I've decided to get rid of all kinds of garbage in all forms in 2011. Actually, I started this process long ago,and would like to complete it this year.
What do I mean by garbage? Well, this is what piles up in an alarming way around us every day in our modern life. It blocks,threatens,intimidates, stifles and chokes us. The most dreaded enemy you should guard yourself against right now.
Some examples of garbage: TV reality shows, most print media, books by politicians, Facebook, current Hollywood flicks, MMO blogs, sponsored medical seminars, medical representatives, Nitin Gadgiri,Biman Bose, Manmohan Singh.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Ashok Mitra interview
With so much of poverty and destitution, a billionaire has the audacity to build a house worth Rs 5,000 crore when half the population of Mumbai lives in jhopad pattis. This is what economic liberalisation has brought about.
Ashok Mitra, well-known economist and writer, is interviewed in the Outlook Magazine. . Former Bengal finance minister is still as harsh and fascinating as ever.
Ashok Mitra, well-known economist and writer, is interviewed in the Outlook Magazine. . Former Bengal finance minister is still as harsh and fascinating as ever.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Dr Binayak Sen Sentence: Raipur judge B.P.Varma under fire
Savagery is unbelievable
Statement by top academics and public intellectuals condemning the life sentence handed down by a Raipur sessions judge to Binayak Sen:
We are deeply shocked by the judgement of a Chhatisgarh court holding the human rights activist Binayak Sen to be guilty of sedition, and sentencing him to life imprisonment. Sen never resorted to violence against any other person, never incited anyone else to resort to violence, never entered into any conspiracy against the Constitutional order of the country, and never entered into regular service of any organisation that was involved in any such conspiracy for furhering its cause. On the contrary, as a doctor he served the people with devotion and helped to save many lives; as a human rights activist he stood up in defence of the rights of the downtrodden. And yet he has been handed down this sentence whose savagery is unbelievable.
Such an action on the part of the State in the name of preserving the constitutional order will only serve to undermine that Constitutional order itself. It will inevitably raise the thought in the minds of many that an order within which the activities of a person like Sen can be held to be seditious is not worth defending.
Such an impression must be be avoided. The damage done by this shocking verdict to our Constitutional order must be undone. The higher judiciary of the country must hear his appeal expeditiously, must grant him bail till the end of the appeal process, and must judge his cae with enlighened reason.
(Among the signatories are Prabhat Patnaik, JNU, Noam Chomsky, MIT,Amiya Kumar Bagchi, Institute of Development Studies, Romila Thapar, JNU,Vina Majumdar, Rajeev Bhargava, Centre for Study o Developing Societies, Akeel Bilgrami, Columbia University, Partha Chaterjee and Joya Hasan, JNU
Statement by top academics and public intellectuals condemning the life sentence handed down by a Raipur sessions judge to Binayak Sen:
We are deeply shocked by the judgement of a Chhatisgarh court holding the human rights activist Binayak Sen to be guilty of sedition, and sentencing him to life imprisonment. Sen never resorted to violence against any other person, never incited anyone else to resort to violence, never entered into any conspiracy against the Constitutional order of the country, and never entered into regular service of any organisation that was involved in any such conspiracy for furhering its cause. On the contrary, as a doctor he served the people with devotion and helped to save many lives; as a human rights activist he stood up in defence of the rights of the downtrodden. And yet he has been handed down this sentence whose savagery is unbelievable.
Such an action on the part of the State in the name of preserving the constitutional order will only serve to undermine that Constitutional order itself. It will inevitably raise the thought in the minds of many that an order within which the activities of a person like Sen can be held to be seditious is not worth defending.
Such an impression must be be avoided. The damage done by this shocking verdict to our Constitutional order must be undone. The higher judiciary of the country must hear his appeal expeditiously, must grant him bail till the end of the appeal process, and must judge his cae with enlighened reason.
(Among the signatories are Prabhat Patnaik, JNU, Noam Chomsky, MIT,Amiya Kumar Bagchi, Institute of Development Studies, Romila Thapar, JNU,Vina Majumdar, Rajeev Bhargava, Centre for Study o Developing Societies, Akeel Bilgrami, Columbia University, Partha Chaterjee and Joya Hasan, JNU
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Bengal's Macabre Politics
So, cadaver is the new game in Bengal politics.
In these hot and violent days before the crucial Assembly election, nothing is more welcome to the ruling CPI(M) and its rival Trinamul Congress Party than a fresh cadaver, preferably of a young man. Each of these parties parade its own cadaver to whip up the emotion of the public in its favour.
It's not exactly a new trend in the state. Bodies of party members have long been a rallying point for the political parties. Only recentlly they get a new dimension.
Just imagine this scenario: a huge procession of people carrying party flags on the city's main road with a body laid down on a van in its midst and well-known party leaders pulling mournful faces to show to the electronic media.
But it's not really a moving sight. You may have pity for the hapless soul, but what engulfs you in the end is a wave of repulsion and disgust. Is it the new face of civilization? Is this the attitude of our leaders about someone killed or dead?
On december 17, West Bengal Chief minister put a wreath on the body of Swapan Koley who was killed in his college campus fight. And it was followed by a well-attended march with the body. Three days later, Trinamul replied in kind by pulling in a corpse - that of 27-year-old Sanatan Hembram - from farway Lalgarh to take around the city.
Poor Swapan Koley! Poor Sanatan Hembram! Their parties literally used and exploited them till the end of their funeral journey.
So much for the tastes, culture and behaviour of the two parties that now dominate Bengal.
Unfortunately for the people, they would have to choose, in the coming election, one of these two parties. There is no third option in our Indian democracy.
In these hot and violent days before the crucial Assembly election, nothing is more welcome to the ruling CPI(M) and its rival Trinamul Congress Party than a fresh cadaver, preferably of a young man. Each of these parties parade its own cadaver to whip up the emotion of the public in its favour.
It's not exactly a new trend in the state. Bodies of party members have long been a rallying point for the political parties. Only recentlly they get a new dimension.
Just imagine this scenario: a huge procession of people carrying party flags on the city's main road with a body laid down on a van in its midst and well-known party leaders pulling mournful faces to show to the electronic media.
But it's not really a moving sight. You may have pity for the hapless soul, but what engulfs you in the end is a wave of repulsion and disgust. Is it the new face of civilization? Is this the attitude of our leaders about someone killed or dead?
On december 17, West Bengal Chief minister put a wreath on the body of Swapan Koley who was killed in his college campus fight. And it was followed by a well-attended march with the body. Three days later, Trinamul replied in kind by pulling in a corpse - that of 27-year-old Sanatan Hembram - from farway Lalgarh to take around the city.
Poor Swapan Koley! Poor Sanatan Hembram! Their parties literally used and exploited them till the end of their funeral journey.
So much for the tastes, culture and behaviour of the two parties that now dominate Bengal.
Unfortunately for the people, they would have to choose, in the coming election, one of these two parties. There is no third option in our Indian democracy.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
How do you describe Julian Assange?
I've begun to like Julian Assange, but have a problem with him. I can't exactly describe him. I've thought various labels for him: messiah of speech freedom, anarchist who relishes the discomfort of the powers that be, poster-boy of web-journalism seeking transparency in behavours of super-powers. Assange is practically each of these things separately, and all of these put together.
It's an astounding feat for any individual to take on a state, and US at that. I don't see anything wrong in his exposure of US military's atrocities on civilians in Iraq. Nor is there morally any wrong-doing in the revelation that the rulers of Saudi Arab like to drink and party hard. Assange's exposure wakes us up to the truths around us. And who but the badass politicians and rulers would not like it?
It was a foretold assumption that Assange would ultimately be gagged.So he's in jail now for some absurd crime (having sex with a broken condom!)
Is Assange doomed? No, never. He's actually going to be a winner. He has already quite successfully demonstrated how the powerful behaves when it confronts a true whistle-blower. He has more things to offer to the human corpus.
It's an astounding feat for any individual to take on a state, and US at that. I don't see anything wrong in his exposure of US military's atrocities on civilians in Iraq. Nor is there morally any wrong-doing in the revelation that the rulers of Saudi Arab like to drink and party hard. Assange's exposure wakes us up to the truths around us. And who but the badass politicians and rulers would not like it?
It was a foretold assumption that Assange would ultimately be gagged.So he's in jail now for some absurd crime (having sex with a broken condom!)
Is Assange doomed? No, never. He's actually going to be a winner. He has already quite successfully demonstrated how the powerful behaves when it confronts a true whistle-blower. He has more things to offer to the human corpus.
Saturday, December 04, 2010
Anish Kapoor, the artist
In the Hindustan Times,Sumati Mehrishi writes an interesting profile ( sorry, no link,perhaps not available online)of Anish Kapoor, the artist. I like what Kapoor says about being an artist:
Being an artist is a complicated job. I am really interested in knowing how I need to grow. I am interested in knowing how to be free as a person, as an artist. Of course one is full of prejudice and full of ' this I can do and that I can't do.' You have to be free of yourself to be really doing anything properly. Do anything really. That's the only way to keep alive creatively.
Being an artist is a complicated job. I am really interested in knowing how I need to grow. I am interested in knowing how to be free as a person, as an artist. Of course one is full of prejudice and full of ' this I can do and that I can't do.' You have to be free of yourself to be really doing anything properly. Do anything really. That's the only way to keep alive creatively.
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