Writing Wrongs

My discussion with a commenter to a NY Times Article 1/12/12

2012-01-12T12:00:00.001-05:00

- Nick
- Rockville, MD
The fact remains that the "elected" leaders of Pakistan have failed the country miserably. The real cause of the rise of extremism in Pakistan is the manner in which the country's economy has been ruined and the resources looted by the politicians. These politicians dont represent the people but the feudal exploiters.

In Asia, no country has developed through democracy. It has been through military backed governments (or single party rule strongman rule) that have transitioned to democracy once the society developed enough to support democratic institutions. This was true in Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, China, Malaysia, etc... Maybe the army in Pakistan will find a leader who will lead Pakistan out of this morass by being steadfastly dedicated enabling economic growth and the strengthening of insitutions like the anti-corruption body, State Bank etc.

And American should perhaps not forget that it was Pakistan which remained a loyal friend throughout the cold war - and the sacrifices of Pakistan and its people to a large extent helped win the Cold War.
1. HMP
  USA
  In saying that "In Asia, no country has developed through democracy" you seem to have forgotten the second most populous country in the world. India is in Asia, is a democracy, and is generally regarded as developing.
  Jan. 11, 2012 at 11:54 p.m.
  You recommended this3
2. Chetan Patel
  King of Prussia, PA
  It's funny how you fail to mention the largest democracy in the world which exists in that same neighborhood. Was this just an oversight? You say that America should not forget who helped it win the cold war. Really? Living not too far from the heart of American politics, you should know that in diplomacy it's really more like, "What have you done for me lately?" And what Pakistan did was to harbor and abet the guy who masterminded an attack on American soil. You are pretty naive if you think the US owes Pakistan anything. The question really should be "what do Pakistanis' owe themselves?" Maybe they should look not to far across the border and see how a little investment in free speech or education might help their country.
  
  India is far from perfect, but most Indians know this. The trajectory of their country's history was set forth on the higher ideals of her citizens right to think for themselves and worship as they please. Pakistan was formed violently by Jinnah with the notion that Muslims would not find a welcome home in India and needed a muslim state. I wonder today how many "opressed" Indian Muslim's would like to trade states and move to Pakistan. Maybe some in Kashmir - and they have legitimate gripes against both India and Pakistan - but not many.
  
  By the way... a sacrifice is so only when there is nothing expected in return. The Pakistanis played their cards in the regional game of poker, and the world is calling their bluff.
  Jan. 11, 2012 at 11:55 p.m.
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3. Nick
  Rockville, MD
  Even well-wishers of India will agree that one cannot compare India to developed countries of Asia like S.Korea, Singapore et al. In fact the Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen recently pointed out that India has done poorly in human developmental indicators in comparison to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, let alone those other Asian countries. What we should all fear that Pakistan is too big to fail and the only way forward is stable rule by those who are dedicated to the country's future and not their bank accounts.
  Jan. 12, 2012 at 1:00 a.m.
  RECOMMEND1
4. Chetan Patel
  King of Prussia, PA
  NYT Pick
  FLAG
  Who is doing the comparing? I was pointing out a glaring ommission in your discussion. So India's shortcomings somehow make Pakistan look better? Is that now your argument? If you are proposing that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are more developed economies than India's and in general their populations are better off than I think you will find few takers. There are poor and malnourished everywhere. The question is what each nation does for itself to change it's history for the better. Pakistan has demonstarted since it's formation that it is more interested in inflicting pain on India than in developing it's own economy and public institutions. And no entity is "too big to fail". There many examples of failure in history. Germany and Japan come to mind. They had to fail because of the rot of their former ideology. But they have recovered mightily after their "failure". I would wish the same success for Pakistan, in hopes of a better neighborhood for India and a better world for all of us. All that remains to be seen is whether Pakistan collapses on it's own or whether the failure is imposed from the outside. In either case the fallout will have to be contained by it's neighbors and the world at large.
  Jan. 12, 2012 at 11:19 a.m.
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Optimism for Obama

2008-11-03T23:59:00.004-05:00

It is obvious from my previous posts that I am an Obama supporter. I have not written much during this election because, honestly, I am not sure much more needs to be said. There is so much news today, and even more commentary, both in print and in the various forms of electronic media available today. I think writing this post is just my attempt to work out what I feel about this election for myself and relating a couple of relevant experiences.

My friends often come to me to speak about politics and the news of the day because they know that I am a current events junkie. I clearly point out that I still think of myself as an independent voter - what does that mean? I think it means that I try to understand all sides of an issue without ideological disdain for any point of view. Do I have any philosophical prejudices? Absolutely. I believe the government should stay out of peoples personal lives and deal with the issues that they are unable to deal with on an individual basis.

So on this night before this election, I must admit that a relative calm has set in and I am somewhat confident that Barack Obama will be our next President. A few days ago, I admit that I would not have allowed myself that optimism. A few days ago, I still believed that some force or some unfortunate incident, or some revelation would change the landscape of this race before the candidates crossed the finish line.

Why the optimism? I volunteered for the Obama campaign for the first time this past weekend here in Pennsylvania and I was struck by the diverse group of people at the little satellite campaign office here in King of Prussia, PA. Many of the people there were the ones that his campaign was supposed to be having a problem attracting. Older white voters, and Jewish voters. More than that, however, was the festive mood in the office and of the people that had come out to help. There were smiles and laughter; there was quiet determination; there was an undercurrent of optimism and yes, that most important word - hope. My partner, Brad, and I set off to a neighborhood close to my own to leave "doorknockers" that would serve to remind the residents of the homes to vote and also informed them of their voting location. We were instructed by the campaign to only go to homes that had already been identified as supporters of the campaign, either by polling or by donations or previous canvassing. The effort had a very scientific approach to it; it was organized and confident.

Personally, the level of support there is in my home town for Obama has really impressed me. This would not have been the case here even ten years ago. Brad, who had come from New Jersey to help convince Pennsylvanians to vote for Obama (he figured New Jersey was already in the bag), was worried when we came to streets that had only a few homes identified as Obama supporters. I related that we were in an older neighborhood, and that if we had been in one of the newer neighborhoods with the tony town homes or the apartment complexes, we would probably see more supporters with their better mix of younger and more diverse populations. Even so, there was a good amount of support and the Obama lawn signs definitely outnumbered the McCain ones in this previously solid Republican suburb of Philadelphia.

What else gives me optimism? Some friends that were sure to vote Republican in the past are definitely voting for Obama. Even those that will still vote for McCain admit that Obama is an impressive candidate and do not seem to be horrified by the possibility of him becoming President as in past years with Kerry or Gore. I see all of this as evidence of a general change in the mood of the local electorate that can only be a reflective microcosm of the nation as a whole.

Lastly, there are those feelings that are purely based in the "audacity of hope." For those of us who have called for a more civil dialogue and more civil political conversation over the recent past, Obama is definitely a candidate whose messages of inclusion, upliftment, but firm action definitely resonate. Obama has been unique in his ability to so eloquently weave his own personal narrative into the fabric of this quilt that we call America. He appeals to those of us who despise slogans like "Country First" spoken by the same people that yell "kill him". The well being of this country - our country - is first and foremost in all of our minds, especially those who wish to provide an even better tomorrow for our kids.

I look forward to tomorrow.

The Real Tragedy

2008-04-01T06:54:00.002-04:00

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/31/AR2008033102790.html?hpid=topnews

This is from my reply to another Washington Post article - the link to the article is above:

Of course, this is just another sad day in the sad times we live in. Reading some of the comments on this article, I am even more disheartened that so many are filled with hatred and disgust with "the other side". We do not honor the dead and serve their memories well by using their deaths only to score cheap political points or advance views on topics totally unrelated to the sadness at hand. There is no greater injustice then the death of a 2 year old little girl by a bullet of any kind - period! Whether she died from any American bullet or from shrapnel from an Iraqi/ Shiite/ Sunni/ Palastinian/ Hamas/ Hezbollah suicide bomber, it is a tragedy.And those of you who believe that soldiers are just cold blooded killers, I suggest you seek out some soldiers who have actually been in combat and talk with them. Or at least watch "For God and Country - A Sniper's Story" on MSNBC if they repeat it. Stop being so firmly set in your opinions that you have no room left in your brain and in your heart for the stories, experiences and opinions of others. If you are moved by the death of this little girl or feel for the soul of the soldier who shot her or actually give a damn about the world you live in, then go out and learn about the root causes of the conflicts we are involved in and find out about our governments motives behind the moves that it makes. Come to your own intelligent conclusions and vote! Don't let the cable news shows make up your mind for you. Just remember, we get the leaders we deserve. We elect them. They are only as dumb or as smart as we are. We bear the responsibilty for this country's actions or non-actions collectively. And if your brain can't comprehend the goings on in Iraq, then look in your own backyard. Is the death of a young child by a bullet on the streets of Philadelphia or DC by a car jacker or a crack addict any less tragic?Honor little Tabarik's life by caring about the world you live in, all of it's imperfect people, and be willing to give up something of your own, be it blood or treasure, to make it a better place for the children that remain and still to come.

A Brave New World

2008-02-20T03:21:00.002-05:00

I know that I have been missing in action for a long time. I just wanted to share the following comment I wrote in a response to a commentary written in the Washington Post today.

Here is the link to the Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/19/AR2008021902336.html?hpid=opinionsbox1

and my response is as follows:

bravenewworld wrote:

I must thank you Mr. Samuelson for helping me make up my mind for this election cycle. Your own lack of courage to go with your initial gut feeling about Obama and need to settle for questionable "experience" at best may make you feel safer, richer, whatever; but it is you who is deluding yourself. As we have seen in the past, numbers can be spun many ways, and frankly, most Americans probably understand that many of the goals that Obama has set will only come to fruition if he has a ready and willing Congress to back him up. Our system of checks and balances will either protect us from his supposed lack of experience or better yet, the people will give him a true mandate to help him make his optimistic vision a reality.I too was troubled by the whole "experience thing" until I read your silly and juvenile flip flop of a commentary. You and HRC and Mr. McCain have nothing to offer but pessimism. Some people may equate that with realism but that is an unequal comparison. Facing reality is something we do in the present tense. There is no realism when it comes to the future because we can not predict the events that will influence it. We can have hope and we can be optimistic about the future of our country if we so dare. Or we can crawl into our shells, content to be supposedly "secure" but with no real idea of where we want to go as a nation.Truthfully, I would rather make it up as we go along and risk my seven year old son's future in Mr. Obama's world than one with all the experience that a Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, HRC with her unfortunate vote on the war, Sen. J. Lieberman, and a flip flopper like you would provide. I would much rather he grow up in a world of "rhetoric" that is backed up by sincerity than one in which so called Republicans like Bill Frist and chief crook Tom Delay forgot their civic duties and the essence of republicanism, only to pillage and loot the nation of not only treasure, but also of many of it's long held and cherished principles and ideals.Lastly, maybe you would rather have Karl Rove back, too. He is also a known quantity as is Scooter Libby. I was born in India and I can not claim that George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Ben Franklin, Patrick Henry, etc. were my forefathers; but thankfully they were your's. They, too, were inexperienced, but they dared to dream of a better future as did Lincoln, and Roosevelt, and Kennedy. Thankfully for all of us, they were none too bogged down by realism and the false sense of security it provides. Obama, too will probably end up being just as flawed as all of those mentioned before were. But we dare to hope that he too lives up to his rhetoric and remains as free from the burdens of history as those other great men were able to be.

Gone Fishing

2006-11-02T05:15:00.000-05:00

I know I've been gone for a while and I feel slightly guilty. But it was getting to the point of having to chose between spending the few spare moments in a day here in front of another computer after having spent the whole day in front of one at work or spending a few moments with my five year old doing things like going fishing for the first time for both of us or spending time with my friends playing Fantasy Football (more on that some other time) or just kicking back and watching lots of football and baseball on TV. Anyway .... baseball is finished and my beloved Philadelphia Eagles are screwing up another season that seemed promising at the start.

Lots of interesting things have been going on the past few weeks in the political arena. We've had one scandal after another revealed, exposed, exploited and probably after mid-term elections, all will be forgotten. It is of course election season again and both the Republicans and Democrats are are doing their level best to not have a serious discussion on the issues of the day... war, health insurance, education, etc. What does one do in an environment where our leaders fail us at every opportunity to show leadership? My suggestion... Go fishing.

Right up front I want to admit that I am no angler. A few weeks ago my son and I went fishing for the first time ever for the both of us. I don't know exactly where he got the idea from. Maybe it was from something he saw on Animal Planet, or Sponge bob. We have a little goldfish and koi pond in our backyard which I built a few years ago to kind of encourage him to appreciate nature and because I like to complicate my life to the point where I have more projects to tend to than I have time to handle them. Sometimes my neighbors younger son comes over with his friends and asks if they can catch fish in my pond with little nets and put them back. Maybe Neil got the idea from them. Well he had mentioned fishing before, but on this particularly beautiful autumn day, knowing that dad had the day off, he goes "Dad can we please, please, please, go fishing today? HOW COULD I SAY NO? He jumped triumphantly when I said yes and ran off to morning Kindergarten.

So the Republicans are worried about the coming storms on Nov. 7th. Will the fading fortunes of an ill conceived foreign policy, a scandal ridden Congress, and an out of touch and seemingly uninterested president finally, finally do in the Grand Old Party. Or will the Democrats once again snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by overplaying the gifts that the Republicans have been giving them lately, turning off the electorate by overtly drooling like a hungry pit-bull coming face to face with an unlucky thief.

I often find myself getting obsessed with all this stuff; I'll watch the Sunday morning shows like Meet the Press; on weekdays it's Hardball with Chris Matthews or The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer; often I will even force myself into Bill O'Reilly's No Spin Zone and watch Sean Hannity on Fox even though I despise him because his dishonesty is so blatant - all in the name of being informed and wanting to believe that I am open to all honest discourse. Although I do not let on, I find myself getting annoyed at friends at work who come to me for the Readers Digest version of the news and current events because I wish they would care more to be concerned about the challenges of the day.

.... Grandpa picked up the little one from KG like he does everyday while I carry the weight of the world on my shoulders. I pick up the little one after his Grandma has lovingly fed him his lunch and he and I set off to the "Pond Store". The pond store is actually a shop where I get supplies for our little fish pond. We buy plants, fish food, "good bacteria", snails, etc. from this place. The family that runs the place is very helpful and knowledgeable. In addition to all the spectacular aqua garden and waterfall displays to entice utopia seeking suburbanites like yours truly, they have a huge pond that they stock with fish just for novice fishermen like us. Neil could hardly hold back his excitement as we rented our fishing poles and collected our styrofoam cup filled with moist dirt within which were a couple of plump juicy purple worms. When he saw them, Neil let out a shriek, "Eeeeellll, that's gross, dad - (I had the same reaction when I heard about Congressman Foley hitting on Congressional Pages) - I'm not gonna touch them, you have to get them out". "Oh, no", I said, "this was your idea."

What slimy fat worms they were in that cup and I - who am more squeamish than I let on - had to break the worm in half and thread it onto a short metal hook. I did not want to seem a wimp to the folks helping us out and so I did the needful. Once the poor worm was pierced and gouged we cast the line into the water and waited. Unlike other sports, fishing is not about racing to the finish line or making points of any kind. It's a way to enjoy a great day and a breath of fresh air and most of all revel in the sounds of silence....

Silence is a virtue that John Kerry obviously does not posses. He is the gift that just keeps giving to Karl Rove and the conservative "nut-jobs" (Kerry's word) just waiting for him to open his pompous mouth. He tries to crack dumb jokes about Bush's intellect and ends up fumbling his words just as badly as Bush often does; except when Bush fumbles we shake our heads and laugh... when Kerry does it we cringe. He has yet to figure out that people don't respect high intellect in their politicians but clarity of thought and expression. How a decorated veteran like he is can put himself and his fellow party members in a defensive posture on patriotism repeatedly during wartime is beyond understanding.... And he is not even running for office.

And we wait....

We enjoy the sun...

"Dad, isn't this great dad? Just you and me going fishing?"

At moments like this I suddenly feel guilty for the fifty times a day I am yelling at the little guy for just being a five year old.

There is a wonderful breeze...

He losses patience a couple of times and we reel in the line thinking we have something and it just ends up being some drifting weeds.

Again, we cast away..... and wait...

....and lo and behold there is a tug and suddenly the fishing line is quickly unraveling. My little fisherman screams with excitement. He catches his first little sunny. He has a grin as wide as I have ever seen; the poor little fish writhes on the end of the line. We call over one of our helpers and he pulls out a pair of pliers to delicately pry the hook out of the fishes mouth.

The little one wants to hold the fish and Mr. Larry instructs him to wet his hands first. As the little creature slips into his hands he giggles and laughs and within a split second the little yellow sunny falls into the water near his feet and Mr. Larry pushes it out a little farther so it can swim away.

I remember reading an article once on the ethics of fishing. It was all about whether fish feel pain or have nerve endings in their mouths. I don't think there was any conclusive proof one way or the other.

My son is hooked. He agrees to pick up one of the worms in the styrofoam cup. With great guilt I shove the hook into it and again we cast away. Father and son caught three fish that day believe it or not. We let them all go. Unfortunately, the last one did not fare too well. The hook had gotten stuck in it's gills and Mr. Larry had to do some minor surgery to get it out. As we laid it back in the water it just lay there on its side, barely moving as the minor surface ripples carried it out of view. My little guy was a little sad but I convinced him it might still be okay. I told him it was just in shock.

As I write this, it is now 4:22 am in the morning - I got home from work at 3:00 am - and Neil got up soon after and gave me a hug and went back to sleep. Despite my wife's best efforts he will wake me up at 7:00 am before he brushes his teeth and eats his cereal and watches the same episode of The Last Airbender that he has seen a zillion times on Comcast On Demand. He will reluctantly rush off to the bus stop with my wife, but not before asking me for the umpteenth time whether he can have this toy or that toy for his birthday which is in 11 days.

I would not have my day begin any other way. Sleep is over-rated.

After they are gone my obsession will kick in again. First it will be the New York Times then The Washington Post. On the television will probably be CNBC or if I feel like entertainment than it will be on Fox News. Frankly, it is all entertainment. There is very little substance to the news today. Gone are the days when my dad and I would sit after dinner and watch John Chancellor on NBC News and he would give it to us straight. Today the networks do the thinking for us and most of us let them. One must now listen between the lines and after removing the various filters applied depending on the network, come to some conclusion about what is actually fact. Who wants to work that hard just to be informed. It is easier to remember the buzz words - liberal, conservative, cut your taxes, raise your taxes, stem cell research, killing embryos, Iraq, Iraq, Iraq... freedom, democracy, terrorists, ... they are weak on defense, ... no theeeey are just "STAY THE COURSE", etc......

Frankly, it does just make one want to go fishing...... doesn't it?

PS: If you actually got this far - then many thanks are in order for still hanging with me.

Arrogance of Power

2006-08-15T02:24:00.000-04:00

I have been struggling for the last few weeks to put fingers to keyboard in an effort to make some sense of the violent goings on around the globe. Immediately after my last post, numerous bombs went off on trains in Mumbai, India killing hundreds of people. I was filled with rage and anger. Rage at the cowardly bastards that carried out the attacks on unsuspecting innocent people and anger at the fact that the various intelligence assets there in India had not able to crack these plots before they happened. To be totally honest, I spent the next couple of days thinking that if the mainstream Islamic community around the world did not stand up to its' militant clans, the other peoples of the world might actually get it together enough one day to unite against them to indiscriminately wipe them out. The above statement obviously stems from the assumption that the perpetrators of the Mumbai bombings were Muslim extremists, separatists, terrorists, etc... Frankly, it is hard to imagine who else it could be.

Then shortly thereafter, the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah started. Israel too has been the subject of numerous suicide bombings, missile attacks, etc., at the hands of both Hamas from the Palestinian areas around the southern part of Israel and Hezbollah from the north from within Lebanon. Both India and Israel are involved in "low intensity" conflicts mainly originating from outside their borders; the Kashmir territorial dispute festers between India, Pakistan and other interested parties from within Kashmir and Israel and her Arab neighbors have still not been able to reach a lasting peace since the creation of Israel during the Arab Israeli war of 1948-1949. I suggest going to Wikipedia to get an in depth background on both conflicts.

My interest here is to look at how both countries are forced to deal with their individual situations in different ways. From the outset, let me admit that I often find myself jealous of the military superiority that Israel enjoys over its disorganized, badly trained, and ill equipped Arab neighbors. It seems that for every pound of flesh that Hamas or Hezbollah is able to extract from Israel, she is able to extract ten times more. Now I know that that sounds extremely primitive. But I too have seen firsthand the toll that terrorism and religious communalism exacts from a city and a population. I remember being on a train in Bombay that was being pelted with rocks and helped numerous passengers shut their window shutters and helped men keep the train doors shut while Muslim youth tried to board it to attack us in the aftermath of the destruction of the Babri Masjid in December 1992 by Hindu fundamentalists. Also, I was on a plane heading to Bombay on March 12, 1993 when 13 bombs went off in the city causing immense carnage and destruction. I will spare you the historical details (look up Bombay Blasts March 1993 in Wikipedia). Suffice it to say that the human toll of all of these events are immense and are always borne by those who have nothing to do with the nonsense that serves as the fountain of hatred from which these events flow.

Unlike Israel, India is constrained by numerous factors. First of all, her arch enemy has nuclear weapons which serves as a major deterrent despite India's advantage over Pakistan in conventional weapons. Secondly, India does not have a major enabler like Israel, namely the United States. India is flanked on her other side by China who has no qualms selling Pakistan advanced weapons and proliferating to it both nuclear and missile technology to keep Indian ambitions in check. And lastly, being a secular republic, she cannot be seen taking a heavy hand against the minority Muslim population and thereby tarnishing her secular credentials. This is despite the fact that she has the second largest Muslim population of any country save Indonesia; some of whom serve as aiders and abettors of extremists that come from outside of the country and foment trouble at the slightest provocation. These troublemakers of course do not appreciate that they have much more freedom and representation in India than they do in the most moderate of Islamic countries.

India has often threatened to use the doctrine of "hot pursuit" which is basically following the links back to where the terrorists come from - mainly from across the disputed Kashmir border - and destroying them and their sponsors. However, for the most part she has not carried through. I think that often leads to the impression of her being a "soft state". However, after seeing the Israeli response to the latest incursions by Hezbollah, I'm not so sure that her patience is not the more prudent course.

Although I completely understand and accept the notion that Israel has the right to defend herself; I do not see how destroying the infrastructure of Lebanon and killing so many civilians has helped her achieve more security. There is definitely no changing the hearts of those whom are hell bent on destroying her and even question the right of this Jewish state to exist. The greater disservice she has done to herself is to fall into the same misguided trap that America has fallen into. In trying to further the Bush doctrine of destroying your enemies before they destroy you, she has only emboldened her enemies and united those - the various Arab nations who are always at odds which each other- that are, at the best of times, completely suspicious of each other.

America also did Israel a great disservice. Instead of playing the wiser friend and convincing her to negotiate a quick cease fire and then work for a political solution to the pressing concerns of both sides, the powers that be in Washington were hopeful that Israel would deal a quick and decisive blow to Hezbollah and therefore diminish Iran's growing influence over the region. When Israel's "smart" weapons did not prove to be smart enough to avoid killing scores of innocents, even the American press which is blatantly pro Israel could not keep itself from openly questioning Israel's tactics and motives. When Sec. of State Condoleeza Rice coldly labeled wanton destruction of life and property by Israeli missiles as "the birth pangs of a new Middle East", she could not have known that Hezbollah would put up such fierce resistance. In the face of rising Arab unity and revulsion from around the globe to the images coming out of Lebanon, the US administration could do nothing but allow a totally unsatisfactory UN resolution to be born that neither disarms Hezbollah, leaves Israeli troops inside Lebanon currently, and still provides no clear deadline or vision as to when a robust international peacekeeping force will actually be deployed there. Meanwhile, Hezbollah, having survived the wrath of the vaunted Israeli Defense Forces, will now begin the task of rebuilding Lebanon with Iranian money, further entrenching itself in Lebanese society and winning the good will of the people.

What did Israel gain from this misadventure. Nothing. The cease fire does not even call for the mandatory return of the Israeli soldiers kidnapped and held captive by Hezbollah; the event that served as the catalyst for the beginning of this conflict. Hopefully, further negotiations between the parties and their various puppet masters will lead to a more permanent peace, but the history of this region and the quality of leadership in the world exhibited today do not give cause for optimism.

You may ask, "What course would you recommend"? I will take my guidance from Senator J. William Fulbright and his writings in his book The Arrogance of Power and as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1966.

The attitude above all others which I feel sure is no longer valid is the arrogance of power, the tendency of great nations to equate power with virtue and major responsibilities with a universal mission...

The cause of our difficulties ... is not a deficiency of power but an excess of the wrong kind of power which results in a feeling of impotence when it fails to achieve its desired ends...

Fulbright surmises that the best that America (I would expand that to all peace loving and democratic nations) can do is to lead by example. Instead of forcing our ideals on others, we should provide a good example for other nations to follow when they are ready and in a form that conforms to their cultural values. Without getting too far away from the current discussion, I would propose that the above ideal as the only prudent course for any great power, whether they be a global power, like the US, or a regional power like Israel, or a budding power like India.

In summary, I believe that Israel was a greater threat to it's enemies when they were in awe of her and respected her than after this current war. That is not to say she should not have defended herself against Hezbollah. But in broadening the conflict and in trying to change the course of history by upping the ante in this conflict she has not gained any greater sense of lasting security. And this should serve as a lesson for India as well. Although grand terrorist acts like those of the Mumbai train blasts may inflame our passions, the response should always be fierce against the proven perpetrators but within the confines of what civilised societies have accepted as self defense. Using these situations as an excuse to "go on offense" and solve long standing issues outside of political processes can only lead to an ultimate mutual destruction.

Green Thumbs, Greedy Palms & Ganda Bapa

2006-07-11T03:44:00.000-04:00

I came to this country when I was four years old and my first trip back to India was when I was eight years old. One of my fondest memories is walking to my grandfathers small - less than 2 acre - farm with him down wet muddy paths wearing his white topi (Nehru style cap) and using his bamboo walking stick. We would walk past many small farms on the way to his little parcel, some bigger, some smaller but all minuscule in comparison to the large farms here in the US. I wore chappals but my feet would be encased in a reddish colored mud within minutes as it was rainy season. There was no pacco rasto (paved road) to the farms and between the large muddy puddles, the ruts cut out by the ox pulled carts, the fresh piles of dung, and the deep tire tracks cut out by the rare tractor, Ganda Bapa and I would follow his trusty walking stick to his precious land - past the almost naked except for loincloth clad laborers making bad quality bricks out of the reddish mud, past wading water buffaloes wading in deep algae filled ponds trying to catch a moment of relief from the blazing midday heat -onward to his little piece of heaven that he still hadn't gambled away yet, we would walk.

On his farm he grew the sweetest chibra's - small Indian cucumbers that still had not had all of their uniqueness bred out of them by more efficient but tasteless hybrid varieties. He also grew small plump eggplants and sometimes rice and sometimes sugarcane and the best okra that any chef in New Orleans would be proud to put in his jambalaya. Around the edge of his property grew large kantola; thorny cactus like plants that kept both wild hogs and unwanted humans away. Today there are canals and irrigation systems available for the few farms that are left in the area where my grandfathers land was; back then in 1976 though, there was only the rain - and sometimes it rained a lot, sometimes little, and sometimes not at all. My cherished memories of the few cherished moments I spent with him probably make his existence sound a lot more romantic than it actually was. What my grandfathers family could not use for food, they sold at market for a pittance... they toiled by hand to seed, plant, hoe and harvest what they grew. The whole town celebrated when one family was finally able to get a bank loan to lease purchase a small tractor that the farmers in the entire mohallo (neighborhood) would pay rent to use. It was a bright fire engine red tractor that the kids in the neighborhood would clean after it came back from a productive day tilling the fields. We would all take turns sitting in the hot vinyl seat and tug on the locked unmoving steering wheel until we got bored and moved on to catching frogs in the open gutter that ran around the neighborhood in coffee cans that we then blew up with the always available fireworks. When the tractor first came it had been blessed and garlanded just like every living thing in India is, and trust me, in India anything of any value is a living thing.

Over the past couple of weeks, the Washington Post has been doing a series of articles - Harvesting Cash about how billions of dollars are being spent by the federal government to subsidize large agribusinesses in the country. We have all heard the stories of how severe droughts have brought small farmers to ruin in the mid-west in the past and how because of overproduction, low prices around the world forces the government to pay many farmers to not farm in order to keep prices artificially high. But now, many farmers have learned to game the system of well meaning subsidies meant to be used in times of need and they benefit by hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money by holding their harvested crops until prices fall, collecting the subsidy, then selling their product later at market for full value when the price rises again. Why is this important outside of the fact that it is just another way our government fritters away billions of dollars to vested interests?

The US and the "Group of 8" highly developed economies have been trying for over a couple of years now to sign a new World Trade pact with developing countries in an effort to open up their markets to more American and European products. These are called the "Doha" round of ongoing trade talks. However, this time the developing countries, mainly India, Brazil, and even Australia are fighting back. They have been trying for decades to get the likes of the US, Canada, Japan, and the EU to lower their farm subsidies so their small time poor farmers can better compete with the large farm business of the developed world. How, you ask, do farm subsidies here hurt farmers there. It keeps crop prices here artificially lower than they should be because farmers are also paid subsidies by the government for their crops. "Small farmers" who do not have the volume of large agribusinesses like ADM, Monsanto, or Del Monti, and have no way of competing with the subsidies provided by these rich governments to their other farmers. Any other inefficient business model such as this would fail here today. It may seem a noble enterprise to support farming in ones country; frankly, I truly believe it is. But when a computer scientists job or a programmers job gets outsourced to India or a textile workers job gets outsourced to China, there are no lavish subsidies and no safety nets. There is no respite for workers in the auto industry who face greater overseas competition everyday. One can argue that there should be, but that is a whole other matter. Our trade representatives traipse around the world espousing the benefits of free trade and unrestricted capitalism, and yet we let our governments waste billions in protecting a business which is truly not "mom & pop" here anymore. And farming is one of the few areas where some of these fledgling economies can actually compete with us if given the opportunity.

I actually believe our ideals are correct. More free trade would mean that the best Indian mangoes would be available here in the US and Americas best insurance companies could write policies for that little red tractor in Sunder Mohallo. Unfortunately, that tractor is no more, because the farms are no more. On my grandfathers once fertile land now stands a condominium complex. As more industries pop up around near where I was born, in India, more land is sold away at ever greater prices for housing complexes, movie theaters and shopping malls. And maybe that is as it should be. The earth that sustained my grandfathers existence now supports the dreams and wants of future generations. Poor people in far flung places and middle class people right here close to home are forced to adapt to changing economic realities. The farmers in America will survive in their own way or be forced to do something else. We should only hope that the same market forces that we wish upon others, we would abide by ourselves and together raise the living standards of the entire world.

By the way, Ganda Bapa died when I was in sixth grade of lung cancer he got from smoking hand rolled bidis (unfilterd cigerettes) from fresh tobacco leaves. But up to his deathbed, he would ask my father to bring him and his buddies DUNHILL cigarettes from the London Heathrow Duty Free shops where Air India would stop over before continuing on to India from New York. Being a small time farmer in the dusty old village of Adajan did not keep him from wanting the best of what the world had to offer. I am sure that is true for many a small farmer across the globe.

Finding the Words

2006-07-07T12:02:00.000-04:00

I had a long day at work yesterday, and frankly, I am whipped today. But I have been wanting to write for days, and actually have taken stabs at starting writing something numerous times in the past few days but nothing has really gelled beyond being anything more than mildly cute, possibly thought provoking, but definitely uninspiring. It is only because of my sons' swimming lesson being cancelled today that I have found time to sit at the laptop before going to work. Someone posted an anonymous comment recently telling me they enjoyed my posts and encouraged me to write more. I am truly grateful and their could have been no higher compliment. But unfortunately, I have hit some sort of wall. I am not a natural writer. It takes me a long time to write something that someone else can probably whip out in minutes. That is because there is a bottleneck somewhere in my brain between the parts where I think thoughts and the place where I find the ability to organize them before actually expressing them.

Organization has always been an issue with me. I like things to be in their proper places; that includes things and thoughts. But if I cannot find the perfect place for something, or if a place does not exist for something, the item or thought at hand seems to get placed on the desktop of my life. As this theoretical desktop gets more and more cluttered, I get more and more apprehensive and feel like I am about to drown in a flood of unaccomplished chores, unopened mail, unfinished home improvement projects, etc... My arcane 1 bit processor gets overheated. Then there is the crash and reboot. I lash out at my wife for the messy living room, yell at my five year old for playing too many video games (which I bought for him, of course), open all my mail, shredding most of it and get even more angry at myself because I temporarily lost the Best Buy bill and realize I now will be hit with a late fee and lose my 0% financing on the stereo amplifier and new speakers I probably should not have purchased six months ago but absolutely love. I frantically go on a cleaning spree, vacuuming and dusting as my wife ignores me, find some project to do with my son so he knows I care and call Best Buy reminding them what a good customer I am and blame the US Postal Service for late mail that wasn't. Satisfied that a few things are taken care of, the cycle of cluttering and clearing the desktop begins again.

I guess, what I am trying to say is that I seem to be able to accomplish things only in spurts of frenzied activity driven by guilt of inaction. This post is in the same vein. I made a commitment to write and now blogging is another icon my cluttered desktop. Hopefully, I will soon post entries in the near future on someone whom I consider a true hero, on a recent movie experience I had with my son, on my love of music, on issues of world trade... but for now, my desktop is cluttered with everything and nothing at all. With any luck, the downstairs bathroom will get remodeled soon, I will get my paperwork current, I will be able to get my son to his swimming lessons on time instead of 6 minutes late like yesterday, and yes, the game of Twister being played in my brain will end soon and I will find the words again.

Urushiol (you-ROO-shee-ol)

2006-06-19T21:41:00.000-04:00

On Saturday past, I decided to finally get off my ass and clean out some overgrown bushes and brush in my backyard. I dread this job every year because I know the ultimate result will probably be the attack on my person of a mean red red rash all over my hands, legs, torso, and if I am lucky, nowhere else. Now this area of our yard is a partially landscaped no-mans-land, between our yard and the one behind ours. I should just spray the whole area with ROUNDUP and be done with it. But that would kill everything back there and I am not about to let a yearly bout with a dumb plant make me into a mass murderer just yet.

By the way, did you know that poison ivy is part of the cashew family. Now, cashews I love. I often get the big tub of them from Costco. Supposedly nuts have have good fatty acids in them so I eat fistfuls of them. Anyway... I digress.

Poison Ivy and I go way back. I remember getting it so bad when I was in 8th grade that the rash on my face forced one eye shut and forced the other one to stay open. If you can not imagine what that looks like check out this guy; except I had it much worse. Just imagine a brown skinned kid with a red rash, a puffy face, and pink chalky calamine lotion spread all over. And to think, my parents still made me go to school that way.

Since then cutting lawns, trekking through the woods, or walking within 10 feet of the stuff always proves to be an adventure.

God, I can't tell you how much I want to scratch my arms right now....

Urushiol (you-ROO-shee-ol) - that's the oil from this whole family of plants that causes all of this misery. If you have been around this stuff, About.com says that you are supposed to clean the exposed area with rubbing alcohol first to kill whatever makes this stuff so lethal and then take a soapy shower. Doing the suds without first enduring the alcohol will only spread the misery. But if your like me, you really only have ten or so minutes before the evil oil gets under your skin.

I could not see my usual doctor today so I had to see one of the other ones. He asked me if my arms and legs had been covered while I was working out there. I lied and said yes. I did not want to waste my breath explaining that this was more about destiny than it was about defenses. You see, every year I dig, rip, and dare the glossy leaves out to a fairly one sided duel. Mother nature wins two out three years and I run off to the doctor for my usual dose of methylprednisolone. But I refuse to wear long sleeve shirts and pants in 95 F degree weather out of mere fear. A hazmat suit may have protected my hide but in my soul, I would felt like a loser.

Yes, I do realize how stupid this all sounds. But remember, your odds of getting out unscathed from a bungee jump are better than an honest fight with poison ivy. Guess which is the cheaper thrill?

The Dixie Chicks and Finding Your Voice

2006-06-14T03:07:00.000-04:00

So the Dixie Chicks seem to be selling more concert tickets north of the Mason Dixon line then they are in the Old Confederacy, their traditional constituency. Not too surprising, considering the negative comments their lead singer, Natalie Maines made in 2003 about President Bush while on tour in London. What is surprising is that she is sticking by her opinions and that the band has even incorporated their politics into their new album - Taking the Long Way. Finding their political voice, the Dixie Chicks seem to have figured out who and what they want to be. Take a listen - their sound may still be familiar but the words are all about leaving what was for something new, something more - maybe their traditional audience for a new one.

Although many red state country radio stations had been boycotting the band since 2003, it was assumed that all would be forgiven eventually, especially with the release of a new album. Hearing the new album, many stations have refused to play it saying it does not represent the views or mores of their audiences, even going so far as to refuse paid advertisements for their tour. Like so many who control different forms of media today, those programming these stations are more interested in making their listeners choices for them instead of just presenting the content and letting the listeners decide. So "who cares", you ask? Unless you're an old or new fan of the Dixie Chicks or of President Bush, you probably do not care.

Why do I care. I am neither an avid Dixie Chicks fan nor an avid fan of President Bush. I care because I see this situation as symptomatic of the political climate in the country today playing out on a smaller scale. "You're either with me, or against me." One instance of disagreement and we are blind or deaf to anything else that someone might say on any other issue. If you are willing to accept gay marriage than you can not possibly be a "values voter". If you support the war effort in Iraq, you could not possibly have a valid opinion on the budget deficit or stem cell research or funding for higher education.

And yet there is no real movement in this country to seek any sort of middle way. Not since the Civil Rights Movement and maybe even the Civil War has the nation been so intellectually and geographically divided. Are mainstream Republicans really happy to be members of a party who believes in kicking ass and asking questions later; are they really more interested in repeated debates on gay marriage over debating how to make our high schools more competitive internationally. Will mainstream Democrats not understand that faith plays a large role in the fabric of this country and was the reason many of our ancestors emigrated here in the first place? Although I believe in the causes of feminism and environmentalism, etc., Democrats must stop being pulled in thirty different directions and decide what is good for America and not for Latinos, or gays, or environmentalists separately. More importantly, these groups better realize that they need to find some common ground amongst each other to make any sort of credible opposition to the current ruling classes.

I know that there are those who would argue that steadfast principles are more important than reaching a consensus. I would argue that principles are for individuals to guide their personal lives and aiming for consensus is a principle because achieving consensus leads to action which leads to problem solving.

What I find puzzling and unsettling is that too many are willing to let others opinions form the basis of their beliefs instead of individually examining the facts. The news is hardly news anymore; it is constant analysis and opinion. And although that is also some of what I offer here in this blog, I would at least implore you to think for yourself. I intend what I write to be a starting point for a discussion and debate and have no desire to do your thinking for you. This is by no means a talking points blog.

The final point I would make is that a willingness to honestly examine facts would actually better enable us to achieve political and social consensus where opinions only provide cover to those more interested in intellectual dishonesty, dogma, and ultimately, the status quo.

Anyway, I thank the Dixie Chicks for allowing me to use them to make my points... and do take a listen, for both the music and the words.

The Marital Contract

2006-06-09T20:36:00.000-04:00

''We're not going to stop until marriage between a man and a woman is protected,'' ... Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan.

So earlier this week our Senators debated and voted on the subject of marriage. The vote was 49 for a ban on "gay marriage" and 48 against - or was it vice versa - actually, I do not think it really matters. Everyone who cared knew this was a bogus vote because everyone who cared knew that there was no possibility of getting a two thirds vote (needed for a Constitutional Amendment). I will not waste too many words on the idiocy of having this vote when nothing was to be gained or lost by it, especially when there are so many other pressing matters facing the nation.

Of course there are many who believe that marriage as an institution is under assault and for years have been on the lookout, ever vigilant for bogeymen out to destroy it for good. What with high divorce rates, common law marriages, prenuptial agreements, no fault divorces, domestic partnerships, etc., why so called marriage advocates want to keep anyone from getting married is beyond me.

Honestly though, I must admit some ambivalence to the concept of "gay marriage". I do not understand why a segment of the population that is admittedly different from the majority needs validation from one of it's institutions. Growing up in the '70s and '80s, I got the impression that gays at that time looked down upon being bound by the concept traditional marriage. I think it is only recently that the issue has come to the forefront for a variety of reasons. Possibly, it is because of greater acceptance in the general community that gays feel more able to fight for greater official legitimacy. However, I think there are more immediate concerns, such as the availability of health insurance to a partner or the ability to stand in for a loved one in time of crisis and make decisions and determinations that a traditional spouse could, which provide greater urgency.

When asked recently on my take on gay marriage I responded by saying that I really did not have strong feelings on the matter but was inclined to accept the notion that marriage was an institution that, throughout known human history and amongst most cultures primitive or advanced, was reserved for a union between a man and a women. To me, civil unions accomplished the same thing as lawful gay marriage.

I think before tackling the question of whether gays should be able to "marry" or not, we should define what marriage is. Marriage traditions amongst all of the major religions throughout recorded history showed marriage to be a contract between two individuals and, more importantly, between two families that formed bonds of kinship where no bonds of kinship existed. These bonds of kinship placed obligations on and provided benefits to both individuals united by the covenant of a marriage. This contract was traditionally arranged between families and not individuals. As Joseph Campbell explains to Bill Moyer in the Power of Myth, the notion of individual or romantic love was not introduced into the western tradition until the troubadours (aristocratic poets/musicians from Provence in France) introduced it in the 12th century. Until recently, even in Europe, marriages were arranged affairs in which social standing and economics were much more important considerations than affection or attraction. Arranged marriages are still the norm in many Asian traditions.

Throughout history, the benefits of the marriage contract have most often accrued to the male partner and the obligations to the female one. This can be easily determined by studying Roman and Christian traditions as well as Muslim or Hindu ones. Women have always had inferior rights and few or no claims to property. Adultery by a woman meant certain death whereas for a man it was hardly a major crime. It is not until recent times that any sense of equality has been achieved in laws governing marriage. This has been achieved by legislating the concepts of equal rights and equal protections under the law into the marriage contract. As Professor Hendrik Hartog explains in this article for the History News Network in 2004, it was only late in the 19th century that as a result of "republican institutions pursuing the public good" that "legislators passed a variety of rules that formally moderated the inequalities of marriage -- particularly marital property reforms, earnings acts, and child custody reforms." As he further explains, it was only because of "women entering the paid labor market in much larger numbers, easily available contraception and the separation of sexuality from marriage" after World War II that real changes in law came into effect to put women on an equal footing in the marital contract and also giving them equal rights to freely enter into or out of such a contract.

Those who argue against gay marriage do so on the basis that marriage is a sacred institution reserved to be shared between only a man and a woman. Biologically, that makes sense of course. One of the main results of heterosexual marriage is procreation. However, I would argue that marriage is basically a contract that governs the commitment made by two individuals to each other. What is sacred is the commitment, not the contract. My point here is that rights were gained by government legislating rights into the marital contract where no equality or rights existed for centuries. Governments place is to ensure that all represented by it are treated equitably, not legislate who can make a commitment to whom. We do not need protection from people trying to become part of a tradition that they are certainly not trying to destroy.

Memorial Day

2006-05-30T03:05:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, May 30th, 2006 - Early Morning

So yesterday was Memorial Day in the United States and I have been searching both inwards and outwards as to what I really wanted to write about on this occasion. On Friday and Saturday, I spent some time searching the Web for information on how Memorial Day came to be. I found that there really is no clear answer. Our country was still getting over a Civil War that had ripped both the nation and individual families apart when in many towns such as Boalsburg, PA and Waterloo, NY loved ones in the 1860's began honoring their war dead by decorating their graves with flowers. Hence Decoration Day which eventually led to Memorial Day. Throughout the weekend, I searched outside for both historical facts and inside to see if I could actually feel anything different from any other day or weekend.

On Saturday I had a wedding and reception to attend. My wife went to the wedding with other family (I promised to go to the reception in the evening with her) while my five year old and I stayed at home and painted a white plastic dinosaur we had purchased many months before on a trip to the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.

Saturday - 11:30 am

As we laughed and fought for creative control over different parts of Tyrannosaurus Rex, our mixing wet paints congealed into a kind of blue-green and brown monster with red bloody accents that were probably closer to being realistic than I thought we could have achieved when we first started. While he was having his peanut butter and jelly sandwich on slightly warm but not toasted white bread, a child in Iraq was trying to fall asleep despite gunfire whizzing by his house, and a child here in the USA was going to learn what the words "ultimate sacrifice" really mean as he learned of his mother or fathers demise in the line of duty. To this child Memorial Day will always be about memories never made and neither I nor anyone else will ever know their sense of loss... but is it my duty to at least try to feel something on their behalf?

Saturday - Evening

The Bride was beautiful and the Groom handsome. They were so fortunate that they had two services. Wow, a Christian and a Hindu wedding! When I was growing up an interracial marriage was a rarity and required true courage - today they are commonplace and almost expected. So here in these ceremonies and these young people's aspirations, two thousands of years old cultures, religions, peoples came together in an embrace that will hopefully endure through the forces that try to pull them apart. On the other side of the world, misguided youth who have radicalized the worlds youngest and largest religion, fight for their identities with a reckless abandon that no amount of guns or mortars or missiles or barricades will be able to stop.

My five year old looks dapper in his Bollywood inspired suit and his patent leather shoes. As always, he charms all of the twenty something ladies of all nationalities and shades of hair; enough so that he even gets some of them to play freeze tag with him on the large porch outside of the reception hall in their 3 inch heels. He comes running up to me with the six year old Italian American girl he has befriended and proudly proclaims, "DAD, we're drinking Shirly Temple's (w/o the alcohol, I hope). Later that night, after a successful day of charming and cake eating, he drifts off to his kaleidoscope dreams and I return to my laptop to read the news of the day and think more on what the meaning of Memorial Day should be.

Sunday - Past Midnight

A big earthquake has killed thousands in Indonesia; many children too, of course. Some idiot on a cable news network talks about donor fatigue; another somewhat lesser idiot shows pictures of an ancient Hindu Temple that has succumbed to the shaking in this mostly Muslim country. Frankly I too am tired and I turn on the the air conditioning for the first time this season and sleep as both soldiers and citizens suffer in the intense heat of Baghdad. The soldier burdened by suffocating body armor to protect him/her from the rage of a population that has no electricity, and therefore no respite from sweltering temperatures and broken promises of freedom and a better life. Memorial Day has still not hit a nerve here, though.

Sunday - All Day

There are more parties to attend and we even have time for a quick splash in the still cold waters of the just opened swimming pool. At night my friends and I go out for a drink and curse the waiter because he forgot to bring the french fries. We have chosen to sit outside (against my wishes) and the characterless smell of a suburban parking lot fills my nostrils. No there is no smell of burning diesel or burning flesh from the latest detonation of an improvised explosive device. The alcohol helps to numb away the weariness of a busy social schedule. Oh, how a young man from Ann Arbor, Michigan would probably kill for the quenching powers of a Long Island Iced Tea as he thanklessly patrols a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad, trying to keep at bay Shiite death squads from exacting revenge for years of repression from Saddam's tyranny. Am I feeling Memorial Day yet?

Monday - Afternoon

Monday, the shortest and last day of the long weekend includes a cookout on the backyard barbecue and more swimming. The president gave a speech and rightfully thanked the loved ones of all deceased soldiers from all wars for their service to the country.

"In this place where valor sleeps, we are reminded why America has always gone to war reluctantly: because we know the costs of war," Mr. Bush said. "We have seen those costs in the war on terror we fight today." (New York Times: Tuesday May 30, 2006)

He spoke these words from Arlington National Cemetery.

Tuesday - Again

As I reflect on my entire weekend that has gone by, I am not so sure that we (I should say "I") do know the "cost of war." Do not get me wrong. I am not sitting here naively feeling guilty that I had a wonderful weekend with my family while there was so much conflict elsewhere. Those who serve our country in the military do so by choice and the rest of us serve it in other productive ways. The only difference is that we have much less at stake than them.

So how does one feel Memorial Day? Unlike past wars where there were higher casualty figures, relatively few it seems have been touched by personal loss. Also, there has been no financial price as of yet. Of course it will come. This war is basically being fought with borrowed money. Instead of raising taxes on all, and not just the rich, or cutting spending on stupid pork barrel projects to pay for this war, we defer to the future any financial sacrifice we may or may not make for this war.

How does one feel this war or any war? Maybe I should be asked to give up a days or a weeks pay for a fund for the families of the fallen. Will I feel then? Maybe, yes... some financial squeeze and some shuffling of bills can be painful. But it is an artificially induced feeling, really. Maybe volunteering to help a fallen soldiers family in some aspect of their recovery; you know, that's probably not a bad idea....but wait; for all of the empathy and sympathy that I can offer will I truly be able to convey a feeling or understanding that would come across as anything more than a misguided and hollow intrusion. I do not know. I have not volunteered yet and maybe I should.

And maybe that's just it. I can see another's pain but will never feel it. I can never really know the cost of any war until it costs me someone dear. And maybe, so it is with all others as well... for if we actually could feel another's anything, we may not have occasion for Memorial Day at all.

Immigration - Investment in Humanity

2006-05-22T23:17:00.000-04:00

Immigration has been the hot topic of discussion in America recently. People have erroneously linked the topic of immigration and security. The recent focus on security after the attacks on 9/11/2001 in New York, has given an excuse to many who want an end to immigration, both legal and illegal. Sure, it is absolutely true that we should have better control of our borders, both to the North and South. As a sovereign nation we have every right to expect the government to protect the population from people wanting to spread illegal drugs, violence and chaos to our nation. Our border should absolutely be closed to illegals and be secured! Having said that, the majority of the people coming to this country, legally and illegally, do so for the economic betterment of themselves and their families; not to destroy our way of live, but to become part of it.

As I was trying to formulate my thoughts on this topic, it was a friend of mine from Boston who made me realize that whether we know it or not, America needs immigration. As the baby boomer generation begins to retire, a large number of Americans will be leaving the workforce. Not only will those jobs need to be filled, but the promise of Social Security will only be fulfilled if we can increase current ratio of workers to retirees. We must have more people paying into the system than drawing from it. As our economy becomes more and more based on delivering services as opposed to producing anything of value, people power is what will be needed and that is exactly what we lack. As our population ages, the developing world which has a more youthful population is ready and willing to deliver young, diligent workers to our services oriented economy. Instead of looking the other way as employers unscrupulously exploit illegal workers and thereby deflate wages of both immigrants and citizens, the government should be be making it easier for those who want a legal opportunity to work here and harder on those employers and industries that benefit from immigrants remaining illegal. Increasing legal immigration to face economic reality and bringing willing wage earners into the tax and social security system makes much more sense than allowing selfish employers to game the system and allow them to cheat the government of taxes and cheat workers of fare wages.

Of course, there are many whose views on immigration are formed not by economic concerns at all, but on those of cultural identity, religious purity, and the protection of values and a way of life they feel is under threat. They further the argument of security to shade their xenophobia. However, despite some of their obvious prejudices, they do present some valid concerns. It is extremely important that all immigrants are properly assimilated into the population. That means that immigrants learn to speak English, learn to be law abiding citizens, and learn to respect and even emulate some of the traditions and values of their adopted homeland; doing so does not mean that they have somehow lost their traditional identities.

One can see the tensions in communities where assimilation has not taken place. While a junior in college I spent 8 months in the UK participating in an overseas education program. In addition to my academic activities and travels, I spent a considerable amount of time with relatives and friends in London, Leicester, and Manchester. I was amazed to discover how limited the contact was between immigrants whom had been in England for over 30 years and even their children with their English neighbors. Under the mask of civility, there was great distrust and lack of appreciation of the others traditions or concerns. I blame both sides for this divide. Our identities are not merely frozen caricatures formed when we are born never to be enriched by experiences gained from travel or discourse with others. Yet it seemed that all sides felt that opening up to influence from the other would somehow corrupt their god given purity.

I do not see this divide in the United States. When my father came to United States in the late 1960's he came for educational advancement and honestly, economic opportunity. The economic engine that is America has always thirsted for people with motivation and talent. Throughout his studies and his employment I believe that he has been able to gain the respect of his peers and his neighbors. This is not to profess that my family was never the target of prejudice. We had our home vandalized numerous times when we moved into the community that I still call home. At that time there were very few minorities in our neighborhood and we certainly stood out as being different. However, much has changed. As more and more immigrant or minority families have moved to the area, it seems that a truly harmonic balance has been reached and there is mutual respect for the strengths each diverse peoples brings to the community.

Globalization has truly changed the world. America has spent a large part of the last century extolling the virtues of free trade and the virtues of the free movement of goods, services, and capital across borders. Globalization can not occur in a vacuum. It's forces will enrich many but will also displace many. Those displaced will indeed seek a new life in places where they can lead their lives with security and dignity. Investments in technology have helped us be more productive and more efficient, but it is investments in people that will raise the global standard of living. That is an investment that all should be willing to make.

Smart? Probably. Dumb? Definitely.

2006-05-15T01:35:00.000-04:00

With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow - I have still joy in the midst of these things. Riches and honors acquired by unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud.
Confucius (551 BC - 479 BC), The Confucian Analects

So here I am at 1:45 am reading the New York Times Technology Section and I find this article on how one of China's favorite young sons has been shown to be a fake. Chen Jin had it all; a PhD from U Texas @ Austin; a great gig as head muckety muck director of a brainos' admitted only dept. at the same school that former Chinese President Jiang Zemin went to; and a partner in many micro ventures that would all lead to many macro dollars, or yuan's, or renminbis, or fortune cookies.

What happened?

As it turned out, he didn't quite invent China's first homegrown microprocessor as he and greater China had so proudly announced to the world only recently. He took the gazillions of fortune cookies given to him for research from the Chinese government and set up a business where, honest hard working Chinese laborers basically scratched off Motorola from imported American Saltines and stamped Hanxin on them, thereby making them China's Chips.

A few weeks ago a similar riches to rags story happened here when a smart, young, Indian student at Harvard was found to have plagiarized (oops, sorry internalized) - leave it to a Harvard girl to come up with a new term for lifting, copying, cheating, plagiarizing - 40 passages from another writers teenage romance novel in an effort to make her somewhat intelligent and original story more run of the mill, and thereby, more marketable. The internalizing worked so well that Kaavya Vishwanathan soon had America cheering for Opal Mehta and her quest to lighten up to get into Harvard. It worked so well that she even got a movie deal.

There is already a lot written on the pressures that Asian young people feel to study, succeed, and make a name for their families, their people, their nation. I am not really interested in driving down that well worn road. Nothing stops them from thinking independently and coming up with their own definitions of a successful life; possibly one that is different than that arrived at by family and community.

We learn from Ruth Marcus' insightful editorial that Kaavya's grandfather had already expressed his expectation for her to be a doctor when she was only six years old. She was more interested in managing peoples money rather then their well being. Investment Banking is a very lucrative career these days. Although I hate making assumptions, I am sure her pops would have been very proud of his young Doctor of Wealth. His desire for her to be a doctor was probably more a reflection of his desire for her to be affluent and therefore well taken care of than it was in doing something as altruistic as doing a stint with medecins sans frontieres.

I truly wish no ill towards either one of these obviously intelligent young people. Chen Jin's doctoral adviser spoke to his brilliance as noted by David Barboza in his NY Times article. And I hope that Kaavya gets to tell the story she intended to tell. What I find disappointing is these young peoples need for validation being so great that they sold so cheaply their brilliance to fickle societies that value the polished, artificially cut diamond over the possibilities that lay within the random and imperfect rock that we are all cut from. Often these modernizing societies are forgetting to pass along the riches of their own thousands of years old civilizations to their children in an effort to catch up to so called advanced societies. They forget that the way these societies became advanced was through the courage of individuals to explore new frontiers in science and thought, conduct patient research, and persevere through cycles of failures and successes, thereby laying block by block the foundations of their modern prosperity.

And Asian civilizations are no strangers to these concepts. The Great Wall and the Taj Mahal; the wisdom of Confucius and the austere beauty of Vedantic philosophy; the discipline of martial arts and the scientific and spiritual benefits of yoga are only a few of the contributions of these great peoples. Material wealth is not a goal to be ashamed of; but material wealth and the short term admiration of a fast moving world are not the foundation on which to build our futures. Lets teach our kids the basics, but then also expose them to the arts, music, sport, or whatever, nurture their imaginations, and then set them free to be as rich and famous as they will be on their own merits.

old IS gold

2006-05-13T15:14:00.000-04:00

I just found out last night that my elderly neighbors across the street are selling their house. When we (my wife and I) moved into this house seven years ago, we discovered that many of our neighbors were elderly couples whose children had long since flown the coop. Unlike many of my friends who were buying homes in newer developments with lots of young kids or people of child bearing age; we bought an older home in the same town I grew up in, not really knowing what demographic my neighbors fell into. Frankly, I could not have been happier when I found out that my neighbors often got together around 7:30 am on nice sunny mornings and all went walking together; this was far better than the noisy, rude teenagers that often sped down the 25mph road in front of my parents house at 80. I must admit, I was also one those rude teenagers, once.

Before I write about how I feel about the Jones's (names changed) selling their house, I want to draw a quick portrait of my elderly friends. There is lady Evelyn directly across the street (next to the Jones's) who's husband was a preacher. When we moved in, he was already paralyzed from a past stroke and a couple years later he had an even more severe one. Despite his difficulties Lady Evelyn had enough energy and chutzpah for both. She would feed him, clean him, load him and his heavy wheel chair into her special boxy van and take him not only to church and poetry recitals but even HORSEBACK RIDING at a stable where they catered to physically challenged adults and children. She had a big picture window installed in the dining room and created a pond and waterfall for him to look at... something he had always wanted to do. He was equally magnificent. Despite his paralyses, whenever my wife and I walked over, he would take her steady hand into his shaking one and always kiss it as only a true gentleman could. The love and goodwill he couldn't express in speech, one could see plainly see in his eyes, his smile and the gently curving lines on his forehead. He died 2 summers ago and all of us on Grace Lane prayed for him and expressed our condolances to Lady Evelyn. At that time I started thinking that I might have to witness many more of these events in the coming years...

Then there is Joe and Judy on the other side of the Jones's. Judy just had brain surgery two years ago to remove a tumor and almost did not make it. Joe was so messed up at the time, not only because of Judy's seemingly ever worsening condition, but because one could see the fear in his eyes of being alone whether she lived or died; Judy was beginning to lose her memories. Thank God for Joe that she pulled through with flying colors. She just brought me over a delicious pepper stuffed with lamb and wild rice last week. She and my wife often trade tomatoes and peppers from each others gardens.

Then there are the Browns and the Widow from further up my side of the street. I do not know them as well as my neighbors across the street but I know that they have all shared so many great years together on Grace Lane. Even when the whole group of them was not walking together, I often saw Mr. Brown and the Widow (no, never Mrs. Brown) go out for an afternoon stroll. Whenever, my five year old son sees any of them, the Widow, the Browns, Joe & Judy, Lady Evelyn, and especially the Jones's, through the bay window in the living room, he calls out to them, then runs out the door without asking and says hello. They all stop to say high and wonder at how fast he is growing. He then invites them over to come see his fish or play video games with him in the house. They all share a laugh and each moves on to the activities of their particular generation.

So the Jones's are selling their house. These are the same Jones's that have lived there since the house was built in the early '60s. Having raised their own kids; I know they have seen so many others' bicycle by, and then drive by. I feel sad that they will not be here to see my son do the same. God willing, they will still be living in the over 55 community where they purchased a property to retire to and he will be able to drive his set of wheels over to see them in 11 more years.

Last year the Jones' went to Italy. The year before that, a cruise down the Rhine River, and even before that to Alaska. I imagine they held hands and reminisced about their happy life just as the old couple walking hand in hand in a pouring rain down a glistening Philadelphia street that I saw with a past girlfriend when we were just friends. Not knowing, but maybe hoping that we would soon fall in love, she and I wondered how happy that old couple looked and whether we would enjoy the same fate.

Recently, Mrs. Jones has been sick a lot and Mr. Jones' cancer is back. He is undergoing chemotherapy again and she fainted a couple of weeks ago and fell. He now has a stent in a place other than an artery and can not walk much. A week ago I moved a few bags of mulch up a hill so he could sit near them and mulch his plants. Mrs. Jones was grateful be she need not have been. This was the least I could do for a man who, even at his late age, would come over with a snow-blower and clean my driveway if I got home late from work after a snowfall.

Now, a young man from a few houses away cuts their lawn. Mr. Jones tells my wife that he can not bear the sight of watching someone else tend the yard that he has nurtured for almost fifty years. When he sees my son from across the street, Mr. Jones shouts out a loud greeting and the little one runs across the street without looking both ways and starts spewing his whole life story, all five years of it without stopping for a breath; Mr. Jones listens to the whole tale.

My son is a lucky boy. He sees his Grandparents everyday and has seen all his Grand Uncles and Grand Aunts. They have visited him here in this land and he has been fortunate enough to have visited his 2 living great grandmothers and 1 great grandfather in another land on 2 separate occasions. I often am a little jealous. He knows not how lucky he is being surrounded by so much adoration and wisdom - more importantly - just the love and affection. Separated by parents who emigrated to this country for a better life, I only caught fleeting glimpses of the elders in my family - through the few and far between visits to the homeland.

Even so, their stories of their youth, their struggles, of their painful separations from children and grandchildren far away stay with me today. I will wait pensively for the day that the SOLD sign goes up on the hill across from my bay window. This morning I was all worked up because the guy who lives to the left of me never cuts his lawn on time. In fact, Mr. Jones and Joe once joked that I had better watch my son; if he wandered over there, he might not find his way out. When the moving van drives away later this summer, my son will ask me where the Jones's went. I won't know what to say then. Of course, if a family from the younger demographic moves in, and they have rug-rats for him to play with, Mr. and Mrs. Jones may soon become a distant memory to him. But not me.

Freedom Earned

2006-05-11T20:29:00.000-04:00

America does not go abroad in search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher to freedom and independence of all. She is the champion and vindicator only of her own.
John Quincy Adams
President (1825 - 1829)

Americans are a free people, who know that freedom is the right of every person and the future of every nation. The liberty we prize is not America's gift to the world; it is God's gift to humanity.
George W. Bush, President (2001 - Present)
State of the Union address 2003

Freedom is a choice that must be made by those who wish to be free. The sectarian rife that we see in Iraq today is a clear example of a people whom have not yet made the hard choices that need to be made by a society that wishes to be free. The above two quotations, I believe frame the discussion and disagreement between those who believe we should have invaded Iraq to free it of Sadaam Hussein or not.

I will leave aside for this discussion the debate on whether or not there were nuclear weapons there or not and whether Sadaam actually posed any real threat to the United States. Much has been said on this and can be tackled later.

One of the justifications for this current conflict in Iraq used by the current Administration is that America is freeing an oppressed peoples. My real concern is to deal with the notion that we can impose our notions of freedom on a society that has not yet come to the conclusion on its own that they actually desire this freedom. Numerous freedom struggles throughout history have shown us that where there is a will, there is a way.

The colonists that won their freedom from King George III came from different socio-economic, religious, educational, and cultural backgrounds. However, they united in a common struggle against a common enemy because they all felt equally, the oppression and insult of the British monarchy. Their struggle was a military one; their victory was a political one. While the soldiers fought the good fight, the thinkers and future politicians developed a roadmap of what the future nation would look like. During the darkest days of the Revolutionary War, the French came to the rescue, but only after they were asked. America had already made the choice to be free, had been willing to spill its own blood and spend what little treasure it could muster for its desired liberty. Had the French come before the intial struggle of the colonists, they would not have been looked upon as saviours but as opportunists; looking for an advantage in their on again, off again centuries old conflict with England.

India's and South Africa's freedom struggles took an entirely different path. Their struggles used the power of protest, civil disobedience, and the weight of world public opinion to win their particular conflicts. In all of these situations diverse peoples came together to fight for their shared liberty. Even before achieving their goals, leaders in these budding democracies had an ideal that they aspired towards.

One does not find this in Iraq. Indeed, there were many segments of Iraq's population that were severely oppressed. But even they were not able to unite because of their distrust or prejudices towards the other oppresed group. The Kurds in northern Iraq, the Shiites in southern Iraq, and many moderate leaning Sunnis could not crystalize a freedom struggle worthy of any external support.

Even after the United States has commited the lives of hundreds of thousands of young men and women towards Iraq's freedom, Iraqis themeselves cannot agree on a common vision for a free society. They may indeed desire personal freedoms as President Bush assumes; but they nor their leaders have decided that they value the concept of liberty for all of their citizens. We find ourselves in a struggle where our nation is fighting for the freedoms of a nation that does not really exist as a nation, and fighting for the freedoms of people who wish to oppress others that do not agree with them.

This is an inexcusable situation to find ourselves in. We have changed the course of our own history by inserting ourselves into a freedom struggle that did not exist. During World War II our leaders waited until we ourselves were attacked before entering a fight that it can probably be argued that we should have entered sooner. We have shed our historical aversion to becoming overtly involved in other nations internal affairs to to our own detriment and the detriment of the few in Iraq who may have over time been able form some sort of consesus and will amongst their peoples for a more lasting change in their history.

Perhaps if our President and our leaders in Congress had been able to see freedom as something to be earned instead of as a gift to be given, they would have thought twice before sending this nations children to fight another 's monster.

Tucker's Situtation

2006-05-10T11:53:00.000-04:00

Tucker Carlson was out of control last night ( http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12720378/ ) on his show "The Situation with Tucker Carlson". He was ridiculous and outrageous in his insistance that the young lady alledgedly raped by members of the Duke University Lacrosse team was clearly nothing but a prostitute.

Excerpts:

"She worked for an escort service. You‘ve got to be kidding. I‘m an adult. That‘s what people who work for escort services are..."

"...what everybody knows but everybody for some reason can‘t bring him or herself to say, which is this woman was a prostitute working for a company that supplied prostitutes for people who ordered them. OK, that‘s just true. It‘s not something I made up. It‘s a fact.
And I don‘t know why we are afraid to say what is true.

I find it amazing how quickly the news media, especially the conservative leaning shows, is so quick to blame this victims lifestyle for her current predicament. I hate to label people as rascist, but the double standards are obvious. Even Dan Abrahms, who was quick to defend the young caucasian lady who was assaulted, raped and murdered in NY after leaving a bar at 4am in the morning alone, when people simply suggested she could have made better choices, showed his obvious biases when he suggested that the Duke victim was not credible because the police report stated that she initially said "20 white guys" assaulted her then changed her story to only 3 of them raping her. However, both Tucker and Dan gloss over the fact that Duke itself issued a report stating that the initial police response to this womans complaints could have been wholly inadequate. Duke surmisses that she was not taken seriously beacause the first responders did not believe she was "important enough".

It is entirely possible that instead of being drunk as these commentators suggest, this victim could have been given a date rape drug and was therefore not in any state of mind or body to initailly offer an accurate decription of what happened to her. However, this benefit of the doubt is not extended to this victim. In her case their common positions are, "show me the evidence". Of course, ultimately the evidence will have to be shown. And it is entirely possible that the accused young men are innocent. I believe we should wait until all the evidence is presented to make up our minds. I admit that my natural inclination is to believe the victim because of my own personal biases (which may become more evident in the future), but I am certainly able to be rational and pass judgement only when the facts are presented.

These commentators greatest frustration is that the District Attorney is not willing to show what he knows to the media. Although they accuse him of trying the case in the media beacuse of his own political ambitions, they are most frustrated because he refuses to do exactly that. Hopefully he will continue to defend this victims rights and represent her case as long as he believes she is credible. Ultimately the defense may prevail anyway, because of the difficulty in proving rape charges.

Of course, if we are a civilised society we should hope that justice is done all around, for the alleged victim and the alleged accused. Although we respond emotionally thru our biases, we must step back and evolve our judgements from the facts presented and the principles we supposedly espouse. Our final judgements should provide no clue to our held prejudices.

Obviously, in TUCKERS WORLD, exotic dancers are all prostitutes. This woman may or may not be. But Tuckers insistance that America knows what people like this young lady really are only proves to America who he really is.

PS: I must thank Tucker for providing the catalyst to get me off my ass and set up a Blog.