Suryanarayana. The great game.

That's the name of andhra telecom engineer beheaded by Taliban after being kidnapped a couple of days ago. Why did he go there? He wanted to make a bit more money. Why was he killed?
Taliban didn't want Indians in their country. Why? Because Indians aren't muslims, indians make lot of films, indians export their decadent culture,...or for any such stupid reason.
Why are we Indians there? Because we don't want Pakistanis to snatch Afghanistan and treat it as their backyard. We don't want more Hijacked planes with bearded terrorists landing in Kandahar.
Probably Pakistan wanted to teach us a lesson for trying to win minds of Afghanis and thus establishing our bases in their land. Obviously Pakistan doesn't like to b attacked from Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tajikisthan, Afghanistan and .....
World is a brutal place. I don't know if world has enough resources to keep everybody materialistically happy. If resources are limited, war is inevitable. If we have enough resources, we obviously lack wisdom to redistribute them in such a way that we can all live happily ever after.
We kill each other for cartoons, we commit suicides to incite further deaths, we commit genocides in the name of religion (Sudan), we continue to repress large sections of people, we continue to make weapons while ignoring malaria,..
Probably we are not made for peace. Probably clash of civilisations is inevitable. Let me make a bunker , let me escape from all this, let me hand over few millions to my kids, let me plan my retirement, ................
I intend to be among bystanders and not to be a bit player of great game. Tat's for somebody else.

9 yrs ago..

Campus interview. First one. Was very confidentt (or shall I say over confident) about selection. My friends too were (I think os, hopefully rightly). Perhaps overdid things in interview part.
Wasn't selected. Atleast 2 friends (girls ;) ) commented "your behaviour must have lead to this result". Whatever, I hated the company.
Yesterday I received invitation from Company's chairman for his son's marriage. ;) Not that in these yrs I have proved myself to be worth this. He still doesn't know me. But invitation is for a person with a certain job. And I fit that.
But I still believe that company made a mistake by not recruiting me. And hence I boycott marriage. :)

Iran, oil, weapons, gold, real estate,...

Silver, Zinc, chemicals, steel, cement,..........Too many things that are hot these days and needs to cool down.
It fails my brain to see how everbody can do well at the same time. Business people are happy, govts are happy, weapon manufacturers are happy, war mongerers are happy, beggar nations have become more confident,...
Something mut be wrong somewhere. We need more order here. A catastrope, an incident to bring us back to senses. A time of recession, a diseases with no cure in short term, deflation, unemployed on roads, financial instituiotns with too many NPAs, .........

Holiday

Wanted to visit US. But didn't happen. No problem. Having fun in Bangalore. Kids, water park, movies, malls, just being lazy ,...........Life's good.

112*7, 256*4, 32*35

My 6 yr old son can answer all of those. Except for the fact that he is very lazy and a bit selfish, he is perfect. :)

Relaxing.

I am supposed to be relaxing. I am not at office. I am not at my home town. I guess I am having fun. With kids, multiplezes, pizzas,...
But then guilt never goes. That probably I am needed at work. I hate my work, at times.

An open letter to Aamir Khan.

Aamir Khan, what's that you want? Do you want Dam construction to be stopped? Do you want victims to be rehabilitated? Do you want publicity? Do you approve of Coca Cola which sells our water to us after adding sugar, color and carbon dioxide? Do you approve of all multinationals which suck our country? Do you crave for Oscar? Do you believe in discussion?
Do you believe in protesting againest religious violence in Gujarat? Do you plan to hold similar protests on behalf of nagas, tribals, naxals, kashmiri pandits, your fist wife, kids who cannot afford coca cola, judges who denied your film an Oscar, people of kutch who are not clear on whose side you are?
You idiot , stick to your acting on screen. We don't need any more tamasha actors on road. If you can please go on fast, not just express solidarity.
You drew a chess match againest a GM recently, does that give you intelligence enough to take on dam experts, supreme court and all.
I wish I could be more harsh on you. But then there's somthing called decency, you f****** moron.

Disclaimer: Medha Patkar might be right, Narendra Modi might be right. Manmohan Singh's cowardice too might be acceptable, but definitely not Aamir Khan's drama.

An article, http://www.indianexpress.com/story/2670.html?headline=%E2%80%98Victims~of~bias,~Muslims~at~bottom~of~social~barrel%E2%80%99

‘Victims of bias, Muslims at bottom of social barrel’
Jayanth Jacob
Posted online: Tuesday, April 18, 2006 at 0000 hrs
Sachar panel initial findings Most BPL Muslims can’t access welfare schemes, 60% landless, equal number skip school

NEW DELHI, April 17: Discriminated against and pushed to the sidelines, the Muslim community in India is at the bottom of the heap when it comes to benefits from Government-run welfare schemes, access to education, employment, even the system of credit, including bank loans.

This is the disturbing conclusion emerging from the initial findings of the Prime Minister’s High Level Committee, headed by Justice (retd) Rajinder Sachar, looking into the “social, economic and education status of the Muslim community in the country.” The final report of the committee is expected to be submitted in June this year.

Since August last year, the committee has collected data after visiting several states, holding talks with government departments in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Delhi, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, NGOs and Muslim organisations.

The data, accessed by The Indian Express, shows:

• 94.9 per cent of Muslims in Below Poverty Line (BPL) families in rural areas do not receive free foodgrains.

• While only 3.2 per cent of Muslims get subsidised loans, just 1.9 per cent of the community benefit from the Antyodaya Anna Yojana Scheme, a programme meant to prevent starvation among the poorest of poor by providing food grains at a subsidised rate.

• 60.2 per cent of Muslims do not have any land in rural areas. National average: 43%

• Just 2.1 per cent of Muslim farmers have tractors. With 15,25,000 tractors, India ranks No.4 after US, Japan and Italy

• A mere 1 per cent own handpumps.

• On the educational front, the picture is equally dismal: 54.6 per cent Muslims in villages and 60 per cent in urban areas have never attended schools. National average: 40.8 per cent in rural areas and 19.9 per cent in urban areas.

• Only 0.8 per cent of Muslims in rural areas are graduates.

• Although in urban areas, nearly 40 per cent of the Muslims now receive modern education, only 3.1 per cent of the community in urban areas are graduates. Just 1.2 per cent are post-graduates.

When contacted by The Indian Express, Justice Sachar said: “These figures are based on what people and organisations told us when we met them in the states. But they need to be analysed before arriving at any final conclusion. The committee is yet to submit its report”.

The committee also found shocking instances of discrimination against the community. These include cases of Muslims not getting loans from even nationalised banks and finding it difficult to sell or buy property.

“There is an implicit diktat that loans should not be given in specific areas dominated by Muslims because of the high probability of default”, the committee observed after its visit to Rajasthan between August 22 and 24 last year.

The committee also found inadequate number of government schools in the Muslim-dominated areas contributing to the low number of Muslim boys and girls attending the schools.

Mumbai, Venture Capital, Muslims, Indian, Auto

I neverspent much time in Mumbai before. Today I spent 8 hrs. I had a meeting for 4 hrs nd rest 4 hrs spent in looking around. Forget about meeting venture(vulture) capitalists.
Mumbai was nice. Heritage (euphemism for old) buildings everywhere. I always imagined Mumbai to be a filthy, damp , uncomfortable city. Hmm, it's definitely much better than I had imagined it to be. People are courteous. Taxis are good.
One thing I didn't like is segregation. There was this area with shanty buildings all around. And it extended, extended and extended. With all muslim religious insignia , it's obvious that, it's a muslim area. It's sad that, nobody else lived there.
I as told by friend that they don't leave that place nor others come and live there. If this kind of isolation continues, what's future going to hold for us?
Indian, that's name of Indian airlines these days. My bothe flights for morning and evening got delayed. Nobody cared to give reasons or provide and apology.
And fucking idiots like Prakash karat, his stupid wife, Brinda Karat and their friend Sitaram Yechury still want govt to hold to airlines and airports. Their argument, Airport Authorities of India is a profit making Public Sector Enterprise and hence shouldn't be weakened. Dumb idiots, it is making profits because, it had monopoly on airports and had monopoly on air services. If there is a hell in my control, it wll be reserved only for idiots like you and your chairman Mao.
I advise all those red idiots to read recently released biogrpahy of Mao and his brutal, megalomaniac and pure maniac ways of life.
Auto: These days, worldspace recievers are seen everywhere. Auto I took to reach my place had this reciever and the driver was having fun at world's expense. Full volume, Himesh (Nasal) Reshmaya's songs and speed to match the tempo of music.
Life is fun in India.
Hey bought some vcds and shirts.
Tomorrow it's goin to be dvds, books, dresses for kids . After work , that is.

Bored, bored, bored, bored, bored,......

I am so bored with life. Since how long, I don't remember. I need to do something. I am running out of time. Sorry if you have heard all this before. This is how bored I a with life.
Work, I have enough.
Make money.
Teach kids.
...........
But what shouldd I do with MY life?

The trouble with Islam today by Irshad Manji

I completed reading that book. That was fast. 2 days, naah, 3 days. Did I like the book? No. It's a sort of personal agenda. It started off well. But reduced into a personal campaign kind of thing. Full of opinions, one sided instead of hard facts.
I am sort of obsessed with books on Islam, Pakistan. No, not after 9/11.
Let me make this post bigger by writing about my experiences with muslims. I spent first 3-4 yrs in a muslim neighbourhood. Was too small either to hate/ love them. But one guy basha and his family liked me a lot. So say my parents. After that moved to a city where muslm population is about 40%. Had Muslims on the ground floor while we were in first floor.
Became aware that, they are different. Their food was different, even utensils looked different. Clothers, language, behaviour.... Had a fight with muslim boy over a rubber ball at the age of 10 or so. He was trying to grab mine. Hated him since then. For next 5 yrs atleast. Curfews happened occasionally due to religious clashes. Being at impressionable age, they were villains.
At the age of 15 saw a beautiful muslim girl. Classmate. Silent adoration. Kushwant Singh said in his autobiography that, if you love somebody from other community, your whole perspective about community changes. How true. They were my friends. And played cricket with them. Saw no serious issues with them.
Then Babri happened. Clashes happened. Not in my vicinity. Bombay blasts... Feelings harden a bit. Getting influenced by right wing propoganda.
Then 4 yrs of professional education. Don't remember anything that's concerned with Muslims. Probably because, the place practically had none. Stereotypes remain. But books help understand better.
Immediate job after education. A muslim roommate. As brilliant as I was ;) in some respects. (I know , that was to inflame you) He hated India, he talked about ummah sort of thing. It was fun arguing with him. Others had issues. By then, I was above these things.
I believe arguing about religion takes us no where. We should just keep our eyes open, learn new things to defend, to prosper. Moslems have issues. I am not talking about religion here. I am talking about high illiteracy, lack of democracy, bad leaders, lack of freedom of expression,fanatics...
So do others. Advani, Bush's god, oil companies, dictators, separatists, left radicals,AIDS, sick Africa,....To blame a religion or country for all problems of world is stupid. No religion is perfect. If it had been so, there was no need for other religions.

Hollow Posts. Freakonomics

Hi friends, I know , this site had witnessed lot of hollow posts in recent times. Let me reverse the trend now. I have completed reading Freakonomics. By Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J Dubner.
I read it in 2 days. That was fast in recent days.That shows how much I liked the book. For those who don't know , the book is about testing common knowledge with statistics.
Some examples go like this.

Legal abortions resulted in less crime rate.
Real estate agents or ay commission agent wants to make as many deals as possible and not ncessarily best deals for you.
Some politicians are inherently attractive to voters and others simply aren't, and no amount of money can do much about it.
Amount of money spent on american elections is equal to amount of chewing gum americans consume any year.
Who cheats? Well, just about everyone.
What makes a perfect parent?
What's the relation between names given to children and socio economic status of parents? How do some names become popular?

Believe me, it's a nice book. I had electroninc version. ;) But I bought the hard copy and made authors rich. They deserve my not so hard earned money.:)

Abortion.

I am only child for my parents. Please don't ask me about no of my kids. :) I always advocated less no of kids. I was always fed with notion that, India neds less kids. And I must have convinced few people to go for small families. I couldn't live up to my beliefs.
Ok, I am not hereto confess my crimes. :) Let me talk about other stuff. Abortions. I never understood importance given to theissue of Abortion in Western nations. I always thought it was individual's right to decide whether she needs abortion or not.
Believe me, it's not an easy decision to make. I believe it's mostly social factors that swings the decision than personal factors.
Atleast in regions where individual freedom is at a premium. In India most of abortions happen to prevent girl child from joining this world. And this has already resulted in very lopsided sex ratio.
Prevention is better than abortion. Isn't it?
This random post had come after reading first few pages of recent cult classic "Freakonomics".
Abortions lead to lower crime rate in US.
Sounds interesting, right? The argument is that the pool of criminals has less entrants. Most of abortions happen in a group which supply criminals.
If that's true, should we go for forceful abortions in other societies?

Abortion.

I am only child for my parents. Please don't ask me about no of my kids. :) I always advocated less no of kids. I was always fed with notion that, India neds less kids. And I must have convinced few people to go for small families. I couldn't live up to my beliefs.
Ok, I am not hereto confess my crimes. :) Let me talk about other stuff. Abortions. I never understood importance given to theissue of Abortion in Western nations. I always thought it was individual's right to decide whether she needs abortion or not.
Believe me, it's not an easy decision to make. I believe it's mostly social factors that swings the decision than personal factors.
Atleast in regions where individual freedom is at a premium. In India most of abortions happen to prevent girl child from joining this world. And this has already resulted in very lopsided sex ratio.
Prevention is better than abortion. Isn't it?
This random post had come after reading first few pages of recent cult classic "Freakonomics".
Abortions lead to lower crime rate in US.
Sounds interesting, right? The argument is that the pool of criminals has less entrants. Most of abortions happen in a group which supply criminals.
If that's true, should we go for forceful abortions in other societies?

So much

I have so much to blog. Believe me. And hence I am so busy and cannot blog. ;)
Updates coming soon.

India, Inc

No, I am not talking about corporate India. I am talking about Indian Govt. Indian Govt seems to be following philosophy of "get out of everything you can". It's doing great as on today.
Most of things can be bought over in India. You want govt land at cheap prices. No problem. You want mines, no problem. You want licences, no problem. And many people are prospering with "no problem, can manage " approach.
Greed is good. Right. Good old capitalism. I just want collective greed to supplement & complement individual greed.
Let us think for a moment about all those left behind in this new great race towards prosperity. If we don't, our children will suffer. Let us make possible clean drinking water, safe roads, good schools, affordable healthcare, good grounds....
Please let us keep others happy and be happy ourselves.

Prayer.

A recent study conducted by the Duke University Medical Center on 700 patients, found that having people pray for heart bypass surgery patients had no effect on their recovery. Researchers emphasized their work does not address whether God exists or answers prayers made on another's behalf. This result seems to contradict a previous study by the same authors that reported "cardiac patients who received intercessory prayer in addition to coronary stenting appeared to have better clinical outcomes than those treated with standard stenting therapy alone"

http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/03/149244&from=rss

Online Porn and Pollution can kill you.

I was always fascinated by Online Porn, err......effects of that on society.

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/c65a4966-bfbb-11da-939f-0000779e2340%2C_i_rssPage=daa36138-ce4f-11d7-81c6-0820abe49a01.html


And next topic. Every often and then you read about ill effects of smoking, milk consumption, too much TV viewing, driving in urban traffic, Cellphone radiation........ on your health.
They have a set formula. It's observed that those who drive atleast 2 hrs in Urban Traffic are 22% more susceptible to hypertension.......blah, blah, blah. If all those things were true, I should have died a whil ago.

Anyway, link to relevant article follows.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2006/03/31/ccjeff31.xml&menuId=242&sSheet=/money/2006/03/31/ixcoms.html