Boom. Recession. And the moral police

Moral policing has hit a new high (or low, actually). The moral brigade are now targeting men too. For wearing sleeveless tees !! So are they really trying to protect "Indian culture" ?

My guess is that they are just looking for an excuse, any excuse, to vent thier frustration. Why? Because they were left out of the last economic boom. They envy those who made money. And envy those who spend that money even more. Sometimes I wonder are they the only ones to blame ? Or are we equally at fault ?

There is definitely no justifications for their actions. You cannot go around town hitting and molesting people. For whatever reason.

But have we contributed to the overall situation ? I think so. I think it is a miracle that this did not happen sooner. And I would attribute that to karma. Fate. Religion. God. And the way Indians believe that their whole lives have been written out before they were even born. But even fate has its limitations.

Would you blame the doorman at the pub you went to last weekend for being envious of you ? He knows how much you spent. And he knows that he does not earn that much in a month. And feeds 5 maybe 10 mouths with that amount.

Or would you blame the waiter at that new restraunt you went to to celebrate your birthday and ran up a bill of more than 10 grand ? For 6 people ? That guy feeds 6 people for a whole month. And pays his rent. His electricity bill. His water bill. His childrens fees. His medical bills. In most cases on less that 10 grand a month !!

But that does not mean that we should stop going out and enjoying the money that we have honestly made thru' hard work, intelligence and perseverance. It is after all our money and we have every right to do what we want with it.

The problem is that the speed of change was very fast. And it left out most people in the bargain. The massive priorities given to IT & ITES in the past 8-10 years has ensured that though India has gained a prominent spot on the world map, it is only 1-2% of the population who have benefitted. And the balance 98% have been left out. So when a small part of that balance 98% get frustrated, I think we are all to blame.

We need to look at a more inclusive growth model. Develop education. Develop health care. Improve farming technics and bring in newer technology. Focus on manufacturing. And yes, also focus on IT, ITES and service. But definitely not one at the cost of others. We as individuals can make a difference. We need to get involved in the whole political system. And the first step is going out there and voting. And then engaging our representatives and demanding action. And change. And improvements. We cannot be mute specators and just sit back and complain. And hope that things change. Because they won't. Not if we don't do anything.

I vow to make a differnce in an indifferent world. And I hope that you do too.

Go out and entertain

There are two types of people in the world. Those that entertain. And those that observe.

If you are not entertaining then you are just an observer.

So the next time you go out there, to sell something, for an interview, for whatever, go all out and entertain. And you will realise that your job just got easier.

Trust. Integrity. Honesty. Transparency

The four pillars of business.

Unfortunately a rare occurance these days. Pity.

Bangalore welcomes April Showers... IN MARCH!!!

Now if this isn't screwed up, then I wonder what is.

While the showers are most certainly a welcome relief from the sweltering heat, they are a month early!!

And that is definitely not normal.

Remember, when we were kids, most of us said that when we grow up we want to change the world. Well, guess what? We just did.

Thank you

Dozing one evening on my way back from work, I was suddenly woken up by a hard knock on the window. I open my eyes to be greeted by the bluest, saddest pair of expectant eyes I've ever seen. Before I could react, the signal turned green and we were off.

I belong to the school of thought who feels that giving money to beggars only encourages them to beg some more. Labourers toiling hard day after day in most cases earn less than beggars do. So what do we do ? Sit in our air conditioned cars and curse our luck that India is such a poor country. Look at beggars with contempt because they are spoiling an otherwise beautiful landscape. Wonder what "foreigners" will think of "our" country when they see so many beggars on the street.

Isn't "our" country also the country of those same beggars ? I am sure that when God was doling of life choices at birth, they did not voluntarily choose the life they eventually got. So what exactly did they, or we, do to deserve our lives ?

The look in those eyes haunts me even today. And they got me thinking ? What did I do differently to deserve the life I got ? Is it karma ? Is it a blessing for a good deed that I did in a previous life ? I have never believed in these things, but something tells me that its more than just plain good luck.

And that good luck is what I call Mom & Dad.

So if I have never thanked my Parents for gifting me my life and giving me opportunities which They may not have had themselves, then I am thanking Them now. I will thank Them tomorrow and I will thank Them for the rest of my life.

And I am thanking God for giving me the Parents that he has.

And I think that we should all be thanking our Parents. Irrespective of all the disagreements that we may have had (or will have) with Them. For if you are sitting in front of a computer, reading this post, then you are where you are today because They opened a lot of doors. Because They treaded paths which They may not have wanted to Themselves but did for us.

Mother Nature

... is just chemistry, biology and physics. Everything she does is just the sum of those three things. She's completely amoral. She doesn't care about poetry or art or whether you go to a church, mosque or temple. You can't negotiate with her, and you can't spin her and you can't evade her rules. All you can do is fit in as a species. And when a species doesn't learn to fit in with Mother Nature, it gets kicked out.
And that's why, everytime you look in the mirror now, you're seeing an endangered species.
- Rob Watson, EcoTech (http://www.ecotech-intl.com)

What's your carbon footprint?

While on the subject of global warming I thought I would calculate my carbon footprint to see how much damage I am personally causing. And I was shocked !!! No. Make that SHOCKED !!! Actually more like *** S-H-O-C-K-E-D ***. And ashamed.

Brace yourself.

This is what I am leaving our kids. 11.47 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide every year !!! Yup. You read that right - 11.47 tonnes of CO2 dumped into the atmosphere every year. And that is only me !!

Here are a few facts :
1. The average footprint for people in India is 1.20 tonnes a year.
2. The average for industrial nations is 11 tonnes.
3. The average worldwide carbon footprint is 4 tonnes.
4. The worldwise target to combat climate change is 2 tonnes.

In 1750, at the onset of the Industrial Revolution there was approximately 280 parts per million by volume of CO2 in the earths atmosphere. Today it is 384 ppm. And half of these emissions have occured since 1975. And it is estimated to go up to 550ppm by 2050. That would lead to a 3 degree Celcius rise is global average temperature.

So how much is my 11.47 tonnes of CO2 contributing in terms of ppm ? Let me put it this way :
Assume I lead the exact same life style as long as I live. And assume I live another 50 years. And assume another 1 crore people live my exact life style. By the time we die we would have contributed to a 3ppm rise in CO2 levels !!!

Now the scary part :
The population of India (estimated) in July 2008 is 1,14,79,95,904 !! Thats 114 crore people.
The population of China (estimated) in July 2008 is 1,33,00,44,544 !! Thats 133 crore people.
All these 2,47,80,40,448 people are aspiring to lead "better" lives. And "better" lives leave a larger carbon footprint.
And we need to find just 1 crore peole from these who lead lives similar to mine to add 3ppm in the next 50 years. Or 66 crore people to add 200ppm !!

And now the even scarier part : I have not taken into account emissions from industry and agriculture.

But there must be a silver lining among all this gloom, right? Right. Most of us reading this blog will not be alive to see the full extent of the damage we're causing. But we will experience the change. Slowly and steadily. And with each step things will get worse.

So, whats your carbon footprint?