Sorry if you fell off your chair on reading the post title. But I could not resist using the title of a rediff slide-show (they put it on multiple pages so that the number of page clicks goes up) that some people have started breathlessly forwarding. These people are the type who are always in a hurry to report that “India is the second largest this” or “India has the most of that” and other hyper bullshit generally peddled by the likes of The Times of India and other rags. Anyway, that reminded me of a story.
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Month: February 2011
India’s Debt to Veer Savarkar
One thing that constantly astonishes me is my ignorance of Indian history. I admit that freely and feel sorry for myself — and for the hundreds of millions of Indians who are ignorant like me. I am partly to blame but we should remember that the Indian government — what I should really call the British Government 2.0 which started off with faux Britisher Jawaharlal Nehru at the helm — did much to misrepresent Indian history. Thanks to the interwebs (and thanks to Al Gore for inventing them internets), slowly I am learning a bit of history.
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Congratulations. We’ve Raised the Funds
I am totally thrilled to report that our campaign to raise around US$2,200 for Chandrasekaran Balakrishnan’s visit to the US to present his paper at a conference is successful. Congratulations are in order all around.
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Update on the Previous Post on Financial Support for Scholar
Update Saturday 8 AM:
I have not done the exact calculation, but I suspect that the goal has been reached. Thank you all. Please do not pledge any more. I will do the sums shortly and report back.
Thanks to all who have responded to my previous post seeking financial support for Chandrasekaran. The details of support pledged so far is as follows.
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Please Support this Scholar, Mr Chandrasekaran Balakrishnan
This is a public service announcement seeking support for a scholar whose paper has been accepted at a conference in the US. He lives and works in New Delhi and has approached me for financial help to attend the conference. Details below the fold.
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Why the Gods Send Rain to Mexico but not to the Middle East
Steve, a friend who teaches at UC, sent an email with that subject line. Enjoy.
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Traveling Places: Goa, Pune, Nashik & Hyderabad
This is a personal post about where in the world I am. I am in Pune for a couple of days, and then in Nashik for the weekend. Of late, I have been traveling a lot. Last Saturday I was in Goa for six hours — landed at 1 PM and left at 7 PM. I had gone there to have a chat with Manohar Parrikar, the ex-CM of Goa. Next Saturday I will be heading off to Hyderabad for the Takshashila Foundation Roundtable. I should mention that I am a fellow at the Takshashila Institution, “an independent networked think tank on India’s strategic affairs.” See you there!
Gene Sharp: The Man Who Wrote the Rule-book on Non-violent Struggle
I had not heard of Gene Sharp until Rajesh forwarded me a link to a NYTimes profile on him. He appears to be an interesting fellow. A BBC article says this about him, “His central message is that the power of dictatorships comes from the willing obedience of the people they govern – and that if the people can develop techniques of withholding their consent, a regime will crumble.”
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Is the US Economy in Long-term Decline?
My friend Veer asked me to comment on what is posted at this site — 10 Economic Charts That Will Blow Your Mind. OK, my mind is blown away. One thing is apparent to me. The US is in economic decline. But it is not clear whether that decline is long-term or not.
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Cities are Healthiest, Greenest, Richest Place to Live
Cities and urbanization has been a constant theme of development — and consequently of this blog. Urban economist Ed Glaeser in his book, “Triumph of the City: How Our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Greener, Healthier, and Happier” argues that case. In a guest post on Freakonomics, Glaeser says that “to get America growing again, it’s time to unleash our cities.”
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