"Sorry You're still here" is the unnerving welcome visitors get when visiting the Ashbusstop website. Ash or Alt.Suicide.Holidays was originally started to discuss the relationship between suicides and holidays. Today, it has emerged into one of the largest usenet groups, along with its sister group alt.suicide.methods which are frequented by people dispirited and fed up with life.
In its unique terminology, suicide is described as "Catching the Bus" and the group described as a bus stop where several people have decided to stop and chat before deciding on whether or not to get on the bus. A superficial examination reveals nothing wrong - After all, promoting debate on rational choice seems ok.
On seeing the postings of the group, a more macabre picture emerges - When people post regarding their intent to commit suicide, not once are they asked why. Answers ranging from bets on the chances of success to vividly graphic ways to commit suicide are posted. However, much of the stuff is not posted online - group members are extremely paranoid about revealing their identity to "trolls" - people who disagree with the methods / rationale of Ash. For those who stop with reading the posted messages, a grim picture appears - almost every means of suicide is discussed, pros and cons weighed. The camaraderie of this group is telling. Almost all of them want to kill themselves, and actively encourage each other to do so. One can get almost anything from how to purcahse a gun to obtaining potassium cynaide online. Remarkable.
However, simply stopping here does not give a complete picture - after all, nothing much in a bunch of people trying to support each other. After all, for the suicidal, a site like this would be haven - a place where they can discuss their feelings an problems without being mocked at / looked on as loons. Of course, on the other side is the argument that it is hardly worthwile for a person who is depressed to seek solace from yet another.
As I said simply skimming the site does not give the complete picture. On joining the forum, and posting a message, the replies are stunning. People all over the globe respond via emails. im's, video chats and offer help. Help ranges from prodding you on to finish the job off fast, people discussing various attempts they have made, sharing photso to show you who they are before "catching the bus", setting up dates for "practice attempts" that would be shared online. The one thing that is missing is a single person who asks you NOT to commit suicide or even WHY. That the entire comunity takes it for granted that people want to commit suicide is astonishing. I was also astounded at the reasons people had for commiting suicide - The most common one was "bored of life".
While as a whole, this group does not seem worthwile wasting time on, the aftermath of coming in contact with this group need to be studied.
On march 23 2003, Suzy Gonzales commited suicide by swallowing 1.5 grams of potassium cynaide in a lethal cocktail, whose recipie was found on this site. Suzy was told how to obtain the KCN (posing as a jeweller online), how to make a the cocktail, her delayed suicide note was sent using the help of ashers. Interestingly Suzy's boyfriend actually saw the crystals but made no comment. Her only problem - boredom.
In April 2003, 2 men who met on the ASH forum formed a suicide pact - At the last minute one backed out while the other hurtled to his death. When he was charged with being an accesory, the second hanged himself. Again - boredom.
A few days back, Hiroshi Maeue was tried in the Osaka district court for luring victims from the online suicide sites, offering to assist them and when meeting them strangling and sexually assaulting them for his pleasure.
In 2002, a 17 year old boy - Patrick killed himself after posting the following message
From: unresistance (unoriginality_incarnate@hotmail.com)Subject: goodbye.Newsgroups: alt.suicide.holiday, alt.suicide.methods, alt.drugs.psychedelics
I just took step one of my suicide plan thing. Should be dead in about 40 minutes. Bye everyone.
i weigh 120 lbs
1. dramamine for anti-vomit, wait 30 min
2. 3 bottles robo max strength
3. bottle zoloft
4. bottle celexa
5. wash each down w/ antifreeze
6. some more antifreeze
7. some benedryl
8. tie plastic bag around head
If I don't post back, it worked. :-)
It worked. As patrick was taking the drugs, Ash member Amy Viscuso was with him on the phone, encouraging him. Not once was Patrick dissuaded from his idea. Patricks mother has filed a case against Amy, suggesting that her son would be alive if not for ash. Ash, of course claims the first amendment, as directed by the speech guidelines in Brandenburg v. Ohio where the court ruled that oration was abstract advocacy (hence protected under the first amendment) and not an imminent threat of violence
This seems to stretch the boundries of free speech, as defined under the first amendment.
In Brandenburg v. Ohio, the Supreme Court invoked three legal tests that must be met before speech can be outlawed. Known collectively as the Brandenburg standard, the tests include: 1.) intent (the speech was intended to incite a lawless action); 2.) immediacy (the lawless action was imminent); and 3.) risk (the speech has to be likely to produce an imminent lawless act). As far as ASH goes, prosecutors would need to prove immediacy and risk.
Another free speech lawsuit worthy of note, is Rice v. paladin Enterprises. , where it was ruled that Brandenburg standards applied to publishers of material that incited murder. The book in question was Hit Man: A Technical Manual for Independent Contractors, where a hitman (hired mercenary), set forth the guidelines for murder.
While these cases are of note, it is obvious that while a debate is needed on free choice and voluntary euthanasia, these kind of online cults that attract bord teenagers and actively spur them on to take their own lives is unlawful and immediate measures taken to ban such sites as well as censor the content therin.
- Hari
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Sexual Harrasment and the "Being Feminist" Blog
This is in response to the blog titled, "Men....hee hee...Funny really!! Men!!! " on the site http://beingfeminist.blogspot.com/, and in specific to the three references quoted on the blog, which are being reproduced below. [NOTE :- THIS BLOG ADDRESSES THE FOLLOWING REFERENCES ONLY AND HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ANY OTHER COMMENT QUOTED ON THE ABOVE WEBSITE.]
1. http://thelampros.blogspot.com/2006/12/feminismequality-or-female-chauvinism.html#links
2.Hari said... only a potential boyfriend or enemy.......BULLSHIT.......get real u pervert
3.But let me tell u something...this, what u guys have just done.....goes by the name....Cyber sexual harrassment....and did you know u can be behind bars for this???? if u didnt, then u might as well do a google search on it! but i am sure you do know it....it is just that u are so pathetically male to take it serious!i wonder what more responses you will come up with.....but i pretty much know what you will be capable off....men...after all!!
With regard to reference 3 :
1. The blog on this site, quoted in reference 1 is open for the entire Internet community to read. The idea that it contains terms that can be described as sexual harrasment is laughable.
2. The comment in reference 2 was written in response to the lines - so given the kind men are, u have only two choices. u will either be viewed as his aspiring girlfriend or his enemy. i choose to be the enemy. atleast now, i can be myself! . Again, the sexual harrasment is not obvious to me.
3. If the above responses are sexual harrasment, refer to the comment of a contributor to the being feminist blog which can be found in link 1. So, a guy can comment like this on a guy's blog but not on a female's? This is the height of sexual discrimination according to me.
4.If you consider any of the above sexual harasment, PLEASE do take the necessary action. I am not ashamed of anything I wrote and am willing to defend them wherever necessary.
5. How come cartoons on males are OK while an ATM joke on females is not? (Scroll down the being feminist blog to understand the point made here.)
6. I consider the opinions expressed in your blog, expressly quoting reference 1 and 2, as highly defamatory and slanderous. I further consider that the quotation of references 1 and 2, used to highlight 3 as incompetent, irrelevent and imaterial.
7.I do hope that you know defamation of character is also an offence punishable under the IPC Sec. 499, 500 and 501 with imprisonment and a fine.
I hope this puts an end to the whole unsavoury episosde.
- Hari
1. http://thelampros.blogspot.com/2006/12/feminismequality-or-female-chauvinism.html#links
2.Hari said... only a potential boyfriend or enemy.......BULLSHIT.......get real u pervert
3.But let me tell u something...this, what u guys have just done.....goes by the name....Cyber sexual harrassment....and did you know u can be behind bars for this???? if u didnt, then u might as well do a google search on it! but i am sure you do know it....it is just that u are so pathetically male to take it serious!i wonder what more responses you will come up with.....but i pretty much know what you will be capable off....men...after all!!
With regard to reference 3 :
1. The blog on this site, quoted in reference 1 is open for the entire Internet community to read. The idea that it contains terms that can be described as sexual harrasment is laughable.
2. The comment in reference 2 was written in response to the lines - so given the kind men are, u have only two choices. u will either be viewed as his aspiring girlfriend or his enemy. i choose to be the enemy. atleast now, i can be myself! . Again, the sexual harrasment is not obvious to me.
3. If the above responses are sexual harrasment, refer to the comment of a contributor to the being feminist blog which can be found in link 1. So, a guy can comment like this on a guy's blog but not on a female's? This is the height of sexual discrimination according to me.
4.If you consider any of the above sexual harasment, PLEASE do take the necessary action. I am not ashamed of anything I wrote and am willing to defend them wherever necessary.
5. How come cartoons on males are OK while an ATM joke on females is not? (Scroll down the being feminist blog to understand the point made here.)
6. I consider the opinions expressed in your blog, expressly quoting reference 1 and 2, as highly defamatory and slanderous. I further consider that the quotation of references 1 and 2, used to highlight 3 as incompetent, irrelevent and imaterial.
7.I do hope that you know defamation of character is also an offence punishable under the IPC Sec. 499, 500 and 501 with imprisonment and a fine.
I hope this puts an end to the whole unsavoury episosde.
- Hari
Saturday, December 30, 2006
In Memorium
SADDAM HUSSEIN
28/04/1937 - 30/12/2006R.I.P
"God is great,
The Nation shall be victorious,
Palestine is Arab."
Saturday, December 16, 2006
Feminism.........Equality or Female Chauvinism
Disclaimer: This is a direct response to articles posted on the blogsite http://beingfeminist.blogspot.com/. And most quotes are taken dierectly from various posts on the site. Further, I DO NOT hate women, neither do I wish to boil, butcher or in any way harm them. I also do not think that such extreme measures do ANYONE any good whatsoever. At the same time, while I believe in women's EQUALITY and am strongly against discrimination of any form (not just sexual), I recognize that there are fundamental differences between men and women that can never be bridged. I further believe that people who do not recognize these differences are delusional, irrational, warped and insane. (Author of above blog for instance)
As a sane but red blooded male I have always thought feminism referred to the struggle for women's RIGHT's or EQUALITY. And as any SANE human being would think, I do not think boiling blood and anger would help at all. My friend Diwakar, who is an ardent feminist pointed out this blog to me and I was shocked to see these extreme views. Equality is the inalienable right of EVERY HUMAN BEING. And equality does not mean boiling men. The author of the blog who thinks that a girl can only be a girlfriend or an enemy is DELUDED. In fact these militant madame's give womankind a bad name. If chauvinism of the male kind is to be abhorred, so is female chauvinism. What has started as a struggle for the right to vote has deteriorated into militant bullshit. The author of the blogsite forgets that without her FATHER'S semen she would not be here to lambast men today.
Unfortunately in struggles for equality, the opressed ften think, that they have the right to play victim and demand "rights" that violate the very spirit of equality. To suggest that 33.33% reservation in parliament for women in parliament would solve all problems is ludicruous and anti-constitutional. Unfortunate most feminists only want such sops to appease their offended feelings. The banner of feminism is being often taken up by women just to cause a furore as they know these female gladiators would be behind them, if only they are able to suggest a sense of wrongdoing. In a book called corporate draupadi, the authoress claims she was sexually harassed by her company (HMT, I think), as she was dismissed unfairly. Of course she forgets the fact that she was dismissed for playing about with the cash. She is also unsurprisingly silent on the sex card when she reveals that she was hired in spite of not having the qualifications for the job!! In another book, women in prisons, the authoress suggests that these bandits who have been punished by the law are heroines. When a man chops up his wife for infedility he should be hung, but when a women kills a drunken lout of her husband, she deserves a presidents meda. The most warped story relates to a girl married to a drunk. She admits that her mother in law is a gem of a lady (A liquor baroness but anyway.........) the hubby assaults the girl's parent's and our pudhumai penn (modern lady), kills her.........get this...........kills her MOTHER IN LAW. WOW!!. Obviously she languishes in jail, while ravaging feminists try to get her out (and wreck havoc with the chopper again, I guess.)
Even worse is the media in promoting the causes of these female saviours. Movies like Sweth (White Rainbow) depicts India in such a way that one would think every widow in India is being tortured, tormented and sexually harassed by the men in the country. Blarney. Such irresponsible depictions only promote these unworthy causes. Yes, widows are being opressed but rather than make such shock-value movies that the psuedo intellectual would weep over, and go home happy that he saw a "meaningful movie", surely a better thing to do would be to silently help such causes wherever they are found. It is disgusting to see such movies depicting scenes like this as if they are reality. And even when real, to depict them as if they are the norm and not the exception.
But back to the topic of female chauvinism, isn't it ridiculous that chauvinism be fought with more intolerance and chauvinism. And it is not as if these females can say they are the voice of womankind. In an orkut community on feminism, when the authoress of the above blog spewed her venom, it was interesting to say that quite a few women felt her ideas were out of line. When one lady went so far as to say she thought her father was a decent man, our fire breathing athoress quickly rebuked her for these "Anti woman sentiments". A number of women do want to simply settle down and marry a man. There is nothing wrong with this. They have the RIGHT to do so. Such perverted feminists have no business coming down on these people, and saying they are traitors. In fact that is a line ecen a chauvinist would not take.
And of course where would an article on feminism be without the sex part? If these gladiators think that every man is lusting behind her, she is sadly mistaken. On the other hand to say that casual flirting is eve teasing and ask that the man be boiled is dumb, and quite frankly nothing to do with feminism (More to do with homosexual tendencies). From time immmemorial, men and women have been mating. Men do try to "make out" with women and vice versa. In fact the pattern of males and females getting together is, I believe, the norm for every species in the world that is not a hermophrodite. For those who think that it is wrong for a man to try to impress a girl or vice versa I strongly suggest a few sessions with a shrink, followed by some serious introspection as to your sexual preferences.
In short, feminism is NOT Female Chauvinism. Equality for one is NOT the supression of rights for another. And boiling the male or female species does no one no good.
Cheers,
- Hari
As a sane but red blooded male I have always thought feminism referred to the struggle for women's RIGHT's or EQUALITY. And as any SANE human being would think, I do not think boiling blood and anger would help at all. My friend Diwakar, who is an ardent feminist pointed out this blog to me and I was shocked to see these extreme views. Equality is the inalienable right of EVERY HUMAN BEING. And equality does not mean boiling men. The author of the blog who thinks that a girl can only be a girlfriend or an enemy is DELUDED. In fact these militant madame's give womankind a bad name. If chauvinism of the male kind is to be abhorred, so is female chauvinism. What has started as a struggle for the right to vote has deteriorated into militant bullshit. The author of the blogsite forgets that without her FATHER'S semen she would not be here to lambast men today.
Unfortunately in struggles for equality, the opressed ften think, that they have the right to play victim and demand "rights" that violate the very spirit of equality. To suggest that 33.33% reservation in parliament for women in parliament would solve all problems is ludicruous and anti-constitutional. Unfortunate most feminists only want such sops to appease their offended feelings. The banner of feminism is being often taken up by women just to cause a furore as they know these female gladiators would be behind them, if only they are able to suggest a sense of wrongdoing. In a book called corporate draupadi, the authoress claims she was sexually harassed by her company (HMT, I think), as she was dismissed unfairly. Of course she forgets the fact that she was dismissed for playing about with the cash. She is also unsurprisingly silent on the sex card when she reveals that she was hired in spite of not having the qualifications for the job!! In another book, women in prisons, the authoress suggests that these bandits who have been punished by the law are heroines. When a man chops up his wife for infedility he should be hung, but when a women kills a drunken lout of her husband, she deserves a presidents meda. The most warped story relates to a girl married to a drunk. She admits that her mother in law is a gem of a lady (A liquor baroness but anyway.........) the hubby assaults the girl's parent's and our pudhumai penn (modern lady), kills her.........get this...........kills her MOTHER IN LAW. WOW!!. Obviously she languishes in jail, while ravaging feminists try to get her out (and wreck havoc with the chopper again, I guess.)
Even worse is the media in promoting the causes of these female saviours. Movies like Sweth (White Rainbow) depicts India in such a way that one would think every widow in India is being tortured, tormented and sexually harassed by the men in the country. Blarney. Such irresponsible depictions only promote these unworthy causes. Yes, widows are being opressed but rather than make such shock-value movies that the psuedo intellectual would weep over, and go home happy that he saw a "meaningful movie", surely a better thing to do would be to silently help such causes wherever they are found. It is disgusting to see such movies depicting scenes like this as if they are reality. And even when real, to depict them as if they are the norm and not the exception.
But back to the topic of female chauvinism, isn't it ridiculous that chauvinism be fought with more intolerance and chauvinism. And it is not as if these females can say they are the voice of womankind. In an orkut community on feminism, when the authoress of the above blog spewed her venom, it was interesting to say that quite a few women felt her ideas were out of line. When one lady went so far as to say she thought her father was a decent man, our fire breathing athoress quickly rebuked her for these "Anti woman sentiments". A number of women do want to simply settle down and marry a man. There is nothing wrong with this. They have the RIGHT to do so. Such perverted feminists have no business coming down on these people, and saying they are traitors. In fact that is a line ecen a chauvinist would not take.
And of course where would an article on feminism be without the sex part? If these gladiators think that every man is lusting behind her, she is sadly mistaken. On the other hand to say that casual flirting is eve teasing and ask that the man be boiled is dumb, and quite frankly nothing to do with feminism (More to do with homosexual tendencies). From time immmemorial, men and women have been mating. Men do try to "make out" with women and vice versa. In fact the pattern of males and females getting together is, I believe, the norm for every species in the world that is not a hermophrodite. For those who think that it is wrong for a man to try to impress a girl or vice versa I strongly suggest a few sessions with a shrink, followed by some serious introspection as to your sexual preferences.
In short, feminism is NOT Female Chauvinism. Equality for one is NOT the supression of rights for another. And boiling the male or female species does no one no good.
Cheers,
- Hari
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Water – a disturbing stuff
I recently read this book “Water” by Bapsi sidhwa (a gift to me from my friend), a novel based on the movie script of the veteran director Deepa Mehta.
Set in 1938, the story follows the life of an eight year old widow Chuyia who was abandoned and discarded to the widows’ ashram after the death of her senile husband. In the ashram, Chuyia gets acquainted with many widows. The author creates pasts for all her widows and tries to project the way they were treated in that period through the eyes of this young girl.
Apart from the focus on the life of widows, the author also talks about various forbidden affairs, eunuchs, untouchables, Gandhian principles etc. Besides being a gripping story, the plot deals with a subject that of the oppressive hold tradition has on women, in this case, religious tradition. It tells of oppression and the constraints that govern even a girl-child’s life in a patriarchal society.
Water concludes with the flicker of hope. As Gandhi's train passes through the village, the prospect of rescue from punishing Hindu traditions seems conceivable. Modern India has journeyed far since 1938. In Water, the author honors the awful fate of those once left behind.
I really wonder why the hell was the shooting of this film on location in Varanasi was stopped. Just because violence broke out, including an attempted suicide by a Shiv Sena activist, the government issued an order to stop the movie. Does projecting the life of widows, who are ill-treated by the society is condemnable? Why is that when Deepa Mehta attempts to portray something about women, it is apposed? When the Government of India allows all the cheap movies why is it a controversy when it comes to “Fire” or “Water”? Why is it that these kind of movies been used as a prop to galvanize anti-muslim and anti-christian religious fervor?
Though I couldn’t watch the movie, I am bit satisfied that I could read this book at least. I am also hunting for the book “Cracking India” by Bapsi Sidhwa, the book based on which the movie “Earth” was taken.
- Diwakar
- Diwakar
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Cherishable Waynad
Life is pretty different when one steps into the working environment after a carefree college life. How enjoyable will it be when few college friends rejoin for a trip to an immaculate location? Thanks to Waynad - the place which brought back the enthusiasm and the bliss of my college days.
It was not easy to unite people for a fun trip. Right from wheedling to chiding, what not in the process? Excuses, excuses and excuses. Excuses in the name of work, in the name of training, in the name of money, in the name of family and in the name of CAT. From eight the number came down to five and the fine day of departure was on Thursday (my last working day).
The train was scheduled to reach Calicut at daybreak on Friday. But will it happen with our Indian railways? Never. So the train was late as usual. The moment we stepped into Calicut, the bells started ringing in our stomach. So after our brunch in a small hotel, we were heading towards Waynad. As such we were jabbering and giggling during our drive, which was doubled when we saw the way our driver accosted to enquire about the route. “chuk-chuk” is his famous phrase I think.
Wynberg resort is the secluded location that we chose to stay for the next three days. Who will have a reluctance to stay in a tree house? Our tiredness and leg pain after sitting in a cramped position in the cab went unnoticed the moment we saw the resort. To describe the resort in few words - Green ambient, few rooms amidst the bushes, small pathway leading to each house, silent environment. Wow, an awesome place. Two houses were allotted to us - a tree house and an igloo.
Tree house in which we stayed:
What more do one want rather than a good homemade food, pleasant ambient and friends around? But we decided to go for an outing on all three days and to enjoy our nights in the resort. So we visited few tourist spots like a temple, a cave, a dam, boating and an adventurous jungle safari. Thinking that he is a professional photographer, one of my friend took over the job and one more with a head strong notion that he is an ad-model, started posing for all the photographs all through the outings. But it was fun always.
Amidst the pestering of one of my friend to get back to Chennai in the mid, one lousy meal outside a temple, prolonging tiresome car drive, we enjoyed. Enjoyed as if there is no tomorrow.
This is the gang that went to Waynad :) From L to R - Vivek, Ananth, Myself, Vijayagopan and Shankar
Though we had a great time all through the trip, a small voice was keep on saying that, this will be a last trip together for all of us. In the name of marriages, higher studies etc twists and turns do happen in each and everyone’s life. But will it stop us from going for a trip like this again? Hope for the best. Willfully leaving the adage incomplete.
- Diwakar
Friday, September 01, 2006
What is evil?
Disclaimer : The ideas and views expressed in the following blog are the author's alone and not of all members of the blog. Further opinions expressed on people / conclusions drawn are based on the author's conclusion from analysing various sources.
I have been getting quite a bit of feedback since I posted the the Blog on the Nuremberg Trials. This brings me to a conversation I had with my aunt today where I said Hitler and Gandhi were both alike - Both had a huge ego (stopping short of using the word megalomaniac), both were mass leaders, dictators, intolerant of others ideas, mass murderers (YES, MOHANDAS TOO), eccentric etc. But the biggest similarity in my opinion is that they never stopped thinking they were right. My aunt begged to differ suggesting that Hitler was evil unlike Gandhi, which brings me to the crux of this issue - what is Evil?
Now, most of us do have a value system and when some act shocks us to the core - rape, child murder, cold blooded mureder - for eg. when a person is hacked to death, vampirism (Idi Amin), Genocide etc. we usually agree that the act is evil. Therefore evil is a function of a value system and generally accepted social norms. For eg., in a society if female infanticide was accepted (as is in some villages), in that social setup, it would not be evil. But again, we are dealing on society level here.
Moving to induviduals, now, for me if a child was hacked to death, I would call the murderer evil, and say he ought to be condemned to death. But let us shift sides for a moment. From the murderers point of view, let us say, he ACTUALLY heard the voice of God asking him to exterminate the child (reasons unknown. Note that most people (I refuse to use the word psychopath) who hear God / Unknown voices asking them to exterminate a person is because the voices say that person is evil. A no. of prostitutes have been murdered over the years by zealots for this purpose.), then WE would brand him a psychopath and order him to be committed. But from his point of view is he wrong or evil? HELL NO. He is merely following instructions from God. If he is executed - well it is because WE are evil that he would need to be martyred. How can we even justify the word evil, when we are operating on two different planes? How can we call him a psychopath when for all you know, according to him, we are mad. (Who knows!!)
Therefore, coming to Hitler and Gandhi - I do believe that both were absolutely passionate about their cause. Hitler saw himself as the messiah for Germany, who was merely eradicating pests, the way we might kill some wasps. Can we judge him using our rationale? In my opinion neither are evil, as both sincerely believed in the cause. On the other hand, Himmler, Goering, Goebbels etc. were cold blooded and evil murderers who had no belief in their cause but saw it as a way to gain riches / power / both. These men were evil. Going by the same logic, was Godse evil - No.
Generalising, No man who acts according to his conscience is evil, NO MATTER WHAT HIS CONSCIENCE says. Period.
- Hari
I have been getting quite a bit of feedback since I posted the the Blog on the Nuremberg Trials. This brings me to a conversation I had with my aunt today where I said Hitler and Gandhi were both alike - Both had a huge ego (stopping short of using the word megalomaniac), both were mass leaders, dictators, intolerant of others ideas, mass murderers (YES, MOHANDAS TOO), eccentric etc. But the biggest similarity in my opinion is that they never stopped thinking they were right. My aunt begged to differ suggesting that Hitler was evil unlike Gandhi, which brings me to the crux of this issue - what is Evil?
Now, most of us do have a value system and when some act shocks us to the core - rape, child murder, cold blooded mureder - for eg. when a person is hacked to death, vampirism (Idi Amin), Genocide etc. we usually agree that the act is evil. Therefore evil is a function of a value system and generally accepted social norms. For eg., in a society if female infanticide was accepted (as is in some villages), in that social setup, it would not be evil. But again, we are dealing on society level here.
Moving to induviduals, now, for me if a child was hacked to death, I would call the murderer evil, and say he ought to be condemned to death. But let us shift sides for a moment. From the murderers point of view, let us say, he ACTUALLY heard the voice of God asking him to exterminate the child (reasons unknown. Note that most people (I refuse to use the word psychopath) who hear God / Unknown voices asking them to exterminate a person is because the voices say that person is evil. A no. of prostitutes have been murdered over the years by zealots for this purpose.), then WE would brand him a psychopath and order him to be committed. But from his point of view is he wrong or evil? HELL NO. He is merely following instructions from God. If he is executed - well it is because WE are evil that he would need to be martyred. How can we even justify the word evil, when we are operating on two different planes? How can we call him a psychopath when for all you know, according to him, we are mad. (Who knows!!)
Therefore, coming to Hitler and Gandhi - I do believe that both were absolutely passionate about their cause. Hitler saw himself as the messiah for Germany, who was merely eradicating pests, the way we might kill some wasps. Can we judge him using our rationale? In my opinion neither are evil, as both sincerely believed in the cause. On the other hand, Himmler, Goering, Goebbels etc. were cold blooded and evil murderers who had no belief in their cause but saw it as a way to gain riches / power / both. These men were evil. Going by the same logic, was Godse evil - No.
Generalising, No man who acts according to his conscience is evil, NO MATTER WHAT HIS CONSCIENCE says. Period.
- Hari
Jingoism
It all started when I got a message from my friend, asking me to report a community on orkut called " We Hate India " bogus. I did what anyone else would - went to the community page with every intention of doing as he said, when I noticed something pretty interesting on the discussion forum - two threads saying members were unjoining. On getting into it, 3 pakistanis struck me - one for his totally rational attitude, and the other two previously rabid India haters who were now convinced that their attitude was not correct. I had since started scrapping these guys and had them on my friend list. Since then, I have been lambasted by "patriots", and one of these guys was insulted by rabid fanatics in atrocious terms - It is disgusting to find sane men talking of a persons mother and sister on a public forum and these guys, in my opinion deserve to face criminal charges. My friend reacted by putting up a picture of an Indian flag burning and rejoined that community. To his credit, he has not retaliated to a single Indian scrap. If we educated people behave in this barbaric fashion, what is the hope for the future? Is this kind of ridiculous jingoism the solutions? Are these the "real" Indians? In a rapidly shrinking world how can two countries be propelled by such hatred?
- Hari
- Hari
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Vettaiyadu Velaiyadu - A Fan's Review
It has been a long wait for Vettaiyadu to be released and the wait was worth every damn minute as Kamal Hassan shows us all, yet again, why he is India's finest actor. Directed by Gautam, the movie is the second in what is to be a trilogy of cop movies. The movie starts with a disappointing fight sequence - but all is forgiven as we soon realise that the sequence was just set up for the FANTASTIC opening number karka Karka. The start of the movie shows a DCP's daughter going missing and Kamal (Raghavan) being called in. After some fine detective work (I cannot believe I am finally using these words in a Tamil Movie), the butchered body is dug up. The DCP and his wife leave to NY where they are executed. Here starts the hunt. The first half is set in New York with Raghavan collaborating with the NYPD and FBI to try find the killers. The detective work and forensics shown are fantastic and are a welcome change from the usual gang killings shown. The identity of the killers is revealed towards the interval and only a stray sentance suggests that we are dealing with a psychopathic duo. The second half is set in India with an edge of the seat manhunt that culminates with the elimination of the killers. It is refreshing that both the policeman and the killers are actually credited with brains as well. The kind of traps set for the killers is a treat for those even remotely acquainted with criminology. While I have absolutely no need whatsoever to talk of Kamal's histrionic ability, Daniel Balaji as the psychopathic doctor is the surprise package. Fantastic performance. Jyothika impresses with her dignified portrayal as Aradhana. The romance is well handled as is in a Kamal movie. Gautam's touch is evident, and if the movie is a tad remniscent of Kaakha Kaakha, well, it is an open secret that Raghavan is just a more mature and older version of Anbuselvan. The psychology is rivetting and the manhunt has you rivetted to your seats till the last minute. Scenes such as when kamal tells Jo to cancel the tickets, when he calls the killers homosexuals, and when he calmly breaks Ila's neck and simply throws out is arms will stay in one's mind for a long time. Some of the explicit scenes such as the naked body are quite disturbing, though censored partially. The Paartha Mudhal song is absolutely wonderful and is a visual treat. Ravivarman's camera work is AMAZING. Background music by Harris Jeyaraj impeccable as usual. It is only unfortunate that they could not have got into the minds of the killers a bit more deeply and that the homosexual card was not played up to full effect. The final verdict - while this is not an Anbe Sivam or a Hey Ram, the movie is most certainly a fantastic commercial flick. For those people who keep bemoaning the state of the Tamil Film Industry - GO SEE THIS MOVIE. It is the responsible filmgoer's DUTY to ensure these kinds of movies are hits. What happpens otherwise? Nothing much. Just the usual plethora of Thambi's and Gilli's. On a personal note am extremely happy that my last Kamal movie I would be seeing in India is of the calibre of Vettaiyadu.
- Hari
- Hari
Sunday, August 20, 2006
The Nuremberg Trials
Coming after seeing Downfall, couldn't help but think of the Nuremberg Trials of 1945. It has always disturbed me that the Allies chose to try the various Nazi leaders for " war crimes ". Even more disturbing was Churchil's frank statement to war reporter Q Reynolds that if he won the war, Hitler would be tried and put to death. Now with the judgement already passed, where is the question of a trial? I do not mind the allies declaring that as the victors, they had every right to kill the Nazis. After all, to the victors belong the spoils. But to do so under the garb of morality brings the bile up to my throat. Let us take a look at the track record of the allied powers before and after the great war.
Britain - Colonization of India, USA, South Africa. Racist aparthied policy in SA. Jallianwallah Bagh - India, and the subsequent pensioning off of Dyer. Their policies in India that would have violated any human right's charter. (Just to name a few.)
USA - The segregation policy. KKK - aided and abetted by southern states. Korea. Vietnam.Bay of pigs. Iraq.
Israel (HAVE to include this to show the forked tongue of the jews.) - Terrorism in Palestine.
USSR - 20 millian russians and jews exterminated by Stalin. Polish annexation.
Now, which of these countries had the right to take the moral high?
- Hari
Britain - Colonization of India, USA, South Africa. Racist aparthied policy in SA. Jallianwallah Bagh - India, and the subsequent pensioning off of Dyer. Their policies in India that would have violated any human right's charter. (Just to name a few.)
USA - The segregation policy. KKK - aided and abetted by southern states. Korea. Vietnam.Bay of pigs. Iraq.
Israel (HAVE to include this to show the forked tongue of the jews.) - Terrorism in Palestine.
USSR - 20 millian russians and jews exterminated by Stalin. Polish annexation.
Now, which of these countries had the right to take the moral high?
- Hari
Downfall
After being hyped by Sathyam Cinema for the last two weeks, their latest pure cinema offering Downfall, is nothing but a waste of money to a serious filmgoer / person with a keen interest in history. The film chronicles the 18 days between Hitler's last birthday on April 20 1945 to V E Day on May 8. The primary emphasis is on the 10 days till Hitler commits suicide. Based on the book Downfall : Inside Hitler's bunker, by Fest, the movie depicts a shallow one dimensional picture of Hitler as an absolute megalomaniac who has lost touch with reality. Nazi generals are portrayed as corrupt and self serving fools, and the end with the glorification of a scey. who suddenly realises her mistakes almost made me retch. In spite of the directors biased and unfair portrayal, there are a few poigant scenes as when the SS Leader tells the doc that they have to carry on the fuhrer's mission. When the doc asks for a show of hands evey single officer raises his hand. Though the director tries to portray these men as brainwashed fools, their patriotism has to be noted. All in all, for all those who would love to hate the Nazi's, you can watch this movie and come away with a smug satisfaction that you were right about those "barbarians." For people who are as yet not brainwashed by jewish propaganda / are actually interested in the truth - stay away.
- Hari
- Hari
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Quit India
I know this sounds strange after 59 years of independence, but then equally strange was the government decision yesterday to search and frisk students at public spots such as the beach, in response to a threat by the Islamic Students Union. If the government cannot even control these half baked extremists, how the hell do they plan to supress the jehadi militants and professional terrorists like Let?? This kind of fascist opression is way out of line and it is high time the eyeties went back home. It is disgraceful to see the kind of paranoid reaction, reminiscent of mad Texans. If the central and state government need to stop every student and rip out their bikes as a reaction to this "threat", it is high time both the DMK government at the state and UPA government at the center resign and go home. If you cannot control a state, you have no business being in power.
From Simon to Sonia we have two words for you -GO HOME.
- Hari
From Simon to Sonia we have two words for you -GO HOME.
- Hari
Monday, August 14, 2006
Re: God is real...unless declared int
Before starting I owe an apology to Sandy for 'lifting' the title from his blog....http://rock-shasa.blogspot.com
But, the blog is totally a response to his!! (so I guess this is justified)
What/who is God? Is it a He/She? Does He/She have a form? Does He/ She belong to a religion?... And many more such unanswered questions!
Accepted, we are the children of a scientific upbringing - we are taught to question everything - never to accept anything at its face value. And I must say, for the lack of ability to ask pertinent questions in other abstruse areas, we keep jumping back to the one area where everything is foggy - even to the greatest of the greatest minds!
To me, God signifies Hope and nothing else. Just think, how many times have we faced situations where we've felt the greatest urge to be reassured - let me describe typical scenarios:
* Your semester results are out and you are glued to your screen, the page is downloading - tell me if you call out to some force then?
* If the above doesnt appeal much to you - imagine the case of a loved one being missing for quite some time - your parents have gone out shopping; they said they'll be back in an hour and its already three hours and no sign of them - do you wish for something then? - dont you say 'let them be back asap and I'll give them a major dressing down'
The hope that you nurture is God. The shoulder to cry on, the solace that you are provided with in times of need is God. The reassurance that you are seeking is God. You might argue that a friend could provide you with all of these and more. But, when you are really down and your friend is trying to cheer you up, dont you feel 'What can he/she do except say all these soothing words? If only it had happened this way' or 'I'd give anything to make this happen'?...If you do, this lamentation of yours is addressed to God.
It is just that often we feel more at ease when we think that 'things cannot be this bad; there will be better times ahead because there is a supernatural force watching over me' and we name this 'guiding/protecting' force 'GOD'.
Is there any religion associated with God? I dont think there is. It is a make-believe world that we create, in order to give our aspirations more credibility. How is it that when JRR Tolkein builds a whole plot as intricate as The Lord of The Rings, with so many fictitious characters, we are ready to buy it, but when the same kind of stories are spun around 'Balakrishna, Kamsa, Rama, Jesus' we question their veracity? Neither is true. The only difference between the two is that the first one is proclaimed to be fictitious while the second one is not - Why? Cos people need to feel secure - It is the inherent need for comfort that makes us cling to our Father - God.
Now, dont say that I am an atheist - I am NOT. I understand that I derive my comforts from the existence of this omnipresent force - I WANT to believe that such a protective armour exists around all of us - I do PRAY every morning and I DO thank Him everyday. I thank the force for not making me one of the many who dont have loving parents and friends, for not making me one of the many who dont get a full square meal everyday, for not making me one of the many who are deprived of education and most of all for loading me with sooooo many good wishes and keeping me safe, secure and comforted. Infact, many of us do this - Does this mean we fear God?
Is there any need to fear God? Is it bad if you are NOT God-fearing?
Lets just take a look at when we DO fear Him - Most of the times it happens when we do things that go against our value system. Have you ever thought how it is that a thing that appears so wrong to you (and merits punishment) is being done with such a free conscience by someone else? It is because the other person has a different set of values. And every time you go against your values you fear that you might be penalised for this - how exactly you do not know - but think again, the fear that you have is NOT that you will be meted out some corporal punishment, your fear is that the next Hope that you have will be crushed. Both are your own creation - the Value System and the Hope! (Is it a math relationship of positive and negative cancelling to give zero? Could be!)
Coming back to Sandy's qn - 'If there is God, why is He letting all these horrible things happen to everyone?' - God CANNOT stop all these calamities, He can only provide you with the Hope that you will escape unscathed.God is a positive ray of hope and nothing more than a force we wish to believe in - Often we need to rest our worries on something more stoic than your friend/parents' shoulder.
Another qn: Does God have a religion? Given my opinion, you shouldn't have a doubt about my answer to this question. The fight over religion is as absurd as a fight over the superiority of Hermoine vs. Harry!
I have a question - Why is there ANY NEED to prove that God exists? If you feel that none of my arguments make any sense, I just ask one question in return - Why do you want to quantify God? Is it necessary that he should be described by an equation ? Is everything scientific out here? Doesn't science itself use the concept of uncertainty - The 'probability' that you will be able to read this blog is 0.7 (just being +ve, lol!) Who is responsible for the remaining 0.3????
- Chandri
But, the blog is totally a response to his!! (so I guess this is justified)
What/who is God? Is it a He/She? Does He/She have a form? Does He/ She belong to a religion?... And many more such unanswered questions!
Accepted, we are the children of a scientific upbringing - we are taught to question everything - never to accept anything at its face value. And I must say, for the lack of ability to ask pertinent questions in other abstruse areas, we keep jumping back to the one area where everything is foggy - even to the greatest of the greatest minds!
To me, God signifies Hope and nothing else. Just think, how many times have we faced situations where we've felt the greatest urge to be reassured - let me describe typical scenarios:
* Your semester results are out and you are glued to your screen, the page is downloading - tell me if you call out to some force then?
* If the above doesnt appeal much to you - imagine the case of a loved one being missing for quite some time - your parents have gone out shopping; they said they'll be back in an hour and its already three hours and no sign of them - do you wish for something then? - dont you say 'let them be back asap and I'll give them a major dressing down'
The hope that you nurture is God. The shoulder to cry on, the solace that you are provided with in times of need is God. The reassurance that you are seeking is God. You might argue that a friend could provide you with all of these and more. But, when you are really down and your friend is trying to cheer you up, dont you feel 'What can he/she do except say all these soothing words? If only it had happened this way' or 'I'd give anything to make this happen'?...If you do, this lamentation of yours is addressed to God.
It is just that often we feel more at ease when we think that 'things cannot be this bad; there will be better times ahead because there is a supernatural force watching over me' and we name this 'guiding/protecting' force 'GOD'.
Is there any religion associated with God? I dont think there is. It is a make-believe world that we create, in order to give our aspirations more credibility. How is it that when JRR Tolkein builds a whole plot as intricate as The Lord of The Rings, with so many fictitious characters, we are ready to buy it, but when the same kind of stories are spun around 'Balakrishna, Kamsa, Rama, Jesus' we question their veracity? Neither is true. The only difference between the two is that the first one is proclaimed to be fictitious while the second one is not - Why? Cos people need to feel secure - It is the inherent need for comfort that makes us cling to our Father - God.
Now, dont say that I am an atheist - I am NOT. I understand that I derive my comforts from the existence of this omnipresent force - I WANT to believe that such a protective armour exists around all of us - I do PRAY every morning and I DO thank Him everyday. I thank the force for not making me one of the many who dont have loving parents and friends, for not making me one of the many who dont get a full square meal everyday, for not making me one of the many who are deprived of education and most of all for loading me with sooooo many good wishes and keeping me safe, secure and comforted. Infact, many of us do this - Does this mean we fear God?
Is there any need to fear God? Is it bad if you are NOT God-fearing?
Lets just take a look at when we DO fear Him - Most of the times it happens when we do things that go against our value system. Have you ever thought how it is that a thing that appears so wrong to you (and merits punishment) is being done with such a free conscience by someone else? It is because the other person has a different set of values. And every time you go against your values you fear that you might be penalised for this - how exactly you do not know - but think again, the fear that you have is NOT that you will be meted out some corporal punishment, your fear is that the next Hope that you have will be crushed. Both are your own creation - the Value System and the Hope! (Is it a math relationship of positive and negative cancelling to give zero? Could be!)
Coming back to Sandy's qn - 'If there is God, why is He letting all these horrible things happen to everyone?' - God CANNOT stop all these calamities, He can only provide you with the Hope that you will escape unscathed.God is a positive ray of hope and nothing more than a force we wish to believe in - Often we need to rest our worries on something more stoic than your friend/parents' shoulder.
Another qn: Does God have a religion? Given my opinion, you shouldn't have a doubt about my answer to this question. The fight over religion is as absurd as a fight over the superiority of Hermoine vs. Harry!
I have a question - Why is there ANY NEED to prove that God exists? If you feel that none of my arguments make any sense, I just ask one question in return - Why do you want to quantify God? Is it necessary that he should be described by an equation ? Is everything scientific out here? Doesn't science itself use the concept of uncertainty - The 'probability' that you will be able to read this blog is 0.7 (just being +ve, lol!) Who is responsible for the remaining 0.3????
- Chandri
Saturday, August 05, 2006
The best first of them all.
People talk of so many first's with delight - The first word, first day of school, first time you are sent out of class, the first date, the first fag, the first drink, first hangover, first night, first job, first salary.............the list is endless.
However there is one first which people do not normally think of, and which in my humble opinion gives you as much a kick if not much more than the rest - your first resignation. It is a wonderful feeling to actually hand in ones papers - a sense of euphoria hits you as you realise you can actually do what you want till your last day - after all, what the hell - they cant fire you, right? And the sense of freedom is heightened by the looks of envy on the suckers....er....colleagues faces.
Anyway to quit beating around the bush, on 14th August 2006, I shall proudly and officially join India's millions of unemployed , at least for 45 days, after which I shall unabashedly call myself a student. Ashok Leyland's gain shall be Lancaster's loss.
At the risk of sounding absolutely soppy, I would like to single out a few people I really need to mention.
My mentor Mr P C Balan without whose well timed kicks in the pants it would have been impossible to even think of a future in finance
The director of the MDC Brig. Bhoon - Looking at him, I was absolutely horrified to think that I could end up like him - this only cemented in my mind the need to do my masters.
My first boss Mr T V Seshan - Everytime I would get in a comfort zone and stop thinking of my future, I would be reminded of what a d*ck this guy is and how I really really needed to get the f out.
The service department - The department with the highest employee turnover rate, and we all know why.
My boss Mr M Balasubramanian - It is really tough to imagine a boss who lets you have as much control of your work as this guy. To working at home to extremely flexible hours, it was this man who helped streamline my visa process and it was great working with him since last sep.
Mrs B Radha, Mr Viswanathan and Mr Balaji - Three absolutely great secy's who go out of the way to help you settle in.
Mr SNR - A genuine person who would always be on call to help you in any matter personal or professional.
Mr Srikant Srinivasan - For giving such leeway to a newcomer.
The batch C guys - The best damn batch there ever could be
My friends and colleagues Diwakar, Anandh, Bile, Lindon, Sapta, Koushik, Mushir, Gopi and Neelesh - Guy's who would make the workplace much more interesting than it actually was.
- Hari
However there is one first which people do not normally think of, and which in my humble opinion gives you as much a kick if not much more than the rest - your first resignation. It is a wonderful feeling to actually hand in ones papers - a sense of euphoria hits you as you realise you can actually do what you want till your last day - after all, what the hell - they cant fire you, right? And the sense of freedom is heightened by the looks of envy on the suckers....er....colleagues faces.
Anyway to quit beating around the bush, on 14th August 2006, I shall proudly and officially join India's millions of unemployed , at least for 45 days, after which I shall unabashedly call myself a student. Ashok Leyland's gain shall be Lancaster's loss.
At the risk of sounding absolutely soppy, I would like to single out a few people I really need to mention.
My mentor Mr P C Balan without whose well timed kicks in the pants it would have been impossible to even think of a future in finance
The director of the MDC Brig. Bhoon - Looking at him, I was absolutely horrified to think that I could end up like him - this only cemented in my mind the need to do my masters.
My first boss Mr T V Seshan - Everytime I would get in a comfort zone and stop thinking of my future, I would be reminded of what a d*ck this guy is and how I really really needed to get the f out.
The service department - The department with the highest employee turnover rate, and we all know why.
My boss Mr M Balasubramanian - It is really tough to imagine a boss who lets you have as much control of your work as this guy. To working at home to extremely flexible hours, it was this man who helped streamline my visa process and it was great working with him since last sep.
Mrs B Radha, Mr Viswanathan and Mr Balaji - Three absolutely great secy's who go out of the way to help you settle in.
Mr SNR - A genuine person who would always be on call to help you in any matter personal or professional.
Mr Srikant Srinivasan - For giving such leeway to a newcomer.
The batch C guys - The best damn batch there ever could be
My friends and colleagues Diwakar, Anandh, Bile, Lindon, Sapta, Koushik, Mushir, Gopi and Neelesh - Guy's who would make the workplace much more interesting than it actually was.
- Hari
The tenets of eccentricity
Man is an eccentric animal. Period. Rational, Social, Political etc. - Maybe. Eccentric - Most definitely. So that is one myth debunked there - no one needs to pretend to be eccentric - as all men are born eccentric.
So, having said that let us lay the basic tenets of eccentricity.
1. There is no connection between the XQ (Eccentricity quotient) and the IQ of a human being. (Just look at our Lok Sabha if you want to prove it - 545 men with the IQ of a tree stump and as eccentric as eccentric could be.)
2. Eccentricity does not recognize political / territorial barriers - Fidel castro, G Bush, Modi - all eccentric in their own way.
3. Inventors, Scientists, Authors, Poets, Artists etc. etc do not have an edge over others in eccentricity. All men are born equally eccentric. They only develop to varying degrees. In the case of the above professions a high XQ is a job requirement and only highly developed professionals can succeed.
4. Sex does not determine the level of eccentricity. (Guys, if you doubt me just look at your girl friend / wife / mom or whatever. Gals, you just look at your bf / hubby / dad etc.)
5. Fame merely produces an oppurtunity to display eccentricity and to finetune it. The people around you might be as nutty as a celeb, they just dont get the oppurtunity to shine.
Finally the person who wrote the piece " How eccentric are eccentrics " must be absolutely bonkers for even thinking about such a piece and yours truly even more so for replying to it.
- Hari
Note : With all POSSIBLE respect to certain carping feminists in the blogosphere - Pl note that the word MEN here should be read as MEN AND WOMEN by YOU wherever necessary. The rest of us normal eccentrics - kindly ignore. This is not meant to be inflamatory / chauvinist / sexist.
So, having said that let us lay the basic tenets of eccentricity.
1. There is no connection between the XQ (Eccentricity quotient) and the IQ of a human being. (Just look at our Lok Sabha if you want to prove it - 545 men with the IQ of a tree stump and as eccentric as eccentric could be.)
2. Eccentricity does not recognize political / territorial barriers - Fidel castro, G Bush, Modi - all eccentric in their own way.
3. Inventors, Scientists, Authors, Poets, Artists etc. etc do not have an edge over others in eccentricity. All men are born equally eccentric. They only develop to varying degrees. In the case of the above professions a high XQ is a job requirement and only highly developed professionals can succeed.
4. Sex does not determine the level of eccentricity. (Guys, if you doubt me just look at your girl friend / wife / mom or whatever. Gals, you just look at your bf / hubby / dad etc.)
5. Fame merely produces an oppurtunity to display eccentricity and to finetune it. The people around you might be as nutty as a celeb, they just dont get the oppurtunity to shine.
Finally the person who wrote the piece " How eccentric are eccentrics " must be absolutely bonkers for even thinking about such a piece and yours truly even more so for replying to it.
- Hari
Note : With all POSSIBLE respect to certain carping feminists in the blogosphere - Pl note that the word MEN here should be read as MEN AND WOMEN by YOU wherever necessary. The rest of us normal eccentrics - kindly ignore. This is not meant to be inflamatory / chauvinist / sexist.
Friday, August 04, 2006
How Eccentric Is an Eccentric?
Wats this thing abt ppl dying to be termed 'eccentric'? (ya, Hari is at the corner of my mind as I write this)
It has been my recent fortune to meet one more truly eccentric person. Am not going in to more details about him/her. Suffice to say that the person is AMAZINGLY brilliant and never have I been more impressed by anyone... But rumours are that the person talks to himself/herself etc etc (weird stories runnin around) but the way he/she behaves it is really hard to picture them being anything BUT logical... (first of all a salute to his/her intellectual prowess)
But coming back to what I was writing about, is it true that geniuses are eccentric? Also, if you are eccentric do you belong to the class of geniuses?? Isnt this second qn. the reason why many ppl 'pretend' to be eccentric...?? Who defines eccentricity? What is it to be eccentric????
Can I first have Hari's comments on this before I complete the article???
It has been my recent fortune to meet one more truly eccentric person. Am not going in to more details about him/her. Suffice to say that the person is AMAZINGLY brilliant and never have I been more impressed by anyone... But rumours are that the person talks to himself/herself etc etc (weird stories runnin around) but the way he/she behaves it is really hard to picture them being anything BUT logical... (first of all a salute to his/her intellectual prowess)
But coming back to what I was writing about, is it true that geniuses are eccentric? Also, if you are eccentric do you belong to the class of geniuses?? Isnt this second qn. the reason why many ppl 'pretend' to be eccentric...?? Who defines eccentricity? What is it to be eccentric????
Can I first have Hari's comments on this before I complete the article???
Friday, July 14, 2006
A white rainbow
Who has the right to strip off the jewelry and forbid the widows, the unfortunate victims of circumstances, from wearing bindi and colored clothes? Is the ancient custom responsible for marking these victims as 'inauspicious' or the blind followers of certain dogmas? Why are these individuals refrained from attending various occasions? Just because a female lost her husband, does that mean that she should keep a full stop to her happiness? The heartbreaking fact is that this scenario prevails even in this century. Is it believable that there exists a place full of ostracized widows? Vrindavan, the land of lord Krishna, is popularly known as the land of widows.
White rainbow, the film by Dharan Mandrayar, handles this social problem in detail. Dharan describes Vrindavan as the place deprived of happiness and colors.
“ Na koi kushi…
Na koi rang…
Sirf safedh our dukh……….”
The movie moves around four widows, the dynamic Priya, the senile Roop, the disfigured Mala and sexually exploited Deepti. Upon learning of her husband’s sudden death, Priya miscarries her baby; her tragedy compels her to move to Vrindavan where she meets Roop, Mala and Deepti. On seeing the way the widows are treated, she attempts to bring in some change in the lives of these socially deprived women. And, in the process, their transformation takes hold.
Having this as the theme, the movie unveils various hardships faced by the widows and the abysmal life they lead. For instance a visual in which an old woman sitting outside the stinking gents’ loo for just pouring water mars our heart saying that this is the reality. Issues like Sexual exploitation, physical brutality, social inauspiciousness etc were also handled appropriately. Finally the movie ends with the belief that the society will accept these women. In a nutshell, this is the movie to instigate some thought about the deprived widows in the minds of the people.
- Diwakar
Facts: (source-Hindustan Times)
- According to the 1991 census there were 33 million widows in India
- In the age group over 60 years, 64% widows have a pension of only Rs 100-500
- There are around 16,000 widows in Vrindavan alone.
White rainbow, the film by Dharan Mandrayar, handles this social problem in detail. Dharan describes Vrindavan as the place deprived of happiness and colors.
“ Na koi kushi…
Na koi rang…
Sirf safedh our dukh……….”
The movie moves around four widows, the dynamic Priya, the senile Roop, the disfigured Mala and sexually exploited Deepti. Upon learning of her husband’s sudden death, Priya miscarries her baby; her tragedy compels her to move to Vrindavan where she meets Roop, Mala and Deepti. On seeing the way the widows are treated, she attempts to bring in some change in the lives of these socially deprived women. And, in the process, their transformation takes hold.
Having this as the theme, the movie unveils various hardships faced by the widows and the abysmal life they lead. For instance a visual in which an old woman sitting outside the stinking gents’ loo for just pouring water mars our heart saying that this is the reality. Issues like Sexual exploitation, physical brutality, social inauspiciousness etc were also handled appropriately. Finally the movie ends with the belief that the society will accept these women. In a nutshell, this is the movie to instigate some thought about the deprived widows in the minds of the people.
- Diwakar
Facts: (source-Hindustan Times)
- According to the 1991 census there were 33 million widows in India
- In the age group over 60 years, 64% widows have a pension of only Rs 100-500
- There are around 16,000 widows in Vrindavan alone.
Friday, July 07, 2006
Orkut-ting..................
Orkut- the recent network service that has almost created a revolution among the youngsters in this internet world. Is Orkut- a boon or a bane? For a person like me, a bench sitter in a mechanical company (though may sound new- but true), its a boon. What can i do other than orkutting?
Wickepedia says that "Orkut" is named after its creator, Google employee, Orkut Büyükkökten. What should i call him? - an altruist, a social worker or might have been a bench sitter himself. Scraps, communities, fans, hot list, crush list...what not?? In short, orkutting has become a part of life..... the next thing to browse after the mailbox.
Furthermore, playing frivolous games like a kid and vaunting by having higher no of friends..wow what can bring in such a pleasure? When my smart friend received 80% sexy rating and the other one with 100% sexy has ragged him to an extent that the former started bribing people with alcoholic drinks for the sake of the rating. Isn't this interesting?
So let us continue orkutting ......................
- Diwakar
Wickepedia says that "Orkut" is named after its creator, Google employee, Orkut Büyükkökten. What should i call him? - an altruist, a social worker or might have been a bench sitter himself. Scraps, communities, fans, hot list, crush list...what not?? In short, orkutting has become a part of life..... the next thing to browse after the mailbox.
Furthermore, playing frivolous games like a kid and vaunting by having higher no of friends..wow what can bring in such a pleasure? When my smart friend received 80% sexy rating and the other one with 100% sexy has ragged him to an extent that the former started bribing people with alcoholic drinks for the sake of the rating. Isn't this interesting?
So let us continue orkutting ......................
- Diwakar
MARIJUANA - 18 GRAMS
First, before I start - SHAME on RVD and Sabu, who were busted in Ohio recently. Troopers who caught the duo, found them in posession of 18 gms Marijuana, 5 Vicodin, 9 painkillers and a pipe used to smoke pot. RVD who was the WWE and ECW champion should have known better. It is DISGUSTING that the champion place the WWE in such an embarrasing situation. RVD has placed the company in a situation where the very future of ECW is in straits. Before I am lambasted from all sides, and am told that RVD and Sabu need such drugs to negate pain, just one question - what would happen to YOUR job, if you were caught in posession of drugs? Shame on the WWE's inconsistent wellness talent program. RVD suspended 1 month and Sabu fined $1000 - RIDICULOUS. And I presume both are going to be pushed hard on their return. PHILLY ROCKS. Way to go dudes.........MARIJUANA 18 GRAMS.........Wow!! Can happen only in E C DUB!!!
Anyway, this begs a much more important question - should Marijuana be banned in the first place? Let us have a look at the effects (immediate and long term, as well as how lethal the drug is)
Source - wikipedia
Cognitive effects
Varying amounts of paranoia and anxiety in some users[16]
Loss of coordination and distorted sense of time [17]
Impairment of short-term memory in some users
Auditory or visual hallucinations at high doses in some users
Induced sense of novelty
Increased awareness of sensation
Increased mental activity
Relaxation or stress reduction
Behavioral effects
Varying degrees of euphoria and feelings of well-being
Initial wakefulness followed by drowsiness and lassitude ("burnt out")
Gain or loss of some inhibitions
Physiological effects
Anti-emetic properties (in moderate doses) [18]
Enhancement of many other drug effects
Lowered intraocular pressure
Increased blood flow and heart rate (tachycardia)
Reddening or drying of eyes
Lower blood pressure while standing. Higher blood pressure while sitting
Increased appetite (often referred to as "the munchies")
Mild, temporary dry mouth
Induces drowsiness
Anyway, this begs a much more important question - should Marijuana be banned in the first place? Let us have a look at the effects (immediate and long term, as well as how lethal the drug is)
Source - wikipedia
Cognitive effects
Varying amounts of paranoia and anxiety in some users[16]
Loss of coordination and distorted sense of time [17]
Impairment of short-term memory in some users
Auditory or visual hallucinations at high doses in some users
Induced sense of novelty
Increased awareness of sensation
Increased mental activity
Relaxation or stress reduction
Behavioral effects
Varying degrees of euphoria and feelings of well-being
Initial wakefulness followed by drowsiness and lassitude ("burnt out")
Gain or loss of some inhibitions
Physiological effects
Anti-emetic properties (in moderate doses) [18]
Enhancement of many other drug effects
Lowered intraocular pressure
Increased blood flow and heart rate (tachycardia)
Reddening or drying of eyes
Lower blood pressure while standing. Higher blood pressure while sitting
Increased appetite (often referred to as "the munchies")
Mild, temporary dry mouth
Induces drowsiness
Lethal Dose :It is generally considered to be impossible to achieve a lethal overdose by smoking cannabis.There has only ever been one recorded verdict (although not ultimately upheld) of fatal overdose due to cannabis. In January 2004, Lee Maisey of Pembrokeshire, Wales was found dead. The coroner's report stated "Death due to probable cannabis toxicity". It had been reported that Maisey smoked about six joints a day.
Long term effects :
There is little conclusive scientific evidence about the long-term effects of human cannabis consumption.[23] The findings of many earlier studies purporting to demonstrate the effects of the drug are unreliable and generally regarded as junk science, as the studies were flawed, with strong bias and poor methodology. The most significant confounding factor is the use of other drugs, including alcohol and tobacco, by test subjects in conjunction with cannabis. When subjects using only cannabis were combined in the same sample with subjects using other drugs as well, researchers could not reach a conclusion as to whether their findings were caused by cannabis, other drugs or the interaction between them. In addition, research using cannabis is heavily restricted in many countries, making it difficult to get new studies funded or approved. Since there are so many different compounds in cannabis, it is difficult to predict or accurately measure its effects.
Some conclusions established with some degree of certainty, however, are that cannabis is less likely to cause emphysema or cancer than tobacco.
With this background, it is ridiculous to enforce a blanket ban on Marijuana. The punishment for posession of less than 100 grams is a mere fine. Surely that tells us how frivolous the punishment.is. With insufficient evidence on the dangers of marijuana and effects that are comparable to alcohol / nicotine, it is hgh time this drug is legalized.
But until then, GO PHILLY!!!!
- Hari
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