america war parra da!!!

a kewl paraody on american foreign policies.. a tamil-english song

jerry senfeld on Men & women

Sounds, Light. Action!!!

Introducing : You don’t know WHO

On the Indo-US nuclear policy for laymen
You-Don't-Know-Who: That someone/blogger/person who would usually be in a position of authority - either directly or with direct authority to speak on authority -- and will give us bits of their wisdom or their two bits; which of course you are free to decide, for self. They might choose to remain undisclosed and not reveal their shitizenship because of parental, occupational, situational or spousal pressure. In absolute empathy and a hope they would come out of the closet soon, here's some insight from our first You Don't Know Who (YDKW).

YDKW1 is someone who hobnobs with People with Power and knows things we Might Not Know. So perhaps he will share them here. Also, this other-worldly tone will be dropped in usual posts. I am feeling enigmatic and all. Also, that the bit about Atoms for Peace and 20 Gwe completely got me. Poetry and politics, of the nuclear kind. I just understood that much and it makes me queasy; you go figure.
J Bo, Over and Out
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Explaining the Nuclear Deal: Issues to Think About
The brouhaha over the nuclear deal has created a great more noise than light. Most people don't really know what is happening, and it does not help that our esteemed MPs are choosing to exaggerate and shout rather than debate the merits or demerits of the deal. In a few short paragraphs, here are the bare bones of the deal:

What is India's nuclear position?
India's nuclear energy program began in the 1950s with a great deal of involvement of the United States through the Atoms for Peace program, including helping build and providing nuclear fuel for the nuclear reactor in Tarapur, as well as through scientific cooperation. Differences arose in 1968 with India's opposition to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The NPT recognises five states (US, USSR/Russia, UK, France and China) as Nuclear Weapons States on the basis that they tested nuclear weapons before 1967. India considers this discriminatory. [i] Signatories to the NPT are allowed access to each other's civilian nuclear facilities. After 1974, when India tested its first nuclear device, the US formed the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), to oversee sales of nuclear material. In 1978 the US Congress passed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act but the US continued to provide some nuclear fuel to India under a 1963 treaty with India until 1980, when it passed on those responsibilities to France.
In 1992 the NSG limited sales of nuclear technology and materials to non-Nuclear Weapons States only if their nuclear reactors were under full scale safeguards implemented by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). France continued to provide nuclear fuel to India until it too adhered to this provision in 1996. China and Russia have supplied India with nuclear fuel after this period. Nuclear energy in 2006 accounted for 3 GigaWatts of electricity, or 2.6 per cent of India's electricity generation. [ii]

India plans on expanding the amount of electricity generated by nuclear energy to 20 GWe by 2020 (this is from nuclear plants already under construction). Except that we have a lack of Uranium. Most of our Uranium is low quality, except some newly discovered deposits that have as yet to be mined. Our plants are running at under 40% capacity when they could be running at above 90%. In another words we are paying more than twice the costs of electricity generated by nuclear energy because we are stopped from buying nuclear fuel because of NPT and NSG guidelines.

What does the nuclear deal do?
The nuclear deal will allow us to buy some (though not all) nuclear fuel and technology from the US, and it commits the US (which is the most important member of the NSG) to convince other members of the NSG to change their guidelines so that India can also buy fuel from them.

What do we pay for this deal?
Money. The deal allows them to sell us nuclear fuel and technology and it allows us to buy it from them. That is the bare bones. The complications are that we will have to put 14 out of our 22 nuclear plants under supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and promise to use those reactors only for civilian purposes. This will apply to most of the new reactors that will be built.

Does this mean we cannot build, or test, nuclear weapons?
We can build as many nuclear weapons as we want, as long as the fuel is from the military nuclear facilities. If we test nuclear weapons we have a problem, with the US at the least. The US is bound by its Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and the Hyde Act, 2006, that will mean it cannot sell us fuel if we test nuclear weapons. The Agreed Text of the nuclear deal does not talk about nuclear testing, but simply says that national laws will apply. This is what happened in the earlier Tarapur case. The US had to stop supplying fuel under its own laws, and passed the responsibilities on to others. In reality we don't know when, or if, we will have to test nuclear weapons, and if and when it happens, we can try and negotiate a position then. As things stand now, if we test, the US will have to stop supplying us with nuclear fuel & equipment. The only way to beat that is to convince the US to change its laws.

Why do people dislike the deal?
Critics of the deal feel that we are losing the independence of our policy options by signing up to this deal. We will have to put a large part of our nuclear infrastructure under international supervision, and if things go wrong we will have bought large expensive nuclear energy plants and not be able to buy fuel for them. They insist that we should concentrate on clean coal and other alternative sources of energy. The reality is that we don't have clean coal technology and the coal we use for electricity production is immensely polluting. Solar, and hydrothermal power is unreliable, expensive and just not enough.

The other main reason that people dislike the deal is that they feel it is an excuse by which the US will try and control India. In reality the deal is just a civilian nuclear deal, not a military compact. India is bound by its own laws, nobody else's, this does not change that. the deal also allows us to buy nuclear fuel and technology from anybody and also to buy enough fuel for the lifetime of the nuclear reactors. If the US, for any reason, terminates the deal, it has to pay compensation.

Bottom line
We are a growing power, with a hungry economy. We need energy, and we also need to make new relationships. This is part of that process. It could be a better deal, but you don't negotiate with a superpower and get everything we want. In the real world life is about compromises, to quote a former US Ambassador who I know well, "What people need to remember is that both sides were negotiating as much by what they left out as by what they put in. Their objectives were largely, but not entirely, compatible. India can demonstrate that it is not bound by unilateral US requirements. The US can demonstrate, albeit with a little more difficulty, that it can fully abide by US law under the 123 agreement. Neither side can get the comfort involved in having its maximum desires spelled out."

[i]. Indian government position on NPT and other treaties dealing with non-proliferation:
[ii]. "Nuclear Power in India" Briefing Paper 45, Uranium Information Centre,
______________________________________________________________________________________________

PS: Ok, one question. When we say, we will have to pay 'money --> does the government have like contingency funds -- money for a rainy day, like when we (govt) sign a nuclear deal or something -- or does that us paying money mean more taxes soon? Paisa kahan se aata hai?
I don't understand, I will ask. Shrug. Shamelessly. So, all those who wish to write, or click photos (no one? anyone?), make videos, make podcasts, cartoon strips with Desi, better, neater versions of Desi... feel free! You got the email, here it goes: foxytanya@gmail.com. Hmmm...at the rate I am saying that line, I think I need a jingle.

Posted by J. Bo on Indian Shitizen

It is always YOUR fault

The favourite pass time of us Indians is to shift the blame. We blame the Rams and the Rahims. The divisions, the states, the politics, the castes. We blame because it is always someone else's fault. My neighbour is responsible for the dirty street outside my house. Well, it doesn't matter if some kachra is mine too but my neighbour's kachra is definitely more. It has to be, because I am blaming him.

I blame LK Advani for raising the Ram-issue and further dividing this country on religious grounds. My best friend is a Muslim. See I have done my bit, I am a secular citizen. The Advanis and the Modis are to be blamed because they are ones who started it. It doesn't matter if my voice could be the one of the many smaller voices that might just end it. But of course I keep quiet. It doesn't matter that my blood boils if Karunanidhi challenges my faith... Why should I? I am not to be blamed.

And it's not just religion or garbage where the shift-the-blame attitude comes through. It is also leading us to the end of the 'relationship age'.

Today, we decide to end the relationship that might mean the world to us… Again, we blame the other. Some of the smallest and the strangest things turn around and stand in our faces after we have already finished playing the blame game. I will not blame it all on my ex- boyfriend because he never understood nor did he have the brains (or balls) to do so; even the fact that he was two-timing me. His ex-girlfriend decided to linger on. Did the woman never get the message? Uff, what a spineless woman! Of course it is not my fault, I was always there you see. So what if I refuse to stoop down to the levels the other woman did to win him back? I am not the type of woman to play games. I am a simple woman. So simply, I blame her.

I come out happy after watching Chak De. Bingo! Here we are back to feeling true Indians months after the Rang De Basanti euphoria. After RDB, we raved about the potential of the youth, the power Generation X (or Y, Z, theta). Back then our blood had boiled (for a bit) and we were euphoric (for a bit). Then the 'Indian Youth' was out on the streets to get justice for Jessica Lall. All through the protest marches, we blamed the inefficient judiciary, the politicians and blamed the 70 mm for shaking us out of our slumber.

Today, yet another 70 mm bonanza gives me the same orgasm. Again I come out of the theater: A proud Indian wanting to change the face of the country. Again I blame the game of cricket for hogging the limelight. And the cricketers for not playing hard enough despite the big bucks they earn. Again I blame the babus sitting on the top. I blame the systems, not just for the bad state of the hockey team but also because the public transport is so bad that I can not find an auto to take me back home and I don't want to get into a bus.

The problem is not even me. It's genetic you see. I was three years old when the '84 riots happened. Delhi shook. My parents blamed Indira Gandhi. Circa 2007. My parents blame Indira Gandhi yet again. Each time their normal, 9-5 lives are thrown off the track. That is when the seedling of the 'I Blame You' emotion germinated and infected the 'youth'.

Over the years I learnt to blame the municipality for no water, the traffic police for jam-packed roads. No electricity? Why couldn't the government do something about it? My maid was illiterate and still is. I don't have time to teach her – and neither do you – why can't we have a system in place to educate the poor? Oh, did I say poor? Well, it is her fault that she is poor. I continue to go to the best school; it's not my fault! Basically, I learnt to blame. If I did not do my homework I simply said there was no electricity. "Sorry ma'am, not my fault." Surprisingly, my teacher understood and she too blamed the government.

Today, I am a grown-up earning a good salary. However, my classmate from school in the same company earns a couple of thousands more... Goddammit, F*&^ the HR! All my colleagues agree too, we all blame the HR. I shall be honest now and blame Facebook for getting me hooked. Oops! Writing this post, I lost track of time and am now late for my shoot. The politicians waiting are going to throw a fit. I will take the familiar route. "Sir kya karein? Traffic hi itna tha. Sir, aap log kuch karte kyun nahi?"
(What can I do sir, there was much traffic. Why don't you do something about it sir?)

It's an instinct honed over the years, almost as if the mind has been left on auto-pilot and does not know another way to navigate. See it is not my fault...

PS: And yet, do we ever realize – or will we – that we are as much part of the same blame
game?

Posted by Kavitta on Indian Shitizen

Did Papa murder Rizwanur Ahmed?

Dear Papa, hope you don't misunderstand this, if and when you do read this.

I had always thought it was Papa's 'over-protectiveness' that made him dislike the idea of me talking or befriending any boy. I say 'boy' because the first memories of Papa reacting adversely to any male company around me goes back 20 years...

I was 9-years-old and the said boy was 12. We were stationed at Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh), one of the cities where any Ordinance officer will spend a considerable part of his tenure. This boy was a visiting relative of one of our neighbours. He was about two inches taller than me, had nearly blonde hair (called it 'English' hair back then) and very, very red lips. So he would play with us and we became playground friends. Till the day he pecked me on the cheek for some reason and there was "scandal" amongst the kids. I promptly reported the transgression to the Aunty whose house he was staying in; who in turn 'apologised' to my mother. That should have been that, only that Papa decided to have a mini-talk with me (over the years the length of those chats grew, much to my alarm).

The only thing Papa said was, "You stay away from that boy, he is not a good boy. All these Punjabi boys." After that I stayed away from 'Punjabi' boys for a long time. Till Papa found that one of my closest friends was a Tamil boy. Then he said, "All these Tamil boys..." and then it was "All these Jat boys..." and 'Nepalis', 'Sardars' and 'Christians' and so on and so forth. Towards the fag end of adolescence I realised that Papa perhaps just did not like boys. Or boys who were my friends.

It was confirmed when I heard him telling Ma, "Ei je mein, ekta jhola-pora Marxist dhore aan be... nahole tattoo-kora Panjabi ke" (This girl will either get us a jhola-clad Marxist or a tattooed Punjabi boy) When I was getting close-to-marriageable, Ma said, very concerned, "Whatever you do, don't bring us a Christian, Muslim or Sikh." I pointed out that given Papa's restrictions and now hers added to it, there wouldn't be any/ many men left to marry. I had suggested a Nigerian and a horrified mother had said, "Bachcha gulo koto kaalo hobe". (The kids will be so dark). Funny because I am bloody dark-skinned too. Back then, it was a joke.

My father also had a gun (two actually, licensed) and would often say that if I got him a "bugger" he didn't like, he would use it freely. Papa never used that gun (or perhaps I was smarter). But many fathers do use their guns. Or hire thugs and policemen to yield their guns. They kill Jat-Sikh boys for marrying a 'Pappa-Sikh' girl -- I still don't know the difference but three years in Amritsar taught me there was 'some' difference. Or a newly-wed couple because one of them is a 'Dalit'. Or a Muslim, Calcutta-based graphic designer called Rizwanur because he married a girl called Priyanka, Hindu.

Sometimes these MURDERS are called mob violence. Sometimes Panchayat justice. Sometimes they are labelled honour killings. It is supposedly honourable to slaughter your child. Wah. Sometimes -- like in the case of Rizwanur Ahmed -- the Police Commissioner (Calcutta) calls it a suicide. It is not about the poor. The more money you have, the more you seem concerned about HOW you appear to society. The more you have to protect your 'honour'.

It is not even about people falling in love. It is about Hate. You just hate if someone wears a patka, or a skull-cap or a janeyu. We hate the "spineless and loud" Bengalis. We hate the "crude" Jats. We hate the "dosa-loving Mallus". We hate the "converting" Christians. We hate the "bloody uncouth" Biharis. We hate the "stingy-stinky" Maharashtrians. Wherever we can find ANY reason, we hate. And we murder.

And the lawmen of this country, the protectors', they commit these murders. Sometimes the police reach the site late. Sometimes they don't find witnesses. Sometimes they drag people behind their motorcycles. Sometimes they watch many being massacred. And in Rizwanur's case, it seems the policemen, the protectors, are the murderers. WHY? Because a poor boy loved a rich girl... or a Muslim boy loved a Hindu girl?

Our attitudes are so clear. Team India whopped Team Pakistan in the T20 series. I got two messages on my cellphone. One read, "Chak de India, **** de Pakistan" and the other... The other commented on certain anatomically missing parts and how "we" took care of the rest. Wonder what Zahir Khan and the Pathan brothers have to say about it or if they are lesser players for missing anatomy.

And yet, no posts will bring Rizwanur back.

Originally appears on the blog, The Indian Shitizen

Misbah’s Mistake – the T20 Final

 

Misbah thought he was sending the ball to a place where there was no one. He did not know that there is a Malayali in every corner of the world ...!!!

Teaching a guy to cook and other horrors

In my pursuit of aggregating* content this is a wonderful piece written by a senior** blogger… it is certainly a treat to read it. You can read more of Anjali's wonderful posts on her blog http://poomanam.blogspot.com

* If you notice most of my posts are wonderful articles picked up from the TIMES of India.
** Senior because she is blogging since 2005.. I am yet learning the 'A's & the 'B' s.
Now you enjoy the reading…….. thanks Anjali for penning your experience... i am yet to graduate to the higher grades of cooking.. have got through the chapatis, omelette's & cooking Maggi...

Teaching a guy to cook and other horrors

Teaching guys cooking is like pulling your tooth out without anesthesia.

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After successfully teaching many a cousin brother to cook and explaining to them for the 284762468 th time that "No"my mom wont be a better or more patient teacher than me, I think I have found a fool proof method of teaching guys cooking. Here are the necessary ingredients to make a successful guy-cook.

1 guy (preferably willing to learn to cook)
1 clean kitchen
1 tape recorder (to record everything that happens during the class in case you need to defend yourself in court one day)
Several Calmpose tablets
One or 2 bottles of strong liquor incase the Calmpose doesn't kick in early enough.
(If you can't get the Calmpose without prescription, bribe the pharmacist with promises of marrying his daughter/son. It always works)


Now get out of the clean kitchen as fast as possible and set up a gas stove in an open area preferably a football ground, but far away from schools, hospitals and military installations. Make sure the guy has medical insurance, vehicle insurance and life insurance. The medical insurance will take care of his medical bills after he eats what he cooks. The vehicle insurance will make sure he doesn't make excuses to come late for classes like, 'I got caught by the cops because I had no Vehicle Insurance". Of course this clairvoyant cop has a personal vendetta against this particular cousin and so on every cookery class day catches him without fail. The Life Insurance will make sure that his next of kin get back his college tuition fees in case of his unfortunate demise due to food poisoning. Make sure he doesn't have an engineering degree. Among my cousins the engineers are the worst cooking students. They argue too much, use expletives like "I'll think I will watch while you cook first" and "I will have a beer while you demonstrate" or worse "Why don't you cook and we will tell you how each dish turned out".

Among my students I remember a cousin, Suresh a first year MBBS student in St Johns Medical College , Bangalore. Suresh wanted to learn to make omelet or fry an egg for breakfast. He had an electric stove and a non stick pan which he mostly used to keep his bike keys and other miscellaneous articles. After an unfortunate accident though he had to discontinue cookery classes and rely on the Hospital canteen. I still remember the day:

Suresh: I have bought you some spirit from the lab. Very good for removing nail polish my Chechi (elder sister) says.
Me: "So sweet of you."
I liberally apply some on my nails. Quite effective.
Me:"Da listen, how much did you have to pay for this? I don't want you spending your pocket money on purchasing stuff for me ok?"
Suresh: "Oh it's free Chechi, I just filled up this bottle from the tank".
Me: Tank?? What tank?
Suresh: "The tank where they keep the dead bodies."
Me: eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek

Six months after the incident, I still use fork and spoon and knife to eat. Of course I had to temporarily give up cooking for some time too. But there were plus points. The stray dogs now look at me with a lot of respect. Though I don't know why they drop their tails and slink away the moment they see me. Anyway no more medical student cousins I have decided. I think I will let a more experienced Mom handle them.

Ok so here are some facts I have learnt after teaching a motley group of cousin brothers the basics of cooking. I hope you gals find it informative and migrate to the US or marry a chef or take up transcendental meditation instead of trying to teach a guy to cook.

· You can teach guys to cook however you CANNOT teach them to clean up after them.

· You Must enlighten them that it is necessary to have a stove to cook.

· And also that it is necessary to have utensils to cook.

· You have to listen with sympathetic understanding when they say that they never noticed the above two points at home.

· After every culinary success the guys will say "Cooking! It's so easy. It's like Chemistry. You have just got to put the right ingredients and its ready ha ha ha."

· After every culinary failure they throw their arms and the cutlery in the air exclaiming, "If I want to eat home cooked food I will get married hmph"

· Before every Sunday cooking session they will have beer, which they will buy at the eleventh hour and then insist on keeping it in the freezer and 'waiting' for it to chill.

· You have to gently point out that Beer is not recommended when you are learning to hold a knife for the very first time.

· You have to firmly tell them "You CANNOT put whiskey into every non veg dish to ENHANCE the taste."

· You must repeat for the 284762468th time or longer that washing hands is not enough; you HAVE to wash the vegetables too.

· You have to emphasize that it is not wise to turn the gas on and then sprint across to the grocery store to buy a matchbox.

· You also have to emphasize that while he is at the grocery store it would NOT be a good idea to stop and have a smoke before he gets back to the kitchen.

· And that if he does have that cigarette at the grocery store and then gets back to the kitchen, then it would be very wise to wear fireproof clothing before lighting the matchbox.

· You have to explain that going for a movie while the chicken is cooking is not a good idea.

· You have to also explain that asking the girl friend to learn cooking can be potentially dangerous to his relationship or lack of it.

· You must assure them that they need not be formally dressed to cook.

· And that they don't have to be in a state of near undress because the cooking is a hot and sweaty job.

· And that blaring music louldy will drown out important instructions like "Your shirt is on fire"

· You have to remind him that he MUST put water into the pan if he is trying to boil the egg.

· Also remind him that he cannot pass off your cooking as his when the fiancée is visiting because she knows that he cannot even boil an egg.

· You must smile and say "I know Chetta that inserting the lid on the Hawkins pressure cooker is tricky." Don't yell " THEN WHY THE HECK DID YOU BUY IT WITHOUT ASKING ME?"(Because you know the answer to that one. The sales girl was pretty)

· Give him a hint that making jokes to his friends on the mobile on how he is trying to humor his little cousin sister by pretending to learn to cook can be dangerous, especially if that little cousin sister is in the vicinity holding a very sharp knife.

· And that Fish fry is good, but you have to clean them first. And 'NO" he cannot send them over to your house to be cleaned ( and preferably cooked).

· Tell them patiently that they can't call you every time they have to put salt in a dish. Last time I had to make an entire group of people on a teleconference wait while I patiently explained that two teaspoons of salt would be too much for one fried egg.

· You have got to teach them that egg shells don't walk themselves into the dustbin and that the stink in the kitchen is not a dead rat but the egg that had fallen under the refrigerator last week and is now peacefully decomposing under the fridge.

· And 'NO' having a dog will not take care of aforementioned problems.

· Let them know that leftovers can lead to high attrition rates among maids.

· You must tell them that the printouts of recipes you email them can get smudged if you use them to wipe hands.

· And that laminating these printouts would be a very good idea indeed.

· You have to bite back that expletive when he tells you flippantly that he is going to get married anyway and then in all probability he will not have to cook, after you have taken him step after laborious step of making a Biryani. Don't wail "Then why oh why did you waste my precious Sunday????" (Because you know the answer to that one too. Saturdays are for nursing hangovers)
Pity I don't get Mondays off to do the same because after that remark I feel like washing the Calmpose tablets down my throat with the strongest available liquor.

· Tell them strictly that calling you 'kunjumole'* and 'chakkare'* will not get them off the hook after they had burnt the biryani you asked them to watch over because they and their pals suddenly felt like a game of one day cricket at the BCC ground next to Bethany School. Let them know that a bottle of very dry white wine will make you feel indulgent enough not to empty the burnt biryani over their collective heads.

( * mallu endearments used to placate supposedly stupid cousin sisters after you have done some act of $#^@&(#%@ stupidity yourself).

· You have to let him know that not having his mom/sister in Bangalore is no excuse for forgetting a cousin sister's birthday. Especially since she is on the verge on mental breakdown teaching him cook. And that a potato peeler is a not a very good idea of a belated birthday present.

10 Types of Bosses You Need to Avoid

by Amused and Bemused, October 22, 2006

My boss has been really been bugging me lately. I think I spend more of my day thinking about how to avoid him than I spend working on the stuff he needs from me. So, for this week's article, I had the bright idea of giving you some sage advice on the types of bosses you need to avoid. The chances of someone getting a great boss are about as slim as my man-boobs suddenly changing into rippling pecs, so I thought this idea would be helpful to many.

So here's my advice on the 10 Types of Bosses You Should Avoid, as demonstrated with the help of toilets:

10. Avoid the Boss That Has No Personal Life (This boss suffers from "everyone should suffer like me" syndrome.)

There are bosses out there that have little in their lives besides work and don't respect the fact that others do. To avoid facing the empty and joyless lives they have, they typically glorify work as if it's the only thing worth doing.
These bosses will not hesitate to ask you to work on Poker Night or cancel your family vacation to Vegas. You can tell you have one of these bosses if you see them running to the crapper, bringing along a memo to read, so they don't miss a second of work time.

If you have one of these work all the time types, go find a new boss or watch your life dry up like dog poop in the sun. (toilet here)

9. Avoid the Boss That Wants to Piss All Over You
( This boss suffers from "if I am nasty, no one will notice I am stupid" syndrome.)

There are bosses out there who don't know how to say "thank you" or "great job". Silent when you perform and deliver well, they are the first to publicly berate you with a warm stream of criticism for the slightest goof or mistake. Fearful of being discovered for the failures that they are, they will leap at the chance to make others look bad. Showers of abuse are what they provide.
If you have one of these full of piss bosses, leave them or your self-respect will become smaller than the nuts of a man who just joined with the ice swimming Polar Bears club. (toilet here)

8. Avoid the Boss That Constantly Clowns Around
( This boss suffers from "I am a laughing fool" syndrome.)

When you first meet this type of boss, you'll think they're great. You love the idea of having a fun boss to work with at first. Only when you've been with them a while do you realize that they are having too much fun to do any work. They are the ones spending all their work hours looking for a new gag to play or titillating gossip to spread around. Since they have little time to actually do their jobs, you will end up staying late every night to finish up their work.
If you have a joker for a boss, you need to run far away from that circus. (toilet here)

7. Avoid the Boss That Struggles to Stay Afloat(This boss suffers from "I am drowning in my own incompetence" syndrome.)

Some managers are merely around to prove that the Peter Principle (that you get promoted until you get a job you can't do well and get stuck there) is alive and well in corporate America. Clueless as to how to do their job and afraid to admit it, they are always looking for someone to save them.
Watch out as these bosses will surely cover up their incompetence by taking credit for your work and quickly toss you over to explain away their missed deadlines and bad decisions.
If you have one these bosses, don't keep throwing them a life raft. Just let them flail around until they run out of energy and let them drown. (toilet here)

6. Avoid the Boss That Constantly Blows His Own Horn ( This boss suffers from "if I say I am great enough times, it'll be true" syndrome.)

These bosses believe that if no one is saying anything nice about them, they should fill the void by creating loud fanfare about themselves.
They are usually the ones who will tell you that the company can't survive without them. Needing constant polishing and buffing, they surround themselves with people who will support their delusions of grandeur. You can tell you have one of these bosses, if it feels like you are expected to start a parade every time they successfully go to the bathroom.
If you have one of these bosses, tell them that you will no longer be part of the show and a member of their failing band. (toilet here)

5. Avoid the Boss That Is Always Competing With You(This boss suffers from "I need to prove I am not the weakest link" syndrome.)

Have you ever had a boss that makes everything a competition?
These are the jerks that can't just be happy with the fact that they rule over your workday. They need to get the daily ego boost of winning, even it's just proving they can eat a sandwich faster than you.
Had a nice weekend, he had a better one. Bought yourself a flat-screen tv, his is bigger. Leased a new BMW? Hers is a Porsche. These are the bosses who can't go to the bathroom without covertly peeking over to your urinal to see if you would win the "whose the biggest in the locker room" test.
If you have one these bosses, drop out as a contestant in their biggest loser marathon. (Toilet here via BoingBoing)

4. Avoid the Boss That's All Talk
(This boss suffers from "diarrhea of the mouth" syndrome, constantly spewing dribble until nothing is left.)

These are the bosses that walk around telling everyone their pathetically unfunny story or joke of the day. They are the ones that need to take over every meeting, forcing everyone to swallow their bull. For these bosses, sucking up time is what they do best. These big mouths also tend to be backstabbing hypocrites, telling you how great you areto your face as they snicker over your latest goof with everyone else in the office.

If you have one these bosses, tell them to shut their big gaping trap and tell their story to someone else. (toilet here)

3. Avoid the Boss That's Always on the Go
(This boss suffers from "if I pretend to be busy, you'll find someone else" syndrome )

There are bosses that are zipping around, never in one place long enough to actually do any work. These bosses often travel a lot and complain about it but find every opportunity to get out of the office. With the frenzy that surrounds them and their packed appointment book, there is no time to spare for a lowly slug like you. They are very good at delegating tasks and you are unsure as to whether they can do anything else but shove more work on you as they leave the office for one more trip.

If you have one these bosses, use them for inspiration and zip yourself go somewhere else. (toilet here)

2. Avoid the Boss That's Obsessed with Sex(This boss suffers from "I never get any at home so all I can do is talk ABOUT IT" syndrome. )

Every workplace seems to have the office letch. The pig that has to leer and make a sexual comments every time someone attractive walks by. They are the first to note that a "sweater" is nice, as they stare at your breasts or tell you they are waiting for a big "package" to be delivered, as they lick their lips and look at your crotch.

It's bad enough to have to deal with them at work but it's unbearable when they are your boss. Trying to look up your skirt when you're crossing your legs if you're hot (or making you feel like a cow chip if you are not), they can be relied upon to offer blush-worthy commentary on everything. You can tell you have one of these bosses if everything they say is filled with sexual innuendo and they even talk about the toilet as some sexual conquest.

If you have let's talk dirty boss, you should get another. It will only be a matter of time before you participate in the lewd talk to fit in, only to find charges of sexual harassment brought against you. Your boss will be too important to fire but you won't be. (toilet here via Porcelain Poetry)

1. Avoid the Boss That Will Eat You Alive(This boss suffers from "I was a nerd in high school but now I can be a bully" syndrome.)

There are those bosses that are simply terrors to work with. Impatient, nasty and mean, they dismiss all of your contributions and belittle you at every turn.
These bosses are great yellers, and when you think of them, all you can think of is a big snarling mouth. This type of boss won't hesitate to throw a tantrum, scream profanities as they smash things around the office and hurl books and pencils at you.
If you have a man-eating boss, you need to break free from their nasty grasp. Life is too short to work for someone that's not even worthy of licking your toilet bowl...so flush them away like the turds they are. (toilet here)

Well, you have now been through the 10 Types of Bosses You Need to Avoid. I am sure I have only touched the dirty surface of the bosses we've all had to work with.

Source: http://inventorspot.com

Black Box

If the "blackbox" flight recorder is never damaged during a plane crash, why isn't the whole airplane made out of that stuff?

distance of 32 km in just seven minutes

100 plus legislators went to China- on a study trip with the possible objective to emulate their progress and success mantra in Karnatka. Please read on what was finally their report after spending Rs. 6 crores.

After spending Rs 6 crore public money on a study tour in China, 100-plus legislators on their return have expressed helplessness in emulating the Chinese development model. Reason: lack of political will here.

Dedication, sincerity and political will to deliver are the hallmarks of China's development. This is what our netas learnt during their 12-day China trip.

Visit to one of the world's largest steel companies, Bao Steel Company, cruising in high-speed Maglev train, a visit to hightech development zone and cities like Beijing, Xian, Nanjing, Shanghai and to Yantze river project have given the legislators a rich experience. Dazzled by China's progress in infrastructure, the legislators wondered: "We are 300 in number. Can't we be as efficient as the Chinese are?'' But they were quick to admit that everything was politicised here. "Even the school development monitoring committees are not spared," a legislator said.

In China, nothing comes in the way of development. MLC Shashil G Namoshi remarked: "When it comes to development, caste, religion and god are absent. A single-party rule and the government's commitment to its policies have made China one of the top countries.''

One more reason why China is far ahead. MLA K Chandrashekar noted that villages had agro-industries that suited their crops, which were different from those in city economic zones.

The magnetic train that runs 400 kmph also had a lesson for them. "The train connects Shanghai City to Shanghai International Airport, a distance of 32 km, in just seven minutes,'' an excited Chandrashekar said. "The Chinese mantra is work.''

In Bangalore- we r constructing a new airport which is as good as 30 km away from the city. Is anybody hearing… they r covering the distance of 32 km in seven minutes…. only seven

Doing a 1991 on our education system

by GURCHARAN DAS in the ALL THAT MATTERS 'Men and Ideas" of the Times Of India

A friend of mine, who hikes frequently in the Himalayas, showed me a solar torch the other day which gives light for seven hours before you need to recharge it in the sun. It has a hook for hanging and can light up a small room. My friend uses it for camping. But what a boon, i thought, for our 250,000 villages without electricity and the millions of school children who can't do homework at night and village women who fear walking after dark. I googled the maker of the torch and discovered an inspiring story about how to be both a good and an effective human being.

Mark Bent, an American, worked for 20 years in Africa and saw the waste behind government aid programs. He came home and invented what he calls the BoGo solar torch. BoGo means 'Buy One, Give One'. When you buy one flashlight for Rs 1,000, Mark gives one at half price to NGOs in Africa, who give it to villagers at a nominal price. Mark makes the torches in China to keep costs low. The story is remarkable not because Mark is a 'do-gooder' but because he has found an innovative and sustainable way to profit from the rich and benefit the poor. Rich campers bring light to African villagers. I hope some NGO in India will google Mark and begin distributing these torches here.

Now, why couldn't one of our boys or girls invent and market this lamp? The answer, of course, is our education system, which stifles all creativity through rote learning. It was modelled on the British system, but the British have moved on and reformed theirs, partly under American inspiration. But our kids are still stuck in a world of cramming and coaching classes. The disease lies in the lack of autonomy. The ministry of HRD and its children, University Grants Commission (UGC) and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) have a stranglehold. A college cannot decide what courses to teach, what fees to charge and what salaries to pay its professors. How could creativity emerge from this servitude? Creating new universities, as the PM proposes, is not the answer unless you give them autonomy.

Forget creativity, Indian companies are frightened by the shortage of basic skills which is currently driving up salaries unhealthily. Of the 400,000 new engineers that graduate each year, roughly 100,000 have the skills to enter the job market. It is tragic that over 400,000 students strive for 6,000 IIT and IIM seats annually. The answer, of course, is to increase the supply of good colleges. As it is, we lose 160,000 students to foreign universities and parents pay $3 billion in fees and costs. Indian 'edupreneurs' and foreign universities have repeatedly tried to start high quality campuses but the HRD ministry's 'licence raj' drives them away. AICTE even wants to close down the prestigious, private Indian School of Business which offers a better education than an IIM. The draft foreign universities bill doesn't provide autonomy either and ensures that no decent foreign university will enter India.

Our education system is our Achilles heel and we will not spawn Mark Bents until we do a 1991 on HRD and unbind India's education. Meanwhile, I console myself in knowing that there are individuals like my friend, N S Raghavan, who is using part of his Infosys fortune to incubate entrepreneurs at the IIM Bangalore. He will make a difference and modest breakthroughs like Mark Bent's will contribute more to human happiness than either the massive aid programmes of governments or the soul-killing mediocrity of our universities.

Source: Times of India- September 9th 2007, Men & Ideas, GURCHARAN DAS

Company Logos and their Meanings

Ever wondered what company logos mean and whats the significance behind them? Wonder no more!
You might think the arrow does nothing here. But it says that amazon.com has everything from a to z and it also represents the smile brought to the customer's face. Wow, that is quite deep.

Eighty-20 is a small consulting company which does sophisticated financial modeling, as well as some solid database work. All their work is highly quantitative and relies on some serious computational power, and the logo is meant to convey it.
People first guess that 20% of the squares are darkened, but that turns out to be false after counting them. The trick is to view the dark squares as 1's and the light squares as 0's. Then the top line reads 1010000 and the bottom line reads 0010100, which represent 80 and 20 in binary.
Kinda like the surreal green screen of The Matrix, they want us to read stuff in binary
Am not sure how many of you have noticed a hidden symbol in the Federal Express logo.
Yeah, I am talking about the 'arrow' that you can see between the E and the x in this logo. The arrow was introduced to underscore speed and precision, which are part of the positioning of the company.

Paul Rand (who designed the iconic IBM logo in 1972) designed this 'eye bee M' logo in 1981. I like that they are quite relaxed about the logo, unlike certain other companies who do not like the logo to be tampered with in any way even for internal promotions

The SUN Microsystems logo is a wonderful example of symmetry and order. It was a brilliant observation that the letters u and n while arranged adjacent to each other look a lot like the letter S in a perpendicular direction. Spectacular.

The above are two magazines from the Readers Digest stable. Again, the attempt to communicate what it is about quite figuratively through the logo catches my attention.

This was a logo created for a puzzle game called Cluenatic. This game involves unravelling four clues. The logo has the letters C, L, U and E arranged as a maze. and from a distance, the logo looks like a key

This logo is too good. For the name Eight, they have used a font in which each letter is a minor adaptation of the number 8.

Why Me?

Arthur Ashe, the legendary Wimbledon player was dying of AIDS which he got due to infected blood he received during a heart surgery in 1983.

From world over, he received letters from his fans, one of which conveyed: "Why does GOD have to select you for such a bad disease"?

To this Arthur Ashe replied:
The world over 5 crore children start playing tennis,
50 lakh learn to play tennis,
5 lakh learn professional tennis,
50,000 come to the circuit,
5000 reach the grand slam,
50 reach Wimbledon,
4 reach the semi-final,
and 2 reach the final.
When I was holding a cup I never asked GOD "Why me?"
and today in pain I should not be asking GOD "Why me?"

Happiness keeps u Sweet,
Trials keep u Strong,
Sorrow keeps u Human,
Failure Keeps u Humble,
Success keeps u Glowing,
but only God Keeps u Going...!!!

my phavourite kaar- TATA TL Sprint

I dont know if this model is introduced in INDIA

some more pics

moving on

the element of ON (in the subject line)-- has turned me on... wow

i remember the last time i changed-- abt 2 years ago- the thing which triggered me was an ad of TATA Safari- Dicor- which had a sign-off line "Reclaim your life". The ad had a kewl line- of I wish i quit on a monday..And i did it- monday morning 8:15 am i open my lappie-- connected it to my mobile-- opened my e-mail client and i sent a mail with the subject line - I QUIT

grr-- i am in the same situation now.. though it is existing thinking about the opportunities ahead-- but equally existed by the risks...

The word that trigged this move is a simple sentence.. "Jumping the cliff and building your wings going down" & I simbly walked into my Sr. VP's cabin- and i said him that i wannt to quit- he was at hsi convincing best-- from somewhere i gathered this word- that i am in the mood to do something suicidingly different... and i think so he was convinced with this stance.
maaan i am at the fag end of this notice period.. and i am feeling its a really a rocin time to move, and it's the best for me.

i will be certainly missing this place.. mostly to advancing my learning curve- most of the learning was of what i should not do in my life- as a leader as a person.

i am now moving to a place where i will be leading people-- i have a secret desire- to make my place a GREAT PLACE TO WORK.i was mostly irritated with some persisting irritants - the 2 p's (some selective people & policies).

maan i was damn tired of people whose mediocircty is rewarded and your hardwork become their fruits. I then decided rather than to crib(like rest of the people) i need to grab the steering wheel and then RECLAIM MY LIFE. I really strived to keep it a "Great Place to Work" i beleive I hav made a good difference to it. But then, at some point of time, you realize things wont change- Move is the best thing to do rather than to crib.

so i am moving on...........

9 wives and 1 month???

i jus tought of sharing an anecdote which was posted on my schools allumni discussion board
and i feel so it is so relevant to the reality... what say Malar???
check this out for yourself..

------------------------------------------------------------------
It was a hot meeting at the office conference hall. All the people from the department had been called. The boss was looking much tensed.The mood was so bad.

My friend asked me -"Hey, what is this meeting all about?
I told - May be they will decide on when to have the next meeting.
People around smiled at each other.

Then the boss started talking.It was about the recent attrition rate that was so high. Around 10 people had put in their papers. All experienced guys. It was quarter end and so work was huge.
If we do not complete the work on time, we need to bepaying heavy penalty said the boss.

The boss turned to the manager and told
"Hey - take how much ever resources you want. Recruit or take them from other departments. Butcomplete the work in another 25 days. Take people and complete it man.

To this the sweet manager replied "Sir! Give me one wife and nine months andI shall show you results. Don't give me nine wives and one month. I cannot do anything."

Everyone looked at him blank.The boss was not prepared for this answer.

We looked at the manager and thought "What an Awesome Reply man!"

Low & behold!

Hi bloggeee...

how r u... ekks.. am i talking to myself.. grrrrrr... i think so...

shukz .. today is a Saturday and for some strange reason i am feeling low... Deepa is @ home having a great time.. as today is a off day for her...

then i thought- y should i work on a Saturday- when my boss is conspicuously missing in action.. and my supper boss is attending a wedding on yet another senior colleague(Dey- Congrats- u r finally getting hitched)

but then y is the tingling vacuum inside.. i don't know.. but i think so i will be oke.. alive 'n' clickin... by the end of the day---


there is no particular reason y i am writing here.. but still what the heck.. its my blog...

eeekkkzzz.. i jus remembered y i am feeling low.. actually i was reading yesterday Businessworld latest issue on GTW... i mean Great places to Work (India- a survey)

And this particular piece struck me http://www.businessworld.in/content/view/1410/1467/


hey wht abt- working on a Saturday http://www.businessworld.in/content/view/1409/1466/

and i was wondering where am i.... ? jus like this character in this song http://www.lowmorale.co.uk/creep/


b

23 ways to leave work early

1) Be on time

Really start your day @ 9 am (or in our case 9.30 am). Studies have shown that the average office worker only does an hour and a half of actual work per day. Focus, goddamit, and you'll get home far sooner.

2) Bunch up all your phone calls
Don’t answer your phone for the morning, then listen back to the messages and answer them in one within. "This helps prevent you being distracted by calls when you need to be focused on a task" says Myers.

3) Put joking matters aside
If you get a good joke on email, don’t forward it. If you do, you'll create a domino effect that'll see other folks with time on their hands emailing you some other, new jokes back as a "thank you"

4) Relax your mind
Switch off the TV before you hit the bunk to ensure peak brain condition watching television stimulates your brain, making it more difficult to speak, And, says Mark Mahowald, professor of neurology a the University of Minnesota Medical School, " One night of sleep deprivation is as impairing in simulated driving tests as an intoxicated blood-alcohol level." And without any pub
fun.

5) Write a diary
For two days, note how long you spend doing every thing from e-maling to cooking a meal. You'll e horrified b how much of the day you waste." says Paul Glen, a time management consultant. And it'll be far easier to cut back on non essential activities, eating
you a free man/woman sooner.

6) Known your power hour
Most people are at their most productive in the morning, but if your "head down" time is when everyone else is as lunch, take yours late and use the quiet time to get ahead.

7) Get Going
Bear in mind that the Japanese have a word to describe dying from over-working (Karachi- if you're looking for an epitaph). A gulit free way to leave the office is to make a commitment t volunteer, an activity corporations are usually supportive of.

8) Routine Ideas
Fix a time each week to discuss staff problem. Unregulated, these issues will have your staff interrupting you throughout the day. And it's a good exercise to get biscuits in.

9) Find your voice
Before you settle down to a project, as yourself if it's someone else's responsibility. Some people fail to speak out. " This results in a hue workload for some and virtually non for others" says Glen. complain loudly like a Yank. But don't do the assent.

10) Stay on schedule
Time-table your day. Set times for email, post and projects. "People end to tie tab meetings but not their own work time" says Barbara Years, Author of 200 ways to save time at the Office.: This is a mistake as it places a higher importance on meetings, which very rarely actually produce concrete results.

11) Take a break
It may seem counterintuitive, but you can't concentrate effectively for more than an hour at a time, so you'll spend more time not getting very far. This is the time to offer fellow-colleagues a coffee- you’ll be doing them and yourself a favor.

12) Keep Saving
Long on to www.living5to9.cm, enter the time you want to leave work, then you download the Time To Go Home Alarm to make sure you stick to your goal. The time you save will be added to an overall total on the website, which will be announced on 24 October National Take Back Your Time Day. It's an added incentive to get home on time.

13) Ditch Distractions
Cull non-essential tasks from your day: checking football scores, eyeing up the marketing assistant, bidding on eBay. Write down everything you do in a day without these things and you see how much more productive you are.

14) Stay in shape
Avoid taking sick days by getting regular exercise and you'll avoid a work backlog. Figures show that less than 48 percent of office workers exercise enough to meet 150 minutes a week. Raising the figure to 70 percent would result in a total of 2783808 fewer sick days each year.

15) Have a health PC
Have a computer check up every six months. Otherwise you'll end up wasting precious minute’s everyday due to poor software, viruses and crashing networks.

16) Filter your spam
Technology research company Nucleus Research says that the average employee spends 6.5 minutes managing spam each days. Speak to IT to finds out about any spam filters already in place.

17) Turn off your mail alert
A Hewlett-Packard study has found "an average worker's function IQ falls 10 points when distracted by telephone calls and incoming emails- more than double the our-point seen in studies on the impact of smoking marijuana." Put that in your paper and
smoke it.

18) Intercept the paper storm
Hang up a plastic pocket for incoming papers. Studies reveal the average office worker is interrupted 73 times a day and it then takes 20 (uninterrupted) minutes to get back to their original concentration level.

19) unsubscribe from e-newsletters
Face it, you're never going to read them. Better yet, dot sign up for them in the first place.

20) Be a learner
Use an L-shaped desk. Designate one side for right-now work and the other for later-on work. "The L shape prevent you from being distracted by other projects," says Stephanie Denton, a co-director of the US National Association of Professional Organizers.

21) Prioritise
Don't procrastinate. Robyn Pearce, author of Getting a Grip of time warns, "Beware of jus doing maintenance work when you have big projects to finish, There is enormous satisfaction to be had if you can self-determined enough to say "no" to the easy task." It's easier to get out on time when you leave the small stuff behind.

22) Ask questions
If you can't say no, at least be learn. Try to figure out from bosses, clients and colleagues which pieces f work are the most urgent when the deadlines are and what is expected. Spending some time questioning can help you formulate your own priorities and possibly save you from having to re-do things.

23) Keep our tools organied
Whether you're a builder, an office worker or a shop manager, your equipment needs to be kept in order, otherwise you'll waste previous minutes finding rather than doing. Invest in a new tool box for the back of the truck, extra files or a notice board. Ensure everyone known where to put back any borrowed items.

courtesy- MansWorld - India Edition

Veg V/s Non Veg

a kewl rib tickling campaign on non vegeteranism

On racism and censorship

This is wonderful piece written by Shashi Tharoor in his TOI column "SHASHI ON SUNDAY". Wisely written to touch both the aspects of the NEO TV Commercial.

Hearing the news that the private broadcaster Nimbus Communication has got into trouble with the government for allegedly broadcasting racist ads on its Neo Sports channel has left me with decidedly mixed emotions. The mixed emotions come, first, from the fact that this is a channel i both love and hate. Whenever i visit India, i morph into a Neo Sports addict.

After decades of living in countries where i was deprived of the possibility of watching cricket on television, i seize every guilty opportunity to cancel appointments and turn off my phone, so that i can sit goggleeyed before the tube, soaking in the goings-on on the greensward. And no one offers quite the range of cricket that Neo does live and recorded, from home and abroad, testmatches and one-dayers and Ranji Trophy games. Rare is the moment when the cricket-starved soul cannot find some balm on Neo Sports. At the same time, the channel infuriates me. It possesses, for one thing, the single most irritating voice on the planet, an androgynous off-screen sloganeer with a gratingly self-satisfied accent who informs listeners withteeth-grinding regularity of the name of the channel they are watching.

Fortunately for him or her, this occurs offscreen, so that viewers never learn who they can throw rotten eggs at. The executives of Nimbus appear blissfully unaware that this creature’s mere enunciation of the words ‘Neo Sports’ has done more than any rival or enemy can to incite sheer hatred towards the brand name amongst the most Gandhian of cricket fans. And then there are the ads. One can’t blame Neo, which is still a fledgling channel, for filling its commercial spaces with advertisements for itself (after all, how many repeats of Airtel’s ‘Songcatcher’ ads can any station inflict on its viewers without being accused of cruel and unusual punishment?). But who on earth conceives and approves these excrescences on the national psyche? I was in India when the West Indies team was touring, and watched in mounting horror as Neo ran a pair of promos in appalling taste about the visitors. One showed a West Indian at a dhaba, his mouth aflame after being served a deliberately over-spicy meal, running from person toperson looking for water, only to have the Indians there stick their fingers into their glasses, throw dentures into their water, and so on, until he finally flings himself at a tap and discovers it has run dry. The tag line:It’s tough to be a West Indian in India. Bad enough, but far worse was a second ad, in which a romantic black couple is rowed out to the middle of a lake by a boatman who abruptly stops, glowers at them and proceeds to strip off his clothes. The audience is clearly meant to expect that he will assault the girl but once he is down to his shorts he jumps into the water, leaving the couple moored mid-lake without an oar. Repeat tag line: It’s tough to be a West Indian in India. Of course, i can figure out from deep mid-wicket what the advertisers thought they were doing. First, they thought the ads were funny. Now humouris the most subjective of qualities, and though i can’t for the life of me find anything remotely funny in these two ads, i imagine somewhere in this vast subcontinent of ours there may well have been a few people who actually laughed, though i can only imagine they must have been hit by a bouncer on the back of the head when they were young. Second, the bosses at Neo Sportsprobably imagined that this was a clever way of promoting the cricketing contest and in so doing, drawing attention to themselves in the hope of expanding their viewer base. Now it doesn’t take an exceptional intelligence to point out that an ad which demonises a group of people, whether identified by nationality or colour, as ‘Others’ to be mistreated is inherently offensive. And that a story-line that mocks people of that group, and depicts people denying them basic human courtesies, is not funny. Nor that depicting Indians, who as a people must rank amongst the most hospitable on earth to foreigners of any kind, as being neither welcoming nor courteous but positively nasty to strangers, is unfair and untrue: it both promotes xenophobia and denies our true national character. In other words, the ad campaign was fundamentally misconceived, ill-thought out and disastrously executed, and those responsible should be spanked with the business end of an extraheavy Tendulkar bat.

But should there be more? This is where i get conflicted again. I detested the ads, but i was not happy to read in mid-February that the government slapped a notice on Nimbus, asking for an explanation. And worse still, that Neo Sports faces a minimum 30-day ban if charges of violating the advertising code are proven. Not only does that seem unnecessarily harsh towards the company, it will punish an entire class of innocents, the cricket fans. Far more worrying, it allows the heavy hand of government to intrude into the space for public discourse that is so essential a part of any functioning democracy. An official of the Information and Broadcasting ministry wasquoted as saying: The ads were in bad taste and perceived to be derogatory against foreign citizens. Bad taste is a matter for individuals to determine, not bureaucrats or even judges. And if Indians are to be punished for being derogatory towards foreigners, it will not be long before we return to the bad old days when the avatars of Indo-Soviet friendship banned James Bond’sFrom Russia with Love and later only allowed its release under the title From 007 with Love. In a free society, when the media errs, viewers should make their views known, advertisers should protest, and the company should be forced to think twice about its reputation. But let’s get the government’s unimaginative fingers off our remote controls.

REDS v/s RED DEVILS

The AD on ESPN was saying the REDS v/s RED DEVILS and i made a very strong mental note regarding this fixture.I was bang on... on my bean bag... but i was disappointed to see a message on the screen- basically saying" This cable operator has huge amount to pay" so as to justify the placement of the blue color rectangle in the centre of the screen.

I had no other option but to view the match with the grains and box playing their own game.
But before this- when ever i see MAN UTD match i all remember how i got hoooked to them when i say them way back in 90's in their historic match with Bayren Munich. down by 2 goals in last minute and the injury team they scored 3 goals to win some championship... and lo i am UTD fan.

Okeee lets get back to this match Manchester United back to the match which they are playing at the Liverpool Ground.But i was disappointed to see Man Utd without their usual sharpness. But somehow they were fortunate in their Premiership title race after Sir Alex's 10-men snatched a dramatic 1-0 win at Liverpool on Saturday.

United were under pressure for long spells of the second half at Anfield and were clinging on for a point after Paul Scholes was sent off with eight minutes remaining for aiming a punch at Xabi Alonso. (surprisingly it was the devils first RED card) But John O’Shea fired home from close range in the 90th minute after Liverpool goalkeeper Jose Reina spilled Cristiano Ronaldo’s free-kick.

United, who won at Fulham last week thanks to a yet another "late" Ronaldo goal, the whole match can be best put this way- THE worst punch came from Paul Scholes, the sucker punch was thrown by John O'Shea and the knock-out punch landed squarely on Jose Mourinho's over-active jaw. And now they are 12 points ahead of second-placed Chelsea (if the Chelsea looses in their fixtures) and Ferguson has no doubts that his team are getting the rub of the green at the right time. As Sir Alex said "Without question this is a massive result for us & We were very lucky today. Liverpool upset our rhythm a bit and we had a lot of narrowescapes. The Red Devils will be tested as Scholes will now serve a three-match ban and England striker Wayne Rooney could be sidelined with a knee injury suffered at Anfield.

me, Rajkumar & the goddessess.

For me it was absolute WOW when i landed in Bangalore about 7 years ago. But somehow i still had to put up with comments from even more old Bangaloreans who used to say that Bangalore has lost its ‘wow’ factor- it was really ‘wow’ some years ago.

When I revisit their comments I feel I am already become a Bangalorean. I love this place, I love the people, I love the climate, I love the gardens, I love the music here, I love my freedom of being me… but somehow I also already feel being part of the tribe of so called ‘old Bangaloreans’.


Truly Bangalore has evolved, the climate has changed(I don’t know if I have to call it the effect of Global Warming), the people composition has changed, the road has changed, the sounds have changed, the landscape has changed…. errr did I say LANDSCAPE.


Being in from the marketing fraternity- I have always followed the languages of Hoardings. I somehow believe Hoardings is one of the indicators of the health of the society.The content … in this case is still the king. We have seen some of landmark messages coming from this medium. But offlate I started noticing.

A malady creping in. All of a sudden almost all the political parties are now part of the CITY LANDSCAPE. Somehow they have realized that this is a very MASS and also CHEAP.

All the political parties…. err I mean the grass roots of these political parties have gone helter skelter by acquiring illegally EYES-SPACE so as to communicate the language which probably their party will subscribe or wont subscribe.




I don’t now if I have to classify this as an epidemic.. because almost every one is in the fray. You will notice that there I kewl pussy footing happening in this communication relm. “Keep the gods happy” seems to be the mantra.

Presence of these gods seems to be a protocol but the size, shape, form & color seems to be at the disposal of the so called “DYNAMIC LEADERS”.

I don’t know who give these people permission to erect these hoardings, who give this people permission to use the images of these so called FIGURES. The occasion can be of anything- be it some of these people birthday or an event or may be a festival. All of a sudden you will see all of them jumping at the opportunity, tuck the gods and goddesses in a corner and then hog the EYE-SPACE.

Budget 007 is just over and it seem Mr. Yeduriappa the Karnataka deputy chief minister and the soon to be chief minister had gone on record that Karnataka has been given a raw deal. Mr. DY Chief Minister- can I suggest you one option to rake in moolas. Please TASK THESE HOARDINGS- let the so called dynamic leaders pay for need of being seen by the larger public.

Or why don’t we allow RAJKUMAR and the gods and goddesses rest in peace and let your deeds speak for itself.

hey - this was my first attempt-- jus get back to me if it really sulked

b