An ode to RSS

I do not know what your experience of the RSS is, but to the best of my experience, they are wholly dedicated to inculcating nationalism in the hearts of the populace at large. That they choose to call this nationalism Hindu nationalism does not reduce their nationalism to just those who believe in Hinduism. For the RSS the word Hindu is akin to Bharath, as in Bharath Mata ki Jai. However, I must concede that the BJP has not been successful enough in upholding the national vision of the RSS in the field of politics - they often find it difficult to transcend electoral compulsions. Nevertheless, due to the unfading light of nationalism emanating from the RSS, we shall pass through the present darkness and live to see resurgent India as the pride of humanity.

The new 7 wonders of the world

[This is in response to a blogger who wondered who authorised the organisers of the 'new 7 wonders of the world'.]

The organizers have authorized and empowered themselves. In a democracy we are allowed that and we cannot grudge them on being original about the idea. However, what is not democratic is that it is not a one-person-one-vote affair. Apart from being able to vote again and again using different e-mail ids, you can also pay and buy the right to vote. So the whole exercise is a sham. Nevertheless, as the 7 ‘winners’ would have a lot to gain by way of tourist publicity, we might want to vote because we do not want to miss the propaganda benefits that the monuments we like would gain. It is a shame that the channels in India, while naturally calling for a vote for Taj Mahal, is not mentioning the Angkor Wat, a great edifice in honour of the Indian culture.