Eyecatchers-136: "Nobel Laureate Harold Pinter dies!"

British Playwright Harold Pinter passes away at the age of 78. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2005. His famous plays include "The Homecoming" and "The Caretaker".

Detailed Wikipedia article on "HAROLD PINTER":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Pinter

Grateful thanks to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Random Thoughts-17: "On Christ, Christmas and Christianity"

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL THE VISITORS OF THIS BLOG!

When I think of Jesus Christ, his greatest teaching comes to my mind: "GOD IS LOVE". To me, this is the supreme teaching of Christianity. To me Jesus is Love-Incarnate, Kindness-Incarnate, Compassion-Incarnate. To put it in another way is "LOVE IS GOD'. So where there is not love, there cannot be God. Any religion that preaches hatred and violence is evil and no religion at all. People who harbour hatred and violence have no right to call themselves religious. It is good to remember this at a time when hatred and violence are spreading like wildfire everywhere.

Also let us inculcate love, kindness and compassion in the minds of our younger generation through our words and deeds. If that is not possible, at least let us desist from planting the seeds of hatred and violence.

Next comes to my mind the booklet by Swami Ranganathananda entitled, "The Christ We Adore". It is a great book, which I feel everyone should read. The Swamiji was a great believer in the harmony of religions. The explanation to various biblical texts by the Swamiji is highly enlightening and broadening one's outlook. For example, take the quote, 'Love thy neighbour as thyself." The question that arises naturally is: "Why should I love my neighbour?". The answer given by the Swamiji was: Because you and your neighbour are not different. At the core, we are all one. So when you hurt your neighbour, you are hurting yourself. So loving your neighbour is in your own interest too.

I remember the Prayer Hall of the Ramakrishna Tapovanam at Tirupparaithurai, near Trichy. There one can find pictures relating to the various religions. Whenever I find an opportunity, I spend some time meditating in that prayer hall. I always find that it calms and soothens my mind. When I come out of that prayer hall, I always feel happy and refreshed.

I would like to finish this post with another great teaching: "Religion is not rituals. Religion is realization." A true religion should take you through a spiritual path - a path of love, kindness and compassion - to an inner journey, a journey that culminates in self-realization.

A HAPPY AND JOYFUL CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU.

Detailed Wikipedia article on "JESUS CHRIST", "CHRISTMAS" and "CHRISTIANITY": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_Christ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ChristianIty

Grateful thanks to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Eyecatchers-135: "Zimbabwe faces serious crisis!"

The Global Meltdown has affected all countries. The worst hit country is Zimbabwe. The unemployment rate there is 90%. The inflation has gone up, hold your breath, to 23 MILLION percent! The Govt has printed new $200 million notes!

Courtesy: Paul Ford, Harper's Weekly, December 9, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Paul Ford and Harper's Weekly.

Facts & Figures-62: "Lakhs and Lakhs people lose Jobs in USA!"

The Labor Department of the Govt of USA has reported that 5,33,000 people lost their jobs in November. Another 6,21,000 were forced into part-time employment. 4,22,000 simply dropped out of the labor force. 24,000 were laid off by auto dealers. The situation seems to be far worse than economists expected.

Source: Paul Ford, Harper's Weekly, December 9, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Paul Ford and Harper's Weekly.

S&T Watch-41: "The Sky is Falling"

Scientists repor that the boundary between earth's atmosphere and space is lowering, which means that the sky is falling!

Courtesy: Claire Gutierrez, Harper's Weekly, December 23, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Claire Gutierrez and Harper's Weekly.

My Photo Album-33: "Suri at Verinag"

Suri (on the left) with a fellow tourist at Verinag

This photo is more than 30 years old. I distinctly remember the month, if not the year - it was April. I was on an All-India tour by bus. We left Srinagar early morning and reached Verinag after a few hours. The river Jhelum starts as a spring there and then flows to Srinagar and then to Punjab via Pakistan. From Punjab, it flows again to Pakistan and finally joins the Chenab river. Though April, it was chilly for me and hence the sweater. Bell-bottom pants were fashionable those days. The unkempt hair may be due to non-application of oil or due to wind or both. The photo was taken by another fellow tourist using an Agfa Click III camera. Those days it was the cheapest, easiest and the best. I think from Verinag, we went to Jammu and then to Delhi. The entire trip was by bus. Unfortunately, I did not maintain a journal and rue it now. So I have to rely completely on memory.

Detailed Wikipedia article on "Jhelum River":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jhelum_River

Grateful thanks to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Letters-61: "Irresponsible"

Cutting across caste and religious lines, the people of India are hoping that terrorism will be eliminated. During such a moment of crisis, politicians should not divide societies along communal lines. It is highly condemnable. The arrested terrorist, Ajmal Amir, has admitted that he and his accomplice killed Karkare and two other police officers. What is the need for a separate probe? - B.Nagesh Kumar, Mangalore.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, December 20, 2008 ("Letters to the Editor")

Grateful thanks to Mr.B.Nagesh Kumar and The Hindu.

Facts & Figures-61: "2,38,000 killed in 2008!"

The New Indian Express, Tiruchy, reports quoting Agence France-Presse, Geneva, that catastrophes killed more than 238,000 people this year. The cost to society due to these catastrophes was 225 billion dollars. While 2008 is the second worst year of catastrophes, 2005 is the worst year of natural and man-made catastrophes with 374,042 people killed and 107 billion dollars in insured losses.

Grateful thanks to Agence France-Presse, Geneva and The New Indian Express.

Eyecatchers-134: "Edible Christmas Cards!"

A British ecological design firm has produced an edible X'mas card made from potato starch paper and featuring a picture of Brussels sprouts.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Tiruchy, December 19, 2008.

Grateful thanks to The Hindu.

Eyecatchers-133: "What is Layogenic?"

Layogenic is Filipino for someone good-looking from afar but ugly up close.

Courtesy: The New Indian Express, Tiruchy ("Vignettes: Worth Words"), December 19, 2008.

Grateful thanks to The New Indian Express.

Letters-60: "Tribute to Martyrs"

It seems our politicians have lost their basic courtesy. Out of the approximately 700 MPs, only 11 paid tribute to the martyrs of the Parliament attack. It is a disgrace and we sould feel ashamed that they represent us. In a few years, the heroes, who laid their lives in the Mumbai terror attack on November 26 will be forgotten. - Lt Col Ranjit Sinha (Retd), Kochi.

Courtesy: The New Indian Express, Tiruchy, December 19, 2008 ("Letters to the Editor")

Facts & Figures-60: "Railways earn Rs.3,909 cr from e-ticketing!"

Indian Railways has added nearly Rs.4,000 crores in its coffers through e-ticketing till November 2008, which is nearly double the amount it made during last fiscal.

Excerpt from "Rlys earn Rs.3,909 cr from e-ticketing", News Digest, The Times of India, Mumbai, December 17, 2008.

Grateful thanks to The Times of India.

Eyecatchers-133: Newsweek's "50 Most Powerful People"

Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan have been among the 50 most powerful people in the world by the U.S.-based magazine, Newsweek.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, December 22, 2008("Snapshots").

Newsweek's Cover story, "The Global Elite: The Story of Power" lists the 50 most powerful people in the world today.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/176300

Grateful thanks to The Hindu and The Newsweek.

Eyecatchers-132: "Oprah Winfrey Honoured!"

Talk show queen Oprah Winfrey has been chosen People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals person of the year for highlighting cases of animal cruelty.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, December 22, 2008.

Detailed Wikipedia article on "OPRAH WINFREY":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oprah_Winfrey

Grateful thanks to The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Eyecatchers-131: "Taiwanese vote for 'chaos' "

"Chaos" has been picked up by the Taiwanese as the character for 2008 after a turbulent year marred by high-profile corruption scandals implicating the former President Chen Shui-bian and top officials.

Among 61,600 people who took part in a telephone poll, nearly 8,000 voted for the Chinese character "luan"(chaos), followed by "pian"(lie) and "tsang"(miserable), said the United Daily News, a co-organiser of the survey.

Also on the list of the top 10 characters were "corrupt", "depressed" and "love" - the only positive word of the year.

"Those grey words were chosen as the year was marked by a shift in political powers, the global financial crisis... and soap opera-like scandals implicating the former first family," the paper said. - AFP.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, December 18, 2008.

Grateful thanks to AFP and The Hindu.

S&T Watch-37: "Tarantula Nebula"

Enormous stars in 30 Doradus, also known as the Tarantula Nebula, are producing intense radiation and searing winds of multimillion-degree gas that carve out gigantic bubbles in the surrounding cooler gas and dust.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, December 18, 2008.

Detailed Wikipedia article on "TARANTULA NEBULA":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarantula_Nebula

Grateful thanks to The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Health News-10: "150 people can catch cold from one sneeze!"

Researchers in London who undertook a study to learn how cold spreads so easily have come out with some interesting figures. For example, somebody sneezing in a crowded bus or train may result in 150 persons catching cold in the next five minutes! So they have advised people to cover their mouth when they sneeze.

Courtesy: 'Dinakaran', Tamil daily, (Madurai edition), Dec.8, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Dinakaran.

Eyecatchers-130: "R.C.Book for Elephants!"

Just as Registration Certificate (R.C.)books are issued to motor vehicles, the Kerala Govt has decided to issue R.C. to elephants also! The Guruvayur temple alone has more than 50 elephants. It has also decided to issue identity cards to the elephant-keepers. There will also be insurance coverage for people who get killed by elephants to the extent of Rs.2.5 lakhs.

Courtesy: 'Dinakaran', Tamil daily, (Madurai edition), December 8, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Dinakaran.

Facts & Figures-59: "Daily 92 crore people go without food"

A report in the Tamil daily, Dinamalar (Madurai edition) says that daily 92 crore people go to bed without food. World Food Day is observed world over on October 16 from the year 1979. Self-help groups from various countries are demanding that this day be observed as 'World Foodless Day' rather than 'World Food Day'.

Courtesy: 'Dinamalar', Tamil daily (Madurai edition), October 9, 2008.

Detailed Wikipedia article on "World Food Day":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Food_Day

Grateful thanks to Dinamalar and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Letters-59: Terrorist Strikes in India

1. Apropos "Surviving the siege" and other related articles (The Hindu Weekly Magazine, Dec.7, 2008), the government, the police, the intelligence agencies have failed in preventing the terrorist strikes in India. But we do not need knee-jerk responses to deal with the menace of terrorism. Rather, a visionary leadership and corruption-free administration to strengthen our security, revamp the police, bolster intelligence and coordinate the efforts of various agencies to herald a counter-terrorism operation with strong political willpower and imagination to save the ordinary citizens of India. The electronic media too must show restraint by not sensationalising the news and should be careful in their coverage. They need training in this regard. - Akhil Kumar, Delhi.

2. It is not enough to merely condemn 26/11 terrorist attack on Mumbai. Terrorists are bent on destroying the rhythm of people's lives. Their aim is to instill fear in people's minds and disturb communal harmony. From the death and suffering of innocent people, and the fire-fighters and police who went to help them, the world needs to learn the lesson that terrorism solves no problems, and that it needs concerted effort by all nations to stamp it out.

It is also time to think whether the underlying reason for the increase in terrorism is economic and cultural, triggered by changes in international economic functioning to which some sections of society are unable or unwilling to adapt. Whether at an individual level or a national level, no amount of physical protection or technical sophistication can be a protection against terrorist attacks. India must revamp its policy and approach to terrorists. Far too long, despite the killing of several people in the terror attacks in major cities, we have not formulated a pro-active policy. We must stand united in this hour of crisis. The government, on its part, should enact tougher laws instead of dealing with terrorism in a reactionary manner. - Dr.T.Marx, Dept of English, Pondicherry University, Puducherry.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Weekly Magazine, Dec.14, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Mr.Akhil Kumar, Dr.T.Marx and The Hindu.