Do it yourself

Thought for the day "I'm nobody, who are you?" —Emily Dickinson (American, 1830-1886) Word for the day Serotinal (adj) Pertaining to or occurring in late summer. Malice towards none Few of us would believe that Pakistan can mend its ways and become a responsible nation. So, what you think is the meaning of all this censuring by global powers. First random thought this morning My personal assessment is that not more than a few million Indians out of 1.3billion would have heard about Gauri Lankesh before she was brutally killed. Still the country appears divided in condemning this cowardly act. Unfortunately, the people apologizing for the killers are in overwhelming majority, while those strongly condemning it are mostly from her own fraternity. But this is not the point here. My point is that 'We vs. They" syndrome that is dividing Indian society on almost every issue now a days could bri...

Thought for the day "It is better to be the hammer than the anvil." —Emily Dickinson (American, 1830-1886) Word for the day Bicameral (adj) Government . Having two branches, chambers, or houses, as a legislative body. Malice towards none How long Hindi-Chini bhai bhai bonhomie will last after BRICS summit? First random thought this morning A recent report suggest that presently economic inequities in India are highest in almost in a century. The report also highlights that the economic inequalities reduced consistently between 1920-1980, with the share of top 1% population in total income falling from over 20% to 6%. From 1980 onwards the share of top 1% had again climbed to over 20% in 2014. 1977-1980 is a key period in Indian political history. This is the time when the hegemony of Congress party was first defeated by a coalition of motley opposition of right-center-left ideologies. Since then it had been a con...

Thought for the day "Old age comes suddenly, and not gradually as is thought." —Emily Dickinson (American, 1830-1886) Word for the day Narcotize (v) To make dull. Stupefy Malice towards none When will our studio experts accept that predicting Modi's actions is not their domain! First random thought this morning In fact, I do not find anything worth bothering, losing sleep or being elated about the recent cabinet reshuffle. But there is so much of analysis and commentary over it that I almost feel compelled to have a publically stated view on it. So here it is: I find the portfolio allocation inappropriate. For example, Coal is perhaps the largest customer of railway. Same person holding both the portfolio is a clear conflict of interest. Similarly, energy is a key sector for growth, and neither we have an integrated ministry, nor a full time minister for Petroleum & gas, coal or renewables. Red f...

Thought for the day "It is my ambition to say in ten sentences what others say in a whole book." —Friedrich Nietzsche (German, 1844-1900) Word for the day Lineament (n) A feature or detail of a face, body, or figure, considered with respect to its outline or contour, e.g., His fine lineaments made him the very image of his father . Malice towards none FM is absolutely right in saying that the people do not understand the objective of Demonetization. By the way I forgot, what was that objective? First random thought this morning Albert Einstein once famously said, "A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new". Napoleon Bonaparte cautioned, "Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake." And Bapu said, "A full and candid admission of one's mistakes should make proof against its repetition." I am sure the incumbent government has tried many new things ...

Thought for the day "That which does not kill us makes us stronger." —Friedrich Nietzsche (German, 1844-1900) Word for the day Ruth (n) Pity or compassion Malice towards none Dhirendra Brahmachari Chandraswami .... .... Asaram Gurmeet Ram Rahim!   First random thought this morning In past seven decades there have been numerous cases of impropriety, criminality and immorality by the people in religious robes enjoying immense trust of people, common and elite. Why then is it so that each such instance is managed separately and not as a trend? Handling this malaise as a trend, would mean taking preventive steps including regular surveillance over security and financial compliance matters. ...and the macro data The earning season for 1QFY18 is almost over. The consensus is that the outcome has not been encouraging from whatever point you view it. As per th...

Thought for the day "The lie is a condition of life." —Friedrich Nietzsche (German, 1844-1900) Word for the day Verisimilar (adj) Having the appearance of truth; likely; probable, e.g., a verisimilar tale . Malice towards none BJP lost in Bawana bypoll in Delhi. Narendra Modi should resign, as he has lost mandate of people. #AAPSpokesperson First random thought this morning As per NSSO survey on housing conditions, the majority of India's population, both rural and urban, may be living in homes with space smaller than the minimum floor area per person recommended for prison cells. Juxtapose this finding to other popular data points, viz., a large number of people still do not have access to toilet, primary health, and poor work conditions and may be living on Rs32/day income. What you may get that is that Jail, for many of the poor in India might not be an unfamiliar or totally unwanted territ...

Thought for the day "It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages." —Friedrich Nietzsche (German, 1844-1900) Word for the day Comstockery (n) Overzealous moral censorship of the fine arts and literature, often mistaking outspokenly honest works for salacious ones Malice towards none How Sikka's resignation from Infy is different from Mayawati's resignation from Rajya Sabha?   First random thought this morning #TripleTalaq reactions Amit Shah: 50% of Muslim votes are in my pocket !! NiKu: Thanks god! I escaped the "Secular Ghatbandhan" just in time. RaGa: Papa why did you do Shah Bano? MSY: TTT was never an issue. लडकन ते गलती हो जात है| Lalu & Yetchury : Secularism is in grave danger. Light in the darkness Yesterday, I briefly highlighted some of the weaknesses of our judicial system ( see here ). Though it should b...