The Small Voice

Is India about to elect its Reagan? - The Hindu Notable quote: "  if you favour allowing citizens to be treated differently on the basis of their religious beliefs, then you are an open-minded “secularist.”  If, on the other hand, you favour treating all citizens equally under the law, without regard to their religion, then you are a “religious extremist.”  

Both my 9-mth old son and I were down health-wise for last couple of days.  He was struggling with a bout of fever after his immunization shots, and I from a nasty bit of flu & fever. Both recovered around roughly the same time, i.e. today evening.  Wife had chores to do, and she left me in charge of him. After trying a few tricks, none of which interested him, I decided to be a bit innovative. I dimmed the lights, and together, in the dark, we watched my favorite Michel Jackson’s “Will you be there” picturized on Free Willy montage shots on Youtube. And this was my happiest 5mins of the week. Why? Because, this is one of my favourites and I am soo thrilled that my son liked it too!! He was seeing a whale for the first time in his life, but he enjoyed every moment when the whale emerged from the water and did tricks.  He he. Can hardly wait to introduce him to Doctor Who, Tintin, The Lord of the Rings, Batman, GI Joe et al.

Some say he chickened out of his promises. Some say he was right to resign in protest. Some say he is an anarchist. Some say he sacrificed CM post for the PM post. But say what you like, the Twitter/Facebook are all in a tizzy over Arvind Kejriwal: the one man party. He is playing the game well, where at least for the time being, he has the spotlight and (maybe) even public sympathy: a potent combination that can turn fortunes in a democracy. The Kejriwal gambit First lets understand how losingDelhi for Kejriwal is a step towards national success. In one master stroke, Arvind Kejriwal has pitted his fledgling party squarely against the two giants. He has not only scored a moral victory by sacrificing his CM post for the Jan Lokpal bill (JLP), he may also have succeeded in painting the congress-BJP to be in cahoots, thus gaining significant political ground. Also, he has freed himself and the top guns from the day-to-day demands of Delhi administration and brought them to...

Arvind Kejriwal must be crazy.  Its apparent even when you listen to him . He comes across as a crystal clear, rationale, albeit too idealistic to be a Politician. Yet he is in Politics. He talks how he will root out the corrupt. How he will clean up the system and punish the guilty of scams. Ironically, many of whom are from the very party which is crucial for the existence of his government in New Delhi.  Yes he must be crazy. He must be  crazy to take on alone, the super-powerful corrupt.He must be crazy to try to reform the system screwed beyond repair by wily political biggies. He must crazy to believe that he, with his motley bunch of followers can kill the invisible Goliath of Corruption. “The corrupt club sticks together.” Always Reality Check.  The Corrupt-club protects their own. Any member, howsoever insignificant, represents a cash stream to which all take a share. Hence all the fraternity comes together to shield him. Also, ...

May the year 2014 bring us the best of everything.  Wish you a year where you have plenty of reasons to smile    and millions of memories to cherish. Me, Wife & kid wish you a Happy New Year !!!

Key takeaways from what trends/results available so far: The 3-1 results (as appear likely now) are primarily against the ruling Congress party and one expects markets to adequately cheer the results on Monday. Frankly, a 4-0 was very optimistic. But a 3-1 also is a good indication (for now) of the UPA losing and NDA securing at least a simple majority in 2014. The emergence of AAP is more a reflection of the common man’s anger with the Congress rather than emergence of a NaMo wave. A wake up call for BJP, in terms of Chattisgarh as they can not take things lightly and need to constantly be on guard against complacency and deviations from development agenda. The winter session may see much efforts by the UPA to bludgeon through controversial bills in a last ditch effort to woo a single “minority” segment and the economically marginalized. This may prove to be a dampener for the markets and may result in a volatile ride in the near term.   Finally, the success of the deb...

Today New Delhi goes to polls, and soon the rest of the states and the country will follow. Irrespective of which party or candidate or agenda you like and decide to vote for, vote you must, for it is your national duty. Each one bring five And as Neeraj ji says, IF you claim to be a responsible citizen, then:  not only must you cast your own vote,  but also make a promise to make at least 5-10 people vote this time, who have not voted last time. Drag them to the polling station, if need be. But make them vote. What happens when you don’t Vote? The corrupt candidate wins :( If you don't cast your vote, don’t think it will go empty. No way.  Bogus votes are cast on absentee voters’ name (in this case, your name) and your vote will go to the wrong candidate helping him defeat honest candidates.  And then you will curse the corruption in the system for the next five years. Please Vote, it is your (and mine) primary national duty.