Surreptitious Radical Maniac

Using my friend's Amazon account, I bought a cube for my student in the name of a TFI Fellow using my dad's card.  There are 5 individuals involved over here. If this process is extended a bit more, you could see the interconnectedness from one to another.  The other people are the delivery boy, the company Amazon, the company which made the cube, the cardboard box company, the person who packed it, the print label, the computer, internet, the design, the cube itself, the credit card company, the transaction processing company, bank, etc. And, on a broader level, it can be extended to numerous people who are involved in it if delved to 4th level connections. It can also be connected to the next level when the purpose/use of the product is complete. Like, it is recycled, discarded, etc. So, what's happening here? Let's take my initial statement of ordering a cube. A simple result is i n such an interconnected world, my student will get the cube, only if everythin...

Stabilization in the hour of need To understand stabilization, let us contemplate on  destabilization of elected government . It is causing unrest of a governing body of the state.  This is an interesting phenomenon as the case of Madhya Pradesh in 2020, which has similarities with Karnataka in 2019 and Bihar in 2017. Can you destabilize the elected government? Yes, you can. Did it happen before? Of course. Numerous examples across almost all states since independence. So, the question of  'can you do it?'  is answerable with  'yes.'   'Should you do it?'  is what leaders and people have to be concerned about. What is the primary concern of a government? To enact policy, deliver services or keep counting the number of MLAs each morning-afternoon-night (or maybe every second) in their party to ensure the government hasn't succumbed to external or internal forces? Right now, it seems like the only concern is to stay in power and worry abou...

This is the translation of Sri Sri's poem 'Kala Ravi'. I tried my best to translate it to English, but it's best read and heard in Telugu. There could be better translation for some words and suggestions are welcome. The word 'pothe poni', which is often repeated in this poem is hard to translate. The literal meaning would be  'let it go if it has to go and don't stop it.'  It is surprising to see such a sentence is aptly said by two words in Telugu. Maybe that's the beauty of it.  Kala Ravi (Oh Poet!) let them go let them go... if they have to go! wife, children, well-wishers - let them go! let them go... let them come let them come... come if they may problems, loss,  anger, thirst, curses - let them come! abuses, friction, hardship - let them come! let it come, let it come... let it happen, let it happen sing, meditate,  smile, dance!  let it happen, let it happen oh poet, best poet!

Recent situation across India made me think of how to bring a change. While there are many methods to do it, there are 2 broad methodologies. One is to bring a change within the system. And, the second is to change the system itself. The current government which brought a change (irrespective of good/bad or right/wrong, it's still a change) through the system. And, if you're against it, do the same. Join the system and change it again.  If you think the whole system is to be changed, then, everyone should be affected by the change. The current changes brought by the government clearly isn't touching many people. So, the second form of change, a revolution is not possible. And, India doesn't need a revolution right now. The system works well. It has imperfections, which have to be addressed. Let's address the imperfections by working within the system. What are protests achieving? I often complain that it should achieve something. Most protests actually was...

If you're able to do unpaid internship, you're PRIVILEGED If you're offering unpaid internship, you're HYPOCRITE (maybe lack of a better word) It's simple. By offering unpaid internship, you're creating an invisible or maybe visible line to weed out applicants who won't work for free. In a random conversation, someone told me Washington DC is a slave city. It's not just for unpaid internships, but also work-salary ratio compared to other professions. By doing as such, you're still continuing and propagating a culture which would further continue to divide society by class than actually break it. It can be considered a form of nepotism as you're giving preferential treatment to people who are able to work for free. Academic credit is often cited by these institutions as a turnaround for unpaid work. But, how many institutions offer academic credit? Not all institutions do it. Very few indeed. Graduate school at Elliott doesn't...

Identity... I came across 3 different posts (above) and they piqued my interest in the way we identify themselves. Maybe this is the beginning of all such things, but I'm confused if it's right or wrong. Is it okay to identify yourself as someone or something?? I'd say absolutely. No problem at all. This concept of identity is also deeply rooted in ourselves, on a broader level like ethnicity, caste, race, country, language, etc. But, recently, people started to identify in different terms.  If someone asks me where you're from, my initial thought would be, I'm from Hyderabad.  But I do realize not everyone recognizes it right away. So, I say, I'm from India . But, a person who knows India will definitely ask you which place you're from within India. It's because that person knows that you identify yourself beyond the country India. So, what's right? Is it Hyderabad or India?? Or both? A person who knows Hyderabad will...