Since today morning, I have been reading a lot about the Democratic National Convention ’08, how both the Clinton’s have set the stage for the biggest speech in these times, the one of Obama and to not miss the historical significance, this speech commemorates the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. Barrack Obama is probably one of the most scrutinized politicians in the recent times, more so than any other, for the fact that he is competing for the highest post and most probably the most powerful post in the world, the POTUS, and that he is an African American is what polarizes this election. Many questions lie unanswered, will he be able to unify the Democratic camp, what are his policies… Many of these questions will be answered in the next couple of days. With the policies that the Bush camp have followed in the last 8 years, they leave the world in a pretty bad shape, maybe even worse than the one at the end of Nixon’s disgraced presidency. With its foreign policy in tatters, and economy slowing to a grinding halt, despite the lowering of interest rates by the Federal Reserve, which is forcing the booming economies in turn to lower their own interest rates, causing overheating of those economies, in turn leading to isolationist policies, and thus decreasing Globalization. I must admit, I was an ardent Republican supporter, however in the last 8 years, the Republicans have floundered with the way they have dealt with the nation. The proposed tax cuts, the decreased spending in welfare, healthcare, Medicaid, social security… They have generally let the largest economy in the world become stagnant. Coming after 8 years of successive economic growth in which an unprecedented trade surplus was created, the US now runs a huge a trade deficit. America is no longer respected as a nation, even amongst its own allies, as the leaders who supported Bush being replaced one by one. Blair’s Labour Party now looks like it will fall signaling the death knell for Bush’s regime, if you could call it that. Despite all the checks and balances present in the Constitution, he was allowed to wage war despite the advice of all the advisors and the reports of WMD not being present in Iraq. With no clear agenda emerging from the Bush administration, one really begins to question the reasons for waging the war. To say that wealth generation for the oil firms was a reason would be a sole reason to place Bush amongst a select reviled few who include Hitler and Stalin. It is a pity that US does not accept the validity of the International Court at Hague, which tried Milosevic and Saddam Hussein. It would have been interesting to see the defense of the House of Bush. I have great respect for the democratic system of US, as it is the oldest democratic system and has survived more than 226 years with only 17 amendments being added since the original Constitution and the Bill of rights. It was a document that was both far seeing and practical. I mean 55 ordinary people, lawyers and such gathered together in a house in Virginia and produced the most important political document that has survived nearly unchanged since 225 years, an example of an ordinary group of people who got together to do something very extraordinary. However, enough of the history lesson, back to the main point. Barrack Obama has a unique chance in history to change all the perceptions about US. He might be what US needs at this time, not John McCain with another four years of Republican rule. The Ultra Conservatives have really ruled with an iron fist, and it might be time for some velvet gloves. With Hillary and Bill Clinton setting the stage, its time for Obama the politician and the man who is ‘one of us’ to step up and become the President of the United States.
Anyway, enough of that political discourse.. I have read Chasm city by Alastair Reynolds in the last two days, and what I have read, I have liked. It’s a fun book filled with intrigue and guile and it’s a quick read as well. This is my first book of Alastair Reynolds, and I think I will go on to read more of his books.
Also in this blog I would like to mention my cross country wingman Jassi, whose advice to get a girl I found very valuable. His advice is shed all inhibition, go for the girl that you find unapproachable. After that he says, going to any other girl should be easier..Go figure, if he wants me to be a bachelor all my life or something… But to be fair, his advice is better than the other wingman, Kaviraaj… His advice of sending a message to propose, since I was out of balance, was invaluable… That girl called me up and then laughed at the idiot who would send a message… However, that group of guys I was with in Roorkee, really made life there much easier, as we were able to share all the good times and the bad times together. Thank you guys and I miss you as well!
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Monday, August 25, 2008
Randomness!(Rather Craziness!)
Breaking Dawn! Never read this book or read at your own mental peril. Remarkable story of how I came to that conclusion. So, busily browsing on amazon.com, I saw that this book was on top of the New York Times Bestseller list. So I went ahead and bought the book in the nearby store thinking, this cant be so bad. Anyway, 900 pages later I found the truth that yes, most people have no idea of what they read. I also found out that this was the fourth book in some series. The book is basically how a human marries a vampire who is at war with the werewolves at the time. The vampires and werewolves have signed a treaty to not produce any more offspring and they adhered to that for years together. However, the human and vampire together have a werewolf baby. Actually the explanation is pretty scientific as well. Apparently vampires have 25 sets of chromosomes and werewolves have 24 sets of chromosomes. Since humans have only 23 sets, apparently the law of averages works in inter species pregnancy. So the book goes on and on for 900 pages. The least I can say about this book was that the Chinese method of torture seems a better option than this book.
Anyway, for the last one year I have been reading Star Trek series. Lot of novels written by different authors. Mainly I have been reading The Next Generation novels with Capt. Picard and Riker. The character of Picard comes across as very interesting in this series. The thinker, philosopher, historian, captain.. Really comes across as the ultimate man, the one who says the buck stops here. He is kind of a throwback to the ancient Greco-Roman days, the statues which show men as immaculate. Anyway, I would recommend these for the Sci-Fi fans. Trekkies for life.
Anyway, beyond the literary reviews, with the Olympics getting over and all, it got me thinking that even the world’s largest stage was presented to the world leaders, not a single leader of a nation used it to protest against China’s humanitarian policies. I think I used one of my earlier blogs to complain about the draconian laws of China like the One child policy, the bullet charged to the family.(one child policy- each family can have only child and any other children being born will be put to death before they crown). (Bullet charged to family- There is a famous photo of a guy standing in front of a tank at Tiananmen Square where students were protesting against Deng Xiaoping’s policies. They arrested the guy and sentenced him to death. They charged the family for the bullet they used to kill the guy) Tiananmen Square was an incident that recently occurred and the leaders then are still part of the Chinese Politburo today. The stage setting by the Chinese seemed like a repeat of the Berlin Olympics of 1936. Only this time, the entire world was watching live on TV and not a single protest was raised. I would still say congrats to the Chinese athletes for challenging American supremacy at the games. The games are competitions at the highest level challenging both body and mind, and those who persevered won. It was a magical Olympics, with Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, USA’s Redeem Team. Lot of winners here, and I hope that London will see even better athletes who better these records.
I was watching the tv show How I met your mother the other day and in that Ted mentions his favorite go to bad time movie is Field of Dreams. That brought back old memories of where I had first seen this movie. It was in a math class, that my teacher out of her own interest had shown us the movie. At the time I dismissed it as a movie with ghosts and a guy chasing after them. I think I realized the full impact of the movie years later when I watched it again after getting through JEE. I realized that the ghosts he was chasing were members of the Chicago White Sox, who were involved in the Chicago Black Sox scandal for betting on the games and accused of throwing the World Series. These were some of the most famous players at the time and it caused a huge stench in the sport at the time. It shows that the souls of these players had not yet rested and were yet to be appeased. Very moving story, as how Kevin Costner, meets his own father who was part of the team, and meets his own father’s ghost. Kind of gives a Hamlet feel to the entire story.
Also, was just in a chat right now, thinking, does economics and its implications have anything to do with the election results? I mean, with BJP probably heading one of the largest expansion phases of Indian economics, they still lost out with their India Shining Campaign. With Bill Clinton leading the largest and longest economic growth in US, the Democrats lost to the Republicans bringing George Bush to power...(Now that is an entirely different story as well.. Basically with Florida recount, he won by 537 votes and 10,000 votes not being recounted on order of the Supreme Court, whom the Republicans have nominated 8 of them.) For more on Bush, wait for my review of The Fall of the House of Bush. Now the Labor government in England seems destined to fall.
Anyway, this duke is feeling really sleepy and I will go off to drink coffee and biscuits...So have fun, stay safe and enjoy...
Anyway, for the last one year I have been reading Star Trek series. Lot of novels written by different authors. Mainly I have been reading The Next Generation novels with Capt. Picard and Riker. The character of Picard comes across as very interesting in this series. The thinker, philosopher, historian, captain.. Really comes across as the ultimate man, the one who says the buck stops here. He is kind of a throwback to the ancient Greco-Roman days, the statues which show men as immaculate. Anyway, I would recommend these for the Sci-Fi fans. Trekkies for life.
Anyway, beyond the literary reviews, with the Olympics getting over and all, it got me thinking that even the world’s largest stage was presented to the world leaders, not a single leader of a nation used it to protest against China’s humanitarian policies. I think I used one of my earlier blogs to complain about the draconian laws of China like the One child policy, the bullet charged to the family.(one child policy- each family can have only child and any other children being born will be put to death before they crown). (Bullet charged to family- There is a famous photo of a guy standing in front of a tank at Tiananmen Square where students were protesting against Deng Xiaoping’s policies. They arrested the guy and sentenced him to death. They charged the family for the bullet they used to kill the guy) Tiananmen Square was an incident that recently occurred and the leaders then are still part of the Chinese Politburo today. The stage setting by the Chinese seemed like a repeat of the Berlin Olympics of 1936. Only this time, the entire world was watching live on TV and not a single protest was raised. I would still say congrats to the Chinese athletes for challenging American supremacy at the games. The games are competitions at the highest level challenging both body and mind, and those who persevered won. It was a magical Olympics, with Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, USA’s Redeem Team. Lot of winners here, and I hope that London will see even better athletes who better these records.
I was watching the tv show How I met your mother the other day and in that Ted mentions his favorite go to bad time movie is Field of Dreams. That brought back old memories of where I had first seen this movie. It was in a math class, that my teacher out of her own interest had shown us the movie. At the time I dismissed it as a movie with ghosts and a guy chasing after them. I think I realized the full impact of the movie years later when I watched it again after getting through JEE. I realized that the ghosts he was chasing were members of the Chicago White Sox, who were involved in the Chicago Black Sox scandal for betting on the games and accused of throwing the World Series. These were some of the most famous players at the time and it caused a huge stench in the sport at the time. It shows that the souls of these players had not yet rested and were yet to be appeased. Very moving story, as how Kevin Costner, meets his own father who was part of the team, and meets his own father’s ghost. Kind of gives a Hamlet feel to the entire story.
Also, was just in a chat right now, thinking, does economics and its implications have anything to do with the election results? I mean, with BJP probably heading one of the largest expansion phases of Indian economics, they still lost out with their India Shining Campaign. With Bill Clinton leading the largest and longest economic growth in US, the Democrats lost to the Republicans bringing George Bush to power...(Now that is an entirely different story as well.. Basically with Florida recount, he won by 537 votes and 10,000 votes not being recounted on order of the Supreme Court, whom the Republicans have nominated 8 of them.) For more on Bush, wait for my review of The Fall of the House of Bush. Now the Labor government in England seems destined to fall.
Anyway, this duke is feeling really sleepy and I will go off to drink coffee and biscuits...So have fun, stay safe and enjoy...
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Echo of the Sound of Silence
Hola mis amigos! Que tal? Ok, for those who are spanish illiterate it means Hi my friends, whats up? Anyway, this title being inspired from the Simon and Garfunkel's song Sound of Silence. Really struck with me with this line.."and the people bowed and prayed to the neon god they made..and the sign flashed out its warning..".."people listening but not hearing..".. I wondered what are they referring to when they say the "neon god". Are they ones that we see on TV, the glitterati and social elite? Are they the ones that we see perform superhuman feats? I was wondering about who do we consider as heroes nowadays? Are the days when we considered scientists and all heroes gone? ( I remember saying as a kid I wanted to be Einstein and all, never mind that it never happened) Especially in India where there is a lack of the hero ethos. Sure we have Sachin Tendulkar(who was my hero when I was a kid), Abdul Kalam etc. but most of the heroes we have nowadays are the ones created by media for one defining moment only to be brushed off until the next hero comes along. I mean if you look at the careers that were lifted by the media to heights reserved only for the greatest and the best, (ex. Sania Mirza, Narain Karthikeyan) only to crash and burn in the outset of their careers. These could have been heroes for a generation had they been allowed to grow properly. With the pressure of a billion people watching them, the fact that they were able to compete itself is a great achievement. I mean do we as a country truly have a "Hero" we can look upto? I would venture to say that yes, we do. Call me old fashioned or cliched, but Mahatma Gandhi was one such person. His ideas and ideals were ones that truly lifted our country and they still continue to be relevant to this day and age. Anyway, so are these the neon gods that we made?
Also, with the background of the Olympics, I wanted to express my joy in the Indian athletes that won medals abroad, and I sincerely hope this is a point which will spawn a generation of athletes to come and compete at the highest levels. Something out of the lines of Kryptonite by 3 doors down.."If I go crazy then will you still Call me Superman If I'm alive and well will you be There holding my hand I'll keep you by my side with my Superhuman might" I just hope that these people wont be forgotten quickly by our short attention span society these days.
Anyway, more on these things later.. Recently i read a book by Albert Speer, the Reichminister for Armaments in Nazi Germany, Inside the Third Reich. Actually this is what got me thinking about the Sound of Silence. How silence from the crowd propelled mad men to take over the reins of a state, convert a country that produced Beethoven and Bach to creating instruments of genocide. This is what got me thinking about who do we look upto, whom do we see as our saviours in this modern day and age. In the 30's the German people turned to Hitler for that. I was trying to understand, how did they as a people were lured by the wiles of a mad man. Albert Speer explains how he was perfectly seduced to the point where he cared neither about his life nor limb when he went to visit Hitler a last time in his bunker just to tell him that yes, he disregarded his orders and was waiting for the punishment. Not of friendship, and not out of loyalty but rather hypnotism was his explanation for it. For that he spent 20 years in Spandau(a prison for the Nuremberg trial prisoners). At Nuremberg where the German leaders were tried for crimes against humanity, the first ever such trial held, these people were found guilty on all charges and the higher leaders being hanged whereas the second level leaders receiving long terms in prison. Again business sense got the better of the Allied forces here as well. They released the business leaders quite quickly as Krupp, Thyssen etc were released barely three years into their prison terms. These were the people whose finances made the German war machine possible. I.G. Farben whose factories churned out Zyklon B, the terror gas of the prisoner camps used to exterminate the Jews, Krupp's factories which manufactured the incinerators, Thyssen whose shrewd finances helped the Reich amass a huge war chest in direct contravention with the Treaty of Versailles.. All absolved of their crimes against humanity.. They say trade brings two countries closer as they exchange their culture with each other..but two thoughts that could change that..1) In 1939, France was Germany's largest trading partner 2) In 1941, USSR was Germany's largest trading partner..They were such good partners that even after a month after invading USSR, the grain trains were still running west from the Ural mountains towards Germany.
Anyway, enough history lessons for now.. Off to lunch, bbye!
Also, with the background of the Olympics, I wanted to express my joy in the Indian athletes that won medals abroad, and I sincerely hope this is a point which will spawn a generation of athletes to come and compete at the highest levels. Something out of the lines of Kryptonite by 3 doors down.."If I go crazy then will you still Call me Superman If I'm alive and well will you be There holding my hand I'll keep you by my side with my Superhuman might" I just hope that these people wont be forgotten quickly by our short attention span society these days.
Anyway, more on these things later.. Recently i read a book by Albert Speer, the Reichminister for Armaments in Nazi Germany, Inside the Third Reich. Actually this is what got me thinking about the Sound of Silence. How silence from the crowd propelled mad men to take over the reins of a state, convert a country that produced Beethoven and Bach to creating instruments of genocide. This is what got me thinking about who do we look upto, whom do we see as our saviours in this modern day and age. In the 30's the German people turned to Hitler for that. I was trying to understand, how did they as a people were lured by the wiles of a mad man. Albert Speer explains how he was perfectly seduced to the point where he cared neither about his life nor limb when he went to visit Hitler a last time in his bunker just to tell him that yes, he disregarded his orders and was waiting for the punishment. Not of friendship, and not out of loyalty but rather hypnotism was his explanation for it. For that he spent 20 years in Spandau(a prison for the Nuremberg trial prisoners). At Nuremberg where the German leaders were tried for crimes against humanity, the first ever such trial held, these people were found guilty on all charges and the higher leaders being hanged whereas the second level leaders receiving long terms in prison. Again business sense got the better of the Allied forces here as well. They released the business leaders quite quickly as Krupp, Thyssen etc were released barely three years into their prison terms. These were the people whose finances made the German war machine possible. I.G. Farben whose factories churned out Zyklon B, the terror gas of the prisoner camps used to exterminate the Jews, Krupp's factories which manufactured the incinerators, Thyssen whose shrewd finances helped the Reich amass a huge war chest in direct contravention with the Treaty of Versailles.. All absolved of their crimes against humanity.. They say trade brings two countries closer as they exchange their culture with each other..but two thoughts that could change that..1) In 1939, France was Germany's largest trading partner 2) In 1941, USSR was Germany's largest trading partner..They were such good partners that even after a month after invading USSR, the grain trains were still running west from the Ural mountains towards Germany.
Anyway, enough history lessons for now.. Off to lunch, bbye!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Sunset/Sunrise
Way too long since i wrote the last blog. Things have changed a lot since then, reminding me of Bob Dylan's song, Times they are a changin', "Come writers and criticsWho prophesize with your penAnd keep your eyes wideThe chance wont come again." Something about the song that signifies the end of things and the beginning of new things. Kind of what the title of this blog says the end of a day, which again leads to the beginning of a new day. However, to tell a little bit about what has happened since the last time I wrote. I somehow graduated from IIT by the seat of my pants, and definitely a fake degree to tell the least. I enjoyed a fairly boring- sleepy summer. I joined PwC and met very, very interesting people. I didn't know what to expect when I joined but what I did see and do was definitely a vivid experience worth remembering. Looking back at the one month training in Calcutta, the sheer pleasure of meeting such individuals brilliant and carefree was refreshing after college where it seemed the weight of the world was on your shoulders. Calcutta was the last of the major metros I had yet to visit in India and it was definitely a change from the earlier cities. After that back in Bangalore to start the job in earnest. So the last couple of months were quite busy and happening in my small life.
Again thats why the title, sunset/sunrise. College was a fun time for me. I lived it to my fullest, acheived some of the goals i wanted to achieve, some failures, but overall for the lack of better words, i had fun, and as that ended, my job started off being fun. This title, isnt my own idea at any rate. I took it from the title of a chapter in Tom Clancy's Debt of Honor. (A fun book to read..a bit apopcryphal as well..in this a flight crashes into the US capitol building leaving just the vice president alive..)
I have been reading a lot of Peter F. Hamilton lately, and that author is seriously good! I have read his Commonwealth Saga, Dreamvoid, Neutronium Alchemist..Science fiction is reborn in his books. All the things that we think about and dream about(ok, maybe not all) but he makes the books come alive. His works deserve to be rated against Asimov and Clarke. I could sing epic poems about the wonder in his books, but I wont. I really enjoyed reading the stories that he weaves. A warning though, these books are not for the fickle reader, they will be long and torturous for those who cannot read and appreciate his style.
Also, I wanted to talk about the bomb blasts that have taken place across India recently. Basically its a conspiracy theory of mine I suppose. I have read a book called The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein. In it she explains the theory of economic shocks propounded by Milton Friedman which states that in order to overhaul an economy, it is not done in sustainable steps, rather it has to be rude shocks in order to erase the old foundations and set new ones. She shows example after example how the Chicago School theory(Friedman was at Chicago when he stated this theory) failed many states as they tried to implement his ideas. In each of these places, democracy gave way to bloody dictatorships and insurmountable foreign debts. Each time the
state devolved as supposedly free market practices were being implemented. Examples include Argentina, South America itself, South Africa, Poland. Hyperinflation and unemployment destroyed the countries as privatization took over as all welfare initiatives were scrapped. Anyway, the point is, each of these shocks were preceded by widespread violence in each of these countries which led to revolutions and all. Could this be the case in India? To enact certain laws and regulations, could our government in any way be subscribing to the views of the Chicago School in order to force economic reforms and privatizations by a shock therapy? Could the bombs be a precursor to a government led initiative to increase its hold on our society by eroding our freedoms? Again like I said this theory was advanced by me after reading the book.
I would highly recommend this book for anyone who feels that the history that they read in teh books is not a good enough explanation for the world as it is today.
Anyway, this is the duke of mayhem signing off for now! Will try to write more these days!
Again thats why the title, sunset/sunrise. College was a fun time for me. I lived it to my fullest, acheived some of the goals i wanted to achieve, some failures, but overall for the lack of better words, i had fun, and as that ended, my job started off being fun. This title, isnt my own idea at any rate. I took it from the title of a chapter in Tom Clancy's Debt of Honor. (A fun book to read..a bit apopcryphal as well..in this a flight crashes into the US capitol building leaving just the vice president alive..)
I have been reading a lot of Peter F. Hamilton lately, and that author is seriously good! I have read his Commonwealth Saga, Dreamvoid, Neutronium Alchemist..Science fiction is reborn in his books. All the things that we think about and dream about(ok, maybe not all) but he makes the books come alive. His works deserve to be rated against Asimov and Clarke. I could sing epic poems about the wonder in his books, but I wont. I really enjoyed reading the stories that he weaves. A warning though, these books are not for the fickle reader, they will be long and torturous for those who cannot read and appreciate his style.
Also, I wanted to talk about the bomb blasts that have taken place across India recently. Basically its a conspiracy theory of mine I suppose. I have read a book called The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein. In it she explains the theory of economic shocks propounded by Milton Friedman which states that in order to overhaul an economy, it is not done in sustainable steps, rather it has to be rude shocks in order to erase the old foundations and set new ones. She shows example after example how the Chicago School theory(Friedman was at Chicago when he stated this theory) failed many states as they tried to implement his ideas. In each of these places, democracy gave way to bloody dictatorships and insurmountable foreign debts. Each time the
state devolved as supposedly free market practices were being implemented. Examples include Argentina, South America itself, South Africa, Poland. Hyperinflation and unemployment destroyed the countries as privatization took over as all welfare initiatives were scrapped. Anyway, the point is, each of these shocks were preceded by widespread violence in each of these countries which led to revolutions and all. Could this be the case in India? To enact certain laws and regulations, could our government in any way be subscribing to the views of the Chicago School in order to force economic reforms and privatizations by a shock therapy? Could the bombs be a precursor to a government led initiative to increase its hold on our society by eroding our freedoms? Again like I said this theory was advanced by me after reading the book.
I would highly recommend this book for anyone who feels that the history that they read in teh books is not a good enough explanation for the world as it is today.
Anyway, this is the duke of mayhem signing off for now! Will try to write more these days!
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