tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47408499000731545542024-03-10T14:12:22.434+05:30Business MusingsRameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.comBlogger689125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-83925478717890400552021-05-13T20:28:00.001+05:302021-05-13T20:28:46.781+05:30The day Table Tennis died<p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R3b81MTvY3A/YJ089VOyuVI/AAAAAAAACGk/GyasPJvcOeMb4dq48z9L4Z7U21wnMwehgCLcBGAsYHQ/s590/v-chandrasekhar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="590" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R3b81MTvY3A/YJ089VOyuVI/AAAAAAAACGk/GyasPJvcOeMb4dq48z9L4Z7U21wnMwehgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/v-chandrasekhar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> The year
was 1977. The venue was Vallabh Vidyanagar in Gujarat. At stake was the Barna
Bellack Cup; the national trophy for the team Table Tennis Championships. As
was the case those days, institutional teams always won the team title –
usually Railways or Services. They simply recruited the best players and gave
them a job in the “sports quota”. Jobs were difficult to get those days and the
attraction was irresistible. Weren’t they professional sportsmen you might ask
? Ha Ha. In 1977, what was a pro ?<p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Railways
duly made it to the finals. Against them was Tamil Nadu. Chandra, Hari and
Sekhar playing for TN against a stalwart lineup from Railways. A young,
handsome guy was captaining TN. Chandra was every girl’s heartthrob. He was unstoppable
that year. He won all his three matches and TN won the Barna Ballack Cup for
the first time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The small TT playing
community in Tamil Nadu was ecstatic. We walked fifteen feet tall. Chandra was
our hero.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">That year,
for some reason, the individual championships were cancelled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1979 at Durgapur, Chandra duly went on to
win the individual championships. TN couldn’t win the team title – Hari was
simply too erratic and although Chandra won all his matches, TN lost. Same
story was repeated in 1980 in Bangalore – Chandra could be counted to win all
his three matches, but who would win the other two for TN ? But Chandra would,
of course go on to win the individual championships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>1981 in Palghat provided the climax. Hari was also in good form and TN was back at the top. And in the individual
event Chandra won handsomely to make it a hattrick three years in a row. It was
a clean sweep. Chandra went on to captain India at the Commonwealth Games and
was a semi finalist, the first time an Indian had reached there. Plaudits
followed. He won the Arjuna Award. He seemed to be destined for great things.
Those days , if you were a girl with some interest in sport, you either swooned
for Prakash Padukone or Chandra; champions in their sport and handsome men !</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">You would
have to go to a Table Tennis tournament in Madras to feel what Chandra was.
There would<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>be a big crowd and the noise
was deafening. Chandra, Chandra chanted the crowd. So many times, I would
return back to my hostel room unable to sleep after all that excitement.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Fate has a
strange way of delivering a blow when you least expect it. Chandra had a
nigglesome knee injury and went in for a routine surgery at Apollo Hospitals.
He was expected to come back home in a day. Instead, something went badly wrong
with the anesthesia and Chandra was left in a coma for a month. How he survived
is a medical miracle. He lost his vision, mobility and speech. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Full page
ads were taken to fund his treatment in a speciality hospital in the US. The
Indian Cricket team chipped in. No less than the Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi
intervened and helped Chandra to seek treatment in the US. He was in Chicago
for some three years. He finally returned recovering some of his mobility,
sight and speech. That he even recovered to this level was simply due to his
grit, determination and champion spirit. Lesser mortals might not have made it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Table
Tennis is a sport where you need incredible reflexes, probably more than in any
other sport. At the prime of his life and at the peak of his sporting career,
Chandra was dealt a body blow.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">In true
Chandra fashion, he refused to give up his love for the sport. Despite being
able to walk only with a shuffling gait , an inability to speak without a slur
and a weak eyesight, he became a coach.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">What else
would you expect from Chandra. His wards, Chetan Baboor, Raman , Mythili have
all gone on to become National Champions. The current national champion
Sathiyan is a Chandra protege. Chandra is also the current head of the Tamizhaga Table Tennis Association and runs an Academy in Chennai.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">And then
came Covid. Chandra, who overcame death thirty five years ago, beat coma, beat
crippling disabilities, triumphed over every adversity, was tragically taken
away yesterday.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">You have to
pause and ask “Is life fair” ? It certainly wasn’t to Chandra. What a hand it
dealt to a champion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">It is the
day Table Tennis died.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">V.
Chandrasekhar died yesterday, 12 May 2021, due to Covid. He was 64. Rest in
peace Chandra. </span></b></p>
<p> </p>Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-13719560200288490862018-09-13T17:45:00.000+05:302018-09-13T17:45:00.726+05:30On the RoadI have set off on a road trip again.<br />
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Blogging about it <a href="http://v2.travelark.org/travel-blog/indigoite/4">here</a><br />
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Drop in there, if you fancy a travelogue.Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-30512416069666921322018-05-10T21:07:00.000+05:302018-05-10T21:07:39.519+05:30Wallowing in Nostalgia<div style="text-align: justify;">
This blogger has reached a stage in life where he often turns nostalgic. Ahhh - the good old days ... Sigh ...</div>
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Today it was nostalgia in ads. All from about 40 years ago. Colour television had not yet come to India (it came with the Asian Games of 1982). Black & White TVs were few and far between and it was perfectly OK to go to your neighbour's house to watch TV because they had a set and you didn't. Of course, there was only one channel - Doordarshan, the state TV. </div>
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Ads were primarily through cinema. Before the movie started, there would be a series of ads shown in full colour. Those days, you eagerly looked forward to the ads as much as you looked forward to the movie itself And then when TV came, these ads morphed to TV, but the largest reach was through cinemas for a long time. Of all the ads, there were 3 or 4 that almost everybody knew by heart. We could hum along, skip along to each of them.</div>
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First Gold Spot. When Coca Coal exited India in 1977, a local entrepreneur quickly cashed in with equivalents - Thums Up (Coke), Limca ( a lemon drink) and Gold Spot (Fanta). The Gold Spot ad was a classic - Indians with a taste for Bollywood might recognise a young Javed Jaffrey. Gold Spot, alas, disappeared when Coca Cola reentered India in the late 1990s.</div>
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/jDLLMFGQs5c/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jDLLMFGQs5c?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div>
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My second classic of course has to be Liril, by Unilever. It completely took India by storm sending the soap skyrocketing as the largest selling soap in India. The ad was so successful that the model Karen Lunel was paid by Unilever never to appear in any other ad ever again. She will forever be the Liril girl. Liril is still going strong in India - it was , and has always been, an "India soap". Unilever , despite being global never sold Liril in any other country, but in India it was a mega hit.</div>
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My personal favourite of them all is Close Up also from the Unilever stable. The wonderful Close Up jingle; I can still remember the words and hummed along when I listened to the song today. Alas, the ad has been lost to history. I can't find it on You Tube at all. When Close Up was launched with this ad, it caught on to become one of India's best selling toothpastes. Today, Unilever has withdrawn from toothpastes in most countries, but in India, Close Up is still a star. The ad seems to have been lost, but the song on which it is based is very much there - Walter Navarro's lovely classic. Listen to the song and those of you old enough to remember that ad, imagine it before your eyes. Even better that way.</div>
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Why is it that my vision is a tad blurred today !Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-35873586427189938352018-05-08T10:57:00.000+05:302018-05-08T10:57:48.379+05:30Amazon vs Walmart in India<div style="text-align: justify;">
The war for the future of the retail trade in the world is going to be fought in India. It has happened by default, but happen it nevertheless has. The irony hasn't struck the policymakers in India as yet - they of the medieval dinosaur disposition of still not allowing foreign companies into the retail sector in India. If that makes your head reel, then this is India, true to its form.</div>
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Globally, Walmart (the old incumbent) and Amazon ( the not so new disruptor) have been itching for a gigantic fight for a long time. In the US, Walmart dominates in store and Amazon dominates online. There it is a fight between one form of retail trade and another. Not a headlong fight. In China, which would have been the logical war zone, both have failed against domestic competition - not least because the playing field is not level (actually tilted a full 90 deg). Hence India, by default, has become the battlefield.</div>
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<br /></div>
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It actually is peculiar that India is the chosen fighting arena. This is a country where foreign firms are still not allowed to open a store in India. You need domestic partners. Every rabble rousing politician has demonstrated and agitated in the past against allowing wicked foreigners into the retail trade. Most of India's retail trade continues to be the mom and pop store. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Amazon was the first to enter. Amazon.in is now globally second (distantly) only to Amazon.com in the Amazon universe. E Commerce is still minuscule in India but given India's size , even minuscule is big. Amazon has been pouring money into India, adopting the time tested formula from the US. Their competition was Flipkart, a local E Commerce provider. Now Walmart is acquiring Flipkart. This will now become an all out battle between the two for the online market . Right now Flipkart and Amazon.in are close in India with Flipkart being the marginal leader. With the acquisition, Walmart will now be bigger online than Amazon in at least one country.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I wonder what the other global majors are thinking about all this. Carrefour and Tesco, the old European giants, are not present here at all. OK Tesco is , via a joint venture, but you would be hard pressed to find a store. The newer European upstarts Aldi, Lidl, et al, can't point to India on a map and so, have not come. The Chinese, notably Tmall and JD seem to be interested only in slugging it out in home territory. Alibaba is of course more global in outlook, but they are in the B2B space. So its just the Americans wanting to fight in India.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Where is the famous Ramamritham in all this. How come none of the rabble rousers are yelling their heads off against evil Americans ? The truth is that both Ramamritham and the political worthies are old foggies. Neither know how to switch on a computer, let alone how to buy anything online. Events have overtaken these dinosaurs before they have realised what's happening. The same thing happened with the Indian IT industry a couple of decades ago. The only way to beat Ramamritham is with something he does not understand.</div>
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So now the war will begin. This blogger is salivating at the prospect. You see, he is a piddling customer of both Amazon and Flipkart. "When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers", goes the old saying. I beg to differ. When these two elephants fight, it will be the grass that will flourish. I am looking forward to all the lovely deals and freebies !</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-46976128064370466002018-04-28T21:11:00.000+05:302018-04-28T21:11:12.114+05:30Where have all the promotions gone ?Many men of this blogger's vintage are seriously challenged when it comes to matters of fashion. This blogger is a card carrying member of the tribe who behaves like this when it comes to clothes<br />
<br />
- A few shirts and a few trousers, all looking very similar, hang in the closet<br />
- A shirt is plucked from the leftmost corner, the trouser is picked from the rightmost corner and worn<br />
- As they are laundered , they join the back of the queue in the hanging sequence; thereby ensuring an automatic first in first out principle !<br />
- When a hole appears in any of the garments, it is thrown away <br />
- When there comes a day when not enough shirts or trousers are hanging in the closet, a shopping expedition ensues and half a dozen items are bought and the cycle repeats all over again !!<br />
<br />
The last of the above happened recently to yours truly and off I trooped off to the mall to replenish supplies.<br />
<br />
By way of background, you must know that this is the way men's clothes are sold in India<br />
<br />
- An anemic looking shirt or trouser is priced at a king's ransom. Let us say that in India it is something like Rs 3000 (circa $50 ; a ridiculous price to pay for a shirt)<br />
- Random words such as 'Uncrushables", "Perfect Fit", "Wrinkle Free", "Soft", "Smooth" , all of which are nonsense, are displayed prominently to justify the price tag. Of course they all mean absolutely nothing.<br />
- Then a promotion scheme is run wherein you get 2 items free, if you buy 3, or even Buy One and Get One Free (BOGOF is an accepted word in Indian English)<br />
- Everybody is happy<br />
<br />
Men at the level of fashion consciousness as this blogger , shop for clothes as follows<br />
<br />
- Enter the store. Go to the section where their size is stocked<br />
- Pick the first three shirts on display<br />
- Pick the first three trousers on display<br />
- Go to the cash counter and pay<br />
- Snigger at the lady draping and preening in front of the mirror and and suggest rudely that no amount of this or that garment can hide the fact that she needs to go to the gym !<br />
- Exit store, preferably within 5 minutes<br />
<br />
Accordingly, I entered a store and performed all of the above maneuvers. And then when I went to the cash counter to pay, the guy said I had to pay for all of them. I told him that I would of course pay for all as per whatever promotion scheme was running. He said there was no promotion scheme and I had to pay full price for all. WHAT ? I have never heard anything more ridiculous. He repeated that I had to pay full price. I said, I don't understand. He patiently said - No promotion. The he spelt it out letter by letter - N O ; P R O M O T I O N. <br />
<br />
I stalked out of the store yelling that he must be joking and if he expected me to pay $50 for a shirt, he must be a member of the Monster Raving Loony Party (such a political party actually exists in Her Majesty's land). I stormed into the next shop and went through the same sequence.<br />
<br />
No promotion. Stormed out and went to the next shop. No promotion. Next shop. No promotion. There wasn't anymore shops to enter into. And I had no shirt to wear tomorrow. So I went back to the first shop, tail between my legs, paid $ 50 and bought just one shirt and slunk back home. There is still a huge hole in my closet, but I am damned if I am going to pay the ridiculous full price tag to fill it up. I shall launder and iron my clothes twice a day and live with just a pair or two !!!<br />
<br />
This facetious post underscores a serious issue. The explosion of promotions and consumer behaviour which has now been tailored to buy only promoted items. All promotions are a distortion on a fair price-value equation. The true price of a product can never be determined when crazy promotions are running all the time. The seller tries to hoodwink the consumer, the consumer shops around for what he believes is the best promotion and this has become a complicated dance.<br />
<br />
And so, apparel manufacturers stopping all promotions is a good thing. But then they have cheekily not cut the price tag at all. It remains the ridiculous $50. That's absurd. I live in India and not in the US of A. I am not shopping on Bond Street or the <span class="st">Champs-Élysées</span>. A shirt should cost $10. OK $20. Not $50.<br />
<br />
Every manufacturer has withdrawn promotions at the same time. This smacks of collusion. Is the Competition Commission looking ? Or have the stocks of shirts and trousers of the worthies not diminished enough to warrant a visit to the shop ?Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-29785066258353739892018-04-25T15:45:00.000+05:302018-04-25T15:47:06.068+05:30The Blogger drafts a new law to be passed<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div>
There are various ways to vent out road rage. I am trying a novel experiment here to douse the fire that is consuming me. By attempting to write a law !! Read on and see if you agree.</div>
<div>
<u><b> </b></u></div>
<div>
<br />
<div align="right">
Office of the Frustrated Motorists of Bangalore<br />
Middle of Nagwara Junction<br />
Bangalore - 560045<br />
25th April 2018</div>
<br />
Do No 435/16/346A/FMB/2018-16<br />
<br />
Dear Sirs<br />
<br />
The Motorists Community of Bangalore is considering an amendment to the
Motor Vehicles Act to provide guidance for vehicles driving on the
wrong side of the road. It is recognised that in Bangalore the number
of vehicles driving on the wrong side of the road have exceeded the
number of vehicles driving on the right side of the road. It is
therefore in the public interest that clear rules are formulated in
this regard.<br />
<br />
The draft rules titled "The Bangalore Motor Vehicles (Wrong Side ) Rules
2018 " are hereby being released for public comment &
consultation. We are seeking your opinion on these draft rules so
that they may be considered before the final Rules are framed and
enacted.<br />
<br />
Please submit your final comments to this office on or before 13th May,
2018. <br />
<br />
-sd-<br />
<br />
Assistant Deputy Chief Officer (Acting)<br />
Office of the Frustrated Motorists of Bangalore<br />
<br />
</div>
</div>
<div align="center">
<div align="center">
</div>
<div align="center">
</div>
<div align="center">
</div>
<div align="center">
<u><b>The Bangalore Motor Vehicles (Wrong Side) Rules 2018</b></u></div>
</div>
<u><b>DRAFT</b></u><br />
<u><b><br />
CHAPTER 1</b></u> <br />
<br />
<b>1. Short title, extent and commencement</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) These rules may be called the Bangalore Motor Vehicles (Wrong Side) Rules, 2018. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
(2) They shall extend only to the city of Bangalore, Karnataka. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
(3) They shall come into force on the First day of May, 2018.</blockquote>
<b>2. Need for these Rules</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1)
It is recognised that in the city of Bangalore more people drive on the
wrong side of the road than on the right side of the road.<br />
<br />
(2) The current Motor Vehicles Act is silent on the rules governing driving on the wrong side of the road. <br />
<br />
(3) It is therefore considered expedient in the public interest to frame
clear rules to guide motorists to drive correctly on the wrong side of
the road.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 2</b></u><br />
<br />
<b>3. Definition of Lanes</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) The left most lane on any road is exclusively meant for 2 wheelers coming in the opposite direction.<br />
<br />
(2) The second and third lanes are exclusively reserved for traffic going in the forward direction.<br />
<br />
(3) The right extreme lane (often erroneously called as the fast lane) is meant for</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
a. Four wheelers coming on the wrong side of the road<br />
b. Two wheelers who are preparing to dart into the opposing side of the road<br />
c. Trucks and buses who have broken down and are denoted by some leaves placed on their rear<br />
d. Yellow board taxis who have had a puncture and whose tires are being replaced</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(4) It is expressly clarified that no matter how wide the road is , these four lane rules shall apply.<br />
<br />
(5) When a vehicle is parked in the left most lane, right of way on the
second lane is for the 2 wheeler coming in the wrong direction.<br />
<br />
(6) These definition of lanes cater also to single carriageways where they will apply head on , on both sides.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 3</b></u><br />
<br />
<b>4. Rules regarding Lights</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) Any vehicle coming on the wrong side of the road must have
their headlamps in high beam. It is preferable that high powered lights
are fitted so that oncoming drivers can be blinded as effectively as
possible.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(2) It is optional for such vehicles to have their hazard warning lights on.</blockquote>
<b>5. Rules regarding turn indicators</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) Vehicles coming on the wrong side of the road should not use
their turn indicators at all . (Note that Rule 4 (2) encourages them to
be used as hazard warning lights). </blockquote>
<blockquote>
(2)
Any vehicle signalling with their turn indicator is liable to face a
penalty of a maximum of Rs 1000 or simple imprisonment not exceeding
six months , or both.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 4</b></u><br />
<br />
<b>6. Special Rules for Two Wheelers</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) There must be at least 3 people riding on the two wheeler. If
any of the riders are less than 12 years of age, the minimum number of
riders shall be 4.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(2) The driver
shall carry his helmet on the arm. Under no circumstances shall he wear
it on his head. Only ISI mark helmets are allowed.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(3) The driver shall speak into the mobile phone for the entire
duration of driving on the wrong side of the road. He shall not use the
left hand to hold the phone and instead cradle the phone between his
neck and the head with the head tilted at a minimum of 35 degrees from
the vertical.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 5<br /> <br /> </b></u> <b>7. Rules at Traffic Junctions</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) Traffic lights shall have the following meaning for vehicles coming on the wrong direction of the road</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
a. Red means Go<br />
b. Amber means Go<br />
c. Green means Go</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(2)
At any traffic junction vehicles coming from the wrong side of the
road may either continue on the wrong side of the road or change to the
opposite side. Such change can be executed at any time while crossing
the junction and shall have right of way.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 6<br /> <br /> </b></u> <b>8. Service lanes</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) For sake of abundant clarity it is hereby reiterated that
these Rules are applicable to service lanes to National & State
Highways as well. Motorists are encouraged to avail of this facility and
drive on the wrong side of service lanes.<br />
<br />
(2) It is recognised that all service lanes have either craters of a
minimum dimension of 3ft by 2 ft by 4 ft or a lake of equal dimensions.
Therefore the lane rules stated in 3 above do not apply to service lanes
and any vehicle can occupy any lane.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>Chapter 7<br /> <br /> </b></u> <b>9. U Turns</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) Vehicles coming on the wrong side of the road are permitted to
do a U turn anywhere and at any point in time. This provision is to
enable them to do an instant U turn at the sight of a Traffic Cop in the
distance. Vehicles coming on the right side of the road must give way
for those taking U turns.<br />
<br />
(2) A minimum of 6 points must be executed while performing a U turn. 3 point U turns are not permitted.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(3) All vehicles coming on the wrong side may, at any time, cross
the divider and move on to the right side . Both 2 wheelers and 4
wheelers are allowed to climb the divider and cross over for this
purpose. Vehicles coming on the right side shall patiently wait while
this maneuver is completed. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
(4)
Vehicles coming on the right side of the road shall not honk while
maneuvers described in (1) , (2) and (3) above are being carried out. If
they do provisions of Chapter 8 relating to Road Rage shall apply.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 8<br /> <br /> </b></u> <b>10. Road Rage</b><br />
<blockquote>
(1) In recognition of the extreme stress faced by drivers coming
on the wrong side of the road, it is allowed that they freely curse
those coming on the right side of the road.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(2) In accordance with Karnataka Promotion of Local Language Act, such cursing is permitted only in Kannada.</blockquote>
<blockquote>
(3) Drivers of vehicles coming on the right side of the road shall
keep their mouths firmly shut and enjoy the colourful insults,
especially on the questions of their parentage and the status of the
female members of their family. If they open their mouth they shall be
liable to face a penalty of a maximum of Rs 1000 or simple
imprisonment not exceeding six months , or both.<br />
<br /></blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 9<br /> <br /> </b></u><b>11. Pedestrians<br /> </b><br />
<blockquote>
(1)
Pedestrians are expected to look both sides before crossing the road.
If they only look right, and are run over by a two wheeler coming on the
wrong side, then there is no liability on the two wheeler and it is
entirely the fault of the pedestrian.<br />
<br />
(2) Pedestrians are required to move only sideways while walking on a
road. This is to enable them to look both right and left , to ensure
that they sight vehicles coming on the wrong side of the road early.<br />
<br />
(3) Pedestrians are required to do the 360 degree head rotate while they
are shuffling sideways along the edge of the road. The sequence and
purpose of the rotation is described below<br />
<blockquote>
- First right to check vehicles coming on the right side of the road.<br />
- Then down to avoid the crater, lake, fallen board having 136
photographs of politicians looking like constipated owls, egestion
output of various animals, etc.<br />
- Then left to check vehicles coming on the wrong side of the road.<br />
- Then up to avoid being entangled by electrical / cable TV wires.</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<u><b>CHAPTER 10</b></u><br />
<br />
<b>12. Monitoring and Penalties<br /> <br /> </b><i>(1)
Traffic policemen shall be deployed at strategic locations to check on
compliance with the said rules. They shall be deployed in teams of 2 -
one facing the right side of the road and one facing the wrong side of
the road to effectively catch offenders.<br /> <br />
(2) The maximum fine for offences under these rules is Rs 1000. This can
be compounded by a discrete folded note of Rs 100 slipped unobtrusively
(amount increases to Rs 200 at monthends to ensure no loss of lifestyle
to public servants in the difficult last week of the month) .</i>Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-45193852472081447232018-03-26T09:46:00.000+05:302018-03-26T09:46:36.575+05:30A "different" politician<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
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</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>I received an email from a classmate of mine, who is now the CFO of a large Indian company. It was such a lovely story that I asked for his permission to publish it in my blog. It is contextually, very Indian and the specifics may be unfamiliar to an overseas reader, but the overall story can easily be appreciated.</i></div>
<i><br /></i>
<i>Here is the message from my classmate.</i><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zueawlYLynU/WrhvWwsga_I/AAAAAAAABhE/bDEImBonGCIjM9VX9GwhYHVNBeW-JlqtACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG-20180209-WA0060%2B%2528004%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zueawlYLynU/WrhvWwsga_I/AAAAAAAABhE/bDEImBonGCIjM9VX9GwhYHVNBeW-JlqtACLcBGAs/s320/IMG-20180209-WA0060%2B%2528004%2529.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">(On the left is Mr Konnappa, the MLA who is the subject of this post)</span></i></div>
<br />
<br />
<u><b>PART 1</b></u><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The person with me is Konnappa, MLA (equivalent to a Congressman in a state in the US) from the north west part
of Telangana adjoining Maharashtra. I happened to meet him while pursuing some
factory location.</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
He was originally elected on a BSP ticket - only one of two
MLAs of BSP (Mayawati). But then seeing his good work, the Chief Minister asked him
not to waste his time, join the ruling party and continue his work. So they
merged. His constituency is in the vicinity of Ramagondam, Sirpur, and Singareni coal mines.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Recently the area has seen some factories shut down and
many workers in the streets. He is working hard to bring some industries into
the area or revive the shut ones. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
We learnt about some of the good work that he has been doing. This based on my
colleagues' personal visit to the area and my interaction with him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The closure of factories has thrown some 2400 children potentially out of school - due to
loss of jobs of parents. He has supported the children attending school by
paying their fees - some Rs 34 lacs ($ 50K) per annum. "Children cant afford to lose
their precious years of schooling" is his logic. "Whats the source of funds - Personal?" I quizzed. "No sir I am not that wealthy. I ask some money from Chief Minister, some other like minded
MLAs, I asked some theatre owners, shop keepers and some industries who
support such efforts. I only make up the balance. Its more of a co-ordination
exercise" said he.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Konappa is providing one meal a day for some 1500 poor children in his area. "Half my salary and allowances goes
in this". He had invited one of my colleagues during an earlier visit to eat with
them and said "your colleagues was very pleased to do that." </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Recently some potential investors were visiting a factory
closed for last 3-4 years. "To make it presentable, I worked alongside the workers
to clean it and make it as good as the ... he showed the table top of our
lunch table in Bikanerwala restaurant. If you start any industry here,
I will work one day in the factory free to see that everything goes smooth for
you. "<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
"When your colleague had visited my town, I made him talk
to the workers of a closed factory to pep up their mood. They were all happy
and appreciative." </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
"From last 6-7 months back, I have started a scheme for
pregnant women. Tribal women suffer blood deficiency. This causes several
deaths of the mother during child birth or poor health of children. I have started
giving them 2 kgs Gude (Jaggery) +some other thing he said which he claimed is
good for blood generation + 2 Kgs of Ragi which he claimed he ensures that only the
pregnant get to eat' (may be thru social policing). The deaths have
started coming down. Now the state has witnessed it and wants to roll it
statewide' he said with a pride in his voice. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I did not get the impression that his claims were unjustified. He seemed utterly sincere; guileless for a
MLA. Moreover when the Deputy Chief Minister introduced him to us said, "he is firstly a social
worker; incidentally he happens to be a politician. Ask him for whatever help you
need " </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<u><b>PART 2 </b></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
It was supposed to be the final meeting to say Yes or No as to whether we would take over the closed factory and revive it.
The MLA had done stupendous work in the last 4-6 weeks which would have taken
6-8 months for us. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
It was in relation to takeover and restarting a sick mill.
At stake was the livelihood of 2000 odd workers and their families, the children's
education, daughters' marriage, etc. And a passionate MLA who felt the weight
heavily on his shoulder.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The Secretary to the government informed us of the decisions of his govt on various
help, assurances and policy incentives and assured supply of feedstock etc, we
had sought. It fell short of what we wanted. The MLA , Konappa, and the Government had
gone a great distance; yet it was below our threshold. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
My colleague and myself had a quick discussion and said that in the
interest of moving forward we will take it. We said so to the Secretary and
requested him not to completely shut the door on the others requests. We thanked
him and got up to go. The Secretary must have sensed our discomfort. and said 'If there
are some difficulties later, you can always come back. It is also our interest
that you keep things going' </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
We came out. In the corridor, I congratulated the MLA for his efforts. Even while shaking his hands I found his eyes getting wet. I
am yet to learn how to handle such situations. My colleague, senior in age,
sympathised, and consoled the now visibly shaken man. He told him he
can't be seen by others in that state and that we should get into some room
and we moved into one.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Konappa said "Sir, for the first 61 years of my life, I did not have any BP or
sugar. Last 3 -4 years, I have developed both. Loss of livelihood, children's education, the future, no growth in my constituency... have all affected me. Today I see some
hope return". </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
"This is the first time I have stayed in Hyderabad, the state capital for 9 days
continuously. To go from one person to person to plead for a solution in the
best interest of the workers and their families "</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
"When the factory closes and there is no one to care, people
start looting. I closed the scrap shop nearby 3-4 years ago and warned other
dealers within the vicinity against dealing in any material from the
factory or they will close down for ever. I told the workers some day or the
other someone will come and not even a single bolt should be missing. I
know the pains and delays such things can cause for I have been a daily labour
in the very same factory several years ago" </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
"Sir, please don't worry. It is my personal responsibility that
you people will face no difficulties. "</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
He seemed much more in control by now. and we told him it was
time for us to leave. He walked us down. "These are the times that give me satisfaction. Far more than
seeing Rs 2-3 lacs in my bank account (I thought their unit of thought
will be in crores rather than lakhs, but this man seems stuck in a time warp of his
own). That's when I feel ... this earth (pointing downwards) which has to bear
my weight. I feel I am repaying a part of the debt I owe to it, when I see
some poor people appreciate it" </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
He was composed by now, with some pride and a smile on
his face. But I was shaken. My mouth was quivering. In full public view at the entrance to the car park.<br />
<br />
Some politician this. Some human being. Hope I can work with him
some day. Imitation is the best form of flattery they say. I hope I will be able
to imitate him ... one day... some day. </div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-65389455917032813982018-03-20T12:41:00.000+05:302018-03-20T12:41:05.704+05:30How do you solve a problem like CEO pay <div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It's very simple really to most people and that's why its such a complex problem. The problem of executive pay (lets just take CEO pay as a proxy to make it easier to analyse).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
For the left, CEOs are greedy bastards who make too much money, when lower level staff in the company can barely make ends meet. Income equality is one the biggest issues facing society. Therefore the answer has to be to curb CEO pay. Preferably by law. Where is the problem ?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
For the right, who is anybody to say what somebody else earns. It's a free market and CEOs perform one of the most difficult jobs of all. When a CEO can increase shareholder value by $10 bn, why should he not get $10 m. Where is the problem ?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the US, this issue has got into prominence because companies are now required to report how much their Chief Executives make in comparison to the median paid worker. This was opposed tooth and nail by industry, but now the law has come into effect. And the first reports are starting to come in - In Marathon Petroleum it was 935 times, in Del Monte produce it was 1465 times, in Manpower, a temp agency, it was 2483 times. In Berkshire Hathaway it was 2 times.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Governments are starting to act. In the great state of Oregon, where a couple of readers of this blog live, the city of Portland has levied a 10% tax on companies where the ratio is more than 100 times. Many other states and cities are planning a similar levy. I don't think that is right.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Remember, just because something is popular does not make it right. If you held a referendum that the state must burn down the house of every billionaire, it's quite likely to pass with a 75% majority. That won't make it right.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is not as easy a problem to solve as it seems to the extremists. First to take on the left.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you extend the same principle to every other domain - no film star should get more than 100 times the salary of an extra. Ditto music star. Ditto sportsman. For that matter why should the mutual fund where your pensions come from, make 100 times more than the janitor who cleans the stock market building. If you sell your property and make a fortune, then of course you shouldn't be doing that as its 100 times more than what the majority of us who have no property to sell are making. We can go on and on. Its been proven time and again that arbitrary wage equations for everybody will only create a Soviet Union. And why should 100 be some golden number simply because it satisfies somebody's sensibilities. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Now to take on the right. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Is anybody really worth $98 million ? Really ? That's what Thomas Rutledge took in 2016. The median CEO salary is some $ 11m, but there are also wild outliers. But more than the absolute quantum, the real problem with executive pay is the reward that even poor performers get. Like golden parachutes if you are sacked. Like pay rises when your company results go down. Like bonuses which don't get returned even though the results are later proved to have been fiddled and overstated. Like backdated stock options. Like saying you have to honour bonus contracts even though your company has just been bailed out by the government. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
And then there is certainly the reality that CEO pay has risen far more dramatically in the last 20 years than the pay of others working in the company. It is therefore natural that there is a societal backlash. No society can live with wild inequalities, whatever be the justification.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Companies must be seen to behave sensibly, else regulation is inevitable. A formula could be to more tightly link to company performance, something that's happening anyway. No contractual sweetners that would not be in any other employee's contract. In good years, distribute the bonus pool more widely. Take pay rises only when company performs very well - employees won't grudge your pay rise then. Maybe CEO's can think of contributing 1% to a staff welfare fund. Its all optics. If you not only are fair, but seen to be fair, people won't grudge your pay.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As we began the post, its not an easy problem to solve. So sit back an enjoy how a problem like Maria was solved !</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/yYvyh3IIdDk/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yYvyh3IIdDk?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-56392848751615537352018-03-15T09:25:00.000+05:302018-03-15T09:25:23.455+05:30The Indian parliament is a waste of time<div style="text-align: justify;">
In democracies, the will of the people is supposed to be supreme. The forum for expression of the will of the people is the parliament. All laws and policies are enacted by the parliament and you need a majority of the elected representatives to pass any bill. Issues are debated and a majority vote determines the outcome. So goes the theory. Ha Ha .</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
India's parliament has become a joke. It has descended into a complete farce, where regular business is impossible to conduct because every party disrupts roceedings by protesting and shouting. Witness the current session of the Lok Sabha. The TDP is protesting against non grant of special status for their state. The AIADMK is protesting against the non formation of the Cauvery Board. The Congress, Trinamool, et al are protesting against the PNB scam. The Shiv Sena , which is actually a part of the government is agitating for, of all things, inclusion of Marathi as a "classical language" . Each one has disrupted the Lok Sabha such that it has been stalled every day with nothing being discussed or transacted. This has been the way for at least 10 years now, but it has worsened over the last two years with not even one day of sane, sensible proceedings. Every party is guilty of this appalling behaviour. The ruling BJP did exactly the same thing when they were in opposition.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The trigger for this post is the Finance Bill. In India, economic policy is often manifested in the form of the annual Finance Bill (Budget, as it is called in common parlance). This is supposed to be debated and then passed in Parliament by a certain date, else the government will be shut down (similar to the position in the US).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
But how do you discuss and pass anything when all the worthies are shouting and agitating. In true Ramamritham fashion, we have invented a process called the "guillotine". When the deadline for passing the Finance Bill comes, it is just "passed" with no discussion or debate. Not even a minute of debate and discussion has happened on major fiscal, monetary and economic legislation. Its just considered adopted by parliament !! What a joke.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The passing of the Finance Bill is one of the most important, if not THE most important job of parliament every year. Yet for many years now, there has been no debate and it just gets guillotined as a matter of routine. Begs the question, why do we need a parliament at all ? Have elections every five years and instead of actual representatives, put a wax dummy coloured with the party colours in a seat in a room. Each party represented in the parliament simply indicates which way it decides to vote . That can be tallied by a computer (actually even an abacus will do). Much simpler. In any case, every member of parliament votes according to a party whip. Nobody even reads the damned bill. If you are an opposition party, vote against any bill saying it is the greatest blot on humankind. If you are in the government vote for saying that it is the long awaited final avatar of Lord Vishnu. So why bother with a parliament at all ?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Let this be the first instance where "artificial intelligence" replaces human beings entirely. Replacing our esteemed members of parliament is a simple task as they perform no function at all bar shouting . We don't even need artificial intelligence. Wax dummies are enough to be a major improvement - at least they will be silent. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If that is considered way too extreme, then perhaps taping the mouths, tying the hands and gluing the seat of the pants (dhothi) to the chair can be resorted to. For abundant caution, you can also shackle their legs. That would be an improvement over the current situation.</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-79282525003737236712018-03-13T21:20:00.000+05:302018-03-13T21:20:25.616+05:30Singapore is a threat to the national security of the US<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong should go on TV and broadcast to his countrymen that Singapore has "arrived". The mighty US is scared of little Singapore. Perhaps a national holiday in Singapore will be declared to mark the event !</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I am referring to the US government blocking the bid by Broadcom for the takeover of Qualcomm, on the grounds of national security. Broadcom is a Singaporean company (never mind that Broadcom had offered to move its headquarters to San Jose if the deal went through). Qualcomm is an American company. So Singapore is a threat to the national security of the US. Great ! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The US government is giving a specious argument to justify national security. According to the government, Broadcom would cut R&D spending after it took Qualcomm over. This would affect the development of 5G technology. Instead Huawei would become the leader in 5G. Huawei is a Chinese company. Therefore the US would be dependent on China for its mobile networks. That is the threat to national security.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
That is an even more laughable argument. Qualcomm is an important player, but not the leader in the development of 5G in the first place. Have you forgotten Cisco ? Intel ? AT&T ? Samsung ? Ericsson ? And innovation is not the monopoly of anybody - even a rudimentary understanding of business should tell you that. Innovation comes from the strangest of places. If Qualcomm slashes R&D, does anybody seriously think other US companies will not succeed in 5G. If the US was solely dependant on Qualcomm, it was screwed long ago.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
And why is 5G technology a matter for national security ? If this is truly the case with wireless technology, China's national security has long been compromised because of US leadership thus far. Why is ownership of 5G technology and standards so worrying ? Is the argument that Huawei will get a monopoly of technology and therefore all US companies will have to buy telecommunication equipment only from them and therefore China will have a backdoor entry and control over the entire US telecommunications infrastructure ? That stretches incredulity to the limit.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
There's an interesting subplot to this. In the midst of the drama with Broadcom, Qualcomm itself is currently trying to take over NXP - another semiconductor company. That deal is awaiting clearance from Chinese regulators. Fat chance of that happening now. The people really screwed by these developments are Qualcomm shareholders - they don't get NXP and they don't get to be bought out by Broadcom at a stiff premium. And before you say you don't care about shareholders, let's just note for the record that US institutional investors , including mutual funds and pension funds, hold nearly 80% of Qualcomm stock.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
No, this is not about national security
at all. These days it appears you can claim national security for
anything - even steel and aluminium tariffs. This is pure and simple
economic nationalism. We don't want an American company to be taken over
by "Chinese looking people". That's it.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The current US administration is supposed to be a Republican one. Standing for free trade and non interference of government into business. Has ideology, beliefs and policy ceased to matter at all ?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-68629795075241522202018-03-11T12:03:00.001+05:302018-03-11T12:03:31.846+05:30Send them back<div style="text-align: justify;">
This blogger knows a thing or two about procuring visas , having had to endure this torture hundreds of times for nearly 30 years now. Indians, as is generally well known, are not welcome anywhere. The visa regimes of every country is designed to make it as difficult as possible for an Indian to visit. Note - the word is "visit" and not "stay".</div>
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You sign all sorts of declarations and produce all sorts of proofs before you will even be considered for a visa. You have to produce a ton of documents (my favourite is the Australian visa for which I once had to produce 723 pages). You have to make all sorts of declarations (my favourite is a US declaration that says you have not kidnapped somebody below 18 years of age - there is no requirement to declare that you have not kidnapped somebody above 18 years of age). You solemnly swear to everything under the sun in the fine print. My favourite is the UK requirement in the past (thankfully no longer there) that if you are a lady going to get married to somebody in the UK, you swear that you are a virgin, which will subsequently be tested by somebody inserting her hand in to test whether your hymen is intact (I am not kidding). After all this you are subjected to the ignominy of a visa interview where you stand in a long and winding queue outside the embassy starting from 4.00 AM in the morning, then wind your way inside a virtual jail till you come into a prison like counter where you face a visa officer. He or she can , and does, reject your visa application simply because he/she/it does not like the look of your face . Period. That's it. No chance of even appealing.</div>
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All this is a long and elaborate preamble to illustrate how the very same countries completely flip 180 degrees if you are an economic offender who has fled your country. You are now welcomed with open arms. Suddenly human rights of the alleged offender take precedence over everything else. The very same United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (of the virginity test fame) will shield the alleged economic offender until its very last breath and allow him to stay indefinitely in the country. </div>
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There is a long and illustrious list of alleged crooks who have fled India - Lalit Modi, Vijay Mallya, Jatin Mehta, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi et al. If you are interested, the exact number of such luminaries is 184. The modus operandi is usually the same. As soon as the heat starts to be felt and you feel that you are likely to get caught, flee the country. And then claim that you are being harassed , fear for your life, etc etc and stay put. Uncle Sam, Old Blighty and all the rest will freely protect you.</div>
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Sure, this lot has obtained permanent residency in these countries sometime in the past. So ? You sign all the honest to god statements that you have to do for a mere visa to visit. Probably you swear to a few more things before you get permanent residency. This is not citizenship; just permanent residency. You still remain an Indian citizen , bound by the laws of India. If you have then violated them, why isn't permanent residency revoked ?</div>
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I can understand protecting those undergoing political persecution, those who are fleeing from war, and those who might be killed if returned. But these are economic offenders. If they are returned to India, they will be put through due legal process in a court of law. The Indian justice system may not be perfect, but it isn't arbitrary and without merit. Even with the greatest of ingenuity, the argument cannot be made that India is a lawless country. So what is the logic in not sending them straight back.</div>
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The long list of luminaries referred to earlier are Indian citizens. They are subject to the laws of India. The government of India has revoked their passports. Any foreign government, in whose jurisdiction they are staying, are hypocrites in not returning them to India forthwith. </div>
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I am not welcome to even transit through Heathrow, let alone visit the UK (the same visa process applies even if you are transiting and not entering the country). Mr Vijay Mallya is free to stay for as long as he wishes to and will be protected by Her Majesty. Shame on you, and every other country harbouring these 184 worthies.</div>
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Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-65884654118861457932018-03-05T10:37:00.002+05:302018-03-05T10:41:10.163+05:30The economics of Classical Music in India<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r83wYadnLD0/WpzMX6Q5jKI/AAAAAAAABgI/heoWLl08hhEJhuRpm274eFyOqkDetb_LgCLcBGAs/s1600/Carnatic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="162" data-original-width="311" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r83wYadnLD0/WpzMX6Q5jKI/AAAAAAAABgI/heoWLl08hhEJhuRpm274eFyOqkDetb_LgCLcBGAs/s1600/Carnatic.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(carnaticdurbar.com)</span></div>
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This blogger is a recently turned fan of Indian classical music. Being the weirdo he is, it is only to be expected that he would turn his attention to the economic side of this . Yes, I know it's weird with a capital W that instead of humming a tune, a blog post on economics is what comes out.</div>
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Classical music in India is economically a basket case. Every piece in the carnatic music supply chain is in doldrums moneywise.</div>
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Take the fan. A listener will only go to a concert if it is free. Will not buy a ticket even if it is just Rs 50. It is perfectly acceptable behaviour to go to a concert, find that there is a ticket and return back without going in ! The fan is a complete hypocrite. Music must be free. Musicians don't deserve money. But their own salaries (pensions) must be doubled.</div>
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Artistes, unless they are at the top of the profession earn an absolute pittance. I am certain that what most upcoming musicians earn will not even be up to the minimum wage levels in India for casual labour. It is not unknown for lesser musicians to pay to perform rather than the other way around.</div>
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The musicians at the very top do earn for their concerts and the popular perception amongst the fans is that they demand too much money. This is nonsense. They may earn Rs 100,000 for a concert; something they have to share with the accompanying artistes. They can probably do 4 or 5 concerts a month on an average. That level of earnings is equivalent to what a middle manager in a company doing an irrelevant pedestrian job will make. And these are the top musicians in the land.</div>
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The organisations that hold these concerts are called sabhas - they are the equivalent of music clubs. Given the facts above, every one of them makes a loss and are barely solvent. How they survive is a mystery.</div>
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With these economics, it is hardly surprising that there are zero facilities for concerts. None of the cities have anything like the equivalent of an opera house. There is just one good concert hall in the cities of Chennai, Mumbai and Bangalore and they were all built at least 25 years ago. Not a single new concert hall of any size or quality has come up in decades - and just witness the number of malls, cinema multiplexes, resturants and the like that have sprung up. Concerts are held in ramshackle places where the word acoustics is foreign and as for facilities, what are they ?</div>
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There are two lifelines that has so far kept this genre going.</div>
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One is sponsorship from businesses. Sabha organisers harry, beg, plead, grovel for grants for businesses. You can always find a music fan in a company and they sometimes contribute for a concert. This can hardly be justified in any company for business reasons - this must just be written off as a handout with no benefit for the business.</div>
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For the artistes themselves, their main source of income is teaching music to Indian Americans on Skype. You see, the Indian parents in the US feel very guilty for disassociating their children from Indian culture. They are partial to therefore teaching them Indian classical music. Skype offers a perfect medium. Its a nice ego boost to be taught by the finest musician in the genre. This is how artistes put food on the table. The dollar goes a long way as you know.</div>
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Another option for artistes is to perform in the US. The huge Indian American community in the US wants to "keep in touch" with Indian music, even if they are pretty ignorant about it. For some strange reason Cleveland (of the "bum state" fame) is the headquarters of carnatic music.</div>
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All this makes for depressing reading. Musicians world over, in most genres, are millionaires. Classical music in India is however economically gasping for breath. It is in decent health in terms of listener interest. But it can only thrive if a sensible economic model starts to emerge. For a start, listeners should start paying for a concert instead of demanding it for free. I'll buy a ticket for every concert I go to , or if its a free concert, at least drop the notional ticket price into the donation box. </div>
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<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-61871490306718129452018-03-02T09:59:00.000+05:302018-03-02T09:59:13.600+05:30Learn from history - Steel tariffs don't help<div style="text-align: justify;">
The US has been there before many times. And yet they do it again and again. Granted that logic and thoughtful action is not a feature of the current US administration. But still, you would have thought they would have read up what happened when they tried it last time.</div>
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I am referring to the announcement today that the US plans to impose a tariff of 25% on steel imports.</div>
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George W Bush tried the same tactics in 2002, with an eye on the same political prize - voters in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. He imposed 8-30% tariffs on imported steel . At that time the target was European steel. Europe promptly took the US to the WTO and won sanctions of some $2 billion. More tellingly, the politically astute European Union threatened retaliatory tariffs on oranges (goodbye Florida votes) and cars (ta ta Michigan votes). Meanwhile steel prices in the US surged, screwing industries that buy steel. A later study concluded that 200,000 jobs were lost in the US as a result. Bush retreated and called off the tariffs in 2003.</div>
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His father George HW Bush , and his predecessor Ronald Reagan tried various forms of it too. Reagan famously tried quotas on cars (at that time the target was Japan). The end result of that was that car prices went up by $1000 between 1982 and 1984 and the auto industry actually lost 60,000 jobs as a result of the quotas.</div>
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Obama indulged in steel tariffs too. His target was China. But that administration did it selectively - huge tariffs, selectively on products and against companies from China that were dumping.</div>
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It is not clear what the current administration is trying to achieve. Presumably their target is China , the current bogeyman and indisputably the cause of depressed world steel prices because of overcapacity. But China exports not much steel to the US possibly as a result of the Obama era actions. It is the 11th largest exporter to the US occupying a small portion of US imports - even India is above it in the rankings. The biggest exporter of steel to the US is Canada, followed by Brazil. Is the US trying to screw Canada ?</div>
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Why pick a trade war with Canada of all the countries. The US has a deficit of $ 12 bn in goods and a surplus of $24 bn in services on a $ 700 bn two way trade. Overall the US has a surplus with Canada. And you want to provoke a war with them ? Yes, the current administration has launched a war on NAFTA, but even by that perverted logic, the target must be Mexico and not Canada. Canadians are not fools . Selected tariffs from Canada on Vehicles (bye Michigan) and Agricultural Produce ( adieu Ohio) and we are back to reliving the George Bush experience.</div>
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Albert Einstein is famously quoted to have said " The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.” But to avoid that, you have to read history to determine what has been done before. Well, in the current administration, reading history is too much to ask. They would make a "yuuge" improvement if they could just begin with reading !</div>
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<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-38785747690332463372018-02-27T08:21:00.000+05:302018-02-27T08:21:15.752+05:30Piss off US Government<div style="text-align: justify;">
Disclosure : This blogger is hopping mad and this post is written in a state of fury . Readers beware !</div>
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Why is it so difficult for the United States to understand a simple principle - the laws of the United States apply to the geographical boundaries of the country. It does not apply globally. It certainly does not apply to me.</div>
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The trigger for this rant is the case between the US government and Microsoft that is now up before the US Supreme Court. The case involves the US government demanding that Microsoft give up emails of foreign citizens stored in its server in Ireland. Microsoft refused. Hence the case. As the case wound up through the layers of the US justice system, two lower courts ruled for the US government. However the Appeals Court in New York ruled with Microsoft. Now its in the Supreme Court.</div>
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The US government's position is that Microsoft is a US company and therefore its laws apply worldwide - a notion that is seductive, but flawed. We've been there many times before. What is a "US Company" ? Is it because it is headquartered in the US ? If that is the logic, then its easy to beat it. My contract when I use Microsoft services can easily be modified to be with Microsoft India, an Indian company. That will make it outside the US jurisdiction.</div>
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Wait a minute, will say the US worthies. Microsoft India is a subsidiary of Microsoft US. So ultimately it is a US company. So, is beneficial ownership the norm ? That's easy to refute too. Who are the shareholders of Microsoft US ? Bill Gates holds most of the shares but there are foreign entities as well. Take Citibank. The largest shareholder is the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. The second largest holder is Prince Alwaleed of Saudi Arabia. So , Citibank is an Arabian company subject to GCC laws ? </div>
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Complicating the matter is the obsolete US constitution. The constitution , which Americans swear by, is written in prehistoric times. They have a system where the constitution can never be amended. And they have packed the Supreme Court with "originalists" (RIP Antonin Scalia), who interpret the words literally. Nobody ever thought of globalisation and the Internet when the US constitution was written. The protection is only under the Fourth Amendment which relates to unreasonable searches and seizures.</div>
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The country actually most pissed off by all this is Germany which has strict privacy laws. The German Government has declared that if the US chooses to read every email and access every data, it will simply stop using "American" companies altogether.</div>
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Just because you can do something does not necessarily mean that its a good thing to do. Here is a poser to Americans. Consider a situation where E Bay is acquired by Jack Ma (an entirely plausible scenario). Alibaba is a Chinese company. So if the Chinese government decides to monitor every transaction on E Bay and required Alibaba to hand over all details to it. Would Americans take to that meekly ? </div>
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The right thing for America to do would be to execute treaties with other governments on data sharing and then operate under the framework. Sure, that's difficult. But that is the right thing to do.</div>
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The US won't do that of course. It has never done that. Principles of natural justice apply only when convenient. They poke their ugly noses into every aspect of my life - I am still signing the damned FATCA forms . I can only rant and rave. Hence the title of the post. </div>
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This post is being stored on a Google server in the US. Presumably this will be handed over to John F Smith II from Topeka, Kansas (the American equivalent of Ramamritham). I hope he can see my middle finger ! </div>
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<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-27215493513965145912018-02-19T20:28:00.000+05:302018-02-19T20:28:30.619+05:30The poor state of business journalism<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you clicked on Business News from the US on Google, here's a sample of the news items that are featured</div>
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<a class="nuEeue hzdq5d ME7ew" href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/delta-airlines-susan-peirez-berating-flight-attendant-placed-on-leave/" role="heading" target="_blank">Woman seen berating flight attendant on viral video now placed on leave</a></div>
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<a class="nuEeue hzdq5d ME7ew" href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/feb/19/kfc-uk-closed-chicken-shortage-fash-food-contract-delivery-dhl" role="heading" target="_blank">Most KFCs in UK remain closed because of chicken shortage</a></div>
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<a class="nuEeue hzdq5d ME7ew" href="http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2018/02/18/fight-over-mans-flatulence-forces-flight-to-make-emergency-landing.html" role="heading" target="_blank">Fight over man's flatulence forces flight to make emergency landing</a></div>
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<a class="nuEeue hzdq5d ME7ew" href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/mcdonalds-customer-left-devastated-after-12049337" role="heading" target="_blank">McDonald's customer left "devastated" after £1.59 mozzarella stick 'was hollow with no cheese inside'</a></div>
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Business news has become a reality show. Where are the many important economic issues facing the world ? Where is the reasoned debate ? I had hoped that the dry area of economics and business would be the last to succumb to trivialisation and sensationalisation. Alas, it has already fallen.</div>
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Take the case of the <a href="https://www.bloombergquint.com/law-and-policy/2018/02/17/the-nirav-modi-pnb-fraud-case-everything-we-know-so-far">Nirav Modi - Punjab National Bank fraud</a> that has hit the headlines in India. It is a massive fraud and yet try as I might, and despite the millions of words written and aired on this (the favourite word is scam - in India everything is a scam), I am not able to make out what exactly happened. There isn't one journalistic piece on what exactly happened in detail, why it happened and how can it be prevented. Instead the predominant coverage is that because of the same surname as the Indian Prime Minister, the opposition Congress Party has been going around calling Nirav Modi as "Chhota Modi" (Smaller Modi) although there is absolutely no evidence of any relationship. Both the parties are blaming each other loudly (from what news has come out, this appears to be a plain banking fraud with no link to politics).</div>
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The two finest business newspapers in the world - Financial Times of the UK and the Wall Street Journal have become obsessed with Trump. No, I don't want to read anything about him, thank you.</div>
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The Economist remains the only "good" read. Alas, this blogger's subscription is having some niggles and there has been no issue to read for a month.</div>
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Can we examine America pumping itself with steroids? They are reducing taxes, increasing military spending, increasing social spending and presuming to invest in infrastructure at the same time, and that too when the country is near full employment. This is deficit financing on a staggering scale , being done by the party that ostensibly hates deficits. </div>
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Can we examine the Brexit issue in terms of what exactly the trade deal issues are ? Can we examine China's pile of debt ? Can we marvel at Europe overtaking the US in economic growth - yes that happened last quarter. Can we think about the boom in India's indirect tax revenues ?</div>
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Instead I am being told that a Transavia flight made an emergency landing because a passenger refused to stop farting.</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-36200986830753969032018-02-17T15:58:00.002+05:302018-02-17T15:58:59.050+05:30Sack all Fund Managers !<div style="text-align: justify;">
Here is uncontestable proof that all Fund Managers are a waste of time. They are (mostly) lavishly paid for nothing. If that sounds a radical statement, read on.</div>
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Its a well known saying in financial circles that you cannot beat the market in the long run. The sage of Omaha, Warren Buffett has been saying this for a long time. In 2007, he publicly laid a bet that the S&P 500 index would outperform hedge funds over a 10 year period. He wagered $500,000 on it to anybody who would take up the challenge, observing cheekily , " "After all, these managers urged others to bet billions on their
abilities. Why should they fear putting a little of their own money on
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Surprisingly only one person took up the bet (shame on you hedge fund industry). Protege Partners handpicked a portfolio of hedge funds. And the wager was on - the S&P 500 against this handpicked pool of hedge funds.</div>
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Ten years ended on 31 Dec 2017. And guess who won ? The hedge fund pool gained 22% over 10 years. The S&P 500 rose 85%. No contest ! <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/16/warren-buffett-won-2-point-2-million-on-a-bet-and-gave-it-to-girls-inc.html">Buffet won a handsome amount and promptly donated it to the charity, Girls Inc of Omaha.</a></div>
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There's a big lesson to everybody who is saving and investing. In the long run you cannot beat the market index. Repeat after me, In the long run you cannot beat the index. Repeat again, In the long run you cannot beat the index. Write it out 1000 times.</div>
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And yet, we listen to advice from friends. To tips. We hire investment managers. Fund Managers design all sort of esoteric funds and write research reports on how their funds are outperforming the market. A million online portals exist that cater to advice on investment. All of them charge a fee. All of them get handsomely paid. </div>
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Instead follow the advice of Warren Buffet (for free; no fees charged). Simply invest in an index fund - the S&P 500 if you are in the US, the Footsie if you are in the UK, the Nifty if you are in India. A fund that will charge minimum fees to simply hold the basket of securities exactly mimicking the index. And then forget about it. Come back after 10 or 20 or 30 years. You would have made more money than anybody else. It's as simple as that.</div>
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There's only one slight problem. Warren Buffet has beaten the S&P Index handsomely in the 50 odd years he has been at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway !</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-20533349872778338332018-02-13T19:33:00.000+05:302018-02-13T19:33:22.883+05:30Thus spake Gates<div style="text-align: justify;">
Regular leaders of the blog know that this blogger is an unabashed admirer of Bill & Melinda Gates. He is of the opinion that they must be sainted - for they have have done more good in the world than many, if not most, religious leaders.</div>
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They publish an annual letter which is like a "State of the Union address" in their field. This time they have answered in their letter, the ten toughest questions they get. And yes, Donald Trump is one of them, but if you expect an incendiary answer, well, you don't know the Gates.</div>
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I consider their Annual Letter as required reading for any human being with a heart. <a href="https://www.gatesnotes.com/2018-Annual-Letter">Here is this year's letter</a>.</div>
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Its a bit different as it addresses questions, some of which are not developmental in nature - like Trump, or what do they do when they disagree. But it is , as always, an interesting and often motivating read.</div>
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May I exhort you to read this one, and then every one of their previous 10 letters. It is a far more productive use of your time, than reading you know what !</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-9159013972101366252018-02-11T10:04:00.000+05:302018-02-11T10:04:05.102+05:30Immigration and Agriculture<div style="text-align: justify;">
There are some basic facts about agriculture. One ; you cannot do away with agriculture; you have to eat after all. Two; However much you mechanise agriculture, there are large portions of it that have to be done by hand and you need manual labour. Three; agricultural labour is hard hard work. You and I cannot do it. Four; everywhere in the world, the natives do not want to do agricultural labour. Five; You therefore have to "import" labour - poor people from places other than where the farms are and usually from another country. Six; the natives do not want these "immigrants" to come.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J7-HEpLPS14/Wn_GMg48GdI/AAAAAAAABek/dseBESUxjz0l91TCsLzCq2Etiw16lEPkACLcBGAs/s1600/Fruit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="640" height="223" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J7-HEpLPS14/Wn_GMg48GdI/AAAAAAAABek/dseBESUxjz0l91TCsLzCq2Etiw16lEPkACLcBGAs/s320/Fruit.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is a real problem, which as stated, does not have a solution. Witness <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/feb/09/lack-of-migrant-workers-left-food-rotting-in-uk-fields-last-year-data-reveals">what's happening in the UK</a>.</div>
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The Brits don't want to work in the fields. Therefore most of the agricultural labour comes from Eastern Europe (white Christians, mind you; the problem is compounded in the US because the labour is Hispanic). The Brits have voted to leave the EU and don't want anybody coming into their country. End result - fruit is rotting <span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>i</u></span>n the fields as reported in the article linked. </div>
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This was not even about illegal immigration - these workers all came perfectly legally from Eastern Europe and since it was seasonal work, actually often went back to their countries after the picking was over. And yet the Brits have spat on their face and told them they are not welcome.</div>
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The same rural folk in the UK are the ones who voted for Brexit. London overwhelmingly voted for staying. And the main reason for voting exit ? Immigration. We don't want foreigners; period.</div>
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The UK farming lobby wants to reinstate the seasonal workers scheme. The deal is , please come and do the dirty work we don't want to do, stay in some ghetto so that we don't see you, give us all the fruit and then bugger off to where you came from. Couching it in polite language does not detract from what it really is meant to be.</div>
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Agricultural labourers should simply organise themselves and show the middle finger to the UK. If you want us to work, treat us as decent human beings and give us the respect we deserve. Or else, you can do your own dirty work.</div>
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To paraphrase the Duke of Norfolk - you cannot have your fruit and eat it too !</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-52745250502260021212018-02-09T11:57:00.001+05:302018-02-09T11:57:22.851+05:30Indra Nooyi is not an idiot !<div style="text-align: justify;">
No No. PepsiCo is not foolish enough to launch Doritos for women. For Gods sake, PepsiCo is one of the greatest consumer marketing companies on earth. Sure, even the finest companies can lay a goose egg once in a while. But not such an obvious bloomer like Doritos for women.</div>
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The brouhaha started with an interview Indra Nooyi, the Chairperson of Pepsico gave to Freakonomics. As reported in the New York Times -</div>
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<i> Ms. Nooyi told the interviewer that women did not eat Doritos the same way men did.“They
don’t like to crunch too loudly in public,” she said. “And they don’t
lick their fingers generously, and they don’t like to pour the little
broken pieces and the flavor into their mouth.”She
was asked whether PepsiCo — which owns Frito-Lay, the manufacturer of
Doritos — was planning “a male and female version of chips.”</i></div>
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<i>Ms.
Nooyi responded: “It’s not a male and female as much as, ‘Are there
snacks for women that can be designed and packaged differently?’ And
yes, we are looking at it, and we’re getting ready to launch a bunch of
them soon. For women, low-crunch, the full taste profile, not have so
much of the flavor stick on the fingers, and how can you put it in a
purse? Because women love to carry a snack in their purse.”</i></div>
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The Sun (of the notorious British tabloid fame) took this and reported that Doritos for women was being launched. Social media picked it up and hyped it with juicy headlines.<br />
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Feminists responded by lashing out and saying this simply reinforced gender stereotypes. Men lashed out saying this was PC going too far. Sending a tweet is easy - you don't have to think and you can spew whatever banality you wish to without any consequence; just ask a certain old man occupying a seat of power. And then before you could say Doritos, a full blown controversy had erupted. The company had to issue a statement that No, they were not launching Doritos for women !</div>
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Indra Nooyi must be scratching her head in bewilderment. All she was outlining in her podcast was how Frito Lay really tried to understand consumers, tried to get insights and tailor products accordingly. Very likely they may have launched a variant that was less crunchy, if that's what women preferred. But they wouldn't do something as dumb as launching a "Doritos for women".</div>
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Just goes to show how careful anybody has to be when making a public appearance. It seems altogether appealing not to appear in public at all - after all no human is infallible enough not to utter an inanity. It also shows how lots of people have nothing else to do but to respond to every nonsense and tweet some rubbish. A certain distinguished reader of mine is a prodigious tweeter. He may want to pause :)</div>
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Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-62258682972704490332018-02-06T19:24:00.000+05:302018-02-06T19:24:50.963+05:30CEOs sacked for conduct don't deserve severance pay<div style="text-align: justify;">
This blogger has been fascinated with <a href="https://shop.lululemon.com/">lululemon</a> for some time. The Vancouver based company has been peddling fashion wear for yoga and been successful at it. Firstly this blogger is amazed that you have fashion wear for yoga. Secondly, can a company really be named lululemon ? And spelt without a capital L ? There was also the business of <a href="http://indigoite.blogspot.in/2013/06/black-yoga-pants-that-showed-too-much.html">yoga pants that, er, revealed too much</a>, a few years ago. With that sort of pedigree, it is a "must follow" company !</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hwM75Y_ETME/WnmykATas7I/AAAAAAAABeI/9nivWrbhH9sex5_1j39UOfZ1Q2HLS4KLACLcBGAs/s1600/Lululemon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hwM75Y_ETME/WnmykATas7I/AAAAAAAABeI/9nivWrbhH9sex5_1j39UOfZ1Q2HLS4KLACLcBGAs/s320/Lululemon.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Wunder Under Hi-Rise 7/8 Tight</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> Full-On Luxtreme 25" for</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="list-price"><span class="currency-type"> $</span>98.00</span><span class="currency-code"> USD - Note the price !)</span></span></div>
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They are in the news again. They fired their CEO yesterday. The gobbledygook announcement they put out said <span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">"lululemon expects all
employees to exemplify the highest levels of integrity and respect for
one another, and Mr. Potdevin fell short of these standards of conduct." In plain English, the Board fired him. He did something wrong, relating to employees, and they fired him. Plain and simple. Nothing earth shattering about that - CEOs are fired for a variety of reasons and this happens all the time. But clearly he was fired, not for poor performance, but for something he should not have done with employee(s), but did. We should not speculate further.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">So far nothing spectacular. But what got my goat was also the statement in the announcement that "</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Potdevin will receive a cash payment of $5 million, including $3.35
million upfront and an additional $1.65m over the next 18 months,
according to a separation agreement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission." This is outrageous. He's guilty of misconduct and you pay him $5 million ? I'm gobsmacked. Yes, there must have been a separation payment </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">in his employment contract</span>. That's standard in almost all CEO contracts. Why CEOs - any employee's contract. You have to be paid a severance pay (however measly it may be) if you are fired.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">But this guy is being fired for wrong conduct. Would any low level employee guilty of the same conduct as Mr Potdevin ever be paid a severance pay ? No chance ? Then why should he be paid simply because he was the CEO. If there was an iron clad clause in his contract that said he would be paid no matter what the reasons for firing are, then the guys who drafted such a contract must be fired and made to pay a fine equal to this severance pay.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">This sort of action is why companies are hated by the general public. Any corporate action must not only be fair, but be seen to be fair. The Board of lululemon deserves to be fried , roasted and hauled over coals. It is a listed company. What are the shareholders doing ?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">CEOs are exactly the same as any other employee of a company. I have no problem with them being paid handsomely for the work they do. But they should not be paid for conduct that necessitates a firing.</span></div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-16668389624727083712018-02-01T18:41:00.000+05:302018-02-01T18:41:43.919+05:30Reading this post may make you blind<div style="text-align: justify;">
We've all made fun of Americans and their crazy law of torts. That's why you have such gems such as "Contents Hot" on a coffee cup or a "Remove baby before folding" sticker on a pram. In that same vein is the <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/31/health/cancer-coffee-warning/index.html">recent move in California</a> that may soon have the warning "Coffee Causes Cancer" in coffee shops ! Granted that the land of the free scores somewhere mid tier in the international rankings of IQ, but still .....</div>
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<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/22/people-are-eating-tide-laundry-pods-and-this-is-what-pg-is-doing.html">A news item about P&G and Tide laundry pods</a> however made me pause. P&G has released an ad featuring Rob Gronkowski, the New England Patriots' star exhorting people not to eat Tide laundry pods ! WTF ? </div>
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Apparently some teenagers have started a campaign called the 'Tide Pod Challenge". You are supposed to eat a Tide Pod and then post the video online. Reportedly some 40 cases of this nonsense have already happened in the first 15 days of 2018. It became serious enough for P&G to take note and issue the aforementioned ad exhorting people to wash clothes with their Tide laundry pod and not eat it. Without a doubt, their legal department opined that if they kept quiet, it was only a matter of time before they were slapped with a class action suit from a parent that the company was liable because they did nothing to prevent their children from eating the damned pod !</div>
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The purpose of this post is not to rail against the stupidity of on line antics. There is enough and more written on that. But where does personal responsibility end and where does company liability begin ? We seem to be living in a day and age where there is no personal responsibility whatsoever and its always someone else to blame. If its a rich juicy company, then great. Blame them and sue for a zillion dollars. Is it the job of a company to monitor every nonsense that's happening on social media and guard against them ? </div>
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I am taking no chances. I am a poor man and will be bankrupted if you sue me ! Please therefore take note that reading this post on a screen may be injurious to your eyes. Please also note that if you are sipping coffee at the same time it might spill and burn your thighs as it is hot !!Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-72525837091237311052017-11-06T19:22:00.000+05:302017-11-06T19:22:38.550+05:30HQ2 UpdateWell, John Oliver got on the bandwagon too.<br />
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<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-8506437743852107572017-11-02T20:08:00.000+05:302017-11-02T20:08:30.785+05:30Insanity in Property<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-owSofBrVme8/WfsrTUkal7I/AAAAAAAABSw/iYEz4heLw1oatvV6bMD-EYxtxgDQ9ogNwCLcBGAs/s1600/HK_The_Centre.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="800" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-owSofBrVme8/WfsrTUkal7I/AAAAAAAABSw/iYEz4heLw1oatvV6bMD-EYxtxgDQ9ogNwCLcBGAs/s1600/HK_The_Centre.gif" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-imITrA0GEzU/WfssDt3OlwI/AAAAAAAABS4/gnX6m__OQIcK-YCHepSjbxq3k8Lnsi9GwCLcBGAs/s1600/Centre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="520" data-original-width="780" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-imITrA0GEzU/WfssDt3OlwI/AAAAAAAABS4/gnX6m__OQIcK-YCHepSjbxq3k8Lnsi9GwCLcBGAs/s320/Centre.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (Photo : Google Maps)</span><br />
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The world's costliest building it has become. Yesterday, "The Center" in Hong Kong - a 73 storey landmark was sold for $ 5bn. Yes, FIVE BILLION US DOLLARS. For a single building. No you are not hallucinating. It really did happen.</div>
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The Centre was a jewel in the portfolio of Li Ka-Shing. If you don't know who he is, well, he was, and probably is, Mr Hong Kong. One of the richest men in the world. For long he has symbolised money, power and all the glamour of Hong Kong.</div>
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This post is not about the old man. It's about insanity in property valuations. Yes land is scarce (anybody who has been to Hong Kong knows how scarce). And yes, it is demand and supply that sets prices. And yes, it is a free market - nobody is compelled to buy or sell at any price. But even then, it is only right to pause and reflect on what such insane property valuations mean.</div>
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It means, most of the world's population cannot afford a house. Full stop. This is one of the biggest problems in the developed world (ask any Brit how bad it is), and increasingly in the developing world. It simply drives up the cost of doing anything . In India for example, the tuition fees in a school are not for teachers - it is really to pay for the property. Ditto hospital costs. It is also the reason why you will never see a typical supermarket in the city of Mumbai .</div>
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Such ridiculous property valuations are one of the greatest causes of wealth inequality. The very few, who for historical reasons happened to inherit land, or buy property make wild fortunes at the expense of the large majority. After all any pricing is simply the value that society collectively places on any dimension of life . Is anybody in the world seriously going to argue that property must be placed on a far higher pedestal than virtually anything else in life ?</div>
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Back to the $5 bn building. In case you have some difficulty comprehending what $5 bn is, it will pay for 12 years of Honk Kong's spend on Child and Family Services or 6 years of the spending on the elderly, or 7 years of spending the on the disabled or 20 years of spending on youth or 2 years of the entire police budget or 4 years of the health budget ...... Shall I go on ?</div>
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Readers must know that this blogger is taking a grave risk by putting up this post. A reader, who is a dear friend has castigated me for becoming a raving loony leftist and has threatened to personally come and clobber me if I write one more example of becoming a "commie" in old age ! I will have to take precautions for my safety tomorrow !!</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-49631633351417509662017-10-25T21:00:00.001+05:302017-10-25T21:07:57.076+05:30Xi who must be obeyed (with apologies to The Economist)The title of this post is directly stolen from The Economist which ran a cover story by this name a year or so ago. They themselves were punning the quote from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/She_Who_Must_Be_Obeyed">here</a>.<br />
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The much awaited China's People Congress ended today with the expected climax - the unveiling of the new Politburo Standing Committee ; the men who will run China for the next five years. More of this in just a little while. This ended a week of speechifying and staged events.<br />
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First, the two things that stood out during the days preceding the event today. Xi Jinping opened the Congress with a speech lasting an incredible three and a half hours, reaching new heights of torture and boredom. It was a hugely self confident China strutting about as a world power, with Xi vigorously patting his own back. He outlined some of the directions for the next five years which were typically broad motherhoods, but gave some clues on where they are heading.<br />
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The most important outcome was the enshrining of "Xi Jinping Thought" in the Communist Party's Constitution. This is a peculiarly Chinese obsession. Their infatuation with obscure theories and doctrines knows no boundaries. "Mao Zedong Thought" was supposed to be the guiding doctrine of the Party - never mind that it is rubbish, the Party has long ditched many of that nonsense, etc etc. Then Deng Xiaoping "Practice" was enshrined into the Constitution after his death. At the end of their terms Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao's "theories" were also included, but their names were not mentioned (such semantics are very important in China with those two acknowledging that they are a step behind the two taller and earlier leaders). Xi hasn't bothered with any such finesse. Halfway into his term he has enshrined his name and "Thought" - the implication being he is Mao's equivalent and even above Deng. A dangerous move almost Trumpesque is self aggrandisation. His "Thought" is mostly bland with lots of garbage , but who cares. These are political moves cloaked in ideology.<br />
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And then today, came the line of seven men who walked in, and that was how the world got to know about the new Standing Committee. Readers of this blog may recall that this blogger made a prediction in <a href="http://indigoite.blogspot.in/2017/09/chinas-new-lineup.html">this post</a> a month or so ago. I got one thing wrong - that Li Keqiang the Premier would be dropped and that Wang Qishan, Xi's right hand man would stay on beyond retirement age and would become the Premier. That didn't happen. The powerful Wang retired and Li has stayed on as the Premier. I predicted a 5 man Standing Committee reduced from 7 (that didn't happen) but also named the potential seven man Committee if it stayed at that number. I got that dead right, including the order of seniority - after Xi and Li came Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji & Hang Zheng. I got real lucky !<br />
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Here is my take on the implications of what happened over the last week<br />
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- Xi is all powerful. That we knew of course.<br />
- Xi has decided to not break all traditions and to preserve some of the norms and continuity. Hence the retirement of Wang Qishan and the continuance of Li Keqiang.<br />
- No successor to Xi has been named, as expected. This leaves Xi's options open. He can stay on as a power centre either formally or informally after his term ends in 5 years.<br />
- The two possible successors Hu Chunhua and Chen Min'er are on trial. They have to earn the right to succeed over the next 5 years. But even after, they will probably have to be subservient to Xi.<br />
- The Party is going to tighten the hold on China even more. Forget any liberalism, tolerance and such other "esoteric" concepts.<br />
- China will be aggressive in world politics. The world simply has to learnt to adjust to that. America will be the county most affected. It will be on the losing end more often than not.<br />
- Zhao Leji will be the new Wang Qishan. He will continue the anti corruption drive and Xi's political opponents will continue to be targeted.<br />
- China is entering into dangerous territory of authoritarianism. Chinese history shows how much the entire country loses when such autocratic tyrants take charge - recent examples of Ci Xi and Mao are enough to illustrate this danger. There is every risk of Xi going the same way - generating sycophants, staying on too long, getting drunk on power and doing stupid things.<br />
- The Deng Xiaoping era is finally over (that it lasted 25 years after his death is amazing by itself). Most of the safeguards he tried to institutionalize are slipping. The wisdom of Deng is being frittered away. In many ways, he is the loser from what has happened. China will learn to its cost, the implications of ignoring its wisest man in recent history.<br />
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Life returns back to normal in China. This blogger will not blog about Chinese politics for the foreseeable future. A parting thought however - watch out for Hu Chunhua, Chen Min'er, Zhao Leji, and of course, above all, Xi.<br />
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<br />Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-71791609398758445972017-10-16T19:42:00.000+05:302017-10-16T19:42:21.380+05:30Wooing HQ2 ? Yuk !<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you are an American, here's a a nice issue to distract you from your fixation about you know who and direct your attention to a different issue you can get all worked up about.</div>
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Witness each city falling over each other and doing the most stupid of things to land HQ2. Tucson Arizona, where one of the readers of this blog lives , uprooted a 21ft cactus and tried to deliver it to HQ1. The mayor of Kansas City actually bought one thousand items from the company in HQ1 and wrote a review of each one of them. Mayors of cities are looking silly in videos that they have made asking Alexa where HQ2 is going to come up and Alexa answering of course, the city they are mayors of. Shall I go on ?</div>
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If you are wondering what all this hullaballoo is about, this is all to do with attracting Amazon's second head office. Amazon is based in Seattle (this is HQ1). They want to create a HQ2 somewhere else. And why are cities willing to stand in a line and kiss Bezos' ass (cue the nod to the awful American version of the Queen's English !). Because he is promising to invest $5 bn and create 50,000 jobs. How did they come to this magic figure of investment ? Because he says the average salary of the jobs created would be $100,000. </div>
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The antics of Tucson and Kansas City are harmless on their own. HQ2 won't come there anyway. The real danger is the big cities offering tax breaks to Amazon. Without a doubt this will happen.</div>
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This is a terrible idea. Cities and states that do sweetheart deals to tempt businesses into moving are doing an appalling act of profligacy. This is worse than a bribe. Think about it - this is a perfect way of taking money from the poor (remember indirect taxes are not progressive and a fair amount of the state revenues in the US come from indirect taxes) and giving it to somebody who does not deserve or need the money. One city does this , and the next city will do the same for another company. And before you say Bingo, everybody has been given a dole.</div>
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The right way to attract companies is to do the boring things - create infrastructure, make a talent pool available by vigorous education and training, attract outsiders by making it a great place to come and live, have a favourable business atmosphere in the form of ease of doing business and reasonable tax rates. That is when companies will come and stay on. That's why New York in Finance and the West Coast Cities in technology are what they are. Not because they gave tax breaks.</div>
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If you are an American, you should vigorously protest against your city doing a sweetheart deal with Amazon. </div>
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For Indians, who can look at all this with an amused smile; we have of course been long guilty of doing such deals with companies. But I want you to get agitated in a different angle. The capital of the IT industry in the country did all the right things 30 years back - great place to live in, pleasant weather, abundance of talent, a cosmopolitan place for people to come, etc etc. It did not give a tax break. And yet every IT company worth it's salt came.</div>
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And then this city let it all go to seed and become the appalling wreck of a city that it is today. This is the best way to drive every company out. No member of the Homo Sapiens species will ever come to this place again. Instead the entire population has mutated into Pithecanthropus Erectus, which being extinct, is delighted to be able to come back into existence even if condemned to living in a hellhole ! How does this blogger know of such a mutation ? Because he has mutated himself !</div>
Rameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com8