Friday, May 31, 2019
Thursday, May 30, 2019
Aditya Chakrabortty on Britain
Britain is in the grip of an existential crisis that reaches far beyond Brexit
“If you leave the EU, you do so to become something else. But you don’t appear to know what you want to become.”
“If you leave the EU, you do so to become something else. But you don’t appear to know what you want to become.”
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Sunday, May 26, 2019
Perepa P.C.Joshi RIP.
He passed away this morning at 8:30 am IST. He was a classmate from 1960-62 and roommate during 1961-62 and we have been in touch since then though we lived in different places.
Wednesday, May 22, 2019
DK Pattammal following Saigal
“Anyway, coming back to the old Devdas, the songs are all great. But one of the reasons why Balam Aye is stuck in my head is because its tune was copied faithfully for the Kalki Krishnamurthy song Poonkuil Koovum Pooncholaiyil Oru Naal! You can hear DK Pattammal sing it in this youtube clip where SS Mani plays the gramophone disc with the song. I wonder when Kalki composed it, though I am quite certain that his song followed the Hindi original. After all, Pattammal began recording only in 1938 or thereabouts.” says the author in Musings on some film songs-1. Another similar story From Thandi Hawayen to Konjum Purave.
Mothers and sons
Bonobo moms play an active role in helping their sons find a mate
“Interestingly, bonobo moms did not extend similar help to their daughters, nor were there any observations of daughters receiving assistance in rearing their offspring. "In bonobo social systems, the daughters disperse from the native community and the sons stay," Surbeck says. "And for the few daughters that stay in the community, which we don't have many examples of, we don't see them receiving any help from their mothers."”
“Interestingly, bonobo moms did not extend similar help to their daughters, nor were there any observations of daughters receiving assistance in rearing their offspring. "In bonobo social systems, the daughters disperse from the native community and the sons stay," Surbeck says. "And for the few daughters that stay in the community, which we don't have many examples of, we don't see them receiving any help from their mothers."”
Madhukar’s Shukla on scale in social projects
The "Jetty Project": Is "Scale" necessary for "Social Change"? “Many such small, yet transformational changes, happen because the local social entrepreneurs (as we would call them) are uniquely positioned to do make them happen - they leverage the highly contextual, and often tacit, local knowledge to identify critical social problems, mobilize local resources and develop a solution which is relevant and viable in the local context.”
Bilkis Bano case
Gujarat riots gang-rape survivor receives justice after 17 years “Legal experts and activists say Bano's case is unique, marking a rare instance of justice for a victim of sexual violence during communal riots.”
Saturday, May 18, 2019
Nehru’s last interview?
Namit Arora who posted this on Facebook says in one of the comments:
“A general comment. Nehru really has a great deal going for him, and I don’t wish to dwell on his flaws here, especially given the monstrosity that currently occupies that office (who is attacking Nehru for all the wrong reasons!). Nehru was a brilliant and reflective statesman, and it's astounding how far we have fallen today.
But, with that caveat, I’d note that Nehru, for all his talk of land reform, including in this interview, did very little on that front. He had regressive views on reservations, had defensive upper-caste attitudes towards the caste system, and did little to annihilate it in his 15 years in office. In the fight between Ambedkar and Gandhi, Nehru remained oddly silent, and didn't stand with Ambedkar. For a socialist country, he didn’t grant universal primary education the urgency it deserved – as did China. He also created the deadly AFSPA, which his great grandson is now trying to dismantle as a campaign promise. He mishandled Kashmir and led the country into a disastrous war with China. Scholars now also attribute some responsibility for Partition to him. Additional aspects of his legacy have been critiqued by later liberals, some of which I covered in the essay ‘No Saints or Miracles’ in my book.”
Friday, May 17, 2019
Bob Hawke RIP
Popular forever: the intellectual larrikin that was Bob Hawke by his press secretary Barrie Cassidy
Bob Hawke rise was predicted by an Indian soothsayer Ramakrishna Sarathy Future Perfect ( Sarathy said that he was correct about 70 percent of the time and hoping reach 90 percent).
Madhukar Shukla on scaling
https://m.facebook.com/notes/madhukar-shukla/scaling-social-entrepreneurs-dream-and-conundrum/10156575314256795/
Check also An industrial policy for good jobs by Dani Rodrik and Charles Sabel
Significant innovations in India (civil society)
India's most significant innovations have roots in civil society
And a ‘foreigner’ played a significant role in many of them:
A champion of India’s poor: Sonia Gandhi’s most valuable, and least acknowledged, contribution
And a ‘foreigner’ played a significant role in many of them:
A champion of India’s poor: Sonia Gandhi’s most valuable, and least acknowledged, contribution
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