In a 11 March rediff article titled “Mediocrity has become the norm“, the transcript of an interview of Arun Shourie makes interesting reading. I especially like his views on how Indian education has to change.
Continue reading “Arun Shourie’s Interview on Rediff”
“This Page Intentionally Left Blank by the Government of India””
I don’t know what zone-h.org is. Someone pointed me to the site saying that he could not access it from India and believes that the government of India has banned it. He said that he has “heard (from a reliable source) a rumour that the Government of India has a fairly regular habit of issuing fiats to ISPs to block various websites that it feels are objectionable for some reason.”
Continue reading ““This Page Intentionally Left Blank by the Government of India”””
Rajan’s photos of Ganesh on Huffington Post
My friend Rajan Parrikar’s photo feature on Ganesh — the One with the Broken Tusk, the One with the Huge Body, the One with the Brilliance of a Million suns. Continue reading “Rajan’s photos of Ganesh on Huffington Post”
Producing Energy out of Thin Air
As I am wont to do, I pick up newspapers while travelling. It is not good for my mental health but what can I do — sometimes newspapers hold the sort of fascination for me that rubberneckers have for gruesome road accidents. An item in yesterday’s Times of India (ok, ok, bad move I know) caught my eye: “Just a bottle of water can power your home.” Continue reading “Producing Energy out of Thin Air”
Ideas for India
Last year in February, Rajesh Jain and I had written a note on “Ideas for India.” Following Rajesh’s example, I am reposting the note here, for the record. Continue reading “Ideas for India”
The Indecency of Legislating Decency
Malavika Patil asked in a comment to the post “My Position on MF Husain”: “Does obscenity/pornography deserve free speech rights?” As a free speech fundamentalists, I can only answer, “Yes, yes, and yes!” I am enough of a realist to believe that no individual or group is so wise as to be a judge of what speech deserves the protection of law and what doesn’t. The only way forward is to allow all speech, regardless of how someone feels about it. Continue reading “The Indecency of Legislating Decency”
Gone Travelling to Delhi
I am off to Delhi and will be on the road much of the time. Often comments are held in moderation — so if your comment does not show up immediately, please be patient. I will have internet access but not all the time.
Bye for now.
My Position on MF Husain
This should not require any clarification but one has little choice but to live in the world as it is, not in an imaginary world where people are reasonable. One anonymous person posted a pretty needless question on my post “The Land of Retards and Hypocrites.” He, or she, wrote, “Are you unhappy about Husain’s depictions? Are you okay (or sort of okay) with cases slapped on him?” Continue reading “My Position on MF Husain”
Blaming People for Natural Disasters
What do Pat Robertson, Priyanka Chopra, Jerry Falwell and Mahatma Gandhi have in common? If you thought that they were all religious nutcases, you are wrong. Priyanka Chopra’s nuttiness doesn’t belong to the religious variety. So think again. Give up? OK, they all blame people for natural disasters. Continue reading “Blaming People for Natural Disasters”
Kaushik Basu: “Words Don’t Feed the Poor”
Among economists who can explain economics to anyone even remotely interested in the subject, Prof Kaushik Basu is in a league of his own. Many years ago as a graduate student at Berkeley, I had had the privilege of hosting him for dinner together with Profs deJanvry and Sadoulet. I occasionally re-read his columns to learn how to write. Here I present an extended excerpt from a 1997 India Today column of his. {Click on image for source.} Continue reading “Kaushik Basu: “Words Don’t Feed the Poor””
Atanu Dey : Life is a Random Draw 