Stowaway!

Hi! My name is Alladdin. I am a cute cocker spaniel. I live in Chennai, India. I have gorgeous, glossy black, floppy ears, a long snout, a docked tail and beautiful black and white fur. I am told that I have a perpetually mournful expression, but I am anything but mournful. I am a happy-go-lucky dog with a great temperament. I love the people I live with. It is only sometimes that I feel sorry for myself. At those times, I am awash with self-pity and feel like I am being treated like a dog in this house.

Who says that dogs don't have goals? I have a list. First on my list is to get inside a closed bedroom door. I can stand and whine outside a shut door for hours until I am let inside. Once inside, I will climb onto my mistress's lap and nuzzle until I am petted and feted. Then and only then will I flop onto the cool mosaic floor and take a nap.

Second goal by priority on my list is to eat. I can eat anything. And I can do anything for a morsel - jump, not jump, roll on my back, sit still... you name it.

My third goal is to race my mistress to wherever she happens to be going. For instance, if she plans to go up the stairs, I can race her to the top without stopping to worry that I may trip her up. So what if she is a spoilsport and decides not to ascend the stairs after all because I win the race every time? I can race her to the bottom of the staircase too!

My most important and top secret goal is to stowaway in the car when my mistress plans to go for a ride. I have mastered the art of stowing myself in the car every time she decides to go out without me. While she carelessly keeps the car door open and continues to talk with the watchman, I can slink inside in the blink of an eye.

All I then need to do is hide on the floorboard, close my eyes so I cannot see her until the car starts off. By the time she notices me, I am already in and its too late! There can be no turning back, can there? I have tried this multiple times and though I manage to get into the car each time, she somehow manages to catch me stowing away before the ship leaves and gets me to disembark every time. That doesn't stop me from trying this every time she goes out.

My hero is Abraham Lincoln. I have heard that he tried and tried and tried to become President of America and failed many times until he finally won. I'll finally win at this too! There will be a time when she won't notice me until the car has started and I'll be on my way!

Here is a picture of me in the car, camouflaged in the grey floorboards, my eyes half shut so no one can see me! Wish me luck in my achieving my most important goal.

Yours truly,
Alladdin

Charity begins at home

My tryst with the 3 Rs was no different from what many Indian school children undergo. Reading, 'Riting and 'Rithmatic was rote learning. The rote didn't do much harm: I consider myself reasonably well read, reasonably able to write and reasonably able to add 2 and 2.

The rote, however, left some lasting impressions on my mind. Predominantly, it left some sayings seared in my memory.

As a 7 year old, I remember that stern looking teacher in a starched white sari, hair tightly wrapped in a bun, ordering us to learn 100 sayings "by-heart" over the weekend and come prepared to recite them on Monday. I remember spending hot Sunday afternoons, hastily reciting them aloud over and over, so I could escape the lashes on my open palm from the skinny, excrutiatingly painful cane on Monday.

Of all those hundreds of sayings that I learned "by-heart", the first one springs to mind with explosive force when I read about the hullabaloo being created by the Congressional Budget Office, the private health care insurers, the sundry uninformed junta and the republicans about the cost of the GREAT HEALTH CARE REFORM proposed by the Obama administration.

It was called, "Charity begins at home!"

And I FINALLY understand what that means. What it means is something similar to the Airline lifejacket rules: If you have a child or an elder sitting beside you, first place your own lifejacket and take care of yourself in the event of a disaster, before you help the child or the elderly. There is a good reason for this: if you become disabled, you cannot help anyone, so help yourself first. Before you give to Charity, first ensure that your plate is full.

And this is exactly what we, as Americans have failed to do. No one, not one senator or congressman really, truly, opposed the Bank Bailout or what is really the beautifully disguised Great American Transfer of Wealth. There were no rallying cries about cost and debt. Public opinion didn't matter. They gave to "charity".

No one really opposed Bush's built-on-sand war on Iraq that cost and still continues to cost us a big chunk of change.

No one opposed Bush's tax cuts for the rich that cost us and continue to cost us a bomb. There were no stentorian shouts of injustice, unfairness or unlevel playing fields.They gave to "charity".

But wait, when it's Charity for home

- When it is money for the Stimulus bill to help the unemployed who have been at the receiving end of the Banks deceit that brought the economy crashing?

- When there's talk about universal health care for everyone in the richest country in the world?

THEN, it's time to shout about debt, deficit, spending and cost.

When will we learn that Charity SHOULD first begin at home?

Ayan - Tamil movie review

I run a company called "Dash of Masala" and frequently have people ask me what "masala" means. I generally struggle to explain the meaning of this ubiquitous and uniquely Indian word, just because it is so pervasively used in India, not just to signify that perfect blend of spices that whet your appetite and add piquancy to your dish, but also to signify any kind of perfect, finely-honed blend.

And "masala" is the word that sprang to mind when I watched "Ayan" the tamil movie, last night. Why? Because it was the perfect entertainer. I am one of those people who prefer movies that are light, fun and exotic. I am also one of those people who love to watch beautiful people dressed in clothes that cannot be carried off by the hoi-polloi, prancing to throbbing music, beating up bad guys and becoming good by the end of the movie. So, by definition, I am a masala movie fan. And the movie "Ayan" was all that and more!

Take a large dollop of two extremely beautiful, young, vibrant, gorgeous, drool-worthy specimens of humanity. Saute that in a story line of drug lords, African diamonds, movie piracy, diamond smuggling, international travel, customs officers and a gory murder. Add a large cup of a steamy love affair, a back-stabbing brother-in-law, a huge lover's tiff, a big misunderstanding, and a wonderful making up. Stir fry for about 3 hours. Add a garnish of a couple of sentimental scenes with a widowed, doting mother. And you got it! A masala movie!

Surya, as the hero, is the ultimate droolable male. Beautiful, with greek god chiseled features, gorgeously muscle bound, 6 pack abs, and wonderful emoting abilities, he commands the screen. Tamanna is his lissome love interest, she of the pouting lips, creamy skin, large doe-like eyes and a slender, curvaceous figure. Her role is that of a playful, flippant young college going girl, who is very sure of her beauty and her appeal. All other protangonists are a foil for this beautiful pair - you cannot take your eyes off the screen when either one or both appear.

No Indian movie is complete without the song and dance sequences. And this one has it in abundance: fabulous music, hip-shaking gyrations, gorgeous costumes, lots of supporting dancers, opulent scene settings, and above all, the Indian male's dream - the heroine wearing the floating chiffon saris complete with beautifully cut backless blouses.

The scenes set in Congo were simply breathtaking with rugged landscapes, undulating deserts and vast rocky mountains.

Ok, now to cut to the chase: here is the story in all of one paragraph: Hero is a bad man who smuggles diamonds, indulges in movie piracy but has a good mom (Oh, glorious womanhood!), meets heroine, falls in love, dances with her, fights with her, makes up with her and then suddenly switches sides to help the cops catch a rival thug. So, he becomes a good guy and his mom asks the cop who worked with the hero to help her son become a good guy. So he becomes a good guy and makes his mom happy. End of story. :)

Rating: 5 stars, if you like easy-on-the-eye actors, glorious settings, fabulous dances, fantastic costumes, lots of fights, hot chases, and a forgettable story line.

If you are a girl, go see it for Surya's glistening muscle-bound hot bod.

If you are guy, go see it for the curvy cute Tamanna's beautiful pouty smile.

Controlling the Alaskan Predators

Sarah Palin's defense for Alaska's aerial hunting of wolves, was succinct and in her mind, very convincing. In her words: "Alaskans depend on wildlife for food and cultural practices which can't be sustained when predators (?) are allowed to decimate moose and caribou populations." This statement was made, in spite of the fact that aerial wolf hunting in Alaska remains highly controversial. Citizen efforts to stop it continue. Alaska voters have twice approved initiatives to stop the hunts, and another is slated to go on the ballot later this year.

Wolves, in Palin's book, are predators. Because they hunt and use up moose and caribou for their own sustenance.

For one moment, I want to flip this around so I can see it from a wolf's viewpoint.

If I were a gray wolf, I would consider Sarah Palin a predator. Palin and her cohorts who hunt and decimate the moose and caribou populations that are the wolves' main sustenance, are the true predators. Predators who, hunt and kill not only for food, but for pleasure, for sport, for fun, for thrill and to feel macho. Predators who, somehow think that this world is theirs to desecrate, theirs to plunder, theirs and only theirs to do with, as they please. Predators who justify the gassing of wolf pups left orphaned after their mothers and fathers are chased and shot from the air.

A wolf kills caribou and moose so it can eat. That is its natural instinct. It does so, with no guile, no guns, no helicopters, no shooting at the back, no selfish and self-centered arrogance. Whereas, Palin and some of her fellow Alaskans seem to think that the moose and caribou exist for their sole pleasure. The Alaskan land exists just for them. What gives humans the right to label other animals as predators?

Are we not the biggest predators on this planet? Is there anything left to plunder, pillage and rape on any land, after a human being has set his foot on it? Is hunting ever played on a level playing field where we hunt on the ground, without fancy rifles, airplanes and shotguns? Do we ever hunt and kill only what we can consume? Do we ever desist from senseless murder of God's living beings?

Who is the real predator?

Until Nirvana do us part!

Hindus are united in the belief that human life is actually a cycle - a cycle of birth and death until one attains "Nirvana" or eternal relief. Life on this earth, according to Hindu religion, is all about experiences which lead to the soul's evolution, until it becomes one with God. And that act of becoming one with God, releases the soul from this cycle - called "Janma-mrityu" (life and death).

Ever since I was a child, I had heard mention about this life, the next one or the one before. Whenever something good happened in my life, I was told that it was the fruit of my actions in my previous life. And when something bad happened, for example, if someone cheated me of money, I was told that I probably owed money in my previous life and was repaying that debt off now. Thus it is, that I am constantly watching my deeds in this life, so that when I am reborn, I am that much closer to attaining Nirvana and hoping to be released from the "Janma-mrityu" cycle.

And as far as I can remember, people in India routinely cursed others who upset them by informing them that they would regress and be born a dog or a cat in their next life for their misdeeds in this one! Stands to reason that I inferred from those remarks that Hindus consider humans as the highest form of life, closer to God than any other being. For a very long time, I have accepted this edict, because it was inculcated in me as a very young child.

That was until we got Subbu, our cat. I am now forced to re-evaluate my assumptions. As I watch his life fly by, day after peaceful day, starting with early morning hugs, caresses, kisses and eternally full food bowl, I am starting to wonder: are humans really the superior beings? Are human closer to God than animals? Are we, indeed, born as humans in this life because of our past good deeds? Or could it be that we are born as humans in this life because we have committed sins in our past lives? Had I been good, and kind and compassionate and loving and grateful, should I not have been born as someone as peaceful, as serene and as happy as my cat?

I think Subbu's life. more than mine, resembles that of the revered Indian Sadhu (ascetic), whose meditations bring him close to God.

I'll demonstrate with a run-down of his typical day:
5:00 am: It is wake-up time. If the ones who are fortunate enough to serve Subbu aren't awake, no problem, he is happy to go the extra mile to wake them up so they can finish up their chores of taking care of him, before heading out to work to earn money to feed Subbu. He does that by crouching low by the side of the bed and pouncing on their toes jutting from under the bed cover. He does this repeatedly, all the while making mewing sounds until they wake up. Then he promptly flops on their feet and does a few somersaults to show them that he loves them. Because he looks so sweet when he flops on his back, Subbu's owners forget to scold him for waking them up at an unearthly hour, in this fashion, and he gets a belly rub, many strokes and lots of kisses instead.

5:10 am: Stroking and petting done. It is time to refill Subbu's food bowl which has been licked clean during the night. Subbu doesn't mind having to lead them to his food bowl. He does this by walking a few steps, sitting down facing the direction he wants to lead them, and looking back at them, with his unblinking stare and eyes speaking volumes. As they follow, he'll walk a few more steps and repeat performance, until he leads them to his empty bowl. Then, an indignant meow will let them know that while they have been remiss in letting his bowl get empty, he'll forgive them if they refill promptly.

8:00 am: Time to see off the guy who goes out each morning to bring home the moolah! That's the least Subbu can do. He does this by running down the stairs to the door to say bye and then running up the stairs and racing to the deck to wave goodbye from upstairs.

8:30 am: What is this other person doing? Shouldn't she be petting Subbu, rather than being stuck in front of that screen? Oh well, Subbu drapes himself on his favorite black chair (the one that attracts the most fur) and looks bored. He spends the next hour or so, staring unblinkingly at the back of her head while he meditates on how wonderful his life is.

9:30 am: Time for a nap. Subbu retires upstairs to the master bedroom. The comforter is a dark red one so it is a perfect foil for an utterly indolent, beautifully soft, gorgeously gray and white fur ball. Subbu settles down for a nap, so his owner can come by and admire his killer looks and take pictures.

9:40 am: Subbu is now on his back, hind paws airborne, fore paws covering his eyes, pink little tongue sticking out, flesh reposing in utter stillness. Life is good.

4:00 pm: Wake up, stretch on the wall, fling oneself on human toes for more petting.

5:00 pm: Time to go out! Run down the stairs and mew loudly by the door until it is opened. Peek out, watch out for dogs, and run outside into the wilderness. Ah! the freedom to chase bugs, climb trees, watch birds and root around nature!

6:00 pm: Here is a strange human who's walking towards Subbu. Subbu promptly does his "damsel in distress" act! Runs towards the stranger, flings himself at her toes and rolls on his back, all the while watching the human's reaction out of the corner of his eyes. Predictably, she coos, ooohs and aaahs, stoops down to rub his belly and exclaims loudly about the cute cat! With one more feather in his hat, Subbu gets up, dusts himself off and walks away, tail in the air to resume his wilderness foray, while cruelly leaving behind a damsel in the throes of Subbu love!

9:00 pm: Subbu's owners are being pests, scouring the neighborhood for him, calling his name loudly and disturbing the peace. Subbu comes bounding out the darkness, his beautiful eyes gleaming and promptly flops at their feet to indicate that he has no plans to go back inside.

9:30 pm: Back home. Its time to play. Subbu races up and down the stairs, pushing the torn cloth mouse and trying to get the lazy owners to work up a sweat. He tries valiantly for about 15 minutes and then gives up and runs up and down on his own, chasing many imaginary mice.

10:00 pm: Time to grab the foot of the master bed before those humans can come by and stretch out in Subbu's space.

Life, as I said, is good. Peace, happiness, contentment, love, acceptance - complete acceptance of every situation that life throws at Subbu. And so Nirvana cannot be far away.

Now you tell me, my dear reader: is the cat's life not one of complete surrender to God's will? Is it not a life filled with positive emotions of love, (universal love, remember the demonstration of love for the stranger who happened to cross his path?), acceptance and peace?

Doesn't it seem as though a cat is closer to God than man is?

Woman enough!

I am woman enough to be curious about Michelle Obama's clothes, her hair-do and her new international friends. And I am proud enough of America to want the whole world to swoon at Michelle's good looks, her carriage, her smartness and her organic vegetable garden like we all do here.

While it is nice to hear once in a while about banalities, it seems almost like a cult following - almost every site I visit, writes with obsessive fervor about her clothes, Oscar de la Renta's disapproval of her clothes (or designer choice?), the kisses she received from Carla Bruni (more than the kisses received by OTHER first ladies, who only got one kiss, while our Michelle was favored with two, so there!...STOP!

Somehow, it seems extremely flippant and juvenile when the media focuses so much on such trivialities. Like I said, I too, like to hear about clothes, and air kisses, and hairdoes once in a while. I am woman enough for that.

But day in and day out? When we are in the midst of so much crises? When we should be talking about how the Obama administration is trying to circumvent congressional rules for bailout recipients? When we should be demanding that the administration honor the rules instead of flouting them? When we should be asking how is it that the Obama adminstration can pretend that they are more knowledgeable, smarter, more efficient, more rational, more honest, have more integrity (?) and know best what is good for our country and tax payers than the whole country, its people - (who have voiced in no uncertain terms that handouts must be accompanied with straitjackets), and its congressional representatives?

When we should be waking up and demanding that our leaders truly represent us, the taxpayers and the voters rather than big corporations and their interests?

STOP already, about Michelle's clothes. Get serious. Get real. Enough of the superficiality!

Fat cat squeezing under the fence - AIG, Bankers squeezing into our yard with Geithner's active help!

Easy does it! Slow and steady.

First, an itty-bitty subprime fiasco.

Then, a housing bust.

Next, a bailout of AIG on the quiet. Tell the public AFTER you’ve given them the money.

How about some spice? Sprinkle a bit on Fannie and Freddie.

Say it aint so, Lehman’s.

Now, pour $700 billion down the Bank drains.

Oh no! it’s time for AIG once more.

How about some theatrics during the intermission about the Auto industry?

Ah! Time again for AIG!

Not enough?

Let’s put together a TRILLION dollars. It will go to buy the same toxic assets that have been bought again and again, first directly from the banks themselves, then again from the banks via AIG, and now once again…

Like the fat cat squeezing under the fence, we have Corporate bigwigs squeezing into our yard - thanks to help from politicians (like Christopher Dodd) who rewrite the law in the dark of the night to provide loopholes, and a Treasury Secretary who is anxious to please the bigwigs by freely giving away our money!


Oh look, the head came through!




















Oh no, the fat cat is half way in!



















Whoops! He's all the way into our yard!





















Jeez! He's settled in!

Wrapped in TARP

Have you heard of the story of the Camel and the Arab?

It is an interesting story. A story with a moral that we would do well to learn about. A story with an uncanny parable to the behemoth, too-big-to-fail, too-large-to-be-kicked, thumbing-its-nose-at-you AIG's relationship with the American Taxpayer.

Once upon a time, an Arab was riding his camel across the desert. It was a dark, cold winter. Night was upon him and he decided to take a break. So he set up camp in the desert sand and pegged down his tent. He laid his fine wool carpet on the sand floor of this tent. Then he went outside and lit a fire, cooked his meal over the crackling, smouldering wood, smoked his hookah, downed some wine and finally decided to turn in, into his warm tent. No sooner than he fell asleep, he heard a snort and a head poked into the flap of his tent.

It was his camel. The camel beseeched him to let him keep its head in the tent as the wind was howling loudly and it was very cold outside the tent. So the kind-hearted Arab let the camel keep his head in the tent. In a few minutes the camel edged in further into the tent - upto its shoulders. The Arab protested, but the camel gave him a woebegone look and begged to be allowed to keep his shoulders inside the tent as it was freezing outside. So the Arab took pity on the camel and allowed him to stay half way inside his tent. As the night progressed, the camel pushed in more and more into the tent. Slowly, insidiously, the Arab was shoved outside the tent, until suddenly, he found himself outside the tent, bracing the cold, winter storm, while the camel slept cosily inside the tent.

What does this story remind you of?

AIG and the American Taxpayer!

At first, it was a $5o billion bailout that the public was not even informed about until after it was paid. Before we knew it, the Government had bailed out AIG. They didnt have to come with their begging bowls to Congress like the Automakers had to. They just told Paulson to slip 'em one and they were paid. We were presented with a fait accompli.

Then it was another $80 billion. And so on until AIG now has the largest infusion of Government money in history. As more and more money gets poured down AIG's drain, the company gets more and more arrogant. No one can question them any longer. There are no rules they play by. There is no integrity, honesty or shame. They know, as did the Arab's camel, that once they have their grimy hands on so much of taxpayer money, there is no option but to continue to bail them out, regardless of how they behave. Hark the latest of AIG's ignominious behavior: paying $164 million in retention (what the??) bonuses to the very executives who have run the company aground!

Like the Arab's camel, we shouldn't have let them into our tent in the first place. Now they are wrapped in our TARP and we have been shoved out of our tent!

Obama's Housing plan and the Responsible Renter

There is a cry of injustice in the air.

This is from people who have been responsible renters. They question the fact that they are being asked to bailout irresponsible homeowners who have bought larger homes than they can afford and are now going into foreclosure. They point out the unfairness of Obama's housing rescue plan to people who have been renters . They aver that it is better for home prices to fall due to foreclosures, so that finally, they too, can afford to buy homes that they can now afford.

A completely fair question. A very fair concern. And a very fair free-market expectation.

Let me see if I can help address this concern. Before I start to make my point, I want to clarify: I do not personally stand to gain from Obama's Housing rescue plan. Not a cent. While I am not an Economics expert, I do try to see both sides of the coin and am trying to look at the economy as a whole.

This downturn has affected all of us and is a danger to this country's long term stability. From that standpoint, it is important to go to the source of what started off this cascading disaster. The subprime loan fiasco and the foreclosure of homes has been identified by experts as the root cause of this economic meltdown. So, it makes sense that we fix the cause and not the symptoms of the illness.

Job losses, failing banks and auto companies, unemployment lines, disrupted children and families, increase in number of people without health care... all these are symptoms of the disease that has taken hold of our economy. The root cause is the housing market collapse.

As long as most people were diligently paying their mortgages, the banks continued on their merry route to making more and more money. Everything was fine. The sun shone.

As the subprime market started to melt, we felt the first tremors of the housing market. Like any untreated illness, the disease soon spread to other areas and now we have otherwise healthy mortgages failing, sometimes due to a job loss, sometimes due to forces beyond a homeowner's control and sometimes due to the sheer irresponsibility of being overextended on debt. As more and more homes started to foreclose, it brought home prices down all across the country. Responsible homeowners were now upside down on mortgages that they have been paying diligently. They owed more than their house was worth. And so began more defaults leading to the avalanche of sliding home prices.

In order to staunch that bleeding, the Obama administration has correctly addressed the root cause: stem the foreclosures.

But what does that do for renters?

Now, there are two types of renters: ones that will probably always rent their whole lives for a variety of reasons - maybe they are nomadic, or they love the freedom of not being tied down to a home or they choose to rent for a variety of economic reasons. The housing meltdown does not affect them significantly, other than the fact that their rents probably came down a bit - they now have more bargaining power because there are many more homes for rent in the market.

The second kind of renter is the one who, with the falling prices, can now finally afford to buy a home. These are the people who have protested Obama's Housing rescue plan vociferously. They feel they can now finally afford a home because home prices are where they should be.

Nobody is arguing the validity of their point.

But here is my opinion: if a renter can now finally afford to purchase a home, there is no dearth of foreclosed homes to purchase. Allowing foreclosures to continue unchecked will cause great danger by letting the markets go into a free-fall until the entire economy collapses. And a collapsing economy will certainly hurt everyone. Even though a renter can finally afford to purchase, he/she may not be able to get a loan as banks which have been singed by defaulting homeowners will now be extra careful about giving loans to new homeowners. In addition, even if banks are willing to lend, they do not have the money to do so.

This situation reminds me of the "dog and pebble" story that Indians love to tell - When one finds a stray dog and wants to aim a pebble to chase it off, one cannot find the right sized pebble. And if there is a right sized pebble, a stray dog is nowhere in sight.

Likewise, this feeling of being able to take advantage of the foreclosure market. Homes are now available and affordable, but loans are harder to get. And with more homes being foreclosed, the cascading effect on the economy as a whole, is terrible to contemplate.

So, Renters! The govt. is not just using our hard-earned tax dollars to benefit irresponsible homeowners. The dollars are actually being used to prop up our economy by fixing the root cause of the disease, so that we all may have jobs, stable homes and health care.

Foreclosures are a lose-lose for EVERYONE - homeowners, lenders, banks, renters and new purchasers. If we take a step back and look it from a bird's eye view, we will see that Obama's plan, while not perfect, will eventually help prop up the economy, IF carried out without interference from vested interests.

But that's a big IF.

Obama's Housing Rescue Plan and the Responsible Homeowner

There is an uproar in the air.

Rants like the ones by the (in)famous Rick Santelli, has people up in arms, about not wanting to pay for their neighbor's mortgage. Rick's rant reminds me of the Sudanese people who protested the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant for their President, who has been accused of committing war crimes and genocide against the people of Darfur. The depths of ignorance that encourages such great manipulation is stunning. That the very same people whose friends, neighbors and relatives have been the target of genocide, now protest the arrest warrant of the person who is responsible for the genocide, is at best very sad and at worst, another crime of exploitation against the ignorant. Like the Sudanese, some of our people are being misled, once again, by the likes of Rick Santelli. I know the example of manipulation and exploitation I gave above is hard-hitting, but the point is this: we shouldn't miss the forest for the trees. Let us not cut off our noses to spite our face.

Obama's plan to rescue homeowners who are stuck in high interest, fancy mortgages that they are unable to pay has gotten a lot of people's (especially Republicans!) knickers in a bunch. Many have said that they do not want to rescue irresponsible people who have taken out a larger mortgage than they can afford or bought a larger house than they can afford.

For one second, lets set aside the fact that the taxpayer is rescuing irresponsible banks and financial companies to the tune of many billions, even though many have knowingly sold bad mortgages to people by misleading, mis-stating or misinforming them. That is a debate for another blog post.

Even if the American taxpayer was not rescuing the banks and financial industries, I would still recommend we stand by Obama's plan to rescue the distressed homeowner.

Why do I say this? It is not because I stand to gain personally. No, I will not benefit from Obama's plan, so there is no vested interest here. The reason I support Obama's plan, even though it is not perfect, is this: If there is ever a chance that the housing market recovers and by virtue of its tight interconnection, the financial markets recover, the only hope is to stem the foreclosures.

The banks which are opposing or dampening the extent of Obama's homeowner rescue package are continuing to exhibit the very same behavior that caused this collapse: that of greed, selfishness and short term mercenary avarice. What they do not understand is this: foreclosure benefits no one. NO ONE!. Not even the neighbor who has been very meticulous is paying his mortgage, very responsible in buying the home he can afford and who now resents having to rescue someone he considers irresponsible.

When a home in a neighborhood goes into foreclosure, all the bank is interested in, is to retrieve the principal they put into it. The homeowner might have had about 10% or 20% invested in the home. But the bank will very easily price the home down to get it off its books. What does that do to a neighbor's home, the one who has been responsibly paying his mortgage? It automatically brings the value of his house down to match that of the foreclosure. In the end, as more foreclosures hit a neighborhood, the value of all the properties go down - it no longer matters if they are foreclosed or not.

So it is in the best interest of ALL of us, even those who have been religious about paying our mortgages, to stem foreclosures. The money spent will eventually benefit EVERYONE, not just the ones who are being rescued.

And Obama's plan, tries to achieve some of it (provided the banks don't lobby the House and Senate to add their riders to mangle the plan.)

Cliff hanger

Found this cartoon on the Miami Herald site and couldn't resist sharing. :)

We still have the GOP telling us what we are doing wrong. And some of us are still listening!

Top 10 reasons why it is difficult for Indians to be Hijackers or Terrorists!

I recently received this tongue-in-cheek missive that I thought was really hilarious, because it is so true! Here it is for your enjoyment.


1. We are always late; we would have missed all 4 flights.

2. We would talk loudly and bring attention to ourselves.

3. With free food & drinks on the plane, we would forget why we're there.

4. We talk with our hands; therefore we would have to put our weapons down.

5. We would ALL want to fly the plane.

6. We would argue and start a fight in the plane.

7. We can't keep a secret; we would have told everyone a week before doing it.

8. We would have put our country's flag on the windshield.

9. We would have postponed the mission because a cricket match was on that day.

10. We would all have fallen over each other to be in the photograph being taken with one of the hostages.

Party at Capitol Hill Dunk Tank!

There is something to be said for the party at the Capitol Hill Dunk Tank that periodically invites the creme-de-la-creme from the Wall Street and Financial fraternity for cake, since they don't eat bread. Even as we are crying foul at the massive re-distribution of wealth that is taking place under our noses, our house reps, in an effort to wipe our tears and divert us, have hauled up various economic criminals (bank and auto heads), real criminals (peanut tycoon), camouflaged criminals (Treasury and SEC officials who plead incompetence rather than malicious intent), and financial criminals (Madoff et al), to a Capitol Hill Dunk Fest.

Our brave leaders have put their heads in the lion's jaws for our sakes. They recognize that we are yelling for blood. And that we want justice. Because we know, in our heart of hearts, that the money the CEOs have earned is not for an honest day's work. It is "earned" with a loaded dice - by knowing the "right" people, "lobbying" for their interests, and fighting against legislature that benefits the country.

So they drag these suited, booted, arrogant, smirking, know-it-all, talking heads to Capitol Hill.

"Did you know that you were indulging in risky behavior when you encouraged your loan officers to push high interest mortgages to people who couldn't repay them?
Dunk!

"How much money did you lend out last year after you took TARP money and how much did you lend out the year before when didn't have access to TARP money? Why are both amounts the same?"
Dunk!

"How many millions did you pay as bonus to your employees with one hand, when your company was in the red and grasping taxpayer money with the other hand?"
Dunk!

"Weren't your companies the ones that fought hard against legislation for building energy-efficient cars? Now why are you coming to us for help when gas prices make your cars unaffordable to run?"
Dunk!

"How did you come to Capitol Hill today? Did you use the Corporate jet?"
Slam Dunk!

Oh, I know, I know, one cannot shame the shameless. To all intents and purposes, a tongue-lashing is not the same as a lashing.

Our only hope of reprieve from yet another bubble is to enact strict and loophole-free laws before we hand out our money to the grubby hands of the banks. But since our interests are not protected here too, we must rely on Wall Street's sense of shame and well concealed patriotism in order to help dig our nation out of the mess of their making.

Even if the dunkfest does not accomplish its goal - to shame the CEO's into good behavior, it at least indicates that at least our lawmakers feel our pain, while they are handing out the futures of our children and grandchildren to dishonest and avaricious people. We should be able to take comfort in that.

Sex and the TARP!

Here is a riddle: What is more scandalous than "Sex and the City", costs $2000 / hour, gives intense pleasure to someone other than you, but is paid for with your hard-earned money under TARP?

Guess? Didn't get it?

Ok, here is another hint: What is a legitimate business expense for big Wall Street CEOs in order for them to perform their high-stress, high-paying jobs, delivering "great" rates of returns for their investors?

Give up? Beyond your imagination?

I don't blame you. It is hard to wrap your minds around this creepy excess.

According to an NYC Madam, Wall Street execs and CEOs have been utilizing high-end prostitutes at $2000/hr and paying for them with their corporate credit cards. They have been deducting these expenses illegally as legitimate business expenses. Looks like the TARP money will come in handy to rescue their firms since their routine expenses to "conduct" their business is higher than the profit generated from the business. It is no wonder that the companies that they manage are now running at a loss and need tax payer money to help offset losses. To add insult to injury, even after this illegal, deceitful, fraudulent and distasteful behavior they have the gall to resist Govt. oversight for the TARP money and fight the restrictions placed on their compensations. And they try to get the Republicans to spout crude "wisdom" about Govt interference in their business.

By rights, we, the public, should ask the Govt to prosecute all these executives and recover this money from them. We should also be defining the oversight of company expenses for companies that accept TARP money since we have paid for all this:

- a major New York real estate developer who, according to the list, "will come to the door wearing women's panties," and who spent nearly $100,000

- a partner at the Wall Street law firm Cravath Swaine Moore "looking for a party girl to come fully equipped" and spent a total of $20,000

- an investment banker from Lehman Brothers who saw "Kelsey and Keely together" and later saw "Aria and Skyler at the same time"

- an investment banker at JP Morgan Securities who "loves Brooke" and spent $41,600

- an investment banker at Goldman Sachs who "only wanted all-American girls" and spent $27,000

- a managing director from Merrill Lynch who saw "Lana" using the name "Nataly"

- a managing director from Deutsche Bank "who called about seeing Nataly again"

Join in to leave a message if you don't want to pay for all this.

Plumbing the depths - GOP style!

Here is a nice story: The sun is shining brightly. The seas are calm. The fish are swimming close to the surface of the azure blue waters practically begging to be reeled in by the fishing lines. And GOP is sailing their boat looking up proudly at their captain at the helm. He is doing a great job. Everything is under control because the GOP is IN control!

Suddenly, the weather changes. Dark, ominous storm clouds gather. The sea gets rough and choppy. The fish have swum deep into the sea, hiding in fear. The GOP'ers glance up at the wheel. The captain is nowhere in sight. He's on vacation at his Texas ranch. So they look for the 2nd in command. Oh no, he's gone hunting and has shot his friend in the face.

So they grit their teeth and ask for "all hands on the deck" to prevent the ship from sinking. Somehow they muddle through, to hold the ship afloat until the captain retires. Now they are looking for a new captain. Someone with a spine. Someone who knows how to stay in the limelight. Someone who will grab on to opportunity and hold tight. Someone who will stand firm (if muddled) about their conservative stances.

They cast around for a leader. They search high and low. For as far as they can scan the horizon, they cannot find anyone to captain their floundering ship.

So they finally cast their lines in the deep choppy waters of the GOP base and reel in a dead fish. This was the fish that John McCain, the previous de facto leader had reeled in earlier to help his sinking ship stay afloat. For lack of a better alternative, they resurrect it and lo! Here is our leader. Guess who?

Our intrepid, opportunistic, tax-dodging, unlicensed, Joe, the plumber!

Slumdog Millionaire - Movie Review

As an Indian myself, I can see why the movie "Slumdog Millionaire" would disturb most Indians. And going by the comments posted on the Internet, it indeed does.

To our collective shame, the movie depicts the stark reality of the life of a homeless child from the slums of Mumbai. And for the British Director, Danny Boyle to be able to accurately reflect that child's life in India, seems to most Indians like we are washing our dirty linen in public and hanging it out to dry under the world's eyes. That is exactly what the movie did - hung our unmentionables out to dry in the world's laundry line.

Slumdog is a hard-hitting movie - a difficult movie to see, especially if you are very imaginative and sensitive. But it is also a must-see movie, if you want to know exactly how the less fortunate people live in other parts of the world.

India, with the dubious honor of being the world's largest democracy, obviously has her unique share of challenges in taking care of some of her most vulnerable population - the women and children. That challenge is truly revealed in the movie. To all those not familiar with life in India, who have watched or will watch Slumdog, I will say this: all that has been depicted as the life of a youngster living in abject poverty in India, is indeed real. There was no artistic license used by Director Danny Boyle to enhance those horrors.

The movie is about a child of the slums of Dharavi, one of the world's largest slums. The main protagonist is Jamal, played by Dev Patel, who works as a "chai boy" (tea boy) at one of the call centers. Patel has excelled in his role. He emotes beautifully and is very effective in accurately portraying the pain of his life. I cannot do justice to this review without mentioning Jamal's 2 younger selves.

The role of Jamal as a 10 year old is played by the cute, round-eyed, and most adorable cherub, Ayush Khedekar. Ayush, with no acting experience under his belt, has done an exemplary job. As an young teen, the role of Jamal is played by Tanay Chedha, also performed very well.

The other main protagonists are also less known or unknown actors with little or no experience. Frieda Pinto is gorgeous and sweet as the adult Latika. Her younger selves, Rubiana Ali (a real child from the slums of Dharavi), and Tanvi Lonkar have also done a great job. So has Azharuddin Ismail (another child from the slums of Dharavi) as the youngest Salim. Azharuddin has accurately portrayed how a child from the slums needs to be a fighter in order to survive the harsh realities of life.

It is to Director Danny Boyle's credit that every single actor in this movie has performed par excellence. There is no slowing of pace in this movie. You dont have the luxury to think while watching. Everything moves at such a fast pace, that you will be on the edge of your seat throughout the duration of the movie. The music, handled by India's favorite music director A.R.Rehman, is also fabulous. I love happy endings and this movie ended with the much anticipated song and dance sequence that is a must in every movie that has Indian actors. The grand finale song was fabulous, upbeat and victorious.

I cannot end without mentioning what has been my biggest nightmare about the life of vulnerable children in India. The depiction of the character of "Maman", the guy who lures kids off the street and miams or blinds them in order to make them more pitiful, so that he can get more money when they go out begging is India's most terrifying, shameful secret. I must confess, that I hid behind my coat and did not watch when the scene of blinding one of the children was shown.

I am certainly very empathetic to India's social challenges. I do believe that despite all that the country has had to face since independence, it has come a long way.

But, as Robert Frost put it, we all have "miles to go before we sleep" - this is not just India's problem, it is the mankind's problem to deal with. If we are to progress as humans, we need to take all our folks with us.

Profiting from Tragedy - the Caylee Anthony doll

The commercialization of civilization.

It is a shameful time. A time to reflect about how low things have sunk. And how crass and how utterly mercenary some people have become. How they think that material gain excuses any insensitivity to the pain of others.

I was shocked that a business from Jacksonville even thought they could profit from poor Caylee Anthony's death, when I read this post on CNN: Outrage halts launch of Caylee Sunshine doll. The post went to explain that the public was outraged that Jaime Salcedo, president of Showbiz Promotions created a doll called Caylee Sunshine. I am glad that people stood up for what is right and denounced this act of profiting from tragedy. It tells me that there is some hope left for us. That there are still good people around.

When asked about his profit motives, Mr.Salcedo demurred, saying that he was only doing a public service. He was donating money to charity. But, was he? The dolls were priced at $29.99 and he was planning on donating $3 to charity. He had not even identified a charity for donation yet.

Regardless of whatever excuse Mr.Salcedo has come up now in the face of public uproar, the very thought that he even took this idea to fruition is sickening and insensitive.

This is what commercialization of our civilization has done to us. Look around you: Bernie Madoff, John Thain, Joseph Bruno, Ted Stevens, Jack Abramoff, Citibank Jet purchase with public money, AIG spa treatment with public money, and now hundreds more scams being revealed.

We've gotten so deep into consumerism and materialism that people don't matter anymore. Nothing matters except money. That's what got us in this economic mess. The greed. The corruption. The insensitivity. The lobbying. The racketeering.

Maybe this is our time to stop and ponder about our missed path.

It's not welfare as long as it is corporate welfare! :)

...So commented a fellow about Huffington Post's article titled, "Citi Jet Purchase: $50 million, 12-seat plane despite $45 Billion Bailout".

I completely agree. There's a different standard out there when it comes to Corporations and Corporate bigwigs. It doesn't matter if they've been and continue to be irresponsible. Doesn't matter that they've made bad decisions. Doesn't matter that they feel entitled. Doesn't matter that they lived life large and enjoyed all the money in the good times and didn't save up for bad times. Doesn't matter that they ran their companies by over extending their debt...

In America, Corporations can do no wrong and are never punished.

It is the people who carry the brunt.

- Bought a home that was within your means but got taken in by an unscrupulous mortgage lender who saddled you with a fancy mortgage instrument that "balloons"?
Hey! you should have done your homework!

- Been absolutely responsible with your money, but now have lost most, if not all, of your hard-earned 401(k)?
Tough luck, mate! No one could have predicted this!

- Been very careful with your home purchase but the value of your home has fallen so much that you've lost all your savings?
Sorry, old champ! That's life!

- Got laid off because your CEO spent the company money on refurbishing his office and now cannot pay you for the honest day's work you are doing? Lost your health insurance since you don't have a job and now cannot pay for your terminally ill wife's treatment?
- Buddy, this is a capitalist society. Don't expect welfare!

But, if you are a bigwig in a Corporation, just go wailing to Washington with a begging bowl.

"Baawwwwlllllllllll! The economy tanked. No one could have predicted this. We cannot run our business. We didn't foresee this. HELP US! Bail us out so that we can continue to squander the common man's hard earned money. "

And the poor sucker taxpayer will come to your rescue.

Your requesIt is being processed.

Tamil Movie Review - "Villu" - watch at your own risk!

Friday night was, unfortunately for me, nostalgia night. I wanted to hear someone speak my mother tongue, Tamil, so I succumbed to the nostalgia and dragged my unwilling husband to see the new Pongal release Tamil movie called "Villu". I went because of the the famous names associated with it - actor Vijay and actress Nayantara playing the lead roles and actor Prabhu Deva foraying into Direction for this movie.

I want to give you some positive feedback and so I have racked my brains all night. Ah! I got it! I heard people speak in Tamil! And at the end of the movie, my husband and I (when we finally figured out the story line) got to spend another hour discussing how the movie should have actually ended: with the sandstorm revealing Vijay's father's body, buried all those years ago, and Vijay finally cremating his father's body with honor. My husband was of the opinion that it too, would have been incorporated, had the Producers not run out of money! :)

The movie was splice of nearly every imaginable scene ever played in a Tamil movie and some of the horrific atrocities committed on women in most Indian movies.

MGR's old films were spliced in and copied; there were animated cows dancing, kicking and spewing turd on the very boring Vadivelu (I would like to meet the person who still thinks he is a comedian!); animated beehives falling, with animated bees stinging real people; German men who believed that African Chimpazees can look and speak like humans and who gyrated badly to Tamil movie songs; fat women bathing; a blue ray disc that was a blue CD stored in some blue room accessed via a blue corridor; thugs who wanted to abduct a girl on her wedding day; army officers who suddenly became rich thugs and lived in Germany...

Add to all that, the lead female role played by Nayantara was some kind of nightmare. It appeared that Nayantara had been directed to display all the navarasas (nine emotions - love, hate, disgust, cruelty, kindness, courage, wonder, sorrow and fear) in 9 seconds. Her face contorted every ninth second, making the scenes she was in, a blur.

Vijay, who played the lead male role, did what he is usually good at - danced around, acted tough, and looked good. It appeared that in one of the dances, Prabhu Deva (the dancing maestro, who has unfortunately strayed from his real talent as a dancer and actor) has danced and superimposed Vijay's face. It made for weird scenes of a body juxtaposed horribly with the face. In addition, the dance steps were repetitive. When the step was performed for the first time it was cool. The second time it hit me on the head. The third time, it drove a nail through my heart. Enough!

Prabhu Deva is a much better actor and dancer than he is a director. I implore him to switch back to his original career. I used to love his acting and really enjoyed his dancing.

The film was disjointed and muddled. The comedy made me want to cry. The editing was choppy. The story line was tired. It was the longest 3 hours of my life. I wanted to walk away 10 minutes into the movie, but by then, my husband was in the mood for being a sleuth so we stayed in order to see if we could eventually discover the existence of a story line. To Director Prabhu Deva's credit, we finally got the story (I think!) by the time the curtains came down 3 hours later.

I guess I could have reviewed this movie with one sentence: if you plan to spend $8 on this movie, don't!

Buy a burger instead, and call me if you want to hear spoken Tamil!

Walll Street Fiddles as America Burns!

We Americans have our very own reincarnation of Nero - The fools at Wall Street.

Nero, the fifth and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty was known for his tyranny and extravagance. But, his greatest claim to fame was that he fiddled while Rome burnt!

Our Neros think John Thain's (Merill Lynch's CEO) profligacy is warranted and a "just a drop in the bucket" compared to the money that Merrill Lynch makes each quarter.

I wish the Wall Street types who said this would do their homework first. Merrill was posting losses every quarter. There was no money being made. Merrill was laying off employees in order to save money. And John Thain was preaching to his leftover employees to CUT spending while he refurbished his office!

Is this the reason why we are all in this mess? Because the CEOs who are hired by corporations dont think they need to do their homework before spouting nonsense? Because they refuse to face reality? Because they are so puffed up with their own importance that they think they are worthy of an office costing $1.22 million?

Because they continue to fiddle while America burns?

If they don't have bread, let them eat cake!!

Quick! Whose were these famous last words that triggered the French revolution? Who was sent to the guillotine for saying this?

- Marie Antoinette - the French Queen!

And again, quick! Who has Marie Antoinette reincarnated as, in this life?

Guess? Can't guess? Are there too many top executives in America who fit Marie Antoinette's utterly tasteless, utterly stupid, utterly self-centered, utterly crass and utterly greedy life style?

Here is a hint:

- Guess who, while cutting off his employees lifelines by laying them off work by the thousands in order to "save" the company, was simultaneously spending $1.22 million of the same company's money in refurbishing his office?
- Guess who had the company pay $87,000 for an area rug for his tender left foot in his office?
- Guess who needed another area rug for $44,000, for his other tender foot?
- How about a mahogany pedestal table for $25,000?
- What about a 19th Century Credenza for $68,000? A sofa for $15,000? Four pairs of curtains for $28,000? A pair of guest chairs for $87,000? A George IV Desk for $18,000?
- How about the ultimate slap on our faces - the $35,000 toilet bowl, paid for with our retirement savings?

And on and on, until the bill came up to $1.22 million?

Ah! Got it now, did ya!

Looks like Madame Antoinette didn't learn even after being guillotined in her previous incarnation. Reborn as the asinine Mr. John Thain, CEO of the sunken Merrill Lynch, Johnny boy had the tremendous gall to spend $1.22 million on trivialities whilst laying off hard-working Americans who worked for him. He actually committed crimes of commission worse than poor, stupid Marie Antoinette's crime of omission.

At least Marie just sat in her ivory tower and didn't realize what her people were going through.

But John? Oh John! Don't you understand? Didn't the people's wrath teach you anything at all? A whiff of honor? Some integrity? A dash of empathy? A small modicum of decency? No?

Well, John - Did you know that an honorable captain sinks with the ship? That is why he is CAPTAIN. He saves all his people even when he goes down.

Not you, Johnny! You sunk your people while you feathered your nest.

Walk the walk, Mr. Geithner!

I confess, I do not know much about Timothy Geithner, except that he is President Obama's nominee for Treasury Secretary. I have heard that he is highly qualified to head the IRS and lead us out of this economic mess.

I have also heard about his "innocent" (quote Sen. Max Baucus) mistake in not correctly paying his own taxes for 4 years in a row, which makes me wonder how credible he would be as the head of IRS. After all, this is the position to which we are all ultimately accountable to, for filing our own taxes!

As a country, our strength lies in the fact that we respect our leaders very much and entrust them with enormous leeway to make decisions on our behalf. Maybe because of this and because our leaders have the ability to impact so many lives with their decisions, we hold them to higher standards than we would an average Joe. We expect them to have earned the right to make decisions on our behalf. That right comes with an enormous responsibility. While I agree that no one can be infallible all the time, just look around and see the havoc that has been wrought in these past 8 years because we have not held our leaders accountable to walk the walk.

Granted that there were extenuating circumstances to Mr.Geithner's oversight. Granted Mr. Geithner is an upright, forthright and very knowledgeable individual. Unfortunately, the mistakes made are not only very recent, they are in direct correlation to the job he is seeking. And that job is of enormous importance to this country, especially at this period in history.

Life is such...There are some mistakes that cannot be rectified because they are so context-sensitive. If a fighter pilot loses concentration for a split second, his plane can crash, killing him and others. There is no condoning that mistake. But if a desk worker loses concentration for more than a hour, it wont matter at all. Mr. Geithner's mistake must be viewed in the context of the job he is being asked to perform. It could probably be condoned were he to apply for any other position in the Obama team. But, Treasury Secretary making this mistake? Its like the babysitter pinching the baby first and then rocking the cradle.

Nothing personal Mr.Geithner, but as an average citizen, I think its time we held our leaders to the same standards they expect of us.

Pardon Mr.McCain, your slip was showing! :)

I like John McCain. I think he's cool. But wait, I think he's cool now! Not during the long-drawn out election battle.

That was the time I was dismayed by him. He didn't seem authentic. Everything around him seemed contrived and it showed. His slip, unfortunately, showed. In British parlance, a slip is what a lady wears under her clothing... the chemise, the petticoat. And McCain's slip showed, embarrassing him and us!

As a brand new US citizen, I was completely, devoutly and mesmerizingly obsessed with the election. When I first started following the election on CNN, I wasn't really clear about the difference between the Republicans and Democrats. I wasn't sure what each party's special vices were.

As an Air Force brat, I was a prime candidate to vote for John McCain. My childhood was spent in Air Force camps all around India. My father was a decorated war hero, a man who considered honor above his life and a fighter pilot like John McCain. John's story resonated with me. I knew what it meant to be live in the midst of war. I know what it means to lose a family member in the service of the nation. I know first-hand what it takes to keep a nation safe.

But then, I watched in fascination as the election battle heated. I didn't miss a single debate, a single SNL episode and my TV blared CNN 24/7. I watched as McCain lost his focus, his very integrity, as he chose Sarah Palin as his VP.

I was an Obama fan right from the start. In spite of that, because of McCain's stature and the stories I had read about his honor and integrity, I was willing to suspend judgment and give him a chance before I made any decision.

And then McCain chose Sarah Palin as his VP.

My origins are from a country that had elected a female Prime Minister in the 70s. I was happy about the fact that US finally had a woman in the top ticket. But, I watched in embarrassment as Sarah Palin stumbled through Katie Couric's very fair and relevant questions. Then I watched as she made misstep after misstep - the ostentatious wardrobe, paid for by the RNC, her war cries against Obama, her instigation of the crowd with tasteless innuendos... McCain, no doubt, did the right thing by supporting her staunchly, but as Sarah Palin showed her true colors of being totally unqualified for the role she was seeking to play at leading the nation, I began to question McCain's judgment. I wondered what motive he had for selecting her without vetting her credentials first.

Then, as the days passed, McCain seemed more strained, more lacklustre and more rudderless. He had lost the election even before the election came around, simply because he had lost his moorings.

McCain lost me the minute Sarah Palin displayed her inadequacy. Then he lost my vote over and over again as I saw how he conducted himself. I was especially dismayed when I read more about his wonderful reputation prior to the election. He was admired. People thought well of him. And now he had lost all that.

In my eyes, McCain's saving grace was his wonderful concession speech on the night Barack Obama won. He was gracious and large-hearted and sounded like the man people had been writing about. I was glad.

I am glad now too when I read this post on CNN's ticker: Ex-Obama foe plots comeback. I am ecstatic. I can admire John McCain again. And I do admire him. At 72, if I had the 7 houses, 11 cars and the money that John McCain has, I'd probably be lounging on a beach somewhere, ready to attain nirvana. Not John McCain. I truly believe he is working to serve the country.

The real John is back. Welcome Mr. McCain!

Alphainventions.com - Nice invention!

Some weeks ago, as I was posting on my fledgling food blog - Flog!, I suddenly noticed a huge spike in the hits on my site. Upon investigating further, I realized that a site called Alpha Inventions was trolling the blogosphere to look for blog authors who were logged in and posting new posts so that it could let readers know in real time.

I thought it was a fantastic idea. And since then I have utilized Alpha Inventions free posting feature to let my readers and new readers know that I have updated my blog.

I did read some comments on the Wordpress Forum from some of the members complaining that Alpha Inventions was messing up their stats because wordpress essentially counted every display on Alpha Inventions as a hit. However, I must say this in defense of Alpha Inventions: yes, maybe the site hit count may not be accurate, but as a blog owner, I should acknowledge the exposure it grants my blog. This exposure, albeit 5 seconds (click the Pause button, if a blog catches your eye and you find the 5 second flash so interesting that you want to read further), has brought me new readers and new subscribers. I am very appreciative of that.

As a blog reader, I also enjoy Alpha Inventions. In this huge blogosphere, there are so many interesting blogs which, due to the large competition get missed, but which are of great interest to me. When I go into Alpha Inventions to notify my readers about my blog updates, I also get to see who else had updated their blogs and I invariably find myself lured to their blogs. I enjoy the fact that Alpha Inventions makes it possible for me to notice so many new blogs that I might otherwise miss.

So, regardless of the fact that hit counters are really a bit skewed, (for God's sake, the hit counters are for the blog owner, so just discount the numbers and figure out your true numbers - no need to complain and make a ruckus about this when the benefits are so much more!) Alpha Inventions is indeed a very useful tool.

I highly recommend it - as a blog owner as well as a blog reader!

Pay to play!

One of my favorite Tamil movie scenes is a comedy routine, performed by the actor Vivek. In that scene, Vivek is traveling on a motorbike, when he is stopped by a cop for speeding. The cop asks him to dismount and starts writing up a ticket. Vivek is all braggadocio and he blusters to the cop, " I know the Police chief!". The cop immediately stops writing the ticket and starts groveling. Vivek then puffs up his chest and cannot stop himself from saying, "BUT, he doesnt know me!" To which the cop responds by thrashing him.

It is a hilarious scene, but also a sad scene, because that is the true state of affairs in India. You get by, by who you know. And you get by, by bribery. Your business runs on whose palms you can grease. You can get off the hook by paying. You can land jobs, movie tickets, seats in restaurants, big contracts, anything, by paying money. And in the Govt. there is a fixed price tag for every job that your elected officials are already paid to do. You need a passport? No problem, just pay an extra Rs 500 along with the passport fee. Everyone down to the office peon gets a cut. You need get approval on a real estate form for building your factory? No problem, just pay Rs 100,000 and it will get done.

Money just doesn't talk in India, it sings.

And people are so desensitized that bribery is no longer something to be ashamed of, corruption is no longer "under the table". In India bribery is a blatant, "Sur la table"! In your face!

So when I read the screaming headlines of the past two days: "Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich busted in an early morning operation because he was caught on tape negotiating to sell Barack Obama's old Senate seat" I felt a sense of deja vu. Been there, seen that.

But what I hadn't seen before was the media frenzy at Governor Blagojevich's brash and open misuse of power. As I watched the news media cover the whole sordid tale, the one thing that emerged was the indignation of everyone in Illinios at the fact that everything was "Sur la table". They couldn't believe that Blago, as he is fondly referred to, had lost all sense of dignity of his position, all sense of shame, any honor and any respect for the people he was representing. Blago so believed he was above the law that he openly taunted the FBI to investigate him and place wire taps.

As a fairly recent transplant from India to the US, I revel in and enjoy the cultural differences between the two countries. I found that one of most striking cultural differences is between the way Indians speak and Americans couch their words - it is simply the polish. It is a refined and genteel way of saying the unpalatable. Whatever Indians say bluntly, the Americans I know, will pretty the same thing up, and arrive at it in a roundabout manner.

Going by the media frenzy, especially on CNN, it appeared that Blago's crime was not just the fact that he was corrupt. There are other corrupt politicians. Especially other corrupt Governors from Illinois. Blago's heinous crime was that he was blatant: his every demand was open. His misuse of power was rampant. True to American form, the media came up with a "sound bite" in order to spare our sensibilities. Pay-to-play!

Oh, what a tangled web we weave...

...when we first practice to deceive!

Ramalinga Raju, the CEO of Sathyam mentioned in his now infamous letter to the Board of Directors of his company, that his fraudulent activity felt akin to riding a tiger. He didn't know how to get off and so kept riding it until he was forced to dismount.

Rhetoric aside, the very first time we make a CHOICE to deceive instead of doing the right and moral thing, we end up weaving a web that soon becomes hard to unravel. There is no way out of the snag other than to cut the string finally. And that is what happened to Ramalinga Raju. Sadly, his crime did not just impact himself and his family. His multitude of employees, shareholders, the Indian public and press - everyone has been affected.

The more power a person has, the longer the fall. And they take other innocents down with them. It comes down to my oft-repeated refrain - It is imperative that Corporations, since they actually are, ultimately a collection of individuals, have a social conscience. Something that will keep them honest, something that will alert them when they start to tread the wrong path - a path that will lead to everyone's downfall.

When I was working for a large Fortune 300 company, one of the annual goal setting exercises included a vision and mission statement. Now, if only the vision statement, in addition to the company's vision for its growth and financial bottom line, included a social responsibility statement, it would help keep the focus on being a wholesome company that is well-integrated and has a synergistic relationship with the society that helps it grow.

For, after all, which predatory relationship has ever prospered?

Corporations, like individuals, animals and the eco-system as a whole, need to function in a mutually symbiotic manner in their environment. Animals know that you cannot survive if you bite the hand that feeds you.

In the case of Sathyam and in the case of Bernie Madoff, both entities did not understand this fundamental fact - Society is the hand that feeds them. If they act in a predatory manner within the very society that breathes spirit into them, there is no way they can survive. They will be riding a tiger. And when they fall, they bring others down with them.

I urge the corporate bigwigs to incorporate a Social responsibility statement that keeps them on the straight and narrow path. Ultimately, it will benefit them.