Hindu Dharma Newsletter, Issue # 17
6th Aug ‘06 Issue # 17
Dear Friends, Namaskar…
This issue has been delayed beyond any reasonable limit…solely because of the numerous other things I was involved with. Thank you to everyone for continuing to encourage me and for your kind words. This is what keeps it going.
In the last two months, I moved my blog to WordPress (mainly because of its Categories feature and Search ability). Some of you may have noticed that the categories closely resemble the knowledge base categorization that I had proposed. So this is a modest step to keep that effort alive.
Late in June, I wrote an article on how China was becoming India’s new “Blind Spot”. The article was published on IndiaCause and also Sulekha. Those of you who have an interest in foreign policy would enjoy reading it. I have made the case for why we should be very very wary of China and how the two countries are almost inevitably going to end on opposite sides in a few years’ time. Some of you would also like to read this article on China’s stance towards Sikkim and a related post on the newly inaugurated railway line to Tibet.
The blasts in Mumbai in July were once again a grim reminder of the times we live in, Those prompted two articles: Blasts? What Blasts?…Yeh to hota hi rahta hai… and The nonsense about the “spirit of Mumbai”…
Later on in that month, I came across this interview of Sir V S Naipaul which was very thought provoking. He has spoken eloquently about the spirit of fatalism that seems to pervade our culture. A must read. And here is a deeply sarcastic article by Milind Thatte, titled “I love Islam”. I share his anger.
We are all aware of the slant of western media when it comes to reporting on India or India-related matters (it actually extends to reporting on everything outside the confines of the developed world). Two separate pieces underlined this slant. The first is an excellent piece by Ashutosh Sheshabalaya on Sify, titled Indian Navy gatecrashes Brtisih Beirut fiesta. The second comments on the BBC’s bias in reporting the contents of Tony Blair’s recent speech in US where he explicitly referred to (and included) Kashmir being part of the worldwide Islamic terror movement – momentous, you would have thought – but the BBC completely ignored it.
A few days ago, I came across this picture of our Honourable Railway Minister Shri Lalu Yadav sitting calmly apparently even as the National Anthem is being played in the background. I am not sure of the veracity and the context of the picture and if it is indeed the national anthem that is being played – but if it is the case, this would signal new depths have been plumbed in shamelessness.
I read this in a post on Yahoo! Groups on reservations. It is a response by Shri Narayan Murthy (InfoSys) on reservations – one of the sanest (and wisest) statement that I have read on this issue: (responding to a question by a student)
“Why cant today in 2006, Indian government take a step of opening up all reservation and making India again so powerful so that we can come up and compete in the world in a better way?”
NRNM answered: “First of all we must all accept that this society has been unfair to a large section for 4000-5000 years. There is no question at all that that has to be addressed. But the way to address is not to say that “We will bring in reservation at the institutes of higher learning”.First we have to provide World class primary and secondary education so that the disadvantaged children can become better. They can become competition worthy. In fact my suggestion is this that we have to provide breakfast, lunch and dinner for all these children so that they have good nutrition. Of course there should be no corruption People should not eat money in this and you know that is unfortunately the experience in India. Once you give good nutrition to these children, once you put good teachers in our primary and secondary schools, once you give focus on these children a little bit more, have extra classes if necessary, make sure that their text books are given free. Do that and you will make them as good as anybody else. Unfortunately, we have failed in doing this.”
I am putting my money where my mouth is. I have just donated to the Ekal Vidyalaya initiative. Please join me in supporting their noble cause.
Dhanyawaad and Jai Hind, Shantanu
jai.dharmaATgmail.com
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