The NY Times Patronizes India

Before you read any further, I suggest you read this New York Times Op-Ed titled "India's Challenges".

And I am sorry to be so judgmental but the article is a whole load of BS.

For this blog post, I will only talk about those lines which, in my humble opinion, are the most bogus.

The first paragraph had these lines.

"...it is time for India to exercise the kind of regional and global leadership expected of a rising power."

The NY times does not waste time and space. The patronizing attitude starts from the first paragraph itself. The paper sets the stage for India by saying its about time she behaved like a power. Oh! wow! Finally some recognition !!

After a few paragraphs of Pakistan bashing, the paper then drops the line and I quote.

"India is essential to what Pakistan will do."

So what does it mean? Does it mean the US should involve India on all its plans in Af-Pak? Or does it mean India to some measure contributes to the situation by its silence? or perhaps the paper cannot make a determination of what it wants?

Anyways, the next few lines not only makes it abundantly clear what the paper wants but also what the administration of President Obama has in store for India.


And I quote again.

"New Delhi exercised welcome restraint when it did not attack Pakistan after the November 2008 attacks in Mumbai by Pakistani-based extremists. But tensions remain high, and the Pakistani Army continues to view India as its main adversary. India should take the lead in initiating arms control talks with Pakistan and China. It should also declare its intention to stop producing nuclear weapons fuel, even before a proposed multinational treaty is negotiated. That would provide leverage for Washington and others to exhort Pakistan to do the same."

Says the NY Times - "New Delhi exercised welcome restraint...". And so the paper approves of India's restraint but that's just not enough.

Continues the NY Times - "India should take the lead in initiating arms control talks with Pakistan and China...stop producing nuclear weapons fuel...That would provide leverage for Washington...to exhort Pakistan..."

Simply put the paper wants India simply to roll over and play dead. Waste of so many words above to express this intent!

Wait there is more. The paper then drops the K-word.

"Ignoring Kashmir is no longer an option."

Oh really! Pray why, may I ask the venerated paper, should Kashmir suddenly come into the picture now? Is it because the US has miserably failed to make Pakistan play ball and wag its tail?

And then comes the most naive of them all.

"India has played a constructive role in helping rebuild Afghanistan, but it must take steps to allay Islamabad’s concerns that this is a plan to encircle Pakistan."

What!? What was that? India should bend over backwards to make Pakistan feel its not being encircled? Are you really that dumb? Why would we want to do that? India IS encircling Pakistan, period. And just because the US finds it inconvenient for its War on terror, why should India give up its legitimate security concerns.

The Op-Ed then closes with these patronizing words.

"India is the dominant power in South Asia, but it has been hesitant to assume its responsibilities."

Oh please! Go sell this to someone born yesterday.

Did any of you watch former President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf's interview in Fareed Zakaria GPS?

Pervez list out all the divisions and infantries of the Indian army posted on its border with Pakistan and sights that as the primary reason for Pakistan not being able to direct more troops to its western border to fight the Taliban.

What President Pervez does not say is that India needs to keep troops there on account of two reasons -

1. Export of terror from Pakistan for decades now, latest one in Mumbai.
2. Pakistan army's penchant for high risk battles, the latest one in Kargil.

Pakistan's Mumbai gamble to provoke India into action to enable it (Pakistan Army) to move troops to its eastern border thereby giving some elbow room to their Taliban fell flat. And so once again they have created this mirage of a Taliban take over to jolt the US into complying with whatever Pakistan wants.

The proof is in all the papers. The administration which said it will question every penny spent by Pakistan, now within days is pushing to approve billions of dollars to aid Pakistan in its so called fight against the Taliban. I can only feel sorry for the Americans.

How many of you have heard of the "Super Nanny" TV show on ABC? I picked this up from the TV show's website and it says -

"Jo Frost, as Supernanny, can tame the wildest toddler, soothe the savage six-year-old and get the most difficult child to overcome problems with behavior, sleep, mealtime, potty training and other challenges that have vexed parents around the world for centuries."

Sounds similar?

United States = Vexed Parent
Pakistan = Wild, Savage, difficult child

May be Obama should give Richard Holbrook's job to The Super Nanny.

Victory? What Victory?

So finally the day has come when Sri Lanka believes no longer will its people be terrorized by the Tamil Tigers. No longer will the Lankans have to send their sons to join the Lankan army to fight the tigers. No longer will they wake up every morning listening to news of attacks and suicide bombings. And so the Lankans celebrate the victory.

But again what are they celebrating? Are they celebrating the fact that their own countrymen are now refugees? Are they celebrating the fact that the armed struggle for equal rights by the minority Tamils started because of Sinhalese nationalism? Are they celebrating the army having fought its way to victory killing and bombing Tamils and their settlements? What hollow victory is this?


The Tamil Tiger's methods may be wrong but their love for their people cannot be questioned. May be they lost sight of the ultimate goal, the welfare of the tamils, but they did start off on the right path.

To the Sri Lankan government and the majority Sinhalese, I say this. Show some humility in victory. Show some magnanimity. Show some brotherly concern. The victory dance over Tamil blood will not go down well with the now vanquished Tamils.

Your behavior will sow the seeds for future generational relationship between different ethnic groups in Sri Lanka and directly impact the island nations future. This is the time to introspect and reach out to the minorities.

If the Sri Lankan government wishes to be seen as the government of Sri Lanka instead of as the government of the Sinhalese, it must stop making crude gestures that could be misconstrued as Sinhalese chauvinism. The Sri Lankan president kissing the soil of Sri Lanka is one such. What soil is he kissing? The soil where blood of citizens were spilled?

The government and the President is advised to keep its emotions in check and get on with the task of healing and reaching out to the hearts of fallen Tamils.

From the Tamils to the Kashmiris

India always has had problems with its peripheral states. Especially those that were either partitioned or have brethren living in the neighbouring country.

Most of us know these states by their reputation - Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

West Bengal is special. Not only was West Bengal partitioned in 1947, it also is ruled by a party front ideologically closer to our northern neighbour.

Anyways my point is not to run through the history of these states.

I am going to specifically look at the current crisis in Sri Lanka, its impact on Tamil Nadu and what J&K can learn from it.

Something really beautiful is happening in Tamil Nadu. No need to be aghast. Just hear me out.


The Sri Lankan army has gained considerable ground against the LTTE in the past year. With the LTTE almost close to annihilation, Tamil organizations everywhere have heightened their pitch. The tamil political parties in India jumped right in to speak up for the plight of Tamils in Lanka.

The principle political outfits namely the DMK led by Dr. Karunanidhi and the ADMK led by Ms. Jayalalithaa engaged in a pitch battle to out do each other. That elections were fast approaching added to the combustible mix.

However, there was this common theme or line that both political formations in Tamil Nadu toed. And that was their lobbying with the government of India to intervene in whatever possible means at their disposal to halt the suffering of the Lankan Tamils. Each outfit was pushing the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to lean on the Sri Lankan President to halt the continued bombardment. Leaving aside the merits of the case, what should be taken note of is that for the first time the Tamil parties similar to the Israeli lobby in the United States, lobbied heavily with the government to act.

The Tamils, baring some extremist cat calls, empowered by their clout in New Delhi, used it effectively to steer India's position with respect to Sri Lanka. And in doing so they exercised considerable restraint keeping in mind both India's larger interests and that of pan-Tamil chauvinism. This whole scenario could have gone haywire for a number of reasons, including a scenario where some extremist Tamil chauvinistic group in Tamil Nadu hijacking the issue and stealing the main political party's thunder.

So what lessons can other peripheral states learn from this?

Imagine this.

The Taliban having gained a foothold in Pakistan's Swat, decide to test the waters in the rest of Pakistan. I suppose they have already started doing this. For whatever reason, the Taliban decide to move northwards towards Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas instead of Baluchistan and Punjab. There is real threat of a Taliban take over and residents of the former princely state of Jammu & Kashmir do not know if Islamabad will send in the army to help them.

Meanwhile there are massive protests in Jammu & Kashmir on the Indian side. Political parties such as the National Conference and the PDP begin out shouting each other demanding that the Indian government do something. The call to save Kashmiriyat from the Taliban has rallied the entire state and has forced even the pro-Pakistan outfits of the Hurriyat to support this call.

Members of Parliament from the state make speeches in Parliament calling for an intervention similar to the Battle for Srinagar. They warn that India is morally bound to save Pakistan Occupied Kashmir from being wiped out and demand that India do something to save Kashmiriyat.

Sounds familiar? Possible Scenario? Can and will the Kashmiri's learn from the Tamil experience?

Will the Kashmiris see the wisdom of investing their future and that of their children in the idea of India?

photo courtesy: India Tourism Network

Lessons for India

Ever since Nepal's monarchy was overthrown in a maoist inspired rebellion and ever since the maoist party won in the elections that followed, India's hold on Nepal's pulse has slowly but steadily slipped away.

For whatever reason, all countries surrounding India seem to have trouble practicing democracy. While as a country we cherish the peaceful transfer of power every five years, we take pride in being the largest democracy in the world against all odds, and we strongly believe that our model of democracy is the right one for a diverse country like ours, we still are not seen as that shining democracy upon a hill worth emulating by our neighbours.

Why?

Nepal is a classic example. For decades we have had a close relationship with the Nepalese ruling class, be it the monarchy or the elected dispensation. But lately, India seems to have lost the mojo for Nepal or more importantly the other way round!

For all the continues engagement between the two countries for decades, somehow Nepal seems to have taken to Maoism now. Why?


Now lets move on to Bangladesh. In the 70's, India militarily intervened to aid the Mukti Bahini to gain independence from Pakistan. That perhaps was the highest point in the relationship between the two countries. After that it has been a bumpy ride downwards. Bangladesh has been alternating between military rule and an elected government ever since. Not much influence there from its western/northern/eastern neighbour!

Pakistan. Pakistan Pakistan Pakistan. Newspaper columnists in that country sometimes look across the fence when they wish their government learn some lessons from across the border. But that's about it.

Sri Lanka is a case by itself. Though Sri Lanka practices democracy quite regularly, that country stands accused of ethnic cleansing, by its Tamil minority. A governing model based on India's federal setup has been proposed for a long time now. Hopefully something similar will come up soon that will satisfy the urge for equal rights for its Tamils.

I could go on. But the above examples are enough to show a pattern. India has tremendous influence on all its neighbours. However, all for the wrong reasons. Being the largest multi cultural democracy in the world, shouldn't we be exporting our ideas, values and solutions to these smaller countries that are so desperately in need of a good workable governing model.

Its sad to see our newspapers reporting maoist violence during elections. Even China has moved away from the socialistic policies of Chairman Mao. Inspite of this, even in our country we have the threat of maoist violence rival the threat of terrorist violence today.

What are the missing pieces here? Why aren't our neighbours saying - Why can't we be like India?

Why don't our neighbours look upto how we practice democracy in such diversity? Why isn't the Indian governing model worth emulating or learning from?

Why are we not yet that bright shining country upon the hill in this dark dark sub continental night?


image courtesy: jagrutindia.com

Its my tamil new year...

I was mad. Really mad. When I heard the government of my state of Tamil Nad, India had decreed(yes, decreed) that the Tamil new year will no more be celebrated in the month of Chithirai (April) instead it will from now onwards be celebrated in the month of Thai (January), I was irritated.

Who the hell is the DMK government to decide when the new year should begin? Who do these politicians think they are? For a minute I was magically transported back in time when emperors and kings ruled by decree and cared less for public opinion. The government and the Chief Minister perhaps mistakenly believe that they reign over the Kingdom of Tamil Nadu.

Decades ago, an egoistic Congress party equated India to Indira and Indira to India. We all know what happened. Be you ever so high the law of the land and the people are always high above you.

A party that preaches godlessness and shuns beliefs and faiths, should keep away from playing with centuries old traditions and cultures. I have no problem with the party of non-believers. Ours is a democratic country and people are entitled to their own ways of life. A political entity, just because it occupies the seat of power for five years, does not give it the right to meddle. What next? Will we be celebrating the CM's birthday as Tamil Day?

The leader of the party, Kalaignar Karunanidhi, is a wise man. I have always respected him as one of our finest leaders. However today I disagree with him. This is my Tamil new year's day and no one can change it.

photo courtesy: wikimedia

Prez Obama walks up to the PM...

Yes, that was in the Indian press and media today. That President Obama "walked" up to the Indian Prime Minister excited the Indian press that it was quoted verbatim across much of the media. Apparently one of the members in the delegation saw this happen!

Indian culture puts the onus on the younger person to approach the elder and more experienced one as a mark of respect. Jolly good indeed! Totally another matter that in these gatherings everyone walks around greeting everybody else. Well, in the west its called socializing.

Interpretation for sound and show purposes apart lets simply look at the schedule of President Obama at the G-20 on Wednesday and Thursday. Here below are two links to the 2 day schedule released by the White House Press Secretary.

President Obama's Wednesday G-20 Official schedule

President Obama's Thursday G-20 Official schedule

Let me pick out a few engagements from both these schedules.


On Wednesday:

11:45AM The President meets the Russian President @ Winfield House
02:00PM The President meets the Chinese President @ Winfield House
05:35PM The President meets HM Queen Elizabeth II @ Buckingham Palace

All of the above are very important engagements. The fact that Mr. Obama chooses to meet the Russian and Chinese leaders at his residence in London on the same day that he meets his host the Queen speaks to the importance that the administration attaches to these countries.

On Thursday:

08:00AM The President meets the South Korean Prime Minister @ the summit sidelines
09:50AM The President attends the G 20 plenary session
03:45PM The President meets the King of Saudi Arabia @ the summit sidelines
04:30PM The President meets the Indian Prime Minister @ the Summit sidelines

Now there are two ways of looking at this. Either the glass is half full or half empty.

The half full glass is that the President did choose to meet the Indian leader at the G20. On the whole he perhaps met only a handful of leaders among the 20 or so leaders attending the summit.


The half empty glass is that the US is not going to give as much importance to India as it got from the previous Bush administration. It simply showed when the US leader met only the Russian and Chinese leaders on the first day. For all the achievements that India has made post 1991, we still have a long way to go before our voice is heard at such forums.

The Bank of China Governor publishes an essay on the Bank's website and it catches wildfire all over the world. Our opinion is barely heard even in the Indian press, which is more concerned with silly things like who walked up to whom.

Pakistan's Quid Pro Quo, India's headache

Renewed focus on the Afghan war theatre was welcomed by the Afghan President Hamid Karzai. And its not difficult to understand why.

US President Barack Obama, breaking away from the laser sharp focus on the economy, brought out the much awaited new Afghan policy. And this is what Pakistan's Prime Minister had to say.

"We also want a regional approach because regional issues can be resolved with the support of regional powers. We are in favour of this policy. They (Americans) have accepted our position (that) army action alone is not a solution for all these problems."

Why would he not want a regional approach. America's renewed focus will give Pakistan another reason to milk the American cow. And this time it will be more than just money.


A lot has been written about Obama's Afghan policy and what he is willing to give Pakistan for cooperation. During the Bush years, India enjoyed an hands-off Kashmir American policy. But now, the Indian leadership is working out all possible nightmare scenarios for Indian diplomacy in the coming years.

The US point person for Afghanistan-Pakistan when asked about US interests in the Indo-Pak row, said the US was not interested in interfering. That put to rest any immediate American adventurism. However that does not rule out Pakistan asking for its pound of flesh when pushed against the wall.

These are tough times for the next government in India. Whether they like it or not, the "Global War Against Terror" is expanding into Pakistan right onto its border with India, especially on the Jammu and Kashmir side. Just as the Taliban retreated into the Afghan-Pak border to regroup amid supporters, the renewed pressure from America could push them to explore other safe havens or trouble spots. China's restive Muslim dominated provinces could be one and so could Jammu & Kashmir laden with sympathizers.

So, India will need all of its diplomatic skills to keep American at bay but when it comes to containing the spillage from across the border, India will need something more innovative.

Walking the Iranian Minefield

In an interview earlier this year, the IAEA Chairman Mohamed ElBaradei compared the Iranian's to traders or bazari's. This according to him sums up Iran's relationship with the west particularly America.

Iran has a sense of history. They are an ancient civilization dating back to the Greeks and Romans. Not mentioned most of the time is their pre-Islamic past. Until the Europeans found a way around the middle east, Iran was a big trading nation apart from being an advanced civilization. Iran is not like the other typical Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia whose existence does not pre-date the second world war. So understanding Iran and its reactions to the west must be seen through this prism.


The axis of evil conjured up by the former Bush administration does a great disservice not only to Iran but to America itself. Putting Iran and North Korea in the same basket exposes one's ignorance or perhaps arrogance.

While North Korea behaves like a child craving for attention whenever it feels the world is not paying any attention, Iran on the other hand behaves very differently. Most readers would notice that while the Iranian leaders sabre rattle sometimes, they do not push their luck. They know when to up the ante and when to cool things down. And they have wisely kept in touch with the European governments and not hesitated to cooperate with the US (clandestinely) in Afghanistan.

So all this talk by the right-wing punditry that Iran is the next looming danger is utter nonsense. Unlike North Korea or even Pakistan, Iran is not a failed or failing state. Unlike North Korea or Pakistan, Iran has an elected government. May be not the way the west wants it to be but nevertheless it is the closest to a democratic country in a big list of Islamic countries.

The Iranian's, rightly pointed by Elbaradei, are traders. Which basically means they will haggle until they get the right price. People familiar with haggling will know what I mean!

The US must understand that haggling with Iran is a very sophisticated game. The Iranian's are masters at this by sheer experience. The US must be very very careful while dealing with Iran or it risks loosing the game.

Sec. of State Hillary Clinton has her task cut out for her. In fulfilling the President's campaign promise to deal directly with Iran, she has already revealed few of her cards. Iran knows that the current administration is committed to a dialogue of some form and will try its best to get Iran to play ball. After all, the administration will not want the hawks to say - "We told you so!".

Iran will extract the maximum from the west for every step it takes to meet them somewhere in the middle. This directly fits into the supreme leader's hawkish posturing on the no-change that he sees in America's attitude towards his country.

Mrs. Clinton will do good by advicing her boss to use both the carrot and stick judiciously and not trip over himself trying to reach out and grab the Iranian hand.

An Angry President

I just finished watching President Obama's news conference. And like most others was struck by his rather "not so cool" answer to CNN White House correspondent Ed Henry's follow up question on AIG.

I used to always wonder how the President and for that matter any President would remember lengthy questions with multiple add-on questions tagged along. But they do. Sometimes they answer in the order they prefer rather than the order in which the questions were asked, nevertheless they still get to them.

But in this case when Ed Henry asked two questions, one dealing with the budget and the budgetary deficit projected by Congress and the other dealing with AIG. The President neatly side stepped the second giving a lengthy answer to the first one. And when Ed pressed him on it, he just lost his cool.


Though his answer was logical, it was'nt genuine. And this begs the questions - What did you know Mr. President? And when did you know it?

While pundits kind of agree that he had no choice but to side step the question, I tend to disagree.

While commentators like Paul Begala and Roland Martin trumpet his so called being in touch with the people strategy, I always believed he will drop this strategy when it was of no use to him. And he did just that. Instead of coming clean and open, he shut the lid on Ed's question tight.

The President, from the beginning, should have stayed out of this "I am outraged" tournament in Washington DC, conducted in the AIG Stadium. It should have been handled at the Treasury department instead of at the White House. But by jumping deep into it just to please the gallery before trying to make a quite exit, came off clumsy.

Mr. Obama should not play to the polls.

Blame AIG Carefully

I happened to see the congressional subcommitte (Capital Markets, Insurance, Government Sponsored Enterprises) hearing on the AIG bonus issue today. And I was surprised by the opening lines of the Chairman Paul Kanjorski of the committe.

He was effusive in his praise of Mr. Liddy and went on to say that he was saying all this just so that its part of the records. Well, Mr. Liddy anyways deserved that praise, for being the CEO without pay of AIG.

However, late in the evening, it became apparent that the culprit was the very congress and administration that was playing holier than thou.

Congressmen and the administration officials, including the President himself were tripping over each other taking potshots at AIG and how greedy these people were. Going so far as asking them to kill themselves like the Japanese!! How dramatic!

When given a chance to set the law straight, the administration and the democratically controlled congress bailed out on their responsibility. But today act as if they had nothing to do with any of this. How lame!

And why may I ask is the President jumping into each and every decision made by each and every CEO? What is his Treasury Secretary there for? Warm his bench? Actually no, he is busy drafting bills which will come back to bite him later!

Its best for the President to concentrate on bigger items and leave the handling of errant companies to his cabinet.

Otherwise he will be dragged into every hiccup before eating his own words.

Time to fight is over

There has been a big hue and cry over the current impasse in Sri Lanka. The tamils in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu feel for the tamils in Sri Lanka and their struggle for equal rights.

Its after all a worthy cause since the Tamils in India themselves enjoy lot of freedom and contribute immensely to the Indian nation. Alas! the Tamils in Sri Lanka have been treated as second class citizens first by the majority Sinhalese, post independence from Britain and then as pawns in the violent power struggle by the militant LTTE.

I have been having back and forth conversations with a friend who is a die hard supporter of the tamil cause and is annoyed with the current Lankan crack down on the LTTE.

And every time I tell him this. Do not confuse the tamil cause with that of the LTTE. The LTTE is part of the tamil movement in Sri Lanka and not the other way round. The LTTE has tactfully made it look like that, but local Lankan tamil parties do not see it that way.


There was a time in the past when the utility of an armed struggle was very much in relevance. A kick in the back side of the ruling establishment was very much the need of the hour and they got it.

However, the utility of an armed struggle has passed and the law of diminishing returns has kicked in long ago.

Now, the fight is not only hurting the government but also the very people the struggle had sworn to protect.

After all, we all must remember the prime objective of all this. The prime objective is to get equal rights for the Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka. While a separate Tamil Eelam is one way to get that, its not the only way.

The Tamil Eelam is a classic example of the means hijacking the end goal.

If the tamil cause can be achieved through a negotiated settlement today without further violence, it should be explored.

The armed tamil groups should give up violence and join the political mainstream, as equals. The Sri Lankan government must push through political reform and devolve powers to the states. An Indian governing model is the best bet for Sri Lanka.

So what should the tamil parties in India do? To start with they should stop using this cause like a political football game. If they really were so interested in the tamil cause, they would not have waited until the LTTE got cornered by the Lankan forces.

Its shameful that they sleep for years and then wake up when the Lankan army makes advances. Were not the tamils in Lanka suffering all this while? What stopped the tamil parties from asking the LTTE not to violate the earlier ceasefire agreements? Why did they not condemn the LTTE when they killed other tamil party cadres.

The tamil parties in India have long confused the welfare of the Sri Lankan tamils with that of the LTTE.

Its about time they stepped up and addressed the actual cause.

A smooth landing with President Obama

This year's US Presidential election gave the people two beautiful choices.

A veteran with the country fist selling point versus a change candidate with a breathe of freshness.

Whatever may have been the reason for voting for either of the candidates, it is time to consider the unintentional consequences coming out of either of the candidates ascending to the Presidency.

America is at a crucial junction. A cross road on its super power highway.

The current President George Bush perhaps unintentionally through his twin wars has hastened America on the road far too quickly that should have been done.

Consider this, there are two motions going on in the world today. One is the slow but steady movement downwards for America from its current position as the world's only super power (post 1991) and the other is slow but steady movement upwards for the world's other potential powers.

The consequences of the two wars and the economic meltdown has sucked the power levels of America. The US is unable to flex its muscle and push its interest around the world today. So, the US, is faced with a dilemma on which road to take given that both those roads will eventually lead it to an age where it would share power in a multi-polar world.

How does this fit into the Presidency of these two men - Sen. Obama and Sen. McCain ?

Given the eventual decline in power, the choice will impact the choice of the road.

Which road should America take ?

The choice is between a road where America will try everything necessary to keep her hold on power for as long as possible. Basically when the time comes, she will have to be dragged down kicking and screaming. Simply put, there are those who believe that since power is anyways going away why not enjoy its fruits as long as possible.

The other road is where America realizes that whichever road she takes, time is still running out. So why not use this opportunity to work out an understanding with the other potential powers right now when she still has the strength to push her interests rather than later when not only will she be weaker but the othesr will be stronger. The flip side of this is that the pie has to be shared starting now.

Given the state in which the country is in today, it cannot afford to go down the first road. It would be akin to a drowning man's last gasp for air.

A McCain presidency in my humble opinion will be more inclined to take the first road. While the Obama presidency, simply to be different from Bush's policies, is more inclined to take the second.

Whatever may be the reason, the era of reckless flights of American power is about to end.

The choice of Obama will ensure a smooth landing.

Congrats America

Congratulations to America on her first African American President in history.

Sen. Obama ran a tight ship and was amazingly on message and sharply focused. And the current President's unpopularity helped push his ship even further.

Sen. McCain, against all odds tried in vain to get around the anti-incumbency factor. He would have made a good President.

Good luck to the new President for he has a lot of promises to keep.

India's Mission Moon

Awesome launch. Really fantastic. It makes every Indian proud.

Congrats to all the scientists @ ISRO for their tireless efforts towards making this launch a success.

Innovation, Discovery and Exploration are the only keys to a Nation's future.

If the western powers in the 16-17-1800s (Spain, Portugal, UK, etc) had not allowed their people to undertake brave new missions in search of lands beyond the high seas, the world would have been different and some of these nations would not have become dominant powers in the previous century.

There are lessons to be learned from every page of colonial history.

I will close this post with those famous lines from my favorite Star Trek series :

Space... the Final Frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its continuing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.

Dont oversimplify it Ms. Campbell Brown

Commentary: So what if Obama were a Muslim or an Arab?

This is a very obvious question. And any person, we should assume, will say - NO.

No, it does not matter what a person's religious belief is. No, it does not matter what his or her faith tells them. No, it does not matter what edicts guide the person in troubling times. No, it does not matter how he or she had reacted to crisis in his or her life and how faith played a part in it.

None of the above matters because the liberal Campbell Brown says so.

Campbell Brown, to suit her own ideas, is over simplifying it and so makes it look like a no brainer question. Unfortunately it is not.

A nation like America was founded on the principles of a New World for the free, by the people escaping Europe's generational indulgence by the Monarchy, Aristocracy and the Religious.

So, in today's world. Lets assume I as a voter was given a choice between two people, one who's faith has gone through the rough and tumble of history, a faith at one point in time was used to rally people for a common cause, a faith that has now mellowed down and adjusted to modern interpretations and the other who's faith still believes in eliminating non-believers, a faith that disagrees fanatically with anyone or any entity that does not agree with its interpretation of God's words, a faith that clashes with other religions at the drop of a hat be it Christianity, Hinduism or Buddhism.

Now tell me, should it matter ?

Someone said in the comments section - Its not like the Sharia law will be implemented the next day ? Its true and he is right. But just because the threat of Sharia is not imminent does it mean I should vote for someone who's faith preaches exactly opposite to what I believe.

Its as ridiculous as saying that a candidate's economic plan does not matter when voting for him or her. The candidate's plan tells us what he believes will work for the country and its people. It tells us which direction he will take the country. And his believes, not just his religious beliefs, gives us a fair idea of how he would react when the sky comes crashing down.

So, it does matter Ms.Brown. Maybe not to you. Perhaps in your eagerness to show off your liberal secular credentials, you might turn a blind eye. But there are others who might find it disconcerting when a candidate believes in things that might be harmful to the very foundation of this country.

Biden's Gaffes

Like most of you, I was glued to the television on Thursday night watching the Vice Presidential debate.

Throughout the debate, I was watching out for those gaffes from Senator Joe Biden.

Here below are the few I spotted.

Instead of saying Polar caps...he said "Polarized caps" !! :-)))))

Next gaffe....

He said Pakistani missiles can reach Israel ! That is not true. If Pakistani nuke missiles could reach Israel...we all know what Israel would have done by now !!

Next gaffe...

Biden quoted a US General in Afghanistan as saying that the surge wont work there.
Then Joe said...quoting the same general that he instead asked for more troops !!!!
Whats the diff ? either its a Biden gaffe or the General's gaffe !!!!

Case for an Indian Confederate

The recent and continuing terror attacks against the Indian nation seems to have exposed the utter failure of the Indian nation top to bottom.

Fractured parliament, reflecting the fractured people, has not been able to put partisanship aside to tackle this ever growing gangrene. They are short of sense, a vision, and leadership. Sixty years after independence and the creation of the republic, India is still groping in the darkness trying to turn the light switch on. And every time she tries, she accidentally sticks her finger into the power socket, getting a big power jolt. Selfish reasons is preventing the so called leaders of the country from using their "soul light" to illuminate the path.

The immediate fallout of these blasts is panic and fear. Followed by a political blame game. The media would gleefully chime in. The government will try to act all serious until the media attention fades.

The long term fallout is political and economic instability. Some of the more economically prosperous states will feel the heat. Governments will feel inadequate to protect the state's interests alone and will look to Delhi for help. And Delhi, unfortunately, has been on vacation for a few decades now.

Progressive states, unable to tackle the menace successfully on their own and with no help from Delhi will come together on a common cause - Economics & Security.


To begin with the southern states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh with setup a coordinating police committee to coordinate investigation and intelligence. These states would then attempt to pool in money to strengthen this arrangement into a full fledged security apparatus.

In the meantime, other states encouraged by the success of this model, will opt to join in. States such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab and Haryana will join this informal security structure. This bonhomie will then expand to coordinate on economic and finance matters.

Slowly but surely a sub-nation within the Indian republic will take shape. New Delhi, unable to get its act together will prove too weak to address this challenge.

One fine day, the Chief Ministers of these states will meet in Mumbai to form what could be the new Confederate States of India (CSI).

A new constitution will be established giving considerable powers to the member state governments. A quasi-parliament will be formed, similar to the Continental Congress, to handle foreign policy, Internal security and Economics. The rest will be state subjects.

Wild imagination or a possible nightmare ?

Unless India wakes up and acts fast, we will see something similar to the above very soon.

Jai Hind.

Vande Maataram

Whither the Indian Security establishment

Yet another shocking serial blasts in New Delhi, the national capital. I cant find a better word than shameful to describe the security apparatus in the country. Barely a few weeks after the recent blasts across the country, the terrorists attack us at their whim.

What more is needed to kick the useless security establishment in its behind ? Do they need a nuclear blast from the country's own stockpile to kick some much needed but totally lacking sense between their ears ?

If this continues, the Indian state would eventually decay and whither away and perhaps would be shortest united Indian nation in history.

Perhaps we really need outsiders to keep us together and united (the British and the Moguls). I really hope I am dead wrong.

Passing of the baton - Cheney to Sarah

I just realized that the incumbent Vice President Dick Cheney and the Republican contender hoping to replace him have one very important thing in common.

Guess what ?

Both are avid hunters !

Sarah Palin is a self proclaimed moose hunter from childhood.

However, VP Dick Cheney on the other hand is, apparently, a quail hunter.

Remember the episode when the VP "accidentally" shot a Texas attorney during one of his hunting expeditions.

Well, I really hope the VP hopeful, Sarah, has better aim than her predecessor !

Musharraf fails his first test

Remember Pervez Musharraf, the former President/CEO/General of Pakistan.

Remember one his major selling points when he overthrew Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ? It was to clean up Pakistani politics and bring about genuine democracy. Well he just failed his first test.

What is ironic about all this is that the very position Musharraf gave up is now going to be occupied by the very same kind of person who the General vowed to root out of public life.

Public life and public promises have finally come a full circle for the former President.