Reflections

Brahma Chellaney : Article in The Hindu on Islamic Terror "This ignored the lesson from Afghanistan (where the CIA in the 1980s ran, via Pakistan, the largest covert operation in its history) — that inciting jihad and arming “holy warriors” creates a deadly cocktail, with far-reaching and long-lasting impacts on international security. The Reagan administration openly used Islam as an ideological tool to spur armed resistance to Soviet forces in Afghanistan In 1985, at a White House ceremony in honour of several Afghan mujahideen — the jihadists out of which al-Qaeda evolved — President Ronald Reagan declared, “These gentlemen are the moral equivalent of America’s Founding Fathers.” Earlier in 1982, Reagan dedicated the space shuttle ‘Columbia’ to the Afghan resistance. He declared, “Just as the Columbia, we think, represents man’s finest aspirations in the field of science and technology, so too does the struggle of the Afghan people represent man’s highest aspirations

Do We, As A People, Have Our Priorities Right? This seems, at first glance, a strange - if not outright stupid - question to  ask. Especially considering that we together have just voted out a Government that hadn't covered itself in glory. With the way events are seemingly coming together into a whole, an undivided and clear whole with a clear direction, giving the nation renewed hope and vigour, and driving up sentiment in nearly every sector that we care to examine; any question of misplaced priorities seems far-fetched at best, and pessimistic thinking at worst.  I do not deny that the steps taken by this Government have been, by and large, excellent and welcome, despite a few worries here and there. We seem to have in place a much better Government than the previous one, for which we should be thankful. Credit where credit is due. This article does not intend to cast any aspersions on the Government at the center. The point is not the Government; it is we, the people

The 12th Article in the Culture Series As I noted in my previous post on this ,  Marathi Article : Pull Of The Mother Tongue , "It is still early days - but technology is working its wonderful way in more ways than one..." The advent of various channels of communication, technological platforms and solutions, like Gaana, Hungama, Youtube, Nokia Music, Television Channels, Mobiles, Bluetooth, affordable memory cards etc   alongwith easy availability data connectivity at decent speeds is leading to people outside the native cultural spectrum to experiment with their culture and its nuances, arts and music. This is driving a reverse trend, with an increasing number of people coming back to the Mother Tongue, an interesting backlash to the increasing westernisation of our society.  This : is how my experimentation started; A friend introduced me to a song on his mobile that stunned me, brought tears to my eyes; bluetooth ensured I got a copy of the same on my mobile;  T

It is rare indeed when a political leader truly connects with the masses; it is rarer still when he both connects with, and rips into the masses and their habits, holding them singularly responsible for a number of habits... This is what Shri Narendra Modi achieved on the 15th of August 2014 from the ramparts of The Red Fort, New Delhi... At the outset, let me concede that I was extremely lucky on 2 counts : first, I happened to read the speech before I listened to it; and two - I was extremely lucky to see this day with my eyes, and listen to it with my ears. Not because of what some people say - "Vande Mataram, Hindi Speech etc"; but because of some other reasons that I shall detail in this post. I started listening to it on youtube,, but stopped midway - around 14:00 - when the sheer power of his skills in oration began clouding by ability to judge. Our PM is a truly magical persona, indeed... proud to be Indian at this moment... I subsequently listen to the enti

THE KARACHI DECEPTION : SHATRUJEET NATH THE PLOT The Karachi Deception is based on a seemingly simple plot to "take  care" of India's most wanted man, a certain runaway gangster and terrorist going by the name of Irshad Dilawar. Dilawar is being serenaded with some glee by our next door neighbour and enemy Pakistan, which makes the "take care" bit a more than slightly demanding operation. An Army General and an intelligence honcho come together to craft the aptly-named Project Abhimanyu; not only that, they manage to convince a vacillating Government that this needs to be done, and it can be done. The Instructions are crystal clear : "Dont Do It. Permission Denied. What I dont Know Wont Hurt Me." Well, The General and The Honcho sadly {or happily, depending upon your POV} catch onto the last sentence, and consider it excellent actionable advice... and thus starts the saga of the Karachi Deception... 3 commandos are selected to carry o

The Date : Today - The 5th Of August, 2014 Place 1 : Kalyan Railway Station, Foot Overboard 8:10 AM Place 2 : Kalyan Railway Station, Snack Counter 3:30 PM Place 3 : Kalyan Railway Station, Auto Line 18:30 PM These are the thoughts that flow through my head on some occasions when I see a beggar {not always, to be frank}. It may seem disjointed, but these are the thoughts that have streamed through my brain yet again today... as always, I document these thoughts in "The Curse Of Poverty Series". This is the 4th Article in this series. It was just another day for me; just another day. It was just another day when I was rushing to catch my local train to my office; as is usual in Mumbai, it was rush time, raining hard - and there was a genuine fear that if I miss my local it meant being late by a considerable period, given the possibility of stoppage and cancellations - or delays. I was {unusually for me} almost running, when I was halted in my tracks.  An ol