A Saudi Arabian court has ordered 60 lashings for Ms. Rozanna al-Yami, a female journalist of the ultra-conservative Islamic country. And what is her offence? Well, she was involved with ‘Bold Red Line’, a TV programme where a Saudi man publicly talked about sex, and even showed some sex toys.
Ms. Rozanna al-Yami was allegedly involved in the preparation of the programme, and also handled internet advertising of the segment.
We all understand how shocking and outrageous the conservative Saudi society has found the programme to be. And the Saudi judiciary probably cannot be blamed for handing out punishments to the man (named Mazen Abdul-Jawad) and Ms. Rozanna al-Yami.
But was there no way to punish them in a decent and civilized manner, something that would have been in tune with the 21st century? Is the barbaric practice of lashing the only way out to maintain the so called social, cultural and religious purity of the famous Middle-East kingdom?
When will the Saudi judiciary and (more importantly) the Saudi government realize the necessity to evolve with time?
The Saudi King Abdullah is well-advised to learn few lessons from his Jordanian counterpart (and also his namesake) King Abdullah II about how to drive a conservative Islamic country towards modernity, instead of retaining the ridiculous status quo that is preventing his beautiful kingdom from flourishing into a genuinely respectable place that the modern world can identify itself with.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
This Is Too Much, China
The audacity of the Chinese government is simply crossing all limits. India is already disturbed with China’s constant claim (a ridiculous one) that the picturesque north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh belongs to her. There is also a constant pressure from China to disown His Holiness Dalai Lama, the highly revered Tibetan leader whom India was pleased to grant political refuge after he fled from Tibet to escape Chinese oppression.
Now one of the latest nuisances caused by China is to show Kashmir as an independent country outside India. The journalists who are visiting Tibet are being given media handouts by the Chinese government, which mention Tibet as a piece of land bordered by India, Nepal, Myanmar and Kashmir. The clear implication – Kashmir is a land independent of Indian jurisdiction.
I will strongly suggest the Indian government to publish maps showing Tibet as an independent country outside China. (In fact, this is actually the truth, as forced colonization of a sovereign country by another one does not make the former a part of the latter). Let also our government recognize Taiwan as a sovereign country, something that India refrained from doing to retain cordial diplomatic relations with China.
An aggressive stance is the only way to deal with the “rogue leadership” of China, a leadership that traces its origin to a rogue statesman – Mao Zedong.
Now one of the latest nuisances caused by China is to show Kashmir as an independent country outside India. The journalists who are visiting Tibet are being given media handouts by the Chinese government, which mention Tibet as a piece of land bordered by India, Nepal, Myanmar and Kashmir. The clear implication – Kashmir is a land independent of Indian jurisdiction.
I will strongly suggest the Indian government to publish maps showing Tibet as an independent country outside China. (In fact, this is actually the truth, as forced colonization of a sovereign country by another one does not make the former a part of the latter). Let also our government recognize Taiwan as a sovereign country, something that India refrained from doing to retain cordial diplomatic relations with China.
An aggressive stance is the only way to deal with the “rogue leadership” of China, a leadership that traces its origin to a rogue statesman – Mao Zedong.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
When Sobriety Turns Into Misbehaviour
Yes, it may sound like a paradox. But no matter how much self-contradictory it may appear, this is a concrete fact. Too much sobriety can sometimes get counter-productive, thereby resulting in misbehaviour.
Actually when you are too much sober, you get extremely conscious about each and every word that you speak, and also about each and every movement and action (like walking, sitting, etc.) that you come up with. You start maintaining a strict control on your words and also gestures and body expressions while interacting with somebody. This makes you sound very cold and indifferent to the other person, thus making you look somewhat proud.
The “sobriety maniacs” must remember that being reserved and soft-spoken does not mean being rudely cold to other people. You certainly have the right to talk less, but that does not mean that you will not talk at all. Please talk to people (OK, talk less if you wish), interact with them, and exchange a little pleasantries. Otherwise you will prove yourself to be impolite.
In a nutshell, if you are too sober in your demeanour, then in a bid to prove yourself sober you are actually proving yourself to be unsocial and uncultured. And that is certainly one of the greatest ironies of your life.
Actually when you are too much sober, you get extremely conscious about each and every word that you speak, and also about each and every movement and action (like walking, sitting, etc.) that you come up with. You start maintaining a strict control on your words and also gestures and body expressions while interacting with somebody. This makes you sound very cold and indifferent to the other person, thus making you look somewhat proud.
The “sobriety maniacs” must remember that being reserved and soft-spoken does not mean being rudely cold to other people. You certainly have the right to talk less, but that does not mean that you will not talk at all. Please talk to people (OK, talk less if you wish), interact with them, and exchange a little pleasantries. Otherwise you will prove yourself to be impolite.
In a nutshell, if you are too sober in your demeanour, then in a bid to prove yourself sober you are actually proving yourself to be unsocial and uncultured. And that is certainly one of the greatest ironies of your life.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Uprooting And Annihilation – The Only Way To Counter The Maoists
The Maoist problem is gradually turning into a serious menace for India. And before it turns into a grave threat for our country, the government must nip the disease in the bud.
Instead of following a mainly reactive line of action (which it is seemingly following right now), the government must immediately espouse a proactive line of action. It should come down heavily on the rebels, crushing them in the way a mighty elephant tramples a helpless man lost in the jungle.
We must remember that Maoists are mindless people left completely brainwashed by their leaders. The only truth for them in this world is the order from the top brass, which they carry out without any question. In that sense they are no different from the foot soldiers of the Taliban. And so the only way to deal with them is extreme savageness.
There was a time when the Khalistan movement by some misguided Sikhs had created huge troubles for our country, leaving the government of the day terribly disturbed. However, after sucking the nation’s blood for few years, that movement ultimately came to an end. And that happened simply because of the ruthless way the problem was handled by K.P.S. Gill, one of the best counter-terrorism geniuses that our country has ever produced.
I had once read an interview of Mr. Gill, where he had discussed a certain aspect of his style of function while countering the Khalistan movement. And I really liked it. He said that he believed in “Uprooting and Annihilation” of the terrorists. He said that he preferred to kill a terrorist on the spot, rather than catching him alive and bringing him to the court of law. Because the court would not punish a terrorist if there were not enough evidence against him, and would leave him free. And he would resume his heinous activities with new enthusiasm.
I feel this is the policy that the government of India must embrace – just killing the bastards on the spot instead of involving legal institutions in the process. Yes, such a suggestion may appear to be a bit harsh. And it will definitely appear to be very offensive to the human rights enthusiasts and other intellectuals of the country, who are always obsessed with the concept of “civilized society”. But can they honestly deny this fact that savageness is the only way to deal with the savages whom we call Maoists? Moreover, is there at all any need to bother about the opinions of all these pseudo-intellectuals? These hypocrites take out huge processions and call press conferences when there is a single instance of a custodial death of an alleged terrorist, or something like that. But they never bother to visit the family of an innocent person who has been gunned down by the terrorists. And you will also never find them to express their condolences to the families of the police and security personnel killed in encounters with the terrorists. So there is absolutely no need to bother about what these so-called intellectuals feel or think. For them their “intellectual image” is more important than the law and order situation of their motherland, and let us just ignore them for good.
Brutality is the only medicine meant for the Maoist scoundrels, who have proved themselves to be nasty demons under the garb of human beings. Let us pounce on them in the same way they pounce on innocent people, and chop them off into thousand pieces.
Instead of following a mainly reactive line of action (which it is seemingly following right now), the government must immediately espouse a proactive line of action. It should come down heavily on the rebels, crushing them in the way a mighty elephant tramples a helpless man lost in the jungle.
We must remember that Maoists are mindless people left completely brainwashed by their leaders. The only truth for them in this world is the order from the top brass, which they carry out without any question. In that sense they are no different from the foot soldiers of the Taliban. And so the only way to deal with them is extreme savageness.
There was a time when the Khalistan movement by some misguided Sikhs had created huge troubles for our country, leaving the government of the day terribly disturbed. However, after sucking the nation’s blood for few years, that movement ultimately came to an end. And that happened simply because of the ruthless way the problem was handled by K.P.S. Gill, one of the best counter-terrorism geniuses that our country has ever produced.
I had once read an interview of Mr. Gill, where he had discussed a certain aspect of his style of function while countering the Khalistan movement. And I really liked it. He said that he believed in “Uprooting and Annihilation” of the terrorists. He said that he preferred to kill a terrorist on the spot, rather than catching him alive and bringing him to the court of law. Because the court would not punish a terrorist if there were not enough evidence against him, and would leave him free. And he would resume his heinous activities with new enthusiasm.
I feel this is the policy that the government of India must embrace – just killing the bastards on the spot instead of involving legal institutions in the process. Yes, such a suggestion may appear to be a bit harsh. And it will definitely appear to be very offensive to the human rights enthusiasts and other intellectuals of the country, who are always obsessed with the concept of “civilized society”. But can they honestly deny this fact that savageness is the only way to deal with the savages whom we call Maoists? Moreover, is there at all any need to bother about the opinions of all these pseudo-intellectuals? These hypocrites take out huge processions and call press conferences when there is a single instance of a custodial death of an alleged terrorist, or something like that. But they never bother to visit the family of an innocent person who has been gunned down by the terrorists. And you will also never find them to express their condolences to the families of the police and security personnel killed in encounters with the terrorists. So there is absolutely no need to bother about what these so-called intellectuals feel or think. For them their “intellectual image” is more important than the law and order situation of their motherland, and let us just ignore them for good.
Brutality is the only medicine meant for the Maoist scoundrels, who have proved themselves to be nasty demons under the garb of human beings. Let us pounce on them in the same way they pounce on innocent people, and chop them off into thousand pieces.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Public Hooliganism In India In The Name Of Democracy
How long will we keep tolerating public hooliganism in the name of democracy? Isn’t it high time we understood that it is a disease that should simply be wiped out?
Just the other day a huge group of so-called “common people” created mayhem in the Hathras station, by putting five bogies of the Mahananda Express into fire. And the reason for their ire? Well, they were upset with the fact that a number of important trains do not stop at Hathras station. OK, there might have been some validity in their grievance. And in that case they had 100 per cent right to express their grievance. But was putting the bogies into fire the only way to display their displeasure?
It was by god’s grace that all the passengers escaped unhurt. But there was strong possibility of casualties, that too in huge numbers. The people who orchestrated that heinous attack must realize (provided they have brain) that by coming up with such a shameful act they actually humiliated their own grievance, which was probably a valid one.
India is a democratic country, and people always have the right to protest against any government decision or policy that they disagree with. But that protest must be in accordance with the norms of the civilized society. We must remember that our Constitution has given us the right to express our displeasure, and not the right to stoop to the level of hooliganism.
Before we could digest the Hathras incident, there came the incident of MNS high-handedness against newly released movie “Wake Up Sid”. And what is their complaint against this nice movie starring the two talented young bloods of Bollywood - Ranbir Kapoor and Kankona Sen Sharma? That in the movie the city Mumbai has been referred to as Bombay. Really, what a huge offense. What a terrible attack on the “Marathi sentiment”. No wonder, the dedicated MNS workers – the self-styled custodians of Marathi Manoos – immediately plunged into action by disrupting the screening of the movie. And eventually the producer, a film personality of the stature of Karan Johor, had to kowtow before them, “apologizing” for the “grave offense” that he has committed.
It is high time that we became strict of all these nonsense in the name of democracy and freedom of expression. 60 years have passed. India is no more a young democracy. Now it must learn how to behave like a matured democracy.
Finally, a message for Raj Thakre. Raj, please stop all your hooliganism in the name of safeguarding the so-called Marathi Manoos. The Marathi community is an educated and cultured community, which has produced so many respected personalities. Hooligans like you and your followers cannot be their true representatives. So please stop embarrassing them.
Just the other day a huge group of so-called “common people” created mayhem in the Hathras station, by putting five bogies of the Mahananda Express into fire. And the reason for their ire? Well, they were upset with the fact that a number of important trains do not stop at Hathras station. OK, there might have been some validity in their grievance. And in that case they had 100 per cent right to express their grievance. But was putting the bogies into fire the only way to display their displeasure?
It was by god’s grace that all the passengers escaped unhurt. But there was strong possibility of casualties, that too in huge numbers. The people who orchestrated that heinous attack must realize (provided they have brain) that by coming up with such a shameful act they actually humiliated their own grievance, which was probably a valid one.
India is a democratic country, and people always have the right to protest against any government decision or policy that they disagree with. But that protest must be in accordance with the norms of the civilized society. We must remember that our Constitution has given us the right to express our displeasure, and not the right to stoop to the level of hooliganism.
Before we could digest the Hathras incident, there came the incident of MNS high-handedness against newly released movie “Wake Up Sid”. And what is their complaint against this nice movie starring the two talented young bloods of Bollywood - Ranbir Kapoor and Kankona Sen Sharma? That in the movie the city Mumbai has been referred to as Bombay. Really, what a huge offense. What a terrible attack on the “Marathi sentiment”. No wonder, the dedicated MNS workers – the self-styled custodians of Marathi Manoos – immediately plunged into action by disrupting the screening of the movie. And eventually the producer, a film personality of the stature of Karan Johor, had to kowtow before them, “apologizing” for the “grave offense” that he has committed.
It is high time that we became strict of all these nonsense in the name of democracy and freedom of expression. 60 years have passed. India is no more a young democracy. Now it must learn how to behave like a matured democracy.
Finally, a message for Raj Thakre. Raj, please stop all your hooliganism in the name of safeguarding the so-called Marathi Manoos. The Marathi community is an educated and cultured community, which has produced so many respected personalities. Hooligans like you and your followers cannot be their true representatives. So please stop embarrassing them.
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