2014 Year in review

As we say good bye to 2014, it is saddening to note that not a lot has changed from the previous years. Overall gloom across the world prevails, threat of terrorism looms larger and the world remains a chaotic place to live.

The year began with Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa infecting over 19000 people and killing over  7000 people. It was the year ruthless militant groups such as Boko Haram and ISIS came into prominence. In April Boko Haram abducted 276 girls and held hostage from a school in Nigeria whereas a Sunni militant group called the ISIS began an offensive through Northern Iraq aiming to capture the capital city of Baghdad and overthrow the Iraqi regime.  

The year ended with the most deadliest terrorist attack ever to have occured in Pakistan. In December seven members of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) conducted a terrorist attack on the Army Public School in the Pakistani city of Peshawar killing 145 people, including 132 school children. TTP is said to be a merger of 13 groups to form a super terrorist group.

Militant groups such as Boko Haram and ISIS join the already existing militant outfits such as Al-Qaeda and the Taliban unleashing terror within their countries and beyond.  Pockets of terrorist outfits are mushrooming in various countries like spreading cancer cells. Countries that promoted terrorism are now paying a price as terrorism boomeranged on itself.

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had said while blasting a certain country’s support for terrorism…

“It’s like that old story—you can’t keep snakes in your backyard and expect them only to bite your neighbours. Eventually those snakes are going to turn on whoever has them in the backyard.”

The former first lady has very aptly put down the consequences of supporting terrorism.

Moving on from terrorism, 2014 also happend to be the year planes started missing mysteriously. The disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was one of the biggest shocks to the world in 2014. The flight vanished without leaving a trace on March 8, 2014, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. The mystery of the disappearance of MH370 as of this writing is yet to be identified. 

To add to the woes, in July Malaysian airlines met with another disaster. MH17 enroute from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down by rebels in Ukraine airspace killing all 298 passengers and crew.

Then came the Ice Bucket Challenge, sometimes called the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, a bizarre activity involving dumping a bucket of ice water on someone's head to promote awareness of the disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and encourage donations to research. It went viral on social media during July–August 2014. The challenge encourages nominated participants to be filmed having a bucket of ice water poured on their heads and then nominating others to do the same. A common stipulation is that nominated participants have 24 hours to comply or forfeit by way of a charitable financial donation.

Moving away from man made disasters, in the years ahead natural disasters remain a major concern. Chances of another earthquake triggering Tsunamis similar to the events occurred in Indonesia or Japan may not be too far ahead. According to a study Java, Sumatra the Indonesian islands remain to be one of the most dangerous earthquake prone places on earth and Istanbul, Turkey remains the top spot to hit a major earthquake.

On a lighter note, on the internet front while the world searched for celebrities such as Jennifer Lawrence and Kim Kardashian, the most searched person in India was Sunny Leone a former porn actress and currently a Bollywood actress pushing Prime minister Narendra Modi to the second place!

So there we go folks.

Let us hope the year 2015 will be a more prosperous and peaceful year.

Wishing one and all a Happy New Year 2015

The unstoppable Bollywood

Bollywood is raking in big bucks these days  with every movie starred by top Bollywood stars tripping over each other to become the biggest grossers of all time. No wonder India commands a formidable position in the world movie industry and one of the biggest movie stars in the planet is a Bollywood actor. Unlike Hollywood, Bollywood  relies on sheer star power, dance numbers, family melodrama and logic defying themes to woe the movie goers . Bollywood doesn't require an armageddon nor does it have to deal with end of the world scenarios as its plot for a winner.

As critics write off a Bollywood movie with negative reviews, the audience welcome them with open arms helping the movie hit the prestigious ‘100 crores club’ in a couple of days from its release and the movie then moves on to break box office history. At this rate, an Rs 1000 crore ($160 million) gross collection for a movie is not too far off.

In 2014, top 5 Bollywood movies collectively grossed quarter of a billion dollars (Rs 1600 crores) across the world.  Despite doing such humongous business, sadly none of these movies will be remembered by the future generation and neither can these movies be counted among the classics. The adage of movies being a lasting work of art is long gone in Bollywood. A new generation of movie makers have capitalized the industry with new formula with the only intention to make maximum revenue.

Yet one can’t complain about it.

Indian movies are made to cater to masses of different classes. A rickshaw wallah, or an odd job worker wants  to get simply entertained after a long day of hardship. A typical bollywood movie very well provides that much needed feel good experience. These classes clap and whistle for their favorite stars throughout the movie and leaves the movie hall thoroughly entertained.  

However, one can only hope that all is not lost. The silver lining is presence of a few movie makers with the intention to make good movies. These movie makers can produce meaningful cinemas and at the same time ring in the box office with good revenue.

Going forward, the dance numbers and the melodrama will remain integral part of Bollywood movies and regional movies for that matter. After all, it is what sets us apart as Indians and that is the message we want to spread across to the rest of the world.

Kerala heading for complete prohibition of alcohol - Is the total ban on booze a short-sighted view?

Kerala government has recently announced prohibition of alcohol in the state in a phased manner. 

It appears that the pseudo-Gandhians in the ruling government have not taken into account the consequences of this ban. Apparently it goes without saying that this unprecedented policy in Kerala is brought in to appease certain communities in the state and to keep the coalition government from falling apart. The motive for this drastic decision appears to be political rather than ideological.

Granted,  alcohol abuse is a menace in the society. As Kerala reels under alcoholism, domestic violence is on the rise and families are being torn apart. Bread winner’s hard earned money instead of being spent on worth while purposes is being immersed in liquor.

Is a total ban the solution? Perhaps not.

Tipplers are of 3 types. Those who enjoy an occasional drink to keep their spirits high after a long day of toil, those who drink on social occasions and the third category being the alcohol addicts. The ban is obviously targeted at this third category.

Total prohibition has not been really successful in states such as Gujarat. Alcohol is smuggled into Gujarat from its neighboring states -– Rajasthan to the north, Madhya Pradesh to the east, and Maharashtra to the south, and also from the small union territories of Daman, located in south Gujarat near Surat, and Diu, an island that lies off the Kathiawad peninsula.

Total prohibition mean ushering in a new underground industry – bootlegging – and a new source of income for the players in the establishment – enforcers, their political superintendents from it. Losses to the exchequer would mean gains to the private pockets.

Andhra Pradesh tried Prohibition between 1958 and 1969 and again from 1994 to 1997, but abandoned because of leakages and flows from across its borders.

Haryana’s flirtation with a dry policy lasted only two years from 1996 and was abandoned on grounds of loss of jobs in the liquor industry. Tamil Nadu’s affair with dry laws in place since 1952 lasted two decades. The later revenue gains by these states indicate the infatuation with liquor as a resource.

Kerala has always enjoyed the dubious distinction of being the highest per capita consumer of alcohol in the country.  The state monopoly over liquor sale became the prime reason for the popularity of bars.  Besides losing crores of rupees to the exchequer by the sale of liquor, the decision to ban liquor will have adverse effect on tourism although the primary reason to visit Kerala is not to drink.

Prohibition as a policy is high-minded idiocy. It promotes organised crime, illicit, unsafe hooch and corruption of the police. Having learnt this lesson, prohibition was withdrawn in the US in early 20th century.

With such short sighted view of our political leaders, let us welcome the era of spurious liquor to Kerala and let the Gujaratis (where total liquor ban is in place) show us the way to bootleg.

At this juncture it will be more suitable to call the UDF , “United Retarded front” instead of United Democratic Front.

The enlightened people of Kerala should rise up against the government's hypocrisy and demand a rational liquor policy that both encourages moderation and respects individual liberties. To drink or not should be a personal choice, provided it entails no public disorder.

Disclaimer: The author does not advocate consumption of alcohol but merely expressing the democratic right of individuals in a democratic country.

Malaysian Airlines MH17 crash - Gone too soon

It was a twelve hour flight from Amsterdam to Kuala lumpur. But it was cut short way too soon. Almost three hours into the flight, the ill fated flight MH17 disintegrated in mid air. Debris from the plane along with scores of bodies strewn all over the crash site. 298 precious lives were taken away. These innocent victims bore the brunt of a political conflict in Ukraine. 

As for Malaysian airlines, it was another shot in the arm.

MH17 has followed the highly controversial disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 back in March. Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was said to have disappeared from the sky in the early hours of Saturday, March 8th, 2014, subsequently over at 35,000 feet heading in a flight bound for Beijing. 

The tragic end to MH17, has had a fiery backdrop provided by other regions of the world as well, as Israel has engaged in a ground assault of Gaza, while Iraq has been wrought with manufactured terror for months, both of which are undoubtedly political factors contributing to the polarization of the MH17 incident.

As they say, “One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter”. This saying goes true for pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine, who is believed to have shot down MH17, Hamas in Palestine whom Israel is fighting against and ISIS in Iraq. It is sad indeed to notice that innocent men, women and children are being killed as a result of several such political conflicts.

Are the general public safe anywhere in the world? Far from it. An otherwise enjoyable bus ride, a train journey or a peaceful walk in the park could turn into a tragic end if terrorists plant a bomb in the vicinity. Why do they want to take the lives of innocent people? Is it a political revenge against a country of target? Or is it a tiny representation of an impending mayhem they can inflict into a civilized society?

As hatred brews, countries divide, innocent civilians are unnecessarily drawn into these conflicts, often used as human shields or their lives being taken away.

The 9/11 attack in the US killing several thousands of people still haunts us. Similarly several conflicts across the world continues to cause turmoil through out the world, be it in Syria, Egypt, Iraq or Afghanistan.

No part of the world is safe as terrorism spreads across the world in a manner one could never have imagined. Global population is directly or indirectly impacted. One could be hit by a truck loaded with bombs, be hit by an airplane loaded with fuel, be blown apart mid air on board an airplane or simply be shot at point blank range.

A weapon in the hands of a wrong person is a sure recipe for disaster. So does the manipulative actions of some individuals who wants to push an agenda and turn them against the world.They have done it in the past and will continue to do so in the future.  One can watch it only helplessly, that is only if you are lucky enough to be alive.

The outgoing prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's farewell letter to the world leaders

As he prepares to demit office,  prime minister  Manmohan Singh wrote farewell letters to leaders of various countries including US president Barrack Obama, former Chinese premier Wen Jiabao, and Russian Prime minister Vladimir Putin.

Here is a hilarious look at what he might have written to them.

Dear fellow leaders,

It is with mixed feelings  I am writing this letter to you as May 16^th 2014 marks my last day in the prime minister’s office of the largest democracy in the world, India.

I had  never aspired to be a prime minister. My strength always lies in economics. In 1991 Narasimha Raoji inducted me in the cabinet as finance minister to rescue India from a severe economic crisis. I was quite contented with my role then. In 2004 Soniaji unexpectedly relinquished the prime ministership, I became an accidental prime minister. Sanjay Baru even wrote a book by this title. Then everything went south. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Little did I realize that I was a cover for the dramas about to unfold.

I have always been regarded as a man of clean background. Moreover I have been lauded “as a man of few words” . I took these as compliments. Then came the greatest shock in 2012, when Time magazine’s Asian edition cover remarked me as an “underachiever”. I have been accused as  a person “unwilling to stick his neck out”. Those remarks hurt to me to the core. My public image has been tarnished with my government having been accused of various corruption scandals for which I was a silent witness. I have been termed as a puppet of a powerful political family.

Friends,  my silences and unwillingness to project myself became more manifest in my second tenure and I would like you to know that I kept a low profile only because I didn’t want to rise above Soniaji.  

Looking back, I regret that I didn’t stand firm enough to fight corruption, didn’t stand opposed to micromanagement of Gandhi family for leadership was never my forte. I am extremely worried about the future course of my party which especially lacks leadership and a front runner for the prime ministership.

Finally, I can say this with confidence that there will never be a prime minister in India with such an elaborate list of paper qualifications that I possess.

I wish you all good luck.

Singh is King.

Is the upcoming Indian parliament election a game changer or a mockery of the democratic process?

The stage is set for the biggest democratic electoral process in the world where approximately 814.5 million Indians out of a population of over a billion people will exercise their democratic right in the coming months. According to the center for media studies the political parties are expected to spend 30,500 crores ($ 5 billion) in this election.  In addition this election will also cost the exchequer 3500 crores ($573 million). As you can see the cost of democracy is enormous.

While the political bigwigs Congress and BJP are in the lead, neither of them appear to achieve the majority to form the goverment. Which means that a coalition government will take oath once again with the support of regional parties. In return the plum offers these regional parties are likely to receive is another matter for debate.

It happens only in India. Little seems to have changed with major political parties continuing to partronize candidates with criminal records. Both Congress and BJP continue to give tickets to candidates with serious criminal records including murder.

A surprise entry in the upcoming parliament election is the AAP (Aam Atmi Party)  projected as the common man’s party.  Holding a broom which symbolizes a promise to clean up corruption deeply rooted in Indian politics, AAP appears to make their presence felt in the Indian politics under the leadership of Mr. Arvind Kejriwal.  A number of eminent people who have been fed up with the existing political parties now have a choice and a good reason to enter politics and make an impact.

While Narendra Modi of BJP is potentially the next Prime minister if BJP takes center stage with the support of National democratic alliance, it is debatable as to whether Modi can replicate across India the success he made in his home state Gujarat given the fact that a prime minister has limitation especially under a coalition government. In a coalition goverment it is hard to always please the allies as they remain a permanent pain in the neck. Being a hardliner, whether Modi will be able to please the allies through out his 5 years term is another matter of concern.

The curse of India is the countless regional parties who are opportunistic and tend to change their position in a split second if their demands are not met.  The writings are on the wall. The deep divide between regions inherent in our political system is clearly evident thanks to the various political parties. Whoever takes on the power to steer India has a huge challenge ahead.

What does it all mean to a billion population?  There are many questions to be answered. Will the new government be able to provide sustainable and inclusive (benefiting everyone across India without discrimination) growth? Will they be able to put control on inflation? Etc etc..

The biggest democratic electoral system has its own flaws.  People have very limited choice in terms of who they want to handover the power to. No matter which party comes to power, a corruption free India is a distant dream or will remain a mirage.

Well, don’t lose heart. If you are not happy with any of the projected candidates, the election commission has bestowed you with an unprecedented option to vote NOTA (None of the above).  Meaning that no candidate deserves my vote and in all likely hood many who are fed up with the existing political system will choose to go for that option. Post election, the upcoming parties like the AAP may very well capitalize the statistics of the NOTAs so that they can position themselves better to exploit the gaps going forward.  Is the option NOTA going to change anything for the winning candidate? Probably very little. The candidate who gets the highest vote still wins despite the significant drop in the candidate’s vote banks.

The fate of India and its biggest population are sealed even before the election. With no credible political parties in the race, you and I can do very little about it by the voting process. Isn't that frustrating? Well as depressing as it may sound, that doesn’t give much hope for the progress of India. Does it? God bless the Indians.

Why is it that road to spirituality leads nowhere?

“Let me tell you why you’re here. You’re here because you know something. What you know you can’t explain, but you feel it. You’ve felt it your entire life, that there’s something wrong with the world. You don’t know what it is, but it’s there, like a splinter in your mind …”

~ Morpheus, in ‘The Matrix’

Seeking spirituality is a fruitless effort these days. With a spate of reports of fake spiritual leaders emerging regularly, spirituality seekers are very confused and are left with little options.

There is a old saying that ‘take control of your life or someone else will’.  Following blindly any form of movements, be it spiritual or political or any other groups for that matter is a sure recipe for disaster. For ages people have blindly followed spiritual gurus seeking content and liberation. Scores of people have relinquished everything they had and joined spiritual movements many of those later turned out to be fakes. Yet people have not learned any lessons and end up like flies being attracted by bright lights and being torched by the heat emitting from the lights. I have never been able to figure out the complexities of people’s minds which lead them to choose those paths.

By and large, no holy person sets out to become a fake guru. All those self professed spiritual leaders possess some form of skills such as mastery in religious books from their very young ages which will enable them to spread the knowledge they have gained. Coupled with their uncanny ability to convince people with their tender love and care converting the ordinary men/women to become their disciples is not an easy task. The question is how many of the gurus can handle their newly found fame and wealth and use them for humanitarian causes. Do they practice what they preach? In spite of the claim of celibacy and abstinent living, there are wide spread reports of sexual abuse, orgies, prostitution, drug abuse and money laundering. To many disciples, these very people are the closest they can ever get to god’s presence. How ironic can it be?

Digging a bit deeper into wikipedia, Hinduism identifies four ways of spiritual practice. First is the way of knowledge, second is the way of devotion, third is the way of works and fourth is the way of contemplation and meditation.

Learning the way of knowledge is often assisted by a guru. Way of devotion is a path of faith and devotion to deities; the spiritual path  includes chanting, singing and music. The way of work is the path of one’s work, where diligent practical work becomes in itself a spiritual practice, and work in daily life is perfected as a form of spiritual liberation and not for its material rewards. Lastly, way of contemplation and meditation is the path of cultivating necessary virtues, self-discipline, meditation, contemplation and self-reflection sometimes with isolation and renunciation of the world, to a pinnacle state called samadhi. This state of samādhi has been compared to peak experience.

Indeed the guidance of a spiritual leader is paramount to learning the ways to these spiritual practices.

Every religion preaches that spirituality is the constant search for the sacred. It is a pity that the spiritual leaders who are supposed to teach their disciples attain peak mental health instead manipulate and deceive.  

We have to keep in mind that all truth passes through three different stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second it is violently opposed and third it is accepted as being self evident.

Did I say tolerance is another virtue of human beings?