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Date sent: Sat, 21 Feb 1998 14:19:51 EST
From: <Tiliya@aol.com>
Subject: How to rig elections by Prem Panicker

It's so painful reading such an article about my country. I do know that such crimes are committed by so-called leaders, but each news item gives me a similar kind of a pain. Yet, I go and find myself something else which might give me some kind of pride -- be it history, and yes, I do find it. It still flickers!!

Date sent: Sun, 22 Feb 1998 01:48:55 -0800
From: <sonya@zebra.net (Sony Anthony)>
Subject: How to rig elections: A primer

It's like the chicken and egg problem. Because there is an inferior system, more inferior things come out of it. And the inferiority grows exponentially.

Here's a fantasy that will (may) result in improvement.

1. Everybody who wants to be a politician should have a basic qualification in politics. This qualification will evaluate things like his decision making ability and courtesy. Only people passing this course can become politicians.

2. People eligible to vote should have a minimum qualification (10th grade) as well. (I agree there will be some intelligent illiterates not making a good choice. But the overall selection of the politician will still be better I think).

Date sent: Sun, 22 Feb 1998 19:23:23 -0800
From: JP RAGHAVENDRA <jp.raghavendra@Eng.Sun.COM>
Subject: How to rig elections: A primer

In spite of knowing what goes on during elections, aren't there measures taken at all? I mean what worth will India as a nation be if this continues to affect us like this.

The Indian press has been reporting all these kinds of manipulations ever since Independence. Have things improved a bit? Is there no accountability? Is there one political party or even one politicianwe can rest our hopes on? Every party has criminals. Aren't people the real fools?

Seeing such pathetic things, I only visualise one thing -- a day will come, when people will have to resort to violence for basic things like food, water and shelter. And people will kill each other for survival.

Date sent: Wed, 25 Feb 1998 00:19:04 EST
From: <MKohli1020@aol.com>
Subject: Health - Issues '98

Dr Prem Aggarwal's note is laudatory and should be encouraged to the hilt. Yet, an educated man such as Dr Aggarwal who according to his credentials is the head of the IMA should understand a fundamental flaw in his vision. Does he realise while he can certainly ask the politicians and political parties to do what he has suggested, he can himself do a lot to inculcate the same -- I mean regarding the socialised concept of health care in India.

In our medical education curriculum it is seldom stressed to think about the wider ramifications of medicine that he suggests and the impact it has on society. Issues like population control, environmental degradation, sanitation etc are NEVER talked about. We bring astonishingly brilliant doctors to India and the world, yet we never teach these young doctors to think large in terms of the usefulness of their knowledge to the community and society.

We make them extremely literate but we certainly do not educate them enough. These are important concepts that cannot be relied upon to be corrected by politicians (who in our country have a track record anyway of only lowering standards not uplifting them). If educated, knowledgeable and powerful folks like Dr Aggarwal keep on looking in the direction of politicians to correct everything in society, of society then we'll still be having the same conversation in 2025 and the difference will be that Dr Aggarwal will be quoting the figure of 3.5 to 3 billion and not 1 billion population!!!

In short Dr Aggarwal and his counterparts in similar positions should not sit on their backsides and demand this that and the other from politicians, but should be enterprising enough to work with the means they have and do it to the best.

David was small and short in front of Goliath, but was enterprising enough to use his mind to accomplish a feat which no one could imagine. Dr Aggarwal be a David!!!!!!

Date sent: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 13:35:52 +0530
From: "M. YAMAZAKI" <ihindly@giasdl01.vsnl.net.in>
Subject: Interview with Shri Poornam Viswanathan

I found this site very interesting. Many of us are not aware of such interesting people. As such, this type of sites really help us to explore such great people, who experienced life closely.

I am very happy and thrilled to see it. And I request you to continue this in the same manner.

S Sridevi

Date sent: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 05:02:38 -0700
From: "R R" <gururaj@mailcity.com>
Subject: Consumer is king

A very pertinent article. Issues such as these (as well as on education, which the Dilip D'Souza and Thakores have written commentaries about) should have been the focus of the election and the debate among the 'intelligentsia.' Instead we are preoccupied with dead issues like the Babri Masjid, Bofors and who is aligning with whom. The educated and the privileged actually portray their own self interest as 'national' interest. Vested interests merrily play on these.

When the great mass of people beg to differ in their opinion, as usually evidenced by the outcome of the elections, there is a great deal of breast beating by the intelligentsia about how the country is 'going to the dogs' when actually it is doing nothing of the kind. The unhappiness is mostly about one section losing control of leadership. It did not deserve it anyway. Much of the wailing, I feel, is deliberately set up to take away credit for the good work done by those who are not one of 'us'.

It is a pity that the BJP's espousal of swadeshi is not portrayed enough for what it is: returning favours to its financiers at the expense of the consumer who is the common man. If this is not corruption, I wonder what is.

Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 11:07:33 +0530
From: "Umesh Ranglani" <ucr@giasbm01.vsnl.net.in>
Subject: Farzana Versey

I beg to disagree with the views elicited in the above mentioned article. It's easy to condemn than condone. Give us a better alternative and then condemn. Family values cannot be appreciated by people who haven't experienced them. Though the term being very general cannot be defined, it can be seen in people's upbringing. Anyway, what is our knowledgeable author trying to point out? Is it that people should start living in and raise bastards, or stop reproducing at all! If you don't have a better alternative, please shut up!  

Umesh Ranglani

Date sent: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 15:44:03 -0500
From: Don Reisman <dreisman@ix.netcom.com>
Subject: The root of all evil: Farzana Versey

That was an interesting article. I suppose there are families and then there are families. I view the family as a collaborative venture, much like a business venture, there are some failures and some gains, some good and bad decisions, but it is not one person's responsibility to make that happen -- it's everyone's responsibility.

So, I say, when a woman meets a bad decision in her family, let her not then be a hypocrite and instead just say no. Speaking from experience, I will say that women may be surprised to find out how one is eventually respected for that decision by the very people who opposed it! Define the family unit anyway you like, your self and spouse, your very single self, or you and your friends -- BE HAPPY!

Radhika

Washington DC

Date sent: Mon, 30 Mar 1998 17:12:32 -0800
From: "James R. McLaughlin" <mcfam@tidepool.com>
Subject: A Break

Your short story was a nice break in my search for a pre-Civil War shorthand book. I suspect that the diary written between 1861 and 1865 was in PITMAN shorthand, but I don't even know if there are other shorthand methods! Wading through all those sites for computer happy faces which nowadays passes for shorthand has left me (:<).

Date: Mon, 24 Nov 1997 09:50:26 -0700
From: chandren Kaliyaperumal <chandren.kaliyaperumal@mci.com>
Subject: Cauvery

It is a very tempting writing which tempts me to tour along the course of the Cauvery sometimes later. I am happy that you have pictured to the world how Tamil culture and Cauvery are inseparable.

Keep it up and bring more rivers to Rediff and how each civilisation survived on its path.

Date: Sun, 07 Dec 1997 14:23:42 -0500
From: amit sood <asood@top.eng.utoledo.edu>
Subject: Cheetah

Superb!

It was good that you clarified the point about the Cheetahs thinking about the children as prey because of their size. Otherwise, too many people would have got ideas.

Date: Sat, 27 Dec 1997 12:29:28 EST
From: Vaidesi <Vaidesi@aol.com>
Subject: Shobha De on Disneyland

Hi, just saw Shobha De's article on Disneyland and squirmed at her high-handed attitude towards America's Hispanics. This armchair writer obviously has no empathy nor understanding of a community that has fought every bit of the way to become part of the American dream. But coming from someone who has made a living out of laughing at others, this is not surprising.

Desikan Thirunarayanapuram

Washington DC

Date sent: Sun, 15 Feb 1998 21:15:31 +0100
From: Massimo <ebrav@mbox.queen.it>
Subject: Arundhati!

My name is Paola, and I love India and its writers. I spent a lot of time in India, four months this winter and several months in the past. I'm reading God of Small Things and I want to give thanks to Arundhati because she had the courage of speaking about awful living conditions of women and low castes. Arundhati, you are great, a great writer with great courage. In Europe, women are with you!

Paola

Date: Friday, February 13, 1998 7:13 PM
From: SurenAnjali Singh <surenanjali@email.msn.com>
Subject: Bollywood '97

Excellent summary. Couldn't have asked for more. The summary came in very handy to me as I am trying to sort out the selection to still keep in touch with Indian films, and make the best of it with the limited time I have with me between my work and family. Thanks, and keep up the good work!

How Readers reacted to Shalabh Kumar's earlier columns

Earlier Mail

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