket bereft of any unsportsmanship antic. Aussies were skittled to a paltry score of 212 in reply to the India's first innings total of 330. Symonds was again threatening to be India's nemesis but fell short of that just in time. Gilly was also intimidating the Indian pace attack. He too did not last that long. In the end, the bowlers were able to mop up the tails.
This test will almost surely have a result if the rain gods do not intervene. However, the paradox is that in the attempt to play true cricket, the mighty aussies have crumbled, which brings forth the question if cricket is not just a mind game. Can true cricket be played without employing the mind game, so as to enjoy it in toto. Certainly sensationalism or sensitizing adds a wee bit of spice to everything. But the question is how far is too far?
All said and done, aussies deserve kudos for behaving with such restraint and even if they lose the match, they will win so many hearts. The Indians have been doing that for so many years.
Talking of cricket, it was a great day 2 for India at Perth test match on WACA stadium.
The crowd enjoyed real cricket bereft of any unsportsmanship antic. Aussies were skittled to a paltry score of 212 in reply to the India's first innings total of 330. Symonds was again threatening to be India's nemesis but fell short of that just in time. Gilly was also intimidating the Indian pace attack. He too did not last that long. In the end, the bowlers were able to mop up the tails.
This test will almost surely have a result if the rain gods do not intervene. However, the paradox is that in the attempt to play true cricket, the mighty aussies have crumbled, which brings forth the question if cricket is not just a mind game. Can true cricket be played without employing the mind game, so as to enjoy it in toto. Certainly sensationalism or sensitizing adds a wee bit of spice to everything. But the question is how far is too far?
All said and done, aussies deserve kudos for behaving with such restraint and even if they lose the match, they will win so many hearts. The Indians have been doing that for so many years.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
gorkhanath baba ke khichdi chadain?
It was a great makar sankranti eve yesterday for me. I and my few engineering college juniors, with whom I am quite pally with, enjoyed everything esp the muskan sankritik samaroh...
the jhoolas were quite erratic and my usually skeptical self could not reconcile with the engineering ingenuity of the organizers. Still, I sat and thereafter got a shocker in my heart. Somehow I escaped and resolved that I have really grown old for such youthful antics.
Nonetheless, the crowd was largely from the rural fold but quite festive. It was a huge one too.
Khair, maja a gail bahut dher ohar....
the jhoolas were quite erratic and my usually skeptical self could not reconcile with the engineering ingenuity of the organizers. Still, I sat and thereafter got a shocker in my heart. Somehow I escaped and resolved that I have really grown old for such youthful antics.
Nonetheless, the crowd was largely from the rural fold but quite festive. It was a huge one too.
Khair, maja a gail bahut dher ohar....
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Why blogs are being debated?
Today there was a discussion going on NDTV on the blogs assuming a form of voeurism. The moderator was the quintessential modern day lady- the very very talented Barkha Dutt.
It was interesting to hear to diverse opinions. But by and large the majority stood by the relevance of blogs and the viewpoint more or less was that it is just another way of maintaining an online diary of yours and also a way of getting your presence noticed in the cyberworld.
Interestingly quite a few also maintained that it is another way of getting famous and who would not love that? The narcissist in us gets the upper of everything and it is too human a fallout. Which is why most of the bloggers, including me, flaunt their blogs in gmail or orkut or anywhere else.
Without fail, I have received zero coments in all but one of my blogs and my stats also say the same. Maybe they are not good enough. But that does not deter me from writing them.
Someone counteracted to the above rhetoric by saying that a blog rarely makes you famous.
Nonetheless, the blogophiles have discovered a forum where at the very least one can keep on writing-good or bad, just for the love of it. It keeps one in touch by and large with the issues- non-issues or burning issues because it is highly unlikely that a person writes crappy blogs just to flaunt them.
I guess a big shot from the company Blogworks said of among so many other things that content is the core basis of a book creation and this trend of book creation by dint of blogs hunting has still not started properly.
However, recent articles also suggest that even headhunters are seeking the help of blogs in searching new talents.
It was interesting to hear to diverse opinions. But by and large the majority stood by the relevance of blogs and the viewpoint more or less was that it is just another way of maintaining an online diary of yours and also a way of getting your presence noticed in the cyberworld.
Interestingly quite a few also maintained that it is another way of getting famous and who would not love that? The narcissist in us gets the upper of everything and it is too human a fallout. Which is why most of the bloggers, including me, flaunt their blogs in gmail or orkut or anywhere else.
Without fail, I have received zero coments in all but one of my blogs and my stats also say the same. Maybe they are not good enough. But that does not deter me from writing them.
Someone counteracted to the above rhetoric by saying that a blog rarely makes you famous.
Nonetheless, the blogophiles have discovered a forum where at the very least one can keep on writing-good or bad, just for the love of it. It keeps one in touch by and large with the issues- non-issues or burning issues because it is highly unlikely that a person writes crappy blogs just to flaunt them.
I guess a big shot from the company Blogworks said of among so many other things that content is the core basis of a book creation and this trend of book creation by dint of blogs hunting has still not started properly.
However, recent articles also suggest that even headhunters are seeking the help of blogs in searching new talents.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Tata's nano
It was the news of the day on the day of its launch two days before. It became a hot topic almost everywhere. People who are not car-freaks were also forced to know something about it so that they do not get excommunicated for the sheer ignorance.
The 'lakhtakiya' car as per the nickname given ought to be cheaper because taka is cheaper than INC.
Jokes apart, Ratan Tata's emotional connect with the Indian car afficiandos was a good pre-sales move. When he said that the Tatas have delivered their promise, the crowd was enthralled.
Business Standard says about Nano and Tata,
"It might have started as a widely misquoted dream of one man -- but Ratan Tata has ensured that he has turned it into an opportunity to take his firm to new heights."
Last heard that Ratan Tata is contemplating retirement from active business life after this venture.
The 'lakhtakiya' car as per the nickname given ought to be cheaper because taka is cheaper than INC.
Jokes apart, Ratan Tata's emotional connect with the Indian car afficiandos was a good pre-sales move. When he said that the Tatas have delivered their promise, the crowd was enthralled.
Business Standard says about Nano and Tata,
"It might have started as a widely misquoted dream of one man -- but Ratan Tata has ensured that he has turned it into an opportunity to take his firm to new heights."
Last heard that Ratan Tata is contemplating retirement from active business life after this venture.
Monday, January 7, 2008
XAT 2008 was not a shocker!
For those also interested in ca good b-school by dint of good score in XAT, this might not have come as a shocker as the level of toughness was not high vis-a-vis XAT 2007 or CAT 2007.
The surpriose element that was thrown in by XAT 2008 was the inclusion of questions based on decision making, which proved to be sitters. Maths copmprised easy to moderately tough questions.
English was not that dicey too as the passages, though highly abstract ones were still doable and subjectivity was not the spoilsport in XAT 2008 as it was in the case of CAT 2006 and CAT 2007.
Well, the cat will be out of the bag tomorrow and quite a few will come out again in shining colours. A new year of manger-creation has started and it is one night of torturous wait for the talented ones.
Even for the average joe, percentiles will come like a breath of fresh air for performances in putative world's toughest examination will always relative.
The surpriose element that was thrown in by XAT 2008 was the inclusion of questions based on decision making, which proved to be sitters. Maths copmprised easy to moderately tough questions.
English was not that dicey too as the passages, though highly abstract ones were still doable and subjectivity was not the spoilsport in XAT 2008 as it was in the case of CAT 2006 and CAT 2007.
Well, the cat will be out of the bag tomorrow and quite a few will come out again in shining colours. A new year of manger-creation has started and it is one night of torturous wait for the talented ones.
Even for the average joe, percentiles will come like a breath of fresh air for performances in putative world's toughest examination will always relative.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Happy New Year 2008
Let the year 08 be gr8 for everyone. Yesterday even me and my team had a bash within our modest means. Celebrating a new year is a concept still alien to many and for quite a few it is momentous because it means another holiday.:)
For the lazy ones it is definitely a good day and for the workaholics it means nonsensical wastage of time and money.
In Gorakhpur, roads are not that much chocabloc with honking cars vis-a-vis any larger city. And that does not lead to the much desired road rage on this particular day. For quietude is not the hallmark of this day and people love to go berserk if not on a rampage. Brandon Mccullum, New Zealand batter, had a great day yesterday finishing off the year in style. He enjoyed the run feast by hitting 80 plus runs in just 28 deliveries, a blitzkrieg that comprised six towering sixes.
What was pardoxical for my hometown was the fact that light went away dot on 12 a.m., signalling the shape of things to come in 08. I got pissed off because of this and decided to stroll to see the ire in the streets. There was no reaction from the rich as they were snoozing off.However, the poor community was somewhat more energetic and quite a few were wetting up in their alcohol pouches and hurling expletives on the degenerating system. That meant that the momentum was there.
It was an unusually cold day. I was coughing a lot and got disturbed mentally that maybe it is a bad signal and is a result of heavy smoking since so many years.
The morning was better as I was not coughing that much. I resolved that at least on the first day of this year, lemme quit smoking, irrespective of the fact that the rot has set in or not.
Today is rather one of those rare peaceful days when the mind is not in a state of any complex. It has been a smooth sail so far with a lot of socializing. Old acquaintances have suddenly caught up leaving the mind feel more empowered. They have also been kinder and very encouraging, contrary to the kinds I was frequently meeting since the past so many days. I will not say that we have won over things. How can anyone do that?
Still, the mindset matters a lot. Things seem rotten because the eyes are not conditioned rightly to perceive them in the right perspective. One of my good friends has promised to come soon with a treat in the offing again. I can very well contrast the pessimism of the last night with the optismic shiny afternoon of today. Who knows it might again give way to the former? But at this moment, life seems beautiful. I am again getting flashes of good old memories when the green leaves were enough to stir the soul and morning mist was the soul food. I bear an allegiance to my wintry past as it has kept me aesthetically and emotionally overwhelmed. It is not to say that summers are aweful. I remember a good song from the movie 'Mausam'. The fast song 'Dil dhhondta hai' comprising a duet highlights the myriad hues of various seasons.
The new year starts with winter in India. Ergo, let us at least start enjoying the winter to savor the rest of seasons the entire year.
In the end, Happy New Year!!!
For the lazy ones it is definitely a good day and for the workaholics it means nonsensical wastage of time and money.
In Gorakhpur, roads are not that much chocabloc with honking cars vis-a-vis any larger city. And that does not lead to the much desired road rage on this particular day. For quietude is not the hallmark of this day and people love to go berserk if not on a rampage. Brandon Mccullum, New Zealand batter, had a great day yesterday finishing off the year in style. He enjoyed the run feast by hitting 80 plus runs in just 28 deliveries, a blitzkrieg that comprised six towering sixes.
What was pardoxical for my hometown was the fact that light went away dot on 12 a.m., signalling the shape of things to come in 08. I got pissed off because of this and decided to stroll to see the ire in the streets. There was no reaction from the rich as they were snoozing off.However, the poor community was somewhat more energetic and quite a few were wetting up in their alcohol pouches and hurling expletives on the degenerating system. That meant that the momentum was there.
It was an unusually cold day. I was coughing a lot and got disturbed mentally that maybe it is a bad signal and is a result of heavy smoking since so many years.
The morning was better as I was not coughing that much. I resolved that at least on the first day of this year, lemme quit smoking, irrespective of the fact that the rot has set in or not.
Today is rather one of those rare peaceful days when the mind is not in a state of any complex. It has been a smooth sail so far with a lot of socializing. Old acquaintances have suddenly caught up leaving the mind feel more empowered. They have also been kinder and very encouraging, contrary to the kinds I was frequently meeting since the past so many days. I will not say that we have won over things. How can anyone do that?
Still, the mindset matters a lot. Things seem rotten because the eyes are not conditioned rightly to perceive them in the right perspective. One of my good friends has promised to come soon with a treat in the offing again. I can very well contrast the pessimism of the last night with the optismic shiny afternoon of today. Who knows it might again give way to the former? But at this moment, life seems beautiful. I am again getting flashes of good old memories when the green leaves were enough to stir the soul and morning mist was the soul food. I bear an allegiance to my wintry past as it has kept me aesthetically and emotionally overwhelmed. It is not to say that summers are aweful. I remember a good song from the movie 'Mausam'. The fast song 'Dil dhhondta hai' comprising a duet highlights the myriad hues of various seasons.
The new year starts with winter in India. Ergo, let us at least start enjoying the winter to savor the rest of seasons the entire year.
In the end, Happy New Year!!!
Sunday, December 30, 2007
The day has begun
Tasks have started. Since yesterday, I am suffering from cough and cold. Being an inveterate smoker, there is always a fear of cancer curing my smoking. But then if I can quit, so far so good. If I meet a premature end, never mind.
Osho says that death is a celebration.
Easier said than done. But if that held sense for the majority then at least we could have endured the losses of lives. Time could have become a faster healer.
The transcedental is still missing from my life. Despite earning a pittance in a sinecure, I feel that the process of earning moolah has killed the human within me.
Maybe, it is a one-off case or another reason for escaping.:)
I know not but I will try to add some spice into it. I plan to go to Kushinagar very soon. It has a calming and nostalgic effect for me. There are a certain things that evoke these stimuli.
Osho says that death is a celebration.
Easier said than done. But if that held sense for the majority then at least we could have endured the losses of lives. Time could have become a faster healer.
The transcedental is still missing from my life. Despite earning a pittance in a sinecure, I feel that the process of earning moolah has killed the human within me.
Maybe, it is a one-off case or another reason for escaping.:)
I know not but I will try to add some spice into it. I plan to go to Kushinagar very soon. It has a calming and nostalgic effect for me. There are a certain things that evoke these stimuli.
Become a writing junkie!
Well, this addiction does not have a name and does not qualify to be callled an addiction. Where are the takers anyway? Despite all of this, we still believe that it is one good way of letting go of your self. That is the primordial essence. No facts. No data driven logic. No reasoning. No rules. No constraints.
Welcome to the world of child-dom. Writing can be childlike and yet carry a lot of gravitas. Ask them who wanna break from the sober-mover, class-conscious, money-spinner, derivatives-ruled, mundane-owned, etc etc etc lives!!!
Hey, no-holds-barred blokes!
Max ur mirth...
I believe in Zorba-the warrior. Whaddayasuggest?
I may not be that proficient in linguistics. But I do have the audacity to challenge it!!!
And if you can provide me a decent vocation, it will be sooooo kind of you.
Welcome to the world of child-dom. Writing can be childlike and yet carry a lot of gravitas. Ask them who wanna break from the sober-mover, class-conscious, money-spinner, derivatives-ruled, mundane-owned, etc etc etc lives!!!
Hey, no-holds-barred blokes!
Max ur mirth...
I believe in Zorba-the warrior. Whaddayasuggest?
I may not be that proficient in linguistics. But I do have the audacity to challenge it!!!
And if you can provide me a decent vocation, it will be sooooo kind of you.
Where do we stand in the pyramid?
It seems that even if we stand at the bottom of the pyramid with lots of grilling being done from the apex, we are mightily satisfied with our inflated egos that we are being grilled by the apex.
Entreneurship comes with a lot of tough calls. Firstly, one should learn to master the demons within and thereafter try to ward off the external negativity.
That is true with lives too. The personal life is in shambles because of the unleashing of inner demons. How one realizes it too late in life!
But if it not that late, one must strive to get back the original self- that of a pure and happy child by ignoring all the negatives and focusing solely on the positives. There is a lot of yin and yang around and the philosophy also underscores the presence of both stabilty. For what is positive but negative turned inside out?
Ergo, we have to treat both with equanimity.
A venture- big or small, in a metro or a village, in a booming sector or -not-so-happening one, full of recognition or lacking that etc etc is so fraught with criticism. And one must learn to take these in the stride. That is the first stage of it. Then again, it has to be carried out with full self-belief. A cause in which you are dispassionate or even if you are not is not a cause worth fighting for. For what has been achieved without passion?
I read somewhere that a singer is half a singer if he hates the audience. A cricketer is half a cricketer if he hates fielding. etc. etc. etc.
At the outset, we reduce chances of success by half if we have an apathetic attitude towards it.
Gandhi is now a brand because he believed strongly in his mission, irrespective of the fact that it almost an 'Ekla Chalo' solo effort intially from his side.
I agree that the majority who have tried to emulate Gandhi have perished untimely. How does it matter?
It is better to persih for your cause than to live in a cause that ypu do not believe in because that is another form of death and not life at all.
Philosophy apart, practically speaking any venture rquires capital and if you do not have one, accept the mistake candidly and do not take it as a bottleneck to impede further capital creation. Generate capital from whichever good source you can. Go berserk and overboard in that effort. The world is cruel. You also become ruthless in mental strategies for capital acquisition. Nothing will be offered on a platter. Opportunities can be identified and we are in such a booming economy that we can do that. Do not bother if you have to make any good bloke your ATM for a while. You can return back much more than what you have taken. Hence, become bold in that and do not shy away. Ask freely anyone and convince him of your plans. Make sure it makes solid business sense and it is not a whacky idea of a screwed brain. For that, prepare a roadmap so that you do not reduce yourself as a butt of anyone's joke when you talk of your plans.
Branding is also important and that too depends a lot on capital. However, the expenditure can be reduced by liaisoning, word of mouth, generating good-will, networking and executing.
Well, one can become one's own master and despite the fact that in India entrepreneurship in any field a stigma, we can break free from the shackles through positive thinking. And positive attitude can take one places no matter when one starts.
Okay, so I was convincing myself by writing all these. I feel more confident of starting a venture that will be my baby.
Entreneurship comes with a lot of tough calls. Firstly, one should learn to master the demons within and thereafter try to ward off the external negativity.
That is true with lives too. The personal life is in shambles because of the unleashing of inner demons. How one realizes it too late in life!
But if it not that late, one must strive to get back the original self- that of a pure and happy child by ignoring all the negatives and focusing solely on the positives. There is a lot of yin and yang around and the philosophy also underscores the presence of both stabilty. For what is positive but negative turned inside out?
Ergo, we have to treat both with equanimity.
A venture- big or small, in a metro or a village, in a booming sector or -not-so-happening one, full of recognition or lacking that etc etc is so fraught with criticism. And one must learn to take these in the stride. That is the first stage of it. Then again, it has to be carried out with full self-belief. A cause in which you are dispassionate or even if you are not is not a cause worth fighting for. For what has been achieved without passion?
I read somewhere that a singer is half a singer if he hates the audience. A cricketer is half a cricketer if he hates fielding. etc. etc. etc.
At the outset, we reduce chances of success by half if we have an apathetic attitude towards it.
Gandhi is now a brand because he believed strongly in his mission, irrespective of the fact that it almost an 'Ekla Chalo' solo effort intially from his side.
I agree that the majority who have tried to emulate Gandhi have perished untimely. How does it matter?
It is better to persih for your cause than to live in a cause that ypu do not believe in because that is another form of death and not life at all.
Philosophy apart, practically speaking any venture rquires capital and if you do not have one, accept the mistake candidly and do not take it as a bottleneck to impede further capital creation. Generate capital from whichever good source you can. Go berserk and overboard in that effort. The world is cruel. You also become ruthless in mental strategies for capital acquisition. Nothing will be offered on a platter. Opportunities can be identified and we are in such a booming economy that we can do that. Do not bother if you have to make any good bloke your ATM for a while. You can return back much more than what you have taken. Hence, become bold in that and do not shy away. Ask freely anyone and convince him of your plans. Make sure it makes solid business sense and it is not a whacky idea of a screwed brain. For that, prepare a roadmap so that you do not reduce yourself as a butt of anyone's joke when you talk of your plans.
Branding is also important and that too depends a lot on capital. However, the expenditure can be reduced by liaisoning, word of mouth, generating good-will, networking and executing.
Well, one can become one's own master and despite the fact that in India entrepreneurship in any field a stigma, we can break free from the shackles through positive thinking. And positive attitude can take one places no matter when one starts.
Okay, so I was convincing myself by writing all these. I feel more confident of starting a venture that will be my baby.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
The enslaved psyche!
'Freedom' is a dirty word. Career has usurped its importance. We live our ebtire life for the sake of recognition and do not give even an iota of consideration to freedom of choosing any task. The run-of-the-mill money making process is the de rigeur of the day.
For that there a few good men who toil for more than 12 hours a day and suffer severe chidings by the peer despite loathing that. Why do live like that against their natural likings? Perhaps recognition is a very strong concept today and what does take in a few cases. Repression of desires. And who says that to? Money can satisfy all desires. And the majority is cocksure about that.
These are the best of the times and these are the worst of the times. Dickens said that long back, but it is even more germane today. And that is perhaps the trouble.We get stressed because of this disconnect. We vacillate between the two. Lives have become a shuttlecock. The two halves of the court are our nemesis.
Noone respects a truly free man. Is there really one?
Man was born free but alas evereywhere he is in chains!
Sometimes we can resolve to break at least a few links in the fetters of the society. This does reuire a lot of guts and gumption as the mighty society is cruel on anyonewho dares even to think of it. And yes the brickbats will be received with a much greater frequency and that is where an individual has to headstrong in not minding them.
If we sensitize it in toto, the repurcussions will be so strong that the individual will simply perish. What is required is perhaps the respect of ideologies and a silent but steely resolve to continue waking on the road less travelled despite all the expletives being hurled by all and sundry.
Man was born free. Adam must have lived lesser but he probalby enjoyed evry minute of his life. He was not probably even concerned about the perils of living the life of a neanderthal man. When you are blissfully aware of the hazards, you enjoy them and perhaps come out a winner in a better way.
We are aware of the shortcomings of the life of a Neanderthal man but we are unable to enjoy our own cosy lifestyle. Throw insecurities and unsettle the settlement to enjoy life at times.
Settlement is always temporary if we view it from the philosophical perspectives.
I accept that it can be a case of 'Grapes are sour'. We have to do justice to our potential, talent, education, culture, and so on and so forth. The list is endless. Daily we need to report to the society and we have no time to report to ourselves. We can try to be the master of our lives. We can try for that.
For that there a few good men who toil for more than 12 hours a day and suffer severe chidings by the peer despite loathing that. Why do live like that against their natural likings? Perhaps recognition is a very strong concept today and what does take in a few cases. Repression of desires. And who says that to? Money can satisfy all desires. And the majority is cocksure about that.
These are the best of the times and these are the worst of the times. Dickens said that long back, but it is even more germane today. And that is perhaps the trouble.We get stressed because of this disconnect. We vacillate between the two. Lives have become a shuttlecock. The two halves of the court are our nemesis.
Noone respects a truly free man. Is there really one?
Man was born free but alas evereywhere he is in chains!
Sometimes we can resolve to break at least a few links in the fetters of the society. This does reuire a lot of guts and gumption as the mighty society is cruel on anyonewho dares even to think of it. And yes the brickbats will be received with a much greater frequency and that is where an individual has to headstrong in not minding them.
If we sensitize it in toto, the repurcussions will be so strong that the individual will simply perish. What is required is perhaps the respect of ideologies and a silent but steely resolve to continue waking on the road less travelled despite all the expletives being hurled by all and sundry.
Man was born free. Adam must have lived lesser but he probalby enjoyed evry minute of his life. He was not probably even concerned about the perils of living the life of a neanderthal man. When you are blissfully aware of the hazards, you enjoy them and perhaps come out a winner in a better way.
We are aware of the shortcomings of the life of a Neanderthal man but we are unable to enjoy our own cosy lifestyle. Throw insecurities and unsettle the settlement to enjoy life at times.
Settlement is always temporary if we view it from the philosophical perspectives.
I accept that it can be a case of 'Grapes are sour'. We have to do justice to our potential, talent, education, culture, and so on and so forth. The list is endless. Daily we need to report to the society and we have no time to report to ourselves. We can try to be the master of our lives. We can try for that.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Sachin the living!!!
I suddenly can recall the genius of Sachin Tednulkar- the god of cricket. He is the God of largest things!!!
If the fools require the testimonies, here are a few that would silence the impotent critics:
http://www.google.co.in/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=videos+sachin+tendulkar&meta=
http://www.ulinkx.com/video/31676/indian_cricket_sachin_smashing_the_aussies
http://uprightvideos.blogspot.com/2006/01/mindblowing-shots-from-sachin.html
http://www.geocities.com/bgana99/srtendulkarvideo.html
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9175699262769547045
http://cricketvideojunk.blogspot.com/2007/01/sachin-tendulkar-at-his-best.html
We know that this is not required because a god needs not anything, but still we all must write an ode for Him i.e. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.
If the fools require the testimonies, here are a few that would silence the impotent critics:
http://www.google.co.in/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=videos+sachin+tendulkar&meta=
http://www.ulinkx.com/video/31676/indian_cricket_sachin_smashing_the_aussies
http://uprightvideos.blogspot.com/2006/01/mindblowing-shots-from-sachin.html
http://www.geocities.com/bgana99/srtendulkarvideo.html
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9175699262769547045
http://cricketvideojunk.blogspot.com/2007/01/sachin-tendulkar-at-his-best.html
We know that this is not required because a god needs not anything, but still we all must write an ode for Him i.e. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Enough is enough. Benazir Bhutto is assasinated!
What is happening to the world order? Another death blow to democracy has been struck. Despite all the differences in the subcontinent, we all are immensely shocked at what has happened to a person who has been by and large a liberal politician and has thus paid the price for it. On these moments we realise that we feel grieved not for a member of any particular community but that we feel grieved for the loss of humanity. The Frankenstein continues to terrorise humanity and we are but noble white-collared subservients to it. Pervez Musharraf is a hated man nowadays perchance even in Pakistan. He is defending a stance akin to that of George Bush in the US of A. Both seem to be hated for their anti-democratic policies.
Born on 21st June, 1953 to one of the elitest families of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto has met an end that somewhat strikes 'deja vu' for the Indian public that had been tormented in the past by the killings in the reputed Gandhi clan.
It is not the concern for the chotic Pakistan. It is a concern of the security all across the world. As of now, Pakistan seems to be the worst sufferer. Who knows who will will follow suit?
Nonetheless, the mournful mind still cannot reconcile with the fact that she is no more with us.
Born on 21st June, 1953 to one of the elitest families of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto has met an end that somewhat strikes 'deja vu' for the Indian public that had been tormented in the past by the killings in the reputed Gandhi clan.
It is not the concern for the chotic Pakistan. It is a concern of the security all across the world. As of now, Pakistan seems to be the worst sufferer. Who knows who will will follow suit?
Nonetheless, the mournful mind still cannot reconcile with the fact that she is no more with us.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Life is beautiful
I used to be under the charm of the evil genius of Hitler but yesterday when I saw the movie Life is Beautiful it dawned upon me that the trauma of the families who were executed en masse in his regime was far more than we recall in our prosperity. It is almost a similar situation nowadays with global terrorism raising its ugly head. I used to be somewhat antagonistic of american policies but the image of an americ war tank rescuing so many jews in the movie made me realise that it is a lesser evil. the only concern is that its publicity machinery is also gobbelean in nature and bush is being accused of behaving like another evil leader like Hitler. Without deterrants, use of power becomes atrocious. And that is sad whenever and wherever it happens.
Talking of the movie, I belong to the genre of the impressionable youths who get awestruck so easily. Ergo, I found Roberto Benigni and others in the movie awesome. He is the talented man who became famous also for his antics off the reel cinema.
I wish to paste excerpts from wikipedia about the dramatic but inspirationional.
As per the wikipedia about Robert Benigni:
His first experiences as a theatre actor took place in 1972, in Prato. During that autumn he moved to Rome where he took part in some experimental theatre shows, some of which he also directed. In 1975, Benigni had his first theatrical success with Cioni Mario di Gaspare fu Giulia, written by Giuseppe Bertolucci.
Benigni became famous in Italy in the 1970s for a shocking TV series called Televacca, on RAI2, by Renzo Arbore, in which he interpreted the satirical piece "anthem of the melt body" (L'inno del corpo sciolto, a hymn to defecation).[2] A great scandal for the time, the series was suspended due to censorship. His first film was 1977's Berlinguer ti voglio bene, also by Giuseppe Bertolucci.
Afterwards, he appeared during a public political demonstration of the Italian Communist Party, of which he was a sympathiser, and in this occasion he took in his arms and dangled the national leader Enrico Berlinguer, a very serious figure. It was an unprecedented act, given that until that moment Italian politicians were proverbially serious and formal (and Berlinguer was perhaps the most serious of them all). It represented a breaking point, after which politicians experimented with newer habits and "public manners", attended fewer formal events and, generally speaking, modified their lifestyle in order to exhibit a more popular behaviour. Benigni was censored again in the 1980s for calling the Pope John Paul II something impolite during an important live TV show ("Wojtylaccio", meaning "Bad Wojtyla" in Italian).
His popularity increased with another Arbore's show, L'altra domenica (1978), in which Benigni portrayed a lazy film critic who has never watched the film for which he is called to review.
Life Is Beautiful and beyond
Benigni is probably best known outside Italy for his 1997 tragicomedy Life Is Beautiful (La vita è bella), filmed in Cortona and Arezzo, also written by Cerami. The film is about an Italian Jewish man who tries to protect his son's innocence during his internment at a Nazi concentration camp, by telling him that the Holocaust is an elaborate game and he must adhere very carefully to the rules to win. Benigni's father had spent two years in a concentration camp in Bergen-Belsen, and La Vita è bella is based in part on his father's experiences. In 1998, the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards and Benigni personally won the Best Actor. The Best Foreign Language Film is awarded to the film itself, but Academy rules stipulate that the director will accept the award.[3] The score by Nicola Piovani also won an Oscar. Famously, in the midst of being so giddy with delight, he climbed on the back of the seat for his procession to the stage and applauded the audience after he was told he had won one of his Oscars. The next year's ceremony, when he read the nominees for the Academy Award for Best Actress, host Billy Crystal playfully appeared behind him with a large net to restrain Benigni if he got excessive with his antics again.
As per the wikipedia about Life is Beautiful:
Title
The title derives from Leon Trotsky's last testament; while in exile in Mexico, expecting to die shortly from high blood pressure (or from agents loyal to his rival Joseph Stalin), Trotsky wrote,
"Natasha has just come up to the window from the courtyard and opened it wider so that the air may enter more freely into my room. I can see the bright green strip of grass beneath the wall, and the clear blue sky above the wall, and sunlight everywhere. Life is beautiful. Let the future generations cleanse it of all evil, oppression and violence, and enjoy it to the full."
Plot
The first half of the movie is a whimsical, romantic comedy and often slapstick. Guido (Roberto Benigni), a young Italian Jew, arrives in Arezzo where he sets up a bookstore. Guido is both funny and charismatic, especially when he romances Dora (Italian, but not Jewish), portrayed by Benigni's actual wife Nicoletta Braschi), whom he steals – at her engagement – from her rude and loud fiancé. Several years pass, in which Guido and Dora have a son, Joshua (written Giosuè in the Italian version. Portrayed by Giorgio Cantarini). In the film, Joshua is around five years old. However, both the beginning and ending of the film is narrated by an older Joshua.
In the second half of the movie, Guido, his uncle, and Joshua are taken to a concentration camp on Joshua's birthday. Dora demands to join her family and is permitted to do so. In an attempt to keep up Joshua's spirits, Guido convinces him that the camp is just a game – a game in which the first person to get a thousand points wins a tank. He tells Joshua that if you complain for hunger you lose points, while quiet boys who hide from the camp guards earn points. He convinces Joshua that the camp guards are mean because they want the tank for themselves and that all the other children are hiding in order to win the game. He puts off every attempt of Joshua ending the game and returning home by convincing him that they are in the lead for the tank. Despite being surrounded by rampant death and people and all their sicknesses, Joshua doesn't question this fiction both because of his father's convincing performance and his own innocence.
Guido maintains this story right until the end, when – in the chaos caused by the American advance drawing near – he tells his son to stay in a sweatbox until everybody has left, this being the final test before the tank is his. After trying to find Dora, Guido is caught, taken away, and is shot by a Nazi guard, but not before making his son laugh one last time. Joshua manages to survive, and thinks he has won the game when an American tank arrives to liberate the camp, and he is reunited with his mother.
Talking of the movie, I belong to the genre of the impressionable youths who get awestruck so easily. Ergo, I found Roberto Benigni and others in the movie awesome. He is the talented man who became famous also for his antics off the reel cinema.
I wish to paste excerpts from wikipedia about the dramatic but inspirationional.
As per the wikipedia about Robert Benigni:
His first experiences as a theatre actor took place in 1972, in Prato. During that autumn he moved to Rome where he took part in some experimental theatre shows, some of which he also directed. In 1975, Benigni had his first theatrical success with Cioni Mario di Gaspare fu Giulia, written by Giuseppe Bertolucci.
Benigni became famous in Italy in the 1970s for a shocking TV series called Televacca, on RAI2, by Renzo Arbore, in which he interpreted the satirical piece "anthem of the melt body" (L'inno del corpo sciolto, a hymn to defecation).[2] A great scandal for the time, the series was suspended due to censorship. His first film was 1977's Berlinguer ti voglio bene, also by Giuseppe Bertolucci.
Afterwards, he appeared during a public political demonstration of the Italian Communist Party, of which he was a sympathiser, and in this occasion he took in his arms and dangled the national leader Enrico Berlinguer, a very serious figure. It was an unprecedented act, given that until that moment Italian politicians were proverbially serious and formal (and Berlinguer was perhaps the most serious of them all). It represented a breaking point, after which politicians experimented with newer habits and "public manners", attended fewer formal events and, generally speaking, modified their lifestyle in order to exhibit a more popular behaviour. Benigni was censored again in the 1980s for calling the Pope John Paul II something impolite during an important live TV show ("Wojtylaccio", meaning "Bad Wojtyla" in Italian).
His popularity increased with another Arbore's show, L'altra domenica (1978), in which Benigni portrayed a lazy film critic who has never watched the film for which he is called to review.
Life Is Beautiful and beyond
Benigni is probably best known outside Italy for his 1997 tragicomedy Life Is Beautiful (La vita è bella), filmed in Cortona and Arezzo, also written by Cerami. The film is about an Italian Jewish man who tries to protect his son's innocence during his internment at a Nazi concentration camp, by telling him that the Holocaust is an elaborate game and he must adhere very carefully to the rules to win. Benigni's father had spent two years in a concentration camp in Bergen-Belsen, and La Vita è bella is based in part on his father's experiences. In 1998, the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards and Benigni personally won the Best Actor. The Best Foreign Language Film is awarded to the film itself, but Academy rules stipulate that the director will accept the award.[3] The score by Nicola Piovani also won an Oscar. Famously, in the midst of being so giddy with delight, he climbed on the back of the seat for his procession to the stage and applauded the audience after he was told he had won one of his Oscars. The next year's ceremony, when he read the nominees for the Academy Award for Best Actress, host Billy Crystal playfully appeared behind him with a large net to restrain Benigni if he got excessive with his antics again.
As per the wikipedia about Life is Beautiful:
Title
The title derives from Leon Trotsky's last testament; while in exile in Mexico, expecting to die shortly from high blood pressure (or from agents loyal to his rival Joseph Stalin), Trotsky wrote,
"Natasha has just come up to the window from the courtyard and opened it wider so that the air may enter more freely into my room. I can see the bright green strip of grass beneath the wall, and the clear blue sky above the wall, and sunlight everywhere. Life is beautiful. Let the future generations cleanse it of all evil, oppression and violence, and enjoy it to the full."
Plot
The first half of the movie is a whimsical, romantic comedy and often slapstick. Guido (Roberto Benigni), a young Italian Jew, arrives in Arezzo where he sets up a bookstore. Guido is both funny and charismatic, especially when he romances Dora (Italian, but not Jewish), portrayed by Benigni's actual wife Nicoletta Braschi), whom he steals – at her engagement – from her rude and loud fiancé. Several years pass, in which Guido and Dora have a son, Joshua (written Giosuè in the Italian version. Portrayed by Giorgio Cantarini). In the film, Joshua is around five years old. However, both the beginning and ending of the film is narrated by an older Joshua.
In the second half of the movie, Guido, his uncle, and Joshua are taken to a concentration camp on Joshua's birthday. Dora demands to join her family and is permitted to do so. In an attempt to keep up Joshua's spirits, Guido convinces him that the camp is just a game – a game in which the first person to get a thousand points wins a tank. He tells Joshua that if you complain for hunger you lose points, while quiet boys who hide from the camp guards earn points. He convinces Joshua that the camp guards are mean because they want the tank for themselves and that all the other children are hiding in order to win the game. He puts off every attempt of Joshua ending the game and returning home by convincing him that they are in the lead for the tank. Despite being surrounded by rampant death and people and all their sicknesses, Joshua doesn't question this fiction both because of his father's convincing performance and his own innocence.
Guido maintains this story right until the end, when – in the chaos caused by the American advance drawing near – he tells his son to stay in a sweatbox until everybody has left, this being the final test before the tank is his. After trying to find Dora, Guido is caught, taken away, and is shot by a Nazi guard, but not before making his son laugh one last time. Joshua manages to survive, and thinks he has won the game when an American tank arrives to liberate the camp, and he is reunited with his mother.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Love in the times of Cholera!
Perhaps I am able to recall the facts correctly. I have not read this novel but perchance remember (probably correctly) seeing it being read by Kate Beckinsale in the flick 'Serendipity'. I know not what it means. But the movie seemed to be pretty romantic, albeit tragic in the end. John Cussac dies a very different kind of end. It seemed to be an end that one can only fantasise of in true love, with dreams as rich as stars broken by the vulgar realities.
The first million in terms of money is very lucrative and indeed it should be. But what do we say about a life full of millions of desires besides that of accumation of power and pelf? Indeed, we are sometimes left with a dry life because with the onset of maturity, hedonism apart, desires are not as livid as they are in the reckless youth. With urbanisation spreading its tentacles almost everywhere, the greying of youth happens much earlier.
The pleasures of youth can be felt only in our heydays and we do not rue the loss because life offers an alternative to it- ambition.
Become the best rat in the race because ultimately rat is the winner. And who cares about the loser. Justifiably so.
However, the heart still meanders sometimes and fantasises of a dream land where fairies abound and angels make love with them.
it dreams of a land where a breath of fresh air is the ambrosia and one is intoxicated with life(too bad for the tipplers!).
The dreams sometimes create a hallucination about an Elysian where people are full of smiles and genuinely hug each other at their achievements; a place that is free of any ego trip because harbouring an ego requires lot of dissipation of one's nervous energy. Who has the time for it when the prime mover is love? Yeah, someone rightly said that loving is the most difficult thing to do in life and almost all of us are escapists and shun doing that. The heart is not dry and the body not a zombie. The greatest wish of life can be that let this life have a complete life. We are not content with anything less.
The first million in terms of money is very lucrative and indeed it should be. But what do we say about a life full of millions of desires besides that of accumation of power and pelf? Indeed, we are sometimes left with a dry life because with the onset of maturity, hedonism apart, desires are not as livid as they are in the reckless youth. With urbanisation spreading its tentacles almost everywhere, the greying of youth happens much earlier.
The pleasures of youth can be felt only in our heydays and we do not rue the loss because life offers an alternative to it- ambition.
Become the best rat in the race because ultimately rat is the winner. And who cares about the loser. Justifiably so.
However, the heart still meanders sometimes and fantasises of a dream land where fairies abound and angels make love with them.
it dreams of a land where a breath of fresh air is the ambrosia and one is intoxicated with life(too bad for the tipplers!).
The dreams sometimes create a hallucination about an Elysian where people are full of smiles and genuinely hug each other at their achievements; a place that is free of any ego trip because harbouring an ego requires lot of dissipation of one's nervous energy. Who has the time for it when the prime mover is love? Yeah, someone rightly said that loving is the most difficult thing to do in life and almost all of us are escapists and shun doing that. The heart is not dry and the body not a zombie. The greatest wish of life can be that let this life have a complete life. We are not content with anything less.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
liquid is solid beedu!!!
That is true when you talk of moolah nowadays. It is the age of commerce in which everything is commoditised. Everything means everything! For example, marriages have also become a novel examples of mergers wherein two smart alecks join forces to empower themselves financially so that they can flex their financial biceps later in life. The trend is not modern. It is rather a pragmatic way to live and is symbiotic too. In short, it is the only 'best' way to live after 30.
It has its antecedents in the ancient days. There was a corporate presentation in the B-school of IIT Delhi in which the ancient example of Draupadi in Mahabharata going for five husbands was taken to add a tinge of humour in the presentation. A classic example of tie-ups! However, we believe that it was taken as a good humoured joke and did not hurt the religious sentiments. And no working professional will love to trigger the debate of creative freedom not being bound by major constraints.
However, gone are the days of a 'kushal' grihani who is 'daksh in grih karya'. After all, what are the maids for? Nowadays, their KRA's extend far beyond the conventional tasks of cooking and baby-sitting. At best, sometimes they are also involved in the decision-making policies at homes. In the worst case scenario, if they are different they can act as concubines. But we have to perceive the glass to be half full. Lives are grey and we have to accept that.
In any case, rampant commercialisation bodes well for the 'maids' sector, which will flourish as India grows from strength to strength and establishes itself as an economic superpower in the decades to come.
Nursing is also an art and almost a gift of God. Munnabhai created a novel way of nursing and it created ripples in Bollywood. Robin Williams was also awesome in setting up an example through 'Patch Adams'. Ergo, it is high time we started giving due cognizance to any domestic help and tried to help ourselves more in our household chores if we got the time for it.
It has its antecedents in the ancient days. There was a corporate presentation in the B-school of IIT Delhi in which the ancient example of Draupadi in Mahabharata going for five husbands was taken to add a tinge of humour in the presentation. A classic example of tie-ups! However, we believe that it was taken as a good humoured joke and did not hurt the religious sentiments. And no working professional will love to trigger the debate of creative freedom not being bound by major constraints.
However, gone are the days of a 'kushal' grihani who is 'daksh in grih karya'. After all, what are the maids for? Nowadays, their KRA's extend far beyond the conventional tasks of cooking and baby-sitting. At best, sometimes they are also involved in the decision-making policies at homes. In the worst case scenario, if they are different they can act as concubines. But we have to perceive the glass to be half full. Lives are grey and we have to accept that.
In any case, rampant commercialisation bodes well for the 'maids' sector, which will flourish as India grows from strength to strength and establishes itself as an economic superpower in the decades to come.
Nursing is also an art and almost a gift of God. Munnabhai created a novel way of nursing and it created ripples in Bollywood. Robin Williams was also awesome in setting up an example through 'Patch Adams'. Ergo, it is high time we started giving due cognizance to any domestic help and tried to help ourselves more in our household chores if we got the time for it.
Friday, December 21, 2007
We the living
We the living have to be a non-profit organization that serves other nonprofit organizations and information consumers worldwide. We should focus on serving non-religious organizations involved in Education, Environmentalism, Humanitarian Relief, Fighting Disease, Homeless Issues, Crime Control, Political Freedom, Government Reform, Consumer Protection, Youth Issues, Addiction, and other like-minded, non-legislative causes. By providing free services to charities we can help them save money and become more efficient all around. In turn, they can provide additional benefits to their constituents. Our opinions and ideas are not influenced by any corporate, political, or religious affiliations. We should also have nothing to sell and should not accept any advertising. On most organizations you can’t count on that level of objectivity. We should have no interest in being politically correct, only factually correct to the extent possible. When faced with no other options, we have to believe in aggressively promoting a solution, which is the “lesser of two evils”. We the living’s work is benefiting hungry, oppressed, uneducated, and other ailing people more and more each day. A central issue We the living seeks to address is education. We must believe that formal school education is the best route to educate the masses. However, informal education, such as reading reliable information in print or online, also greatly enhances ones ability to understand important issues facing society. Armed with knowledge, citizens can then take action to improve their lives and the world around them. Every ailment in the world can be lessened if educated people commit themselves to the task. If you want a government that is more responsive to the needs of common citizens you can read about civics and government reform initiatives. If we want to assist with humanitarian relief worldwide, we might want to study international economics and culture, so we can be of more use in the field or in the nonprofit office. If one needs a good job to pay for health insurance and housing they need to be able to read and write well enough to fill out a job application effectively, not to mention to manage their jobs. The point is that education is ultimately the only sure answer to reduce global suffering, whatever its cause. Humans face an increasing threat of extinction due to mismanagement of the environment. The pace of environmental harm is unlikely to take the lives of the current generation. But, if left unregulated, global corporate interests are certain to cause us additional harm and perilous risk. We must enact tougher environmental laws in the world, employ the best environmentally friendly technologies, and perpetually push the global community towards environmental preservation. Using more renewable resources, like solar energy, and fewer fossil fuels, like oil, is a good start. Moreover, we must further limit the harmful byproducts of industry. Enacting more financial advantages for good corporate citizens and additional financial disincentives to large polluters will further improve the environment. If the custodians of the Earth (us) were to sit on the sidelines during this critical struggle it would be negligent. Many invisible chemicals in the air can cause lung disease or possibly cancer. These poisons readily get in to our food and water supply and harm every form of life. And sewer overflow and runoff from farms and city streets threaten our waters, wildlife, and our health. You should promote strong federal laws and regulations to lessen polluted runoff, raw sewage discharges, and factory farm wastes. Electric power plants and automobiles are the largest source of the pollutants that cause acid rain, poisoning in our lakes and rivers, and global warming. Regulating their discharges and promoting newer and better technologies is the best bet to improve the quality of our air and water, and to lessen environmental harm from global warming. Please learn more about current and threatening environmental hazards and work for a cleaner, healthier Earth. Unfortunately, the lesser developed parts of our world are plagued by famine, malnutrition, poor water quality, and poor sanitation, as well as AIDS, TB, malaria, and other deadly diseases. These problems frequently overlap in the poorest regions of the world. In many cases, corrupt government leaders and civil war significantly contribute to this suffering, since it prevents third world economies from developing and therefore prevents the building of self-sufficient, healthy nations. Plus, corruption and war often keeps humanitarian workers away from many of the worlds neediest areas. And prospective aid donors will often shy away from regions with governments that are unwilling or unable to protect their humanitarian relief investments. Corrupt militants and government officials frequently steal aid destined for the poor to fund their own causes – even if their cause is plain greed. Also, extreme weather conditions greatly harm the global poor. A region with drought or flood conditions will be unable to effectively grow crops and oftentimes the starving citizens will even resort to eating their seed stocks – hurting the next year’s planting season, and reinforcing the cycle of poverty and suffering. Weak educational systems also greatly contribute to suffering. People who lack a basic education will generally remain poor and will be unable to contribute to the well being of their society at large, since they will likely have trouble merely feeding their own families. They may lack sexual education or nutritional education, which could be contributing factors in acquiring AIDS or becoming malnourished, for example. If they lack civic education, they are unlikely to be able to support the reform of their governments. If they lack math or language education their illiteracy will likely prevent them from gaining meaningful employment. Education for all is key to global survival, and its costs are vastly lower than the cost of ignorance. The Western world for the most part only reads about or sees these horrific humanitarian situations on TV – but they are everyday reality for many millions of our fellow humans. And these people suffer real pain, the same as all other humans. Therefore it is our responsibility to take assertive action in attempt to lessen this suffering. One can try to ignore the suffering but it will still exist. The world can not realize its positive potential unless we commit ourselves to working on behalf of the least fortunate among us. Humanitarian relief is an extraordinarily complex subject and therefore we can’t address it in great detail in this forum, but please decide how you can best help. However, if we lack time, we can all donate at least a small percentage of our earnings to some of the organizations below, who are in the field every day saving current or at-risk hungry people, diseased people, war victims, and/or the uneducated masses. Famine, malnutrition, poor water quality and sanitation plague many parts of our world. This often leads to terrible diseases such as TB, malaria, cholera and AIDS. New but deadly diseases such as SARS remain in the minds of people worldwide. We must remember, however, that diseases are not caused by a single factor but by many. These factors fuel each other and interact together in such a way that not one solution can possibly solve or eliminate a disease altogether. Nevertheless, as global citizens we need to take an active part in the fight to eradicate disease. The cost puts pressure on healthcare, social support, worker productivity and profit margins. Of course the most dreaded cost of disease is death which is why we should never give up in our fight. Overpopulation leads to overcrowding which also fuel disease. When there are too many people, basic necessities such as food, water and housing become scarce. These resources become expensive and unaffordable. Children are even more susceptible to disease where clean water and sanitation are serious issues. Due to poverty and the widening income gap, many poor families often choose paying utilities over spending money on basic necessities such as food, clothing and medical care. Air pollution contributes to disease causing asthma, bronchitis and lung cancer. Household cleaning agents contain pollutants such as solvents that can cause dizziness.
Abundant exposure to asbestos has been found to lead to lung cancer. These are everyday dangers that we take for granted or of which we may not be aware. We should let our voices be heard by writing to our elected representatives, urging them to work together with leaders worldwide to control pollution and educate global citizens of its dangers to health. The destruction caused by war also often results in disease. War brings damage to essential infrastructures that provide electricity, water, food and employment often plunging its victims into poverty and displacement. In crowded refugee camps, poor sanitation, lack of water, food, clothing and electricity make these camps breeding grounds for all kinds of diseases. In addition, medical supplies and medicine are often not easily attainable. War diseases such as TB, leprosy, malaria, cholera took the lives of many. Countries in war devote much of their monetary budget to the war efforts, depriving funding to areas such as healthcare, housing, disease prevention and education. In war, our volunteers brave the war fronts by delivering medicines and administering medical care to war victims. To those of us who can afford to, support such organizations through your donations. Healthcare access is an ongoing concern that affects our fight to eradicate disease. For those living with financial hardships, not having access to medicine and medical care makes them more prone to poor health. Quick treatment and strong prevention measures are important factors needed to stop disease and having easy access to healthcare facilitates this. Some cultural practices lead to disease. Many of the blood donors are not told of the health risks associated with selling their own blood. Antibiotics continue to be used in animal and plant farming in three ways: treatment, disease prevention and growth promotion. The concern is that if the use of antibiotics outside of treatment is prolonged, the drugs will lose their ability to fight disease as bacteria gains resistance to the medicine. Lobbying at the expense of people. This causes financial hardship for those living in poverty, many times denying them access to badly needed medicines. Consequently, diseases often go untreated and continue to spread and bring hardships to people all over the world. To repay loans borrowed from the IMF and World Bank, through structural adjustment programs, debtor countries are required to make a major shift in their spending budget. Cash-ready resources become the focus of spending instead of socio-economic programs such as healthcare, job creation or disease prevention. Countries spent more in repaying their foreign debt than on spending money on healthcare, disease prevention and education on their own people. When healthcare and disease prevention takes a back seat like this, disease will continue to flourish. Global warming continues to pose many problems to our environment, which contributes to disease.
Call for action
You can see how the interaction of critical factors contributes to disease and sickness. There is no one solution that we can undertake to eradicate disease but a collective global effort is needed to suppress it to the best of our abilities. For those of us who can afford to, funding is always needed for hospitals and medical laboratories across the world in order to continue research so that our medical doctors and researchers can find new cures to battle and defeat disease. Please donate, if you can, to foundations and relief agencies. Let your voice be heard, speak out and urge our elected representatives to give healthcare to the people that don’t have it. This will help in our fight to both prevent and eradicate disease. We need to take notice of the power and influence that lobbyists have over our elected representatives and understand how this affects our health and us. We need to let our representatives in congress know how we feel about this alarming trend. Remember that one person cannot do this alone. It needs to be a collective effort! Let us help promote the knowledge of disease. Many diseases such as STD’s, heart disease and flu can be prevented. By learning about the disease and its causes, we can refrain from activities that place us at greater risk of acquiring these diseases. This way, we are able to proactively prevent the disease from spreading and help the push towards its eradication. Homelessness can be caused by a variety of problems. The main cause is unaffordable housing for the poor. Secondary causes include mental illness, physical illnesses, substance abuse, lack of incentives to work, poor work ethics, and, like most social issues We the living seeks to address, lack of decent education. A missed paycheck, a health crisis, or an unpaid bill can easily push poor families over the edge into homelessness. It has been reported that the types of assistance homeless adults felt they needed most were help finding a job, help finding affordable housing, and help paying for housing. However, the main types of assistance they usually received were clothing, transportation and help with public benefits. Few homeless actually receive help finding housing, likely because caregivers know it’s unaffordable or otherwise unattainable for people of their social status. A minority of the homeless population is capable but unwilling to work – they may resent the minimal wages they would receive if they could find work. It would be irresponsible if we did not consider that a minority of the homeless may be inherently “lazy”, or substance abuse has made them so. In these cases the there is little help the system can offer that will bring about positive social results. In general, we recommend a “tough love” approach wherein able people must work in some capacity to receive the benefits they seek. There is often a gray line between those who are mentally ill, substance abusers, and other disabled homeless. Therefore it is not easy to classify them in to benefit categories or to understand their labor capabilities. Moreover, there is no one comprehensive system to manage the myriad of services for the homeless, their benefits, and their reintegration in to society. We recommend the states move towards a fully integrated computerized system, which would make delivering benefits and getting people off the streets more cost effective. Even though documenting people’s’ lives in detail verges on an invasion of privacy, we feel if the taxpayers need to foot the bill, which they ultimately do, there is no alternative but to build an efficient system with subjective inputs, in order to provide benefits and opportunities based on need. Most people, including the homeless, are not inherently lazy. But the economic system does not adequately support those at the lowest skill levels, even if they are willing to work – leading to unemployment and millions of “working poor”. For mayors, city councils, and even homeless providers it may seem that placing homeless people in shelters is the most inexpensive way of meeting basic needs. This is deceptive. The cost of homelessness can be quite high, particularly for those with chronic illnesses. Because they have no regular place to stay, people who are homeless use a variety of public systems in an inefficient and costly way. Preventing a homeless episode, or ensuring a speedy transition in to stable permanent housing can result in a significant overall cost savings. Hospitals, prisons, lost opportunity, and emergency shelter is all very inefficient. Crime is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as an act or the commission of an act that is forbidden or the omission of a duty that is commanded by a public law and that makes the offender liable to punishment by that law. Laws are designed to protect us and ensure our safety in all aspects of our lives: physical, financial, psychological and social.
Yet not a day does go by that we don’t hear of crimes taking place in our city or state. When a crime is committed, public safety becomes endangered and specific individuals or groups may feel violated. While we would like to avoid such events, they take place all too often. Corporate crime exists on both ends of the continuum, where the workers continue to be victimized and their rights violated. Another major type of crime is terrorism.
Social and Economic Problems Caused by Crime.
Our social and economic problems are often a direct result of crime. In a vicious circle, these problems can fuel crime even more. For example, those who commit theft and burglaries often do so because of their need for money. These individuals may be unemployed, incapable of finding work, homeless, sick or impoverished. These crimes become a tempting way to quickly acquire money. Unfortunately, when left unpunished, these individuals get the misconception that crime pays. It is this thinking that encourages some individuals to continue their criminal ways, discouraging them from finding other activities that would give them some normality and stability in their lives. This way of thinking reinforces crime. Another crime, prostitution, is frequently associated with drug addiction. Many prostitutes find it difficult to change their work because of their drug addiction. Drugs require significant cash and prostitution provides this, faster and easier than legitimate work.
Prostitution often will lead to other crimes such as people trafficking, sexual abuse, and rape. Those who exploit women often have no regard for people’s lives. This disregard often leads to physical abuse and even murder. In addition, prostitution can increase the spread of diseases such as AIDS, other STD’s and hepatitis. On a larger scale, drug addiction fuels the illicit drug industry. In organized crime, you will find other violations related to drug trafficking. These include money laundering, smuggling and illegal sale of weapons, credit card fraud and counterfeiting. Poverty often leads to the problem of homelessness. Those who live on the streets often experience hunger and disease making them more likely to resort to committing theft and burglary as a means to eat or to obtain medicine. Out on the streets the homeless are exposed more to the risks of drug addiction and other unwanted social behaviors. All of these factors fuel crime.
Solving the Root Causes of Crime
In order to eradicate crime, we need to address the root causes. These include, but are not limited to, greed, inadequate corporate oversight, poverty, lack of education, homelessness, drug addiction, racial hatred, and lax gun laws. Education is one of the biggest factors that play a role in what becomes of an individual in their adulthood. Those who have an education possess the training and skills needed to make them marketable to potential employers. Indeed, even for jobs that pay only a minimum wage, employers likely will prefer interviewing candidates with a decent education over those without. Thus, many of the uneducated may find themselves unemployed, living in sub-standard housing and in impoverished conditions. And as money becomes scarce, many of them might be tempted to engage in criminal activities. At We the living, we encourage everyone to pursue formal education and stress the importance of governments and universities helping make it accessible to all. We strongly believe that every citizen deserves an education and it’s especially important to make it more available to those families who are not able to readily afford it. Education can help eradicate poverty, which will in turn reduce the crime rate. Poverty often pushes children to drop out of school. Those children who do not attend school may end up roaming the streets, exposing themselves to criminal elements and activities. This is why it is imperative that communities provide safe places where children can gather inside, away from street life. These include school clubs, youth clubs, and sports and recreational centers where children and youth are given support and supervision through educational and developmental programs.
Without alternatives to schools, children can easily get involved in petty crimes such as shoplifting, residential break-ins, car theft and vandalism. After the petty crimes, these children may graduate into the more serious crimes of drug trafficking, sexual offences and gang violence. Crime can also be related to the probability of being caught and the extent of possible sentencing. On our Sexual Abuse Journals, we present information showing that most rapes and most acts of sexual abuse are committed by individuals with whom the victims are related or otherwise acquainted. Such relationships can discourage victims from reporting incidents to law enforcement agencies, thus failing to bring the culprits to justice. Part of the underreporting problem is the social stigma that is attached to these victims. Although they are victims, they are often blamed for the crime, labeled as being promiscuous and loose. This allows the real offenders to get away unpunished, leaving them free to offend again. As citizens, we need to adopt laws and reporting procedures that will give full physical and psychological protection to victims who report crime. Let us not allow offenders to get away with their crimes, giving them an opportunity to repeat. Corporate crime is becoming increasingly global and its consequences can be devastating. Consumers are defrauded. Our environment (soil, air and water) is often compromised. Our personal safety can be placed at risk by lobbyists who buy influence but do not have the interest of the greater majority at heart. We must also work to curtail corporate greed. The practice of “influence buying” needs to be stopped. We call for greater transparency as well so that irregularities in accounting practices can be detected early to mitigate any damages. The practice of corporate disclosure needs to be widened. This will allow consumers and shareholders to become fully aware of corporate records on the environment, human rights, worker safety and financial matters. It will also allow us to know about corporate criminal records and litigation records. Multiple functions within consulting firms need to be severed and made independent from each other to prevent conflicts of interest.
As law-abiding citizens, it is imperative that we live our lives according to the rules of our land. It is also our civic duty to report any crimes that we witness. The reasons are simple: our laws are meant to preserve the quiet and peaceful enjoyment of living in this great country. Anytime a law is broken, it can compromise the safety of our citizens. What makes our nation so great is the freedom given to us by our forefathers: our freedom of speech, of religion, of protest, to vote, to get an education, to go to work, to information and many more! These freedoms are valuable and precious to all of us.. Although the costs of these battles are plenty, the rewards are worth it.
Abundant exposure to asbestos has been found to lead to lung cancer. These are everyday dangers that we take for granted or of which we may not be aware. We should let our voices be heard by writing to our elected representatives, urging them to work together with leaders worldwide to control pollution and educate global citizens of its dangers to health. The destruction caused by war also often results in disease. War brings damage to essential infrastructures that provide electricity, water, food and employment often plunging its victims into poverty and displacement. In crowded refugee camps, poor sanitation, lack of water, food, clothing and electricity make these camps breeding grounds for all kinds of diseases. In addition, medical supplies and medicine are often not easily attainable. War diseases such as TB, leprosy, malaria, cholera took the lives of many. Countries in war devote much of their monetary budget to the war efforts, depriving funding to areas such as healthcare, housing, disease prevention and education. In war, our volunteers brave the war fronts by delivering medicines and administering medical care to war victims. To those of us who can afford to, support such organizations through your donations. Healthcare access is an ongoing concern that affects our fight to eradicate disease. For those living with financial hardships, not having access to medicine and medical care makes them more prone to poor health. Quick treatment and strong prevention measures are important factors needed to stop disease and having easy access to healthcare facilitates this. Some cultural practices lead to disease. Many of the blood donors are not told of the health risks associated with selling their own blood. Antibiotics continue to be used in animal and plant farming in three ways: treatment, disease prevention and growth promotion. The concern is that if the use of antibiotics outside of treatment is prolonged, the drugs will lose their ability to fight disease as bacteria gains resistance to the medicine. Lobbying at the expense of people. This causes financial hardship for those living in poverty, many times denying them access to badly needed medicines. Consequently, diseases often go untreated and continue to spread and bring hardships to people all over the world. To repay loans borrowed from the IMF and World Bank, through structural adjustment programs, debtor countries are required to make a major shift in their spending budget. Cash-ready resources become the focus of spending instead of socio-economic programs such as healthcare, job creation or disease prevention. Countries spent more in repaying their foreign debt than on spending money on healthcare, disease prevention and education on their own people. When healthcare and disease prevention takes a back seat like this, disease will continue to flourish. Global warming continues to pose many problems to our environment, which contributes to disease.
Call for action
You can see how the interaction of critical factors contributes to disease and sickness. There is no one solution that we can undertake to eradicate disease but a collective global effort is needed to suppress it to the best of our abilities. For those of us who can afford to, funding is always needed for hospitals and medical laboratories across the world in order to continue research so that our medical doctors and researchers can find new cures to battle and defeat disease. Please donate, if you can, to foundations and relief agencies. Let your voice be heard, speak out and urge our elected representatives to give healthcare to the people that don’t have it. This will help in our fight to both prevent and eradicate disease. We need to take notice of the power and influence that lobbyists have over our elected representatives and understand how this affects our health and us. We need to let our representatives in congress know how we feel about this alarming trend. Remember that one person cannot do this alone. It needs to be a collective effort! Let us help promote the knowledge of disease. Many diseases such as STD’s, heart disease and flu can be prevented. By learning about the disease and its causes, we can refrain from activities that place us at greater risk of acquiring these diseases. This way, we are able to proactively prevent the disease from spreading and help the push towards its eradication. Homelessness can be caused by a variety of problems. The main cause is unaffordable housing for the poor. Secondary causes include mental illness, physical illnesses, substance abuse, lack of incentives to work, poor work ethics, and, like most social issues We the living seeks to address, lack of decent education. A missed paycheck, a health crisis, or an unpaid bill can easily push poor families over the edge into homelessness. It has been reported that the types of assistance homeless adults felt they needed most were help finding a job, help finding affordable housing, and help paying for housing. However, the main types of assistance they usually received were clothing, transportation and help with public benefits. Few homeless actually receive help finding housing, likely because caregivers know it’s unaffordable or otherwise unattainable for people of their social status. A minority of the homeless population is capable but unwilling to work – they may resent the minimal wages they would receive if they could find work. It would be irresponsible if we did not consider that a minority of the homeless may be inherently “lazy”, or substance abuse has made them so. In these cases the there is little help the system can offer that will bring about positive social results. In general, we recommend a “tough love” approach wherein able people must work in some capacity to receive the benefits they seek. There is often a gray line between those who are mentally ill, substance abusers, and other disabled homeless. Therefore it is not easy to classify them in to benefit categories or to understand their labor capabilities. Moreover, there is no one comprehensive system to manage the myriad of services for the homeless, their benefits, and their reintegration in to society. We recommend the states move towards a fully integrated computerized system, which would make delivering benefits and getting people off the streets more cost effective. Even though documenting people’s’ lives in detail verges on an invasion of privacy, we feel if the taxpayers need to foot the bill, which they ultimately do, there is no alternative but to build an efficient system with subjective inputs, in order to provide benefits and opportunities based on need. Most people, including the homeless, are not inherently lazy. But the economic system does not adequately support those at the lowest skill levels, even if they are willing to work – leading to unemployment and millions of “working poor”. For mayors, city councils, and even homeless providers it may seem that placing homeless people in shelters is the most inexpensive way of meeting basic needs. This is deceptive. The cost of homelessness can be quite high, particularly for those with chronic illnesses. Because they have no regular place to stay, people who are homeless use a variety of public systems in an inefficient and costly way. Preventing a homeless episode, or ensuring a speedy transition in to stable permanent housing can result in a significant overall cost savings. Hospitals, prisons, lost opportunity, and emergency shelter is all very inefficient. Crime is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as an act or the commission of an act that is forbidden or the omission of a duty that is commanded by a public law and that makes the offender liable to punishment by that law. Laws are designed to protect us and ensure our safety in all aspects of our lives: physical, financial, psychological and social.
Yet not a day does go by that we don’t hear of crimes taking place in our city or state. When a crime is committed, public safety becomes endangered and specific individuals or groups may feel violated. While we would like to avoid such events, they take place all too often. Corporate crime exists on both ends of the continuum, where the workers continue to be victimized and their rights violated. Another major type of crime is terrorism.
Social and Economic Problems Caused by Crime.
Our social and economic problems are often a direct result of crime. In a vicious circle, these problems can fuel crime even more. For example, those who commit theft and burglaries often do so because of their need for money. These individuals may be unemployed, incapable of finding work, homeless, sick or impoverished. These crimes become a tempting way to quickly acquire money. Unfortunately, when left unpunished, these individuals get the misconception that crime pays. It is this thinking that encourages some individuals to continue their criminal ways, discouraging them from finding other activities that would give them some normality and stability in their lives. This way of thinking reinforces crime. Another crime, prostitution, is frequently associated with drug addiction. Many prostitutes find it difficult to change their work because of their drug addiction. Drugs require significant cash and prostitution provides this, faster and easier than legitimate work.
Prostitution often will lead to other crimes such as people trafficking, sexual abuse, and rape. Those who exploit women often have no regard for people’s lives. This disregard often leads to physical abuse and even murder. In addition, prostitution can increase the spread of diseases such as AIDS, other STD’s and hepatitis. On a larger scale, drug addiction fuels the illicit drug industry. In organized crime, you will find other violations related to drug trafficking. These include money laundering, smuggling and illegal sale of weapons, credit card fraud and counterfeiting. Poverty often leads to the problem of homelessness. Those who live on the streets often experience hunger and disease making them more likely to resort to committing theft and burglary as a means to eat or to obtain medicine. Out on the streets the homeless are exposed more to the risks of drug addiction and other unwanted social behaviors. All of these factors fuel crime.
Solving the Root Causes of Crime
In order to eradicate crime, we need to address the root causes. These include, but are not limited to, greed, inadequate corporate oversight, poverty, lack of education, homelessness, drug addiction, racial hatred, and lax gun laws. Education is one of the biggest factors that play a role in what becomes of an individual in their adulthood. Those who have an education possess the training and skills needed to make them marketable to potential employers. Indeed, even for jobs that pay only a minimum wage, employers likely will prefer interviewing candidates with a decent education over those without. Thus, many of the uneducated may find themselves unemployed, living in sub-standard housing and in impoverished conditions. And as money becomes scarce, many of them might be tempted to engage in criminal activities. At We the living, we encourage everyone to pursue formal education and stress the importance of governments and universities helping make it accessible to all. We strongly believe that every citizen deserves an education and it’s especially important to make it more available to those families who are not able to readily afford it. Education can help eradicate poverty, which will in turn reduce the crime rate. Poverty often pushes children to drop out of school. Those children who do not attend school may end up roaming the streets, exposing themselves to criminal elements and activities. This is why it is imperative that communities provide safe places where children can gather inside, away from street life. These include school clubs, youth clubs, and sports and recreational centers where children and youth are given support and supervision through educational and developmental programs.
Without alternatives to schools, children can easily get involved in petty crimes such as shoplifting, residential break-ins, car theft and vandalism. After the petty crimes, these children may graduate into the more serious crimes of drug trafficking, sexual offences and gang violence. Crime can also be related to the probability of being caught and the extent of possible sentencing. On our Sexual Abuse Journals, we present information showing that most rapes and most acts of sexual abuse are committed by individuals with whom the victims are related or otherwise acquainted. Such relationships can discourage victims from reporting incidents to law enforcement agencies, thus failing to bring the culprits to justice. Part of the underreporting problem is the social stigma that is attached to these victims. Although they are victims, they are often blamed for the crime, labeled as being promiscuous and loose. This allows the real offenders to get away unpunished, leaving them free to offend again. As citizens, we need to adopt laws and reporting procedures that will give full physical and psychological protection to victims who report crime. Let us not allow offenders to get away with their crimes, giving them an opportunity to repeat. Corporate crime is becoming increasingly global and its consequences can be devastating. Consumers are defrauded. Our environment (soil, air and water) is often compromised. Our personal safety can be placed at risk by lobbyists who buy influence but do not have the interest of the greater majority at heart. We must also work to curtail corporate greed. The practice of “influence buying” needs to be stopped. We call for greater transparency as well so that irregularities in accounting practices can be detected early to mitigate any damages. The practice of corporate disclosure needs to be widened. This will allow consumers and shareholders to become fully aware of corporate records on the environment, human rights, worker safety and financial matters. It will also allow us to know about corporate criminal records and litigation records. Multiple functions within consulting firms need to be severed and made independent from each other to prevent conflicts of interest.
As law-abiding citizens, it is imperative that we live our lives according to the rules of our land. It is also our civic duty to report any crimes that we witness. The reasons are simple: our laws are meant to preserve the quiet and peaceful enjoyment of living in this great country. Anytime a law is broken, it can compromise the safety of our citizens. What makes our nation so great is the freedom given to us by our forefathers: our freedom of speech, of religion, of protest, to vote, to get an education, to go to work, to information and many more! These freedoms are valuable and precious to all of us.. Although the costs of these battles are plenty, the rewards are worth it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
