Struggling With Time

Things have been crazy in the University! My day is spent pacing from class to class, grabbing a quick lunch, finishing homework, studying, research work.... and so by the time I reach home I am so terribly tired and hungry once more. Even though it gets too strenous sometimes, I am still enjoying it quite a lot.; the challenge, the load, and the excitement is all worth it.

But then I have no time left for anything else. I still havn't been able to finish my novels. I wish that could change.

Fear Justifies All Measures...or Does It?

I have a friend who is partly of the middle eastern descent. He told me that he is quite often the person selected for a "random" security check at the airports. While at the Chicago airport, I myself recall the entire security unit keeping their blunt stares at us as we entered the United States from India. And then today, at a book discussion in the University, I heard another story from an Indian girl.

We were talking about the reaction to the Japanese and other Asians who were mistaken to be Japanese, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. And it came tohow people react ou of fear and how things have changed after the 9/11 incident. So that girl had a Saudi Arabian passport and had some edibles with her. However, the whole family was stopped at the airport for two days to check if the food was harmful and could be a possible source of food poisoning...

People react out of fear, but I don't think it is justified. They are ignorant fools if they do that.

As I was talking about this with my friend, she recommended me to read The Assault on Reason by Al Gore. He talks about the relationship of politics, fear, and faith, and how politics uses fear as another contemplative device...

Flight of Freedom

On 15th August, Indians all over the world celebrated India's 60th year as an independent country. As far as I remember, that day was just like one of the other days when I woke up late because I slept late the night before, and pretty much spent the rest of the day in a trance because of my messed up sleep cycle... :<

That day, I recalled how my dad and I, among with countless other families, used to fly kites every year at this time; and I was the happiest little girl around because "my papa's kite is flying higher than yours!!!" Among other things, he is really skilled at that. (It is a tradition to fly kites on 15th August in India, just as it is to light fireworks in the U.S.)

However, this weekend, we visited some of our friends in North Augusta, S.C., and we all went together to celebrate Independence Day (late, of course) along with the Indo-American Cultural Association of America. We reached about half way through the program, but I think we were extremely lucky to be able to make it on time to watch a spectacular Bharatnatyam performance by Articulate India. If you visit their website, you'll know, that among other things, one of their aims is to perform their dance for a spiritual experience. The 'Ganesha Stuti' and 'Jai Janaki Jai' were the two dances performed by five men that day. The unbelievably amazing fact is that four out of those five dancers were blind, but no one could have known that by judging their performance that night, unless it hadn't been already told to us. Those who have no knowledge about classical Indian dances must know that they use extensive facial and and hand expressions along with foot tapping. To learn all this and be able to reproduce in front of large audiences with the same talent as that of a person with no visual impairment requires a great deal of strength, determination, and perseverance. Every time I watch another graceful Bharatnatyam performance, I feel great knowing the fact that people use dance as a true form of expression and to get in touch with their innermost selves... :-)

Kudos to them.

The Height of Stupidity...

My latest venture into Barnes and Noble bookstore in search of something "dynamic and non-cliche" brought me across Godless, Ann Coulter's latest book talking about the ''church of liberalism''. It took me about a paragraph to realize that the only reason she is one of the bestselling authors, is perhaps because of her readers' quality of credulity.
An intrepid author, her prudence in repudiating the liberals (or the democrats) is exemplary. Never in my life have I read eight pages of a book and been able to rebut every single point made with my own prudence! I am not politically prejudiced, but with the following examples, you will notice very well what I meant, and hopefully, be able to notice her political beliefs and indulgence in bigotry:

"As a matter of faith, liberals believe: Darwinism is a fact, people are born gay..., recycling is a virtue, chastity is not...If people are born gay, why hasn't darwinism weeded out people who don't reproduce? And if gays can't change, why do liberals think child molesters can? Pedophilia is a sexual preference..."

• Darwinism is a theory-Darwin's theory of natural selection. Who does not know that? Where ever has this idea been published without clearing the fact that it's a theory?


• If she could remember anything that's taught in schools, without her bias, she would know that disturbed hormones during pregnancy introduce the tendency and possibility of a child of being a homosexual. It is biological, and hence, if I must use the word, natural. Moreover, the idea of comparing homosexuals to child molesters is utterly ridiculous! Pedophilia is a preference, homosexuality is not! And why should the latter choose to change? Only because Ms. Coulter and her friends are not comfortable with what goes on in their bedroom...?


• Coming back to Darwinism again, a lesson in Biology for Ms. Coulter: There is no gene for the predisposition to homosexuality. And they don't reproduce with their own partner. So either way, there is nothing to be weeded out.

"Why must children be told that recycling is the only answer? Why are'nt we teaching children safe littering?"

Here's the answer. Dispose off of tonnes and tonnes of waste, but where? Already, 83% percent of America's waste is dumped in other countries...but probably, Coulter doesn't care about knowing things before writing, "third world countries", or both!

I caught a dozen more things, but probably we'll all be better off reading and judging it on our own.

That day, I walked out of B&N engulfed in rage. Strange behavior for a bibliophile like me, but only because I realized that there are still foolish authors writing for the purpose of spreading ideas that are thoroughly flawed.

:/