Mr President Obama: is this attitude legally,morally or ethically ever justifiable without damaging US global image?28Feb2010

28 Feb 2010,Dear Mr President Obama,I am constrained to raise this vexatious issue bothering global viewers of National Geographic's "Jailed Abroad" program, that highlights the issues of usally US nationals incarcerated outside US Jails for drug running. Subsequently State department's Embassy/senators/humanitarian groups kick in and have the convicts repatriated or released to their custody and taken out of the country. Many of them are released on parole almost immediately. We fail to see the purpose of this program- if it is to evoke sympathy for the plight of the US convicts- it failed miserably. Instead a sense of anger that the governmental machinery is used to free these people. Drug running and terrorism should mandate capital punishment world wide in view of their cascading damage to countless human lives. US undoubtedly achieved its global status due to its diligent enforcement of laws and pursuit of violators. It amounts to virtual hounding. Roman Polansky-french, 89 yrs John Demjanjuk naturalized US as against Michael Jackson. Never is the convcted's case that it was unjust. This is a skewered disrespectful approach to other nation's criminal laws which adversely affects the image of "law abiding" USA. I expressed these concerns to Secretary Clinton under whose aegis Embassies work through the website contact us form since she as a public servant doesnot have an exofficio email address, ex.secystateus@.gov.us. How, when and why is this attitude legally,morally or ethically ever justifiable without damaging US global image?

Secretary Clinton-is this morally ethically legally justified?-16 feb2010

16Feb 2010,
Secretary of State
US Government,
Washington DC
USA

Dear Madam Secretary of State Mrs Hillary Clinton,
I have to use the state department website "ask us" since I could not find your "secretary of state" email address.

I have been driven to seek this clarification from you as the head of all US diplomatic missions world wide, after watching a series of episodes of Jailed Abroad broadcast by National Geographic.
The latest episode of David Evans broadcast recently where he was repatriated to USA (Presumably under the promise of serving out the rest of his eight year term) but was released early (in compensation for the 2 years already spent?) has prompted this.
These are mostly cases of US citizens or residents who have been convicted of violating drug laws of other nations and have been convicted and jailed outside USA.
Obviously most end with the embassy/mission/ government(?) / senators or humanitarian(?) organizations intervening
on their behlaf with the foreign governments and have them pardoned and released early.
On one hand the world is led to believe that the success of US of A is because of the law obedience of US citizens.
It is also clear that much of the respect is due to the diligence with which law is enforced and hence upheld at all levels of life in the US of A.
At this point I have difficulty fathoming the purpose of this series- is it to evoke sympathy for those jailed abroad? then it fails miserably.
What is left behind is a sense of anger that they - not one episode appeared to suggest that these were unfairly convicted?-escaped the due punishment thanks to the lenient attitude exhibited by USA towards criminal acts of its citizens in other countries?
However what becomes obvious to the global viewers is the sustained official effort by USA to get its subjects released from jails abroad, for crimes-no doubt they are crimes of a very high order.
In view of the enormous ripple effects on the society drug smuggling and terrorism should rank death penalty.
Though USA appears to take a more lenient view of both these grave menaces.
These official/nonofficial interventional efforts no matter how nobly motivated leave behind a sense of injustice in the minds of the viewers.

That there is a differential leniency / attitude towards US citizens becomes obvious when the world sees the thirty eight years hounding of Roman Polanski a french citizen, or deported John Demjanjuk the 89 year old Nazi guard , as opposed to that of Michael Jackson or these cases.


How, why and when are these interventions and consequent leniency justifiable morally, ehtically or legally?

what to do about shivsena-internet debate

Ban shivsena. All senas, dals etc.But congress does not have the guts for it probably.Their myopic attitudes for the region and country is causing immense damage to India globally. If banning is not feasible enforce the laws of the nation-criminal and civil- for all violations on the perpetrators without giving them the benefit of party identity, but as individuals.Sena will have difficulty dealing with individual cases for all party followers. Economically verdicts should break them and weaken the party's protection-dadagiri and goonda giri- considerably so the following will decrease.

Color of memory- Black and white?

12 Feb 2010
Tina:
I love these pics, they make me want to be there myself. Feels like a time that exuberates such preciousness, sacredness and rightness of how it should be. Dont know if i am making sense uncle, but will explain in detail sometime else..
MBN

oh do you get the same feeling? I thought it was only for the subjects! You know what I think? colors fade in memories so all memories eventually become black and white. B/W has therefore a sense of timelessness or oldtime?



14 Feb 2010
colorlessness of time! so to say. I think its got something to do with the RAM-random access memory of brain. Though we have infinite capacity for information, it has to be frequently used to be recalled. Otherwise it goes deeper and deeper into the recesses of the mind. And color i think is extra information- which usually takes up RAM in the mind, and probably needs a larger protein? So at first you may remember the colors. But gradually it will fade away. so that the default information is B/W! just look back in your own daily experiences and see how far back in memory you remember colors. Not about standard colors like that of say Rose, sambhar water etc. But details like the print on the saree, color of the border etc. I bet you cant recall that unless you see it again? It would be interesting to design a test to try out this hypothesis. May be color RAM is like fish's memory. It is only about 2 seconds!

Muthalik,Dr Achar, Ramasene

The nation is facing unprecedented challenges of security, economy, integrity as a sovereignity etc.
In such circumstances, Muthaliks ramasainiks supported by crutches like Dr Achar, sping out of the wood works once a year at valentine's.The life long bachelor's motivation is indeed revealing to any student of human psychology.
If parochial (pun intended) groups like this cannot find any meaningful platforms other than biochemistry/hormones to stand on, they should return to their roots.
and spare the people.
They should not pretend to serve the "culture", state or the people.
They just have to look around and find better planks/ issues to serve the people or fight corruption.

Stop this ransom-12feb2010

It has become an accepted fashion statement for have been political parties to hold the nation and its citizens to ransom on some non issue or the other.
This raises serious global doubts about the integrity and stability of this country as the largest democracy.
It also causes enormous economic havoc the damage, destruction of public and private property that this ransom invariably causes.
and we can ill afford.
One cannot expect vulnerable artisits like Shah Rukh Khans or Amitabh Bacchans to stand up to such goonda and dadagiri when state and central
governments do not or cannot.
It is high time that we evolve draconian measures to control and contain such treason by shivsena, ramsena, ravanasena , mns or any other outfit
local or national.

Under such obvious threats to the nation or states,
No questions asked SHOOT ON SIGHT orders should be mandated at all times for all antisocial activities. We should not tolerate public or private property damage under any circumstance.
Federal administration unswayed by political or local considerations -state and national- should take over till the end of the threat.
The entire economic cost to the nation/citizens or states should be recovered from the parties even if it decimates the party financially to inculcate
a sense of social responsibility in them.
The perpetrators of the damage should be criminally summarily tried and punished individually,
thereby denying the vital blanket insulation political party affiliation provides
and seal off the routine "rogue elements" escape
route taken to avoid the party responsibility.
Unless we act now, our sovereignity and integrity and future of this great nation rests in the hands of a few dangerous individuals.

Sincerely yours
Mr M.B.Nataraj

Motivating phrases-my take10feb2010

------ The magazine for productive living"
A monthly journal for an elders group.

After the end of "reproductive" living,
the only one option available is "productive" living!
Vanaprastha after Grihasthashram!

Mr. Moily stop preaching start enforcing Law

Mr. Law Minister, Instead of preaching from a high pedestal what citizens should do, why dont you do the easier thingthat you can do as the law minister?
Ensure that the police,prosecution and judicial system do not make a mockery and a farce of themselves?
While at the job you can also ensure that the law of the land is upheld by the politicians first.
You can start by ruthlessly enforcing the law about the political parties taking law into their own hands day in and day out, like Shiv sena, Sriram sena, Bhajrangdal, damaging and destroying public and private property in the guise of freedom of expression?

Molester Rathore stabbed-IBNlive 9feb2010

I donot know if there are any tears for Rathore. This is what happens when justice delayed is further mocked by such policemen who are supposed to protect the society misuse the ineffective justice system to their own convenience. It is a total mockery of the system. His wife another "upholder" of law is party to this mockery.This is when even right thinking citizens will get enraged, leave alone psychologically disturbed individuals. However they get the courage to take law into their own hands.I hope this atleast wipes the smug smiles off Rathore and his supporters faces.This is the epitaph for the state of law in this nation.
http://ibnlive.in.com/conversations/post/117939.html

BT Brinjal policitcal decision likely

I am afraid that the BT brinjal issue will be politically (or has already been?) decided by looking at the floating stance taken by Minister Jairam Ramesh since the conflict escalated. Mr Jairam's initial vociferous claims of protecting the country and citizens interests have whimpered down to' his decision may please only 50 percent of the citizens'.An ominous sign for those like me who are totally against BT products.The Agriculture Minister Pawar has time and again proved his biased views in several agricultural matters, the latest demand that consumers eat less sugar- a cover up for his department's inability to handle the situation in a constructive manner and his support for BT products.Given the dilly dallying weak government at the centre striving to keep its seat, Monsanto will likely win this round.It is a deep misfortune of this country that we promote pro profit companies like monsanto that endanger human lives for lucre, instead of trying them for treason and throwing them out of the country.Looks like dubious companies from the west find a haven in the misfortunes of the third world, India being the biggest of them.

HDD retracts words-NDTV comment

This is with reference to Mr Gowda's lame response that he has withdrawn his "words".Answering the prayers of thousands of Kannadigas "GET LOST GOWDA" Mr Devegowda seems to have gotten lost.Being a Kannadiga and son of soil in any order he prefers, he should be aware of the kannada proverb Aadida matu bitta baana himbaralaradu. Which roughly translates into" a word uttered or an arrow shot can never be withdrawn."