20 million to be made legal citizens

This is possible only in India where political parties are competing to let illegal immigrants in and provide them ration card, identity card and finally citizenship when millions of its natural born citizens are dying of hunger and terrorist attacks.

Here what Prof. R. Viadynathan of IIM Bangalore says

Arizona in the USA is in turmoil due to a piece of legislation passed in the state about illegal immigrants mainly from Mexico and other Latin countries. It says that the cops can ask for papers if they suspect a person to be illegal and also the employers need to check the legal status. The bleeding heart liberals and other assorted types of leftists are up in arms. But the mainstream America wants to go ahead and curb illegal immigration.
But India is different. It carries the Athithi Devo Bhava to the extreme in terms of providing perfume to Kasab.

Click on the following link to read the complete article

http://expressbuzz.com/biography/20-million-to-be-made-legal-citizens/176882.html

Mayawati and the politics of corruption

Mayawati's wealth as mentioned in this article is what she has in India. She and Kanshiram used to go to Switzerland to get away from the heat of UP (Atalji used to go to Ranikhet in Uttaranchal). I wonder if those trips were just vacation. After all, Indians have over trillion dollars deposited in the Swiss Banks.
When will people of UP rise above caste politics and vote this person out of the office. Between Mayawati and Mulayam Yadav, the state of UP became a lot sicker than it was (It is part of the BIMARU states!!!).
The politics of corruption
By MV Kamath

"The CBI listed the immovable assets of Mayawati and her family as follows: 41 agricultural plots, 16 residential plots, 7 shops, three orchards, two shops-cum-residences located in and around Delhi; a mansion in her ancestral village of Badalpur, described by NDTV as a mini-Taj Mahal, buit on a sprawling 30,000 square yards estate. According to a CBI list filed in 2003, Mayawati then had assets worth Rs 36.5 million in one bank account and Rs 2.345 million in another. In 2004 she had Rs 1.5 million in cash and Rs 97.8 million in bank accounts and jewellery worth Rs 3.09 million. In 2007 her moveable assets included Rs 5.02 million in cash, Rs 128.8 million in bank deposits and jewellery worth Rs 5.08 million. Giving further details of her jewellery, Mayawati listed 1035.260 grammes of gold 76.040 grammes of diamonds and 18,500 kgs of silver. She also admitted owning murals worth Rs 1.5 million. According to Mayawati’s own self-evaluation from two affidavits her financial worth including both moveable and immoveable assets jumped from Rs 160.7 million in 2004 to Rs 520 million in 2007. "

http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=346&page=9

Only in India: A Brahmin groom for a Catholic bride

Casteism is a bane of the entire Indian subcontinent rather than Hinduism. The converts from Hinduism to other religions also continue their practice albeit more subtly. In my conversations with my Pakistani friends, I found out that not all muslims are equal in the land of the "pure".
Of course this does not make the practice in Hinduism any less vile.


Only in India: A Brahmin groom for a Catholic bride
MUMBAI: When Winnie D'Souza wanted to marry her daughter into a ‘decent' family, she scanned the matrimonial columns of Catholic periodicals in Panaji. After shortlisting a few young men, D'Souza made inquiries about their caste. She wanted her daughter to marry a Brahmin. Most Catholic publications do not list caste categories as they did 20 years ago, but casteism has not disappeared among Christians. It has merely become more subtle.

The rest can be read at the following:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-toi/special-report/Only-in-India-A-Brahmin-groom-for-a-Catholic-bride/articleshow/5935792.cms

Seven facts that nail the lies about Gujarat

Recently we found out that through autopsies and other ways, stories about Gengis Khan type atrocities attributed to Hindu mobs by eminent pseudo secularists and self styled champions of minorities were wrong. In one case one activist had actually coached a witness to lie.

No one is really proud of what happened in the aftermath of the lynching of the kar-sevaks at the Godhra station. But one still needs to examine the whole thing from an impartial point of view rather than trying to score political points on a successful CM in probably the most prosperous state in the Indian Union.
The following article was written a long time ago by Mr. B P Singhal who is a retired IPS officer and an ex Rajya Sabha member. It was published in the only paper which has the guts to speak the truth in the face of a maelstrom of lies perpetuated by English language media in India.

Seven facts that nail the lies about Gujarat

"The post-Godhra violence was neither 'genocide' nor 'pogrom' against Muslims. It was communal violence in which Hindus also died, many shot dead by police, says BP Singhal"

".....When Aaj Tak contacted me to get my response, I told the anchor that the Godhra carnage took place on February 27, 2002, that the Hindu backlash commenced on February 28, and the Army was conducting a flag march on the forenoon of March 1. He cut me short by saying that "this is exactly what we have said, no action was taken by Mr Modi on the 29th, 30th and 31st, thus giving three clear days to the murderers...". I had to remind him at this point that the date 28th was February 28 and there was no 29th, 30th or 31st in that month. The 'phono' was disconnected."
http://dailypioneer.com/85522/Seven-facts-that-nail-the-lies-about-Gujarat.html

The following website is dedicated to the cause of unearthing the lies about the riots in the aftermath of Godhra massacre. Afterall, someone had to speak for those 50 people who were burnt alive.
http://www.gujaratriots.com/

Rebel Nuns

The intention of putting this article here is not to be critical of the people involved in the events discussed in the second article but to highlight another problem India has.
It has always vexed me as to what the Hindu stand was on the matter of abortion. Of course unlike all the organized religions, Hinduism seems more like a philosophy to guide us and thus leaves the decision making to the individual. The sentiment has been articulated well in the article in the first article in blue.
Please read the following before that:

As a Hindu, I believe the Soul is eternal and immortal, while the body is subject to birth and death. Life is sacred. In the context of abortion, what is important to me is the intent, the motivation, behind the decision. In the overall cosmic balance was the act, life enhancing or diminishing? For, as you sow, so shall you reap; for somewhere along in the cycle of karmic births and deaths you will be rewarded by the fruits of your action. Karma (literally: action) is the sum of one's actions, and the force that determines one's next reincarnation.

Now with all this in mind I would like to make the point of selective abortions in India. That is a sin in the eyes of god even for Hindus. A religion which calls "kanyadaan" a grace cannot condone female foeticide. Chinese society is beset with problems because of the one child policy and the Chinese obsession with male children. Single middle age men have been responsible for murderous attacks on school children.
Hinduism gives us freedom to choose based on our conscience. We should be thankful for that. But we should not be misusing our god given freedom.

And now the article which led to this:

Rebel Nuns
When it comes to nuns, though, the church is somehow able to act with alacrity. This week, Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of Phoenix announced the excommunication of Sister Margaret McBride for the crime of approving an abortion necessary to save a woman’s life. The patient, a 27-year-old who was 11 weeks pregnant, had pulmonary hypertension, which interferes with the functioning of the heart and lungs. Pregnancy exacerbates the condition, and doctors at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center determined that she would die without an abortion. St. Joseph’s is Catholic, so an ethics committee meeting was convened. As part of the committee, Sister McBride opted to save the patient’s life. For that, she’s been rebuked, transferred, and essentially barred from participating in Catholic life.
Read the rest of the article at the following.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-05-21/catholic-nuns-go-rogue/?cid=hp:exc

UPA-II: A first year report card.

I could write a lot myself but I am going to let you read the following op-eds on the UPA-II from left (Prakash Karat) and from the right (Arun Jaitley) and everyone in the middle.
All things said, what you get is what you voted for.

http://news.rediff.com/column/2010/may/19/upas-concern-for-the-aam-aadmi-is-shallow-says-karat.htm

http://news.rediff.com/column/2010/may/20/a-wasted-year-the-common-mans-woes-only-increased.htm

http://news.rediff.com/special/2010/may/19/bjp-leader-arun-jaitley-on-upa-anniversary.htm

http://news.rediff.com/column/2010/may/18/tvr-shenoy-on-the-upa-a-house-divided.htm

India's Crisis Of Food Inflation & Hunger

Can we really feel any bloody pride with 350 million of our people going to sleep hungry?
Why do we need Commonwealth games?
Why does that unscrupulous rotten excuse of a human being ambani need a 6 billion dollar home?
(Read my friend Swami Thambi's post Look Around Before You Commemorate on this blog)

I am NOT a communist but I am a father. My eyes watered up when I read the story of this girl Poonam. I wish I had money like Ambani so I could go and adopt the whole family and make her feel well. But I can't. I am just a helpless guy trying to keep my own world together. When I see that Pakistan and Sub-Saharan countries are doing better than us, I become extremely angry. Unfortunately, the Indians in India have become very blasé and are doing their best to become comfortably numb.
I have this to say to them:
1. The country ain't goin' nowhere until everyone is on the train.
2. You, my dear friend, will have to come out of your house and see this sometime. I hope your conscience will let you sleep after you see this.
At the very least, you could go out and vote right in the next election.




India's Crisis Of Food Inflation & Hunger

"Chris Morris, of BBC News writes in an article titled, 'Diet of mud and despair in Indian village', published May 15: "In Ganne, just off the main road about an hour south of the city of Allahabad (in Northern India), this (poverty/hunger) is a simple fact of life. Inside one of the huts sits a little girl called Poonam. She is three years old, and in the early stages of kidney failure. Like many children in Ganne she has become used to eating bits of dried mud and silica, which she finds in the quarry. Tiny children chew on the mud simply because they are hungry - but it is making them ill. When reports first emerged of children eating mud here local officials delivered more food and warned the villagers not to speak to outsiders. "
http://is.gd/cb1Kg

India's food inflation dips to 13.93 percent

Normally this kind of headline should be a cause for celebration. But 16.61% to 13.93% is a Pyrrhic victory at best especially when the daal part of the "daal-roti" grew by over 30%. Nothing that Manmohan Singh can hang his hat on.


India's food inflation dips to 13.93 percent

New Delhi, May 6
"India's annual food inflation declined to 13.93 percent for the week ended April 24 from 16.61 percent a week ago due to a fall in prices of wheat and vegetables, official data showed Thursday."

The prices of the following grew:
- Pulses: 30.58 percent
- Milk: 21.12 percent
- Fruits: 14.49 percent
- Rice: 8.28 percent
- Cereals: 7.67 percent

The prices of the following fell:

- Potato: (-)32.14 percent
- Onions : (-) 25.8 percent
- Vegetables: (-) 5.69 percent

The article can be read at the following:
http://surl.name/27du

Manmohan Singh's second term: Drift, disunity, unfulfilled expectations

Is this really a big surprise? The only people who are surprised are the ones who keep voting for these guys and expect different results.
"Yatha Praja, Tatha Raaja"

http://news.in.msn.com/national/article.aspx?cp-documentid=3905530&page=5

Manmohan Singh's second term: Drift, disunity, unfulfilled expectations
Expectations about the Manmohan Singh government performing better in its second term as the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) completes a year since it returned to power are yet to be fulfilled. It was hoped that a more secure majority in parliament and the absence of an obstructionist Communist bloc would enable the prime minister to push ahead faster with economic reforms and provide more purposeful governance.

But despite the government's success in fobbing off the challenge from its two main adversaries - the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left parties - as the failure of their cut motion on the demand for grants showed, it still seems lacking in confidence.
The reason is more internal than external. While the government has succeeded in obtaining the support of three allies such as the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Samajwadi Party (SP), its partners in the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) as well as a section of Congressmen themselves have proved to be troublesome.
Besides, misgivings prevail about how the government wooed these three parties of the Hindi heartland. While the BSP's Mayawati apparently believes the government will not pursue the corruption cases against her with the earlier vigour, the RJD and the SP have been placated by the government conceding their demand for including caste in the census enumerations for the first time since 1931.
The rest of the article is available at the following:
http://news.in.msn.com/national/article.aspx?cp-documentid=3905530&page=5
Source: Amulya Ganguli, IANS

Speculative hoarding causes price-rise

Having spent hours standing in the ration line during my youth, I can certainly empathize, albeit in a very very small way, with the poor in India who are suffering due to food prices. As it is the poor (and some in the middle class) survived on "daal - roti". With daal close to Rs. 100 / kg, it is down to only roti. Are our poor on their way to achieving a parity with the poor of North Korea who sometimes have to eat grass?
I am not an economist. In fact, truth be told, I do not understand economics at all. I am told that our PM is something of an economist. But judging by the inflation and the price situation, what can we deduce about his team's ability to handle the inflation and the price rise.
The following is an article which, at least point in the right direction.
A couple of quotes from the article and the url are as follows.

Speculative hoarding causes price-rise
By Himanshu Shekhar Jha

"THE recent spurt in the prices of essential commodities which has made the life of common people in India miserable is a new phenomenon. In fact, this trend started only after the entry of the multinational companies in our country. Prior to that prices registered a hike rarely and had never been excessive as it is today. "

"In my recent visit to Deoghar, a holy place of international fame in Jharkhand, I heard a government official complaining against the UPA Government in particular Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Cabinet Colleagues. He wanted to bring home the truth to me that when the BJP was in Power, prices were at least stable and were not likely to wobble over at every turn of the event. He said that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh often talks about expected price-rise as a result of which hoarders swing into action immediately and pile up goods in great demand which automatically lead to inflation. "

http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=344&page=41

Hail to the Champion: Vishwanathan Anand!!

Now here is a guy who has done nothing but make India proud. He has been doing almost silently for over two decades. Why silently? It is because in the face of the maelstrom known as Cricket, what chance does a chess player have?
I read an interview of a Cricket player about the IPL parties. It turns out that the stuff that went on there is not even condoned by the NBA or NFL or MLB in the US.

Coming back to the topic, Vishwanathan Anand is a true "Bharat Ratna". May God bless him a long life and abilities so he can keep doing us all proud.
The following is a slide show in a US newspaper - the Indian ones are still trying to put together slide shows on Bollywood starlets and our debauched Cricket goons.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB127381869447191405.html?mod=WSJ_hp_us_mostpop_read

India 'diverts funds for poor to pay for Delhi games'

It is amazing that there is no outrage on this in India. We have a decent foreign exchange reserve. In Congress wants to showcase it's achievement with these games there are ways to raise money instead of kicking those who are already down.
In fact one can go further and deduce from the lack of criticism in the Indian media for the UPA that there is no buyer's remorse amongst the voters for electing them the second time around despite of their record. In any other democracy these people would have been kicked out.
However knowing the Indian voter, I am sure that when the next election comes, the middle class will get seduced by the good looking crown prince Rahul who will be supported by the English language media to the hilt. The poor will get seduced and bullied by the casteist politics of the regional parties who then will join the UPA to keep those "communal monsters and enemies of the nation" BJP out of the government. And thus the status quo will be maintained.
I guess this is one way of dealing with poverty - starve the poor to death. Gareeb Hatao!!!!

India 'diverts funds for poor to pay for Delhi games'

Tens of millions of dollars have been diverted in India from schemes to fight poverty and used to fund Delhi's Commonwealth Games, a report says.
The Housing and Land Rights Network pressure group says its report is based on official documents obtained under India's right to information act.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8683412.stm

More Proof of zakat funding jihad

More Proof of zakat funding jihad

It is known that while the practice of Zakat (giving alms) in Islam is a noble idea, it has been hijacked and misused by terrorist outfits and it's supporters to raise money for terror attacks. For example, the hides of animals sacrificed during Id-ul-azha in Pakistan are donated to these dubious charities who then sell them to leather goods makers. The money thus generated goes towards funding everything except helping the real needy.
They have telethons in Saudi Arabia where money is raised for suicide bombers who attack Israel. The following article is more like a confession of that practice.
http://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/p18381.xml?media=print

Look Around Before You Commemorate

Rediff NEWS
PM to present UPA's report card to 'aam aadmi'
Last updated on: May 11, 2010 11:28 IST

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will present a report card to the 'aam aadmi' on the 'successful completion' of six years of the United Progressive Alliance's stint at the Centre at a massive media conference on May 24. The occasion will commemorate the sixth anniversary of the UPA regime at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi. In a communication to the secretaries in the various ministries, the prime minister's office has sought details of the successful projects or missions undertaken by that particular ministry, to be included in the final report. Senior ministers are expected to be present at the media conference. Dr Singh's Information Advisor Dr Harish Khare will conduct the show. As many as 250 news channels and 1,500 accredited correspondents will cover the media conference at Vigyan Bhavan. Dr Singh will also answer question from media centres in Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata Mumbai and Hyderabad, via video conferencing.
The Press Information Bureau and the ministry of external affairs is considering fielding questions by correspondents based in foreign locations via video. On the evening of May 24, Congress president and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi is planning to host a reception for UPA allies and Congress Members of Parliament. The venue for the reception will be finalized after consultations with the PMO and UPA leaders. The All India Congress Committee has also asked the chiefs of its state units to plan celebrations to mark the sixth anniversary of the UPA.

Mr. PM here are some questions Aam Aadmi Blog is fielding;


1. How can you commemorate adding 100 million more people to the U.N. estimated poverty line of $1.25 a day?
2. How can you commemorate the U.N Report of one third of the world’s poor being in India, living on less than $2 per day, worse than in many of sub-Saharan Africa?
3. How can you commemorate the massive inflation on basic food items?
4. How can you commemorate when 72 lack metric tons of wheat grain worth Rs. 800 crores, procured from the farmers is rotting in the Government granaries?
5. How can you commemorate farmers commit ting suicide and people dying of starvation and malnutrition?
6. How can you commemorate the death of hundreds of innocent citizens killed by Islamic Terrorist in the face of deteriorating national security?
7. How can you commemorate resumption of the peace process with Pakistan when they refuse to dismantle the terrorist training camps and punish the perpetrators?
8. How can you commemorate the massacre of the CRPF jawan’s by the Maoists?
9. How can you commemorate the 2G Spectrum 1 lack crore mother of all scams by your cabinet colleague?
10. How can you commemorate the tabling of the severely compromised nuclear liability bill?

Mr. PM: Before commemorating please listen to the Aam Aadmi Ki Awaaz and see the Aam Aadmi’s Plight

Read the U.N Report: 100 million more Indians now living in poverty

http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-47791820100419?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0

Uttarakhand sowing seeds for a better tomorrow

A colleague of mine at an US university who was pursuing a PhD in Botany asked me why were there so many research papers in Botany coming from India. Being a non botanist, I had no answer. Upon looking briefly at the papers, a lot of them were coming from small colleges and not the major institutes. We always have done well in getting most out of our land. Our botanists have done well in helping our food production (I wish I could say the same about our govt. and their food distribution - with food rotting in storage and people dying of hunger!).
India always had one of the highest populations in the world. Our rivers including "Mother Ganges" and the fertile land surrounding her have sustained us for eons. Even today if we had better infrastructure for food distribution, no one in India would go hungry or at the very least get two "daal rotis" in a day.
I always took pride in what our botanists had managed to achieve (not withstanding all this hullabaloo about the genetically modified foods). The following article is a very good article on traditional farming In Uttarakhand. Our traditional wisdom is coming to our rescue once more. This is what I mean by our "culture". Isn't it great???

Uttarakhand sowing seeds for a better tomorrow
The way forward to sustainable agriculture lies in sticking to traditional methods,
Baba Mayaram

"The number 12 is only indicative; it does not mean that the cropping and sowing pattern cannot use more varieties. The core idea is the strengthening of the twin pillars of farming and animal husbandry. This implies optimum utilisation of by-products of each to boost the other. For instance, the non-harvested portions of the crop become fodder for animals and the dung from the animals become fertile manure for the farms. By-products of harvested crops could also be used to produce bio-fertiliser this holistic pattern of agriculture has been the base of traditional farming. "

The rest of the article can be read at the following url:
http://dailypioneer.com/255192/Uttarakhand-sowing-seeds-for-a-better-tomorrow.html