With great power comes some responsibility

I got a chance to flip through a few pages of "The Walmart Economy" and a couple of things that tended to stick out were , Walmart had tremendous sway over its suppliers and that its margins were shockingly low(niether observation is earth shattering I am sure).
But it got me thinking about how Walmart could influence what the consumers bought.
Take the example of CFL's over regular light bulbs. Nations such as Australia are actually moving lesgislation in this regard(based on a quick googling effort)
Since CFL's use 66% less electricity then incandescent bulbs. Now figure that into the number of times the average individual forgets to turn lights off.
I am not trying to make the case for CFL's since I think this is a well beaten path.
Consider for a moment the propostiion that Walmart simply chose to stop selling incandescent bulbs in favor of CFLS's(In concert with other huge retailers)
Would't this go a long way in ensuring millions switch to CFL's?
Its all well and good to offer people choice and let them decide , but just as we have come to the conclusion that smoking is injurious by way of second hand smoke, why can't we agree that a individual's injudicious environmental choice affects us all?
So how about it Walmart? Would you be willing to discontinue one of your thousands product lines 3-4% margin for the greater good?
And how about it Target you think you can chip in as well?

The folly that is ethanol

I walked into a small bakery/deli and decided to get a muffin(non-fat and no sugar chocolate if you wanted to know, and as you can imagine it tasted nothing like what I would want it to taste like)
As I was paying, I noticed a sign by the register. It was a notice informing customers of a price increase due in a couple of days. The sign went on to explain that this was because the steepling input costs (sample this tripling of egg prices in 7months).
This brings me to a well known problem we are facing and will probably worsen in the immediate future.
With Iraq not looking particulary good and under fire on other fronts as well. In his state of union address in January 2007, bereft on any other big plans President Bush outlined the need to use ethanol as a part substitute for oil(used as an additive). Ethanol would reduce the use of fossil fuels and thereby reduce green house gasses, so that evolutionary, his ideas were'nt on the surface moronic. (a term one has used in context of the Iraq war)
But here is the catch, in a bid to get his conservative base excited he cast it as an attempt to reduce dependance of "middle eastern oil".
So America is supposed to produce corn based ethanol. So whats the problem you ask?
It requires more energy to produce ethanol from corn than would be produced by useing the ethanol so created.
Also corn happens to be a food crop that ties into the entire food cycle, its used to feed livestock and also feed us directly.
Bush's stress on ethanol without allowing for imports from efficient cane based producers of ethanol like Brazil is one of the major reasons basic food items are a lot more expensive in the US.
Now would'nt a tax on fuel at the pump that would be used to fund research into cleaner and renewable energy sources work better?
What would people preffer? More expensive gas or more expensive everything else,. Admittedly the choise isn't as stark as I make it out to be.
But what astounds me is people responsible for running this great country do not seem to think things through an old failing I might add.

The Indo-American nuclear Deal

I am cutting into seriously needed sleep time to post this. So forgive factual errors if any.
I just read that The UPA government has finally given into the presssure exerted by the Left Front and decided to 'go-slow' whatever that mine mean on the nuclear deal.
Let us first examine the facts at hand.
India carried out a set of nuclear tests in 1998 and in response the US and preety much the rest of the potrntial nuclear suppliers imposed sanctions on high-technology trade with India. After years of negotiaitions in which India was never in a position of strenght we got a deal which the Americans admit will not be offered to anyone else.
Circumstatial evidence I admit, but exhibit A , Pakistan asks for a similar deal and China cries foul. Sounds like the deal might actually be in India's interest after all.
Now last I checked we have a nation of a billion growing at a rate of 9%. Last I checked we were importing 70% of our oil requirement. So based on just those 2 facts we are a nation with a serious need for energy. Where does this energy come from? $80 a barrel of oil (mixed with kerosene in India) is an option. The third and most promising option is for someone to invent a way to harness energy from all the Hot air that the communists so ceaselessly generate.
Since the aam aadmi can't pay for the real price of oil,
maybe just maybe we can generate some nuclear energy(To be honest I am not comepletly sold on the environmental aspects of nuclear energy, But since this hasn't figured in the protestations of the left , we will let it be for now).

Not if the Left can help it though , they have put a spanner in the works based on something to do with India mortgaging its soveriegnity. This is rich coming from an organisation that critised the nuclear tests in the first place.
What galls me most is that the left hasn't pointed out anything inherently wrong with the deal.
So all it boils down to is another 'cholbe na' protest that has no rhyme or reason. Only this time it costs the entire nation.
Make no mistake , Indian communists , every time they have had a chance , have proved that they are guided more by outmoded ideology, than any sense of what might be India's national Interest. And here am being less than harsh lest I really reveal what I think of those idiots.

Gee Whiz!

This very much a "I can't believe I did'nt think of this earlier" moment for me.
I knew people have been touting electric cars over gasoline ones for ages. I understood that the vehicular emissions would be reduced, but would this really help? Since we were already burning fossil fuels to generate that electricity, not tkaing into account the generation losses.
So why/how then can we use electricity sensibly to power our vehicles?
Another fact that I was aware of leads the way, in this regard.
Electric plants produce a fixed amount of electricity over a day. And that electricty is put on the distribution cables(there is more to it I am sure). Now wether all that electricty is used or none of it is, the same amount of fuel was burnt to generate it.
Efficiencies of operating generation equipment dictate when and how many generators can be fired on and off.
All that really means in times of non-peak demand , there is a significant wastage of the electricity we generate. Why not plug in our cars at that time., to utilize the electricity.

Who wants to be president of India?

The perks of the job include being the titular head of a country of a billion people and the commander in chief of an armed force 1.7 million strong(I might be off a little).
U get palatial accommodation(that includes of all things a zoo and a veterinary hospital) and a presidential body guard.
A jet and a fleet of cars.
Your responsibilities include rubber stamping every decision that the government of the day makes , showing up to great foreign dignitaries and making trips abroad .
Sound good? How do u apply? It would help if u have never trod on any toes. It would help still further if ur Dalt/woman/Muslim or disadvantaged in any other way. Cos then we can say we are progressing We have a Muslim/woman/Dalt/Sikh president.
It doesn't matter what state the actual community is in , if one member of that community has done well for themselves , we can hold it up as a shining example that draws attention away from even more glaring failure.
Another prime qualification would have to be the complete lack of any spine/charisma or personality , which politician wants to be outshone by the ultimate sinecure , the President of India. And who wants to deal with a President with some spine who will actually voice his opinion against patently illegal ordinances that are so much in vogue with the government of the day?
So now that the presidency of one of the most admire men in India , Abdul Kalam
is at an end, its time to elect another 'minority' to the post. A political lightwiegth at best and a sycophant of the Nehru Gandhi dynasty at worst. Turns out that Pratibha Patil fits the bill.
Trust politician after politician to praise the 'wise' choice made by Sonia Gandhi, who is doing so much for the uplift of women by delivering all the comforts that tax payers money can buy to a career politician, who can scarcely claim to be known in the country let alone be admired.

Exercise Physiology page.

I have'nt had the time to go thru this toroughly, but seems preety comprehensive.

A funny analogy

Indian cricket's present predicament of being one of the weaker sides in world cricket but easily the financial life-force of cricket reminds me of a childhood analogy.
As a kid playing cricket in the neighborhood, there was always one rich kid (or one who had indulgent parents) who owned the bat/ball and stumps.
Almost invariably that kid was not as good as some of us who turned up with nothing other than a grin. No prizes for guessing which kid I preferred to be.
I wonder if Indian cricket has been reduced to the kid with the stumps while the others nations flash a grin at out predicament.

Coldplay "Fix You" lyrics.

Could'nt have said this any better.

COLDPLAY LYRICS"Fix You"
When you try your best, but you don't succeed
When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse
When the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones And I will try to fix you
High up above or down below
When you're too in love to let it go
If you never try you'll never know
Just what you're worthLights will guide you home
And ignite your bones And I will try to fix you
Tears stream down your face
When you lose something you cannot replace
Tears stream down your faceAnd I...
Tears stream down on your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your faceAnd I...
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you.

32 young lives extinguished

32 young lives extinguished,
with each died hopes and dreams of a future so bright,
32 families in pain, so much anger so much pain.

There will be prayers there will be candles,
There will be Talk of healing and moving on.
None of which can dull the anger or the pain.
Anger unlike pain is a funny beast,

Pain is far more private still.
Tragedy it is in many ways,
Whom do we question and who do we blame?
The madman who fired the shots ,
or the law that allowed the madman to have a gun?
Temples of learning and enlightenment,
turned to killing fields.
Whom do we question and who do we blame?
For all the Anger and Pain.

The anguish of the wooden spooner.

In India, (and amongst Indian's abroad) most can be classified as either in love with the game of cricket and those who don't care much for it. I'll stick my neck out to say, that "those who don't care much are in a minority.
So though I am slowly drifting towards the minority, I would like to articulate the anguish If I can the anguish of a billion people at their one great hope of getting some "Feel good" going for them.
The Indian Cricket Team with more combined experience than a few other nations combined , was unceremoniously dumped out in the qualifying stages of the Cricket World Cup yesterday.
I have a million things to do, but I find myself constantly scanning for news stories on the aftermath of this most ignominious exit.
The post mortem to follow will have the saner voices reminding us that its "just a Game" and that "Nobody died". They will caution us against "Overreacting" and "Chopping and Changing".
Dire warnings will be given with respect to the talent pool .
They will blame the media for raising expectations too high and the adulation of a billion fans as being unbearable pressure.
So 2-3 months from now we will see the same bunch of incompetents save one or two, doing duty for India. Murdering teams at home and doing just enough abroad to create "History"(how does a test win in Ireland sound?).
We react strongly when told of by the likes of Malcom Speed, about our lack of infrastructure for paying spectators , lack of an assemly line of good young players and a lack of results in major tournaments.
We react even morre strongly when Ricky Ponting rightly taunts us about our results.
But make no mistake excuses run their course after a while. No One wants to hear team India's sob story. They are not held to the same stanadard as the rest of us dimwits when it comes to taking home a pay check and delievering results.
Unlike professional footballs teams in the US or the european soccer teams. We have no draft or acquiring players with better pedigrees, to turn this ship around.
So after public anger has died down the same people who criminally spent millions to bring home a wooden spoon will be rehabilitated.
Our 34 year old triumverate who have failed so often in unision , you would believe they are joined at the hip will happily retire on the millions they have earned. Move one to braodcast journalism perhaps, and nothing will change.
This is not just a game and it never was. Those who put on Indian colors know it. On the positive side those in India will have a whole lot less sleepless nights than they had anticipated.

Poor little Rich kids.

So Fortune magazine has gone through its ritual of identifying the worlds billionaires.
Thanks to the ferentic pace of growth witnessed in India, 36 Indian billionaires find themselves on the list. 10 years back I would put this number at 3.
A lot of these freshly minted billionaires have come under media scrutiny as to how they spend to share their billions with the rest of the country for the greater good.
Naturally they have drawn comparisons to billionaires such as Warren Buffet and Bill Gates. Who have pledged their billions to Humanitarian efforts the world around.
No that this affects anyone in particular , but I find this comparison both illogical and unfair.
Warren Buffet and Bill Gates have Billionaires for the last 20-30 years. Their approach to philantrophy has evolved over the years. To expect the same of an Indian paper billionaire is foolhardy. Maybe charity has forever been a game of one upmanship. But for what its worth , its just that, charity - A voluntary generous act or donation to aid those in need.

His excellency The ambassador of a brand

Almost all of us , who have'nt been livign under a rock, have seen a celebrity endorsement of a product. Naturally if a celeb can use a product, its certainly good enough for me.
Maybe a decade back, I heard the term brand ambassador being bandied about. Usually it was to assosciate one celeb in particular with the brand, and the brands were usually premium brands(at least by Indian standards). The term ambassador, had to stand for something regal right? Wrong. I just read that Priety Zinta has been decalred a "Brand ambassador" for something as mundane as Rexona Deo.
For the life of me I can't figure out how a deo will make its way into a classy converstaion.
"Damn , have u heard of deo" doesn't count. Nor can I quite imagine anyone associating apreety lass like Priety with deo either. "God Priety makes a perfect ambassador for Rexona Deo, she sweats like a hound dog on a hot summer day , but u can't tell, cos she has a life time supplyy of rexona deo".
So marketing folks who make a lot more than I do, take a moment and maybe a breath or two, before u decide to get a brand ambassador for the next ,mousetrap.

Oh yes ! We made it.

I took 3 local flights within europe on "low cost" airlines.. And the one thing I noted in each case was that when we landed , people broke into frenzied clapping. As if they didn't expect to land.
Ah well we were flying budget can't be too harsh on them for clapping.

Welcome aboard Mr. Ottawa Dhulipala

I was on the last leg of my european trip flying from madrid to paris. Checking in at the Ryanair counter I handed over my passport over as identification. All this is routine so I did'nt pay any attention till I got back my boarding pass. As I stepped Away from the counter , I saw Ottawa very clearly written as my first name. The security environment at the airports being as it is I headed back to the counter to get this error fixed.
The clerk at the counter pointed to my US visa which had listed Ottawa as the issuing location right above my last name Dhuliapala.
I can't figure out whats funnier, the fact that he made thew mistake or thought that Ottawa was a fine first name to go with Dhulipala. I am sure Ivana Humpalot would have gone past his vast intellect just as easily.

Oh what tangled webs we weave

Wandering through life wthout a sense of purpose,
Stopping only when we see a treat,
Empathy is not for we
Oh what tangled webs we weave.

Walking through life as a child in a candy store,
Unsure of what we want, grabbing at what looks good.
Only to realise that it tastes not nice.
Oh what tangled webs we weave.

Searching for love searching for succour,
But how do we do that when we cannot trust,
Life is hard and we make it harder still,
The more we connect the more we are alone.
Oh what tangled webs we weave.

Conclusions you will not find in this languid,
little verse of mine.
Here's to hoping we find a resolution
To this game we call life ,
and if you don't just remember what a wise woman said,
Hate not the player when its really the game that u hate.

So why do we need God really?

A rather alarming title for a rather innocous piece( I can't help it, thats what I learnt from most newspapers).
Personally I have always believed in the presence of an almighty God , but then I also accept Darwin's theory. So how can I recncile these two ideas? Quite simply by acknowledging all the scientific proof in front of us points to there having been an Evolution. God on the other hand is an idea for which there is no proof, truly a matter of faith.
I have experienced highs and lows like most, and the idea that there was a God helped in the bad times by providing hope that times would improve. In good times it gave me a reason to be grounded. I have never been overtly religious since I don't believe that the idea of aGod , is dependant on any religion.
So now to come down to why I am writing this piece, a sudden realisation. The realisation that we need the comforting idea that somebody is watching over our actions(as well as those around us), so that no good act goes un-rewarded (in our case) and no bad act goes unpunished (in the case of the rest). Without that knowledge(somebody is watching) there is no incentive to do the right thing and in cases where u can get away wth it, no disincentive to do the wrong thing.
But wether u call it karma or "what goes around comes around" , nature has found its ways.

Why this is significant

Ever since i read this CNN article I have been on a forwarding spree. Seemingly displaying excitement beyond what one would usually reserve for studies such as these which are usually a dime a dozen. For every study that plumps for one intution, there is one that goes the opposite way. Starting with this healthy dose of cynisism, I will go on to illustrate why this study has me hopping.
The premise of this article for those who would rather not click out haha, is that greatness is a function of hardwork.(hardwork thats directed at generating continuous improvement).
Now this might be hard for most of us to accept , are'nt certain people born to greatness? Surely we have seen it in our own midst, some kids pick up things quickly while others struggle. There is one Tiger Woods and then there are the rest. Surely hardwork can achieve only so much.
It is these very statements that seem to be true , that the study debunks.
At birth we start a proces of learning that ebbs and flows with time. And ends only at death.
When we start something new , the learning always is fast in the beginning and then tapers off. Some of us keep at it while most of us are satisfied/bored enough not to.
No prizes for guessing who gets to be the best.
Now motivation to keep at it is something that we are either born with or not. But I can live with that, what I can't live with is somebody being better than me on the basis of birth.

So you must be from India

I look Indian enough, and sound Indian enough that I expect people to guess quite accurately where I am from. Now recently I was out with an Indian friend of mine meeting some people I knew. As we were introduced to someone neither of us knew, the guy in question guesses quite rightly that I am from India, but he is thrown off a little and guesses that my friend was raised here. My curiosity got the better of me and I asked him how he had come to that conclusion. He replied that it was the accent. rowing up in Bombay I was exposed to a whole variety of accented english(and hindi for that matter). There was the telgu,tamil,malyalam , north indian , marathi and gujrati versions, each distinct from the rest(all of which I can proudly imitate). Naturally it never dawned on me that I too had an accent. But why then did'nt I develop an imitation of the american accent after living in the states for 5years(trust me there are benefits to be had)?
Well quite simply it was this converstaion I overheard at Hyderabad airport between an Indian settled in the US with his born and raised in US daughters. That grotesque blend of the texan drawl with the telgu pechnant for appending "OOO" at the end of every word was all I needed to convince me that there was no way in the world I was speaking like that.

And the wheel turns a full circle.

The US open is in town and it brought to my attention a few interesting facts. Namely that the top women's tennis player(Maria Sharapova) makes more in endorsement deals than the top mens player (Roger Federer) for reasons that don't have anything to do with tennis ofcourse. Though my tone might indicate otherwise I have no issue with that. I mean if you are still wondering why thats the case, you have'nt seen a photo of Sharapova. The market has decided that Maria Sharapova is more saleable than Roger Federer and its as simple as that.
Then why am I writing this post? Well not too long back women won pay parity with men on certain Grand Slam events(I don't remember that all the 4 grand slam's implemented a pay parity) after a long and hard fough battle. For them the principle at hand was how could a woman be paid less to do a job , play tennis in this case than men.
Now Since my reading on this matter is not extensive I apologise for any holes. But to me it would seem a misplaced argument. Surely the men were getting paid more cos more people turned up to watch them. Wonder what those women who fought the good fight think now. Was it worth it? Since anyway now women are on top for the very same reasons the men got more prize money.

Strike now or forever hold your peace.

Those who have been following events in the Indian Sub continent, whould have realised the importance of recent developments namely the elimination of Balochi Nationalist(tribal warlord as per the Pakistani version) leader Nawab Akbar Bugti. Most of the material I have read suggests that this might prove a catalyst to the nationalist movement in Balochistan.
For India this would seem like a God sent.
For decades Pakistan has been exploiting the various fissures that exist within India. Not to say that India hasn't returned the compliment, but the sheer size and the disparate nature of its people means that there are a lot more fissures for Pakistan to exploit.
There will be those in the Indian leadership who will want to steer clear of this conflict. Their argument will be that India would lose the moral grounds on which it asks Pakistan to stop meddling in its aaffairs, stop arming terrorists etc.
To those people I have something to say. Make no mistake , all your moral posturing has yielded India no divedends. Insurgencies in India continue to rage along with regular terrorist strikes all which has happened with the Pakistani leaderships assistance. Even if geo-politically you do not see the case for an independent balochi state, do your utmost to exploit the situation.