Get to the Left side of history

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment
History is filled with innumerable incidents of abuse by the privileged. This has affected generations in irredeemable ways. As civilisation learns from those mistakes, the rational thinkers of the era have promised to not repeat the same. It is time to stand up to the promise.
Humans have fundamentally not been able to tolerate equality and collective development. Some of the recent atrocities in human history include
  • The cruelties against native races in various countries including Australia, New Zealand, Africa and the US to name a few
  • The sectarian wars in Hinduism, Islam and Christianity
  • The persecution of Jews
  • Slavery
  • The caste discrimination in India
  • The systematic elimination of minorities in Middle East, Pakistan, India and other South Asian countries
  • The killings of innocents in the communist regimes
  • The territorial greed of People’s Republic of China
  • Centuries of discrimination against women
The time has come for people to stifle the growing impact of divisive forces led by the president of the United States of America, Mr.Donald J Trump. Boris Johnson recently compared Theresa May meeting Donald Trump to some of the dictators the British Queen has met in the past. Nicolae Ceaușescu the former dictator of Romania and Robert Mugabe of  Zimbabwe were the examples quoted. I had to appreciate Boris the Buffoon for this statement. He has rightly compared president Trump to these dictators. He is just as dangerous but has a much bigger impact area.
I do not believe that most Americans actually want innocents to be banned. They do have a fear for security which Trump is exploiting. The true “basket of deplorables” consist purely of his Trumpets, the secretaries he has nominated, his white house team and of course his vice president Mike Pence. His Trumpets are using his election to push forward their civilisation threatening ideologies, while the main reason he got elected is economic populism.
This is the time for the world leaders irrespective of parties to stand up and fight. Malcom Turnbull gave an insipid response to the ban stating, he cannot lecture foreign governments on their security policy. The response for similar from most countries. With the fear of being persecuted by the rogue government under Trump, they either disagreed moderately or didn’t comment. This is morbid and despicable. This is the time where narrow self-interests should be thrown for the progress of the civilisation. This is the time to take a stand. There is no doubt in my mind that this is a distinct decision point in history. You are either for it or against it. We are the cusp of this galactic shift in the governance. Every event in history which we wish didn’t happen, had a crucial decision point. There are no shades of grey in that decision. The history is going to judge us based on our decision.
I am expecting clear actions from the rest of the world. Ignoring self-interests, I want leaders to suspend diplomatic relations to bring Trump to the negotiation table. It doesn’t matter if your GDP is small or if your economy depends on the US at the moment, you have to take a stand. The rest of the world has to unite against the fascist forces. If that doesn’t happen, we are going to see the world where it becomes acceptable to take a discriminatory stand under the guise of national security. The roots of democracy and co-existence are threatened by a handful of rogues who have played word tricks to get into the most powerful political office in the world. It is time for action. I am sure there are thousand reasons for why we do not want to take a hard stand, but saving civilisation trumps them.
This is the time for the people of the world to unite for the betterment of everyone. It is hard for humans to see beyond their selfish interest, but this wave of despicable moves will leave us with a serious dearth of values. We have to resist it for our own survival. It is time for us to take to the streets and march with people who are fighting for humanity, equality, sustainability and liberty. If you think the present doesn’t affect you, it is only a matter of time. Such callous moves will always trigger an avalanche of negative reactions and will take everyone along with it. It is time to show solidarity in a peaceful manner. It is important to show we might lack one leader but as people, we will be united with a common goal in a peaceful manner. The progress made by civilisations across centuries and millennium should not be left to a handful of archaic barbarians. It is time to left on the right.

Obama – How do I look at his rule?

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment
There is no denying that the US election was the most watched event in 2016. With everyone focusing on the traits of the president-elect Donald Trump, the incumbent is busy completing his exit formalities. Everyone close to the White House will acknowledge that Obama is extremely careful on how history is going to judge him and the legacy he wants to leave. Here is how I feel about his last eight years as the president of the United States.
Barrack Obama, has been able to galvanise the pseudo-leftists of the US in a way comparable to his notorious and wicked democratic predecessor Bill Clinton. The left media has almost made is a sacrilege to criticise him. Something again was done in mid-1990s with Bill Clinton. Overall, Mr. Obama is definitely better than Clinton in almost every aspect,  however, that doesn’t cover up his rather massive flaws. A socialist myself I want to highlight these in a way the mainstream media doesn’t want. Every criticism of him has been swatted with two sticks one of racism and other of pro-right fear mongering. Guess what I am not the one to fall for it. It is paramount for the left to critically analyse every decision otherwise it becomes a faith.
NDAA
History of civilisation, especially the United States has emerged from abysmal atrocities on human and civil rights. However, the constitution has been a strong bond in ensuring liberty prevails over reactionary decisions taken on fear. George Bush started this by declaring a state of emergency and followed it with Patriot Act, FISA amendments etc. Obama exploited this fear in his own calm way. The NDAA was an example where people’s fears got exploited and ensured there is dictatorial powers for the President of the US. It gives the president the right to suspend Habeus Corpus at will. The clauses are so vague and open that it was almost waiting to fall into wrong hands. Guess what, now it is for Donald Trump to use. The left media which was behind all the atrocities of Bill Clinton is now behind Barrack Obama. The abject hypocrisy of Obama in talking about civil rights while taking the fundamental rights away from people including the right to an attorney is for people to see.
Mass Surveillance
Obama was against Patriot Act in all his campaign speeches before getting elected. He rightfully highlighted the massive erosion of civil liberties. However, when he did get elected he was instrumental in making the United States the biggest Surveillance state in the world. He extended Patriot Act, FISA Amendments act and turned blind eye to all the negative impacts he highlighted during his campaign. Did his donors play a part there?
Exit from Iraq
If entry into Iraq was bad the exit was as poorly handled as possible. When I hear Trump talk about taking oil, I am not sure if he realises that is what has actually happened. The country has been left in utter chaos. Bush waged a war with not much of a goal other than to satisfy his war mongering donors who wanted the defence budgets to go up. Obama promised to exit but you don’t ravage a place and then pull out like that. It is not about troops on the ground. It is about showing genuine interest in rebuilding the economy of the country.
Relationship with Saudi Arabia
One can go on and on about how self-esteem disappears in front of wealth but it is very easy to show it by example when you see you world leaders with Saudi Royal family. The notorious terror family is respected and revered as friends. There is no need of a Patriot Act or NDAA but for Saudi Arabia’s policies. The rogue government has been responsible for spreading a terror ideology and Obama prostrated in front of them. The US has helped Saudi by providing intelligence support and more importantly arms support.
Silence to Crime against minorities
Obama has spoken a lot about how minorities have to be respected and the history of discrimination. However, when time comes to act on those he has failed miserably.  Cops have been shooting black people more frequently than ever. Hispanics have been targeted for racial attacks. The native Americans continued to be subjugated. As all these happen Obama decided to look the other way.
Obama Care
Obama Care is a significant step in his government. So, why do I have to criticise him for that. There is a failure to recognise that the act was an interim step. Obama stopped trying after the compromise.  He didn’t bother telling people what it is, a milestone not a destination. It was a compromise to handle a republican congress. Instead, he sat in the accolades of the liberal mainstream media.
Immigration Issues
Obama ended up deporting more Mexicans than his less illustrious predecessor George Bush. For a man who came to power with the support of the minorities, he did not support their cause. The people deported were law abiding and pay taxes. Their only fault is themselves or their parents entered the country without a legal visa to search for a living.
TPP
If there is one place where Obama is as bad as Bill Clinton it is in trade deals. Bill Clinton signed Nafta and ensured that the impact starts after he left office. Obama is planning to do the same with TPP. It is not a trade agreement that is going to support American people or jobs. He feels it is a moral obligation to his donors. The free trade activists don’t understand the impact this has on millions.
North Dakota
Mainstream media gave credit to Obama for stopping the digging for the North Dakota access pipeline. However, that is far from the truth. Obama looked the other way as Native Americans were being attacked and went on record requesting everyone to maintain peace. He did not for once tell the actual state actors to stop protecting corporations and instead protect the civilians.  He felt the pipeline is a necessary part of development.
War Crimes
This to me is the biggest foreign policy failure of Barrack Obama. His malicious intent was very clear in most instances. The drone attacks on civilians in Afghanistan and Pakistan are the worst attacks on humanity. It is hard to defend the move when the drone strike demolishes a hospital run by MSF.  He subsequently follows it up by sending land troops to clear the evidence. The attacks on Yemen is another example. I sincerely wish Obama along with George Bush and Hillary Clinton get tried for war crimes.
Support of Israel
Similar to Saudi Arabia, the US policy on Israel and especially the settlement in the west bank is a question of indifference to the original inhabitants. It irks me when I see Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu joining hands. It has made any diplomatic truce with Palestine impossible. The only exception is when Obama went ahead with Iran deal against the wish of Netanyahu.
Citizens United
When Senator John McCain started the movement to take money out of politics and abolish Citizens United, Obama did not back him up. Obama has stayed on the side of money in politics and has shown enough signs that he has no inclination to take donor interest out of politics. He has not even removed the most corrupt non-democratic setup in modern history. If I retrace everyone’s memory back to his 2008 campaign, he spoke about reducing the corporate lobbying in the US government. Did he do that? No, he just increased it multifold. Why, because his donors want it.
I am sure readers are going to feel my views partisan. The reason is Obama has been glorified enough already. There is no reason to not overlook his achievements as a black president just 4 decades after the civil liberties movement. I support his Affordable Care Act or fondly called as Obama Care as a starting point to guaranteed and free health care. I support the Iran deal or his sanctions against Russia on annexation of Crimea. History is going to look at him kinder than what he deserves and I have to put balance to that perspective by stating the facts.
In summary, Barrack Obama has continuously supported or been passive to injustice against minorities. For a Nobel peace prize winner, he has committed enough war crimes to make the award meaningless. Considering people like Teresa have received the award before, I don’t think the award had any meaning attached to it anymore. Obama administration has been a mixed bag of atrocities, inaction, ineptitude  and some good deals.  In effect,  he has worked for this donors and less for the people of the US. He backed a plan if the donors want him to back it. Some turned out to be good and some atrocious to the people all over but they always turned out to be good for his donors.

Japanese Australians to lodge 18C discrimination case over war memorial

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment
Most horrific historic accounts of the second world war would not talk about the plight of the comfort women. These women mostly 17 and above but some accounts say 10 and above, were take an sex slaves to Japanese militia during the second world war. There are enough evidences of the atrocities for anyone to deny.
Recently the Korean community in Sydney erected a memorial for the victims. This was subsequently objected by the Japanese Australians as an act of racial discrimination and filed a complaint under 18C. With utmost possible I have to say “what the fuck? “. This is insane for the below reasons.
1. It has nothing to do with racial discrimination. It is a part of history which cannot be denied. It is in the league of holocaust and atomic bombing that are purely factual.
2. Japanese people have to own up to what their Government did. It was an institutional crime. You can’t use a different yard stick to the US from yours. No one is asking existing Japanese people to suffer for the crimes of their ancestors. However,  they have to acknowledge history.
3. 18C is not discrimination that is happening not for historic references to acts by people of certain community. It dilutes the law and prevents people from exercising upon actual need.
Such frivolous application of an important legislation dilutes the purpose and gives an impression that these legal provisions infringe on free speech. Acknowledgement of historical atrocities will go a long way in making present better.

How to recognize Dictatorship?

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment
The morning began with news on Syrian army capturing Aleppo.  The United Nations representatives from different countries started fighting over human rights violations, notoriously the ones from the US and Russia. The former cried foul while the latter claimed credit for an amazing and humane victory against terrorists. For semi-aware listeners who constitute the majority, it was an open and shut case one way or other. The reality is not in the middle but somewhere outside. The fight for and against democracy continues.
Democracy is the best amongst all the bad options we have got. To me personally, a democratic government is one which recognises the views of all and ensures the civil rights of all citizens are protected equally. What does this translate to?
1. Protection of human rights irrespective of sectarian and religious beliefs.
2. Rejection of discrimination as a privilege
3. Implement policies for collective growth
4. Elected by people and governed by constitution
The Governments even the democratically elected ones of the first world still don’t stick to it. What gets termed democratic, communist, autocratic, monarchic or dictatorial has become a very subjective term when it is actually not.
A random sample of such non-democratic governments is below.
1. Saudi Arabia is a rogue state governed by dictators. It has singularly been responsible for the spread of terrorism through its Wahabi Salafi ideologies. It is bombing Yemen as we speak with the support of NATO and there is no discussion on that as Syria or North America. It is a bane for moderate Islam.
2. China’s fetish to its One China vision has been destroying civilisations. It is a totalitarian regime where dissent means death.
3. The Cuban regime under Fidel Castro had been no different. It’s development has been marred by human rights violations in spite of the astonishing developments in medicine and education sectors.
4. North Korea is an Orwellian society where the dead dictators are worshiped by the living dictator and his subjects.
Each of these governments are looked differently. Saudi Arabia is looked as a western ally in spite of all its human rights violations. People talk about it but never ever call for any action against them. China is an international bully and countries want to be on their good books. The fact that protest is concerned as treason and such activists are subjected to strong sedition laws is of least importance to sycophants. Cuba and North Korea though are not a lot different but have huge sanctions imposed on them.
There is an obvious cord that connects all these. The elite and privileged force us to believe that regimes are dictatorial only when they are not rich in natural resources and question their authority. That is why Saudi Arabia and China become acceptable while North Korea and Cuba are not. Every dictator has been hailed as a leader by countries like the US or UK. Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan praised Osama Bin Laden and Mujahideen as freedom fighters. Idi Ameen was able to fly to the UK and get a royal welcome. The same holds good for Gaddafi or Saddam Hussein.
So how do I understand dictatorship or a dictatorial regime? To me, a dictatorial or authoritarian regime is one which satisfies one of the below conditions
  1. A government which commits human rights violations against its subjects including genocide
  2. A government which promotes Geneva conventions
  3. A government which suspends Habeas Corpus
  4. A government where dissent is not acceptable and can be punished with treason
  5. A government which is not run by constitution and an official elected by the people
  6. A government where the constitution cannot be amended
  7. A government where an unelected person has unilateral rights to dismiss an elected government
Using these rules, here are examples where even democratically elected government acted authoritarian and dictatorial.
  1. The US and UK government selling intelligence and arms to the Saudi Arabia to kill civilians in Yemen
  2. The US government using force against water protectors in Standing Rock after taking sides with the Big Oil
  3. The Sri Lankan Government under Rajapaksa committing genocide on tamil population
  4. The suspension of Habeas Corpus during the unwarranted emergency declared in India
  5. Pakistan government taking sides with international terror organisations killing innocent civilians in Pakistan
  6. The unilateral government which suppresses dissent in Singapore
  7. Governments of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh which instigated killings of minorities in their own countries
  8. The NDAA (especially sections 1021 and 1022) and Patriot Act giving permission for mass surveillance and suspension on Habeas Corpus, providing dictatorial powers to the president of the US
  9. The Philippines government murdering drug offenders
  10. Governments like Malaysia where the monarch can dismiss the government
It is paramount for progress of civilisation to ensure we keep identifying and thwarting any dictatorial streak irrespective of whether it is a democratically elected government or the one run by a ‘Supreme Leader’. The result of the intellects surrendering their critical faculties and not protesting against these primitive urges to control and oppress has never resulted in good results.

Tribute before I start

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment

I have for long wanted to write about my views on the Geo-political environment, faiths ,corruption and life. However, before I start writing my views on these, there are couple of people I would like to pay tribute. One is my father, the man who exposed me to critical thinking, rationale, socialism, politics and criticism. I have always admired his knowledge and ability to disambiguate a problem, something that I have to expect considering his mathematical knowledge. The second one is Christopher Hitchens,a man I consider my mentor in many ways. I disagree a lot with both these people, however I have learnt from them that there is no harm in disagreement. Disagreements, debates, introspection and free speech are some of the main drivers for civilisation.

I am product manager by profession and a cynic through out. I have never trusted what people have asked me to trust. There is nothing more disheartening to me than acknowledging any supremacy without a fight. This blog is where I am going to vent my thoughts, frustrations and anger.

I am an anti-theist, philosophically a communist and politically a social-democratic. I am a voracious supporter of free speech and liberty. I believe in seeking truth and my views will definitely be offensive. I will be glad to hear contradictory views and abuses.

The Teresa of Calcutta

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment
Nothing unified India more than their rather morbid reverence of the Albanian nun, the Teresa of Calcutta. As a child growing up in India, I found this submission unhealthy and quite strange. She was hailed as a saviour by both religious and seculars alike. This credulity was widespread and it wasn’t helped by the fact that the only opposition to her were fundamental Hindus. There was no rationale opposition to a lady whose credit has been nothing more than being there in a city of poor. My neighbouring compound was a catholic nunnery. Most of them taught in a Christian school and few of them were in the medical profession. I always wondered how Teresa’s sacrifices are better than the nuns I knew. In an era of no internet and government holding a fascist control over publication, it was impossible for me to get the true picture. I found something utterly strange in the uninhibited reverence of a nun whose accomplishment to me is quite unquestionable.
Years went by and I finally got the time and the channels to do more research. To say the least, I felt my childhood doubts and questions vindicated. She was indeed a fraud. Proselytising people in misery and growing the number of papal slaves, is the least of her immoral activities. She was a timid and fragile sounding tyrant. Her looks camouflaged the deep rooted anti-science and anti-social philosophies, the pillars of the papacy.
The below documentary called Hell’s angel beautifully explain this well-crafted deception. The institution is still thriving, decades after the death of Teresa. Still, nothing noteworthy is done for the ailing except showing them a catholic path of heaven. With the death of her main detractors like Mr.Christopher Hitchens, there is not much of an opposition to her growing legacy.
Finally, she has been canonised two decades after her death. There were few people who did oppose it but they were ghastly dismissed. The most interesting article I read was the one where the author felt that she was always a saint. In my own cynical way, I rather agree. She has done to the catholic institution more than what many popes did in their lifetime. In an age where the church was exposed with many sexual scandals, she was a lone saviour. So far there are no sexual allegations against her. She just associated herself with rich dictators to get the required funding for spreading the bronze age myths of the church. She was indeed a saint for the church, a real Hell’s angel.

Fascination to politeness

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment

What is the fascination in being polite?

I always feel being right is more important than coming across as politeness. No offense, but most of the times when people as you to be polite, they expect you to just accept what they say without raising any opinion. If truth hurts, so be it. I would rather live my life, knowing I have been true to myself than knowing I have cheated myself for everyone else.

All of us are trained from our formative years through reinforcement of behavior. If you do this, I will give you chocolate. If you do that, I will hit you or I will not speak to you. Our thoughts get modified in way that our guardians want it to be. I fear most family problems arise, when these modified thoughts combine with our original thoughts to create a volatile amalgam.

Kids should be taught to express themselves and learn from their experiences. Guardians should help facilitate these processes and not direct it the way they want.

Am I going to be this to my daughter? I want to be, only she can tell if I am.

Dire need for a legal revolution in India

~ Venki ~ Leave a comment

There are some meta-issues which bother me on the Indian Legal System.

  1. Protection of witness
  2. Difference between legal and perceived moral correctness
  3. Process delays
  4. Human Rights intervention
  5. Intensity of the punishment

1. Protection of witness

What prevents the common man from helping victims on the street?

It is extremely disturbing to see eve teasers get away as no one in the crowd is willing to fight the culprit. Accident victims are left dying on the streets as onlookers look at them with utter disdain. At the outset the reasons for all this could be

  • Total apathy towards fellow people
  • Fear of getting hurt
  • Too busy with work
  • There is a population crisis, so a few less will not hurt

While all these could be plausible reasons, the one that I feel runs as a common theme is the legal complexity.

Duration of the legal process

It takes years for a case to be completed in India. There are cases abandoned as the witness, victim and perpetrator have all died a ‘natural death’. With cases taking so long, the witness have absolutely no interest in being part of the legal process. Their general movement across the globe gets inhibited due the legal proceedings.

Treating witness like criminals

Invariably the witnesses are treated like criminals. The person who is willing to help an accident victim by taking she/he to a hospital for treatment, will have to sign a crazy number of documents before the treatment starts. They are forced to be part of the interrogation and investigation done by the cops which turns out to be a hassle.

Lack of protection

In most circumstances, the perpetrator is more powerful than the witness. The investigation does not protect the identity of the witness. This leaves the witness to protect oneself. With their security and existence under threat no person will be willing to risk by protecting others.

If this situation is not corrected, the number of correct judgements will go lesser with time. Judges need witnesses and witnesses need protection. It is an open and shut case.

2.  Difference between legal and perceived moral correctness

There is a big difference between legal correctness and what different communities perceive to be moral correctness. I fear the latter seems to drive the former. It is illegal to run a brothel, however it is legal for two consenting adults to be in a relationship. I fear our cops can’t distinguish between the two.

Civil code cannot be based on the religion I choose. It is really atrocious to know that my actions are treated differently based on my religion. This is plain stupid and not sensitive. No nation can be truly secular if they adapt themselves to different religious believes.

LGBT rights cannot be driven by the perception of different religious communities. Legal system has to take a scientific approach here and not one based on sentiments.

3. Process delays

The legal system in India is many situations behave like lobbyists of the rich. It doesn’t take a cop more than 10 minutes to put a petty thief behind the bars. If the same has to be done for a bureaucrat who misappropriated millions, the process takes weeks if not months and in some cases years. One cannot blame the executive body alone here. When legislators turn corrupt, executors and judiciary are reduced to puppets.

The process delays and inefficiencies continue all the way closure. The loop holes are so many that the rich and famous always have a way to walk through the open cracks. With so much delay in the process, the victim is forced to think on using legal route. Legal action has to be quick and correct. If they don’t go hand in hand, find a way out.

4. Human Rights Intervention

I can’t understand the intervention of human rights with judgement. What makes one think that a minor rapist or a serial killer needs to be provided an opportunity to transform? Why is capital punishment so difficult to accept? If it is because of the mistakes made, then we need to correct that and not the punishment as such. I am not a big fan of frivilous use of capital punishment or torture, however I don’t think the way human rights activism which happens in certain countries is right. In India especially, it is mostly a leisure activity for elite or driven by faith. The human rights activists in India are taking a western solution to the ghastly Indian cultural issues.

The human rights activists in India has a way to gain fame by protesting for criminals and not against the crime.

5. Intensity of the punishment

Punishments should serve a purpose of the society. I recently read about a case, where a young girl was killed by a motorist, racing in one of the main roads of Chennai. Most people in and around this arterial road of Chennai knew about the illegal races being conducted. Cops were repeatedly informed but no action was taken. Now that the accident has taken place, these races were halted for a brief while. The maximum punishment in such cases in 1 – 2 years, if convicted.

A meager punishment can neither serve as a deterrent nor as a eliminator. A minor rapist if proven guilty after years of trial is given 9 years. A deliberate violations of traffic rule which results in an accident are let off with a fine. A culpable homicide is given 2 – 3 years sometimes. Terrorist and mass murderers are protected and given security.  What is going to deter a thief from continuing his activities if he knows the maximum punishment he will get is 6 months of imprisonment with all facilities provided? It also provides him with a more than outside chance of joining politics in the future. Crime seems to be the way to go for people.

The need of the hour is to eliminate the scum of the society. If the punishment for some of the more severe crimes like rape, harassment, homicide, terrorism etc are instantaneous, ruthless and deadly then it leaves more room for comparatively lesser crimes to get more stringent punishments.

The legal system currently is in a state of paralysis. There are a few cases which stir up some hope, but they are rare and out of common man’s reach. There is a dire need to revamp the complete legal framework. The current penal code has obvious flaws which cannot be plugged. The country needs to invest time into building a judicial structure and legal framework which is accessible, quick, honest and honest.