The Chinese Olympics has been rather successful so far. A couple embarrassing incidents cloud the event, but overall it seems to bring forth a sense of competition amongst the nations and its representatives which is exceedingly important in a time when the world is going from one perilous crisis to another. The question of whether or not China should be allowed to host the Olympics has been harped over and over - it is rather unfortunate - because if Berlin can host the Olympics in 1936, there is no reason as to why China cannot host it right now. And no, I am not defending China’s Human Rights Voilations; I think American companies such as Microsoft, Cisco, Yahoo and Google have a huge part in arming the government in curbing peoples’ access to the www - which unfortunately has become the gateaway of experssion - human interaction over the internet, yuck! So, long story short, the Democratic People’s Republic of China hosting the Olympics has not had a negative influence on any one particular group of people. Furthermore, it is nice to see a growing economy like China host the games - this could only be beneficial to the other major players in Asia and the devleoping world.

India is not going to follow the pattern that it has in the past and hold an early election. The Congress Government and its coalition partners have survived the scare of another daunting electoral process. I think India displays the crudest form of a Democratic setup. Politicians who have been to prison for crimes such as murder still grace the halls where a billion voices are represented. I am not completely disappointed that the Congress Government and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh are still the force to lead the nation, but the nature in which it was done was awfully crude. Allegations of corruption and bribery adorn the whole scenario. Mr. Singh may have won the no-confidence motion, but what he did lose is the confidence of the people. It took him less than 5 years to turn him from a staunch technocrat to a politician who has learnt to play the dangerous game of Politics in India. Well, now that the Government has survived and elections are not going to take place in the very near future and it will be interesting to watch which way the Nuclear Deal will swing. But, Mr. Singh, you have won the confidence of your cronies, but lost the confidence of the masses.

There is a pattern to politics in India - all action must be derailed by talks, negotiations and appeasement of certain groups of people. The recent Nuclear deal with the United States is one more example of that. The deal began for transfer of Civilian Nuclear Technology to India marked a new step in the blossoming relationship between the two countries. Historically, both nations have been quite distant and indeed very wary of one another - as a matter of fact Indo - US relations did not burgeon till 1997. During the Cold-War, India sided with the Soviets, while its nemesis took on to the United States as its ally. During the 1971 war for the freedom of Bangladesh (then known as East Pakistan), the Indians had a ferocious but short battle against the Pakistanis - the Soviets were supporting India, supplying them Arms and Military know-how - the United States on the other hand was on Pakistan’s side. This caused a proxy war situation which could have escalated to an all out nuclear battle. The US had Warships in the Indian Ocean ready to strike if the situation plunged even further. Meanwhile the Soviets, were also ready - the Communists announced that any attack on India would be an infringment into their own soverignty and they would be prepared to strike. Bangladesh was a free nation - millions died. For more on the war click here.

Relations have changed between the two countries - India is the United States’ most strategic allies - Politically, Democratically, Economically and Militarily. The offer to transfer Nuclear Technology to India was brought up in 2005 by President George W. Bush to his counterpart, the Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh. Three years later, things have not moved yet. India is under immense pressure to sign the deal before the elections in November. The Democrats are not as keen in transferring technology as the Republicans are.  The focus is on the current deal between India and the United States -

The following are the terms of the deal:

1. India is to allow Nuclear Watchdog experts to inspect its civilian facilities. Military facilities will be exempt from inspection.

2. India will continue its moratorium on weapons testing.

3. Security of Indian nuclear arsenal will have to be increased to meet optimum standards.

4. American companies will be allowed to build Nuclear Reactors to provide energy to India.

The deal is extremely shaky at this juncture - Dr. Manmohan Singh’s Congress Coilation Government is in the midst of a no-confidence motion - the Left parties in India (Communist Party of India - Marxist and Leninist) have strongly opposed the deal. They believe the passing of the deal would give the United States influence if not control over India’s foreign policy. And in all fairness, that is not something that the Indians should strive for. But, India is definitely energy hungry and the nuclear deal could be one of the answers to the demanding need for energy. On the other hand, India might have to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty  - not that it is a big undertaking to sign the treaty when a lot of nations have defaulted on it (Libya, North Korea, Iran). I don’t see why this deal would be detrimental to India’s economic progress and the increase in bi-lateral ties with the United States. India, under Dr. Singh and the Bush Administration (although I do not agree with  most of its policies) has prospered and the Nuclear Deal will be beneficiary to both sides. The IAEA has voiced vociferous support for the deal - both countries have to seek the ratification of 45 other members and the US Congress if the deal needs to go through and given the fact that the US Congress is in a split in terms of Democrats and Republicans it seems to be another hump that the perpetrators of the deal need to jump in order to move on with the deal.

There is plenty of drama in India over this deal and the talks will continue till the cows come home. or not.

The past week was congested with several confrontational aspects all around the world. To me it started with the ridiculous bombing at the Indian Embassy in Kabul. I won’t be surprised if the ISI (Inter Services Intelligence) Agency had a hand in this doing. It rather makes sense because of the Indian influence in Afghanistan - although Hamid Karzai categorically stated that India will  not be able to stage any sort of attack on Pakistan from Afghani soil - but it still makes Paksitan nervous. Of course the great demagogs of the world declared it a cowardly act, which it was of course. Pakistani influence within Afghanistan, politically is at a low - when the Tablean were in power, through the 1990’s, Pakistan was one of the only countries to recognize the Rogue Afghani regime. What did the Taleban/ Al-Qaeda or the ISI accomplish by bombing the Indian Mission in Kabul? The first thing is the increasing influence of New Delhi in Afghanistan in a lot of spheres of Afghani life; infrastructurally, New Delhi has invested millions of Dollars into rebuilding Afghanistan and is also promoting it to become a member of SAFTA. Social changes that womens groups and literacy campaigns promoted by the government of India are at an all time high as well. India expects Afghanistan to be a strong neighbor to bolster its influence not just in the South Asian corridor but also in the Middle East and in the broader Islamic world. The bombing of the Embassy will put things to a halt for a little while, but I believe that the Indian influence in the region is to stay. Hamid Karzai has been lobbying hard with India to become a part of SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Agreement) and this can only bring good things to Afghanistan - firstly to wake and take the country from the depths it is at to a more level status in the region - and further given the status of the United States and India, this level of Indian influence is bound to remain high. Pakistan on the other hand will not digest this fruitfully - again, although Afghanistan will not be a staging ground for an attack on Pakistan, it will still feel the pressure of the Indian influence from its Western Frontier. Afghanistan needs India and vice-versa and strongly condeming these acts of agression on foreign missions that are for boosting ties between nations is absolutely uncalled for.

I found good article on the topic on the Carnegie Endowments website

Developing and Under Developed Nations will remain the same. They will remain the same until their former colonial masters stop meddling in their internal affairs. Zimbabwe as it stands today is a sovereign nation - but foreign embassies within it have been beating the drum up for a socio-political change. Mr. Mugabe presents an interesting characteristic - once a revolutionary freedom fighter who brought his nation back from the pangs of the British influence suddenly has himself cornered.  The same colonial power that once kept his nation down has been knocking on his door once again - to seek justice for the people of Zimbabwe. Excuse my language, but are you fucking kidding me? Justice for the people of Zimbabwe? Did the colonial powers forget what they did in Rhodesia? Looks like the British, this time under Gordon Brown have decided to stick their nose once again in the political structure and social lifestyle of a poor African nation. It’s time they leave Zimbabwe the fuck alone. Now then, not everything is in the clear with Mugabe as well - yes he needs to go - or recognize that the nation is in dire need of improvement - economically, socially - inflation is over 4500%, people are starving, homeless, jobless and distressed. I think what one should wait for is an internal revolution within Zimbabwe - wild words by the Americans and the European Colonialists does not really fix anything in the situation. Now look what has happened - Mr. Mugabe has won - well it is not really much of a victory if one person is contesting in the election - and the life and death stand between voting for him or not - the fingers painted with red ink say it all. Mugabe has a pretty picture perfect boiler plate set up when it comes to being a dictator - like most other dicks he was a nice guy before, won the revolution, got rid of the Brits and then soon after that there were social programs all across Zimbabwe and it was called the “Hope of Africa”. Now, after 20 odd years, the nation is in the dolldrums. What Zimbabwe needs, like most other African and Asian nations is a unanimous declaration of oneness and solidarity between all the sidees, for example - the belting of Morgan Tsvangarai is absolutely not acceptable, the fact that the opposition leader needs to seek refuge in the Embassy of a Foreign nation, again is not acceptable (Dutch Embassy). What Zimbabwe needs may not be accomplished, but a clear understanding that this nation needs another rebuilding - this time without any western influence. A Zimbabwe for Zimbabweans.

I wanted to post this in memory of IZ - what a pure song!

 

 Letting go of the reins has got to be tough. Whether it be the Burmese Junta not allowing foreign aid workers, in fear of losing out control of the situation or Vladimir Putin not letting go of his control in Russia. The two aspects struck me most in the news this week. Putin is the new Prime Minister of Russia and according to the Russian Constitution, no person is allowed to run as President for 3 terms in a row - so Mr. Putin makes himself Prime Minister, puts one of his cronies (Dimitry Medvedev) as the man at the helm. As one analyst put very aptly - it is written in pencil and can be changed anytime. Putin is definitely the face of Russian nationalism which was lost after the Soviets dissolved - his fan following within Russia is quite extreme - but will the young revolt? I was watching a series of reports about Russia on the emergence of new Russian nationalists among young people - called the Nashi (Молодежное движение «Наши» - Youth Movement “Ours”) . The vote bank is split among young people with their allegiance to Mr. Putin. Could Russia be facing another revolution? Young Russians like their counterparts in several other “growing” nations look to their counterparts in the West as benchmark for development. Although, Russia is a member of a body of nations tha are growing economically, the rampant economic disparity, corruption and displaced nationalism could bring its downfall. The hatred shown toward foreigners is quite something in itself - during Soviet times, the nation supported several students from under-developed and developing nations from Asia and Africa - this was an attempt for the Communists to give a sense of openness and make the Soviet Empire attractive - this has changed quite a bit - African students often are subject to racial attacks on them from native Russians. Has Russian Nationalism flipped? Is Russian Nationalism bad for Russia? One quote by Mr. Putin struck me the other day as he was leaving office - “Anyone who is glad that the Soviet Empire fell does not have a heart - Anyone who thinks that the Soviets should be back does not have a head.” This is definitely a new Russia that Prime Minister Putin is envisioning.  Mr. Putin will be back as the President of Russia - deserving or not - he is in charge of shaping the Russian identity.

 

 

 Same story, different perspectives. This seems to shape our political landscape in the modern era. Recently, I had the privilege to watch the documentary, “Why we fight”. It was extremely riveting and staggering in terms of the injustices that have been propounded upon the “common man.” Of course, nothing absolutely new was presented to me, but the cobwebs that surrounded my judgment in certain areas were definitely cleared. I urge everyone to watch the documentary to understand the scale at which the nation has been drained of her conscience. The introduction of the film begins with the exit speech of former President Dwight Eisenhower, who himself a man of the Military talks about the expansion of the forces and introduces the world to the much used phrase, Military Industrial Complex. He talks about Americans to watch over the establishment and proliferation of the military. The United States spent almost $630 Billion on the Armed Forces in the fiscal year of 2007. It is undeniable that our thirst for combat has risen because of this expenditure. I walked out of my apartment after watching the movie and was distraught by the number of American flags fluttering in the air. I found my answer to why we fight, just as Jared Diamond explains in his book about hegemonic aspirations of the Eurasian Tribes - we fight because it is inherently a concept for human beings to do - we fight for imperialistic aspirations - if not absolutely ideological, then definitely economic. In other words, nations do not have friends - they have interests. The next documentary series I hope someone would make would be something along the lines of “Why are we proud?” Or what are we proud of. Life long Republican and decorated hero John Eisenhower has nominated Obama for President. It will be interesting to see how many more intellectuals cross party lines. As of now, I am sick of this administration and can’t wait for a new government in office.

I used to be a huge fan of President Bill Clinton in the past - but now that I have grown to be a self thinking man for the most part, I find his persona/ character deceitful, conniving, sly, tricky and very cunning most of the times. The recent one is of Hillary Clinton of course and the speech she made about being more qualified to run the country because of her “experience” in Bosnia. She claimed to come under sniper fire - this of course was proved wrong by CBS who was on the C-130 with Senator Clinton only to find that she was singing with Cheryl Crow and Sindbad at the Military Base. Embellishment of the truth is definitely the Clinton way - this will hurt her campaign a lot and I don’t feel that she is ready to answer that phone at 3 in the morning to make tough decisions. Senator Obama, who has been accused of not having enough experience must be having a field day on this one!

This is a great video from CBS News:  

Vote for Obama!

 

 I faintly remember the 1992 Cricket World Cup - called the Benson & Hedges World Cup in Australia. This was the defining moment in my television appreciation. The whole series was digitized, colorful and quite exciting. The part I remember the most, apart from sections of the crowd with posters signaling the arrival of Sachin Tendulkar and every run he scored he became from Sachin Tendulkar to ElevenDulkar, TwelveDulkar … you get the point - but the point was the song “Who will it be.. who will it be.. its a once in a lifetime…” The same song resonated with me again this afternoon - who will it be - will it be Hillary Clinton or Barak Obama, on the other end will it be John McCain or Mitt Romney? Who will it be? As much as I am not a fan of the structure of the American Political System - with all its delegates and the Electoral College.. its definitely quite confusing for a newbie. But once you understand the system, it starts to make sense; the idea is to keep the layman voters out of control of the voting machine. Which is why I can harp on the subject that the United States is not a Democracy, its a Republic. We only sow the seeds of Democracy - while negating the very basic civil liberties of our own people ( I am sure a lot of gay and lesbian folks are nodding their heads). I have spent the last couple nights watching all three main contenders, McCain, Obama and Hillary - Obama got a raucous welcome at the Seaport World Trade Center when he was introduced by Senator Ted Kennedy - the other members of this illustrious podium were John Kerry, Caroline Kennedy and etc. Quite a glitzy bunch of people to get introduced by. On the other hand, Hillary got endorsed by a Congressman named McGovern and his daughter, Molly. The difference was also in body language - Hillary kept nodding and at times it was annoying - no nods from Obama, really. So, the focus is on Pennsylvania - every political commentator has plenty to talk about it - including John Stewart - who I feel off late has been awfully tame. I enjoy watching both John Stewart and Steven Colberts’ shows on Comedy Central, but off late - it has just been blah! Samantha Power was on Colbert last night - I don’t know why these people do not allow other people to speak and present their mind. I understand that it is a comedy show, but common mate, let the other person have a word - you don’t have to get all Bill O’Reilly on people. Like the tittle mentions - the focus of this election needs to move from Hillary Clinton being a monster, Jeremiah Wright’s controversial sermons and John McCain’s age. And what the hell is up with the Red Phone ringing at 3 AM? I just do not understand the whole idea of being ready at 3 AM. What are these people doing rest of the day? Do you really believe that someone would accept a job that makes you wake up at 3 AM? I know I know, I am just ranting. The focus of the argument needs to be on Iraq (I am with McCain on this - we need to be in Iraq longer and ensure that the country is well set for a good economic/ military future) , Afghanistan (which has really slipped the radar),  the economy primarily the local sub-prime mortgage crisis (btw.. sub prime was the word of 2007) and Medicare.  Everything else is fluff, fuzz, lint, dustballs etc.