Re: [silk] Tribal Dance
* Rites of passage. Rituals of membership. Membership is earned not given due to the geographic location of birth or residence. [...] * Two-way loyalty. The tribe protects the members and the members protect the tribe. If this isn't implemented, you don't have a tribe, you have a Kiwanis club. [...] guerrillas). We can already see this process at work in the UK's Transition Towns movement with their story telling, honoring elders, re-skilling, and leaderless approach (see the 12 steps). Trying to go tribal without geographic location being a factor is pretty tough. Tribes always come together due to physical proximity first. Everything else second. This may change if we all start living in pods and ascend our consciousness. But for now, physical proximity is primary. This was seen during the migration of the Europeans into the American west. This was seen during the movement of the Aryans into Asia/India. This is still seen where the local family vs. the diasporaic family has different levels of interaction and indifference. Protection is still a lot about protection from physical violence. Even for non-physical threats, it requires tribe-members in proximity to act as a deterrent. I love the idea. - Vinit
Re: [silk] Portable 6th sense?
Waay cool. As in - awesomely so. And I guess it can also function as a 'lifestream' of sorts. Come to think of it, that's rather creepy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZ-VjUKAsao For the first 1 hour after seeing this, I was depressed. I mean, depressed the way other techie folks may be ... why not mass-produced, why not available?! I want it now!!! I know, I know, the actual magic is in the image-recognition and software/service infrastructure around this concept. But a man has his dreams too, you know. - Vinit
[silk] Flying Bangalore to Delhi tonight?
Anyone flying from Bangalore to Delhi tonight or early tomorrow morning? (Wednesday 11th March evening or Thursday 12th March morning) If so, Please call/email me off-list Phone: 94498-02167 - Vinit
Re: [silk] Dinga Dee
Also, apparently our armed forces are equatable to some kind of damsel in distress that needs Isreali protection. My interpretation was that Israel would like to do to the Indian armed forces what the guy would like to do (to) the damsels in the video. Thaths For some reason, I couldn't bring myself to see the whole video. It may have had something to do with how utterly crappy it looked. I mean, sure, someone in the Israeli company decided they wanted to get this video made. But why the heck not go and hire a decent Bollywood music director to do it. Heck, even a decent any-wood director. This is like IBM trying to market it's supercomputers with mailed postcards! Just not the right medium for the target market. - Vinit
Re: [silk] Discover Mag's Top 100 stories of 2008
What was the one item in the list that actually made you go to the website for more details? For me, it was all the way down at #70. #70: A Single Electron Is Caught on Film Scientists make one of the world's most remarkable movies. 12.10.2008 - Vinit
Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka
Late to the reply queue, but was enjoying localizing myself in Hong Kong and Shenzhen for the last 2 weeks. So, I guess I have more thoughts ... Each time I go to a properly modern city (HK, London, NYC) I quickly feel at home. I know that all the basics I need are available: food I like, entertainment I like, people I know, safety of law enforcement, language I know, etc To be fair, I would live in any decently modern city without too much cribbing. But home is home. - Vinit -Original Message- From: silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net [mailto:silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net] On Behalf Of Venkat Mangudi Sent: Saturday, December 27, 2008 10:39 AM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka I appreciate your enthusiasm but what is it that draws you back? As an outsider not raised in Indian culture (but appreciates the variety of experiences the world has to offer) it seems to me that Singapore or Munich would be preferable. I came back because I feel I belong here. Everywhere else, I am a foreigner. You'll be surprised how people can change if your skin is a different color. The worst experience was in a mall in Fremont, CA. Somebody once told me CA was the most broadminded state. All that is nonsense. Kentucky treated me better, I think. But I digress. Before I get back to the mainstream discussion, let me state for the record that some of my best friends are not Indian and hence I am not biased against non Indians. I came back because I told myself even before I left India over a decade ago, that I would come back. I totally loved it in Munich and Darmstadt (I lived there for a while as well). Singapore was very
Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka
Here is my official email declaring this as what rot. Born and bought up here. Of course I'm biased, dammit. Next time anyone has problems with Bangalore traffic, I'm going to get them lined up outside the Lincoln tunnel going into NYC on Monday morning at 9am in the cash-only toll-lane. Or, closer home, driving from Bandra to Worli (before the sea-link) during rush-hour. Or, driving from Delhi to Gurgaon on the new elevated road The phrase Infrastructure problems was not coined just for Bangalore, and won't be disused post-Bangalore. --- Taken in a lighter vein, of course no-one expects accolades in a book titled 101 places not to visit. - Vinit -Original Message- Sent: Saturday, December 20, 2008 2:42 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka Found this on another mailing list, and I don't agreeentirely From one who grew up in Bangalore: Heaven knows that Bangalore has problems spilling out of its back pockets. But when the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) showcases a book titled '101 places not to visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/101-Places-Not-Visit- Destinations/dp/1861058586' by *Adam Russ*, with Bangalore securing the pride of place in the India section, it's time to sit up and cry.
Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka
Danese, What you say about giving Bangalore the miss is well taken. For the longest time (even before the present mess), I've thought of Bangalore to just be a stop-over on the way to Mysore, Goa, Kerala or other more wonderful south Indian destinations. For the tourists. My problem is when people call Bangalore a bad place to live. At the end of the day, we still have climate on our side. And *that* cannot be manufactured or constructed elsewhere easily. (I know, using the awesome Bangalorean climate as an example is a cheap trick, but we gotta use what we have!) Though, I appreciate your comparing Bangalore to Noida. And not Gurgaon. Whew! ;) - Vinit -Original Message- From: silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net [mailto:silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net] On Behalf Of Danese Cooper Sent: Wednesday, December 24, 2008 12:05 AM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka Must admit (as a business tourist and not a local), I wouldn't visit if there wasn't an interesting event happening. I don't care about the infrastructure issues (grew up in LA...and you forgot to mention gridlock in Beijing, Bangkok, the airport road into Hanoi...your city doesn't actually have the worst infrastructure I've ever seen, but...). Compared to visiting most Indian cities, Bangalore is like one big Indian-themed mall. Culturally, its akin to visiting Noida. As I say, I grew up in LA, and for the longest time I suffered when people knocked my city...the poor air quality for instance. My standard response was Hey, if you can't see the air you're breathing, how do you know it's even there?. The callowness of the inhabitants. Even people I grew up with thought I belonged in Berkeley ;-). So I understand your loyalty, Vinit...but have to break it to you that the article isn't so far off the mark as I see it. There are many people I love in Bangalore, but the place??...its a sadly sanitized and oddly westernized version of India. I routinely recommend that people give it a miss if they can possibly do so. Danese On Tue, Dec 23, 2008 at 9:16 AM, Vinit B vi...@bhansalimail.com wrote: Here is my official email declaring this as what rot. Born and bought up here. Of course I'm biased, dammit. Next time anyone has problems with Bangalore traffic, I'm going to get them lined up outside the Lincoln tunnel going into NYC on Monday morning at 9am in the cash-only toll-lane. Or, closer home, driving from Bandra to Worli (before the sea-link) during rush-hour. Or, driving from Delhi to Gurgaon on the new elevated road The phrase Infrastructure problems was not coined just for Bangalore, and won't be disused post-Bangalore. --- Taken in a lighter vein, of course no-one expects accolades in a book titled 101 places not to visit. - Vinit -Original Message- Sent: Saturday, December 20, 2008 2:42 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka Found this on another mailing list, and I don't agreeentirely From one who grew up in Bangalore: Heaven knows that Bangalore has problems spilling out of its back pockets. But when the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) showcases a book titled '101 places not to visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/101-Places-Not-Visit- Destinations/dp/1861058586' by *Adam Russ*, with Bangalore securing the pride of place in the India section, it's time to sit up and cry.
Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka
Ouch. I must be remembering that week when it was inaugurated with the Rs. 11.1428571 (insert your favourite random whole number here) toll wherein they expected exact change and I was stuck for over 3 hours, on 3 separate days. My bad. See, just as how Gurgaon's miseries are forgotten in a few months, so will Bangalore's, in a few months or years! And it would be a better argument if you used the Delhi Metro as an example. I'm a fan. BTW. - Vinit -Original Message- From: silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net [mailto:silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net] On Behalf Of Priyanka Sachar Sent: Wednesday, December 24, 2008 12:15 AM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka And as someone who drives twice a day up and down the Delhi-Gurgaon elevated road with an average speed of at least 100kmph (with 130kmph at times) - I can safely tell u that the delhi-gur expressway can not be compared to bangalore's traffic at all. :) Next time anyone has problems with Bangalore traffic, I'm going to get them lined up outside the Lincoln tunnel going into NYC on Monday morning at 9am in the cash-only toll-lane. Or, closer home, driving from Bandra to Worli (before the sea-link) during rush-hour. Or, driving from Delhi to Gurgaon on the new elevated road
Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka
Perry, Bought up NYC (and Lincoln tunnel) specifically because I've spent multiple years in Newark, NJ. That's one way to be familiar with the crowd going *to* NYC during rush hour!! --- About the private companies ... India is currently in the midst of a PPV (Public-Private-Partnership) boom right now. Basically, many infrastructure projects are being taken up by private companies with Govt. backing (and guarantees, as far as toll collection, land acquisition, etc are concerned) Few examples: DND Toll Road in Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad Airports, N.I.C.E. Ring road in Bangalore. They are doing well for now. But I can see how a few decades down the line, some lame-ass ministry decides that these should be handled by the Govt. and not by private companies. The bigger problem I see here is that slowly, private companies are going towards running defense contracts and not infrastructure projects. That's the real risk people should worry about. - Vinit -Original Message- From: silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net [mailto:silklist-bounces+vinit=bhansalimail@lists.hserus.net] On Behalf Of Perry E. Metzger Sent: Wednesday, December 24, 2008 12:54 AM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] who killed bangalore? from the churumuri blog on Karnataka Vinit B vi...@bhansalimail.com writes: Here is my official email declaring this as what rot. Born and bought up here. Of course I'm biased, dammit. Next time anyone has problems with Bangalore traffic, I'm going to get them lined up outside the Lincoln tunnel going into NYC on Monday morning at 9am in the cash-only toll-lane. Not that you meant to bring up New York specifically, but as I live here... Infrastructure in New York has been disintegrating for decades. Sadly, so long as central planning and subsidized services are the main mechanisms by which infrastructure will be managed, it will continue to get worse. For example, the city's subways were a wonderful innovation. They were built by private companies and made money. They were then driven into the ground when the government limited on the fares they could charge to below the cost of operation, following which they were bankrupted and subsequently taken over by the state. Were entrepreneurs free to address the city's traffic issues, doubtless numerous ways could be found to improve them, but that was taken off the table decades ago. Right now, because the subways lose money on every passenger, success makes them more and more economically unstable. Because the subways have attracted record ridership for several years, they're on the verge of financial collapse. Contrast this with what would happen if you had a store and had a record number of customers -- you would be thinking about ways to expand. Lest anyone think I believe there was a golden age in the past here, it corruption and government meddling has been at the heart of the management of New York City for around two hundred years. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight. The majority of the local population believe very firmly that capitalism is evil and private organizations must not be allowed to manage infrastructure. So long as that continues, politicians will have cover to continue mismanaging everything in sight. Perry
Re: [silk] Chamrajpet Charles
It's only (and especially) funny if you were bought up in Bangalore. But the first time I heard Chamrajpet Charles and Sultan School of Speech-chas I almost died laughing. It's been around for many months now, and just as wonderful. Thought, I wish they would get more variety. (They are still doing the Magic Box joke). - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Gautam John Sent: Thursday, October 23, 2008 11:25 AM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: [silk] Chamrajpet Charles Anyone been listening to Radio One in Bangalore? They have this awesome new filler called Chamrajpet Charles who is supposed to be an Anglo-Indian http://in.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=tonrag Watch, or rather, listen to them all... And if you want to hear more: http://www.thinkhappy.biz/ ClickWorkRadio One and enjaay. -- Please read our new blog at: http://blog.prathambooks.org
Re: [silk] URGENT: Dinner tonight at 8:30, not 7PM!
Since I'm already on my way, I'm on for 7 (7:15ish) Where would Mondegear be? - Vinit (damn, we need a way to spread cell numbers without silk archiving them for public searches) -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Devdas Bhagat Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2008 3:39 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] URGENT: Dinner tonight at 8:30, not 7PM! On Tue, Sep 23, 2008 at 01:54:09PM +0530, Cory Doctorow wrote: Just heard from the Koyla -- they don't open for dinner until 8:30, so our table's booked for 8:30! Hope everyone gets this in time! Anyone for meeting up at Mondegear at 7, then moving to Koyla for dinner? Devdas Bhagat
Re: [silk] Mumbai get-together
Add me in too. On the train to Mumbai as we speak. And power-plugs on the train + a data card make them sooo much better than so many airlines! Will send you phone num off list. - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Cory Doctorow Sent: Friday, September 19, 2008 8:40 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: [silk] Mumbai get-together I'm on my way to Mumbai in the morning -- who's up for dinner on, say, Tuesday night? Cory -- Cory Doctorow [EMAIL PROTECTED] blog: boingboing.net vanity: craphound.com podcast: feeds.feedburner.com/doctorow_podcast Free novel: Little Brother: craphound.com/littlebrother Free graphic novel: http://craphound.com/?p=2079 Free novel: Someone Comes to Town: craphound.com/someone Free novel: Eastern Standard Tribe: craphound.com/est Free novel: Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom: craphound.com/down Free stories: Overclocked: craphound.com/overclocked Free stories: A Place So Foreign: craphound.com/place Join my mailing list and find out about upcoming books, stories, articles and appearances: http://www.ctyme.com/mailman/listinfo/doctorow READ CAREFULLY. By reading this email, you agree, on behalf of your employer, to release me from all obligations and waivers arising from any and all NON-NEGOTIATED agreements, licenses, terms-of-service, shrinkwrap, clickwrap, browsewrap, confidentiality, non-disclosure, non-compete and acceptable use policies (BOGUS AGREEMENTS) that I have entered into with your employer, its partners, licensors, agents and assigns, in perpetuity, without prejudice to my ongoing rights and privileges. You further represent that you have the authority to release me from any BOGUS AGREEMENTS on behalf of your employer.
Re: [silk] Food and the Empire
Ummm, The Brits now eat curry with everything. Last I checked, Fish and Chips or Strawberries and cream still need to catch up even in the British-educated and England returned desis. I rest my case. - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Gautam John Sent: Friday, September 19, 2008 5:48 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: [silk] Food and the Empire Came across this: http://www.utas.edu.au/ejel/recipesforempire/ And it set me thinking given their question: What was the influence of Britain upon colonial cuisines and culinary practices, and what traces of the colonial can we see in British food and food writing? What is the relationship between the ingredients and method of practical cooking, and the rules and procedures of imperial governance? I suppose one facet that comes to mind is the actual documentation of the culinary traditions of colonies. -- Please read our new blog at: http://blog.prathambooks.org
Re: [silk] [Help] Online payment systems
With INGDirect.com, you can also setup scheduling, so it sends out money to various accounts based on specific date/day-of-week per account. - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of surabhi tomar Sent: Friday, September 05, 2008 2:42 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] [Help] Online payment systems I need to be able to transfer money from my account to a number of accounts (which change from time to time) automatically. While there are several products to collect money from various bank accounts, there seem to be none that do the reverse, i.e. disburse money to various accounts. If you are asking this question for personal use, then www.ingdirect.com does a pretty good job. It works as an online bank account and you can use it to collect money from and then disburse the money into any number of accounts. Surabhi
Re: [silk] india's seat at the security council
That was the point. Queen of England = hundreds of acres of property. Compared to a single-homeowner who is renting out the 2nd floor of the house! - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Kiran Jonnalagadda Sent: Tuesday, September 02, 2008 2:29 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] india's seat at the security council On Tue, Sep 2, 2008 at 1:00 PM, Vinit B [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: However, it is a bit unfair to directly compare individual temple trusts to the Wakf or CSI which control vast swaths of property under a single organization. It's a common enough setup. Even the Queen of England makes her money from real estate: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchy_of_Lancaster -- Kiran Jonnalagadda http://jace.seacrow.com/
Re: [silk] india's seat at the security council
This brings me to a huge economic presence in India which keeps a very low profile..the administration of funds of religious bodies, like the Wakf Board, the Church of South India, and so on. The CSI owns immense amounts of property, and I simply have no clue how the money is administered... and, in the case of that decentralized (Ultimate or otherwise) religion - the devastanam properties belonging to individual temple trusts. Just as opaque. And perhaps more litigation afflicted. However, it is a bit unfair to directly compare individual temple trusts to the Wakf or CSI which control vast swaths of property under a single organization. - Vinit
Re: [silk] A Capital Idea
Have to agree with Perry. Reminds me of an article/essay I actually used at a recitation competition in school titled Our crazy language from the Readers Digest http://www.astro.umd.edu/~avondale/extra/Humor/SchoolHumor/EnglishLanguage.h tml Here are bits of it... Sometimes I wonder if all English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what other language do people drive on a parkway and park in a driveway? Recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell? [...] English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race (which, of course, isn't really a race at all). That is why, when stars are out they are visible, but when the lights are out they are invisible. Any why, when I wind up my watch I start it, but when I wind up this essay I end it. Just cannot wait till English is replaced by Galactic Standard. - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Perry E. Metzger Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 4:37 AM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] A Capital Idea Rishab Aiyer Ghosh [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: english spelling is truly idiotic. Rather, though the lack of any central authority makes it impossible to reform in practice. (It also is the language's main strength, IMHO.) Perry
Re: [silk] What a cool name...
Jeez. Gets a whole new meaning to the term social engineering. - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Venkat Mangudi Sent: Saturday, August 16, 2008 1:51 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: [silk] What a cool name... http://xkcd.com/327/ -V
Re: [silk] Airport Check-In Design
Well, the original reason for this fixation was justifiable. It went, ... If someone's good enough to get shipped all the way from Europe to India, then he/she must know what they are talking about and worth the transportation cost! Unfortunately, today, the idea's gone, but the habit remains. - Vinit -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Perry E. Metzger Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2008 11:45 PM To: silklist@lists.hserus.net Subject: Re: [silk] Airport Check-In Design Madhu Menon [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Biju Chacko wrote: Question: Would managing the Zurich airport be a good criterion to select someone to manage an airport? Is it big? Well traffic-ed? Or were we sold down the river? They're phoren, after all -- therefore they must be better. :-) Maybe one day we will get over that fixation. Perhaps a bit after people in New York get over that fixation, but we show no sign of it even though the city is almost all foreigners of one sort or another. For example, even here, a bit of a French or British accent can transform mundane people with no skill into Unusually Talented Expatriates. Whether you're an investment banker or a bartender, the perception that you're from far away makes you mysterious and obviously unusually skilled/suave/hip/etc. It isn't nearly as bad as it was perhaps 30 years ago -- the mysterious Banks From Germany, Switzerland And Japan no longer hold much mystique in the finance industry and we've learned to distinguish a bit -- we find the Japanese cars to be much more attractive than the German ones, with French, British and similar cars no longer viewed as more interesting than the local product. However, Mysterious Japanese Chefs still command vast prices at restaurants like Masa, a French DJ will get gigs more easily than a local simply because He's Foreign And Must Be Cooler, being English makes it much easier to seem interesting on the chat show circuit, etc. As I said, if that works in a place where you can hear 100 languages from every corner of the world being spoken on the street without much trouble, what hope does anyone else have of a swift recovery from Foreign Superiority Syndrome? Perry -- Perry E. Metzger[EMAIL PROTECTED]
