Fast Forward Anna Hazare Way : Some Crystal Ball Gazing

A poser before getting down to details…. Did TN Seshan require any enhanced Powers for Election Commissioner to do what he did ? In fact suddenly people found that he had too much powers and it was diluted by having a panel of three members instead of all powers being vested on just one person. … Continue reading “Fast Forward Anna Hazare Way : Some Crystal Ball Gazing”

A poser before getting down to details….


Did TN Seshan require any enhanced Powers for Election Commissioner to do what he did ?
In fact suddenly people found that he had too much powers and it was diluted by having a panel of three members instead of all powers being vested on just one person. Do we lack laws or just the will to enforce the laws ?

Anna wave is as strong as ever and at the time of writing this Anna Hazare has given the clarion call for the second freedom struggle.

So for he has been getting his way, thanks to low credibility of the Govt and the huge wave of public sentiments. There is no sign of the wave abating and we may safely assume that he will continue to get what he wants.

So far, the Govt has agreed to his demands, in deference to the public sentiments and just to keep anna Hazare alive. Govt has agreed to :-
  • co-opt civil society members in drafting the bill
  • let anna hazare protest  mostly on his own terms
Further along the road, with similar tactics:-
  • He will coerce the govt to table his version of the bill in the parliament.
  • Coerce the parliament to pass the bill (Bill or my life ?!)
 Anna hazare and his team will claim a great victory and go home. Public will be jubilant.

Then the Act will become effective and it it is time for people entrusted with the job of implementing to have good hard look at the various clauses.


I am cynical, but this cynicism  is not unfounded. Till the time there is a change of hearts, change of value system, what can mere laws do ? Why is it that we routinely see vehicles jumping traffic lights ? Why is it we see people travelling ticket less on trains ? Why is tax evasion not considered a serious issue ? This is a land of speed breakers not sign postings. I hope some Anna Hazare can change that.

The political parties will look for ways and means to fix their adversaries through this new found weapon. There will be intense lobbying at all levels for being part of the Lokpal or on the right side of lokpal, the new power centre.

Janta will continue to bribe their way through, particularly when making unreasonable or illegal demands. Simplest example is  jumping the queue for anything from a  gas cylinder to college admission. (It is the shortage of gas resulting in corruption, not lack of laws). 


This new law may create another layer of absolute power. It may create a Frankenstein monster. If that happens who will take responsibility ? Not the Govt ? Not the parliament ? As for Anna Hazare, will he repeat his moves this time to amend the law ? Very doubtful.

There is no dearth of unresolved conflicts in our great country. Delhi Police will receive a bunch of applications from Telengana movement, Hurriyat, VHP, etc to follow the footsteps of anna hazare and get their agenda through. Everyone of these movements will whip up public sentiments locally if not at Delhi. Smaller communities / states like Manipur will be left high and dry , after all democracy works on the will of the majority.

As Ambedkar said while introducing the Constitution in November 1949, once the Constitution came into force, we should avoid all non-constitutional methods like protests and satyagraha, for they are the grammar of anarchy. If two persons go on fasts until death for two opposing reasons, we cannot decide the issue by allowing one person to die first.
Yes, Anarchy it is… it all seems so nightmarish. If I am awake I want to go back to sleep and If I am asleep , it is time I woke up.

Public Servants and Public Sentiments

    These days sentiments are running high and it is very fashionable to say ‘I am with Anna Hazare’ or ‘I am anna’ . Even media persons suggest that the Govt should take cognizance of the public sentiments. Taking cognizance is desirable but taking actions in line with these sentiments can be disastrous.     Public … Continue reading “Public Servants and Public Sentiments”

    These days sentiments are running high and it is very fashionable to say ‘I am with Anna Hazare’ or ‘I am anna’ . Even media persons suggest that the Govt should take cognizance of the public sentiments. Taking cognizance is desirable but taking actions in line with these sentiments can be disastrous.

    Public servants should never be swayed by the prevailing Public Sentiments. Here’s an example from History.

    In May 1948, Nathuram Godse was tried , for murder of Mahatma Gandhi. The assassin was not a member of the mafia but was some one who had many things in common with the mahatma. He was well read, he was patriotic, his motive was selfless and he was idealistic. Only difference was that he did not believe in the absolute ahimsa. He believed that any one on the wrong side of dharma should be fought, as In Gita , Lord Krishna himself motivated Arjuna to kill the reverred Bhishma for being on the wrong side of Dharma …!!!!

    So Godse gave a long deposition in the court on his motives for his actions. He quoted extensively from the scriptures to justify every action of his.


    The speech had its effects on the small gathering in the court.



    Justice Khosla, who was a member of the jury, wrote after his retirement:



‘There was a deep silence when he ceased speaking. Many women were in tears and men coughing and searching for their handkerchiefs… I have no doubt that had the audience of the day been constituted into a jury and entrusted with the task of deciding Godse’s appeal, they would have brought in a verdict of ‘not guilty’ by an overwhelming majority.”


    And the place was not Pune but Shimla; far away from the birthplace or stronghold of RSS or Hindu Mahasabha.

     Godse did not have the benefit of a public trial, Media, Facebook or Twitter. Had he had all these, it was quite possible that the sentiments in the court could have spilled over to cover the entire country, and the then Govt would been in a tight spot.

    In the actual course of events, Godse was sentenced to death and hanged . Among those calling for commutation of the death sentence for the defendants were Jawaharlal Nehru, as well as Gandhi’s two sons, who felt that the two men on trial were pawns of RSS higher-ups, and in any case, executing their father’s killers would dishonour his memory and legacy which included a staunch opposition to the death penalty.

    There was no place for sentiments and the law of the land prevailed.

    This is not a defence of Godse,, just an example to show that Govt, The Police and Judges have to act in consonance with the law of the land, not in line with the prevailing public sentiments.

Women, Work and Identity

I have always wondered how the gen-next is going to handle the issues of family , work and gender-equality. About 25 years back, women still had an honorable, socially acceptable designation as ‘housewife’ or home maker’.  Today, even if they call it ‘CEO , Home Inc”, there would be no takers for the title.    … Continue reading “Women, Work and Identity”

I have always wondered how the gen-next is going to handle the issues of family , work and gender-equality. About 25 years back, women still had an honorable, socially acceptable designation as ‘housewife’ or home maker’.  Today, even if they call it ‘CEO , Home Inc”, there would be no takers for the title. 

    
       Women do need an identity, outside their home, just as men have always needed. Even in my 32nd year of service, I can’t say enough is enough. I keep hearing  “What do you plan to do for a second career. ?”
        Read a book, ‘When Work Doesn’t Work Anymore’ by Elizabeth Perle Mckenna. This book was written in 1997, but is just right for the social scenario in India today. It is about a successful career woman, who after 20 years of relentless pursuit of success on ‘man’s terms’ realizes there was  something missing in her life despite achieving everyone of  the goals she set for herself in personal and professional sphere. She still liked her work alright, had what she calls ‘rock solid marriage’; yet this was not what she had thought her life would be like.
 

Just as the title is, there are a number of interesting one-liners  to describe the situation of women today.  

 
Some examples:

 

“ women soon realized, going to work involved having to work” 
 
“without the privileges or good financial rewards, work was just that – work.”
 
“ and worse, women are faulting themselves for not being enough of what they don’t even want to be”
 
“she has arrived at what she calls her ‘something gotta give period’ which means either her career or her personal life is going to get smaller for the good of the other”
 
     The author narrates the stories of women with similar predicaments, to illustrate each point she makes. Then there is a liberal dose of Gloria Steinem (GS) Quotes to add weight to her case.
 
        Today, women have entered every field, well, almost every field, and have tasted success in every field they have ventured into. But after, working for 20-30 years, in a man’s world , playing by the rules set by men, there is a kind of emptiness. There is a  perceived sense of failure, which is best expressed in the words of  GS, ” If you meet a woman who’s doing wonderfully well professionally, doing great creative things and is completely happy with her work, but does not have the personal life she thinks she should have, she may think she is a failure. Men are the reverse. They can have great personal lives, and think they are failures if they don’t have the job success they think they are supposed to have.”
 
      Another GS Quote from the book ‘ The working world remains a place built for men with full time wives to take care of the rest of the life’. In the present times men are also equally handicapped to succeed in such a working world. Talking of full time wives, the Indian scene is indeed quite confusing. There are housewives/home makers, ladies and  working women who may be categorized as full time wives, part-time wives or of any shade in a broad spectrum.
 
      Years ago, I saw a hand bill  inviting ‘housewives, working women, and ladies ‘ to join a computer training course. After some deliberation, I translated ‘housewives, working women and ladies’ to mean ‘women who work only at home, women who could work also at home and women who wouldn’t work even at home’
 

         The last category is possible in India , thanks to affordable domestic help. That is where the ‘CEO, Home Inc.’ steps in.


Recently I read an Indian version of similar ideas in HT http://www.hindustantimes.com/Kamla-comes-home/Article1-719214.aspx

        The book is a good read for any woman looking to balance work life and personal life. Another quote from GS ” I still get young women in audiences, asking,’How can I combine career and family?’ I always tell them, ‘you can’t until men are asking that question too ‘.” Well, men  will start asking such questions , if only they are allowed to go easy on their work life, by the society, family and themselves.
 
     For whatever reason, men haven’t made much progress in work-family balance. At best you have the cooperative husband who is prepared to put up with cold dinners or even no dinner, cheerfully. Don’t expect him to cook or wash for the whole family. On the other side is the prickly type (no pun intended) who simply cannot accept any situation where the woman is not at home.
         Let’s say, one has decided on how much to give to one’s career, still there is a need to decide the time line. There are two schools of thought; one is to first establish yourself in your work place and then raise a family. The other is to take a break, complete your family and then get back to the rat race .

           Unfortunately, a woman’s most productive years coincide with her reproductive years as well. Oh God ! isn’t there any easy decisions at all in life?

Tamil Resources on the net

           There was a time, when it was so difficult to locate a Tamil book , dating back beyond 50  years; after all no publisher wants to be stuck with unsellable stock. Once, with great difficulty, I found a compilation of Aathichudi, Konraivendhan etc, published by New Century Book House. Only … Continue reading “Tamil Resources on the net”

           There was a time, when it was so difficult to locate a Tamil book , dating back beyond 50  years; after all no publisher wants to be stuck with unsellable stock. Once, with great difficulty, I found a compilation of Aathichudi, Konraivendhan etc, published by New Century Book House. Only the communists would bring out books on “No profits, only losses ‘ basis.
          Today, it is the other way around, more ancient the work, easier it is to locate; courtesy ‘the internet’. E-books are available, for free and freely on all works of Avvaiyaar, Thiruvalluvar, Bharathiyaar, or for that matter, Kaniyan Poongunranaar. Thank God, Thiruvalluvar and his like didn’t copyright their works. Even books by Kalki, Naa Parthasartahi, Pudhumaipithhan , Thi.Janakiraman , Jayakanthan and Sujaatha are available; and I believe there are no copyrights issues on books downloadable from these sites.
           It is the Srilankan Tamils who have been most active in the cyber-world. May be they fiercely cling to the Tamil virtual world as their ‘real world ‘ has always been under seize, particularly so since the Jaffna Library went up in flames. Seeing the happenings in Srilanka, the Virual World is all that will be left. It was sad to see, literally the last post of tamilnation.org. LTTE or no LTTE; this site had one of the best contents on Thirukkural.
Some of the popular sites, to name a few, are, Project Madurai Chaennailibrary, Noolagam, Thamizham.net,, Viruba, and Tamilcube.net.
I had a mind to collect all Tamil resources and sort them into, E-books, Blogs, magazines and so on. But I realized that the resources are so vast and that there are so many blogs dedicated to compiling of these resources. Links to some of these blogs are:-


Denial of the Soul

  A disclosure to begin with; Dr Peck has been one of my favourite authors, (a psychologist /philosopher /motivator ), I tend to agree with most of his ideas (not a good thing for independent thinking). Moreover, having been through “Road less traveled”, “Further along Road less traveled” and Road less traveled and beyond”, most … Continue reading “Denial of the Soul”

 

A disclosure to begin with; Dr Peck has been one of my favourite authors, (a psychologist /philosopher /motivator ), I tend to agree with most of his ideas (not a good thing for independent thinking). Moreover, having been through “Road less traveled”, “Further along Road less traveled” and Road less traveled and beyond”, most of the anecdotes and case histories are so familiar.

           The title reminds you of of CG Jung’s “Modern man in search of a soul” It is always exciting when Physics, Metaphysic, Psychology and Parapsychology meet, like in “Tao of Physics”

            The book covers the medical and spiritual aspects of Euthanasia and mortality. During our lifetime, we inevitably have to endure physical suffering such as pain, sickness, injury, tiredness, old age, and eventually death; and we have to endure psychological suffering like sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment, and depression.
           It starts with an analysis of physical pain. There is good pain and bad pain , short term pain and chronic pain and there are gradations in severity of pain. After all the first step to relieve pain is to study pain. Here, we are introduced to the concept of palliative care and hospice, which focus on pain management rather than cure.  While physical pain is more talked about, it is the emotional pain that Dr Peck considers more relevant to the issue of Euthanasia.

There are many ideas which wouldn’t go well with the scientific fraternity; I quote,

           “The question is not merely “what is the name of the disease ? but whether the disorder is purely biological or purely psychological or a mixture of the two. If it is a mixture, which is the case as often as not, what are its proportions ? 50-50, 90-10 , or 10-90 ?Social and spiritual factors must be considered. I could argue that almost all diseases are bio-psycho-socio-spiritual disorders”

(Doctors are obsessed with disease and disorders… A corollary to the above statement implies that well being means ‘physical, mental, social and spiritual well being)

      After Physical and Emotional pain , the author goes on to Social and Spiritual aspects of Euthanasia. There is a chapter on Secularism. While Indian secularism implies going to every place of worship, the American secularism, stays away from all religions.
        Some of the terms discussed are ‘pulling the plug’, ‘double effect’, (relieving pain by increasing the dosage of painkiller, while risking speedy progression of the disease) , ‘Physician assisted suicide’, ‘passive euthanasia’, and ‘right to death on demand’.
      The author is not against Euthanasia,but against playing ‘God’. He is just apprehensive about two things in particular; firstly, the inconsistent nature of medical cover in US and secondly, the rampant secularism. Specifically he is concerned about a number of things like not debating enough about euthanasia, leaving out the spiritual aspects in the discussions, and finally letting the economic aspects decide framing of laws, since it is the Insurance companies which are most affected by any law on Euthanasia.
       He concludes that, in the absence of widespread debate on the issue, the nation might be mislead. It is likely that legal experts, medical experts and insurance companies who are averse to take into consideration any spiritual and emotional aspects, decide the fate of patients who, by and large believe in some kind of God.

Everything discussed in the book is morbid and it definitely jolts you, and yet it leaves you with a clearer and lighter frame of mind, in the end.

Three Slips and a Gully

Three slips and a gully , a silly mid on and a forward short leg ; that is test match for you. I am writing this when the Ist test at Lords between England and India is nicely poised on the start of the Final day. Not evenly poised,but yet interesting; the question is can … Continue reading “Three Slips and a Gully”

Three slips and a gully , a silly mid on and a forward short leg ; that is test match for you. I am writing this when the Ist test at Lords between England and India is nicely poised on the start of the Final day. Not evenly poised,but yet interesting; the question is can India save the test . The beauty of test cricket is that you can thoroughly enjoy a game even if it doesn’t produce a result. After all, it is only fair that a well contested match ends with equal honours shared by both contestants.
In ODI and 20-20, it is all a question of chances (that is why the cliche ‘on its day any team can beat any other team’). The bowler bowls from wicket to wicket, somehow hoping that the ball crosses the stumps without contacting the bat. The batsman shuffles all over the crease and takes a mighty swing hoping that he somehow  makes  contact with the ball and then he hopes that he is neither caught nor run out. The crowd keeps baying for fours and sixes or wickets as the case may be.
What is cricket if a bowler is not keen to take wickets and a batsman is not keen to keep his wicket ?

In a test match the bowler just attacks. He is prepared to go for runs as long he has the last laugh and a batsman is prepared to bide his time and wait for the bad ball to score. Nothing is left to chance.

It is sad to see the lone slip in the shorter versions of the game. How nice to see the slip cordon for fast bowler or the close in fielders for a spinner.


The crowd at test cricket is small but well informed. I recall the lines from “The Hindu” (Vijay Lokpally, I think),” A typical Chennai spectator has curd rice in his tiffin box and Wisden on his finger tips and is ever prepared to appreciate a good ball or a good hit irrespective of whether it produced any runs or wickets.”

Viva Test Cricket !

As always the better format has less takers, in any part of the world, in any field; like books Vs movies, classical music Vs popular music, filter coffee Vs instant coffee, and finally Linux Vs Windows . Thathastu. So be it .

Down the memory lane

  Attended the Golden Jubilee function of My School. The School has everything a 50 years old Public School should have. A great infrastructure – sprawling campus with nice foot ball fields, hockey, Basket ball and tennis courts, swimming pool and riding school………You can see a great mix of modernism and traditionalism and a blend … Continue reading “Down the memory lane”

 

Attended the Golden Jubilee function of My School. The School has everything a 50 years old Public School should have. A great infrastructure – sprawling campus with nice foot ball fields, hockey, Basket ball and tennis courts, swimming pool and riding school………You can see a great mix of modernism and traditionalism and a blend of spanking new buildings and blocks as old as the hills in the background. It has among its alumni, top brass from the defense services, bureaucrats, top professionals and corporate heads.

 

            A number of retired teachers in their 70s and 80s could be seen with clusters of ex-students around each.           The only thing perhaps lacking was ‘alumni from different generations, in the same family’; that I feel is the true hall-mark of a great institution.

 

             Amaravathinagar came into being because of the dam over River Amravathi, and is now known all over the country because of the Sainik School.
          Everywhere, you could see boisterous back-slapping, laughter and light-hearted leg pulling. meeting after a long time, there were flashes of inputs on present and future, but mostly it was about past, past and past….. of memories sweet, salty and silly……

 

            Boys will be boys… you could sense an attempt to break away from the present and get back to the care free days…in a way it was the best of the both worlds, spending money like men yet behaving like school boys ! “
             If inanimate objects like tuning forks and pendulums can respond to a set frequency, what of the highly evolved human minds? Well, you could sense some kind resonance to a common frequency.
              My object of attending the function was mainly to meet my schoolmates, some of them I was meeting after 36 years or more.

 

             There were emotions, sentiments, the simple joy of being together, sharing a feeling of camaraderie, and I could see the look on some faces, “hi, I didn’t know it would be such fun !

 

          Of course, there was an odd discordant note; some bitter memories did creep in. Some of us did hurt one another during our stay at the school, and some of us did carry our grudges home.It is always easier to meet than to depart gracefully.

 

      It is never too late to drop these extra baggages, and this was a great occassion to do so, drop them exactly where we picked it up from.

Now for some narcism

The Great Indian Divide

One advantage (or misfortune) of going over news items online is that you get to read the comments from readers even before the news has been digested fully. I suspect that there are readers who read only to comment. The comments bring out the Schism in the society. In most cases, the news report or … Continue reading “The Great Indian Divide”

One advantage (or misfortune) of going over news items online is that you get to read the comments from readers even before the news has been digested fully. I suspect that there are readers who read only to comment.
The comments bring out the Schism in the society. In most cases, the news report or the incident itself has nothing to do with the accusations and counter accusations.
From today’s news on rail accident…………….

————————————————————————
kapil narang (new delhi)
2 hrs ago (03:56 PM)
The anti hindu forces of West bengal and Tamil Nadu are creating a wave of mess in the nation .
————————————————————————
Bannerjee (kolkata) replies to kapil narang
1 hr ago (05:06 PM)
Hindi speaking uncultured, uneducated politicians from cow belt (except nitish kumar and JDU )are creating trouble in the country.Lalu, Mulayam ,Maya ,Rahul Gandhi, Digvijay etc. And not to forget Punjabies -MMS ,Kapil Sibal,Manish tiwary.
————————————————————————-

I remember a particular story,”Army officer’s wife chargsheeted for drunken driving” . Well there were comments on women, mothers, army, The rich, Upper castes, and even on religion. There are fancy names like indian, trueindian, lucifer, kaliyug, and so on. One guy declares that “women are good for nothing…” another wonders how come the victim had 5 children even though he was a hindu. There is not a word about the legal issues or on how to avoid road accidents.

We are divided, and divided very badly and it just needs any kind of trigger for the fissures to show.

The only hope perhaps is that the different axes along which the nation is divided keeps changing so rapidly, there is a sense of unity like the one we see on Republic day parade. Of course the media plays a great part in ensuring that the public memory is not just short but momentary.

Gates of Fire

Read a book Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield, a historical novel based on the battle of Thermopylae. It is a nice mix of fact and fiction , the drama just enough to smoothen the rough edges and to add a little spice to a simple battle report. Of course the victors write the history … Continue reading “Gates of Fire”

Read a book Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield, a historical novel based on the battle of Thermopylae. It is a nice mix of fact and fiction , the drama just enough to smoothen the rough edges and to add a little spice to a simple battle report.

Of course the victors write the history and it would be worth remembering the words of Mark Twain

“The very ink with which all history is written is merely fluid prejudice.”

Though over 2500 years have passed since, the Spartan culture , governed by the laws of Lycurgus continues to inspire and influence military minds, particularly the spartan way of training for war.

The story is narrated in the words of a low ranking person in the Spartan society helot / Squire. It reminds me of another great book on written by a German private , one of the best books I have read on World War – II, “A Forgotten Soldier” by Guy Sager .These books paint a broad brush on the macro events while concentrating on the innermost emotional experiences of soldiers during war and what soldiers call minor tactics or battle craft.

The language used is not scholarly but simple narrative style. Even a profound statement is reduced to simple words. During a lull in the battle a non Spartan tells the Spartans , “I now realize that all the drill and discipline you Spartans love to pound into each other’s skulls were really not to inculcate skill or art, but only to produce this glue that bind a unit together”

” Only to produce this glue”; The words ring true even today. In military academies they talk of camaraderie, team spirit and bonding which are nothing but the quantity and quality of ‘this glue’. At least in infantry battles it this ‘glue’ which decides the outcome, even in the 21st century.