Mumbai Terror Attack – The positive and negative awakenings

The devastating terror attack in Mumbai resulted in both positive and negative awakenings.


First, the positive awakenings –

This attack gave us an opportunity to know about the excellence and skills of our security personnel, especially the marine commandos and the commandos of the famed NSG (National Security Guards). The adeptness with which they have handled the situation has boosted our confidence and faith on them to no extent. We now know for sure that our commandos are among the best in the world.

This terror attack also gave us a chance to know that our country still has brave and courageous people like Hemant Karkare, Ashok Kamte, Vijay Salaskar, Major Unnikrishnan and Gajendra Singh, who can unhesitatingly lay down their lives for the sake of their motherland. Not that we ever had any doubt about the existence of such people in India. We have witnessed the selfless supreme sacrifices made by a host of young soldiers at the time of Kargil war. And even now, almost every other day we get the news of brave Indian soldiers laying down their lives in the border areas while fighting terrorist elements. However, the martyrdom of the security personnel handling Mumbai terror attack has inspired the Indian youth in a significant manner, encouraging them to play whatever roles they can play for the service of their great motherland.

Now, the negative awakenings –

The incident has highlighted serious lapses in the Indian intelligence network, apart from bringing into light flaws in the functioning of the Indian Coast Guard.

Hopefully the concerned agencies will undertake a thorough assessment of their infrastructure and functioning style, identify the loopholes and rooms for improvements, and address the same. Good luck to them.

The incident has also highlighted, for the umpteenth time, the extreme inefficiency of our honourable Home Minister, Mr Shivraj Patil. That nation is really cursed where the responsibility of internal security is in the hands of incompetent persons like Shivraj Patil and Prakash Jaiswal, who so perfectly exemplify the phrase “Good For Nothing”.

Photo Courtesy - media.ft.com

Congrats Team India

Hello Team India! Loads of hearty congratulations for convincingly winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Winning just a single test against a robust and spirited team like Australia is a notable achievement, and beating them 2-0 is a success that can leave one just at a loss for words. We are all so proud of you pals.

This match was the last test match of Ganguly, a cricketing titan of India. And I am so happy that his last test match turned out to be a match of such a glory for our country.

Keep up the good work. All our wishes are with you.

I am now eagerly awaiting the excuses that the Aussie media will come up with, to dilute the achievement of our boys.

Hi Obama

Hi Obama, you have created history. It is not that you are the first US President to create history. Several US Presidents before you have made achievements that will always be written in golden letters in the history of your powerful (but not always respected) country.

But what makes you stand apart is that all the other Presidents had to perform notably to get their names immortal in the US history, whereas you have made history merely by getting elected as the President, given the fact that you are the first Black person to grab that coveted position. Even if you just sit idle throughout your tenure, without doing anything meaningful, still your name will always remain prominent as the first Black President of your country.

Good luck to you and your companions. Hope you will have a nice time there in the throne. We are all thrilled to know that you have some new plans for various areas of the US administration, like the foreign affairs, economy, etc. I am sure that you will remain honest to your fame as a practical leader, and will take all your decisions with precise focus on long term results, without getting carried away by any urge to take populist measures only to retain your mass popularity. For example, I hope you will realize (if you have not realized it already) that though Outsourcing appears to be bad for the US economy, in reality it is not that bad, and in fact it has some positive impacts. And, I further hope, this realization will make you change the way you perceive Outsourcing.

I also feel that your enthusiasm for resisting proliferation of nuclear weapons will not make you play a spoilsport for the Indo-US nuclear deal, which precisely entails the civilian use of nuclear power.

Obama, it was not only the US, but the entire world that supported you during your fight for the throne. And today it is not only the US, but the entire world that is looking forward to you with the hope for a new USA, which means a new world order. Again, good luck to you.

Photo courtesy - http://www.sciencedebate2008.com/

Should Children’s Access To Cyber Café Be Restricted?

Nobody denies the fact that the Internet is very educative for children, as it is the window for a vast ocean of knowledge. However, we all know that children’s unrestrictive access to the Internet can backfire, as it may expose them to stuff that are harmful for them (for example Porn sites).

This explains why parents so closely monitor their children’s Internet surfing.

However, while we can monitor the use of our children’s Internet surfing at home, can we do the same when they do the same from the internet cafes? No, we cannot.

This exposes us to the question – should children’s access to cyber café be restricted?

Well, a couple of things may be done to address the issue. For example, every café can be strictly asked to block all sorts of porn sites, so that no kid can access them from a café. However, porn sites are not the be all and end all of web pornography. There are several other online stuff that technically do not come within the sphere of “porn sites” or “pornography”, but nevertheless remain to be adult stuff quite unsuitable for impressionable minds of children. How can the cafes ensure – even if they are honest in their endeavour – that the children will not have any access to such types of stuff?

However, my actual concern is not only the type of stuff that the kids view in the Web. Rather, I am more concerned about the time when they visit the café.

There are two cafes in my neighbourhood which I regularly visit. And every time I visit the café I find a lot of children, either busy in online chatting or playing various computer games.

Online chatting and computer games are certainly very enjoyable for kids, and they are certainly not harmful habits per se. I do not have anything against them. But what disturbs me is that I find kids doing such stuff in the café even in the afternoon, i.e. the time when they are supposed to play.

We must remember that the age old and universal culture of children playing in the afternoon is not just an ordinary custom. Rather, it is a crucial habit. Physical health is as important for a child as his studies are. Things like sports and exercise help him develop a healthy and sound mind, which helps me a lot in various matters including his studies. And it is a matter of great concern if little children spend their time in the cyber café in the afternoon, when they are supposed to play – whatever games they like – to develop their physical health.

We simply cannot entertain them spending that time by browsing the Internet, even if they are browsing educative sites that are good for their studies and/or G.K. Tell me, would you like your child to spend the afternoon in his study with a book, even if it is a good book? No. You will rather like him to go out and play, and read the book only after coming back home. Similarly, we should not entertain our kids browsing the Internet at the time when they should go out and play, even if they are browsing those sites which we know to be really good for them. There is an appropriate time for everything, and we must not forget it.

But while we can dissuade our children from Internet browsing in the afternoon when they are doing it at home, how can we be sure that they will not do the same from a cyber café after going out from home?

Therefore, can any such rule be made that will prevent the cyber cafes from allowing children at certain times of the day (for example -the afternoon)?