Mumbai Burning

Mr Terrorist, I am alive what more can you do?

Mr Politician, I am alive despite you,

I am a Mumbaikar.

I am an Indian.

This slogan which was shown on a news channel for me clearly sums up the feeling of Mumbai reeling in the aftermath of the disastrous terror attacks. About 10 terrorists attacked major landscapes of the city and kept the financial capital of India on tenderhooks for more than 60 hours. They took hundreds of people including a lot of foreigners hostage and killed more than 180 people while grievously injuring more than 350. In times like these the statements made by the various leaders of our country seemed strangely hollow and empty. Infact reading a newspaper compilation of the reactions of the various readers after any major attack or bombs was (un)surprisingly familiar. Many a noted and powerful men of Mumbai society dies in these gruesome attacks. Also the Times of India consulting editor and food critic Sabina Sehgal Saikia too lost her life. Reading the incident left me in a state of complete shock, horror and disbelief. This news just made me realize how vulnerable we all are; we can no longer be passive watchers to these attacks, After all, all we might know is that we might be next. I salute the NSG commandos, marine commandos, the Mumbai Police, the staff of the Taj and Oberoi hotels and all those who helped in rescuing the hostages and bringing them back safely.
Many predicted that the Mumbaikar spirit would bounce back; the people would be back to normal soon. But alas how much can the people of Mumbai take? And, for how long? The spirit had to break, yet there so many signs of it during the operations. Unknown people helped each other, took each other to the hospital, lit candles in protest. Yes as Suhel Seth put it, the Mumbai spirit has ‘soul’ but the soul was bruised and damaged and would take time to heal.
Our thirst for 24/7 news channels too may have helped the terrorists to execute and operate their plans better. For the first time, we were seeing pictures of the attack sites live. Previously we had only heard about them, never seen them but this was different in more ways than one. As a daily put it, it was the ‘ultimate reality TV’.

And how can we forget politics? After a day of reluctant self restraint the political parties couldn’t stop themselves from politicizing the issue. Statements like “Such incidents happen in big cities like Mumbai” were completely uncalled for and make your blood boil.

Yes, we want stronger terror laws,
Yes, we want more accountable politicians
Yes, we want better security
And No, we don’t want it to be politicized

But the question is WHEN??? And after HOW MUCH???

The Battle For President

In the most expensive campaign ever, Barack Obama finally won the race to the White House and made history by becoming the first ever black president of the United States. In doing so he beat veteran and Vietnamese war prisoner John McCain.

Opinion polls all along showed Obama with a clear and steady lead but nothing was certain till ELection Day. Would Americans actually vote for a black president?? -- This was the question on everyone's minds. But in the end Obama emerged a clear winner and also won the popular vote.

The battle was never easy.

Huge campaign rallies, thirty minute infomercials on TV, automated robo-calls, spoofs,comedy shows, mud-slinging, taking pot shots at each other-- this campaign had it all.

One of the main reasons why McCain lost was because he was a Republican and would continue Bush's policies of which the people were sick and tired of.

Also by introducing Sarah Palin as his running mate, McCain made a huge mistake. Her inexperience and incapability clearly showed when she failed to name a newspaper she reads or any Supreme Court decision she disagreed with. According to her the $700 billion bailout passed to provide stability to the financial markets was about healthcare!! She was also in a controversy regarding her wardrobe which headlines showed she had spent $150,000 on and that too from the Republican Party's fund. Numerous polls and surveys showed that Palin was actually hurting McCain's chances.

However, from the Indian perspective McCain might have been better. Obama actually voted against issuing more H1-B work permit visas and wants to reduce outsourcing to make indigenous Americans the good jobs. All this has been giving sleepless nights to BPOs in India whose major chunk of business comes from America. On the other hand, John McCain favours outsourcing and wanted more work visas.

Would Obama be the "Change We Need" that he promises to be?? After all one should not forget that he is first time Senator and apart from running a campaign spanning over two years he has practically no political experience. But Joe Biden, the vice presdient elect might have the required credentials as he is a seasoned foreign affairs expert.

Time would surely give the answers...