Comments by joski65

Please spare us in India. This is Bangladesh's problem. This is for the Bangladeshi people to sort out. They have to muster courage, oust who they think is wrong, and elect who they think is right.
India always has and should only continue to support Bangladeshis in humanitarian ways.
If the Bangladeshis fail, let them know that it is through their own effort or lack of it...not blame India for it. India has to plan for every consequence only to the extent of security and commerce of the possible outcomes. If the Bangladeshis prefer the Chinese best of luck to both. Frankly we couldn't give a damn....

The Euro was never a good idea, only a greedy one on the back of which was built the sham that goes by the name of financial services.
In a perfect world this rather wishful plan of TE could work but not in the real world.
Money is the worst binder between people of different ethnicity. Rather than waste more time in prolonging the ordeal, take swift action in dismantling the Euro before it become impossible to.

The villain will smile and smile and yet be the villain. There is no better binder than mutual economic progress. So proceed but with caution.

Couldn't care less for a left or right democrat or republican President. The rule is simple, avoid any kind of enmity or alliance with the US.

It is simplistic to blame the left for every mistake made. Like every group the pressure they exert stem from their beliefs. The Vietnam war was the outcome of very rightist American thinking which has always been to 'Stop the Commies at the farthest boundary' as one of their Presidents famously said. This kind of narrow biased thinking drove the US to have a number of heads of states assassinated in asia, S america and even Europe. In each case, the Us lost! but the process drove a number of countries into years of internal strife and poverty. The US right now is the Big Brother in the World. It is selfish and wicked. In India we have a saying, "Neither the friendship nor the enmity of a snake is good" For India, it is best to keep her own interests in mind and play Pakistan, China and the US by the ball.

You have a point there. However I prefer the adage, "Wise men keep their own counsel". Japan hosts the US fleet, Germany, its army...I'm not sure if this is co-operation or occupation presented through rose-tinted glasses.
The manner in which US ditched Vietnam, cosied up with Musharraf the dictator, ditched Iraq...I wouldn't recommend any alliance with a shifty, cunning and utterly selfish US

The line in this essay which genuinely raised my concern was the last one. Alliance with the US is the road to doom for any country. And India doesn't need to look beyond its brain-dead neighbor for confirmation.
The real villain in the world is the US. It plays countries, people and tribes against each other and sits pretty on top. Glad that India is realizing that its neighbors are basically terrified like itself. Once these three countries work this out and begin cooperating will the wasted money get diverted to alleviation of poverty which is the common foe. But then they have to see through the US's game of playing one against the other

The state when the mind takes the back seat and instinct takes over completely is called 'the zone'. it happens in sport, in the thick of battle, and at a hard day of work.
'The zone' is actually the most comfortable state one can be in, the only way one gets there is hours and hours of practice, practice and practice.

This is so sad that the British will only believe their own dispatches and reports...Records of British atrocities have been around and eloquently described in many countries (which were past colonies) today in detail. The British always choose to ignore it because they feared the outcome but now when their own records point to the same facts, they are forced to sit up and acknowledge it.

India has social justice very much in place. it was among the first countries to have an affirmative action program through the reservation policy. Today alluding to caste is a criminal offense in India. Labor laws exist though archaic and need overhaul, the rest will happen as the country progresses.

The British partitioned India and Pakistan at during independence. The 1 Mn or so deaths is due to the abysmal planning and hurry with which the British exited India.
India did not break up later. In fact, the geographical boundaries of India at independence was actually smaller, since independence, it has only grown with the addition of J&K, Sikkim, Goa, Puduchery, Hyderabad, Travencore, Junagardh. Bangladesh broke off from Pakistan in '71 not from India. Yes India has had 3 wars with Pakistan, but has not lost any ground. In that period Britain also went to war with Argentina and Iraq and Afghanistan...so what's the point you've tried to make?
The Scots deserve their independence no matter what.

about 60 years years ago Churchill trashed the fledgling republic of India, stating that it will disintegrate in no time. Strangely 60 years later, India is stronger than ever and growing...and it is Britain that is breaking up. No longer the UK, just England.
For the Scottish, the only piece of advice, is: independence from the English is the best thing that can happen to any country. Surely you are in better condition that India was.
All the best Scotland, you deserve your independence.

I'm always disappointed when intelligent articulate people let slip their deep-seated prejudices. It is sad that Mrs Basumatary is being branded a witch by an uneducated lot. such people need guidance and education has to spread to these dark areas.
N.O. however cannot be forgiven for their loaded statement, "In the case of Mrs Basumatary, a devout Christian who does not believe in witchcraft"
Do they not know about the dark and evil act carried out under its banner at a time when Europe was as uneducated as the Assamese villagers? Christianity's spread in the NE India has not necessarily done much good. Having inculcated western ways among the people, youth from the NE have very high percentages of drug abuse and HIV.
Do you blame Christianity for it? no...it's a case of having uprooted centuries of traditions and not having defined an alternative. Just like witchcraft, practiced irrespective of religions, these arise from fear and helplessness.
But N.O. can give no such excuse. It is indeed disappointing to see this colored perspective. Whatever formal education N.O have gone through, I'm afraid, there's little difference between them and the misguided Assamese villagers.

The NDA will win next year and form the party at the center not for anything else but the latent rage that exists among Indians for the UPA. Whether they act like jokers or make TE look like one is entirely upto who becomes the PM

I would agree with that. All that glitters....

Actually the lack of development :)

Harry let us put it this way, yes growth has slowed but we are doing well aren't we? The retail pullback may be wrong but not Vodafone. You consider India to make profits. Remember do so but pay your dues. And if regulations are tight, I guess they have a reason to be. Hundreds of multinationals are yet making handsome profits here and have made India their key market. Find your way dude...nothing is easy! we are not here for you to profit only!! we want our dues too...and since its our country, it'll be on our rules. anything wrong in that? don't find it good? Alvida!

My dear friend, yes we need foreign investors but don't kid yourself they'll come here to help us. They seek profit which is fair. Make profit but pay your taxes here. otherwise they earn and some foreigner gains.

Whatever the global norm may be in India only Indian rules apply. If you want to do business you have to follow Indian laws. Break the law and you will be punished. Vodafone's cash comes from Indians. Absolutely fair it is taxed.

Excellent article. 'Frugal' and jugaad' are less likely terms of innovation and more an attitude to life. The West is rich and when you are rich you tend not to look at the pennies. People living in the west therefore are more generous with everything including wastage. They tend to buy more things like personal grooming items (soaps, creams, deo's, perfumes, colognes etc)cars tend to be bigger, more powerful, with many intricate features and one for each member. Moreover life itself is valued very highly therefore safety and comfort take precedence and are necessities.
On the other hand, Asia is just emerging from poverty. There two square meals has been a luxury in the recent past, anything above is sheer indulgence to the Asian minds. A car is great because it takes you point to point unlike the usual 2-3 modes of transport one had to change to reach anywhere. So why need a big one when 6 people can squeeze into one? Why an a/c? To the easterner used to travelling STANDING for hours on end the fact that in a car you get half a seat is a luxury!
In personal care, a soap itself is seen to do everything described above for the westerner. An after-shave therefore is a giant leap of luxury for most. Every rupee spent on luxury is seen as a money wasted. Because for the Asian, the fear of poverty is always on the mind and they fear that it may return and this money wasted ought to be saved for necessities in the future tough times
Frugality comes from the eastern mindset of saying, "I DON'T NEED MORE THAN THIS TO PERFORM THIS JOB. I DON,T INTEND TO SPEND A RUPEE MORE"
What the recession's done to the west is that some levels have now encountered insecure times without proper resources to fall back on. Therefore this love-affair with eastern frugalism. The return of good times will erase these terms from memory in due course.