Whenever I am up late I turn on the TV and watch the “Tonight Show” hosted by comedian Jay Leno. My favorite segment of this show is called “Jaywalking”. Reporters from the Tonight Show approach pedestrians in some of the major American cities and ask them fairly basic questions. Some of the responses are hilarious. [...]
We have all come across this situation one time or the other. We are driving our motorcycles and pull up right behind an overloaded truck that is spewing smoke from its exhaust. We cautiously take a peek to see whether there is any oncoming traffic and try to pass the truck before our face turns [...]
I want you to think about these numbers for a moment. According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimates the GDP of the United States is $14.26 trillion (2009). For the same period India’s GDP was $1.16 trillion. American defense spending was approximately $663 billion for 2009 which is more than half of India’s GDP. [...]
“You can build a Mosque at ground zero when we can build a Synagogue in Mecca” read the sign carried by one of the protesters. They protesters were trying to pressurize the city of New York and prevent the city from granting permission to build a 13 story Islamic community center a few blocks from [...]
Many progressives and liberals in America were stunned when on July 21st the President of Argentina Christina Fernandez de Kirchner signed into law a bill legalizing gay marriage. Argentina became the first South American country and the tenth country overall to legalize gay marriage. Many Americans could not believe that a developing nation like Argentina [...]
Recently a co-worker of mine who is a Muslim from the Middle East asked me whether Indians like the people of Pakistan. I explained to her that an average Indian citizen probably has never heard of Pakistan and would not be able to point out Pakistan or Kashmir on a map (an average Indian most [...]
The United States of America is not a popular nation among the Muslim community in the world. This unpopularity is a major problem for America. The future of America, particularly from an economic standpoint is closely tied to Asian economies. Most of these Asian economies including India, China, Indonesia and Malaysia have significant Muslim populations [...]
I was talking to a colleague of mine and within a few minutes the subject turned to corruption in general and the corrupt Indian politicians. Corruption is one of the most popular topics of conversation in India today and rightly so. Corruption is rampant in India compared to Western Europe and North America. Indians love [...]
India has never played a single match in the history of world cup soccer. Yet about 44.4 million Indians watched the 2006 world cup held in Germany. This number is expected to grow by about 35% this year. The numbers of viewers are very high considering that a vast majority of Indians still do not [...]
Former American President and five-star general of the United States Army, Dwight D. Eisenhower once said that “We seek peace, knowing that peace is the climate of freedom”. There is no question that peace and freedom go hand in hand. You cannot have peace if you do not have freedom. But this message is yet [...]
I am an Indian who has lived half of my life in the United States. Adjusting to live in America is very difficult for a person from a developing nation like India but I would not have it any other way. It has been a fun, humbling and a learning experience. Indians in the United [...]
Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU) General Secretary J.B. Kadian informed journalists that “at the intervention of the Chief Labor Commissioner (CLC) and in the interest of the traveling public, we are calling off our spontaneous, flash strike with immediate effect. We are communicating to our rank and file to join duty immediately”. What a kind [...]
In both the United States and India some professions more so than others are very good at portraying themselves as overworked and under appreciated. The teaching profession is one such group. The reality is very different. Most nations assign significant portions of their annual budget towards education. Teachers in both the United States and India [...]
The Canadian High Commission in New Delhi has described the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) as “a notoriously violent paramilitary unit engaged in systematic attacks on civilians and responsible for torturing suspected criminals”. This was used as an excuse to deny visa to a former BSF jawan who wanted to travel to Canada. Such language [...]
The United States is required by its constitution to conduct a Census every 10 years. The 2010 Census is now in full swing. In 2004 the American Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimated that the 2010 Census would cost approximately $11 billion. In a step back the United States decided not to allow residents to respond [...]
A special Mumbai Court judge on Thursday sentenced Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab to death for his role in the 2008 Mumbai bombings. Kasab who is from Pakistan was the only gunman captured alive. The method of execution in India is by hanging. Many organizations including prominent Muslim organization in India have welcomed the verdict. Prominent [...]
Remember the Abu Ghraib controversy? The world particularly the Middle East erupted when they learnt that the 372nd Military Police Company of the United States Army participated in physical, psychological and sexual abuse of prisoners of war in Iraq. Most of the techniques used by American servicemen on these prisoners were clearly against the law [...]
