When the world is running down..

It's the 9/11 anniversary today and here's some news that caught my attention this week:

Missing train traced after 17 days in Bihar http://ibnlive.in.com/news/missing-train-traced-after-17-days-in-bihar/498280-3-232.html

This has to be a joke of some kind. And, its not even a train-jacking. The train driver decided in his own wisdom to do what he did and no one noticed. Wow!

Govt mulls removing slum dwellers near Mumbai airport on terror risks
Read more at: http://www.livemint.com/Politics/lzJay5DzcXMQVzUqHxmsSK/Govt-mulls-to-remove-slum-dwellers-near-Mumbai-airport-on-te.html?utm_source=copy

Mulls? what is mulls? This has to be the scariest international airport in the world when it comes to a potential terror assault. Unless all international airlines collectively decide to boycott this airport they are put the planes and passengers to risk. Successive Governments in the State allowed the slums around the airport to create their own vote banks. Slum lords collect tons of money from the shanties and these very slum lords report to one politician or the other. The real slumdog millionaires This mulling will continue unless the government's hand is forced quickly. Until then, do write out your will each time you decide to fly in or out of Mumbai airport. Hopefully once cleared the land will not become the source of another big scam. Or - has the scam already happened? Which brings me to the next headline:

Manmohan Singh knew of 2G scam as it unfolded, ex-CAG Vinod Rai says
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Manmohan-Singh-knew-of-2G-scam-as-it-unfolded-ex-CAG-Vinod-Rai-says/articleshow/42298357.cms

Looks like our ex PM will pay for silence and inaction irrespective of his involvement as his knowledge of scams is as good as aiding and abetting.

Kashmir Floods: As Tempers Flare, Some Army Vehicles Pelted With Stones in Srinagar

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/kashmir-floods-as-tempers-flare-some-army-vehicles-pelted-with-stones-in-srinagar-589617?curl=1410498712

A paradise called Kashmir is devastated. Probably worse is the fact that most people do not have any form of insurance because of being politically educated that they are not a part of India. In the past army atrocities have been made headline news. But, let's be fair, India as a Nation allows both good and bad news reach the people. In the last few days; it's this very army - so hated by the Kashmiris that has gone on a war footing rescue plan. Many soldiers have lost their lives saving the locals because for a soldier it does not matter if the person hates him or not; he has to do his duty. Cannot blame the people either - for they are angry at their own loss and are venting against that very system that is trying to help them. 

In Delhi; the Congress is annoyed with its own heavyweight members praising the PM on his fast and direct action in the Kashmir matter and the latest being that many seniors within the Party are supportive of the BJP forming a minority government in the State of Delhi. 

Well, the news from other parts of the world are not very happy ones either. The Scots are giving the English a storm in the tea cup; while the mid east is brewing in its own problem too being made worse by the US President making news of escalating its presence in the region to combat the IS regime. East Europe may be seeing signs of tensions easing but its still a fragile situation; 

The world is truly running down and when it is I remember a song by Sting which said:

When the world is running down
You make the best of what's still around

SMART SHITTIES

Wow! India has a plan to create a 100 new Smart Cities in the new future. I am not about to get into a debate on the wisdom behind creation of the same or the allocated budgets etc. In the first place -

What are smart cities?
There’s no simple definition for smart cities. The term encompasses a vision of an urban space that is ecologically friendly, technologically integrated and meticulously planned, with a particular reliance on the use of information technology to improve efficiency.
According to the Smart Cities Council, all the data that is collected from sensors – electricity, gas, water, traffic and other government analytics – is carefully compiled and integrated into a smart grid and then fed into computers that can focus on making the city as efficient as possible.


Great, but are there enough smart people to occupy them? Let's take a helicopter view of the existing Indian cities and what do we see:

1. Footpaths - meant for encroachment by street vendors and politicians. Cars and pedestrians have to use the same road along with cattle.

2. Public Toilets - first it is said there are not enough of them; but where there are, they are not used enough. Typical reasons - why pay a small fee when you can defecate on the streets for free. Or, the energy spent walking to one is greater than the energy being released so no point walking to one. Or, India is a democracy and one can do whatever one wants anywhere and if you try to stop me then be ready to hear "don't you know who I am?".

 In reality even civic minded people resist using one as they are ill maintained and stink. Not just the ones that are open to the common public but even those that have restricted access like the ones at airports, stations. Guess Indians by and large are not well potty trained - even those who have access to such facilities right in their very home. If you don't believe me, try using a loo in the aircraft flying within or out of India. Now these users surely are supposedly smart, educated and of means. Trust me, within 5 minutes of the seat belt sign going off the loos are unserviceable.

3. Street sanitation - In continuation to the above, it's just not about the shitty business but even disposal of trash. How many times have you seen the window of a fancy car going down and a bottle, tissue, can, or some piece of trash being disposed on the road? How many people clean up the crap their pets relieve on the roads? How many times have you seen a cop spitting out something foul (in addition to expletives) to paint the streets red despite them being the guardians of the city?

4. Road manners - Breaking traffic lights; changing lanes to gain a few miserable yards; speeding like it's a F1 race in Monaco; incessant honking when no one is even in front; jaywalking; walking (Driving) and talking (without paying attention to the road); the list can go on and on. It's reached a point where road rage has become a daily event. I am sure you must have witnessed an emergency vehicle trying to wade through traffic where they are denied right of way. (It's a different matter that the drivers misuse the power of the sirens and beacons - but in a true emergency lives can and are lost because of such insensitivities).

5. Utilities and safety - perennially dug up roads by some utility agency or the other (let's leave out badly made roads for the moment); lack of assured uninterrupted water and electricity despite the higher and higher utility charges; majority of police reduced to acting as private security guards for the privileged; lack of proper and working safety equipment to protect against emergencies in public buildings. Abuse of public transport - ticketless travel; defacing and destroying vehicles; theft of parts. I can go on.

So; the weakest link in the chain pursuing an efficient City are the people themselves. What's the point of smart cities where people decide to play dumb? Will we not then end up with Smart Shitties unless we change? I certainly hope we do change for the better as quality of life is not just measured by the creation of wealth but by the environment we live in.

Konichiwa Modi-san

Anata ga shushō Modisan to shite 100-nichi o kanryō omedetōgozaimasu.

Oops! sorry - the translation - "Congratulations on your completing 100 days as Prime Minister Mr. Modi". Well I got carried away with the new Indo-Japo bhai-bhai sentiment that the PM is expressing by talking, eating, dreaming, praying in Japanese. It will indeed be fab for India to attract Non US - Non Euro capital to it to build the Nation's infrastructure and upgrade its manufacturing base. It would be a win-win for Japan as well for a range of strategic reasons - economics being just one of them. 

Our ex brothers across the border (China - remember the Indo-Chini bhai bhai era?) are not too happy with this new brotherhood for a whole lot of strategic reasons and yes economics is just one little part of it. The PM will have to reassure the dragon that India has adopted Chinese food as its own just like half of China has taken to Bollywood style dancing. There is a lot riding on that relationship as well; and if there is realization that India makes a better brother than the one it has aligned with - better would it be for world security. 

So while all these international affairs are taking place, the mood at home is not that celebratory from the common Man's point of view. Food inflation is at its highest and that really hurts. The increase in GDP reduction in CAD and other such statistics fall apart when you talk to the man on the street trying to make ends meet to provide food on his table. On the other hand, those (a large minority) unaffected by food inflation are finding their investments inflated by the rising market do have a restrained smile on their faces. I guess the choice is hard; but the common man will have to wait. Creating an environment of investment stability and growth to attract money from across the globe will take precedence over many domestic issues. All the fires cannot be extinguished at once. 

It is quite noticeable that the PM is largely unnoticeable in the news when he is in the Country. It's good to let action speak for themselves and the PM is playing his cards like an experienced poker player. His trusted lieutenants are doing all the talking - some good - some bad; yet everyone can sense that its Modi talk that they can hear in the background. It is a one man show for now; and like proven by Indira Gandhi before - it works well in a nation like India. With the rain and oil Gods showering some of their grace on the PM; his next 100 days may offer a better report card - specially when India enters the phase of festivities - there will be real reasons for celebrating. 

Elephant dance and dead bodies.

Last evening I was invited by my bankers to hear three prominent persons (one American and two Indians) from the financial world on the state of the global and Indian economy to educate me on how to invest in times to come.

If I understood any of it correctly then we are all clones of Nero in a burning Rome. Very scary indeed. He is not the first person from the West saying that there is an economic cancer that is corroding the insides of the so called stable developed nations in the West. And yet; the growth centred money making emerging markets are perceived as "high Risk" by them. Worse, the emerging markets actually buy that story and invest in those perceived "safe havens" that are hiding not dirt but dead bodies under a carpet of pristine white. It's like putting money into a pool of no return when the actual strategy would be to invest and strengthen the economies of the emerging markets. I guess The BRICS bank is a first step in that direction and maybe creating a common trading (but not national) currency would be a long but necessary second step to wean away from the deadly dollar and erratic euro. The Unfortunate part is that politically and ideologically the BRICS are totally divided on the face of it, even though each of them has a common goal economically.

Well, I guess 5 is less than 30. Yes, I mean the number that exemplifies the Divided States of India. After 67 years of Independence we are still Maharashtrians, Gujaratis, Tamilians, Punjabis, and so on; but not Indians. I will not dive into this zone for now but Indians need to be Indians first to allow India to find itself as a rightful leader on the world stage.

Back to the subject; the talk of the elephant (India) waking up and breaking into a graceful dance of economic revival was taken up by the other two speakers. One; a US$ 30 billion fund manager and known to be an eternal optimist; the other not too far behind in money he manages but a confirmed conservative. Being equity gurus, the bias was very clear and I discounted much of it as marketing rather than market talk. But, what I could make out of what they both said is that India certainly needs to spend money on infrastructure if it wants to create more jobs and become a manufacturing base. It has a large population but much of it is unskilled and inefficient. It's also a land of low change high impact which means that a small economic swing positive or negative impacts overall growth drastically in monetary terms. And so, the elephant can dance; but it has to be watchful of all the dead bodies all around as they can rise up like ghouls and scare the shit of the elephant; in which case the dance will trample a whole lot more of what has been created.

So, what do simple folks like us do. Nothing much - just enjoy the party I suppose and pray that the ride on the elephant is not too jerky to throw up.

Holiday

Wanting to do something silly and adventurous this year; I signed up to attend my Kuwaiti School reunion. Now why is that silly and adventurous? To begin with, it was being held on a lesser known and small island in Greece; and the only thread connecting me to the other participants was that we all went to the same school. I recognized a few names as batchmates - but really - knew none of them as friends. I was uncomfortable with the fact that I, an Indian would stick out as a sore thumb between a collection of Arabs and Europeans who had a longer connection to the Mid East than I. Language, culture, and many other excuses made me think that I had done a very stupid thing by paying up the non refundable deposit.

It turns out that the eight days spent with them will probably join the list of the best days of my life. By the second day none of the fears I had stood ground and Greece made the entire experience heavenly. When I left Greece, my heart was heavy - as if parting with my extended family. We are all the same under our skin - humans. I wonder what fears or prejudices prevented me to make an effort to know these people while I was at school? It does not matter now - it was like going back in time and setting the past right. In doing so I learnt a lot of things about myself and I am feeling so good about it.

At the cost of sounding like the Greece Tourism Board; I must have had the best Kebabs in Athens; eaten some of the freshest fruits, vegetables and seafood; seen some spectacular sites both historical and natural; and met with some of the friendliest locals on earth. Greece, is probably 25% cheaper than the rest of Europe and I did not mind spending my hard earned converted Rupees on shopping either. It's on my must visit again list for sure. I am quite sure that Greece was the home for the Gods on earth.

It was great to switch off from the world. Despite great WIFI (free) connectivity almost everywhere (hotels, restaurants, cafes, shops) - I decided to keep away from absorbing any form of news - electronic or print. The newspapers were all Greek to me anyway. I could have been Nero fiddling while the world was burning; but that is what a holiday is supposed to be - right? Time to let go of everything so that the focus returns on the self? Is it a selfish thought? Honestly - I don't know nor do I care. We owe ourselves some time to reconnect to all that really matters to us. There is no guilt in enjoying life.

Now... bye.... got to plan my next holiday.

5 paise is more important than Rs 5 billion

I applaud the principle under the which the Delhi Transport Corporation dismissed the services of a bus conductor back in 1973. Supposedly shortchanging DTC by an amount of 5paise; not because he did it once but was a serial offender. The Court ordered the Conductor to pay back Rs. 1.42 to DTC as original shortchanged amount +  accumulated interest for 41 years. Yes that's the time it has taken to reach a conclusion. DTC's annual loss is Rs 10 billion; just to put the award amount in perspective.

I can draw 2 morals from the story. First, it does not matter how long it takes; but justice will be served and delivered. Second, if you are going to scam in India; better make sure its in billions cause the time it will take for the law to deliver justice may well be past the time you may have been granted by your creator on mother Earth.

Mad Cows, Mobiles, Video Games, Solar Flares and Supernature.

The thought of reading the newspaper each morning is getting more and more unappealing by the day. I think that the people on the 100 day happiness regime would have a happy day if they just stopped reading the unhappy headlines. There is really no news that would make one's morning a real "Good Morning".

I tried to think of the possible causes that is driving this insane behaviour from mankind. Could it be the food we are eating? Industrial poultry and cattle; if I can use that term, is being fed sawdust, poop (faeces), steroids; and other such wonderful things. Nature's intended vegetarians have been force fed non-veg fodder which at times includes remains of their own species. Is that why our brains have become like mush; full of shit; immune and insensitive to the point of sucking blood (figuratively) of our own species?  Well the vegetarians amongst us must feel safe; but with genetically modified food grown on chemical fertilizers and pesticides, insanity must be creeping in there as well. I am ready to go on a diet; but which one? Even water is not natural anymore. Food for thought; will anyone listen?

Listening; do we actually listen? We talk, and talk a lot. We want everyone to hear our words - be it vocal or written. To achieve this we have this wonderful machine called the mobile phone that not only conveys our voice but words too - never mind the grammar. I learnt that the best way to punish someone today is to take away that person's phone; trust me, that person will beg for forgiveness in under a minute. Is all this yottahertz of radio waves in our atmosphere overriding or short circuiting our own brainwaves to cause this irrational behaviour? Come to think of it, these lyrics come to my mind:

"Too much information running through my brain

Too much information driving me insane" 

Yes, these were sung by a band called the Police. 

Police reminds me of this game called "Grand Theft Auto" or GTA for short; the highest grossing game in the world. And what does one do in this game - steal, kill, shoot; basically be bad and be called the hero. There is a clear shift in morality where the hero is not necessarily the good guy - be it games or movies and is this fact shifting to real life? Is it shaping out violent and destructive individuals for whom "Breaking Bad" is good? There is a visible and increasing expression of rage for n number of reasons - be it inconvenience on road to being spurned by a lover. The most insignificant of an issue otherwise can cause a flash that can put a solar flare to shame. 

Aaah! maybe there is a scientific correlation there then. Could a phenomenon like a solar flare be responsible for the events happening here on mother earth? Or then it's Mother Nature's own way of fighting back for survival by inciting the most intelligent and destructive of its resident species annihilate itself? I can easily add a few more quack theories to explain the situation. But; in short, let's just say we are happily playing and plotting our own end. 

The theories above and I may sound a bit mad like Rev. Malthus - the proverbial prophet of doom. Maybe; but; is not what happening around us daily inexplicable madness? At least I, certainly cannot explain it.  

By the way - the song "Supernature" released back in 1977 had some pretty prophetic lyrics. 

Once upon a time science opened up the door
We would feed the hungry fields till they couldn't eat no more
But the potions that we made touched the creatures down below, oh
And they grew up in the way that we'd never seen before.

They were angry with the man 'cause he changed their way of life
And they take their sweet revenge, as they trample through the night
For a hundred miles or more you can hear the people cry
But there's nothin' you can do even God is on their side

How can I explain, things are different today
Darkness all around and nobody makes a sound
Such a sad affair, no one seems to care

Supernature, better watch out
Look at you now, better watch out
Look at you now, supernature

Better watch out, there's no way to stop it now
You can't escape, it's too late
Look what you've done, there's no place that you can run
The monster's made, we must pay

Maybe nature has a plan to control the ways of man
He must start from scratch again many battles he must win
Till he earns his place on earth like the other creatures do
Will there be a happy end, now that all depends on you

Read more: Cerrone - Supernature Lyrics | MetroLyrics