I like some of the stuff on this blog. Here are a couple. Must Watch Video of Daniel Everette’s Deconversion. About a Christian missionary who went to convert a tribe and in the process lost his own faith. (Posted Sept… Read More ›
Month: January 2014
Republic Day Thoughts
I can understand that India celebrates “Republic Day” — the day on which the Indian constitution came into force in 1950. I am not a huge big fan of the Indian constitution, as you may probably know. But what really… Read More ›
Open Thread — the Mumbai edition
I arrived in India today early morning. The Jet Airways flight from Brussels to Mumbai was delayed because of congestion at Mumbai airport. Passport control and customs were easy, however. For the next few weeks I will be writing from… Read More ›
Shri Narendra Modi’s Address at the BJP National Council Meeting in Delhi
A nation’s prosperity eventually depends on its policies. The policies that obtain, in turn, depend on the objectives of the policymakers. Who these policymakers are is usually determined by the collective — through some democratic process but regardless of the… Read More ›
A stage too big for the drama
On my way to India, I am in the university town of Leuven, close to Brussels. I have become quite a regular — last year I was here in February and then again in September. Along the way — I… Read More ›
Leaving on a jet plane — the Jan 2014 edition
As the song goes, ” . . . I’m leaving on a jet plane, don’t know when I’ll be back again . . . ” I am off to strange and exotic places. For the first part of the journey,… Read More ›
Central Planners and Wooden Boards
In my favourite Bruce Lee movie Enter the Dragon (which I have watched at least a dozen times) there’s a very telling scene. Just before a particular fight, Bruce Lee’s opponent, to demonstrate how awesomely tough he is, holds up… Read More ›
Freedom is Incompatible with Free
I hear that the new Delhi government is promising free stuff — water and electricity. It warms the cockles of this economist’s heart. Actually, I lie. What it does is deepen poverty and make people more dependent. Socialists love people… Read More ›
Individual Freedom and Bondage
First post of 2014 and therefore sets the tone for the rest of the year — freedom. Individual freedom. Actually, freedom is about individuals. Collectives are really an abstraction and in reality only individuals exist. So to say that a… Read More ›