2008 - The Year That Was

2008 is almost drawing to a close. If I were to describe the year in a few words, this is how it would be for me.

2008 was the year of when racial barriers did not matter in US presidential politics. This was the year of hope and change.

2008 was also the year of great triumph with Michael Phelps winning 8 gold medals in a the Beijing Olympics

2008 was also the year of great tragedies with India being attacked by terrorists multiple times.

2008 was also the year of great turmoil, with the world facing the worst financial crisis since the great depression.

I cannot remember any single year in recent memory where there was a so much positive and negative news in the same year.

Hope that the coming new year is filled with more positive news and energy.

Is the Time Ripe for a Federal Gas Tax Hike?

For the week of the 22nd of Dec gas average US gas price was $1.653 a gallon. This is a far cry from the average price of $4 a gallon which we saw in the summer months.



The drop in gas prices has been as precipitous as a drop from a roller coaster. As the gas prices have dropped precipitously, there has been a slow rebound in sales of gas guzzling trucks and SUV's. According to research by Edmunds, low gas prices and fat discounts on trucks and SUV's are reigniting sales.

The US government just bailed out the auto industry to the tune of $17 billion in emergency loans so that they can re-tool to make more fuel efficient vehicles. But if demand for these fuel efficient cars continues to go down with the gas price, what is the incentive for the car manufactures to produce more fuel efficient cars?

In addition, the low price of gas also ups the demand for gasoline which means more gasoline imports and additional money into the pockets of petro-dictators like Hugo Chavez and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Not to mention the impact additional demand on global warming.

So what is the solution. Keep the demand for gasoline as low as possible and the price as high as possible. Currently the only way to keep the demand low is to raise the price of gasoline by adding additional tax to every gallon of gasoline consumed.

Think about this; the additional tax dollars could be used on infrastructure related projects, invested in research and development for alternative fuels, developing more fuel efficient cars or for that matter just curb demand for gasoline to reduce the green house gas emissions. These alternatives much better then throwing money on Middle Eastern oil.

Granted that in a recessionary environment, new taxes are a no-no. But, during the campaign, Obama had the guts to speak out against the Federal Gax Tax Holiday proposed by Hillary Clinton and John McCain. Now that he has been elected president he must show the courage and seriously consider this and make it one of his top priorities, as it is a win win solution.

Is WikiPedia the New Encyclopedia?

During my flight from Columbus to New York, in the Delta Sky magazine, I read an interesting article on the discussion about whether Wikipedia is the new Encyclopedia

Below is Andrew Keen's point of view:
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I wouldn’t call Wikipedia an encyclopedia. And that’s not a criticism. “Encyclopedia” is something where you have centralized editors who make calls on whether something is more important than something else. So they’ll decide that, you know, Henry VIII deserves a larger entry than Henry III or Henry II or Henry the Nothing. Wikipedia is, in my view—and again, this isn’t necessarily a criticism—Wikipedia is an editorless information resource in which anyone is free to enter what they consider to be important information, and other people are free to edit that information.
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What Would Keynes Have Done?

In the current financial crisis there is no lack of suggestions on how to tackle it. But how would have John Maynard Keynes tackled the crisis.

Martin Wolf writes for the Financial times
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Keynes’s genius – a very English one – was to insist we should approach an economic system not as a morality play but as a technical challenge. He wished to preserve as much liberty as possible, while recognising that the minimum state was unacceptable to a democratic society with an urbanised economy. He wished to preserve a market economy, without believing that laisser faire makes everything for the best in the best of all possible worlds.

This same moralistic debate is with us, once again. Contemporary “liquidationists” insist that a collapse would lead to rebirth of a purified economy. Their leftwing opponents argue that the era of markets is over. And even I wish to see the punishment of financial alchemists who claimed that ever more debt turns economic lead into gold.

Yet Keynes would have insisted that such approaches are foolish. Markets are neither infallible nor dispensable. They are indeed the underpinnings of a productive economy and individual freedom. But they can also go seriously awry and so must be managed with care. The election of Mr Obama surely reflects a desire for just such pragmatism. Neither Ron Paul, the libertarian, nor Ralph Nader, on the left, got anywhere. So the task for this new administration is to lead the US and the world towards a pragmatic resolution of the global economic crisis we all now confront.
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Read the full article at What Would Keynes Do?

E Squared Continued......

Was it a conscious decision, or a momentary lapse of reason? How did progress take priority over humankind? Could harnessing the world's energy that allowed our ascent now be the lynchpin of our downfall?

The questions raised by the E Squared documentary got me thinking. This thinking raised a lot of questions for which I do not know if I have answers.

What is our responsibility towards the only inhabitable planet that we currently live on? How much progress is too much? Isn't there a limit to humankinds progress? If there is a limit how is that limit set? Is it a function of the human minds capability, or nature acting to keep the checks and balances or both? Has humankind by its actions triggered a reaction from nature to keep the checks and balances? In this battle of checks and balances will the human mind prevail or will it be nature that has the last word spelling the doom of the earth and all of its species as we know it?

E Squared: The economies of being environmentally conscious.

Was it a conscious decision, or a momentary lapse of reason? How did progress take priority over humankind? Could harnessing the world's energy that allowed our ascent now be the lynchpin of our downfall? Could it be we are connected to all living things in the universe, not the center of it? That decisions in Washington affect the mountain glaciers of Peru, deforestation in the Amazon affects the heat waves of Paris, that power plants in China affect air quality in Los Angeles. It's about facing what seem to be insurmountable challenges for what they really are: opportunities, to reinvent and redesign. E Squared: The economies of being environmentally conscious.

This is Morgan Freeman's introduction to PBS series E Squared Energy

The series includes 6 half hour episodes talking about wind energy, Energy Solutions for the Developing World, Advances in Automotive Designs for Fuel Efficient Vehicle, Growing Renewable Energy, Coal and Nuclear Energy, and California's Progressive Energy Policy.

A Genius for Sure

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Pianist, composer and world-class entertainer Ethan Bortnick has appeared on Oprah, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Good Morning America, and Martha Stewart. He's shared a stage with Beyonce, Josh Groban, Santana, Natalie Cole, Nelly Furtado, Wyclef Jean, Smokey Robinson, Gloria Gaynor, Patti LaBelle, and The Pointer Sisters. He can play more than 200 songs from memory, has composed more than 30 pieces of music that are being published, and has raised record amounts for children's charities.
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If you are like me who knows nothing about a piano or music for that matter, what Ethan Bortnick has accomplished is a big deal. Why you ask? Because he is all of only 7 years old....

Listen to the complete interview of Ethan Bortnick on Morning Edition

Bernie Madoff and the Wall Street Ponzi Scheme

Paul Krugman writes in the op-ed column for the NY Times:
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I’m not the only person to ask the obvious question: How different, really, is Mr. Madoff’s tale from the story of the investment industry as a whole?

The financial services industry has claimed an ever-growing share of the nation’s income over the past generation, making the people who run the industry incredibly rich. Yet, at this point, it looks as if much of the industry has been destroying value, not creating it. And it’s not just a matter of money: the vast riches achieved by those who managed other people’s money have had a corrupting effect on our society as a whole.
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Read the complete article at Madoff Economy

Amar Singh Donated $1million to $5million to Clinton Global Initiative

Clinton Global Initiative today released the list of donors who had donated money to to his charitable organization. The list of donors included the who's who of the world including the political figures, royalty and businessman.

The list also included some familiar faces from India including Amar Singh, the Samajwadi Party general secretary and a Member of Parliament. His humble contribution to the Clinton Foundation, $1 million to $5million.

Recently Mr Amar Singh in filing his nominations papers for the Rajya Sabha elections declared assets worth Rs 37 Crore or about $7 million. This is in addition to the $1million to $5 million he donated to the Clinton foundation.

Now my question is this: How is it that Mr Amar Singh seemed to have amassed wealth to the tune of $12 million on a meager salary of a Member of Parliament?

Read more about the other list of notable donors at Millionar Donors

The Brazilian Nostradamus?

Monteiro Lobato, a Brazilian writer, had written a sic-fi novel in 1926 in which a crytal ball like machine predicts that the United States would have a African American president in the year 2228. To top, this African American president runs against a female white blond and defeats her in the elections. Hillary Clinton anyone.

Though the above mentioned event came true in real life 220 years earlier then stated in the novel, is it just a coincidence that he wrote about this or did Monteiro Lobato predicting the future?.

Wall Streets Legal Ponzi Scheme

With the financial crisis biliking out billions of dollars of investors wealth by the day, Thomas Friedman in his op-ed for the NY Times writes:
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I have no sympathy for Madoff. But the fact is, his alleged Ponzi scheme was only slightly more outrageous than the “legal” scheme that Wall Street was running, fueled by cheap credit, low standards and high greed. What do you call giving a worker who makes only $14,000 a year a nothing-down and nothing-to-pay-for-two-years mortgage to buy a $750,000 home, and then bundling that mortgage with 100 others into bonds — which Moody’s or Standard & Poors rate AAA — and then selling them to banks and pension funds the world over? That is what our financial industry was doing. If that isn’t a pyramid scheme, what is?

Far from being built on best practices, this legal Ponzi scheme was built on the mortgage brokers, bond bundlers, rating agencies, bond sellers and homeowners all working on the I.B.G. principle: “I’ll be gone” when the payments come due or the mortgage has to be renegotiated.
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Paul Krugmans Four Rules of research

Paul Krugman in his Nobel acceptance lecture, revealed his four basic rules of research.

1. Listen to the Gentiles
2. Question the question
3. Dare to be silly
4. Simplify Simplify

Listen to the complete lecture and view the slide show at Nobel Lecture

And She Want to be Our Next Prime Minister

Check out the BSP website, especially the entertainment section.

This just makes me roll over and laugh. For a party whose leader aspires to be the next Prime Minister of India, this is what we have for a website for the party.....

Imagine Mayawati as the new Prime Minister, Enrique Iglesias as the new Information and Broadcasting minister, Kylie Minogue as our Tourism and Culture minister and Alessandra Ambrosio as Minister for Minority Affairs.

Who wouldn't want to vote for that cabinet?

Excellent Article on Mumbai Terror Attacks

An excellent article on the Mumbai terror attacks by Arundhati Roy published in the Guardian newspaper.
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The Mumbai attacks have been dubbed 'India's 9/11', and there are calls for a 9/11-style response, including an attack on Pakistan. Instead, the country must fight terrorism with justice, or face civil war
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Also read another excellent article by Priyamvada Gopal, again, published in the Guardian newspaper.
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We must not let '9/11' become a horrific status symbol signalling arrival into the fraternity of wounded superpowers
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Why Wall Street Blew It?

Henry Blodget in a recent article for the The Atlantic Magazine offers a very plausible explanation for why Wall Street seems to get itself into trouble often. He should know, because he was an Wall Street insider during the dot-com bubble.

His argument, for all their Ivy League degrees and financial acumen, deep down all Wall Streets are human beings who carry all the same emotions as any human being, acting in their own self interest.

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That’s especially true for the professionals on Wall Street, who’ve come in for more criticism than anyone in recent months, and understandably so. It was Wall Street, after all, that chose not only to feed the housing bubble, but ultimately to bet so heavily on it as to put the entire financial system at risk. How did the experts who are paid to obsess about the direction of the market—allegedly the most financially sophisticated among us—get it so badly wrong? The answer is that the typical financial professional is a lot more like our hypothetical home buyer than anyone on Wall Street would care to admit. Given the intersection of experience, uncertainty, and self-interest within the finance industry, it should be no surprise that Wall Street blew it—or that it will do so again.
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Read the complete article Wall Steet Blow Up

Good Old Government at its Best

An Administrative Reforms Panel (ARC) under the leadership of M Veerappa Moily, has recommended a performance based system for all senior level bureaucrats. At first you think, well, at last the government is holding bureaucrats for their performance.

But wait a minute. Does this mean that there is no system in place for holding them accountable like everybody else in the real world. If you read the article it really gets even more interesting.

"Suggesting new conditions of performance-based appointments and continuation of service, the ARC report - Refurbishing of Personnel Administration - said that all public servants should be subjected to two intensive reviews on completion of 14 years and 20 years of service, respectively."

Ok, so does this mean that they get a free pass till the first 14 years of their service, no matter how bad they are at their work. Also does this mean they get another 6 long years to rectify whatever short comings that they had at the 14 year review? Where is the incentive for them to perform when they know upfront that they are safe in their job for 20 years no matter what they do? Does this mean that we the taxpayers who pay for them have to suffer for 20 long years for each bureaucrat appointed? If Mr Moily was a owner of a private company, would he have recommended the same 20 years service before any sort of action against his employees?

I am sure he would have not done that, or his company would have to close doors in a few years. So why not apply the same standard to the government and have periodic review of government officials (i.e yearly) and fire the non performers regularly. Atleast that will bring some accountability in the government.

Read the complete article 20 Years of honeymoon at Taxpayers expense

Want a Dream Job - Become a Walkin Billboard

NY Post details the story of a out of work banker who landed a dream job after being out of work for almost a year. His innovative idea, wearing a billboard which read "MIT grad for hire" while walking the streets of New York.

As they say luck favors the brave....

Read the complete story at Walking Billboard

Angst of the Elite

Terrorists struck Mumbai last week killing almost 200 people. Sure terrorists have stuck Mumbai before. Remember 1993 Mumbai blasts or the July 2006 blasts. Both these terror attacks killed as many people as on the recent attacks. So why did the heads in high places i.e. Chief Minister Vilas Rao Deshmukh, State Home Minister RR Patil, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, roll this time.

Gaurav Kalra for CNN-IBN and Ajith Pillai for Outlook India Magazine offer one plausible explanation.

According to Gaurav Kalra," Elite India has for the first time been shaken out of its slumber as terror has attacked what were so far its impenetrable citadels.

The Taj Mahal hotel was insulated before that fateful Wednesday night from all that was wrong with India. It is here while sipping on over priced coffee or gorging on grotesquely expensive stir fry noodles that corporate honchos ridiculed the real India; an India they were squeamish to be part of. Fake sympathy for terror victims in Delhi or Ahmedababad or Bangalore mixed well with the cocktails in the secure environs of the Taj and the Oberoi. It is here that the mafia of new age cricket struck its big ticket deals, here that film producers with suitcases full of cash lured overpaid actors to act appear in their soulless films."

These POV's raise more questions then provide answers. Granted heads have rolled in high places in government circles both at the state and central levels. But is this because high profile targets like the Taj Hotel and Oberoi Hotel have been attacked? Or is it because there have been several terror attacks within the last few months, and suddenly the government realized that it had to tackle this menace? Or is it because we have a general election coming up in May 2009 and the ruling UPA government realized that if it did not act now, the voters may not elect it in the upcoming election?

The pundits may try to analyze it from every angle, but the answer may not be one or the other, but a combination of all of the above.

Nepotism or Sexism - You Decide

Well our politicians are at it again. Janata Dal(S) has nominated "Anita Kumaraswamy", wife of HD Kumaraswamy, daughter-in-law of HD Deve Gowda as the party's nominee to contest the Madhugiri assembly constituency by election in Karnataka.

In response to this BJP spokesperson V Dhananjay Kumar by saying ""I pity the JD(S). I wish Deve Gowda's family is not reduced to the same position as that of the Pandavas, who pledged their wife in the gamble. Anita is a weak candidate and she is no competition to BJP" .

Link obtained from Churumuri

Also see my previous post on Nepotism In Indian Politics

Z Plus Security for Politicians - No More

Sudarshana Dwivedi, a guest columnist for Rediff makes the case for removing the security blanket that envelopes all of India's politicians from an MLA to the Prime Minister.

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They, the politicians, are called the leaders of the country. They use my -- taxpayers' -- money to guard their precious selves and leave me at the mercy of terrorists; like the defenceless ward boy of Cama hospital who manned the gate against terrorists -- and got a bullet as reward.

Why do these so-called leaders need to be guarded? Even if all of them are killed in terrorist attacks, is there even a single one of them who cannot be replaced the very next day? What entitles them to deserve the security for which I pay with my hard-earned money, and which is diverted from necessary weapons and protection to those who guard me?

They call themselves leaders. Who are they leading? With what?

Their insulated and inflated egos make them speak in deriding and patroniSing tones to a martyr's father. They make fun of a multitude of mourners. They make light of a calamity that has not only claimed lives but scarred whole families.

Do they care at all?

No sir. They resign listening to the voice of their muted conscience only when sure of being booted out otherwise. Some even then cling on to their chairs like a dying man does to an oxygen mask.

Politics has become big business. They call it service to the nation but in most of the cases it means amassing assets totally disproportionate to income. They enjoy unlimited clout and wield ruthless power on the same unsuspecting public whom they claim to serve.

Devoid of this only means of luxurious livelihood, most of them will not know how to fend for themselves. This is the only profession they are proficient in. This unique quality surpasses 'qualifications' of beliefs and ideologies.
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Read the complete article at No Z Plus security

This Just makes me Laugh

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"Can you run the country without politicians?" This is how former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda reacted to public outrage against politicians in the aftermath of terror attack in Mumbai.

Referring to the outburst against politicians, he took the media and the urbanites to task. "What nonsense is this? Why do you think only politicians are a burden? Can you run the country without politicians or without a captain or PM? Do you want autocracy and dictatorship," he asked here on Friday.
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I agree with former Prime Minister Devegowda. Not all politicians are a burden on society, but it is politicians like Devegowda and his sons who sure are a burden. Will the former Prime Minister and his sons ever realize this?

Read the complete Devegowda outburst.

Calendar for Life

If you are looking for a calendar for 2009 and beyond then you can find it at Free Calendar. All you have to do is change the year, year after year and you can use it up to the year 9999. If only I could live until the year 9999.....

Also get other cool Microsoft Excel tips at Pointy Haired Dilbert

Dr Doom Was Right!

A couple of months back, I had a post about Peter Schiff predicting that the United states was on the verge of a recession.

His reasoning:"What's going to happen is that the American consumer is basically going to stop consuming and start rebuilding his savings, especially when he sees his home equity evaporate," he said. "And when you have the economy 70 percent consumption, you can't address those imbalances without a recession." He also said and I quote, "You're going to start to see both the government and the lenders re-imposing lending standards and tightening up on credit — and these sky-high real estate prices are going to come crashing back down to earth."

When he made these comments, he was ridiculed and people called him Dr Doom. Well the supply side, naysayers like Arthur Laffer are nowhere to be seen.

Open Letter to the Prime Minister

An excellent article that aptly describes the state of internal security in India.
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So long as India’s response to terrorism will be characterised by a shameless appeal along religious lines with political parties trying to consolidate their vote-banks as opposed to coming together to fight the menace, we will continue to be viewed as a soft target by our adversaries and we will continue to fight terrorists in our streets. You will be ending your tenure in a few months from now but the damage that your government has done to the Indian internal security will remain with us forever. The fact that your predecessor’s record was equally pathetic is no excuse.One can only hope that the next government will learn right lessons from your failure. Otherwise, the very idea of India is in danger of becoming just a fond memory.
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Read the complete article Open Letter to the PM

What Should Pakistan's People Do?

In response to the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai, Tom Friedman, in his recent op-ed for the NY Timescalls on all of Pakistan's people to stand up and say enough is enough on terrorism.
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Sure, better intelligence is important. And, yes, better SWAT teams are critical to defeating the perpetrators quickly before they can do much damage. But at the end of the day, terrorists often are just acting on what they sense the majority really wants but doesn’t dare do or say. That is why the most powerful deterrent to their behavior is when the community as a whole says: “No more. What you have done in murdering defenseless men, women and children has brought shame on us and on you.”

Why should Pakistanis do that? Because you can’t have a healthy society that tolerates in any way its own sons going into a modern city, anywhere, and just murdering everyone in sight — including some 40 other Muslims — in a suicide-murder operation, without even bothering to leave a note. Because the act was their note, and destroying just to destroy was their goal. If you do that with enemies abroad, you will do that with enemies at home and destroy your own society in the process.
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Where are the Young Leaders in India

For a country which boasts of itself as a young democracy and where 95% of the population is below the age of 64 years and a median age of 25 years, it is surprising that there are not many young leaders who can inspire confidence or leadership abilities. Average age of a Member of Parliament is 53 years with only about 15% below the age of 65 years.

For a young country like India, the upcoming and existing leadership does not inspire much confidence. Take Rahul Gandhi for example. Though he is a member of parliament and is projected to be the future Prime Minister of India, his only claim to fame is he belongs to the erstwhile Nehru Gandhi family. Does anybody know his stand on issues urgently facing India including terrorism, economic reform, domestic and foregin policy? Forget Rahul Gandhi, most of the other young politicians who are Members of Parliment (MP's), be it Jyotiraditya Scindia, Sachin Pilot, Omar Abdullah or Akhilesh Yadav have been MP's because they were kins of established politicians. They did not rise from the grass root level to become MP's. But we cannot blame them can we.

For a country whose political parties have no democratic system of governance themselves, where nepotism rules roost , the current crop of young politicians is just reaping the benefits of the seeds that their father/grandfathers sowed. Unless this politics of sycophancy and nepotism changes, we cannot expect fresh leadership to blossom out of the grass roots.

Hold Our Leaders Accountable

Having witnessed the recent elections in the United States, both the presidential and congressional elections, one thing that I find very interesting and unique is how the elected officials are held accountable by the media and the voters even before they cast their votes. Take the examples of the presidential debates. The candidates are supposed to outline their plans on how they are going to fix the immediate and not so immediate problems facing the country. This gives a chance for the voters at large to know where the candidates stand on various issues.

Now try translating it into the context of Indian politics. India has a parliamentary election coming up in the next six months. Do we know where the potential Prime Ministerial candidates stand on the various issues that matter? Atleast I have not heard anything from LK Advani, or Manmohan Singh or even Mayawati about their stand on tackling terrorism, keeping the economy growing, providing helathcare to all of India, providing employment and jobs etc.

With the world economy in a tailspin and India begin attacked by terrorists, I think the upcoming election offers an unique opportunity for the Indian voters to start changing all of this. We as voters need to care about who we elect to represent us. We as voters have a responsibility to ask each of candidates tough questions on how they are going to deal with terrorism, how they are going to keep the economy growing and other relevant domestic issues be it access to health care, creation of jobs or fixing the educational system etc.

Now people may point out that majority of the Indian people live in rural areas and villages who are not educated enough to ask these kind of thoughtful questions. My response would be let the urban educated elite start working on this. Let the media bring the candidates together to debate some of the key issues. Let us not be satisfied with politicians addressing generic rallies or parties releasing election manifestos without any meaningful outcomes. Let us hold our elected officials accountable on every aspect of governance. Let them know that just promising "roti, kapada and makan" without any meaningful plan on providing it would not be acceptable.

Has Anybody Heard from Raj Thackeray?

Mumbai had one of its worst days in history. But still there is no news from one of its self proclaimed son of Maharashtra Raj Thackeray or his so called army of no gooders. Where is he when the city needs him the most. MNS workers would have earned some plaudits for doing some recovery work and helping people of Mumbai instead of trying to drive honest hardworking people out of Mumbai.

More Raj Thackeray 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,8, 9

Pull the "Z" Category Security for Politicians

Shobha De is spot on when she says "Pull the "Z" category security for politicans and use it to secure our cities". At least the taxpayers money will be well spent.

Its Bussiness as Usual for Indias Politicians

Just days after one of the most deadly terrorist attack in India's history, politicians are back to their usual self. Blaming the opposite party for being responsible for terrorist attacks.
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"I have heard that BJP leader Gopinath Munde has demanded for my resignation following the multiple Terror attacks in Mumbai," Patil told media persons.

He further said that when Akshardham was attacked, the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi did not resign and when the Parliament was attacked the then Union Home Minister L K Advani did not resign.

"Then why should I resign after the Mumbai attack? What morality is BJP talking about?" Patil questioned.
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The Patil here is Maharashtra Home Minister RR Patil. Just for information, a Home Minister is responsible for the internal administration of the country/state, and for the law and order situation in the country/state.

Going by this definition and since the terrorist attacks in Mumbai happened under the watch of RR Patil and not Narendra Modi or LK Advani, as Home Minister, the responsibility lies with you Mr Patil not with Narendra Modi or LK Advani. That's were the buck stops.

Should RR Patil take moral responsibility for the Mumbai blasts and resign from his office. Or should he be forced out of his office for saying "Such small incidents happen in big cities. The terrorists had come to kill 5000 people, but we ensured minimum damage"?

I wonder, and I do not want to wish this on any one, what would have been RR Patil's response be if one of the people killed would have been his loved one. Would he still consider that to be minimum damage?

Thoughts About the Mumbai Blasts

Prem Panicker has an excellent compilation of thought about the Mumbai terror attacks. So does Amit Varma in his blog.

Live Coverage of Hostage Rescue Missions - Good or Bad?

In this age of 24/7 news coverage and hundreds of news channels, is live coverage of certain events like the current hostage crisis in Mumbai good or bad. Shrinidhi Hande in a post on Churumuri argues that we should ban all live coverage of certain events.

I think that media should have maximum freedom for a free society to function. But should that freedom be restricted when covering events when human lives are in danger?

What do you think?



Read the complete post ban live coverage

More Regulation is Coming?

President elect Barack Obama announced key members of his economic team this week. One of the key members of this team is Larry Summers, former treasury secretary under the Clinton administration and currently appointed to head the White House's National Economic Council. In this role, Larry Summers would serve as the primary advisor on framing policies related to domestic and international economic issues. In other words, he would have the Presidents Elect's ears on making policy decisions to get the world out of the current financial mess.

Recently Larry Summers wrote an article for the Financial Times which might give some key insights into the economic policy direction of the next administration.

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However, policies that contain the crisis, support the economy and generate recovery are not sufficient to meet the historic challenge of this moment. Even with the best conceivable fiscal, monetary, financial and regulatory policies, economic performance depends on deeper and more structural policy choices. Nations cannot fine tune their way to delivering a prosperity that is more broadly based. In important ways, then, the crisis creates space to address longer standing problems. Just as patients hear advice regarding diet and exercise differently after a heart attack, so recent events should make it possible for the next US administration to accomplish more than might previously have been thought possible.
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If this article is anything to go by, then the thinking of the incoming administration is to not just focus on more regulation, but also to boost government spending on infrastructure related projects like developing more renewable energy sources, expanding broadband connectivity and investing in science and technology.

BJP on the Defensive

Until recently, whenever terror struck India, the first thing that came to mind was another Muslim group, another Jihadist organization, SIMI or or even Al Qaeda. This all changed a few back when the police arrested one Sadhvi Pragya Singh along with a Army Lt Col and a self styled guru, Swami Amritanand in connection with the bombing of a predominately Muslim town of Malegaon.

With the Lok Sabha elections approaching next year, BJP a predominately Hindu party which is also the opposition party in India had been on the offensive accusing the ruling UPA of being soft on terror. The UPA did not help its cause either as the bungled response by the Union Home Minister to the quick spate of terror attacks across the country played right into the hands of the BJP.

But the arrest of Pragya Singh and others has put the BJP on the defensive. It cannot use the us against them, Muslims responsible for terror, Pakistan hand in terrorist strikes, as its poll plank. The involvement of Hindus in the Malegoan blasts seems to have caught the BJP off guard and in two minds. It can neither distance itself from the Sadhvi as that would mean that you are abandoning a fellow Hindu, nor can it embrace her and her accomplices as that would mean that you tacitly support terror. Until a few months ago, I was leaning towards BJP gaining power in the Center. Now I am not so sure. If the issue of Hindu terrorists continues to dominate the headlines for the next few months, then the upcoming Lok sabha elections will be pretty interesting to watch.

Citigroup Bailed Out by Taxpayers

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“Our job is to set a tone at the top to incent people to do the right thing and to set up safety nets to catch people who make mistakes or do the wrong thing and correct those as quickly as possible. And it is working. It is working.”
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These were the words of Chuck Prince in September 0f 2006 at the height of the real estate boom. If only he had followed up his words with actual actions Citigroup would not have been in the place that it finds itself: "Bailed out by the Taxpayers".

Read the complete NY Times article on how Citigroup followed the path to self destuction

FDR's Fireside Chat with the Nation

During the height of the Great Depression, when scarcely a bank was open for business, FDR addressed the United States. His entire speech is available as a podcast on the FDIC website.

Though the current financial crisis is a walk in the park compared to the Great Depression, some of the key ingredients; i.e. irresponsible lending, speculation and lacks oversight, are the same that have caused the current financial crisis.

Fireside chat link obtained from Daniel Gross's column on Slate

Bird and Fortune's Take on the Financial Crisis

Bird and Fortune provide a rather simplistic but accurate explanation for the financial crisis and the cyclical nature of the financial markets. "When there is more greed then fear in the market, the market goes up. When then is more fear then greed in the market, the market goes down".

Watch Bird and Fortune decipher the financial woes in their trademark satirical style.

Who Will Lead? Who Will Follow?

Harvard Business School is celebrating its centennial this year. This might have not come at a more inopportune moment, what with the financial crisis and all. Financial Times aptly puts this in context.
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There is no doubt that most HBS graduates leave the institution with a very clear sense of their own worth and capabilities. They are not set up to fail. And yet, equally clearly, HBS alumni were involved at the heart of the investment banking and strategy consulting worlds that now stand accused of destabilising the world’s financial system to the point of destruction.
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But this financial crisis offers an opportunity for 21st century leadership. And which place is better poised to grab this opportunity other then HSB, however ironic it may be. As they say "Leadership skills are formed at the time of crisis". After all we do have a alumni of Harvard, if not Harvard Business School specific, as the next President of the United States.

Read the complete Financial Times article here.

Also see my previous posting Leadership in the 21st Century where five Harvard Business School alumni discuss the leadership challenges for the 21st century with Charlie Rose

This Happens Only in India

A Dutch couple where in for the shock of their lives when a road side vendor charged them Rs 10000 ($200) for four samosas. The vendors claim for the high price tag, "the samosas were specially made of Indian herbs and had aphrodisiac qualities".

Read the full story at Samosas for Sale

Pepsi Becomes Environment Friendly

If you are thinking "Did Pepsi give up Bottled Water or Bottled Gatorade?", you are hoping for too much. All Pepsi is doing is trying to save water as much as possible. Atleast that's a start.

Do We Care What Dhoni Owns?

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In the meantime, Dhoni's collection of collectibles has grown. Only on Tuesday, he added an old motorcycle Yamaha RD 360, gifted by his relatives in Ujjain, to his formidable list of possessions, which included an array of dogs, bikes and designer clothes.
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Do we really care that MS Dohni owns dogs, bikes, designer clothes and will be getting a 9mm pistol soon.... Shouldn't the media be worried about more important things.

As If Reservation in Educational Institutions was Not Enough

As if the reservations in educational institutions on the basis of caste was not enough, the Maharashtra government has issued a resolution asking industries to fill 80% of their vacancies with local people.

So where does the buck stop. Have your say on this.

Rice for Rs 3 per Kg and Wheat for Rs 2 per Kg

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Taking a cue from the Raman Singh government's Rs 3 per kg rice scheme in Chhattisgarh, the BJP-led government in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday released its poll manifesto promising wheat at Rs 2 per kg to families living below poverty line and salt at 25 paise per kg to people under Scheduled Tribes category.
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Its election time and there is no shortage of promises from the politicians from both the ruling party and the opposition. Rs 3 per kg for rice and Rs 2 per kg for wheat is great. But what these politicians will not tell the electorate is that these prices are subsidized. And somebody has to pay the difference between the market value and the subsidized price. And that somebody is the poor taxpayer.

Read more at Rs 2 Wheat

Key Moments in the US Presidential Election

With the US Presidential election less then 4 years away, its time to look back at the last one. Listening Post on Al Jazeera does just that.

Raj Thackeray Cuts Birthday Cake! So What?

Dosen't the India news media have better things to do then report on Raj Thackeray cutting a birthday cake with the word "Bhaiya" written on it.....

More Raj Thackeray 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,8

Government Definition of Poor

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The sharp erosion in the value of money and the spiralling prices of essential items may have played havoc with people's lives, making it difficult for them to maintain their living standards, but the government is stubbornly sticking to its definition of who is "poor".

In an astounding position before the Supreme Court, it has held that one has to earn only Rs 455 ($10) a month in urban areas and Rs 328 ($7) in rural areas to escape the poor tag.
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Which century is the Indian government living in?

Why Should we Bail Out the US Auto Makers?

Pressure is mounting on the current and the new US administration to bail out the US automakers to the tune of $25 Billion. This on top of the already $700 Billion of taxpayers money being spent on bailing out US financial institutions.

The US automakers have for years depended on a bad business model and maintaining a status-quo by building factory capacity for gas guzzling SUV's. These SUV's once the cash cow for the big three now have become a liability. And they cannot get rid of this liability fast enough and they do not have enough cash to innovate their way out of the mess that is their own making.

With the US big three burning cash at the rate of millions of dollars a day, the executives are doing the rounds of Capitol Hill asking for this $25 billion in loan guarantees so that they can use this money for innovation and build more fuel efficient cars. Where was the talk of innovation when they were making billions of dollars on the gas guzzling SUV's? Why weren't the profits from the sales of SUV's not reinvested back into R&D to develop better fuel efficient technologies? Who is to blame for all of this? Of course it is the management of these automakers which neither had the vision nor the werewithal to think far ahead into the future. Aren't the executives of these companies paid the top dollar for thinking ahead. Why should this incompetent management be trusted with $25 billion of tax payers money?

IT Destination of India?

For a state that claims to be a destination for anyting IT, the sorry state of affairs of some the Karnataka government websites is rather ironic. According to a recent report in the Times of India , some of the government run websites have not been updated for the last two to three years.

I did a little bit of digging myself on what actually is on some of these government websites. Below is an image of some Karnataka government websites which was are listed in the government e-strategy document.



If you are like me trying to find some of these webistes, good luck with that. Also the website www.bangaloreit.com (marked in red in the image) is a not a government run website. Such is the state of affairs in the IT destination of India.

An Artist in Exile Tests India’s Democratic Ideals

MF Husain may be known to many Indians as a painter and an artist. But very few realize that he is currently living in Dubai for fear that his life may be in danger for doing what he is famous for. He was forced out of the country by some Hindu nationalist parties because he painted some Hindu Goddesses, sometimes portraying them nude.

Below is an exerpt of an article printed in the NY Times.
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Freedom of expression has frequently, and by some accounts, increasingly, come under fire in India, as the country tries to balance the dictates of its secular democracy with the easily inflamed religious and ethnic passions of its multitudes.

The result is a strange anomaly in a nation known for its vibrant, freewheeling political culture. The government is compelled to ensure respect for India’s diversity and at the same time prevent one group from pouncing on another for a perceived offense.

The rise of an intense brand of identity politics, with India’s many communities mobilizing for political power, has intensified the problem. An accusation that a piece of art or writing is offensive is an easy way to whip up the sentiments of a particular caste, faith or tribe.
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For a country with such a rich diversity, in terms of its religions, culture and even the languages that we speak, and for a country which aspires to be one of the superpowers in the world, we have lot of work to do. If history is any guide, it is these petty differences in religions, beliefs, and views that were exploited by the British which resulted in them ruling us for almost 150 years. Its been almost 60 years since we won independence from the British and we wrote our own constitution. which provides us with a fundamental right of Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Religion. It is high time that we stand up for these rights. Otherwise what is the difference between a secular India and some of the Islamic fundamentals who demonstrated against the publication of images of Prophet Muhammad in a Danish Newspaper.

Read the complete NY Times article on MF Husain

The Doomsday Scenario

With the financial crisis taking a toll on the world economy, PBS conducted a interview with Nassim Nicholas Taleb the author of The Black Swan and mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot.

According to them we have just seen the tip of the iceberg with the current financial crisis. The globalization of our world and financial system have interconnected us to such degree, that they have made the world more prone to risks. A problem with one bank or an financial institution in one part of the world can bring the entire system crashing down. This is what is currently happening or as in Nassim Taleb's words "We live in a world that is way too complicated for our traditional economic structure. It's not as resilient as it used to be. We don't have slack. It's over-optimized."

Read the entire transcript of the interview and watch it at Doomsday Scenario

Africa is a Country - Any Takers?

Any child who is in fifth grade would know that Africa is one of the seven continent and not a country. But if you are Sarah Palin Africa is a country, you can see Russia from Alaska and that makes you a maverick (i.e. a person who thinks independently, a lone dissenter, a non-conformist or rebel) and qualifies you to run for Vice President of the United States.

Unity in Diversity

Times of Indiareports that the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu M Karunanidhi has criticizes the use of tilak as a symbol of Hinduism. This on a historic day when racial, ethnic and religious barriers were broken in another part of the world.

For a country such as ours which has such a rich history and tradition, such immense diversity, which makes us the most unique country in the world, when are our politician's going to learn that trying to divide the country on religious lines and trying to appease your votebank will not work. The constitution of India grants every individual freedom of expression and freedom of religion be it a Hindu, a Muslim, a Christian or a Sikh. For a person who is elected by the people to serve the people, Karunanidhi who has taken to uphold the constitution of India, should be the last person to criticize the freedom of expression.

But alas, with elections fast approaching may be he is trying to score some political points in his vote base. When will our politicians stop dividing us in the name of religion and when will our electorate learn to see through these bluffs and call their bluff just as America did yesterday.

Once in a LifeTime

This is definitely a once in a lifetime event as the NY Times notes in its headline.



Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States of America. For a man who 4 years ago was unknown, but to a few people in the city of Chicago, this has been a extraordinary rise and an ultimate coronation.

This at a time when there are a lot of uncertainties and challenges facing the new president. Just to name a few, the US and the world economy is in tatters, global warming is a concern, and two wars, one of which was a war of choice, have diminished the United States standing in the world.

Atlast, the American electorate has made the right choice. The last eight years have been terrible for the United States, but the next four years offer a lot of hope. Lets hope that Barack Obama will use this mandate of the people to correct the wrongs of the last eight years.

Will Your Vote Make a Difference?

With the US Presidential election just a day away, I am pretty sure this question is on all voters mind. "Will my vote make a difference?". So what are the odds that a single vote will decide the presidential election. Read this to find out.

Sorry State of the Indian Education System

If this story is anything to go by, we as a country are in trouble. It not only reflects the sorry state of affairs in the medical education but our entire education system.

The Indian education system places more emphasis on bookish knowledge where cramming for a test and passing it is more important. Who cares if you do not remember what you have learned after you have passed the exam. Even in an engineering education curriculum, which I went through, emphasis was always on getting theoretical knowledge and cramming for the tests at the end of the semester. Never was it explained how what I was learning would be useful in the practical world.

If our colleges and Universities are to compete with the Harvard's, MIT's or the Cal Tech's of the world, if we need to propel India into the future as the destination of research and development and not just some back office service center, we need to reform our education system from the grass root level.

And it starts with having best and brightest of teachers who are paid competitive wages, who are enthusiastic about teaching, who care about what their wards learn.

What if We Support Raj Thackeray?

A satirical look at what will happen if every state in the country followed Raj Thackeray's lead in demanding that preference be given to locals in jobs, education, and residence.

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1. We should teach our kids that if he is second in class, don't study harder.. just beat up the student coming first and throw him out of the school

2. Parliament should have only Delhiites as it is located in Delhi

3. Prime Minister, President and all other leaders should only be from Delhi

4. No Hindi movie should be made in Bombay. Only Marathi.

5. At every state border, buses, trains, flights should be stopped and staff changed to local men

6. All Maharashtrians working abroad or in other states should be sent back as they are SNATCHING employment from Locals

7. Lord Shiva, Ganesha and Parvati should not be worshiped in our state as they belong to north (Himalayas)

8. Visits to Taj Mahal should be restricted to people from UP only

9. Relief for farmers in Maharashtra should not come from centre because that is the money collected as Tax from whole of India, so why should it be given to someone in Maharashtra?

10. Let's support Kashmiri Militants because they are right to killing and injuring innocent people for benefit of their state and community...

11. Let's throw all MNCs out of Maharashtra, why should they earn from us? We will open our own Maharashtra Microsoft, MH Pepsi and MH Marutis of the world.

12. Let's stop using cellphones, emails, TV, foreign Movies and dramas. James Bond should speak
Marathi

13. We should be ready to die hungry or buy food at 10 times higher price but should not accept imports from other states

14. We should not allow any industry to be setup in Maharashtra because all machinery comes from outside

15. We should STOP using local trains... Trains are not manufactured by Marathi manoos and the railway minister is a Bihari

16. Ensure that all our children are born, grow, live and die without ever stepping out of Maharashtra, then they will become true Marathis
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Link obtained from Outlook magazine

More Raj Thackeray 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Truly, A Great Speech

Below is an excerpt of a speech given by Prof UR Ananthamurthy at the Jamia Millia Islamia

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Every political party speaks of Development and the industrialists and multinationals know that a majoritarian state where dissent is curbed is the best site for development. No political party seems to speak of Gandhiji’s ideal of Sarvodaya, an economic policy that would even benefit the last poor person. The suicides of agriculturists are not taken seriously; their death does not affect the sensex.

Those of you who graduate today from this great institution should ponder over what we as citizens can do to combine development with the welfare of all. Development should disassociate itself from an unabashed consumption and its need of an authoritarian state where the majority can rule ruthlessly, suppressing every form of dissent.

Please don’t think of what I just said as a cliché ridden advice; the whole world is in an economic crisis following the American model of development and consumption; an ecological disaster is ahead of us arising from our greed-driven consumption; violence in our societies has never been effectively curbed by counter-violence.

Gandhiji’s faith in non-violence and truth being the same is not just an ideal; it is a practical and sensible path for not only individuals, as perceived conveniently by many of us, but for nation-states too.
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Read the full text of the speech at A Great Speech

Link obatined from Churmuri

Has the UPA Government been Soft on Terror

Another day and another terrorist strike in India. The last few months have seen so many terrorist attacks from Bangalore, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and now Assam. With terror outfits striking at will all over the country, it begs the questions "Has the UPA Government been soft on terror?"

Please provide your opinion below

The Triumph of Ignorance

A couple of days back in one of my posts I had talked about how when it comes to electing the most powerful person in the world, being knowledgeable and intellectual does a disservice to you. Ask Al Gore or John Kerry.

In a article for the Outlook, George Monbiot wonders the same. He writes and I quote
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Like most people on this side of the Atlantic I have spent my adult life mystified by American politics. The US has the world’s best universities and attracts the world’s finest minds. It dominates discoveries in science and medicine. Its wealth and power depend on the application of knowledge. Yet, uniquely among the developed nations (with the possible exception of Australia), learning is a grave political disadvantage.
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Read the complete article at Triumph of Ignorance

Also read When Atheists Attack

India's Right Left Problem

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Draw a line between Chennai and Chandigarh. Seven out of the eight IPL cricket teams are on the line or to the 'Right' of this line. The only team that is to the 'Left' of this line, expectedly, is the Kolkatha team. And when the IPL will be expanded in the following seasons, one can readily think of teams from Ahmadabad, Nagpur, Goa, Kochi or perhaps Vadodara - all to the 'Right' of my imaginary line.

But to conceive of an IPL team from say Lucknow or Patna or Bhubaneswar - all to the 'Left' of my line even after ten years from now is as remote as snow in Chennai. The reference to IPL teams, at the outset, is to merely sensitise the reader to the issue on hand - growing regional (economic) disparity and its impact on national politics. After all, sport is an index of prosperity, isn't it?

While India had grown for the past three decades at approximately six per cent per annum, states like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra which are to the 'Right' of this line grew much faster rate than the national average. In contrast, states like Bihar, UP and Bengal - those on the 'Left' of this line grew lower than the national average. In the process, they did pull down the national average substantially.
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Read the full article at Right and Left

More Raj Thackeray 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Why Smoking Ban in India Wont Work

Shekhar Gupta writes for the Washington Post that it would be very difficult for the recent ban in all public places in India to work.

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Nobody, however, objects to this law. There is no smoking lobby in the cities, nor is the ban being enforced in such a draconian way that smokers would be out in the streets protesting. But if the objective was to save the lungs of millions of Indians, this ban is not going to work because smokers will smoke as long as they can afford to buy cigarettes and find a corner on which to smoke them.
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Read the complete piece Indian Smoking Ban

The Godfathers of Bangalore

When you hear of Bangalore, you think of Information Technology, Outsourcing, Silicon Valley of India etc. Though all of these have propelled Bangalore specific and India in general into the global economy, this has come at a price.

A recent article in Wired Magazine highlights how all this growth in Bangalore comes at a price. Most of us who have been to Bangalore and have seen the real estate prices skyrocket in the last decade have suspected this all along. What am I talking about? The involvement of underworld and the mafia in the commercial and residential real estate market. Here is a brief excerpt from the article
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But there's a dark side to Bangalore's rocket ride. City officials—at least those who aren't taking bribes—struggle to reconcile the gleaming promise of the information economy with the gritty reality of systemic corruption, a Byzantine justice system, and a criminal underworld more than willing to maim and murder its way into control of the city's real estate market. As tech companies gobble up acreage, demand has pushed prices into the stratosphere. In 2001, office space near the center of town sold for $1 a square foot. Now it can go for $400 a square foot.
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Read the full article at Godfather of Bangalore

Untangling Credit Default Swaps

If you have been following the current financial crisis closely, then you might have heard about the term Credit Default Swaps. Paddy Hirsch of Market Place offers a pretty good explanation of what CDS are and how they work.


Untangling credit default swaps from Marketplace on Vimeo.

Ravan and Rakhi Savant

If Ravan were to try and abduct Rakhi Savant what would happen. See and find out

Chappati and Vegetables for Raj Thackeray

Do we really need to know what Raj Thackeray ate when he was in police custody. Shouldnt the focus of the media be on what things he has done to instigate the violence and give an objective unbasied opinion on that. Why would we the readers care about what he ate at the police station.

In this world of 24/7 news have journalism standards been tossed out of the window so that anything and everything gets reported as news, right from what Raj Thackeray ate to Amithab Bachchan catching a cold

More Raj Thackeray 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Leadership in the 21st Century

Watch Charlie Rose talk about Leadership in the 21st Century with five very distinguished individuals. The conversation between Charlie Rose and John Doerr, Meg Whitman, James Wolfensohn, Jeff Immelt and Anand Mahindra centered around the current financial crisis, the US presidential election, Global Warming, role of US in the world as well as the role of the developing countries in the 21st century. Very interesting and insightful conversation.

Raj Thackeray at it Again

Raj Thackeray was arrested today because some MNS activists beat up candidates taking the Railway Recruitment Board exam. The reason why they beat them up, not enough representation for "Marathi Manus" in the examination.

The ensuing arrest has resulted in violent incidents, which are being reported across Mumbai as I write this. I do not disagree with the arrest of Raj Thackeray. I think it is absolutely the right thing to do.

But the question is can any charges against him be brought to court so a conviction against him is achieved? How soon will it be before we see him out on bail? If he is going to be granted bail, which I am sure is already in the works as I write this, why create this spectacle of a sham arrest and waste all the tax payers money? What about all the property that is being destroyed by the thugs of Raj Thackeray? When will Raj Thackeray and his thugs realize the irony that in protecting the interest of the "Marathi Manus", they are inadvertently harming him with all this senseless violence and political game play?

In short the same old story repeats itself. When is this going to change?

More Raj Thackeray 1, 2, 3, 4

Service and Sacrifice

Watch the slide show of US men and women and their families who have served or are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the picture is that of a mother grieving over her sons grave. And the son is Specialist Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, whom General Colin Powell mentioned in is speech when he endorsed Barack Obama

Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama for President

General Colin Powell, a former Secretary of State under the current president George Bush, has endorsed Barack Obama for the President of the United States. In a very impassioned and bipartisan speech today on Meet the Press, General Powell laid his thinking to bare on why he is endorsing Barack Obama and not John McCain. I have never seen or heard a much more lucid and clearly thought-out argument for endorsing a particular candidate. Just watch the video

Making Democracy Work the Hard Way

For a country which seeks to promote democracy throughout the world, the current presidential elections in the United States have brought to light a whole host of problems right from how voters are registered to how votes are counted (Handing Chads anyone. You would wonder that for the world's most developed country which has been practicing democracy for the last two centuries, they would have everything figured out by now.

Doing Democracy Right a recent article on the online magazine Slate explores the decentralized process of voter registration, voting as well as counting of votes. When it comes to casting of votes and counting them, countries like India may have an answer in how electronic voting machines work.

Jet Airways To Reinstate Sacked Staff

In an about-face from a day ago when Jet Airlines sacked about 1900 employees, it has decided to reinstate them into their current jobs. This after the ever venerable Raj Thackeray threatened to not let any Jet Airlines flight fly out of Mumbai if they sacked employees were not reinstated.

Now compare this with what is happening in the US where thousands of employees of the big three car makers have been laid off during the last few years. Imagine if in response to this issue if politicians would have said "we will not allow cars from the big three automakers to hit the road." Wouldn't that make a bad situation even worse.

If these are the signs of the time where companies are held to ransom by petty politicians like Raj Thackeray, then wouldn't this discourage industry and private enterprise from hiring people because they know that there will be a big hue and cry if the company fires them. How is this good for business in the long run? What company is willing to take this risk? When will our politicians stop poking their big size heads with under sized brains in every matter?

If we as a country need to make any real progress then there needs to transparency and minimum government and political intervention in the way private industry functions.

Derivatives Markets Worth $596 Trillion- How?

Derivatives which are getting the brunt of the blame for the current financial crisis have a total notional value of $596 Trillion. This is larger then the amount of all the financial assets of the world put together. How is that possible. An article in the online magazine Slate provides an answer. Read the complete article at $596 Trillion.

One of my other post on this topic can be found at Derivatives to Blame

Economy Affects Pan Handling

The current economic situation is so bad that even pan handlers are affected... Just read the sign. Have any of the presidential candidates seen this?




Link obtained from Plant Money

Paul Krugman Wins the Economics Nobel

Paul Krugman today won the Nobel Prize in economic sciences. Paul may be one of the most popular economist to have ever won a Nobel, not the other way round where you become famous and popular after winning a Nobel. He writes the popular biweekly column for the NY Times which serves to illuminate the current economical and political issues with clear crisp writing easily understandable by the common man. He also writes the popular blog Conscience of a Liberal.

Currently I am reading his book The Accidental Theorist.

Spread the Story - Stop XDR TB

If you do not anything about XDR TB or "Extremely Drug Resistant Tuberculosis", then this video should spur you to action.



Please spread the word about the disease. Learn more at XDRTB

Link obtained from Churmuri

Violence against any religion is unacceptable: Advani

Statement of the day comes for Senior BJP leader LK Advani. He has denounced violence against any religion or place of worship, saying it is ‘unacceptable’. This coming from a man who in 1992 embarked on a "rath yatra" to mobilize "karsevaks" which ultimately led to the demolition of the Babri mosque.

Here is my take on Advani turning pseudo secular: Since he the BJP's prime ministerial candidate in the upcoming Lok Sabha election, may be he just displaying a pseudo secular image just to gain some political mileage and hope that his party will be elected as the majority party. As he is already 81 years old, he has probably realized that this election is probably his last opportunity to be the Prime Minister of India.