I give up, Shekhar Gupta has proven that he is biggest Chamcha of MMS & SG (formerly known as AM)
Proof, Soren exits, Govt moves in to push key coal reforms he kept sitting on .
I am afraid, silver lining doesn't even begin to describe this.
It is as if someone is searching for gold in feces
Walmart has managed to enter Indian retail market in a tie up with Bharati.
I count this as a good news, though I am not sure how successful WalMart will be in India beyond upper middle class market in big cities.
Sabnis makes a relevant point, which is unless Walmart changes its strategy drastically, it will not cause much of a upheaval and the real competition is with emerging Indian retail chains.
As expected there have been criticism by assorted communists and socialists, but to me the interesting (and somewhat amusing) aspect is the anecdotal evidence that quite a few Indians of my generation are also not entirely comfortable with the idea.
The ostensible reasons are various, but I think the problem is that of view point or if you prefer Weltanschauung. Indoctrinated since childhood by socialist mantra, egalitarianism through sorcery of Keynesian kind is, in the subconscious at least, starting point for judgement.
Since sorcery is exactly that, a neat solution is to categorize wealth acquisition and generation as something which is indecent to mention in polite society. That as a culture Indians love to display opulence conflicts with our socialist mores, and therein breeds hypocrisy, which is the real roadblock.
In a post, which can only be described as alarming, Ravikiran prescribes periodic destruction as a remedy for human happiness.
Why is this alarming?
It is a folly to assume that aim of human endeavor is happiness. Yet this elementary mistake is the assumption behind almost all schools of thought.
The truth is humanity is expendable; we have no more importance than a rather complicated machine for survival of genes, evolving over millions and millions year under the slow but inexorable pressure of natural selection.
But even this is moot because even genes are nothing besides being interesting pattern of molecules, with a rather remarkable ability to replicate.
It is clear that then strictly speaking life is a mere matter of accident and logically worthless. The necessary corollary to this is that there is no “aim of humanity”; the very phrase in fact is teleological delusion.
Of course when one realizes this, the only logical course left is nihilism.
However at this point logic is confronted by instinct for survival, which is much more primitive and hence much stronger. Survival wins, but not without conceding the ground to logic, the resolution is achieved by inventing an aim.
The question then arises is, what should be the aim.
But first, happiness as an aim is erroneous, because it is attainable; in general it has less to do with wealth, with cannabis more effective in inducing euphoria than money can ever be. Of course once attained there is same conflict between logic.
Then, there is no single answer for this, but a necessary requirement is that it should be unattainable, beyond reach of human enterprise and ingenuity.
Hence the concept of God in earlier times. Now I admit I have no problem with the concept, I am without hesitation or qualification religious.
Problem is that present education places exaggerated importance on logic. This enforcement makes logic a more potent force, and hence mere religion can not overcome it. It is futile to further the case of religion, because an average human, thoroughly spoiled by modern instruction, confounds logic with purpose, which is self evidently absurd, because logic in itself is worthless like life.
However not all is lost. It turns out that there is one weapon in arsenal of survival instinct. Because while people may have abandoned religion, they are, fortunately I may add, still greedy and jealous of their neighbors.
The aim of a human then should be to outhoard your social peers. This is an escalating pursuit, with no end and hence a perfect aim for humanity.
Another externality is that it also powers technological innovation, and is bedrock of capitalism.
Hence, in conclusion, the proper thing to do is to replace God by gizmo.
Now excuse me while I contemplate the profound implications of this post.
Eyes, like dagger, pierce the soul, witness the terror, cold hands gripping the heart.
Blues, foretelling the menace, seduction by serpent, inappropriate but irresistible.
The mouth thin, the smile cruel, visage of devil. Futile resistance to wrath of avenging Angel.
The body, rugged, strong; mocking humanity, smug in beastly form.
The name is Bond, James Bond.
PS Daniel Craig metrosexual! This guy is heretic I tell you.
I have a question,
When people state with complete self assurance, that individual freedom and liberty is a right which is or should be inviolable, what is the basis for self assurance ?
One, that it is a self evident preposition, in a way social equivalent of law of gravity, a natural law. If that is the case where is the data, where are the field studies to support it.
Two, that it is a moral statement. If that is the case, what is the basis for it.
For me why is the morality of individual freedom any more useful than morality of strength and power.
Supplementary question, What is the basis behind any morality, why have it at all ? Lions don't have one, or for that matter deer. Why is it required for humanity ?
Hint, Do not ask rhetorical questions. For example, "Would you like to be oppressed ?" is rhetoric. The fact that I like my freedom is no more an argument in favour of individual liberty than the fact that I abhor working to earn money an argument in favour of communism.
Praise be upon God, for ensuring a constant supply of idiots. Trust me on this, it is only idiocy of others which provides variety in the daily grind of life.
I was afraid that source of idiocy was drying, after the usual progressive and libertarian morons started being boring and their inanity tedious. But then God reaffirms my faith and delivers a top notch dullard. I kid not, it is after a very very long time that I got to read a post as DOA as this,
The author start originally with "lumpen bourgeoisie", now I do know about Lumpen proletariat, but what is this new phrase and what is the context, I can not fathom, unless this is author's idea of mental flossing.
But the fun has just begun, in middle of incoherent diatribe against police, the author asks "What about Afzal" ?, now if she wants to pimp (yes that is the correct word) for a terrorist I admit this is a rather disingenuous device , otherwise it must be free association, if that be the case I must ask, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth"?.
Wait, the author doesn't stop. Instead she keeps digging assiduously, She is outraged that police asks for verification of servants. Well here is the thing, police asks because too many people, living alone at house , especially old ones and females, are getting robbed, mudered and raped*.
I know this may astonish some idiots people, but many times these are insider jobs, which means with connivance of servants. Further at risk of causing even more astonishment, just because some one is poor doesnt mean he is innocent, in fact if I may be politically incorrect there is a direct correlation between poverty and crime. Now one is free to look for root causes, but if one is outraged at the fact that employers are cautious about the servants, then I must say that one should be in a mental asylum.
Also while there is no doubt that there are incidences of mistreatment of servants, if one draws a picture where middle class Indians are sadistic bastards with no aim in life except to inflict pain on their servants, then one should be in a straight jacket.
But the vitriol doesnt stop here, the author is fuming because of what she perceives humiliation of servants because they are not invited to eat along with the employes at restaurant.
Now taking your servant to a restaurant seems little ridiculous to me, but I fail to understand where is humiliation, the servant is getting paid for what he is doing.
One more nonsense is this breast beating over the conditions of servants. Yes the conditions are pretty wretched, their pay is meagre, it is because they are poor, and in jobs which justifies only that much price in the market. Poverty can be removed by increasing opporunities of employment and not by frothing at employers. But apparently author thinks that the salaries be increased to make the condition more dignified, I must this lunacy almost makes idea of minimum wage almost respectable by comparision.
But there is more, our usual crusader cum idiot savant chips in with bogeyman of racism.
Now I fail to understand how servants and employers are different races
What a way to start weekends.
Dear Indian atheists,
You are free not to believe in God, I really do not care.
But for God's sake (or in your case rational chaos) please do not fawn over Douglas Adam's interview.It is a critique of Judae-Christian perspective.
As born in India, and most probably of a Hindu family,I hope you realize that Hinduism is different from Abrahamic religions.I am sure, there must be other articles which are more comprehensive in their argument against existence of God even from other perspective.
Please link to them, unless you are totally idiot and can not make the above distinction, but whatever be the case, stop linking to the damn interview, I am getting pretty sick of it
