My Most Memorable Journey Re:ajeya#33
Yaar, why are u so angry with me?....Maine aapka kya bigaara hai?.....if it makes u happy, i salute u as the superior person of superior caste....i am just a lowly sindhi whose grandfather came to India in 1947.....happy now?

My Most Memorable Journey Madani sahab,

The IITs are elitist but in a different sort of way. The only way to get in is through an extremely tough competitive exam called JEE (Joint Entrance Exam). Lakhs of people take the test, but only several hundred can get in. There is no back door policy for any politician or elite to get their kid into it. It is entirely merit based. The only exception are the SC/STs who get reservation. The government is now broadening the reservations for other backward castes by increasing the overall seats. But no matter what, everyone gets in via the test.

Once you are in the institution, the elitism comes from the fact that everyone is a top performer from their school. So it is a highly intense, competitive environment. There are a few liberal arts courses that you need to take but mostly it is very rigorous technical education. People outside are in awe of IIT students since it is a collection of the best students in the country.

The good thing is that a lot of IIT students are staying back now or returning back to India, opening businesses and contributing back to Indian society. So the IIT elitism is not resented but welcomed by everyone. It adds to the brand value of India.

By the way, I found some recordings of an outstanding Afghan classical music singer - Ustad Sarahang. He trained in Patiala Gharana and died in the eighties. He was very famous in India, Afghanistan and Pakistan in those days. Please listen to his Raag Lalit and Raag Multani -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evGRe-CIAPQ

and

http://www.youtube.com /watch?v=oQPUtGYeBZM&feature=related

My Most Memorable Journey Madani sahab,

Since you enjoy Bhimsen Joshi, check this out -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa4DxacG7Sw

Its Raag Basant Bahar with Bhimsen Joshi and Manna Dey....

My Most Memorable Journey Mohar says - "Leave pakis alone"

Yaar, if you want to leave them alone, why do u come to chowk every day and take pangas with them? Its the same BS that paki uber-nationalists put out that they want to move away from India, even as they go home and watch bollywood movies and listen to himesh reshmaiyaa.

If u went to chinese and iranian web sites as well, then I can buy your argument....but if u only go to paki sites, you are not exactly taking the lead to "leave them alone"....

My Most Memorable Journey Madani sahab,

I want to clarify one thing. I am not overlooking differences between Indians and Pakistanis or hindus and muslims. I recognize that there are significant differences but there are also significant similarities based on our shared roots. People make a mistake of either focusing exclusively on differences or exclusively on similarities. Both approaches are wrong. The right way is to recognize both and have a balanced relationship - keep the borders but make them soft.

Harold and Kumar Escape From Gitmo Madani sahab,

Your idea has merit. The problem is that the US government is broke with huge budget deficits and long term debt. It is in this situation thanks to the stupid war in Iraq and other miscalculations in the past several years. They are borrowing from foreign lenders like the Chinese to keep day to day operations going. How are they going to afford buying equity in so many houses in the country? It will require a trillion dollars of borrowing which is infeasible. Even if they manage to borrow somehow, can you imagine its impact on interest rates and US currency?

The proper solution to this situation is that US needs to pull out of Iraq and shift the military expenditure to the civilian sector in terms of building the infrastructure (road, bridges, tunnels) which is crumbling. That will create local jobs that cant be outsourced and result in a superior infrastructure that will boost up the economy. Secondly they need to seriously curtail the healthcare costs which are just killing the economy, especially since the US has a aging population of the baby boomers. So radical changes are necessary to dramatically lower healthcare costs, most of which are artificially inflated - it costs $100,000 for a heart surgery, which is ridiculous by any standards. Thirdly, there is a huge need to save manufacturing jobs in the US by providing better tax incentives and providing good education/training to the people. No country can have a good economy if it doesnt produce stuff. If these steps are taken, the housing, credit and other issues will take care of themselves. Otherwise we will simply be reacting to the symptoms without understanding the root cause.

My Most Memorable Journey I meant to say - Its all in the heart, Madani Sahab - in the post below.

My Most Memorable Journey Madani sahab,

There is a saying - "blood is thicker than water". No matter what you say, the fact is that indians and pakis share almost the same genetic makeup. Basically we are the same people. Pakistanis have tried hard to separate from India. They have tried 60 years of non-stop propaganda, erected a iron curtain where people cannot travel, they have banned books, newspapers, movies etc. Pakistanis have reached out to the middle east and central asia, OIC and every other entity possible to separate from India. They have fought wars with India, declared jihads, fought over kashmir. Sab kuch azmaa liya.

Unfortunately, in spite of all this, Pakistanis cannot resist the call of their genetic makeup. Pakistan is bascally a clone of India with a Islamic exterior. People who travel to both countries cannot distinguish that they are in some other country. Note this happened independently when they had very limited contact. How can you explain this except that it is due to same genes? Pakistanis are addicted to Bollywood and Indian music. This is in spite of all restrictions. How can you explain it? Its all in the hear, Madani sahab. If Pakistanis want, they can watch Iranian movies or Chinese movies or listen to Iranian music. Probably they are more available than Indian movies and music through official channels. Still, ordinary Pakistanis cannot get enough of Indian movies and music. You are yourself listening to Pandit Bhimsen Joshi of Kirana Gharana instead of some Iranian musician. In fact, you probably dont even know any Iranian musician.

Madani sahab, yeh dil ka maamala hai. Its all in the heart and soul of the people. No force can change that. People in Pakistan's NWFP and Baluchistan may look west, but Punjab and Sindh will always look east and that is where most of your population lives. You can force people to do a lot, but you cannot force what they like or dislike. You cannot force Punjabis, Sindhis and Mohajirs to behave like Saudi or Turk, no matter how many centuries you want to try. It is impossible.

The other thing to understand is the Iranians, Saudis and Arabs also do NOT consider Pakistanis to be their own people. They treat you like aliens because you are aliens. They consider you has hindus who have converted and that will never change. Woh aap ko kabhi izzat nahi denge. They will treat you like junk. On the other hand, when Pakistanis travel to India, they are treated like long lost relatives. People hug and kiss them and give them favorable treatment. Pakistani kids are treated free in hospitals. Pakistanis are now getting involved in IT sector in India. So how can you compete with that feeling when people in Iran and Saudi Arabia look at you and want to spit in your face?

Madani sahib, basically India and Pakistan are destined to have good, close relations and nothing can stop that. When the people like each other so much, the artificial boundaries cannot last forever. They will be separate countries but will become like US and Canada, especially with the growth in Indian economy. So it is time that buzurgs like you admit the reality and work towards good relations between the countries. You have tried being separate and being in arms of people in your west. It hasnt worked out. They dont want you and you dont want to be there. So why resist the obvious thing? Your heart is towards the east, not the west.

Harold and Kumar Escape From Gitmo Beej, is kumar of the harold/kumar duo related to you? Your postings sometimes do reveal that you are high on weed like him.....

My Most Memorable Journey Pakis yaaron, just give up your stupid enmity with india.....we know you guys love india in spite of all your nautanki of pretend hatred....just say it aloud and be done with it......it will be quite liberating.... :-)

Akbar and Alexander Re:ajeya
"That is why a newer version of Islam, with a new "prophet" would be very helpful (it's all bullshit anyway, so what's the difference? Idiots have their "religion", and everybody is happy)."

Shut up bihari.....what does a loser bihari like u know about religion?.....go milk your cows and steal money from someone....

Akbar and Alexander Ajeya,

Why are you so ashamed of your Bihari background? Bihar is also part of India....I understand that it is traumatic to call Laloo Prasad Yadav as dad and Rabri Devi as mom....but so what?....reality is what it is.....garv se kaho ki tum bihari ho!!....keep the bihari flag flying high.....

Akbar and Alexander Ajeya,

Why are you so ashamed of your Bihari background? Bihar is also part of India....I understand that it is traumatic to call Laloo Prasad Yadav as dad and Rabri Devi as mom....but so what?....reality is what it is.....garv se kaho ki tum bihari ho!!....keep the bihari flag flying high.....

Akbar and Alexander Re:nkg

In the Indian army today, I dont believe there is any kind of segregation as far as food or living quarters are concerned. On the front, everyone does everything together.

Yes, I am interested more in the military history. The Aryans had superb military traditions and they used to worship their weapons. Alexander discovered their military prowess when he attacked north-west India. Their military instinct got blunted over the centuries so much so that they could barely resist foreign occupation, until they rediscovered their vigor after becoming sikhs. It is a fascinating aspect of Indian history to think about.

Akbar and Alexander Re:ajeya

You are indeed a Bihari. Say pranam to your dad Laloo Prasad Yadav and mom Rabri Devi!! By the way, there is no shame in being a Bihari.....

Akbar and Alexander Re:nkg#84 (contd)

There is a very interesting incident mentioned in Baburnama, when Babur was attacking North India. On the eve of a battle with the Rajputs, he noticed that the Indian military camp had several fires burning in the distance. When he asked about it, he was told that the different Rajput subcastes were cooking their food separately. Babur immediately said that the battle would be won. If people wouldnt eat with each other, why would they give up their life or limb to fight for each other? Indeed, Babur crushed the Rajputs.

Incidentally, the same hindushahi hindu rulers who got pulverized by Ghaznavi a few centuries back, had converted to Islam by that time. They were the Janjua clan. They sided with Babur against the hindu rajputs.