tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-171570412011-07-07T13:41:29.747-07:00on issues of the day, month or year. Totally High Minded IrrelevanceSrinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.comBlogger381100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-39436868822637338352009-09-10T21:38:00.000-07:002009-09-10T21:38:06.376-07:00

ஜெயமோகனுடன் ஒரு நாள் - பகுதி II இது தான் சாக்கு என்று தஸ்தயேவ்ஸ்கி 'The Brothers Karamazov'ல் Zosimaவை அறிமுகப்படுத்தும் வகையில் பிரம்ம பிரயத்தனம் செய்வதையும் இதை ஒரு இந்திய மனது ‘குரு’ என்ற ஒரு வார்த்தையில் புரிந்து கொண்டிருக்கும் என்றேன். மெலிதாக சிரித்தார். ரஷ்ய புராதன கிறித்துவம் கீழை நாட்டு தரிசனங்களுக்கு மிக அருகாமையிலானது. அதன் வளர்ச்சி பெளத்த சமண தத்துவங்களால் பாதிப்பு அடைந்தது என்றார்

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-6523322737271853022009-09-10T02:57:00.001-07:002009-09-10T02:58:56.007-07:00

Jaswant on Jinnah My Review here

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-40789956996418870812009-09-06T13:03:00.000-07:002009-09-06T15:37:06.735-07:00

ஜெயமோகனுடன் ஒரு நாள் - பகுதி - 1 சில விளக்கங்கள் : இது தமிழில் எழுதும் என் முதல் முயற்சி. அடைமழை என பொழிந்த கோர்வையான, விரிவான ஜெயமோகனின் வரிகளில் 3 வாரங்களுக்குப்பின் நினைவில் தங்கியதை மீட்டு பின் சொல்லாக்குவதில் உள்ள என் சிக்கலுக்கு உங்கள் புரிதலை வேண்டுகிறேன். ------ ராஜன் இல்லத்தில் வெகுநேரம் பேசிகொண்டிருந்துவிட்டு புறப்பட்டோம். எனது IPhoneஐ –Vanல் உள்ள cassette player adapter உடன்

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-48707906832716459292009-08-23T10:56:00.000-07:002009-08-23T11:06:30.228-07:00

Preparing to meet Jeyamohan orThe Art of Violently Forced Summer Reading, House Cleaning And Getting OrganizedJeyamohan is my favorite Tamil writer, whose blog I read regularly. A friend of mine introduced to his writings in the net magazine Thinnai, a long time ago. By reading his writings regularly, a mental closeness had formed over the years. I can cite multiple reasons: superb narrative and

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-89759558715402016022009-05-25T00:30:00.000-07:002009-05-25T00:55:28.265-07:00

A way forward for BJP As all losers are bound to, BJP is in for a major introspection of “what went wrong?” after Elections 2009. One hopes that the party will undertake this exercise like adults. The primary requirement of psychotherapy is total honesty with oneself. This did not happen in 2004. For fear of offending or insulting Vajpayee/Advani duo, the party glossed over its glaring failures

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-9474723149388566482007-08-20T10:11:00.001-07:002007-08-20T14:42:23.349-07:00

In the 60th anniversary of Indian independence one cannot help looking back to those tumultuous years of our nation's birth. Among the thoughts and emotions that flood our mind, the partition takes a primary role and rightly so; it transformed the political, economical and geo-strategic landscape of the subcontinent. It has deeply influenced, shaped and coloured the events, mindset and direction

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-22994334700998937122007-06-29T09:43:00.000-07:002007-06-29T09:46:29.640-07:00

Fostering Rule of Law in Indian DemocracyA vibrant, socially united community is promised inclusion in the ST List, in a politically expedient move before the elections. As time goes on, the community feels the promise has not been respected. A whole series of agitations are launched, buses burnt, shops looted, public property damaged. Policemen fire on the agitators, kill a few of them. A

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-61562781648750703362007-06-16T19:28:00.000-07:002007-06-16T19:30:53.472-07:00

The Candidate Act I – Scene ICharacters : Sonia Gandhi, Prakash Karat, A B Bardhan, Karunanidhi, Manmohan SinghLocation : Manmohan Singh’s residenceAgenda : To choose a presidential candidateSonia : This is the 60th year of our Republic. We need a woman candidate. The Congress has some persons in mind. Let us discuss them one by one.Karat : Absolutely, we need a woman candidate. Who is your

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-47180769204043795012007-05-25T16:55:00.001-07:002009-07-22T06:49:40.158-07:00

Dera Sacha Saudha - A movie we have seen beforePunjab is going through a "blossoming memories" phase these days, only that the memories are of dark tragedies that a lot of us wish to forget but a few have a vested interest in reliving. And there in lies the seeds for the tragedy to sprout again in familiar and unfamiliar ways. The soil of the sub-continent is a fertile ground for religious

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-16985085381409825682007-04-26T16:58:00.001-07:002007-04-26T17:06:31.820-07:00

"Es ist schwindelerregend"-"It is dizzying", Lenin right after the Bolshevik takeover.The UP elections are nearing their completion. Isn't it strange that elections are becoming long drawn out processes rather than short events? Stretched to the comical extreme, one can imagine when elections would turn out to be a 6 months affair or even year long tamasha. But that is beside the point. Every

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-16738704372552863632007-04-09T23:12:00.001-07:002007-04-09T23:12:52.483-07:00

Recently the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a summary of its fourth assessment report. See Link. After seeing Al Gore's documentary my interest in this issue has definitely increased. I have also been following the 'debate' on global warming in the US. This would be one of the ridiculous debates since Galileo was persecuted in medieval times. A few Galileos from NASA have

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-74104357703306884782007-04-01T00:02:00.001-07:002007-04-01T00:17:26.967-07:00

Supreme Court, Reservations and BeyondThe recent Supreme Court order on staying the OBC reservation in centrally funded educational institutions should be viewed as a significant event in the post-Mandal era. The arguments for and against reservations are well known.[1] It requires a different kind of polemics, standards and value judgments for any reasonable debate to occur. We all know that is

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-2821760769189643762007-01-27T23:33:00.000-08:002008-11-13T01:00:38.582-08:00

The Iraq SituationA brief guide to understanding the boxes :Each player is assigned a box. The size of the box indicates approximately the level of influence. Their choices, in decreasing order of preference is within the box. Their absolute nightmare situation is also inside the box in red font.By looking at the boxes, one thing will be clear: though a partition is not anybody's first choice, it

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-69885665566286321022007-01-12T11:21:00.000-08:002007-01-12T11:40:03.476-08:00

Nineth Schedule and SC decisionBravo! This verdict is one of the crucial course corrections in the past 50 years since we adopted the Constituition. The judges have not only made the right decision but argued in a very crafty way. Prudently they have not gone against the legality of Art.31B and the 9th schedule. How can you argue against an explicit article? That would have been pounding your

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-62322102133398324732007-01-04T22:15:00.000-08:002007-01-04T22:32:13.174-08:00

Ideas for IraqNext week Bush is going to announce a new strategy for Iraq. Why wait until next week ? I invite readers (my wife might take offence to the use of plural here) to provide innovative ideas.Here I lead of with mine.1. Issue a profound apology to all Iraqis and the world before UN General Assembly.Pull out all troops within 6 months2. Deposit $100 billion dollars (10 month expense of

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-47847863444004424482006-12-21T12:32:00.000-08:002006-12-21T12:57:14.033-08:00

Signing Statements and PantomimesThe implementation of Indo-US nuclear deal is an object lesson for India as to how not to conduct business with US. First Bush and Singh conclude the deal, Bush conceding 'x' to India. US Senate which has the sole constitutional authority to ratify treaties and with the House, the sole prerogative to make law, subtracts 'y' from the 'x' and adds 'z' which were not

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-14659802830186923222006-12-13T14:01:00.000-08:002006-12-13T14:07:33.348-08:00

The following is an email I wanted to send to a friend of mine in late 2004, but by mistake sent it to myself. There you go, the Freudian slip. But any way, here it is which I thought is relevant for the current timesFor the past 2-3 years, the US federal budget deficit is increasing and is at the level of 4% of GDP. Though the figure in percentage terms appears lower, in a $12 trillion economy

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-62465346523025170072006-12-03T17:35:00.000-08:002006-12-03T17:45:34.898-08:00

Baker Hamilton Commission – A Washington DramaThe gruesomeness of the tragedy unfolding in Iraq is only exceeded by the incredulous comical posturing exhibited by the players in Washington. The current episode that is running in theatres is called the “Iraq Study Group – A thesis in Policy Output Synthesis with Feedback, Theatrics and Sound Bytes” by Ms. Baker, Hamilton et al.It is necessary

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1164654585224591052006-11-27T11:09:00.000-08:002006-11-27T13:58:48.430-08:00

Headline SketchesUS-India Nuclear Deal passes in the US Senate (85-12). Was surprised to see how effective the nuclear lobby can be to haul the senators in the lame duck session and pass the deal in approximately 12 hours. Excellent floor work by Sen.Lugar. Some suspect there are some secret clauses in the deal. As long as they remain secret, the deal will go thru. Prachanda-Bhattarai visit their

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1164520126541508952006-11-25T21:45:00.000-08:002007-01-28T00:01:30.904-08:00

White House 2008Candidate1234567John McCainAAB+A-A-AA-Mitt RomneyCCB+B+BB-A-Rudy GuilianiA-B-B+A-B-??Sam BrownbackBB+B+A-B??Newt GingrichA-A-B+AA??Condoleeza RiceA-AA-A-B??George PatakiBCA-BC??Duncan HunterCB+B+BB??Chuck HagelCA-B+A-B??Mike HuckabeeCCB+BB??Tommy ThompsonCCA-BC??Hillary ClintonAB+BAB+B+ABarrack ObamaB+B-CAB+??Al GoreAA-A-B+A-??John EdwardsA-B+BAA-??Bill RichardsonB+B+A-B+B??Tom

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1163301992461616392006-11-11T18:06:00.000-08:002006-11-27T17:00:05.848-08:00

Thumpin' for GOPThe analysis of 2006 is non-stop and ubiquitous. But why leave a chance for another post?Two months back on 'Meet the Press' when Dick Cheney bet Tim Russert a dinner that GOP would hold down both the house and the senate, Russert did not take him up on that. I was inclined to agree with Cheney then. The GOP narrative had not changed, its strategy of putting the Dems on the

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1162583205536723202006-11-03T11:43:00.000-08:002006-11-03T12:08:23.186-08:00

Ninth Schedule and UntouchablesI have always been ambivalent about the 9th schedule in our constitution. But I have to confess that I am a big fan of the approach the constituent assembly took in coming with schedules to enumerate states, languages of the union. However the concept of immunity from judicial review is a totally different issue. This is a classic and typical problem that arises

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1159432352986861442006-09-28T01:31:00.000-07:002006-09-28T01:45:03.813-07:00

Benedict's clean wide sweepThe recent speech of Pope Benedict XVI has attracted all the attention it deserves, albeit for all the wrong reasons. I have been keenly following this Pope for all the controversies he generated since he was Cardinal. At the outset I must say I am enamored by his ability to intellectualize and offer profoundly vast interpretations of the Christian faith and his

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1154594179698532032006-08-03T01:32:00.000-07:002006-08-03T01:36:19.710-07:00

Israel & Pakistan - Defining Problems in Unsolvable ways.There is nothing that focuses your mind like a crisis. One often thinks of intractable international problems like the situation of Israel and as an Indian, one cannot but think a lot about the Pakistan question both in terms of persistent realities as well as in hypotheticals : retrospectively and futuristicallyAnd always these problems

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1149822486838666292006-06-08T20:05:00.000-07:002006-06-08T20:08:06.850-07:00

Some views on reservationThe following is an article I wrote in mid-2001 and shared with a few friends. Out of laziness to write anything new, I have decided to recycle it.Thirteen years have passed since Mr.V.P.Singh issued the ordinance implementing the Mandal Commission recommendations. Subsequently Mr.P.V.Narasimha Rao enlarged the consensus on reservations and passed the bill into law. The

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1144550856216667122006-04-08T19:47:00.000-07:002006-04-08T19:51:38.516-07:00

After being years of a C-Span (my wife calls it “senator channel”) junkie, I can make something useful out of it now: a blog post. The hearings were very typical, with presumptuous old men and women sit around a semi-circular conference table, pontificate, posture and puff, pitted against an artful, solitary dodger sitting at the centre. I am sort of a regular watcher of the foreign relations

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1143180601809643232006-03-23T22:10:00.000-08:002006-03-23T22:10:01.853-08:00

Ah! It is the season of sacrifice again! Where else but in the land of sants, sawants and pirs? One is almost filled with tearful emotion choking the throat that causes difficulty in even breathing. Truly she belongs to the land and the land deserves her. The hyenas and vultures crow and cringe and make disgusting moans of satiation.Let me tell you my friends, this narrative is utterly

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1139550015283291982006-02-09T21:40:00.000-08:002006-02-09T21:40:15.323-08:00

When I posted my earlier post on Nepal and Russian Revolution, I did not anticipate how close the parallels were. When reading Prachanda's interview my mind darted back very often to Lenin's and Trotsky's stratoric during Feb 1917 - Jan 1918.These are the salient points of Prachanda's interview.1.     The Nepal King is toast. Monarchy is finished. To finish him literally, all the parliamentary

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1137805074874985762006-01-20T16:40:00.000-08:002006-01-20T16:57:54.893-08:00

Kathmandu Or Prachandagarh?My fingers have been itching to post “something” on Nepal since I started reading Richard Pipes’ “Russian Revolution”. I wanted to postpone the urge for mainly 2 reasons. First, to gain a deeper understanding on how RR played out fully, and the other reason was my very limited knowledge about Nepal. If you want to compare A with B, don’t you have to know about both of

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1137390405685936932006-01-15T21:46:00.000-08:002006-01-15T21:46:45.706-08:00

Cue to Q?During those 3 days when India or at least the politically aware were wondering “Will she or won’t she”, I had argued to my friends the “she shouldn’t” position. As any “reasoning”, it cannot be separated from my persona, milieu, my emotions and feelings. However I did not want to stake it all on her foreignness.  I conceded to the reality that she had been around as the leader of

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1134548574168961292005-12-14T00:22:00.000-08:002005-12-14T22:15:07.606-08:00

U-Turn on the Long March The March of China is watched by all with awe and anxiety today. At the outset I wish to record my deep appreciation for its ancient civilization, its contribution to humanity and the multi-layered wisdom that it personifies. Like India, its nationhood, outlook is also an evolving one that makes it more interesting. The current political structure that is edified in China

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1132634560163081642005-11-21T20:39:00.000-08:002005-11-21T20:42:40.176-08:00

A new beginning for Bihar?I cannot curb my animal joy running thru my veins in seeing the “irrepressible” Lalu Yadav getting forced out of power in Bihar. It may still gush forth. Honest to God, I have been waiting for this since 90s. My heart is full of hate for that feller and his minions. I have anger up my ass for his supporters in the elite media who hold brief for his brand of “secularism”.

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1132120556746426972005-11-15T21:44:00.000-08:002005-11-15T22:07:12.803-08:00

In dependence or Inter-dependence ? I recently had a conversation with a friend (the only one who reads this blog) about the US –India nuclear deal. He mentioned the “i” word. I have been thinking hard about its relevance in today’s world and hence this response.Independence cannot be defined without explaining the context in which it arose. Now we are moving on to the “c” word, colonialism. As

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1129183458647484282005-10-12T23:00:00.000-07:002005-10-12T23:04:18.656-07:00

Recently we are exposed to a wide ranging debate about foreign policy in India. The different voices are pretty clear. One says we should have the national interest in mind when formulating policy. The other says a policy which is independent and principled is what we need.Option A supposes that there is longevity in the consensus on what the “national interests” are. Only then you can steer the

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1128716161011530372005-10-07T13:03:00.000-07:002005-10-12T21:12:51.686-07:00

Known UnKnowns and the art of putting 5 knowns unknowingly in US Supreme CourtIn 1973 US Supreme court ruled in favor 7-2, of allowing abortion under the Constitutionally protected “right to privacy" in a land mark case called Roe vs Wade. Before that some states had allowed it and most states had banned it. Women were having abortions in back alleys or driving off to Mexico. It will be foolish

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1128396532584830372005-10-03T20:19:00.000-07:002005-10-04T16:32:39.793-07:00

News: Turkey begins talks for admission to EU. This 40 year waltz is the central drama going on in Europe today. Recently with the French Non to EU Constitution, EU project has been plagued by self-doubts. This is further fueled by the different if not conflicting visions of the "Europe" designers.One set of designers basic idea is that EU shall be a common economic entity, a global powerhouse

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1128116952697090412005-09-30T14:43:00.000-07:002005-09-30T16:59:16.833-07:00

Continuing on the “On this day” theme, this one is from “The Hindu”, a paper that I read daily.Here is a link to a news item 50 years ago: October 1, 1955: Foreign newspapers Apparently some things don’t change. 50 years later, NY Times’ international edition “The International Herald Tribune” started its publication from Hyderabad. The event was treated as a surreptitious colonial invasion by

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17157041.post-1128036240668841872005-09-29T15:41:00.000-07:002005-09-29T17:12:15.893-07:00

As someone who is interested in history, I have the habit of reading "On this Day..." of NYTimes. Some things get repeated every year and it never fail to interest you, like Aug.15 1947. (You would be amazed to see how the paper's attitude towards India is still unchanged though India has changed dramatically.) One of those things that interested me was the Russian revolution's high point, the

Srinivasanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02464491851738122345noreply@blogger.com1