CAT in recession

Ladies and Ladas

What we have here is a historic event.
Trend has been broken.
Odds are better this year.

Read Here

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VelaSwami

AIDS is a mass murderer

VelaSwami

er..That birth is Reserved!!!

TAP TAP!!TAP TAP!!…A strong smell of jasmine filled my nasal cavity as my shoulder was poked back into consciousness. She spoke in a foreign tongue, was 6 times my size and I could tell she wasn’t happy about something by the way she was vigorously shaking her hands and pointing at something. ‘Ladies!’ she said. I obliged and found myself seated 3 rows behind her.

TAP TAP!!TAP TAP!!.. ‘Not again!’ I thought to myself as I looked up to find a big burly man, again seemingly angrily, pointing at something! ‘SC/ST’ it said. Once again I obliged. 15 minutes and ‘O(ther)BCs’ , ‘E(conomically)BCs, ‘S(ocially)BCs’, ‘N(ot)R(eally)BCs’, ‘P(roud2be)BCs’ and ‘ W(anna)BCs’ later I found myself crammed in a minuscule standing area with a ‘Gazillion’ other unlucky souls staring at the sign ‘GENERAL’!!

As I looked at the comfortably seated BCs..er..Backward Classes I though to myself ‘What makes them more deserving of that berth than me?their birth?!!!’

Ofcourse things weren’t always like this. Reservation was started keeping very noble ideals in mind!..Make everyone equal. Its ironic how we intend to make People Equal by telling them that They’re Not!!!

What is worse is that policymakers are threatening to legislate this practice into private institutions and boardrooms!Manmohan Singh stressing on the need for reservation in Private Sector companies and some obscure American senator(pardon my ignorance) suggesting reservation in the boardroom for Women. Yes! That’s right..Give every Man a reason to question every Woman Executives abilities and success by saying ‘She’s only here cause she’s a woman!’..WOW!What a way to deal with Gender Bias…er..NOT!!!

Homeward Bound (back to India i mean). Now you have to know that Something Somewhere is wrong with your policy if people are fighting to be called Backward?! (Gujjar agitation anyone?)..So we’re trying to reduce the number of ‘Backward People’ by increasing the Number of People we call ‘Backward’?!!..*Clap Clap*

Rajasthan (after adding 5% quota for the Gujjars) has now reached a figure of 68% reservation. But it still comes 2nd to Tamil Nadu with its 69% reservation that is applicable to an astounding 87% of the population!!!So we are giving rights to some people by taking them away from others?

Now don’t get me wrong! I’m not 100% against reservation. But it should be restricted to tickets (Not election tickets!) and educational institutions (only for people who cannot genuinely afford them..strain out the Creamy Layer!!!). That’s right! I don’t believe caste based reservation should be needed in the Government! If you’re telling me that after SIXTY TWO years of independence we haven’t been able to sensitize our population…

Well then the only thing Backward….is the way in which we are headed!!!

Courtesy –> Harbinger

Hy-pre-Active!!!

We live in fast times. Things happen faster. We want them to happen faster. ’30 minutes nai to free’. Some come to us way before we actually deserve them(not the pizza)..Try fame for example.Or before they are ready(could be the pizza..but NO)

Thanks to media hype/PR/simply knowing the people who know the people who know the right people. We’re seeing a new phenomenon..A breed called the Hype(e)-go-Lucky!
While there is seemingly no pejorative touch the term, there are some problems.
Individuals/Organizations who become too big too fast are unlikey to succeed in the long run because – the ‘big’ness is built on a foundation of Hype. They find it hard to sustain after the intial buzz!Or Sometimes, we(the people) change our minds. Just ask the Backstreet Boys!!

Exhibit A – Barack Obama!!

A 48 year old man, with no significant political achievements became the first black president of the united states. Be that as it may, he already has more titles published about him than the Clinton Couple despite their far richer political experience. Most Indian politicians are lucky to have a single book written about them!

While he was busy achieving Iconic Status some remained skeptical. And rightly so.
For the mandate he commanded one would have expected him to come out roaring YES WE CAN!Instead, it’s a little louder than a whimper. His bailout plan is far from potent. Just ask Mr.Paul Krugman. His HealthCare plan is likely to come out a cropper by the time the Centrists and Right Wingers are done with it! No significant changes in Iraq/Afghanistan either.

Somehow the Charisma on the basis of which he won the election doesnt seem enough at the moment!

Is he worth his salt? So far not so good Mr.President.

Exhibit B – Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Captain Courageous and King Midas rolled into one! Or so they say. Taking nothing away from the achievements of the Indian Cricket Team. We have to remember that hes leading a side that he inherited, a-la Ricky Ponting of Australia. Mahi’s (I despise that name..but thats just me :P) real test as a leader is yet to come! But we have still promoted him to Demi-God status. His fan following, according to some publications, is comparable to that of Sachin Tendulkar. That is an insult to the Great Man.
Why? HYPE! He already has the most number of lucrative ad contracts(thats why most people play cricket anyway ;))

Media generates the Hype. We lap it up!
Hold it right there!Convenient!Blame the media!

Q)Why do they create and sell us this Hype?
Ans) Look into a Mirror!Yes you..The One with the puzzled look!…and without it too!

Here clutter, there clutter everywhere clutter clutter!! We’re spoilt for choice and constantly seek new avenues to break the monotony. In a bid to catch our attention. ‘Products'(quality unassured) are packaged attractively, sometimes deceptively and thrust onto us to get their 15 Seconds of Fame!We buy it! Most recede into oblivion after this..Shiney uh..who?ja?

We move from ‘flavour’ to ‘flavour’ because variety is the spice of life!!!Now, its just a slice of life!
Every other day something new promises to Hit our world with a Bang. More often than not. It hits the Earth with a Thud!!!

Courtesy -> Harbinger

Prateek Waghre

Hindustan

Indian!

Rediff & the Stupid Mail Law

I cam across this article while surfing randomly. Its about how we’re being goverened by age old laws which havent been amended after the scenarios they look after, no longer hold true…

http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=261674

 

-Adi

The Dream Job

He got it all right!!

The Dream Job

Posted using ShareThis
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VelaSwami

Intoxicated by Possibility?!

“More than a year back four guys found an idea that they crazily fell in love with. They thought, they talked and they failed. But these folks believed in happy endings. So they took it from there, picked themselves up and started the process again- they thought, they talked and this time they are on their way. Destination is a long way away, but the journey has began nevertheless.”

Keerthi Kiran said this on YOFA; which brought them to GrassRoutes

to those of you whom it means something, check out

Web – Grassroutes

Blog – grassroutes blog

Updates on twitter –@grassroutes

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VelaSwami

Jagoo. And Jagaao!

Jagoo Re! One Billion Votes is not just a movement, it is a destination! One that we’ll reach when every citizen of India registers and exercises the right to vote. It is a wakeup call for the billion people of this country to unite and bring about a change. A change in the quality of governance, which can only happen with active participation through voting and electing quality leaders.

And the youth will lead this change! We have the potential to make a difference, what was missing till now was an enabling platform. This is that platform. Here is where you can empower yourselves to take action.

Jaago re! One Billion Votes uses a unique integration of the internet and mobile technologies to make registering to vote online a possibility. It also serves as a one-stop-shop solution to all your voting needs. Not just that, it gives you the opportunity to run your own voter registration drive and be a part of the movement to get the entire country registered!

Using the internet as the key medium, it facilitates voter registrations, increases awareness about voting rules and procedures, provides periodic checks on electoral rolls, and acts as the source of election related news and much more.

The journey begins with the launch of this service to 35 of India’s largest cities. It’s a start to get the nation to register and vote for the upcoming general elections in 2009.

Jaago re! It’s about time.

Why should you join Jaago re! One Billion votes? There are a billion reasons why you should, but in the interest of your time and mine, let me break it down into the following:
	You can register to vote online.
	You can get free, personlized voter registration assistance.
	You’ll also get regular email and sms updates on your registration status, elections and campaign related news.
	You can track your voter registation drive when you get your friends to register to vote.
	You get an opportunity to volunteer and lead the voter registraion effort in your city.

Visit today. Visit now.

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VelaSwami

US messed it up

Two very good articles explaining the Sub-prime crisis and the consequences

http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/sep/26bcrisis5.htm

http://www.rediff.com/money/lehman.html

-Aditya Raghuwanshi