Z's..view

The Day the Web Went Black

2012-01-18T12:33:00.000-08:00

Almost all of us are aware of the stance taken by the Indian Govt. against websites such as Google, Facebook, and Orkut among others, and popular opinion is against any move at curbing the freedom of the web. However, not many in India were aware about SOPA & PIPA^ until the 'wikipedia blackout' started since midnight (EST), Jan 18, 2012.

The 'Blackout' is surely an interesting move by Wikipedia and is a sure shot way of communicating Wikipedia's view point! However, this post is not about discussing the pros and cons of SOPA and PIPA but the implications of a permanent blackout of Wikipedia (assuming no other free online encyclopedia would pop up)..

Negative

The first thing that popped up in the minds of the 'students' i spoke too was: "OMG! How are we going to do our assignments!" ..............And it's easy to understand their sentiments. Daily, millions of students browse the web for information and most of them get it from Wikipedia. It's the ultimate source of information and we have become so used to this 'free' source that we would be quite significantly impaired by its loss.

The second thing, and perhaps the more important one, that strikes people's mind is that they'll be deprived of their right to freedom of expression!! Wikipedia and similar sites may well be blocked by Internet service providers once the laws (SOPA & PIPA) on account of piracy and IP right violations! And that too for no fault of their's since it is an open platform that anyone can edit, thus content could be 'bad' or 'illegal' and thus, the whole website would be blocked (That's what the these laws state!)

Positive

However, some bright minds pointed out that it would lead to more demand for books and an increased crowd at libraries!

It would also make the 'students' learn more and retain the learning for a longer period of time if they started searching the books instead of blatantly copying from the net.

It'll be good for the 'Music & Media' Industry....

Anyways..the important point for you to delve your mind on is the 'Impact of a permanent blackout of Wikipedia' on anyone and everyone!

Freaky Saturday the 14th

2012-01-13T15:10:00.000-08:00

I don't know what's gotten into me but i've been busy updating various blogs, commenting on forums and completing pending club work along with reading articles!!!! I'm surprised not because of doing all this, it's just that i got this bug at 1 am and it's now 4.37am in my clock!

I'll try and keep up the tempo after i wake up. Forcing myself to sleep now! Friday the 13th passed off peacefully but i don't know what's wrong with Saturday the 14th!

PS: I managed to finish a book after a long time!!! Next one is still lying unread, thanks to the pile of other reading material i have pending!!

The daily morning update :P

2011-12-23T12:11:00.000-08:00

The rupee is rebounding; food inflation at a 4 month low; RBI gives warning signal with a confidence booster; Food security bill tabled in parliament; Increased spending by US consumers; Kingfisher gets a booster from Sahara; Don 2 releases-Initial reviews are 'excellent'.......:D

Fuel inflation is still high at around 15%; Europe still looks grim; FIIs set to pull out more money from the Indian markets; Battle for Lokpal set to start again; Winters set to get chillier in Delhi!!!!!!!

And i've started a book titled 'Better under pressure' by Justin Menkes :)

Mayan Prophecy: A money minter for Mexico

2011-12-23T11:48:00.000-08:00

The world may or may not end in 2012 but Mexico is sure to earn a lot from tourists in 2012. As 2011 draws to an end and stories about the 'end of the world' gaining strength, people are thronging to the 5 states (southeastern states of Campeche, Chiapas, Tabasco, Yucatán and Quintana Roo) which correspond to the early Mayan empire.

Recent estimates peg the number of arrivals at around 52 million (And India is expected to receive 5.5 million tourists this year :-o) which would generate around 270 million pesos (or US$ 19.5 million)*. The crowd will not only the the 'believers' but also students, academicians, astronomers (The Mayan calendar was a solar one) and other wanderers!

Source: *-http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/lifestyle/2011/12/23/mexico-expects-52-mil-tourists-in-maya-region-in-2012/

The Poor are not Aliens!!!!

2011-11-27T06:59:00.001-08:00

I request everyone to go through this article. Simple ideas that don't germinate in minds that are in power, perhaps because our education clogs our brainy cells!

Book: Poor Economics: Rethinking Poverty and the Ways to End It- Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee & Esther Duflo

Article: http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-11-25/news/30440949_1_comic-book-calcutta-nutrition

It talks about how the world's rich people think that the world's poor people are just hungry and want nutrients. The book talks about how the powerful people and the not so powerful people view the world through cliches...and how this viewpoint will lead to nothing substantive....

Customizing Careers

2011-11-27T06:46:00.001-08:00

I was recently going through an an abstract of a book on Mass Career Customization and i found this very relevant! We are living in an era where not only has the current work force evolved (with increased women, changed expectations, new family structures and new technology), but the old workforce is also evolving at a rapid pace too(for the very same reasons).

Priorities are shifting and work life balance is of out-most importance, along with career growth. Today's employee wants everything. Organizations, therefore, need to have a thorough revamp of the existing models of workplace norms and policies focusing on employees. And this is needed at every level!

My personal feeling, based on my observations, is that such MCC is also needed in Indian organizations (and is perhaps present in a few such as the Tata group). The model is based on 4 aspects- Workload, Role, Pace of growth and Location/schedule. The model has been found to be successful in retention of talent and in motivating employees in some parts of the world where it has been tested. Indian conditions, obviously require some modifications. Nevertheless, this is a must read for all those who are HR professionals, or are aspiring for a career in HRM.

*MCC is a model developed by Deloitte.

The Impact of the Dwindling Rupee

2011-11-27T05:47:00.001-08:00

The Indian Rupee is on a fall since August this year, falling from around Rs.45 to a historic low of Rs.52.03...that's a fall of around 15% . The fall started with the escalation of the Eurozone crisis and hasn't skidded to a halt. This has had a drastic impact on the Indian economy ranging from a fall in forex reserves to mounting losses for importers. The worst part is that our's is the worst performing currency in the Asian market. Let us analyze the impact this is and will have on the Indian economy and the 'aam aadmi'.

FOREX WOES

India's forex reserves have fallen the most in the past 3 weeks ever since the Lehman Brother's collapse in 2008. The current reserves as on Nov.18 were $308billion, down from 320 billion on October 21, 2011. Experts attribute atleast $3-4 billion dollar decline in reserves just due to currency interventions.

ELECTRONIC GOODS GET DEARER

Prices of most electronic items ranging from mobile phones to TVs have been increased due to higher costs of importing them. Increases have been in the range of 2-5% varying according to the sector.

DEFICIT TARGET

The Indian Govt. was already finding it tough to meet it's fiscal deficit target of 4.6% and the deficit now looks to widen further as the sharp fall in rupee has made the cost of importing crude oil and fertilizers more expensive. This makes the deficit larger as the entire cost of the jump is not transferred to the consumer but is borne by the Govt. as petroleum related products are subsidized considerably (taxes, et al are another issue) and all oil companies are bleeding.

IT

The IT firms, as most of us would assume, should be a happy lot since they receive their earnings in dollars. However, most of the are not that excited over what they term as 'short-term' gains. A reason for that is because the big players such as TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCL and Cognizant had funds upto $5billion in hedge funds (range: 45-49), thereby limiting windfall gains. In fact, it is infosys and HCL which will be the main gainers from this as they are hedged lesser.

(The IT companies claim that such volatile conditions may hamper growth...)

OUTBOUND TRAVEL

Outbound travel has also taken a hit as foreign holidays get dearer by more than 30%!!! Decreased outbound travel would mean better signs for our currency but that would be a very micro view of this situation. A better viewpoint would be the angle of increased domestic consumption of travel & leisure. Sales are down by about 7-8 % as reported in some prominent business dailies.

FOREIGN EDUCATION LOANS

Students who are studying abroad or are almost at the end of their courses have a reason to worry. They'll have to shell out more as the rupee has fallen sharply. And this amount won't be insignificant as foreign education loans, on an average, are somewhere between 14-20 lakhs with a tenure of 3-4 years at an interest rate of 13-14 percent. As the local currency slips and this coincides with the end of trimester/semester (payment time), a cheaper rupee means parents will have to shell out more money as the fees is in dollars!

The situation won't be any better, in fact it would be worse, for new students as the amount given by the bank would be more, and hence this amount would be added to the student's pay back amount.

Neighbourly Hobnobbing ?

2011-11-27T05:25:00.001-08:00

A lot of activity, that too positive, has been happening between India and Pakistan. Ranging from the grant of MFN status to India (India had given MFN status to Pakistan in 1996) to calls of hanging Kasab coming from Interior Minister Rehman Malik, all this not much time before the SAARC summit. And even if we take India out of the picture for a second and add the news of the liberal & vocal Sherry Rehman as official Envoy to the USA and you begin to see some sort of pattern emerging and you (if you you know something about Sherry Rehman) just can't ignore the suave move played by Zardari. After the resignation of Haqqani over the memo gate scandal, no one would have been a better 'image-enhancer' than Sherry Rehman, who has always been at odds with the clergy at home and has always been vocal about it. It also helps Zardari tell the world that the military is not completely in charge...

For us, however, the important part is to keep track of how Sherry Rehman influences Hillary Clinton and whether that could lead to a shift in bilateral relations between the US & Pakistan, and consequently, with India because a liberal image of Pakistan will give it more room in its dealings with India.

Of course, not everything is a conspiracy of sorts. Good relations with its neighbours is what we have always wanted. However, the Pakistan Govt. should not indulge in playing dubious games or else the trust would again be broken...

Samsung's swipe at Iphone & Is it the tipping point for Apple's iphone in India?

2011-11-27T04:55:00.001-08:00

Samsung has recently taken a swipe at Apple's Iphone and i must say it's a pretty smart bit of advertising!!!

And this add is getting popular on the web, with more than 639000+ views in 4 days!

And coming to the main topic, Iphone4S in India---- It has just been launched at an exorbitant price of 44500+ and people are clearly unhappy with such a premium price. I could buy an awesome laptop at such a price with much cash to spare! Or wait, i could spend a few thousand bucks more and get a Mac book Air for INR 56000! And if i'm in a more subtle and sensible mood, i would go in for the ipad ( 29500+) or the new Samsung Galaxy S-2. Nokia too is coming up with its Lumia range which should be worth waiting.

For Apple, such pricing could be the tipping point from where the downward spiral of Apple begins, atleast in India. Apple has always been an iconic brand, much due to its founder, who, sadly, is no more with us. Fingers crossed on this one, Apple!

Fire & Sky

2011-10-08T06:30:00.000-07:00

The soon to be launched Amazon Kindle Fire garnered a lot of news in the last week, primarily for its $199 price tag and less for its Amazon tag which offers added advantage to book lovers (and less to app freaks) with all sorta freebies and combos on offer.

Kindle Fire

However, the launch of 'Akash' (Sky) by Datawind for a price tag of $35 has left not only left the developed world in a state of shock (once again!! :P), but also the 'amm' junta at home. A 7 inch tablet running on Android for Rs. 1700 OMG!

Akash-First look

Let me declare that this product is going to make history! No one would think twice before buying this for their children for a paltry sum of Rs 1700...after all, a simple mobile costs more or almost the same, and the number of mobile phones being sold each month is mind boggling! Who wouldn't want this? :-o :-o We're talking millions of these tablets penetrating into each corner of the country, being used not only by the students, but also by farmers and the police too! While some of you may say that the 256 RAM won't be enough, i say that a slight increase will only hike prices by a few 100s..

With Audio visual content already in use at a few schools in India, the tablet, if used properly, will easily revolutionize education in India, and a lot many other sectors as well!

Kudos to Datawind and the Government of India!

Akash

**(Even at Rs. 3000 for the 'normal' consumers, this is an amazing offer)

The Leaders of India

2011-10-02T05:29:00.000-07:00

While one told us the philosophy of life " Ahimsa Parmodharma", the other taught us the ways to run the country : " Jai Jawan Jai Kisan" .. India owes to both of them. Lets spare a thought on their birthday as to what dream had they foreseen for the country. Wishing them a Happy Birthday....

World Tourism Day

2011-09-27T12:15:00.000-07:00

http://prezi.com/w46t7mqqv8yh/tourism/

The smart thing would be to follow the link. However, it lacks a voice over, so you can also read some of the finer points here.

Tourism is revolutionary. Why?

Coz it generates considerable employment (Each foreign tourist in India spends around 6 lakh plus, creating direct jobs for at least 4 people (2005 figure))
Brings in valuable foreign exchange
Preserves and propagates culture and heritage
Improves global relationships

In 2010, there were more than 940 million people who 'traveled' outside their country, generating US $919 billion and employing 8% of the total workforce.

INDIA

India is a land of diverse culture, flora and fauna, monuments, and every other sort of 'tourist' attraction. Surprisingly, only 0.55% of the total tourists (foreign) visit India, i.e., 5.58 million only....while more than 50 million visited China and 14 million went to Thailand....

The main problems are:

Marketing (IMS)*
Hygiene
Population (resource scarcity)
Attitude
Infrastructure (Accommodation, roads, air connectivity, etc)
Restrictions
Lack of a vision
Security
Less number of trained manpower

I don't have much time today..:( assignments and what not) and in fact i'm late..this was supposed to be posted here before the clock struck 12... :-? but the prezi ppt was ready on time.

Once again..a very happy World Tourism Day to everyone. I hope the Govt and the people realize the potential of tourism and contribute to its growth... :)

Some important data:

Total number of FTA (2010)- 5.58 million (8%)
Total Outbound Travelers - 12.07 million (9.1%)
Forex earnings: US $ 14.16 billion (18%)
Domestic tourists: 720 million+ (10.7%)
Number of FTAs in Asia Pacific region- 204 million (12.7%)
India's rank in the world (Number of tourists)- 40
India's rank in the world (receipts)- 16
India's share in the Asia pacific region: 2.74%

The Case of the Visible Calories: Why 'telling' is easier than 'informing'

2011-09-22T16:26:00.000-07:00

You go to your favorite ice cream parlor and the first change you notice is the extra digits next to your favorite delight. A closer observation reveals its the 'calories' that you'll be consuming per scoop...

If you are one among those who'll not give a second thought to it and hungrily gobble up the ice cream before it melts, and would do the same in case of anything else that you like, welcome to the gang!

McDonald's India has, following its global initiative, started reporting the calorific intake of each of its products. Mr. Vikram Bakshi, MD, McDonald's India, believes in "dissemination of information" of being the first step towards a healthier eating habits. The second would obviously be 'bringing' healthy fast food or making it healthy, and when that happens is something we're not sure of.

However, as a marketing technique, it is spot on. People, in spite of having little knowledge of the use of this information, will surely (assumption) be thinking of McDonald's as a healthy, responsible Fast Food chain. of course, there are those who 'know' and won't be satisfied unless this declaration is followed by a conscious move towards healthier food but this number is very less in our country.

Whatever be the case, it sure is a step in the right direction (towards a healthier tomorrow), and an even better marketing step. I'm sure McDonald India is " lovin' It"!!!!!!

Reference:

Count your calories with McDonald's, Economic Times, 14th September, 2011

Is the Family Culture really redundant?

2011-09-22T15:53:00.000-07:00

The unrest at various manufacturing units always stings me, not because i am in support of the workers or the management, but because i feel sad the way companies and workers actually end up digging their own graves. This, when you have live examples of how workers and management can work 'together' for the benefit of both!

When TVS can have a strike free record in spite of being a $4 billion, 25000 people strong company, why can't others like Maruti and GM* follow suit?

To put the blame on politics and instigation is true to an extent, but what makes people fall prey to such politics has roots in what is called 'trust' and 'loyalty', something, which modern day managers say, is not in much vogue.

Is the 'family culture' really redundant in the era of 'opportunities'?
_________________________________________________________________________________

***Notes

I hope that the 100 year old 'strike free' tradition at TVS isn't broken and that the model succeeds wherever adopted :)

A quick glance through the below mentioned article will broaden your mindset for sure...
http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/tvs-group-labour-problem/1/15784.html

*GM, after the unrest, has been dolling out promotions to keep its employees happy.

Under the Dragon's Wing

2011-09-22T15:17:00.000-07:00

There is a feeling of Deja Vu whenever I read something about China 'helping' the world or the 'world' taking help from China and at the same time ponder over the woes of the world's 'Super Power'. China's decision to stand with Italy at a time when everyone is busy 'downgrading' it (S&P being the latest) and support it both financially and morally(own interests too) has political and economical implications. Also, China's 'no-objection' to the Russian gas pipeline project passing through North Korea shows its endeavour to encourage 'peace' in its adjoining areas. Add to that China's support to the USA borrowing is enough to tell where the real power is shifting, even if slowly.

From the Indian perspective, China is currently our 'Biggest Trade Partner' and it has shown keen interest in investing in India's infrastructure dream. India, which has been recently rated among the 'Least 5 emerging markets' preferred by Fund Managers in a study conducted by BofA-Merrill Lynch. And thanks to the recent spate in 'corruption', investors are not as eager to invest in India. Adding to the woes of the industry are the higher interest costs, all of which lead the Govt. to relax the ECB norms in which for the first time ever, Indian companies were allowed to raise money in Yuan. The fact that this decision has coincided with opening of the first branch of China's largest bank (ICBC) in India is surely a coincidence ;-)

It is going to be an interesting game to watch. Whether China will go the Japan & Europe way, i.e., from being a challenger to the USA to being in debt, or will China turn the game around vis a vis USA did to Britain after the World War?

* China may be in trouble if Italy fails to get out of the mess it is in right now. Also, China's help to Italy isn't enough to significantly help it get out, but it sure is a booster shot.

References:

1. Shamim Adam and Lorenzo Totaro, The World finds an Asian Saviour, Economic Times, 14th September, 2011

2. www.caglecartoons.com/espanol

3. 'ECB norms relaxed, limit raised', Business Standard, 16th September, 2011

Life Version 6.6 is FREE!!

2011-09-07T17:57:00.000-07:00

6.6 on the Richter Scale wasn't enough to shake me up…but itsure did make me realize that most of the valuable things in life are free, beit a smile from a friend, love, respect, care, talent or even courage and thelist is endless….Some may argue that these are linked to money and I’ll now tryto put forward my point of view.

Does love and affection from your parents or your bestfriend cost you anything? Can you ‘buy’ it? Perhaps, yes, but it won’t be realand you will know it’s fake and sadly, that’s the trend in this world which is movingtowards materialism where hate and jealously overpower love. Yet, thesatisfaction which comes from true love is something which ‘money can’t buy’.

Respect is also something you ‘can’ buy, but you’ll know you’rebeing duped!! Does it serve the purposethen?

And courage knows no religion, caste or sex. It’s pricelessand, well, priceless. Imagine you have to accept a mistake which could lead yougetting the pink slip or imagine yourself in the battle field, cornered behinda wall, knowing very well that the chance of you dying if you leave the coverare almost nil. Can you buy the courage needed to do thing? You may the richestguy in the world but will you be able to buy courage? To modify a quote from Harry potter into oneof my own “Courage will be given to those who deserve it”

I assume most people would be happy knowing how life isstill cheap to live ‘happily’ ;) And happiness is the last great thing in lifethat’s free and perhaps the most vital one it is the core around which we baseour lives. It’s the basic purpose of life. We love, we eat, we pray, everythingwe do is for our happiness. The problem arises when we resort to corrupt meansto achieve happiness. Such happiness is only a mirage which will leave youexasperated with the futility of your efforts.

PS: I was humbled by the messages and calls I received frommy near and dear ones after the significant tremors. It made me realize how luckyI am to have people who love and care about me….. and how the best things inlife are free J

H 2 H

2011-09-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

The never ending end term projects, the life like case studies, those late night message reminding us of the never ending 'extra' class...and the power naps during lectures! Add to that the masti of a 'Siwayi' party..the intrusive and ugly photography and the facebooking! Sleeping at 3 am is a norm...doing that at 6 is surely a sure shot recipe of a double visioned class :-P

'Welcome to Hell' is "Oh So True"...What we have to do is is frame each moment in this hell..and achieve something great in life.

Life @ B school is tough...hell, it's downright insane! Yet, those who survive are the true winners!

Image Copyright: Peter Robinson; Nicholas Brealey Publishing

Star..

2011-09-02T12:15:00.000-07:00

It's funny how you continue to be in a state of calm in the midst of a storm :-? I wonder if i have a falling star in my pocket right now :) Coz tomorrow ..wait..today is a rainy day!!!

The economic mess of life

2011-08-13T08:17:00.001-07:00

The PIGS countries and the USA seem to be the butt of all jokes these days with the internet being awash with videos illustrating how erroneous the economic policies of these two states been, and how others have been trapped in this rapidly collapsing vicious circle. The truth is that the joke is not on them but on us as we will suffer due to their actions!

However, the article is not about economics. It’s about life and how the consequences of the actions we do today start piling up and after crossing the tipping point, alter the course of our life against our will! And it all starts small…an embarrassment saving lie, to coughing up the extra bucks to get your DL without having to move an inch out of home and don’t forget the 100 bucks to the traffic police to save the day! In doing such little acts we end up getting complacent against the bad things. We don’t mind giving the LIU people 500 bucks to pass our passport, even when we have a clean record!! Anyways, let’s move ahead of corruption to the occasional lies we say to our friends, girlfriends, parents, teachers and everybody else… They don’t matter now; they don’t harm us significantly today… but they do make us complacent and we end up accepting lying as a way of life…we perceive it won’t do much harm as it never did in the past….. And as we grow, our ‘faulty’ deeds too increase in magnitude, and somewhere down the line, we end up at the point of no return; trapped in the rapidly collapsing circle.. a situation being faced by the A. Rajas and Ramalinga Rajus of our society….

The message I want to convey is that be it economics or life, the principles for survival and contentment are the same. Lies may help in the short run, but in the long run, the harsh reality will come knocking on your door. So, it’s up to you, whether you want to make all the wrong choices and end up being the butt of all jokes, or you want to live a life of peace and prosperity J The choice is yours J

Thousands of 'poor' Binayak Sens'

2011-01-03T05:57:00.000-08:00

The arrest and consequent conviction of Binayak Sen has created a flutter in the Media. The Intellectuals of our country are shocked and angry over the flimsy grounds on which the he has been charged for life, and that too under a charge which is grave!! (The controversial Sedition law 'section 124 will be discussed at some other point.) The short and bitter point i want to highlight is the plight of the many thousands of 'innocent' people who are lying locked up in the jails of our countryawaiting justice....waiting because their turn did not come...and perhaps, locked up on false charges by our 'sincere' police. I feel sad for such people..as sad as i do for Mr. Binayak Sen... I hope all those who read this think about how this has ben the case since time immemorial. Governments have come and gone, yet the situation remains the same. Do we not need a new party? Or as a friend said, Democracy won't work for us now' :-? What do you think?

headache due to hypocrisy

2010-12-23T23:22:00.000-08:00

So much furor over the JPC..crores lost ..the opposition ministers are happy withdrawing their daily allowances and salaries even when they aren't discussing anything. And so many important hours have been wasted! :-? I don't say that the scam..running into a few lakh crores should not be discussed..it should be and the guilty should be punished..from top to bottom! It will lead to some much needed cleaning and help in creating so many jobs :D Build a big jail and plonk everyone of the corrupt into it!... And if you think the opposition is "oh so better'..it is infact worse...And tehy have their own problems, though it's less reported, what with one farmer committing suicide each day in MP, corruption in Karnataka and other things......The thing is that everyone is a hypocrite! And the news channels act as if corruption is a new thing confined only to the cwg...do we not know how in every bloody govt department, you can't get your work done without paying "ghoos" ! And seriously, we should kick out the CBI and get our news channels into their shoes! ;)

Adios :p

Sachin: The Name says it all

2010-12-19T10:59:00.000-08:00

Words are not enough to describe the 'Little Master Blaster'

50 test centuries :)

Saw history bieng made today :D

Caste, language, religion and politics...

2010-12-02T00:34:00.000-08:00

Do you belong to the group X- Do you belong to a particular caste, religion, or speak a particular language but do not stay in a state dominated by your 'kinsmen'? So sad...you can't get reservations, such a pity :( You may well be rich but still, reservations are 'Deine Richte' , right? Oh..these Y group people and their politicians won't do anything for you...they will do everything to keep you down..our party will make sure that you and your children are assured a 'job'....just vote for us, and do what we tell you......

First, get all X group people in your Y state in one area, then start protesting...discriminate, as they (Y) discriminate against you'...hire your own people...others are not worth being humans!! Once your numbers increase, start protesting..the struggle will be long but you will win! The state will be divided, you will come under our 'X dominated state' and then we will 'look after you'.........

History is proof that people have always been divisive...on the basis religion or colour or some other ruddy reason. India was not an exception either. After gaining Independence, Its states were cut out on the basis of language, which, and I'm sure that our founding fathers and mothers must have realised this, would at some point of time lead to development of a divide between its people on this basis if India could not support all its citizens. Yet, they perhaps had no other way in order to cut out the states, and tehy must have thought that a free India would ensure a life for everyone and better education and values will one day make us 'true civilians'.But alas, our politicians have not let caste, religion and language go out of the voters mind, and we have been foolish enough to accept them and elect them. Anyways, this topic is something which has ben pending since months.. i won;t make it run into pages ...will just end it with some of my thoughts. :)

My India...A country where religion has no place in politics... A country in which everyone has equal opportunity (rather than reservations).. a country where people don't voting for candidates who are forever trying to play the card of religion and caste...and the corrupt...A country whose people are united irrespective of the difference of language, colour, facial features, etc.... a Country which is green :)

And I wonder when WE(not all, but a sizable number of us) will start thinking beyond our state, religion, caste, race....because only then will we have better politicians...because only then will India truly grow into one unified ideal! A country which every other country can follow :) We have not yet achieved our goals..but we can :) To those who ask what we have to do to achieve this, i think this quote from a character in my favourite book sums it up beautifully....

"Remember Cedric. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory."

A propaganda machine...the indian a/v news channels

2010-12-01T23:22:00.000-08:00

"Chidambaram Tears into Pakistan"..."Dharti hogi nasht...." "Himyug aagaya!" "Europe bana Artic"  "Manav jaati ka hoga naash..." "Female Ravan"...

This is INDIAN NEWS...  masala maar ke! And that's why I'm suffering from indigestion...*sigh* In fact, i've stopped watching Indian news channels..BBC is so much better! And the reasons are galore..and the top spot on MY list of WHY NOT TO WATCH INDIAN NEWS CHANNELS is...

I am spared the torture of being watching the same 3-5 second audio visual clip repeated for the whole half hour with different 'fiery' taglines..and of hearing the same thing being said in different ways by dumb reporters who think they are Sherlock Holmes or some Judge! Sometimes i wonder why Arnab and other journalists like him aren't in politics :-? That would change things ;).... And this is the prime reason why i call it a propaganda machine... electronic media brainwashes us by showing the same news again and again and again until we start believing the news without waiting for the real verdict of justice! According to me, the purpose of the a news channel is to inform in a very neutral manner, but here we have anchors getting livid and full of emotion(fake?) who convert a simple statement into something much more lethal! This was earlier used in the page 3 columns and entertainment news sections but the rush for the no.1 spot has made sure that everyday news is not the same..it has to be exciting no matter how insipid it may be! This is wrong

And then, occupying second spot, is the presence of absolutely $#!^ news channels who have no other job than to tell the public about serials, stars, old songs and what not! I mean, is this what a news channel is supposed to do? Of course, I'm nobody to tell people what should constitute news, but from what I've read (and what all the news industry people must have studied) this seems way of mark.. But personally, i don't want such stuff occupy maximum amount of time and prime time space! EXCUSEZ MOI! I have enough of news bits telling me I'm about to die (along with this earth)

Third, please..go global too! I rarely find proper coverage of International topics by the Indian media... Whatever is reportd is again, very inaccurate, inaccurate in the sense that one or two statements are taken and then blown out of proportion and even twisted.

Fourth and the last: Stop behaving like kids! Do not make every news breaking news! And stop treating simple statements as actions! That's distorting the facts! Also, please try not bring in your emotions and personal feelings ( in large volumes)

And oho..i forgot..stop holding debates on "How bhalu bhai's buffalo got electrocuted" and stuff like that. And also stop the dumb adaalats!! We have other channels for that stuff! AND PLEASE...expose the corrupt, but at least cover the good points as well (Read as : CWG) The coverage was pathetic...you people didn't highlight the good points at all! Was it some power-politics behind this?)

Enough of the criticism..

According to me, the purpose of the a news channel should be to inform in a very neutral manner, but here in our country we have anchors getting livid and full of emotion(fake?) converting a simple statement into something much more lethal! Turning and twisting statements, repeatedly showing the same bit of news again and again and what not! This was earlier used in the page 3 columns and entertainment news sections but the rush for the no.1 spot has made sure that everyday news is not the same..it has to be exciting no matter how insipid it may be! This is wrong and needs to be corrected asap.

And btw, i won't stop from showering praise where Indian News (electronic) Media deserves it.... Today, it has become a force which is helping expose corruption (which is different from 'deciding' who is corrupt and who is not'....) and fight injustice. The Indian news media is one force with whom no one dares to take a 'Panga' ....and that is the biggest fear! Will it also take a bath in 'corruption' and try to influence our decisions deliberately? As old spidy's uncle used to say.. "with great power come great responsibilities" It's better that the media restrain itself from using its power for the wrong reasons...and also trying to act asthe legal karta dharta of India! Showing what's wrong is right, but making an issue out of a non issue and vice versa is unpardonable.!

PS: As you might have guessed, I had been irritated to the point of frustration and that's why i switched from indian to international news channels. And yes, as you may have guessed, i have a special complaint against certain channels w.r.t their coverage of the CWG games.... you failed your country and its sportsperson... Also, i love a few shows "vinod dua live" and "The Devil's Advocate" because they only QUESTION and INFORM rather than try and mold our views by expressing news in different tones...

Back with a fizz

2010-11-30T07:01:00.000-08:00

It's nice to be back :D..it has been a looooooonnng time since i updated my blog ...have been busy in a plethora of exams and infact i will remain booked till January 16th :( but i'll try and write whenever i have some time :) A lot has happened on which i HAVE to express my views..I'll also be starting new group to take on those who discriminate between different life forms and plead for unnatural causes.. :-? And that's just the beginning :P I have quite a bit to write!

So, Stay tuned for more :p to all those who can read this..the blog was blocked due to privacy issues (long story)..apologies for that!

Auf Wiedersehen :)

Death of Humanity?

2010-06-30T07:09:00.000-07:00

My planet is weeping....

My country is breaking...

Hatred is what we are cultivating...

Our protectors have become our enemies....

Leaders of the oppressed are just like their own oppressors...killers !!!

Women are raped... tribals killed.. for what? To extract what constitutes our planet!

The resource curse shows how evil we've become...For a metal/oil n blah blah blah.. we're ready to kill, rape, torture, and what not.. come what may... I ask, Is this what we have become?

It's the Arabs for the Palestinians...the Tamils for the LTTE...the Christians for Christians..Muslims for Muslims..Hindus for Hindus...Jews for Jews...We..the commoners for the Government ..for the State... .. whose police, ministers, army... don't protect but torture...We vote for those who let, and even help, the devil run rout...

There is the UN now...

The UN is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and the achieving of world peace. (Source: Wikipedia)

Please focus on the word last two words: World peace. A noble mission.....Alas..The whole UN is a farce... it is run by the leaders of the most powerful nation, the very same who are responsible for almost all the problems related to terrorism that plague us today...and indirectly are its people..and so are all of us... because it is we who elect them, we who get swayed by their speeches, it is we who, under the garb of patriotism, can accept anything. We'd rather sit and lament on those who suffer..the minority..the weak majority... Damn the politics!!!!

There's the Indian problem...

CRPF killing the Naxals..the Naxals killing the CRPF..both killing the layman....tales of killing and tortures are abound... but what god has it done.. Naxals are from within us..the locals..then why were they exploited to the point where they had no option but to take up arms against what was supposedly their own government? or was it the government belonging to the strong mining cartels? And what are the Naxals doing now? What will this incessant killing yield? What will peace yield? The people continue to suffer...

The Kashmir problem...

The Switzerland of the east has turned into an Army Camp....the army protects but it also destroys...the crushed cry..others protest..they kill too...an eye for an eye..a life for a life...the game goes on...

And also the Pakistan problem...

On the other side, the devil that was created for someone else is destroying life on both sides...

And the gravest perhaps...the Taliban problem..

USA created the Taliban to defeat the USSR...it reaped what it sowed..and so did the rest of the world.... It did the same again in Iraq.... People on both side continue to die...our money continues to finance this ugly war! yet we elect leaders who love to meddle in everyone's affairs...

And then there's OUR problem...

Whatever be the case.... it's not the leaders who suffer...it's the puppets..it's you..me..it's us!!!!!!!! And we have no one to blame but ourselves...

And then there is HOPE..

Yet in this darkness hour there is always the hope... not the hope our present day politicians try and sell us but real hope... :) I urge all people reading this to please think from the HUMAN point of view..think for HUMANS....not for country, religion, caste, colour, sex.... and on these line sshould we live life and make sure that the future is bright for each one of us...

" Remember, The power is in your hands" - Captain Planet

How the employees of Air India are digging their own graves...

2010-05-26T01:39:00.001-07:00

Day 2 it is today of the strike of the employees of NACIL or Air India or Indian Airlines, whatever you may like to call it, and it's just what the doctor ordered...the death doctor that is!!

You, I and many other fliers just want to fly, we do not want strikes. If we don't get to travel due to a strike on a particular airline, we'll gladly change it(I'm sure of this). Consumer is the King..the Ministers and the employees(more important for them) at Air India need to get this into their heads or else the losses will rise, more public money will be thrown to keep the National Pride afloat, and then there will be public outrage about how much more money the Govt is going to put into this glutton of an airline which just can't manage itself! I don't know about you but i do not want MY money to go into a public entity like Air India!!!! So it will (i hope so) be closed down or privatized soon :D Thousands of crores that will be saved and used somewhere else!!

And now, what about the employees? They'll be jobless!! What will happen to them?

Well, Isn't it their(and the ministers) fault that Air India is running into huge losses? Of course it is and it's high time accountability is brought into our Public sector!!! Accountability is needed to ensure that corruption ends and the lackadaisical attitude of the employees and the ministers is erased forever!

As of now thousands of people are stranded at airports, and i can guarantee you that they will never fly Air India again. They do not care about what the issue is over which the employees are enraged, they just ant to fly. The Employees could have resorted to some other means than this, because by doing so, they are actually digging their own grave!

Ewww!

2010-05-15T07:20:00.000-07:00

The last few days have been hectic but 3 news clippings caught my eye..infact annoyed me! However, later another report was more detailed and explained why that particular decision was taken. The other two continue to be sore points..

Lets start with today. Most of the TOI readers must have read about how a cleric was detained after a woman thought he was a terrorist!

According to TOI-

The ‘dangerous’ phone call by a 50-year-old cleric on board a flight at IGI airport that triggered a bomb scare on Wednesday, was merely a ‘‘communication gap’’, Delhi Police has said. If police commissioner Y S Dadwal is to be believed, the caller — Maulana Noor-ul-Huda — was more victim than accused. But the cops are pursuing the case despite Dadwal saying on Friday that the police ‘‘do not want to proceed’’ with non-bailable charges.
A woman passenger told the cabin crew she heard the maulana saying “jahaz udane wala hai, hum udne waley hain” (the plane is about to be blown up, we are about to fly). The maulana claimed he was only saying “jahaz udne wala hai” (the plane is about to fly”).

This is really absurd. The man in question was just saying a simple line which almost all of us say: ' jahaz udne waala hai' Even the otehr line 'Hum udne waale hai' is common especially in parts of U.P and it simple means 'WE ARE ABOUT TO FLY(IN A PLANE)' rather than 'WE ARE ABOUT TO BLOW UP' Blow up in hindi is ' PHUTNA'. The woman either did not know proper hindi, or was scared by the 'Mualana' look(or maybe both), and if it was the former, then it's really sad that even some of us have this image of terrorist in mind(beard, pathani suit, etc) and whatever s/he does needs to be carefully scrutinized...this when it's common sense that any terrorist will try as hard as possible not to create any suspicion.( Did the 26/11 terrorist have bards? NO they did not! )

What more shocking is the Delhi Police's actions. While the Police Commissioner acknowledges that it was a 'communication gap' and that the accused is the actual victim, the 50 year old man has been booked under many charges, including no bailable ones.

My view...

I am not saying that suspect actions should not be reported, but people should be careful while reporting someone and should not do so on the basis of one's appearance, religion, etc! Plus, the police should not unnecessarily harass the person accused if he is found not guilty as in the above case, and other passengers too must be quizzed and if the complainant seems to have lodged the complain 'just for fun', action should be taken against him.

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Second news: DEOBAND SAYS ITS ILLEGAL FOR WOMEN TO WORK WITH MEN

I mean WTH!!! Why do newspapers such as TOI give a shit to such crap from an organisation consisting of 'lakir ke fakirs' who are crazy people with no sense? Arrrghh..these people are really crap..and they issue fatwas with the speed at which the local kebab shop sells kebab rolls with the difference being that the latter is digestible and the former not!! eww..stop giving these people press coverage!

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The third bit of news was concerned with the judgement of the HC which declared the marriage of a couple null and void because both were of different religions *shock* See this

However, the next day i read this article

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And yes. another interesting article :-? Click here

2010-05-05T03:02:00.000-07:00

6th August, 2007- 1st day at my new college... :P

1st May, 2010- Last exam of my graduation... :P (controversies galore..have to submit a report again :-o)

Time is strange....

3 years @Sherwood College of Professional Management(SCPM) have passed away...3 years in which i made quite a few 'good' friends..discovered hidden talent :P..had loadsa fun..lost a few things :P..got linked to almost all the girls in my class =)) and in turn I linked my frnds to each other.. staged walkouts :P..went to Dudhwa National park and what not! And yes, the best part was being taught by the best teacher in the world :D .. Ms. Seema Paul........... I shall discuss it in detail now so that most of you get you doze off n catch up on the sleep you have missed :P

.....I always wondered why i ended up in Sherwood :p i didn't actually curse it but the number of controversies that happened during the first few months were...er..'fultoo bakwaas' made me feel yucky about my college! What kinda college has such 'odd' rules? :-o Discipline is ok..but some rules were senseless!

First day at college, i don't remember much (Ghajini part 2 :P)..but yeah..like everybody else :P, the teacher who was noting down names of the students in various courses got my spelling wrong :P Syed Mohd Zain Inhonvi is a rather long and complicated name, especially the last part :P After spelling my name, i proceeded to the room where our orientation class was to be held. I don't remember much of the orientation class but our teacher (the same one who had been noting our names) told us that this(SCPM) wasn't a college..it was a pathshaala..with very strict rules!!!!! *Imagine the feelings* :P..lol..but ise zaada koi farak mereko nai padta tha so :P

Then I don't remember if it was in the first class or in the orientation class, that there were a few people who had been too loud that day....a group from Nepal and one girl in particular..there was some fight about who will sit where and in the end it was decided that the girls will sit on one side and other bakwaaas :p There was also an intro session..all of us had to give a small intro and at the end, our teacher said that only a few people gave a proper intro..one of them being 'I' lol..so it was a nice thing...

The next few days were exciting :P..one guy was caught chewing pan masala by our 'Rathore Sir'..and a big issue was made outta it :P our dresses were not ready..so uspe bhi bawaal hota tha :P den der was also a huge controversy later..and a bigger one after that!!!! Enough of controversies :P

Now i used to sit quite alag thalag :P not talking to many people...talked to only to a few people..quite a simple life ..till one day there was this surprise test and in it i got full marks i think..plus loads of praise by my teacher :D which resulted in some attention being showered on me lol =)) there were a few girls who even asked for my paper :-o n i was like.. 'ok..take it!' No conversations please :P i don't speak to girls :P..girls r dangerous rotfl :p

After the controversies there was this rule that all of us have to sit according to our roll numbers and it was then that i got into a group which consisted of Sumit, Swati and Vaibhav..and one more person who was later removed from our group (whose name i won't take coz someone won't like it :P haha).. There were a few odd moments..like one of my school friend, Aviral, giving my mum's number to a girl :-o . At first i thought he had not given her the number and then a few days later the call came and i was like :-o :-o :-o :-o WTH! It was the first time a 'girl' had called...cheez..wat a scene :P..ofcourse i later gave a good dose to Aviral for his act!! Till 1st year i wasn't that 'strong' a part of the group i mentioned :p but was a part nevertheless... infact things got better as time passed me by... :P

The Freshers party was also nice..i won the 'Most Promising Junior' award that evening! I still can't believe i performed on stage =)) (These are the changes I'm talking about..all coz of Seema Ma'am)

One of the best moments was winning 1st prize in a paper presentation competition organized by University of Lucknow. We had to make a presentation on 'Carbon trading' and I didn't have any experience of participating in these presentations and all..but i was forced to do so..and motivated too..by Seema ma'am :D** And it was Osama and I who won 1st prize..and the competitors were all MBA students!!! The feeling was really good :P That was perhaps the event which provided the jolt i needed..and from then onwards I have been participating in all such events :D Stage fright took a flight back home :D

And i must also say that my seniors..both BBA Tourism and BBA ones, were awesome. They playd a vital role in supporting and motivating us! So here's a big THANKYOU to you all :D ( if you ever read this :P)

Second year was hectic..vivas, competitions, foreign language and our college fest! Loadsa drama followed in the end...i also lost my dear Canon Powershot A550 camera :((

Third year started with a bang :p Our college raised our fees and we protested..when we protested, everyone protested :P which snowballed into mass bunks :P and dharnas @Lucknow University :P Drama toh bahot hua..but we won :D

Then came the time for our TOUR :D One of the best days ..enjoyed a lot..got to know the reality about some people :P..and touched snow for the time in my life :D I won;t go into the details..but discuss other random things and a little word on all the teachers who have taught us in the last 3 years :D

1. Amar Sir ke classes: The most amazing classes :P the most 'fun' period :P Isme toh itni tafreeh kaati hia ki kya bataye =)) even the most serious guy..Mr. Vaibhav IAS :P doesn't pay attention to sir ji :D But Sumit knows how angry Sir can get..:P..1 week suspension =)) rotfl :P

2. Gyaan Sir..a good teacher....but class ke shaitaan bachche unko bhi hasaa dete hai :P And Sir ji gets angry too ..Rohtang pe santiya jo padi thi kuch logo ko woh yaad hai :P

3. Surbhi ma'am...Quite strict..but hamare class mein unko bhi hasi aajati hai :P

4. Vandana ma'am: very strict!!! hum logo se bahot pareshaan rehti thi :P but hum log manaa bhi lete the :D

5. Shailendra Sir: Knowledge ka bhandaar hai Sir ke paas! ISC mein badhiya padhaaya tha :D

6. Pooja Ma'am: Very enthusiastic teacher..hated yawners :P and made us do mock interviews..but hum log itne batameez the ki hartime tafreeh mein rehte the :P

7. Neha Ma'am: She taught us HRM and was very popular!!

8. Seema Ma'am: The bestest and most awesome teachr. Ma'am ke class mein zaada mazaak nai chalta hai :P bt she knows how to pull someone's leg :P (mereko bhi nahi baksha :P) Shez d most caring teacher..the most supportive and motivating too! And very knowledgeable! She has always cared for us as if we were her own children...has always has been our protector and guide! Howeverm we as students have perhaps always disappointed her..always committed mistakes..always been selfish..but you have not changed..and that's what makes you stand out! That's what makes you the best teacher.. :D I'm sure all of us will miss you lot!!! And aapne jaate jaate bhi hum logo ka khayaal rakha! You really are the best... :D

Random incidents :

The World Tourism Day program was fun =)) a nice experience..:p main director bana tha ..lol..still can't believe i did that :P

Then class mein chalte love affairs :P..Sumit-Swati, Osama Swati, Osama Srishti etc etc :p and jhagde bhi hote the :p..most volcanic was Osama :P kitni baar jhagde hue hai n kitni baar patch up :P And hez popularly known as the Psycho :P ..The nepal gang's fav target :P

EK classic moment tha Vaibhav ka woh dialogue :P It was in the 1st year during Amar Sir's class :P Everyone was making a hell lotta noise and he was getting frustated and ekdum he shouted :P " Saala yaha 50 rupaiye roz kharach karke padhne ke liyae aatae hai..shor machaanae ke liyae nahi"

Iske baad everyone started using tihs dialogue =)) 50 rupaiye kharach karke aate hai :P..rotfl :P And he also shouted ekdum se once when i was doodling on his 'fair' register =)) n he stil cries about the number of pens he has given me :P

Ek baar Amit Sinha...d apangu uncle of our class :pgot angry n started shouting at Yuman :P All of us started laughing after that..aakhir uncles pe gussa achcha nai lagta na :p

N den..sumit babu..bengali babu :P aka DADA :P very sentimental banda :P best friend :P has a degree in 'gf management' =)) and get his work done by girls :P And he is an entrepreneur too~~ :D And talent bahot hai..but dikhata nahi hai :P..n tension bahot leta hai :P...n he is very famous with the juniors!!

And of course..aviral sinha babu :P..the one who told me about Sherwood :P.. he came with me to college for more than a year :p..i even crashed him =)) uske baad se isne Activa le li ..haha :P

I'll stop now..bahot likh diya hai..hv to keep somethings private too :P and i have to keep in ind the fact that most of you will doze off..coz i'm not a good writer :P..i need loads of time to write a good piece :p Toh time for a conclusion :P

Conclusion :P

After 3 years, I know why i came to SCPM... After all, where else would i have got the chance of being taught by Seema Ma'am? Where else would i have made great friends like Sumit, Vaibhav, Osama and others? These 2 reasons are enough to once again make me believe in the words of Old Tirumula... "Everything happens for our own good"........

Here's a small poem by Robert Frost which will be a good way to end my post...

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there's some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

PS: 12th May, 2010-Our Farewell Party :D

Women reservation bill

2010-03-11T01:44:00.000-08:00

Women Reservation Bill

Why it should be passed

Today there are only 59 women MPs as compared to 545 total seats! Women are not asking for grace and charity. Their contribution to the cause of nation-building exceeds that of men. An International Labour Organisation study shows that "while women represent 50 percent of the world adult population and a third of the official labour force, they perform nearly two-third of all working hours, receive a tenth of world income and own less than one percent of world property." Therefore, reservation for women is not a bounty but only an honest recognition of their contribution to social development.

Opponents of the bill say that it is against the essence of democracy but what about other reservations? Why don’t political parties oppose them? Why do they want to politicize everything?

The need for reservations in a democracy for sections of the society who are not provided opportunities is immense! It is a kind of a paradox considering democracy is about equal opportunity for all and reservations go against this, but reservations are necessary because in the male dominated society of ours, our minds have been bent in a way which is prejudiced towards women in certain matters. Take for example the common belief that women are bad drivers! Similarly, people, including women, do not vote for women even if they are competent, just because of the image of women imposed by the society since ages! This is why the need of reservation has arisen!!! To change the mindset of people towards women; to give opportunity to women; to prove that women can be better administrators than men! Such stereotypes need to be broken; such prejudices need to be removed….. Equality is the main aim of democracy and sometimes it is imperative that special conditions are created to remove prejudices and to give power to all! However, please note that let us not politicize the whole issue. If we start talking about quotas within quotas as it’ll create an opportunity for chauvinistic politics to grow! The most important point that is not included in the bill is a TIME FRAME! Reservations should be for a particular time only. Once the mindset is broken, women reservations should be abolished. Only then will true equality be possible!

-Opponents say that the ‘male dominated’ parliament has done so much for women, thus there is no need for a reservation for women. Men are not against women.

I agree that our politicians have done a lot for women, but a lot still needs to be done. A woman will be better able to understand the problems faced by women and will be better equipped to solve problems. More importantly, even women are not against men. They may in fact help in ensuring better rights for men as they won’t think of women as the ‘weaker’ section (especially pertaining to criminal cases). More women won’t mean anti men policies….it’ll just mean that power hungry politicians may lose their seats…

-Opponents say that it’ll promote 2^nd rate women politicians rather than the best politicians.

This shows that opponents regard most women as incapable to lead! Such prejudice is bad for the country…

-Opponents say that the rotation policy (every 10 years) will pose problems, especially the lottery system.

The lottery system could be done away with but the rotation policy is in line with the main aim of reservation: proving that even women are capable…and they don’t need reservations for life! If they work well, they will be elected even after the reservation is removed!

-Opponents say that 33% of the population will restrict the choice of the people!

To an extent, yes, but as I said, it’s necessary if we have to remove the prejudice against women

-Opponents say that reservations will lead to voting on the lines of gender (gender discrimination is the main point here)

I don’t think so. Women are also human beings. The idea is to ensure that they get an opportunity. Rotation policy will ensure that elected women lay stress on development or else the voters will reject them after 10 years when men and women will have a level playing field!

-Opponents say that male candidates will pose their wives/other relatives instead of contesting themselves and do the campaigning themselves and run the show too! Women will be reduced to puppets!

A valid point! But then people always find ways to circumvent the law. However, all human beings have a BRAIN(which they don’t utilize when they go to vote)! The parties can play a good role here by not allowing such acts to happen! This calls for tough political stance to be taken. If seats are the only focus, parties may end up doing just what the opponents say. Still, benefits will be there!

Opponents want an increase in seats…

This can be considered because the population has increased. But I am not in complete support of this move

-Opponents say elite women will get advantage of this!

Really? Do a majority of elitist men get elected as MPs? At the end of the day, it’s the candidate’s work and connection with people that wins votes! (Why do we end up stereotyping every class? The Elite are always considered anti poor and the poor as anti elite! WHY?)

Other advantages:

Reservation for women would check the muddy politics that the men folk have brought about. It would bring social consciousness to political life. It will also help in brushing the criminal-politician nexus - the real danger to our democracy. However, there’s a big question mark on this because as they say power corrupts and so it may do the same to women!

Suggestions:

1. Before passing the bill, there should be a time line set….say 30 years (33*3=99%) after which this reservation shall be removed.

2. No need for quotas within the women reservation bill. That will lead to even more dirty politics. Women as a whole don’t have much political space and are still discriminated against. Also, the women reservation will be applicable to SC/ST OBC seats as well which means that women from backward classes will benefit.

3. No need to substitute this with the other proposition that mandates political parties to make provisions for giving 1/3^rd tickets to women… this alternative will not achieve the objective behind the Amendment Bill, because even if a third of women candidates are put up by political parties, there is no guarantee that the same number will get elected.

The women reservation bill is a piece of legislation which i support. I just hope it's not politicised like other reservation laws have been!

PS: The only difference if the act is passed will be the loss of a big Chunk in the male bastion. That is the real reason for opposition by male MPs and not the concern for OBCs, Muslims and other minorities!

Dear scientists & scientific organisations...

2010-01-20T04:17:00.000-08:00

Polluters have a reason to cheer! With the IPCC famed report being rubbished, they are now sure to disregard every report!

Scientific research, like every other research, is just a research! It cannot tell us exact dates...it can only tell us what the changes have occurred. even such data varies depending on who the scientist/s is/are... When the scientists submit their findings to scientific bodies like the IPCC, these bodies check for there veracity. When a report on climate change, a very sensitive issue, is made, it's obvious that extra precautions should have vbeen taken, lest it be ridiculed by those opposed to the findings!

Yet, in this case, startling revelations are being made from how old data and an interview were used to come to the conclusion...Now the scientists who had given the interview has come out (after all this time, strange isn't it?) and has said that he had been misquoted and that he had only said that glaciers were melting....he had not given a specific date!

When scientists make claims of doomsday or try to predict events, usually people view it as gibberish! Exaggerated claims don't help either.. Opponents of such reports use these opportunities to belittle them, and they succeed too as it is always hard for the 'aam aadmi' to come to terms with such claims... 'The world ending in 2012' is such a news which is surely going to be laughed off..the same is the case with the report in discussion! (What worsened matters was the various leaks and other drama)

Thus, i request (i know no one's gonna listen to my opinions..but still :P) all scientists and various scientific bodies to only publish reports which are correct (and not based on interviews given by scientists..), and they should also refrain from making prophecies because it's really tough to make them......In fact it's impossible to make predictions like the one made by the IPCC!! ..Instead, they should highlight the fact that global warming is a danger and if it is not controlled, then it'll lead to changes in the world climate which will not auger well for all of us! (And the climate is changing, no doubt about that!) That should prove to be much more effective in making people aware about issues rather than claiming that the earth will run out of fresh water or burst into flames by 2077 and blah blah blah! Scientific bodies should work like the silent ninja assassins and slay the perpetrators! ;-)

Cricket, Bollywood & Indo-pak relations

2010-01-19T07:12:00.000-08:00

'No Pakistan players bought in IPL-3 auction'

This was the breaking news today, and it showed how bad the relations between the two nations have gone! Of course, the BCCI had not banned these players from IPL, an international event, but that doesn't mean that there was no pressure on the teams from the main body! Afterall, why would the teams desert their match winning players? Sohail Tanveer and Shahid Afridi are two of the big names who should have been selected, but yet they were not! Such incidents reduce the credibility of the BCCI, and ofcourse lead to politicisation of a sport, and deprive fans of cricketing action....

After the 26/11 attacks, the attitude of India towards pakistan has changed considerably, and perhaps rightly so, but to let politics rule over sports and entertainment is not good! Such acts will further weaken, or may even break, the already frail relations between the two countries... :(

Of late, there have also been instances of some Indian singers creating much noise against the increased presence of Pakistani singers in bollywood, which again is wrong!

Singing, sports, entertainment, arts, crafts, cultures...these are the things which help in strengthening relations between countries! Politics, in 9 out of 10 cases, does not resolve disputes!, infact politics is what which creates divides between people and countries!!

I hope that sense prevails and such incidents are not repeated. The TOI's 'Aman ki Aasha' campaign is a wonderful effort though skeptics among you will say it's a mere publicity stunt, but then what more can the media do? Maybe, just maybe, those influenced by this campaign could very well become politicians in the future....and then they could bring about real change... :D

Fair testing standards: Fair Test

2010-01-13T02:16:00.000-08:00

An interesting article..please go through it!

Snippets from the article

"

The results of the Bates program have been documented over the 21 years of its existence, and some of the results have proved startling. Bates has found, for example, that students who did not submit test scores, known as "non-submitters," maintained GPAs that were virtually the same as submitters. The graduation rates of non-submitters were also virtually the same as submitters.

Those results are all the more salient because Bates is a highly selective college, and test-submitting freshman have high average test scores. So the non-submitters at Bates compete with high-end SAT scorers, and differences in outcomes still are hard to detect.

Hiss said Bates' experience has converted him and other college officials to the theory of multiple intelligences advanced by Harvard educator Howard Gardner. No single test can measure the different forms of intelligence, talents and skills in young people, Hiss said, and such a test inevitably will cut out some promising students whose skills do not appear on the test results. Such a process, he said, raises grave questions for colleges and the country as a whole.

For one thing, he argues that rejecting students who would otherwise thrive in college can have crippling impacts on their lives, possibly pushing them from college altogether and leaving them with career choices that are far below their real talents.

And further, he said, the whole nation suffers. "When you use a test that artificially reduces the pool of people who could go to college and succeed, you are truncating the number of educated people available for higher-level jobs. That is terrible economic policy," said Hiss."

Read the whole article here

Frustrated........

2009-12-25T01:28:00.000-08:00

My anger against the Indian Police and politicians has just reached a new high.... these ppl suck.. I know there are good policemen/politicians, but they are grossly outnumbered...

I wish all people like SPS Rathore and others who such people are punished severely...how about cutting their hands in public? Makes me wonder if Saudi style punishments are needed to deter such blatant cases wherein an influential person misuses his power....

And btw..in Ruchika's case, the school which threw her out should also be penalized and the then principal be punished...

I can't imagine the mental state of Ruchika and her family...it sounds like a story out of an old hindi flick wherein the innocent people are harrowed endlessly by the goons who have control over everyone from the Police to the Politicians.... These people suck...imagine police torturing a 14yr old kid on the behest of a pervert police officer....were the other police officials blind to the injustice and harassment? Such people are bastards and should be stoned to death!

CRAP POLICE+CRAP POLITICIANS= DEATH OF INNOCENT PEOPLE

Molester IG/ADGP/DGP punished, but is the punishement enough?

2009-12-23T06:30:00.000-08:00

It's another case of how the influential people can get away with almost anything! It's 19 years later that the high profile molester of little Ruchi is punished, and what is the punishment? 6 months in jail (and he's out on bail too) and a petty fine....... It's a classic case of the 'influential' guilty being punished too late and too lightly, something which has become almost a norm in many of the cases being fought in our Courts today.....

The molester IG/ADGP/DGP- SPS Rathore with his wife

Why is the criminal so happy?

The Case

In August 1990, Ruchika, a budding tennis player, was allegedly molested by Rathore, then an IG and president of the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association, at his office-cum-residence — Ruchika’s friend and classmate Aradhana was eyewitness to the incident. Since the accused was an IG, the family had to face many humiliations and harassment from all corners. Ruchika's brother was booked in a dozen cases of theft and locked up for many days and also, allegedly tortured by the police. Consequently, Ruchika committed suicide by poisoning herself in 1993.

Ruchika's family had lost all hope, but it here taht an angel couple took up their case and fought for Ruchika. These were the parents of Ruchika's friend, Aradhana, who is now settled in Australia. Aradhana's father, Mr. Anand Prakash, was a chief engineer in the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Department. Following his move to bring justice to Ruchika, he too was made to suffer by SPS Rathore and his 'friends' who ranged from Politicians to top Police officials. He was demoted from his post of chief engineer and also given early retirement from his job. A number of cases were filed against him, his wife and his daughter, but all this did not deter him from fighting for what was right.

However, while the case got delayed (for full analysis refer to the links posted below) for years and years, the accused Rathore was granted promotions twice!!! -One as ADGP (additional director general of police) and the other as DGP(Director General of Police) ---------------- This goes to show how influential or well connected people continue to benefit from their links/connections. It's a shame and i want everyone who helped the accused to be severely punished!!! Educated, these people are, but not really educated. Molesting children is what they learned at their homes, i presume....

However, in the long ordeal faced by Mr. Prakash, he did get support, moral and financial, from many people, including bureaucrats. Their lawyer too didn't charge any fee from them. This goes to show that their are still quite a few good people around..... :)

Now that Mr. Rathore, whose lawyer is his own wife, (It's quite shocking that his wife defended him when there was a prima facie witness in the case....it's a pity that she, being a woman, defended her husband for such a crime which eventually led to the child's death) (It wasn't only the trauma of being molested, but the continued humiliation and harassment which Ruchika's family had to go through at the behest of the clout of the then IG Rathore, that Ruchika was forced to suicide...even then....the wife of the accused acted as the defence lawyer...)
stands before the court as GUILTY, it surprised and shocked many who were thinking that an example would be made out of SPS Rathore to deter future such incidents by influential people. However, the court gave a disappointing verdict.... 6 months jail and a Rs.1000 fine it's a joke, no no..it's a slap on the face of the judiciary and the CBI! I hope that the molester Mr. SPS Rathore is given a much more severe punishment and no heed be given to his old age or weak health!!

Quotes:

“I am elated that Rathore has been awarded six months of RI, but at the same time I am sad it took so long to decide on the matter. Had the verdict against Rathore been pronounced earlier, I think Ruchika would not have committed suicide,” Madhu Parkash (Wife of Mr. Anand Prakash)

"It is not the end of the trial. We will drag to court all police officers and bureaucrats who tried their best to save Rathore. Despite the allegations against him, he was promoted twice and retired as DGP. Is this how the system deals with an accused?” (Mr. Anand Prakash)

What can we, the people, do?

We can just hope that speedier punishments are meted out so that the harassed victims are not forced to end their life out of frustration, and that each and everyone of the abettors are punished severely to deter people from supporting criminals!!!!

Additional links: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/ruchika-molestation-6-months-jail-rs-1-000-fine-for-exdgp/557617/2

Update...

2009-12-02T19:51:00.000-08:00

Glare on IIM ‘hurry’ for online test

CHARU SUDAN KASTURI

New Delhi, Dec. 2: The Indian Institutes of Management ignored repeated concerns raised by some of their own faculty involved in computerising the Common Admission Test (CAT) that the IIMs were inadequately prepared for the shift this year, authoritative sources said.

Suggestions to postpone the move from a pen-and-paper CAT to a computerised test by a year were ignored, four sources closely associated with the preparation for the exam independently confirmed to The Telegraph.

The concerns were raised at meetings of three different committees of faculty and institute administrators set up by the IIMs to prepare for the computerised test and to advise organisers, the sources said.

The ignored concerns left many faculty representatives on these three committees under the impression that a few of the directors were in an “inexplicable” hurry to risk computerising the test, the sources said.

Full story: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091203/jsp/nation/story_11816263.jsp

PS: My date still not confirmed :P No communication from CAT team till date! Mera number kab aayega!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Updates on Crap CAT

2009-12-01T03:18:00.000-08:00

As my(and many thousand others) wait for a slot continues, here's what the media has reported....

Firm IIMs hired to hold online CAT test has failure record

CAT troubles continues for day four, aspirants flay IIMs 'laxity'

Sibal slams IIMs, orders probe over CAT glitch

IIMs had organized a press conference yesterday evening in which nothing new was told except that all students will be given a slot, though people won't have a choice when it came to selecting slots as per their wish (This when exams have started in many universities, including mine)...... lol. The whole conference had nothing good for the students, except some facts. The IIMs have been giving out names of centers which are totally shut, but it's not telling that their are many labs in all the centers which are not working even after 4 days!

Hope the virus doesn't alter the marks!!!

This is blunder of the decade... $40 million down the drain, at least for 8000+ of us unlucky souls and for thousands other who experienced problems or accidentally pressed the quit button which has been intelligently placed right next to the NEXT button ....guess the IIMs were blinded....right from the beginning!!!

CAT- Was CBT necessary?

2009-11-29T02:43:00.000-08:00

When CAT announced the shift from paper based exams to online CBT ones, many raised eyebrows over the move! After all around 2.8 lakh aspirants gave the exam in 2008, and to manage such huge numbers would surely be a herculean task. But being organised by the IIMs, everyone thought things would work out just fine. The IIMs hired US based Prometric for the job which is the company which looks after the GMAT exam across the world.

However, on the 28th of November when the both examination sessions of the day were finished, the story that came out was very bad! CAT exams were cancelled in 105 centers!!! And the affected students who had come from different places were not given any information about the test. While this can be accepted as generating new dates takes some time, what surprised candidates was that they weren't even provided accommodation! I had my exam on the 29th (today) and i was hoping that my center does not cancel the exam! However, it was not be the day i belled the CAT and I had to return home all the way from Saroj College as only one set of computers were working (around 15-20 people gave the test in each shift). The other centers affected in Lucknow include SAMA college (all exams cancelled on both days), and Azad college (as per my knowledge).

The basic questions that i want to ask the IIMs are:

1. What was the need to conduct the CBT? After all, the results aren't coming out any earlier (jan 22nd is the scheduled date), the amount of money being spent is more, the test is being held for 10 days!!...So why???

Only because you wanted to equal GMAT? Only for vanity's sake?

2. Before the actual examinations started, did you not conduct a trial of some sort to see if any problems could arise? I guess you guys didn't or else this problem would have been rectified. I know prometric is a good company, but blindly trusting it is something which should have been avoided (especially after the initial glitches with unfilled forms being accepted online)

As for Prometric, it's a blot on their profile! Gmat and CAT are very different! 2.5 lakh people give CAT whereas only a few thousands give GMAT in India. Adequate plans should have been made to tackle situations like the one we are in now! Trails should have been conducted. Technically, the fault is of the Prometric people, but collectively, it's a failure of both, Prometric and the IIMs!

However, with all this happening, the least the IIMs can do is to ensure that outstation candidates are given accomodation facilities and he students are given dates which do not clash with their examinations (if any, as in my case i have my final university exams from the 9th).

And please revert back to the normal paper based tests if these glitches are not sorted out! And next year, try Infosys or TCS and I'm sure they'll do a much better job than prometric.

1 year later.....

2009-11-26T05:10:00.000-08:00

May the souls of those who lost their lives in the dastardly attack of 26/11 rest in peace!

We were made a target.....We were attacked..the chinks in our security system exploited....we lost men..we lost heritage..we lost a lot! A year has gone by..a year filled with promises aplenty. Promises to make our security system better so that such attacks don't happen...so that we don't lose our people to attacks by terrorists... The NIA was set up..more arms and armor ordered....and much more announced, the most recent being Mumbai's Force One.... yet, today i feel we are still as ill equipped as we were then in our ability to tackle such attacks.

Railway stations, malls, other public places like theaters, parks, schools, etc are still vulnerable to terrorist attacks. Metal detectors lie dysfunctional or unmanned, close circuit cameras are in the same state; X ray machines put up @ CST are not being used...the attitude of the local police is still the same & so is that of people who do not want to frisked (politicians, etc). I cannot say much about the Intelligence people, but our politicians are also not much concerned about the security position....(they are more concerned about their own security)

The problem with the local police is the fact that most policemen (lower ranks) join the police force just to get a Govt. job and not because they want to be a part in making India better. And they are not to blame, atleast completely, for their lack of responsibility and sense of duty because Indian policemen are recruited in a shabby manner, trained more shabbily and given a pittance in the name of salary.... and on top of that, they are shoved around by our Netas and other VIP people......So how the hell do we expect them to perform selflessly for us, the citizens of India? Policemen need to be given responsibility, respect and better remuneration, plus give them better equipment and train them properly and the results will be for all to see.... and yes, by training i mean not only combat training, but enrolling all the policemen in a special university and conducting competitive exams from time to time and regarding those who excel in them... I personally feel that even a constable should be a diploma in, say, police administration!!!

We need better MLA's and MP's(I've been crying about this for such a long time now). We need a govt which treats everyone as equal and is ready to take concrete steps to make India a safer place and cut the lip service....In fact we need a lot more if we want incidents like 26/11 and a host of other terrorist activities to come to an end!

A Policemen who survived the Mumbai attacks now wishes that it would have been better had he been killed...coz that way his family would have gotten a house and more compensation........ Such statements are clear evidence that we do not pay attention to the needs of our police forces. We treat them as no important people and they treat us in the same way...and the loss is of everybody

The wounded officers of the Mumbai Police force allegedly had to wait for 40 minutes before help reached them....

The 26/11 attack lasted for 3 days...

The attack was not on the Taj..it was not on Mumbai...it was an attack on India and its people. One year down the lane....i only nothing concrete being done.... everything is almost the same, except the lives lost and the lives torn one year back...............

I appeal(even though i'm just a student) to every individual to stay alert and do his/her duty responsibly and effectively. You maybe a politician, a policeman, an IAS officer, a security personnel, a manufacturer of arms and armor, a coast gaurd, or a student like me..... just do what you have to properly....

Tiss......

2009-11-26T03:44:00.000-08:00

A 3 day "special coaching program" organised by TISS (Tata Institute of Social Sciences) for 2010-2012- PG admission applicants had got my little (and few) cells working and i started dreaming of taking part in loads of mock tests and various books being referred for the only tough part of the test (The GA & GK section), and obviously a smooth entry into the best college for HR!! Alas, as the wise men have said, greed is bad, and i got what i deserved i guess :P (everything wasn't bad which I'll discuss later). To be honest, what i experienced was a bit more than...er...frustrating not because the coaching session was bad but because it was well short of what i had expected......... and therefore I advise all those who are or may be planning to appear for TISS next year (hopefully i'll not be one of them) to please get some facts clear about this special coaching session!

No.1 This program is for those who do not have much knowledge about GD & PI

No.2 Mock test are quite mocking! 4 days (including traveling time) i spent just to solve one mock paper that i had already solved as it was available on their webpage. And the next 2 days were spent watching GD and PI videos. So if you know what to do in a GD or PI, do not waste your time like I and many others did ( i was so smart that i decided to come to Delhi even when extra classes were going on in my college).

No.3 TISS has a low cutoff, so you'll get a GD and PI call if you up and many others and then will begin the elimination process which ill be damn close coz of the huge numbers of people who have cleared the cut off.

Now...coming back to my experience in New Delhi! My last visit to Delhi had been when i was quite small and i don't remember anything at all..so it was good to be back again. But i couldn't explore much coz the sessions lasted from 10 to 6....

the only good day was the last day...the 15th :P The day I got the best food and went out. I'll take some time out of my busy schedule and try and write down a brief summary of that day (I am busy...imagine a guy writing a long post when the CAT exams is just after 2 days).

Morning (8am) : Afte rthe third alarm rang, i finally decided to rise from my deep slumber and get ready...after all i had to meet someone today....:D :P We finally had a decent breakfast (bread-jam-butter and milk) and then the classes started. imagine..sitting through videos which told what not to do at Personal Interviews.. :P The first sesion ended and i came back and cheacked my mobile...afterall it was around 11.30 and i had this meet coming up with an online friend. I took out my cell and i see a message from my friend that he/she has reached the point i told her too! And then i get his/her call telling me that she's outside the place where i am staying (XYZ College)... meeting an online friend is surely an interesting experience.I remember the first time i met an online friend who was from Chennai...I hadn't told anyone until the last day...then i bunked college to meet him, and while on the way to pick him up, i even had a small accident and had to roam about the whole day with a very small hole in my trousers and a bruised knee which was attended to by one of my good friends who's crazy about being a doctor!

Anyways..coming to my meet with one of my goody friends who is a Potter maniac... :P First, I'd like to thank him/her from the bottom of my senti-less heart :P for taking the pains of coming to meet me.... it meant a lot :) .. Now re the meet.. It was really kool and pretty interesting :P I got know quite a few things about my innocent and cute friend who's got a wonderful smile and is quite...ahem..talented too (has many more gray cells than dumbo me :P). I won't go on and discuss the qualities here..after all my blog is open for all..so sshhhhh.. Lets just say that the only good thing taht happened was the meet ;-) :-P... It would have been cool if the mood of my friend who had accompanied me was normal :P The love guru had a fight and was sullen faced when i called him to meet my guddy friend!! Dumbo kehanka :P... So, we chit chatted for quite some time and walked :P and i was given a few tips of how to use my face :P and how to be more ...fighting type :P and i sorely miss not being showed a particular person's photograph but it's kk..:P agli baar dekh loonga :P Time flew by damn quickly and therefore we had to say tata bye bye :P as I had to go and meet another person and catch my train. During the meet i had got the frightful news of moi rail ticket not being confirmed so i had to hurry..meet the other person..and go and do something about my ticket.

And therefore we utilised the services of Delhi Metro! Our journey from Rohini was nice as it wasn't crowded. We had to go to CP, so we switched trains at kashmiri gate. On reaching CP, i called up my friend no2. and he told me to stay there at gate no. 5 of the Palika Bazaar. Utter confusion followed and I and Osama had to make 2 rounds of the whole Palika Chauraha ebfore i finally met him/her. After this started our journey back to Kashmiri gate which was..er..local like. The crowd in the metro from CP till kashmiri gate was..yuck! I experienced Mumbai's local and Delhi's metro in one day!!!

The experience on the kaifiyat express was quite new :P With a WL ticket, we (osama too) began our journey...standing fo sometime and then a kind person gave me some place to sit on the upper berth. I in turn gave a part of that space to Osama who was left berthless after the passenger decied to have a good night's sleep. This was a slo a bad decision as soon i was pushed to the brink of the seat..but i managed. The scene was such that no one could even set foot on the floor!!! The sleeper section was worse than a general coach!!! We lived :p and i had to spend the whole night listening to osama's repeated curses as to why i had booked tickets in the sleeper class =)) lol..it was quite fun seeing his sullen face :P (and it was my dad who got us AC tickets for Lko -Del despite the fact that it was he who had asked me to get sleeper tickets for both the parts of the journey)

We reached Lucknow @ 4.30am. osama wanted to meet his girlfriend and said he'll go to college the same day! I said i won't be coming. I woke up at 9 and then i got a call from osama at 1pm and he was telling that he couldn't get up :P

Phew..long post! I'll end it after a few more words.

The trip was awesome coz of the meet with friend no.1 :P Friend no.2 was someone from Lucknow whom i meet everyday :P

I regret not having a pic with moi frnd :( (next time pukka :P)..how dumb of me!!!

And i have come back with a mission :P I have to do something about the air in Delhi ..ahem ahem (samajhdaar ko ishaara kaafi hoga i guess).

Now i'll go and start prep for CAt. 48 hours is what i have :P

A long post to bore a very good friend ;) Merci bon ami :D.

Shame shame

2009-11-09T02:13:00.000-08:00

I wish our judiciary had the power to order immediate removal of MPs and MLAs who indulged in violence but everyone is helpless. I feel so bad( i feel bad a lot of times over thousand things) when all this happens ( http://ibnlive.in.com/news/mns-distrupts-maharashtra-assembly-over-oathtaking-in-hindi/104847-37.html?utm_source=IBNdaily_IbnOptIn_091109&utm_medium=mailer). Self proclaimed protectors of our culture are those who have no knowledge whatsoever(except ghooskhori) let alone about their culture. And they are our ****s =)) No wonder our country isn't actually progressing.

Source of info & pic: www.ibnlive.com

Useless controversies..yawn

2009-11-03T08:02:00.000-08:00

Yawn..sometimes i wonder whether organisations like the JeUh are paid to rake up dead issues. The recent fatwa against 'Vande Mataram' has made me feel...sleeeeeepppyyy....

Just one request to all news channels..please don't popularise it..that's what such groups want..media attention i.e....

Vande Mataram!

Commmercialzation of Education

2009-10-04T04:00:00.000-07:00

It's been quite sometime since i last posted something here.... It's been a long, busy, lazy month....and damn confusing.........

Actually I'm in the last year of my graduation, thereby being eligible for applying to various PG colleges. Currently pursuing BBA, i plan to go in for an MBA next which kind of clears the air as t o why I've been confused for the past one month (the confusion hasn't stopped yet). Thanks to the growth in the education sector, I have a plethora of options before me. So many entrance examinations, so many colleges, so many last dates and so much pressure! however, all this has made sure that those who want to do an MBA from a good college, you do not have to necessarily go abroad as there are many good universities and colleges right here in India

Of course there are totally 'faaltu' colleges out there waiting to snatch loads of money from you but that's one of the minor vices of having too many colleges as it's pretty easy to know whether a college is good or bad. Though nowadays it is becoming tougher and tougher, so we'll come back to this point later....

Coming back to the point of good colleges. I and a couple of my friends had planned to apply to atleast 20-30 colleges to be on the safe side. However, when the forms started coming out and the date sof the various entrance examinations were announced, I noticed that the dates of 95% of the colleges was smartly planned out. To make myself more clear i'll give an example. XYZ college of management selects students based on their CAT score. Their forms will be available from (say) 10th september till 27th November, i.e the date when the CAT examination is to be taken!) Candidates who fail to send in the completed application will be not be allowed admission later on.

In short, students have to purchase the application forms of colleges before they even know what their result would be! At an average pric eof about 1400 per form, if a student wants to fill in forms of 20 colleges, he'll be putting 1400x20= 28000 bucks on the stake! if he doesn't do this, he won't get admission into a good college even if he tops a particular entrance examination. And this sum is excluding the cost of filling up the various MBA entrance exams we have in our country (CAT, XAT, MAT, ATMA, CET Maharashtra, UPTU, CET TN, SNAP, NMAT, IRMA, JMET and many more).

I agree that entrance examinations require huge sums of money, but then i'm not complaining about the fee charged for conducting entrance examination! i'm against this unethical practice of private and government colleges deliberately positioning their application form dates in a way as to make the most out of students!!! Imagine the plight of a student, who due to lack of resources(money) is unable to fill many forms and even after getting a good percentile, he is unable to get admission into a good college while someone else who is more rich can easily get admission into a good college even if he has a relatively lesser percentile! isn't this not only the loss of the poor student, but also the loss of the college who, just for money's sake, would be loosing out on a better student?

I hate this..it's just confuses a simple student like me. I mean, i'm not sure what percentile I'll get..or will i be able to clear the sectional cut offs? A zillion such questions pop up in my mind all the time..and i have to think really hard before i fill a particular form because i value my parent's hard earnings! I don' t want to apply to dozens of colleges and then end up not even being called for the GD/PI as I didn't get the required percentile! I want FREEDOM..freedom to choose which colleges to apply after i have my result! Something on the lines of what is done in the case of AIEEE and UPTU examinations!!!!

And now coming to other problem of 'faaltu' colleges ready to weave dreams which break the moment a person graduates from them. These are colleges that are run from as small as 2 a room building to those having big campuses.....The complicated and corrupt system[AICTE/UGC AND CMI, all have been accused of giving accreditation to institutes which didn't deserve it] of giving accreditation to colleges is another problem which confuses students. And the governments late reaction to institutes which are not qualified to do so is even more harmful for the students :( {Rai University case is one example} [ Ideally such colleges should not be allowed to open in the first place]

high fees are also a problem.I understand taht if yu have to keep an excellent faculty, you will have to spend, But still some colleges charge way too much (advertisements cost money i guess)..there should be system wherein colleges can only charge as much as the servics they offer to their students!!!

So many problems....so little time...i short...pay heed to the para's below..

Education is what makes us HUMAN! it helps us to communicate, it understand each otehr, t o gain knowledge about ourselves, our history, science, religion.... Education is as essential as life itself! When education itself is commercialized to such an extent that students do not benefit from it, it suggests something perilous is waiting to happen. Our world will grow more and more materialistic..our minds will be more commercialized, and hence more corrupted(when money becomes the sole driver, that's bound to happen)...

I sincerely hope our representatives too think about this...think about the future of their...our country..and do something about it. Privatisation is not bad, but total commercialization is!! Education has become a very lucrative business....every corrupt person owns one...(that's the case with NGO's too).. It's time the government(the top bosses) do something about this and step in to curb this menace!

Think about it!!!

Sex Stimulus needed!!!

2009-09-03T06:58:00.000-07:00

You may have never guessed it, but it’s true: In these recessionary times, even the brothels around the world are facing the heat. Sex tourism, widely considered a “recession proof” industry, has been affected by the recession. For the uninitiated, sex tourism accounts for billions and billions of dollars annually, and if you include the sex industry, this figure rises sharply. However, it is difficult to give the exact number, as most of the activity is illegal or underground, but where sex tourism is legal, the numbers are mind boggling! (Take the case of Thailand, where Sex tourism generates US$ 4.3 billion annually!!!!)

Everyone believed that come what may, man will never (and to some extent women too) stop spending when it comes to buying sexual pleasure, and as long as there is poverty and unemployment, sex will be available at a low rate. However, the main centers of sex tourism are facing uncertain future. Countries such as Germany, Czech Republic, Thailand, Israel, Mexico, Croatia, etc are witnessing a major decline in revenue coming from sex tourism & regular brothels. What’s the cause, one still wonders.

The reason lies in that fact that people tend to spend much money on sex when they have large disposal incomes but now with recession hitting the world, the scenario has changed. Also, the main revenue generators were not middle class men and women, but the rich people who had loads of money to just throw anywhere they wanted to. The present day recession has hit the rich more than it has hit the poor, and therefore the revenues are down.

There are some very interesting cases where there has been a decline even where sex is free, well almost! Prague, said to be the international capital of sex tourism, has different rules. The rules say that a man can have sex for free, so long that he agrees to be filmed and then broadcasted over the internet! During 2008-09, people signing up for this service have declined (We can only guess many people are being exposed!)

Brothels all over the world are offering freebies and discounts. Take for example “Yes Sir” in Hanover, Germany, which has started a new deal wherein you pay $111 and have as much sex as you can have in one hour.

There are others who are offering a free upgrade and giving out freebies like coats, umbrellas, etc. But as they say, every cloud has a silver lining, and here too exist a few, thanks to valuation reasons. Ukraine, whose currency has fallen by about 35% has emerged as a favourate destination for sex tourists as it has become very cheap when compared to the rest of the European countries! This has lead to an increase in revenue by almost 100%. This proves that men will spend on sex even during the in tough times, but they will not splurge as lavishly as they used too!

Overall, the sex industries have been hit hard and this has lead to job losses within the industry about which nothing is being done. Someone needs to listen to them too, and give them a stimulus package too!

PS: The Government should try and ensure that people do not get involved in the sex trade by offering them other jobs. This, according to me, would be the proper stimulus package! However, how will the various Governments across the globe deal with people who have willingly joined the sex industry, and are demand a stimulus package is a question worth asking..............

Kya healthy hoga Hindustan?

2009-09-03T06:46:00.000-07:00

India is the 7th largest country in the world and the 2nd most populous country after China. A large part of it’s population lives on less than $2 a day. The standards of living and hygiene is very unsatisfactory, especially in rural areas. All these reasons, coupled with a sub tropical climate, makes India a hotbed for diseased people. And it’s not just the poor who suffer, the rich suffers too. However, the difference is that the rich have a way out! They have money and therefore can afford expensive medical treatments (there is, however, one problem which plagues them too). But the poor people have no where to go. At a time when medical costs are rising world wide, India is emerging as a popular medical tourism destination thanks to its relatively low cost and better success rates. However, it is a kind of paradox that the health care services still remain out of reach not only for the poor, but also the middle class people. Even the rich lose their richness after getting out of a hospital! Compounding the problem is the paltry number of beds and qualified doctors available to provide treatment- 178.7 Hospital beds per 1,00,000 people in the urban areas, and an astonishingly low 9.87 beds per 1,00,000 people in rural areas.

Making matters worse are the sky high prices of various medical tests (ranging from the basic X-rays, blood tests, to various other complicated tests) and the ever increasing price of drugs. An average Indian cannot afford such expensive tests and medicines, let aside the operational costs, and other expenditures, and is therefore left with no other option but to go to local healers, who sometimes act as life takers rather than givers.

People who can afford it, and are lucky enough to get into a good hospital, pay through there nose and end up losing all their savings on treating themselves or their family members/relatives. However, the rich have hope as the private health care system is opening up and it will translate into more options for them. But it will be cost effective or not if still a question!

What about the large chunk of India’s population? The onus is surely on the Government for this one. First, it needs to increase the number of MBBS seats from a paltry 12000 to a more substantial number so that it is able to achieve more qualified doctors. Also best education opportunities for MBBS students needs to be ensured by our Government.

Secondly, the Government should reduce the price of medical tests and medicines, without compromising on quality. They should initiate tax reduction or better still tax waivers for the drugs and other medical expenditures. Government should keep in mind that the health of the citizens is the strength of the nation! Also, it must remember that it is its duty to ensure that people from all strata of the economy are able to access healthcare services. And such a task is achievable!

If the Government says no, it should learn something from Mr. Devi Sheety, a humble man who has made world class healthcare services available, at reduced prices, to everybody. Narayana Hrudayalaya, state-of-the-art trauma hospital Sparsh, and an ophthalmology hospital Narayana Nethralaya are world class hospitals offering their its services at affordable rates. He has also started an Insurance scheme “Yashasvini” which is the world’s cheapest, comprehensive health insurance scheme at just Rs.5/- per month premium. This brings us to the debate as to why can’t the Government provide such cheap services and a proper medical insurance for the whole population of India? Mr. Devi Shetty has proved that such a business is profitable (300 crore profit this year). So why can’t the government replicate his model????

The health infrastructure and the health scenario in India is very bleak. The Government has to take some concrete measures and implement them immediately! Increase in the number of hospitals, both in urban and rural sectors is needed urgently. A reduced price of essential drugs, medical equipment and tests, and operations is also necessary. Along with these steps, the Indian Government needs to work on the lines of the developed Nations and get in place a health security policy and bring in an affordable and effective health insurance scheme for all the citizens, among other things. This is a big issue because the life of an individual is the most valuable asset, and I can’t imagine the helplessness of people when they cannot afford to get their loved ones treated due to lack of funds, or non availability of medical equipments or doctors! If India is to truly achieve the aim of becoming a developed nation in the years to come, it needs to put its medical infrastructure in order before proceeding ahead, because a nation of weak men and women cannot deliver.

(image source: http://www.topnews.in/files/healthcare.jpg)

Amphibian magic

2009-08-21T10:57:00.000-07:00

The thing that catches my attention every time I watch cartoons, especially the old ones like Tom and Jerry, is the way the characters get away with everything! For instance, Tom may freeze, crumble into pieces, get hamm

ered to pulp, amputated, cut into two, turned into powder, or anything, yet he’s back in one piece again and again.

How I wish this unique ability/power or whatever you want

to call it could be transferred to human beings. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if humans could recover completely after being involved in a severe accident or after being beaten up by a goon or someone? Or say, getting their eyes back by just fitting a pair into their eye sockets? Why didn’t God make us like Cartoons ? Why discriminate against humans? God has, after all, given similar powers to certain creatures like reptiles who can grow back their tails & limbs. It would have made life so much easier for us, I wonder….

But all people are not like me, they actually do some work! So, I guess it must have been some scientist who must have been as disgruntled and having the very same thoughts as I, who started to observe organisms which could grow back their limbs and other parts quite quickly. After some research, and simple observation, it was found that all living organisms can re-grow some part or parts of their body. For example, we humans too can re-grow back our skin and heal our broken bones over a period of time. Our liver too ha

s this ability to regenerate itself, but we are quite slow.

However, most amphibians are pretty expert at this technique and can re-grow a lot of parts pretty quickly! Scientists have been researching on this for quite sometime and till recently, it was assumed that such growth in Amphibians was due to special cells called “Pluripotent cells”. These cells rapidly reach the point of amputation and there, under direction from the chemical signals, are told to differentiate into the required tissues. Humans too have Pluripotent cells, i.e., the human embryonic stem cells. Stem cells are very important and could help save innumerable human lives in the near future. Simply put, stem cells are blank cells w

hich have the ability to change into every cell, tissue, and organ of the human body. They have no identity of their own, but they have the ability to change into any cell, tissue or organ. They are the cells from which the whole body is built and the good thing is that these are self renewable.

Now, you maybe wondering how on earth the scientists will be able to re-grow parts of the human body or to tackle various diseases with this technology. Well, you’ve got to the nerve of the problem if you came up with this question. Scientists know how to replicate stem cells in a laboratory, but do not know how to order it to differentiate into a spe

cific kind of cell once it’s injected into the body, and also how to control its’ growth. These hindrances were what were keeping a check on my dream indestructible, of being like Tom & Jerry…

However, scientists have been studying the Salamander which is the ace when it comes to regenerating itself. (It can regenerate its’ limbs, damaged lungs, mend a damaged Spinal cord, and even re-grow parts of its brain!!!). Scientists were of the view that it was the action of the “Pluripotent cells” which was responsible for such rapid regeneration, but a recent research has revealed that this growth occurs not by the special Pluripotent cells, but more simple, tissue specific cells. This report has been published in one of the leading journals, the “Nature”.

USA and German scientists, who were conducting this research, realized that it was not the Pluripotent cells that were responsible for re-growth, but the regeneration was due to old cells which kept a record of their tissue origin. Example: It is the old muscle cells that make new muscle cells, and old skin cells which make new skin cells, and so on.

This discovery makes the amphibian process quite similar to the process of regeneration in Humans. This removes the complexities that scientists are facing with stem cells. However, a lot of work will have to be done to understand this action, and then to implement this process of making such changes in humans. But this revelation gives scientists more hope (check stem cell problems in para 5) of saving more lives and helping people get back an arm or leg they have lost. By the way, my hope of getting back to my original shape after being cut into pieces is still a distant dream I guess, but then I guess we didn’t create ourselves, like we did the cartoons, right?

*Also published at: http://theviewspaper.net/amphibian-magic-for-humans/

Economic impact of Swine flu

2009-08-16T07:24:00.000-07:00

I was wondering about the economic impact of swine flu this afternoon and i cam eup with figures which startled me. India alone has bought 80 million tablets of swine flu which are worth approx Rs. 8000 crore!!!(@ Rs.1000 per 10 tablets :Source :TOI) The company which is is raking in the moolah is the swiss firm Roche, the only company which has developed the tamiflu tablet to fight the swine flu virus. In India it is a Hyderabad based firm Hetero drugs which has rights to produce the tablet in India. It has produced about 9 million tablets and has exported another 80 million for the govt. of India.

Besides this, various pharma companies like Ranbaxy, Bharat Biotech, etc. are now in the final stages of bringing their own version to fight H1N1 (swine flu) virus and given the demand from the Govt, the cos will have their hands full....a respite for Indian pharma comapnies who are facing legal blues in the USA..

Oh, and then there are morally vanquished retailers who are selling a Rs. 5 mask for Rs.150-200 and the N95 masks are being blackmarketed for about Rs. 500. What's worse is the fact that the fake market has come into action with fake masks and medicnes being brought!! This shows how people can stoop in India.....

Now i was wondering could this swine flu virus's transaction from animals to humans or even the virus's generation could have been the mischief of some pharma company? :-? hmmmmmmmmm...i guess I shouldn't let my imagination run wild....

Ciao n here's praying for all the victims of the H1N1 virus. Get well soon!!!

Happy Independence Day

2009-08-15T03:45:00.000-07:00

A very happy Independence Day to all who are reading this :D..and also to those who aren't!!

Jai Hind!!

Harry POtter and the Half Blood Prince- review

2009-08-13T07:38:00.000-07:00

I know i'm late but still, being a die hard HP fan i wanted to post this :D

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince released after much delay in India on 17 July 2009. The 6th part of the series has been directed, once again, by David Yates who, I must commend, has done a much better job this time around. The cast remains the same as the previous movies and I must say that the speed with which the movies are being produced (6 movies in 8 years) is commendable. Kudos to Warner Bros for that!

Anyways, coming to the main plot, anyone who has read the book knows what the movie will be about, but for the uninitiated, let me tell you this one is more grim than the previous movies where there’s more darkness, more fights, a major death, and Harry inching ever closer to a face off with Voldemort again.

Before I went to watch this movie, I was wondering whether David Kloves (screenplay) and Yates will be successful or not in compressing a 650 page book into a 2 and a half hour movie. At the end, I was a bit disappointed (like every other book lover) because some parts have been edited and new parts have been added, but we’ll talk about that later.

Coming to the star cast for the latest edition of the Harry Potter movie, it must be said that it has remained the same since the beginning (which is a good thing) and each character has performed quite well. Daniel does justice to Harry’s role while Emma Watson will surely win even more hearts. Apart from looking absolutely stunning, she has played her part well. Rupert plays Ron Weasley’s part well, so does Donnie Wright playing the part of Harry’s love interest, Ginny Weasley. All other characters including Albus Dumbledore (Sir Michael Gambon), Lord Voldemort, Snape, and others play their parts equally well.

What caught my attention the most was the brilliant special effects and cinematography. The opening sequence is magnificent, and so are all the other fighting sequence. Another thing that’s good about this part is that it doesn’t lose much focus from the main story- i.e., Harry vs Voldemort. There is a good mix of Humor, Romance (why didn’t Harry get Hermione ), and action, though it would have been wonderful if there was more action (especially towards the end) as the book had oodles of it! There are many gaps when you compare the movie with the book, but that can be forgiven to some extent considering the time limit the makers had, but I still wish they should have extended the movie by another half hour and packed in more action. I’m sure no one would have complained.

When I came out of the hall (which was house full even when this was a special screening), I couldn’t help overhearing the excitement in some of the voices, and the giggle of girls (love was in the air), but I couldn’t stop the slightly disappointed tones from getting into my ears. The movie was good, the effects were awesome, but still, it was no match for the book. But then, I guess very few movies inspired from books end up satisfying us book lovers. I’ll give it 3 out of 5 stars and a must watch for Harry Potter fans because watching Hogwarts, Harry, Hermione and the gang in a movie is a dream come true. And all the book worms like me who still like the book more, well, I’ll say that there’s still hope because the 7th part is being made in 2 parts, so hopefully we’ll have our dose of action then!

How dare you!!!

2009-08-13T07:21:00.000-07:00

People who have power misuse it blatantly in India.... I was shocked when i read the news in TOI about how a media related person (Head of some media asociation) misbehaved with cops and threatened them.....and later loadged an FIR against the Circle officer.....Clashes between lawyers and policemen are common... Lawyers boycotting a particular complainant or accused because the person at the other end is a laywer is everyday news... policemen misusing their powers is another common sight....

I have seen this happen a lot of time..this whole attitude of "No one can dare touch us" is present especially in 3 types of people- the lawyers, the policemen and the mediapersons(news)..all these people act as if they are above us normal people.

News media people will create a big 'hullah bullah' over anything when it concerns them....lawyers too have their own unions and if anyone dares to raise his/her voice against them they unite, thereby breaking all moral and legal rules. The police too show unity if anything is said about someone from their unit!!! And ofcourse conflicts between the three are common...

This basically shows what the problem is with India today! People at an important position may be doing many good things, raising important issues, talking about ethics, morals, of how they are taking strict action against criminals, etc. But when they themselves are accused, they misuse their powers and do not do what is right! People get selfish and protectionists. Maybe they think taht if any one of us gets caught, it'll lead to more and more cases being lodged against us(union leaders are at the most risk here)...also the police, the emdia and the lawyers know what UNITY means.... they'll support eahc other even when the whole world is saying otherwise...

Coming back to the power issue, it;s acommon practice in India. When politicians or a criminal or some other person slaps a cop or does anything else, the media, laywers, and police react strictly, but if they themselves are doing something wrong, they'll blame everybody rather than accept there mistake.

This has to change...how i do not know, but tghis is one main reason for coruption and inefficiency in India today. Maybe we could do away with Unions and improve our education system....

Links....

2009-08-12T02:44:00.000-07:00

Some nice articles i came across. I'm posting the links here

http://theviewspaper.net/lcd-technology-assassin-in-disguise/

http://theviewspaper.net/climate-change-%E2%80%93-how-can-we-make-a-difference/

Kasmir- A State of Senseless Politics

2009-08-09T22:43:00.000-07:00

The recent furore in the J&K region over the Srinagar sex scandal and the Shopian rape case has reaffirmed my views that politicians in India are exploiting democracy to achieve their own personal gains. Surprisingly, another fact that I notice is that in the world’s largest democracy, it is these corrupt, divisive politicians who get all the privileges of a democracy, and not the common man.

Jammu & Kashmir is always on the boil. Matters appear calm for sometime but something happens which again and again disrupts the normalcy in the region. Take for example the recent violent protests against the Shopian rape case and the Srinagar Sex Scandal. The manner, in which the political leaders of Jammu & Kashmir are handling the situation, is shocking because such behaviour is leading to more and more chaos in the region, which in recent times, is crying for peace and is rooting for a democracy. The PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti’s antics make my blood boil, but there is not much that can be done. She and her party members promise that they will not create chaos over trivial matters, but they are at it again. They can do anything and everything and still go scot-free. I wonder if a common man has said such things about any politician, let alone the CM, he/she would have been behind bars by now, facing serious charges. Is this not democracy for the politicians alone?

Similarly, any common Indian cannot even imagine to tear a CBI report, but Mehbooba Mufti did, and that too on Camera, and she is still free. Why, because she’s a politician, one who is very good at organizing protests and therefore disrupting daily life of the people of J&K, which gives the CBI and the police goose bumps. Her antics are a deterrant for Jammu & Kashmir, and our Govt, both State and Central, is unable to do anything about it. All thanks to the lack of a political will, and loop holes in our legal system which allows such people to go free. However, such loop holes cannot be used by a common man, because being a politician gives you certain privileges I guess. Even the Judiciary seems nonchalant on such issues.

PDPs chief’s actions on one hand, the ruling party’s members are no good either. Mr. Omar Abdullah’s resignation makes me wonder is this the way in which seemingly good politicians, who have been voted to power by the people of Jammu & Kashmir in spite of the boycott calls given by the separatists and the warnings issued by the militants, will handle crises? Are they able enough to run the State? When the CM cannot handle a few allegations, however scandalous, I wonder how sad the people who voted for him will feel?

Similar mishandling of other issues like the Shopian case and the subsequent protests which have rocked the valley since it’s inception, I wonder how the people of Jammu & Kashmir is coping with this uncertain condition of state affairs? Will they lose their faith in Democracy? If they do, it will have drastic results for not only the Jammu & Kashmir Government, but for the whole of India. I strongly feel that politicians, who in the name of democracy, spread violence and disrupt normal life, should be put behind the bars. Politically motivated protests should be crushed and there should be a panel which sees to it that the ruling party does not misuse this law to suppress even valid protests. Special laws should be made, but alas, I also know that 99% of the time, these laws are misused against the common public, rather than rightfully used against divisive elements in our society. After 60 years of independence, it is our politicians who have got a taste of real democracy, not the common Indian. I want this to change, and I want peace in Jammu & Kashmir.

Original Source: http://theviewspaper.net/kashmir-a-state-of-senseless-politics/

Disrespecting India- Time to take some action against Continental airline

2009-07-23T06:35:00.000-07:00

Our ex-president was frisked by the USA based Continental Airlines staff, in our own country, is a sad and shocking news. (This incident took place on the 21st of April) I wonder what would have been the reaction of the American people and politicians if their ex -president had been frisked by the AI staff...lol

There has been quite a lot of noise about this whole episode(and rightly so), both in the parliament, as well as outside it. Some say it's not a topic to be angry over as the person who was frisked, i.e., our Honourable ex-President Mr APJ Abdul Kalam, isn't making a hue and cry over it, why are we doing so?

I'd like to answer this question in this manner: Mr. APJ Abdul Kalam is not a person who will go about crying hoarse about being frisked in his own country!!! He's a person of high dignity who stays clear of any kind of breaking news stuff, and one who doesn't want to make an issue out of everything. However, isn't it our responsibility to speak up for this mistreatment of our Honourable Ex President (and eminent scientist) by a foreign Airline, and that to on Indian soil! He is the first citizen of the country yaar!!! What a shame that this issue has come to notice now!

To make matters worse, the Airline seemed to be in no mood to apologise for this act of gross misconduct. However, after realizing taht it could be thrown out of the country for this misconduct, it has now said that it has apologized to Mr. Kalam. (but as per the news today, Mr. Kalam has not received any written apology by the airline)

Some of you may think that it's not a big issue. However, it becomes a big issue because people of Mr. Kalam's stature, who occupy, or have occupied high positions, like our Ex-President Mr. Kalam, are exempted from security checks for the sole reason that since they occupy posts of such high level, they cannot be thought of as carrying anything illegal. If any Airline checks them, it means that it is not only suspecting them of flouting norms or carrying anything illegal, but it is pointing a finger at the whole nation!

Continental Airlines should be punished to make sure that they, or any other airline in the future does not commit such a mistake again.

(Continental Airlines is going to remove 1700 employees[from the US] soon as it's running into losses)

Why maoists exist....

2009-06-28T09:42:00.000-07:00

Lalgarh has been in the news for sometime now and for all the wrong reasons! The Govt has taken strict measures to curb violence and has banned the CPI-Maoist, labelling it as a terrorist group! Which in a way is correct because the Maoists were challenging the state's authority by attacking lalgarh's police and taking control over their HQ!

Oh..btw..it's not only Lalgarh, Maoists have gained a stronghold in many areas of Jharkhand, MP, other states....somewhere they are known as Naxals or by other names, but they are essentially the same people with the same objectives....

So..what do YOU deduce from the above info? Does this news raise any serious questions?

For me it does raises some (interlinked) very important questions?

1. How come some rebels(Maoists, naxals,) were able to give the state police such a shock?

2.How come Maoists have grown so much in our country?

3. How did they come into existence and why are they resorting to violent means?

Now Questions 1 and 2 are interlinked... Maoists enjoy widespread support. they have the numbers with them, plus the resources, so they are giving the Govt a good fight. Add to that our fit policemen and the equipment they have, and voila, you have a fantastic fight at your hands!

Question 2 and 3 are also interlinked, because you can't know why the Maoists have grown so much without knowing how they came into being and what are their demands?..So it's time for a short recap..

HISTORY ( Source: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EH23Df04.html )

The virulent form of the Marxist movement that earned the label Maoism was derived from the aggressive form of the communist movement pursued by Chinese leader Mao Zedong. In India, the Maoist movement was known as "Naxalism" because it was born as a radical split-off from existing mainstream communist parties in the village of Naxalbari in northern West Bengal state. Led by a second-string communist leader, the violent movement took off in the late 1960s under the banner of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) - CPI-ML. Absurd in concept and probably a handmaiden to many intelligence groups in those intense Cold War days, it remained largely underground and the movement became irrelevant within a few years. However, the party metamorphosed into many underground parties, all claiming to be "Maoists" committed to serve the poor and underprivileged.

It is anyone's guess exactly how many of these violent groups today roam India's rural areas of Bihar and the forests and tribal areas of Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. By one estimate, there are as many as 40 Naxalite groups in the country. Among these, People's War (PW) - its main constituent, the People's War Group (PWG), was formed in 1975 by Kondapalli Seetharamaiah - and the Maoist Communist Center (MCC) still project themselves as parties committed to annihilate "class enemies".

( Source: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EH23Df04.html )

.... So, as you see, Maoists started out as protectors of the poor. They are the poor themselves...well, not all the poors but those who thought taht violence was the only resort left to fight for their rights. The poor people in regions like Bihar, Orissa, Jharkhand, WB, etc have been under stress sinceages. They have access to nothing. No clean water, no electricity, no work, no role in the Govt....in short..they have been deprived since ages. tehir basic rights have been infringed upon by the lanlords and the govt. Their land has been snatched by their own Govt. They are illiterate as there are no schools, tehy do not have jobs as their is no work... This torture has been going on for quite sometime and that is why the moaists came into being... Their violent way might surprise us, but when situations turn so bad, violence is the only way to get some attention...... We cannot say that people were entirely wrong in taking to voilent protests because when the scars of injustice cannot be removed by simple means, something has to be done......

However, Maoists are not the protectors tehy set ought to be! They are now in touch with the Drug and Gun mafia and are basically a terrorist organisation which is acting in ways which are harmful for the people whom they are fighting for! Afterall, why else do they make poor people their shields when attacked by the police? Why do tehy still force youngsters to join their ranks? Yes, they do give money to people, but that money is to buy men for their army... not for the good of the people..but yet, you may wonder why people support them... Because something is better than nothing!

Solution: The success of the maoists is related to the failue of teh Govt, the failure to provide clean water, food, and other basic amenities, the Inability to provide employement, inability to protect the people, to give them their rights! The alienation of the people from the administration and the denial of their rights....
If the Govt. works to remove these problems, the maoists problem too will cease to exist. Time has proven that war is futile, but nobody cares to listen... Do you, me or any simple citizen of any country want war? NO! It's the power seekers who, for their own selfish gains, push for war! I hope the Govt of India helps in giving the Maoists hit people their due, and save itself from dangers of a civil war... Do not test the patience of the people for so long, give them what they rightfully deserve!

Jeans or Genes? Don't ban jeans

2009-06-23T03:33:00.000-07:00

IS THIS VULGAR?

Is the problem in the jeans or in the GENES of the self proclaimed protectors of the Indian Sabhyata?

News...

....To stop eve teasing, jeans banned in Kanpur...

....Indian colleges ban jeans to protect girls....

(And there are many more such articles on the net & television, and in the newpaper these days.....)

Reading the above snippets makes you wonder whether all this is really happening in a democratic country or not!! Is this the correct way of checking eve teasing? Will girls remain protected from hooligans, eve-teasers, and other antisocial elements if they don’t wear jeans?

What if eve teasing doesn’t stop? What will the colleges do then? Stop educating girls??? Or still blame them, and impose more restrictions on them??

Such decisions taken by college principals leave many of us shocked! I, for one, cannot believe all this coming especially from educated people! That’s why, while watching this evening’s news I was taken aback when I heard that in Uttar Pradesh, the principals of many private colleges had decided to ban girls from wearing jeans and tops! All this brings us to some very important questions arising from such in

cidents! Such questions need urgent answers, and even more urgent implementation…

1. Why punish women for eve-teasing?

Now please do not misunderstand this to be concerned with police acti

ng against women in case of an eve teasing case! What I’m talking about is that why punish women for something they’re not responsible for? Eve teasers were present even before the time when girls didn’t wear jeans? The clothes that women wear today in India are by and large decent and in no way attract unwanted attention. Such claims are just made to cover up the inability of the administration in checking eve teasing, and to further suppress women! Punishing women by banning their attire for such absurd reasons should be vehemently opposed by everyone, not only women!

2. Are women the sole protectors of morality?

To quote a comment by a lady on a website

(Link: http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=34709 )

“I fail to understand why the burden of maintaining culture and tradition always falls on women and not men, mostly in Asian cultures?”

This is the big question! Why only women? Why can’t men control themselves? Why aren’t men stopped from doing steamy scenes in movies and posing shirtless fro magazines? Why aren’t they forced to wear blinders so that they’re unable to see women walking on the streets, a

nd therefore do not convert into desperate beasts? Why do women have to wear the whole burden? Why do they have to observe purdah? Why?

The truth is that ours is a society that’s dominated by male members who (must) have been brought up very strictly, in a very pseudo conservative atmosphere, deprived of the right to mingle with women. That is why they see not the mistake of man in cases of molestation & eve teasing, but the mistake of the victim! The last generation, i.e. our present day politicians, administrators, and everybody else, has such narrow minded thinking that they always see wrong in everything the members of the opposite sex do! This is the harsh reality and it will change only when educated members of our present generation, of both sexes, come and take over from the oldies and speak out on such issues and make stringent laws to protect rights of individuals without any bias!

3. I a democratic country, a citizen, irrespective of caste, colour, cre

ed, sex, religion, etc has certain rights. He/She is allowed all his/her freedoms unless they a person’s actions cause harm to the nation or to the society!

Now I don’t get it how a girl wearing jeans is a danger to my country? A jeans doesn’t reveal any part of the women’s body!(low waist jeans If still, the Principals of colleges and our politicians think that jeans make men lose control over themselves on seeing girls clad in jeans, then something needs to be done urgently! Maybe Indian males are sexually deprived and kept in isolation, which explains the sudden urge to eve tease girls wearing jeans! The Govt should set up brothels where people can go and satisfy their desires rather than harassing every girl who wears a jeans, coz the problem is not in the jeans, it’s in the mind of the men who commit such crimes! So please, instead of banning jeans, set up some brothels for such men!

4. Why are men allowed to wear tees and jeans when girls are being banned to do so? Why are men allowed to do pose shirtless? Why this gender bias?

Again…we come to the point raised in Q.2. Why only women are targeted when it comes to controlling eve-teasing, obscenity, and protecting India’s morality?

Why are men allowed to pose shirtless? Wear low waist jeans? Roam about as they feel like? Do women not have desires? They have!!! However, they have enough sense to control themselves rather than harass men or tease them! (Men do this all the time but…). They are more sensible and less hypocritical when it comes to morals! But when it comes to protecting our morals, all the responsibilities and bans are put on them! Why? All this is the curse of a male dominated socie

ty! Males who, in spite of being educated, cannot broaden their mindset! It’s time to protest, and sensible men should protest along with women!

<-----Men can and women can't???

5. And finally…the big question.. Is the real problem the clothes (jeans)? Or the gene’s of those who protest and want to ban jeans??

I think, and I know 100% that I’m correct, that it’s the genes, of people who complain, which are dirty. Their eyes are dirty and their minds full of filth! They are the kind of people who view women as objects! These people will find anything & everything women wear as vulgar, cheap and what not! They do not blame themselves! Instead, they blame a women’s attire….. not the acts of men.

The problem, my dear friends, is not in the jeans, as the jeans covers a women completely…the problem lies in the mindset and

in the eyes of the gazer! To such men, everything a woman wears will appear revealing. I distinctly remember a remark made by an elderly man in a debate on NDTV India over this whole dress banning fiasco. When asked what’s wrong in Jeans, he said and I quote “Isme curves dikhtey hai” (It shows curves)…… Looks like this person is a keen girl gazer..lol.

The jeans that Indian women wear are normal ones. They’re not “inviting” or “vulgar in any sense. If some people say that it shows the curves of women, well, tell me which dress doesn’t?? Men also have curves, they too wear jeans and tight shirts….but do girls tease them when they walk the streets?? It’s asking too much from women people! Why so much restrictions on them when the problem is with us menfolk!?

Conclusion:

There has been repetition of points, I agree, but I had to mention them more than once to answer all the questions clearly and to put forth emphasis on some points. All the activities taking place in the country, be it politics over the women reservation bill, attacks on pubs, or the recent dictat issued by colleges banning jeans, all point at one basic fact about our society- Th

at, even after 60 years of our Independence, ours is a male dominated society which tries to put all barriers only on the females!

NOTE: I’ll agree with some people when they say that low waist jeans and short tops attract unwanted attention and may lead to eve teasing. But then, colleges should ban only such attire! It isn’t too difficult, right?? Secondly, if you’re banning jeans for girls, ban them for boys too! Why this biasness? Many colleges have their own dresses (it’s a nice practice as it has many advantages), why not turn to that option? Last, but not the least, who is to decide what women should wear and what they shouldn't? Men?

And in refrence to the moral police, well almost all the members of the so called moral police are devoid of morals, they are basically hooligans who would love to see women wear revealing attire, but for the fun of it, love to disrupt lives of normal citizens by harassing people.

The administration should crack down on all such groups who threaten the democratic nature of our country and infringe upon our rights on the pretext of protecting Indian “sabhyata”.If it doesnt it;s time to protest and protest till there is change in our society! Equality is the mision then, right?

Hmmm

2009-06-21T10:41:00.000-07:00

I want to post many things in here but i am unable to find the time and then things slip outa my mind..so i'm making a list of some of the topics i wish to write about..They are..

1. Environment- Global Warming

2. Retail sector of India..

3. Our Education industry..

4. Economic stimuluses- Which is the best option

5. Juices(read an article in a newspaper today)

6. WWs of another kind...

7. Local wars in India...

8. FAKE BLOGS

9. What should we do with molestors and rapists?

10. Suicidal tendencies..

11. Ms. Mayawati's grand monuments!

Besides these topics, there were several other interesting articles that i came across a friends webpage... A must read and they are not boring, confusing one's like mine..

PLastic problem

http://prideofaneagle.blogspot.com/2009/06/plastic-problem-alternative-and.html

The Third gender...

http://prideofaneagle.blogspot.com/2009/06/third-gender-not-curse.html

And many other cool articles!

gotta scram now..I have to get down to some serious studies or else i'll never be able to get into the college i want to!!!

Traffic manners speak a ton!

2009-06-21T09:17:00.000-07:00

I've written else where about how y it is to gauge a populations attitude and many other characteristics by analysing their traffic manners!! Don't believe it...well, here's another example....

You can take any city(almost) and the traffic situation is the same...

Location: Burlington Crossing- Time 14:00 Hrs
(You can take any city(almost) and the traffic situation is the same... )

This is one of the busy crossing here in Lucknow and there are traffic lights, as well as, traffic personnels manning the crossing. During this time of the year, its really hot and you can't stay in heat for more than a few minutes, but still the traffic personnel are doing their duty, standing in the heat, braving not only the heat, but the enormous amount of harmful gases being emitted by the moving traffic! I, for one, cannot blame them for the chaos going around them. People on motorbikes, cars, bus drivers, rickshaw pullers, everyone seems to be in a hurry... So much that they can't afford to wait for a few seconds for the light to turn green. !0 seconds for the light to go green and people already start getting edgy, occupying the other half of the road leading to blockages. Then, even before the turn signal turn green, people start moving straight down the road from the opposite direction leading to further mayhem. Worsening the situation are the "red beaconed" cars who move at their free will! NO traffic light can stop them!!! The cops try and they control the traffic...with the help of long sticks!!! here, the situation is best described through this Hindi saying "laato ke bhoot baato se nahi maantey" i.e., people who like to be beaten never learn things if you talk to them! If there's no traffic cop at the crossing, no one waits! And those who do have to hear the brunt of "punctual", "responsible" drivers and riders! People tend to blame the traffic cops for all the chaos. But are the cops really responsible? You can't expect someone getting a meagre pay (3000-4000 INR pm) to run around an unruly mob, with the constant fear of getting demoted or taken for a ride(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Third-accused-arrested-in-SUV-case/articleshow/4416102.cms) if he happens to stop someone who's a rich daddy's lad or a son of a politician?

I wonder why people can't stop for 1 minute at a traffic light! In lucknow, most of the traffic lights have a red light lasting for less than 1 min! And people have difficulty following such simple rules!

Anyways, when i sit back at the end of the day and think as to what can be the reasons for such behaviour, i came up with some

1. Lucknowites are extremely punctual. they are efficient time managers who can't afford to wait for 1 minute at a stupid traffic signal. Why should they wait when they se that no one is coming form the other side ..or even if someone is, why stop>? Time is precious..time = money..remember na?

2. They believe that traffic rule are for the animals. They are not to be followed by the Nawabs of Lucknow..

3. They just don't know what rules are. they are jungles thrown into a civilised world. They have adapted some what but think that they are above stupid laws!

Traffic manners of Lucknowites

1. No one knows(or appears to) what the Zebra line is for! For Zebras? Since their are no Zebras, no one cares to stop before the Zebra line.

2. Helmets? They damage the hair, cause dandruff and are so uncool! Plus, when they do dumb stunts on public roads, who'll recognise them(girls) when their are upto this monkey business?
Girls are not far behind. A helmet will ruin their skin, spoil their hairstyle and what not! Their take care to wrap themselves up i.e., Dupattas around the face and big gloves on to [prevent tanning ..but no helmet.... Style factor is also their...and the best part is that girls are rarely stopped by the cops and even they are stopped, girls do find a way out.... Guess the begums are a step ahead of the nawabs when it comes to Helmets..

3. Traffic light on..but no traffic cop = NO traffic rules..

4. Only a few people indicate and turn. Other don't indicate, cut lanes, make shocking u turns, stop their car in the middle of the road, ride while talking on the phone, and the list goes on and on...

Solution in case you ever get caught: The easiest way to squirm out of a bad spot is to give the cop a few 100 bucks! Cops are to blame for this..but again..not entirely...

In short, people here are senseless when it comes to traffic manners! It's not as if people are unaware, they're just to lethargic and uninterested in following some simple rules! They have no regard for any rules and are quick to blame the traffic dept for any jam. Sometimes these jams prove to be a death knell for some people!
____________________________________________________________________

Now, coming to some other characteristics which can be assumed from this kind of traffic manners.

1. Here, people tend to disobey any rule whatsoever and have the chalta hai attitude. They know that they are breaking rules, but continue to do so...reasons will be many...

2. The politicians are just like the citizens... everyone breaks rules on the pretext of saving time..but still take years to do a simple task!

3. Bribery is a way of life..

4. Civic sense is non existent.. people work and live in a haphazard manner.

5. No respect for any laws, unless there is a constant threat of being fined heavily or put into jail!

And the above characteristics are true for majority of the Lucknowites!

Believe me..go out..do a study of the traffic situation in your city..and then analyse whether your city has the above mentioned characters or not? in 99 out of 100 cases, you'll realize that I'm right! I know that India is progressing, but people need to be educted about following some basic rules first!!!
____________________________________________________________________

Conclusion:

The traffic situation described above is not only prevalent in Lucknow, but in almost every city! And every city which has such a condition has the characteristics mentioned above too! It;s very simple to understand.... When people do not have respect for the simplest of laws, then how can you expect them to follow other laws? how can you expect such people to go out and vote? How can you expect the Govt Dept, consisting of these very people, to function properly? How can you expect such people to live and behave in a civilised manner?

The traffic sense of a population reflects upon its overall attitude and nature! It's a simple parameter to judge many other complex aspects of the society! And as for now, it shows a very negative image of the country to not only me, but to all the tourists who visit it! I feel angry when people make a mockery of the traffic situation here...but i can;t retaliate..coz what tehy are saying is the truth! We are joke when it comes to traffic sense!

Racism...

2009-06-16T08:06:00.000-07:00

This post deals with a subject which is creating quite a furore nowadays..especially in India, and why not! After all, Indian students are being attacked by Australians every day! Students are fleeing Australia and the Indian media has been labelling Australia a racist country! A students back home now and he advises people to come back and not go to Australia! Most people support the viewpoint and there's this new hatred against Aussies! After cricket..its racism now!

Anyways, time now for my views about this whole drama!

I don't like the way in which some of the Indian media is reacting to the attacks on Indian students! Attacks like those on Indians happen to many other people belonging to different races and even to Australians themselves. 95% of the cases are such where anti social elements rob people of their belongings and beat them up(mugging), usually in the night! I won't be posting an data because anyone reading newspapers knows it..and also knows that many people fall victim to such attacks and not only Indians. labelling the whole of aussies as racist is just like labelling all the Muslims as terrorists! Such stereotyping is bad and this will only make the Indian students living there nervous and embarrassed, and more importantly, at an increased risk too! The media should stop such propaganda, and instead raise the voice of all students living there in a more appropriate manner! Labelling the country as racist won;t do any good! Just as in every other country, anti social elements do exist, but there's no need to go on shouting like some of the media has been doing!!! This can have drastic consequences.

For eg: We all know that foreigners coming to India are harassed, and even molested, raped and at times murdered..and these incidents do happen..petty attacks happen more frequently! Now, if the victim's country starts to label India as unsafe and issues advisories against visiting India..how would all of us feel? We know that our Govt is working towards improving the security of tourists but at times 100% security is tough to guarantee(punishment is guaranteed though). and that it'll take sometime to make the tourists safe! But if the world media labels India as an unsafe place..it'll hurt us..coz we know that India is not unsafe..but preventing such sporadic incidents is tough..and we are working to stop it and punish the guilty!

Therefore...i think there are better ways to make the voices of Indian students heard without making this whole affair as racist! Why didn't the media simply say that yes, some attacks were racist, others were mugging attacks, which will not be tolerated and that they should be stopped. they should have brought forward the plight of all the students, thereby garnering more support!!!

NOTE: I'm not an aussie lover..I'm not a supporter of racism, nor do i say that one should keep mum about atrocities experienced by a person. however, since racism is a sensitive issue,i think that the media should have shown some maturity, highlighting both racism, as well as, normal mugging attacks, and demanding that the Aussie govt do something about it or else it'll lead to protests and departures!! Labelling a country as racist won;t do any good!! Coz if you think it's racist..come back to India i say!! They'll suffer when there education industry goes down!

PS: Scotland is offering some nice offers for Indian students now.. so..for all those who think that Aussie is bad and that the Govt is doing nothing...just go to someplace else or come back to your own country!

And btw..before someone says's I'm babbling nonsense....well..i'll just let you know that i have a few friends in Australia who support my view and who are not happy with the Indian media! I've done a bit of research before posting my views(which is necessary to have a view) :P lol

The online life...

2009-06-15T05:41:00.000-07:00

My online life began in the year 2005, when i cleared my 10th board exams and dad got us a Personal Computer! Of Course, i surfed the net even before that but not at home. It was either at dad's office where the internet speed was slower than the crawling speed of an earthly earthworm! 32kbps speed was what the provider claimed..n i think it was even slower than that at times!

Anyways, i was unaware of social networking sites till i reached class 9th. At that point of time, i was uninterested in such activities. I was in the opposition's side over this whole social networking thing as i believed it didn't create true friendship...(flirting and fighting were the two favourite pastimes...sending friend requests to innumerable girls..not only from India..but as far as Brazil =)) ....and abusing people ol...:P)..that people sitting somewhere else had no means to verify your entity!!! You could pose as anyone and you could run away from anyone easily! you just need to log off or delete that person from your friend list!! I made it a point not to join social networking sites and used to chide my friends for chatting all the time...such a waste of time!!!

But....i succumbed to my friends pressure, and finally, when i got a net connection at home in class XI(2005), i made my personal profile on www.orkut.com--A social networking site quite popular at that time!(and even now) ....After this more accounts were created on other websites like Hi5, and other networking sites! However, being a taurean, i resisted..i hardly went online and used to chat with the friends whom i met each day at school!! It seemed odd, and therefore my few outings were explained!

Things changed when i joined one community: The HARRY POTTER community. I was learning the tools of this orkut thingy during my summer vacations when i stumbled across a hyper active community..and i decided to take a plunge and make some new friends!!! I was a bit apprehensive about my ability to make new friends...:p..coz i was a bit(quite) shy by nature and not good at starting convoz in real life...and this problem plagued me for sometime..but i was quick to catch on and realized unnecessary blabbering on the net is fun! You can type all you want to say to someone on the net easily..without any visible danger! Now...before you jump to conclusions...i only made jokes n all...simple stuff...nothing pervy..mind you!! However, since i didn't even joke much...and didn't talk to girls..so all the joking and carefree talking was fun..:D... it was a beginning of sorts..towards making friends in the community...(and i made loads :) )..n i enjoyed it! I spent most of my summer holidays chatting with HP members and my friendlist started to swell somewhat! It was a nice experience chatting with different people from different areas and having different views and lifestyle, etc. The community was a meeting point and it as great fun-- playing funny n stupid games....playing pranks..making pairs and all... those days were awesome! However, all the net thingy was done in private..even though there wasn't anything that i had to hide from moi parents..but...since i love privacy..i just didnt want to chat with people watching me! During the first few months on orkut...i was a different person in real life and a different person in my virtual life! Different in the sense that i was more free in my virtual life than i was in my real life! It was fun and i was liking it...by the end of the year..most of my friends had started shifting to other sites but i stuck on to orkut!

Now..as i said..i am damn concerned about my privacy! I didn't add any relative(excluding cousins) in my friend list..lest he/she mutter utter crap to my parents! I didn't send friend request to girls for the same reason...but as i spent more time in Hp...it was inevitable that i add everyone..irrespective of whether a person is a guy or a girl...and i did just that! of course i used to delete my scraps ...a practice which i avoided later on!..

Anyways..the bottom line is that as i spent more and more time on the net..and my graduation started...i became more interactive...coz i didn't want to have online friends whom i didnt know...whom i hadn't seen..or whom i hadn't heard! It was imperative to know tehm just like i know my real life friend! or else i would have labelled myself a hypocrite, who earlier used to chide his friends on the hollowness of online friendship, and now was not making any efforts to know them better after having experienced that yes..even online friends can be equal..and sometimes even better than real life friends! Thus, in recent months after i got my cellphone...started the process of collecting numbers and asking for pics and chatting through yahoo and all :P..it was tough sometimes..esp with "some people"..but again..my irritating powers were quite high so i was successful most of the times..sooner or later!

In short..over the period from 2005 to this day,15 July-2009, my whole idea of online networking has changed. An active opponent of online friendship has turned into a strong supporter of social networking! How that happened is a big question...however, it taught me one thing, that a person shouldn't write off or oppose something without having a look at it or trying it! I don't know that if i hadn't joined orkut and HP and made so many great fiends...would i be the same person i am today! IN one way or the other..orkut..and my online friends..have helped me come out..have helped me in many ways that they don't even know......and now..when I'm writing all this down...i remember a saying i read when i was a kid in one of those English literature books :D....i loved those words back then..and I believed in those words...and time has strengthened my belief in them....The saying was "everything happens for your own good".... These words of Old Tirumula, which i read in class 6th and 7th, have had a lasting impact on me...and in the course of time..things have happened which point out how true his saying's were! How everything happens for one's own good!

Now..i think I'm going offtrack...so..coming to "The online life" ..it's advantages and disadvantages...it's credibility, etc...

Almost all people who're on social networking sites live 2 life's.....one is the normal, day to day life..and the other is the Online life! The online life is not, and cannot be a replacement for a person's real life....nor can a person's online nature be the same as in real life. However, i feel it's best to manage your online life in a way such that you don't go into another world altogether! I know that online friends are really good ones..and people may even meet each other later on....but...one should not only have an online life! You can exist without having a virtual life..but you cannot exist without having a real life. A virtual life is not a substitute for real life... it should be seen as an aid which helps people to make their real lives more interesting, to experience meting and chatting with new people! To enjoy technology, to make friends..chat with them..but when done in excess, your virtual life will affect your real life....and when taht starts happening..its doom time! Don't enclose yourself in the virtual life...try and make it a part of your real life...never make your real life a part of your virtual part! It sounds the same..but it's a bit different according to me.....

One more lil point and then i'm clicking the publish buttton... : many people say that online friends do not have that emotional connection! (something which i believed earlier). Now i know that they're wrong...that when an online friend leaves you...you feel sad..you feel empty..but still..at that point...you also know that you can't do much..sitting somewhere else, far far away! However, not all situations are like this...when your friend is feeling a bit low, your words have the power to heal..to make him feel better...and therefore..if any of your friends..whether online..or offline(the correct word i suppose) is in need to support..and you can't reach out to him/her...i guess it must really feel nice to that person if you send him a scrap, an im, an sms or make a phone call...both sides know that they're far apart...but they also know that yes...they are true friends..and they will meet..and that they will be there for each other come what may! All you need to do is make sure that you really care for your friends..that you value your friendship...and then, whether your friend is an online or an offline one, he/she'll know that you care..and will also know that thanksto this wonder called the internet, he/she has a true friend who'll be their for him/her.

That's online life for me....!( atleast for the time being ;-) )

Z's view

2009-06-15T05:06:00.000-07:00

Z's view..my view..my new blog! I already have a blog, but that's concerned with bikes(motorcycles)...but i wasn't satisfied...coz in my mind are infinite thoughts..thoughts which i want to commmunicate to the whole world.............. These thoughts may, at times, be about my surroundings, but mostly will focus on everything from day to day news to articles on contemporary issues!

My blog will have my views(obviously) on everything..be it politics, economics, history, hollywood, bollywood, cricket, education, environment...anything and everything! I don't know if people will visit my blog or not...but I promise that i'll keep on updating it...and it'll have a plethora of news...views..and reviews!

It'll also have information not available else where on the net, i.e. , information which i needed but could not find..but now have a fair idea thanks to books! If you all(readers) have any demands, shoot..and i'll try and make sure that the arrow hits the bull's eye. ;-)

On this note..i end my boring inaugral speech..or post(and move on to write more)

May the blog achieve success!