State of Fear

Hello people

Things are great in Baroda. The rain has abated, and the donkey-mating season is in full bloom. Any time of the night, in every alley, you would see them making most of the opportunity :)

Today we celebrated our Independence, but this (long due) addition to the blog is more about some interesting bits of the book that I recently read:

Well he talks a lot about global warming due to the greenhouse effect, and presents a lot of facts/studies and disapproves the entire theory!!! That is what it is, a theory, there are no conclusive statistics, facts that it is in fact taking place. Over the last 40-50 years temperatures have gone up in some cities, and gone down in others. But if you compare it for the last 150-200 years then they remain balanced! CO2 started increasing post the industrial revolution, so the temperatures should be rising for then, but studies don't show any conclusive evidence.

About temp rise in the future - they are all approximations, theories, all in all... guesses! Scientists have done a lot of work on computer models, but the reality is that we still don't have a good understanding of climate/environment. So all these are mere guesses.

And things like, Greenland is melting - well it has for the last 6000 years! The melting rate has not increased in the last century! Snow on Kilimajaro is melting? Thatz because of deforestation, cause drier wind is hitting the mountain. Its crazy!

He has also bought on the table some more interesting discussions. One of the most thought provoking is on "State of fear" - the environment that the politicians, lawyers and media have created and that of fear. Similar to the one George Bush is accused off in Fahrenheit 9/11

DDT is not a carcinogenic! There has been more loss of human life by banning DDT (because of the rise in malaria cases) than because of it. In a study people where exposed to DDT for 2 years, and it did not seriously affect them. The pesticides used to replace DDT were more expensive & harmful then DDT. US decided not to provide aid to countries that used DDT, and thus there is a worldwide ban on DDT! The US environmentalists realized their mistake when US had already made this part of their foreign policy.

Then he talks about Eugenics. Do you know anything about that? Well the theory developed in US and was endorsed by almost everyone, (including Presidents, Graham Bell!) Its said if Jesus were alive, He would have supported it. The theory postulated a crisis of the gene pool leading to the deterioration of the human race. The best human beings were not breeding as rapidly as the inferior ones - the foreigners, immigrants, Jews, degenerates, the unfit, and the "feeble minded". The center of this theory shifted from US to Germany, and gave birth to concentration camps. You know the rest of the history. So basically US then fought a war with Gery for the same reasons. Its true that the victor does write the history, cause this potion were conveniently forgotten!

Well an American has written the book, so I do want to get more perspectives on these topics. In some parts I got the impression that he was defending USA's controversial stand on the Kyoto Protocol. But it was really interesting to read the book. Apart from the fact, that the author has tried to add some romance into the novel, which I always had a feeling he didn't have the capacity to conceive. He has done an average job of it, but if anyone can be patient with his arguments and scientific theories, then I am sure they would enjoy the book!

The link below gives a pretty good sum up & description of the book:
http://www.techcentralstation.com/011905B.html

Thatz it from this side of the world, I know you want more, but nope - not happening! :p

Guten nacht,
Prabs

The Turban-ator is back!

Yes, the metamorphosis is complete; the transformation has been made. I just believe in what the Gurus have preached, and I don’t like people who have half faith. It’s the Gurus who asked us not to cut the hair, and then along with everything else I should trust them on this one too! So discussion over, decision made and implemented. My parents, of course are thrilled about the development :)


Well I have been in a phase of reflection about the world, spirituality, God, karma, stuff like that. I think it has been ages since I have been asking people what their purpose in life is or their vision? Everyday life experiences and reading has also added a lot of perspective? I definitely do not have authority on the subject, but do feel that I have an understanding that has helped me answer some of my deeply held questions and move on (finally) to pursue other questions, more in the real world. It would be interesting to share ideas with anyone who has opinions on the subject.


God in my opinion is a leader and not a manager

He doesn’t govern each and every action of ours. He has equipped the human being to find answers to his own problems, he has given us the power to create, to demolish, to be conscious of our activities, to burgeon in any circumstance & befriend extremities, so on and so forth. If he were to involve Himself in each and every circumstance, then it would just spread him too think, he would not have the time to do anything else, and reach everyone. It’s simply not possible. And why should He? He made us capable to fight our own battles.

So this permanently answers the question like
“Is life Fair?”, “How could God do this to innocent people?” or “Why did this happen to me? What did I do wrong? I pray everyday.”

• This focuses a lot of “action”. In my World, God likes action-oriented people. Life happens. If you don’t see light at the end of the tunnel, then switch it on yourself.
  
• This also puts an end to all the cribbing, complaining and our long list of requirements from God! Totally unnecessary, stop wasting his time. If you want it, believe in yourself enough to make it happen.

And then, there is the question of “Purpose (& role) of an individual”. What about things that happen to people beyond their control (e.g. a child born with AIDS)?

Well, God sets “the role & purpose”. He has an equation to satisfy, and there are factors at play, which are beyond me (right now). We need to trust Him on this one, understand our role and play it to best of our abilities. If you don’t understand it, then fine, still give your best, you will understand it sooner or later.

A quote from the Lord of the Rings, which I think is beautiful
It’s not our decision, about the time we have in this world.
However, We need to decide, what to do with this time.

This makes me positive and makes me give my best!




Then there is this thing about “What is success?”
Is it winning awards, winning the election, graduating, getting discharged? Ever felt that the anticipation was so much better than the final end itself? Foreplay vs the actual thing?
“What do you do after achieving your hearts biggest ambition?”

The answer to this was simpler than I thought. I had read it so many times, that I often overlooked the greater dept of the words. Success is a journey. I often made the mistake and find people making the mistake. You need to enjoy the journey up the mountain because the peak would not be much different from a place 500 m below it. If you didn’t enjoy it, you wouldn’t enjoy the peak. And God exists in details. It’s enjoying these small things, details that makes it fun & worth it in the end.



Something that has worked wonders for me is a 30 sec prayer we learnt when we were young, but for reason I couldn’t understand its worth

“Thank you God!” (I try to list all the things I have to Thank Him… its funny, but the list doesn’t end!
“I have no complaints, whatsoever!”