JAAGO RE!!

Amidst the recent terror strikes in Mumbai there has been a lot of hue and cry over inept politicians and rampant corruption. The phrase ‘Enough is Enough ’ aptly represents the mood amongst the electorate . The reverberations of this terror attack are being felt throughout the nation and across the globe. This is an attack on the sovereignty of our country and every Indian mourns the lives of those brave soldiers who have been lost in this heinous crime.

But in a democracy like India with all its variants and diversity in every aspect of social life how do we as individuals contribute to the building up of a safe, secure and prosperous nation. The definition of democracy lies in this line : A government is of the people, by the people and for the people. The part which says ‘by the people ‘ has not been justified because a large segment of us ( Educated youths) do not go out and cast their vote. We think that we are not to blame as we as individuals cannot change the entire system .But this is the exact mentality which has allowed the strikes of terror in Mumbai, Delhi, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Malegaon, Bangalore and right through the heart of India . The mantle to bring a strong government lies upon our shoulders now. Each and every one of us needs to be involved and do the needful i.e. to go out on election day and cast our votes and not be at home sipping coffee our at cinema halls enjoying.


I believe every one of us would have seen the advertisement of Jaago Re ( the campaign to help people vote ) . I went through this site yesterday and found out lots of things about voting . For those of us who like me do not have an election card , I would like to request everyone to go through this site and give in application for the same . It’s simple and just takes 5 minutes to do. So before ignoring this mail do think of the people who have lost their lives in these attacks and realize that it could have been any of us or our near and dear ones.

The site is http://www.jaagore.com/.

Too good...

Really liked this cartoon ... what do u think ??

IPL Mania

Finally the T20 fever has gripped the entire country and how. Not only has it gained the interest of each and every red blooded, cricket loving citizen of India, it has also been successful in gaining the interest of many outside of India as well. India was one of the last countries to adopt this format of the game but has proved its mettle in this fast paced format by winning the inaugural ICC T20 world cup held last year. I think the BCCI was a bit sceptic initially about this whole format and its reliability. But once it has decided to endorse this format, the results have been ripe. The amount of money being spent is almost ridiculous and the world’s richest board could not let go of this opportunity.
Of late there has been a lot of hue and cry over whether this format of the game constitutes a sustainable model of revenue generation over a long period of time. I believe that there should be no problem in this aspect because the short duration of the game (4-5 hrs) makes it easier for audiences to stay and watch the game and not get bored sitting in the stands.
The whole concept of the fast game is conducive to the lifestyle of the modern families and makes for an entertaining affair. Why else would Mr. Mukesh Ambani invest $111.9 million in his team Mumbai Indians (which btw is fairing pathetically in the tournament till date). Doesn’t he have anymore oil fields left to exploit and shouldn’t he be using his money in putting up a petroleum plant somewhere .Or does he just have so much money that he doesn’t care if this meager sum goes to the dogs. Then what about Shahrukh Khan and Priety Zinta who have invested $75.09 million and $76 million respectively in their teams. I seriously don’t think that they have put all this money to waste .They would be expecting to gain loads in the long run and I think they are fully justified in thinking so. From The promise that T20 has shown till date I don’t think there is any stopping this version of the game.T20 my friends is HERE TO STAY!!!!!!!
The IPL also it seems has lived up to all the hoopla that it had generated before its launch and seems to have all the makings of a yearly event in the cricketing calendar. It is also being speculated that from next year onwards the ICC may suspend all international matches during the IPL so that the teams do not face a player crunch. Seems like a very realistic possibility doesn’t it.
Some cricketers do say that this is not the correct format of the game and is only a temporary pleasure which will soon fizz out. I think this is the same thing that was said when ODI’S were launched and only test cricket was prevalent .After taking the world by storm, the ODI’s attracted a larger array of people which was way larger than the viewership of test cricket which included only die hard cricket fans. Of late the tests had become quite a boring encounter with a large number draws ruining all the fun. But recently, the ODI game has influenced test cricket as well with the increase in run rate in tests and thus faster scoring leading to quicker innings and thus providing results. ODI’s have replenished test cricket and given it a new lease of life in this age of T20 mania.
But the question arises now is that will T20 do the same thing to ODI’s. Will it overpower the ODI’s or will it run in parallel with the ODI’s. In my opinion, it is quite a possibility that T20 might just make the ODI’s seem like a boring way to play cricket. When you can have the game finished off in 20 overs per team then why stretch a 4 hrs game to a 10 hr one. T20 might just pull away the crowds from the ODI’s and leave it in a very difficult position. Then it might just happen that T20 will help rejuvenate the ODI’s (spotted a trend ??) . But that’s a thing of the future and of one that’s not so near at all. Let’s just enjoy the latest flavour the wonderful game of cricket has to offer and soak in all its fun. Hurray to IPL and the T20 format!! Three Cheers!!!!

SHOW ME THE MONEY

It would have been a regular day at the office had it not been for just one statement of mine. Everything was going well, work was a waste as usual and most of our time went in criticizing our work. But this one statement of mine changed the course of our discussion all together.
This simple yet complex statement of mine is as follows:
“Is it all about the money? “
This seemingly straightforward statement sparked off a major debate at the lunch table. I wont get into the intricacies of the discussion here but I shall delve into a few of the points discussed.


At first glance, in my opinion, most of us would say ‘NO’, it’s not all about the money. There is a greater good involved and money does not get you everything in life.
But there is another side to it .there were people on the lunch table whose first response was ‘YES’. I was a bit surprised at this. a general idea that I had was that whoever said yes to this was in general greedy and had his/her mind only on money. Such people obviously would do anything for money. Thus I had a very negative impression of “such people”.
On a bit of contemplation I think my opinion about “such people” is changing. Let’s have a look at the question again. “Is it all about the money?”

I by the way am 22 yrs old and work as a Software Engg. In a leading Indian IT firm. I have done my Engg. In Chemical background. So why software? Why not a chemical job? Am I not as vain as the people that I have just now branded as greedy? This is one of the questions that I was asked when I very straightforwardly and matter of factly said ‘NO’, it’s not all about the money.

My answer to ‘why Software? ‘was that I wanted to gain experience, which by the way is partially true. The discussion got over after sometime and I stayed very staunchly onto my stance on this topic. As I reached home I kept on pondering over this question almost the entire day. Have I come here only for the experience? Don’t I want to earn money? Would I have been happy in an internship (non-paying) providing an excellent opportunity to learn? Doesn’t it make me happy to earn money and don’t I keep wondering when I will earn more? Isn’t everything driven by money?

And then comes the eternal question
“Can money get me happiness?”
Now, I am getting too deep I know, but let’s not look at this as a cliché. Let’s look at it practically. Money can get us our materialistic needs for sure. I think no one would have a problem with this statement at least.
But are materialistic gains all that we crave for, isn’t there a larger outlook to life. What about satisfaction?
Can money buy me satisfaction?
The answer to this question would vary individually depending on how we define our aim’s in life to be. But what can be said for sure is that the richest man in this world need not necessarily be the most satisfied man in this world.
On the other hand, looking at this question very simply, yes money an get me satisfaction at least for now . with money I can buy the best in class cell phones, iPod’s , a bike , a car etc. etc………… basically anything that you desire.
Isn’t that what all of us want. These things have become kind of the basic necessities of our day today lives. So for purchasing all these things, I need money. And all these things make me happy and hence satisfied. SO, POINT PROVED.
END OF DISCUSSION
Here comes the catch. All these requirements of ours, cell phones, iPod’s, motor vehicles etc... , are they not needs of our own creation. Haven’t our parents lived without all of these so called necessities? Yes, these equipments have made our life a bit easier, but they are a nuisance in themselves. Let us not get into the discussion of pros and cons of these necessities.
All I want to say is that we are the ones who create these necessities for ourselves. If we don’t have the money, then buying a high end phone will not be a necessity. We will make do with an average phone. So even after making more money we will never be satisfied, we shall keep looking for things out of our reach and try and obtain them and these things shall be very easily branded as necessities. So, according to me, this thirst of money or greed as is called generally will keep on increasing and one shall never be satisfied.

So what does this mean for us, that we shouldn’t earn money and live a saint like life. No I do not advocate that.
Live your life to the fullest. Live it happily. Live it well. Always yearn for more but never be dissatisfied with whatever you have now. Spend your money judiciously irrespective of how much ever money you earn because it will always be less than what your necessities will require.