So, what really matters..

President Obama says that the issue of the burning of the Quran will endanger the lives of the american soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Is that the only reason why he's against it? Does it mean that if the soldiers were not in these countries, it would be ok to do this?

What happened to the great American Democracy and peace?

Actually, that's not the thing that is troublesome. What is not right in the entire issue is that it is getting a very half-hearted response.. There is general outrage but not vehement enough. Either the issue is big enough and hurts the Americn principles enough for people to protest or it can be treated as a non-issue and the ranting of a crazy pastor.

The general resentment towards Islam is quite evident in the lukewarm condemnation. The white-house has condemned it but not forbidden it. It may go against the principles of Democracy.. the pastor has the right to do as he pleases, but such obvious hatred cannot be allowed.

There is no approach of standing by the muslim brethren or showing solidarity or marches condemning the proposal. Requests to the pastor to not burn the Quran seem like meek and feeble attempts at diplomacy... a little like Advani standing on the by-lines and telling the people not to tear down the Babri masjid..

I think we need to show more love and caring for our fellow beings whatever religion they may come from.. and really it's not about democracy, right to religion or 'tolerance' that is required.. What is required is love and solidarity..

ET Trust Survey - not so trustworthy..

The Nielson Survey for ET Brand Equity on Most Trusted Brands can't be trusted too much..

On the face of it, it appears that ET and Nielson decided which brands should feature in the list so it doesn't provide the option of picking your own brand. It's more like pick one from my favourites..

The methodology for the survey can be found at http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Methodology-of-most-trusted-brands-2009-survey/articleshow/4722635.cms

The study is on only seven parameters and frankly, they all appeared to have a similar meaning.. One question was, 'is it known, recognised and accepted by a wide array of consumers'.. how does that impact my trust of the brand? I don't trust Big Bazaar and even if the world does, I don't care. That does not define my trust of the brand. Another parameter is whether the brand has been around for many years and is etched in public memory. Based on this parameter, how names like Tata Docomo and Aircel made it to the top 50 is beyond me. They've only just arrived. This itself shows a flaw in the entire process of shortlisting brands as well as conducting of te survey.

The only achievement in the survey is that they have carried it out using a sample numbering over 8000.. but any market research company will tell you that such numbers hold no meaning unless the methodology is stringent. It all depends on the person carrying out the survey.. very subjective..

The funniest thing is that they have SELECTED top 88 service brands and then listed the top 50. Is that ridiculous or what?

The methodology for the survey states 'After considerable brainstorming by Brand Equity along with Nielsen the list of 300 brands (212 consumer products and 88 service brands) is finalised'. So really, they have already decided 300 brands to choose from and people pick from a list. Not impartial and definitely not trustworthy.. Picking 50 top Service brands from a list of 88  or 100 top consumer brands from a list of 212 is hardly noteworthy.

Check the multiple lists at http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/6473544.cms It includes 100 most trusted brands, Top 50 Service Brands, Top 50 Digital Brands, Top trusted brands across age groups, Top Digital Brands - category-wise, India's most trusted brands in 2009 all from a list of 300 pre-selected brands.


The list includes education institutes like Kendriya Vidyalay and Delhi Public School but no mention of IIT or IIM. There is no mention of brands from either the hospitality sector or healthcare.

And the biggest joke is Air India coming out tops in the Airlines.. ahead of Kingfisher? Even people in tier 2 and tier 3 towns know the horror stories of Air India.

I wonder if Brand Equity is now going the Page 3 way..

CWG

Commonwealth Games actually ought to be read as 'Can We Grow up?'

Narendra Modi's comments about the PM wiping the floor are not only uncalled for but reek of the crude, unsophisticated attitude that he obviouly has.. and this not the first time he's done it..

I wish he'd realise that targetting the PM is going to get him nowhere especially if he uses foul language..

The opposition ought to have brought up this issue long ago when everyone already knew that the deadlines weren't being met. We've had at least four years to monitor the progress.. that is the reason we have an opposition.. so that they can point out the errors of the government in time and make sure corrections are made and losses are minimised or mistakes avoided..

If the opposition itself is going to wake up a month before the games, after the media has already hyped the issue, then why do we need them? We may as well put the news channels in the opposition..

All politicians are interested in is making money. They cry foul when they realise they've been shortchanged in the winnings that could've been made from such projects.. and that's what this is all about. I wish these people realised that the people of the country are not all fools who can't see through them.

Everyone knows that right now the BJP is trying to gain political mileage out of this issue. They don't really care whether the games happen or fail.. This selfishness is going to get them and the nation nowhere.. Not that the government has done well but at least they maintain some dignity.. unlike the 'not so vibrant' gujarati from the BJP..

Dharavi.. too simplistic?

For some reason I got thinking about the Dharavi SRA project. I visited the website and found some simplistic information which suggests that the detailed process or plans need not be displayed for public scrutiny.. This is the link .. http://www.sra.gov.in/htmlpages/Dharavi.htm

This is the brief project outline which tells us more or less nothing about the response of the slumdwellers nor does it have any humane aspect attached to it. There is no thought being given to their existing lives or communities not to their means of livelihood which will be completely disrupted during the development. Putting these people in 225 sq. ft. rooms is the solutions that the SRA has come up with. What's new with that? That's the standard solution they have applied everywhere before this and it has failed. If just a little thought is given to this, we will know why it has failed..

• People living in any slum area form their communities and work their lives around this. Giving them random flat allotments based on a lottery system is not going to work. Uprooting people from a familiar environment, making them live in confusion for 5 - 7 years while the 'development' is carried out and then giving them homes in 7-storey buildings with random neighbours will never work. For this project to work, an effort will have to be made to reconstruct communities during and after the development.
• New urbanism, not builder development, is the solution. A holistic master plan has to be prepared which takes into account all existing industry and residential requirements and 'work close to home' solutions have to be provided to these people. They will not live at one end of the development and work in another. they are used to a different life and instead of dictating changes, it would be better to adapt the design solution such that it gets built and used.
• The urban landscape of Mumbai is a mess. Random construction is creating an ugly, haphazard skyline. Just driving over the bridge to Mahalaxmi station one can see multiple constructions of all shapes and sizes coming up. There is no thought giving to urban aesthetics. Developing an area of the size of Daharavi, the developing body must ensure that the aesthetics are uniform and not jarring. This is the one opportunity to beautify the skyline. Sion is lovely with the old low buildings. The development must follow these lines so that the area looks liveable and not monstrous with multi-storey towers. This may sound simplistic and it may sound like this is not the solution to our habitation needs but it is. It is, however, not an answer to the greed of the developers and the development authorities.
• There is no mention of green design or renewable energy anywhere in this proposal. Considering that the environment has to be the primary concern in any development, this is the most surprising thing. No mention of solar water heaters, no mention of solar energy, passive solar design for buildings, nothing.. no guidelines in place either.

If we want to rehabilitate these people, we must do it in a more humane manner rather than try to cram familes with upto 10 members in a 225 sq. ft. flat in a 7-storey building.. That is not the answer. This is not to say that slums are good and slum-dwellers deserve to get lavish homes that most middle-class people can't afford. However, we have chosen to accept them, to legalise their slums and to provide them with alternative habitat. Let's do that in a more humane manner and at the same time beautify the city rather than providing a mechanical solution that we already know does not work.

Let's give them homes that they can live in and prosper in; not homes that they hate and want to sell off at the drop of a hat and move to newer slums..

Let's bring in new urbanism and give the city a new lease of life.. We have approximately 200 hectares of land to do that..  For once, let's look at a lasting future instead of short-term greed..

Not cool

I think that Rahul Gandhi going out to Orissa and trying to gain mileage out of the whole Vedanta project being stopped for the environment and tribals bit was not cool.

I thought and hoped that Rahul Gandhi would be the new face of politics; the kind that does the work and doesn't need to resort to gimmicks like these to get his voe-banks in place. If he's been visiting the tribal areas and understanding problems and making sure those problems are solved, then people at the grassroots already know who has been working for them. Holding public rallies and claiming to be their soldier is not needed.

He may have got some extra votes but this gimmickry will cause him to lose respect of the people who hoped for change in the political scenario; who wanted intellectuals and hardworking individuals who focus on results to come into the political landscape and change it for the better. I feel that the reverse is happening. Once such people enter politics, they change and become like all other politicians spewing platitudes and making false promises, defending indefensible actions and basically plotting and scheming to remain in the game and on the top with no concern towards governance or results.

I heard Sachin Pilot on an NDTV program today defending Rahul Gandhi's visit to Orissa. There were many other concerns raised by the panelists like environmental degradation in states other than Orisa where the environment ministry ought to intervene as well but all he had to say was how wonderful and iconic Rahul Gandhi is and despite being the heir and part of such an illustrious family, he goes out into rural areas to understand real problems.. He sounded just like a seasoned politician who avoids answering relevant questions but talks so much that you can't get a serious word in edge-ways..

The young generation of politicians is taking after all their predecessors; no wonder nothing is about to change.. Not cool, I say..

Do we need to facilitate migration and brain drain?

The US president has signed the H1-B bill escalating the fee for a work visa to the US from $320 to $2000 for anyone migrating there to work for companies that have more than 50% foreign workforce.

In response, India has said that it doesn't approve as this is discriminatory.

I have multiple problems with this.

1. Do we need to tell another country what policies they must or must not follow when our own house is not in order?
2. Do we have a right to question the policies of another democratic country which has the freedom to make its own choices?
3. Do we WANT some of our brightest youngsters to migrate to the US? Why are we asking for migration to be facilitated?

India is a growing economic power with the ability to create job opportunities for its own talent. Why do we need the US to create jobs for our people?

I think the appropriate response would have been to not respond at all or to laud this move saying that we welcome it as it'll encourage our youngsters to stay at home and find work here. We claim that Indians run America. How about getting some of them to stay here and run India..

I think it's good move. America needs to protect jobs for the people there. they are going through a crisis. And if some company desperately needs outsiders, $2000 is not a high price to pay..

My new blog..

Got a new blog on http://www.meghna-likes.blogspot.com/..

It's more light-hearted and is about things that i like or don't like in everyday life.. movies, food, books, places to visit.. and such..

Go see it if you feel like..

Go watch the movie.. I will..

For the first time, the state government (for whatever reason) has decided to take a stance against the Shiv Sena.. Even so, multiplex owners are debating as to whether the film should be screened or not. FUN Cinemas has already decided not to take a chance.


What sort of world are we living in? A non-entity like the shiv sena is able to threaten the security of the city to the extent that we have policemen at every corner of every road.. and for a movie?!! Of course it's not just a movie. It's a matter of right and wrong, ethics and egos. SRK's ethics and Sena's ego.


This is happening coz we allow it to happen. The Sena is screaming from the rooftops that they will not allow the movie to be screened peacefully. None of the people have responded that they will watch it regardless. Our silence is our own worst enemy. How can we stand to have our freedom threatened by anyone?!!


The shiv sena does not have the courage to ask the ToI why they're running an 'Aman ki Asha' campaign. They know the media will slaughter them. Not very tigerlike I must say..


Anyway, I'm going to watch the movie at any theatre that screens it.. if i get the tickets of course.. there are many in this city who will not hide at home just coz of some random threats, many who will not be told what to do..