China is a typical example of how an entity can hold on to archaic values amidst a fervently changing world and yet continue to grow like cancer. Yes, growth without a change in mindset is cancer. What’s cancer all about? China does not believe in mutual dialogue; it has a judiciary that has a communist mind-set; it does not believe in a free press (Remember its attempts at a censored version of Google for its citizens?) and it is an expansionist power. Needless to say it is the only international entity that still speaks of ‘crushing’ an upraising that is caused by years of identity crisis and suppression. ‘Crush’ in the context used is so archaic that I thought of college ‘crushes’ when I heard that every word scream at me in a front page headline today.
There is evidence that the Chinese government is harassing the Chinese occupied Tibetan provinces with its single child norm. China's one child policy was established by Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1979 to limit communist China's population growth. Although designated a temporary measure then, it still continues. And going by the recent statement of a Chinese population official to a leading Indian daily, the one-child policy will not change for at least another decade. In mainland China the communist government takes to imposing fines; pressurizes to abort an ‘unwanted’ pregnancy and even takes to forced sterilization for second or subsequent pregnancies. Of course, I have a problem with it because it is inhumane but more so because it is regressive and hence pitiable. China is compared to India which is one of the world’s largest democracies. Economical statistics have attained such a stature in the New World Order they have become a basis for comparisons that would otherwise be baseless.
It’s no wonder that the terrorist forces that are plaguing the earth today have not thought of China yet? They target people and nations not red uniformed spineless work forces. The terrorist forces are looking to curb progress not mindless growth for it won’t affect them anyway. They are looking to curb a tolerant mindset and those with no attitude or mindset are safe doing their daily labor (and getting compared to one of the largest democracy in the world, India and all this just because of their sheer moolah).
If some nations play Big Brother to the world then India is a typical example of a Smug Younger Sibling that eyes a bar of candy no matter what. The soft baby is eager to share its candies when it sees no threat to its interests but chickens out when it’s time to speak for a neighbor it once sheltered and still does. Can the Indian government let go of its trade with China? Can it let of the cheap toys and gadgets China smuggles into India every year? Can it let go of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh for a ‘petty maroon-uniformed lame section of religious monks’? No. It’s sad – India is chickening out and while its neighbor uses up its own crude cane on a helpless unarmed agitated section – the Tibetans. This is the every section India once played messiah to giving it shelter when His Holiness Dalai Lama fled from China on March 17th 1959 and a cabin for a government in exile in Dharamshala. On second thoughts, is this mercy killing or sheer chickening out on the part of Indian government’s part? One suspects it is the former, not going by its track record but going by the India’s silence pregnant with cowardice as its neighbor makes Human Rights sound like an alien concept with every passing day.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Sunday, September 9, 2007
My Cleaner by Maggie Gee - Book Review
Maggie Gee novel My Cleaner explores racism with starkness without being loud. The racism is very subtle, the kind seen in the middle class society, nothing is said on the face but the discrimination exists. The story is set in Uganda and an elegant house in affluent West London, that of a white lady, Venessa Henman. This story is about the power struggle between two women, it is written in such a gossipy style and with such ease that it can pass of as a script for TV soaps. Vanessa Henman is a neurotic, middle-aged writer from comfortable middle class. She has a despised painter and decorator for an ex- husband, Trevor and a depressed 22-year old for a son, so depresses that he would not even get out of bed, Justin. The only person Justin wants to see is Mary Tendo, the Ugandan cleaner who took care of him through most of his childhood when his mother was too busy in her study to spend any time with him. It is then that Venessa writes to Mary who is then in Uganda and calls her back to take care of her son. Mary who once worked as a young teenager at their place returns as an assertive and I-know-what-I-want black lady. In Mary’s second innings as a maid she bestrides the house like a colossus, taking control of Justin's life, commandeering the kitchen, not troubling to hide her feelings about Vanessa and thanking God every day that she is an African woman. This is too much for Vanessa to take, although she is determined that she would treat Mary as an equal this time round. Power balance soon shifts at home and everyone's life begins to change irrevocably.
Maggie Gee gives an insight into both the women’s life. Mary Tendo is a graduate but being a Black African puts her in the back seat, she is a well-traveled and street smart lady though. Vanessa is a well-bred woman fighting age and trying to come to terms with her ill son on one hand and his attachment for Mary on the other. There domestic situation at home has racist tones to it, Venessa speaks about how she feels when her son sings African songs, she feels like she has an African boy at home. She rebuffs Mary and gives her an English rhymes tape and asks her to tutor it to Justin. Gee brilliantly uses the clash between the two women as a way of exploring not only class and cultural conflict, not just racism. More than once, Vanessa brings to mind Jane Austen's Emma in her ability to delude herself and ignore the blindingly obvious. Justin's depression does not run in the family, Vanessa tells us: 'Not on my side, at least. Just my mother's brother who killed himself. Admittedly, my mother was sometimes unwell, but she never actually stayed in bed. Once or twice, she went away to hospital'.
On the surface, Mary and Vanessa are polar opposites: Vanessa is pale and bony, and cooks soft, white, pre-prepared food; Mary is dark and voluptuous and steams up the kitchen with vast meals made from huge, earthy vegetables and great slabs of meat. Vanessa is mean, self-obsessed and closed-off. She forbids Justin the white bread he craves. Mary is generous, outgoing, gregarious and feeds the boy forbidden jam sandwiches. Yet at heart, we realize they are not so very different. The novel is rendered in alternative voices of both Mary and Vanessa as they talk about their lives and their loved ones. The altering narratives make a very nice read. The writer’s style is gossipy, warm and rhythmic.
Maggie Gee gives an insight into both the women’s life. Mary Tendo is a graduate but being a Black African puts her in the back seat, she is a well-traveled and street smart lady though. Vanessa is a well-bred woman fighting age and trying to come to terms with her ill son on one hand and his attachment for Mary on the other. There domestic situation at home has racist tones to it, Venessa speaks about how she feels when her son sings African songs, she feels like she has an African boy at home. She rebuffs Mary and gives her an English rhymes tape and asks her to tutor it to Justin. Gee brilliantly uses the clash between the two women as a way of exploring not only class and cultural conflict, not just racism. More than once, Vanessa brings to mind Jane Austen's Emma in her ability to delude herself and ignore the blindingly obvious. Justin's depression does not run in the family, Vanessa tells us: 'Not on my side, at least. Just my mother's brother who killed himself. Admittedly, my mother was sometimes unwell, but she never actually stayed in bed. Once or twice, she went away to hospital'.
On the surface, Mary and Vanessa are polar opposites: Vanessa is pale and bony, and cooks soft, white, pre-prepared food; Mary is dark and voluptuous and steams up the kitchen with vast meals made from huge, earthy vegetables and great slabs of meat. Vanessa is mean, self-obsessed and closed-off. She forbids Justin the white bread he craves. Mary is generous, outgoing, gregarious and feeds the boy forbidden jam sandwiches. Yet at heart, we realize they are not so very different. The novel is rendered in alternative voices of both Mary and Vanessa as they talk about their lives and their loved ones. The altering narratives make a very nice read. The writer’s style is gossipy, warm and rhythmic.
From a modest province to a wind Giant!
Today I will tell the story of a small north-eastern Spanish village called Iratxeta that become self-sufficient in its energy production by using wind turbines. Iratxeta is a cluster of stone houses that is rested on hills in the Spanish region of Navarre. Iratxeta is surrounded by dark green mountain forest and the village is forever famous for its wheat fields, within itself. For information, Navarre is one of Spain’s 15 mainland autonomous regions is located in the north-east, between the Basque country and the French border.
Let me put out a brief historical over view - during the time of the Roman Empire, the territory of Iratxeta was inhabited by the Vascones. Vascones were an ancient people and it is likely that they are ancestors of the present-day Basques. The Basques are an indigenous people who inhabit parts of north-eastern Spain and south-western France to this date.
Iratxeta is full of wind turbines. The idea of setting up wind turbines struck Jose Roman Gomez, the manager of the local councils in Iratxeta (the village is self-governed) , fifteen years before and things began to change for the better gradually. Before this wind-boom happened it was a dying village with no running water and health facilities. Now the village has developed through the years and has also expanded to nearly double its original size. 10, 391 sq. km is its size today.
Today the village has running water and the rent from wind-farm operators has enabled the local council to hire four full-time health workers to care for the community's elderly people. People from a near-by city called Pamplona are investing in Navarre and especially in Iratxeta.
This wind revolution has put Navarre in the forefront of Spain’s wind revolution. Navarre is actually located in the northeast, between the Basque country and the French border. Today this region generates almost 60% of its own electricity from renewable sources — the vast majority from wind. The region's most recent energy plan, released in May, aims to increase this proportion to more than 75% by 2010. So, the wind boom in Navarre is among the most intensive in Spain.
Navarre generates almost 60% of its electricity from renewable sources — the vast majority from wind. The region's most recent energy plan, released in May, aims to increase this proportion to more than 75% by 2010.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the government of Navarre was eager to develop new industries, especially as this region seemed overly dependent on its single large industrial employer, a Volkswagen car plant. But with a limited local power supply, Navarre's infrastructure wasn't particularly appealing to outside investors. An entrepreneur called Estanban Morras came up with a wind-power plan that promised a way out of this shortage. So, the government bought into the plan more because of this shortage than environmental reasons. Navarre, being a self-governed region bought into Morra’s vision and was on its way of making itself an wind-giant. The credit, of course goes to Jose Roman Gomez who was instrumental in transforming his village.
The first wind farm of Morras himself was as built south of Pamplona in 1994; since then the government of Navarre has approved well over a thousand turbines in 32 wind farms. From 1995 to 2004, it invested more than 136 million in renewable-energy enterprises. This contributed up to 30% of the initial funding and provided tax credits for investors. Navarre’s wind farms have capacity of producing 950 megawatts of power. It looks as if Navarre might become entirely self-sufficient by 2010, producing 100 % of its electricity through renewables and that the energy for all the villages in Navarre will come from renewables. Morras stresses that this is not an illusion and that it is actually possible, he insists this will be the case from and by 2010. There are many stories like Navarre. Wind farms have transformed Spain's landscape over the past decade.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
Let me put out a brief historical over view - during the time of the Roman Empire, the territory of Iratxeta was inhabited by the Vascones. Vascones were an ancient people and it is likely that they are ancestors of the present-day Basques. The Basques are an indigenous people who inhabit parts of north-eastern Spain and south-western France to this date.
Iratxeta is full of wind turbines. The idea of setting up wind turbines struck Jose Roman Gomez, the manager of the local councils in Iratxeta (the village is self-governed) , fifteen years before and things began to change for the better gradually. Before this wind-boom happened it was a dying village with no running water and health facilities. Now the village has developed through the years and has also expanded to nearly double its original size. 10, 391 sq. km is its size today.
Today the village has running water and the rent from wind-farm operators has enabled the local council to hire four full-time health workers to care for the community's elderly people. People from a near-by city called Pamplona are investing in Navarre and especially in Iratxeta.
This wind revolution has put Navarre in the forefront of Spain’s wind revolution. Navarre is actually located in the northeast, between the Basque country and the French border. Today this region generates almost 60% of its own electricity from renewable sources — the vast majority from wind. The region's most recent energy plan, released in May, aims to increase this proportion to more than 75% by 2010. So, the wind boom in Navarre is among the most intensive in Spain.
Navarre generates almost 60% of its electricity from renewable sources — the vast majority from wind. The region's most recent energy plan, released in May, aims to increase this proportion to more than 75% by 2010.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the government of Navarre was eager to develop new industries, especially as this region seemed overly dependent on its single large industrial employer, a Volkswagen car plant. But with a limited local power supply, Navarre's infrastructure wasn't particularly appealing to outside investors. An entrepreneur called Estanban Morras came up with a wind-power plan that promised a way out of this shortage. So, the government bought into the plan more because of this shortage than environmental reasons. Navarre, being a self-governed region bought into Morra’s vision and was on its way of making itself an wind-giant. The credit, of course goes to Jose Roman Gomez who was instrumental in transforming his village.
The first wind farm of Morras himself was as built south of Pamplona in 1994; since then the government of Navarre has approved well over a thousand turbines in 32 wind farms. From 1995 to 2004, it invested more than 136 million in renewable-energy enterprises. This contributed up to 30% of the initial funding and provided tax credits for investors. Navarre’s wind farms have capacity of producing 950 megawatts of power. It looks as if Navarre might become entirely self-sufficient by 2010, producing 100 % of its electricity through renewables and that the energy for all the villages in Navarre will come from renewables. Morras stresses that this is not an illusion and that it is actually possible, he insists this will be the case from and by 2010. There are many stories like Navarre. Wind farms have transformed Spain's landscape over the past decade.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
Saturday, September 8, 2007
I am one of those interior décor freaks , I love decorated homes and love decorating my own home . But every time I amble around my home, there is one thing that never ceases to amaze me – how did the goldfish in the jar on the dinning table spend three years of its life there and going to spend all its life there?
Since ages man had tried to break out of clutches and shackles while the other times he had been badly in need to of just them and nothing else. Man started off as an animal , free and inexorable but when he was obliged or rather felt the need to cook ( read burn) his food ,then a lot of other things came with it. But has this need for order made some cultures ,like the ones in the middle east, rigid ? Or is it in the other extremity – Man is badly in need of Law. That is the thought that strikes an average mind when it sees the lawlessness around it. Freedom means different things to different people ; to different cultures; and to different societies. If history has to be believed Vincent Vangof was at the mercy of LSD to create all those ethereal creations. For such souls world melts; trees are uprooted and people vanish and appear in their canvas of art. Such souls find it freeing.
To a child next door freedom means to play around much longer after the sun has long set. Pablo Picasso found angles very freeing for himself in his famous cubism but graphologists always believed that angles in any thing hand written is a sign of stubbornness, of self-opinionated minds. So, angles- those sharp edges can also give one a creative outlet that’s so freeing. The artist on stage is sure to find the thundering applause freeing, the wild almost raucous mad love for his work. But as long as social freedom is seen in the right perspective , so far so good. In fact , it’s essential.
But is all the increasing talk of liberty for mankind sometimes seems hallow. With all the techies around the world and with myriad airlines zooming the skies , they have not become as light as a feather. A bird flipping its wings in the sky will always remain more free than the souls in the aircraft who have nowhere to go but breath their last lest something goes wrong in the flight. With the submarine all heavy and loaded , they will always remain less agile , elegant and less dexterous than the fish flapping its wings to the unending waves of the sea.
But then, freedom is when one has the freedom of choice. With this kind of healthy freedom man can fly too , metaphorically. A student bhargava says , “ freedom is free thinking. It is freedom to love and be loved. And it certainly doesn’t mean being a frog in the well”. Talking of love , true love , says Bhagvad Gita is when one finds love that does try to possess , hurt or oppress. Says Priya , an IT professional , “ My grandma always ends up talking about my wedding . One day I decided to stand up for myself. I told her nothing is good or bad about it but marriage is a choice. I don’t have to follow a time table. I can breath, walk, smile and cry without it. I told her that after all it’s not oxygen.”, and she adds , “ if you really want to make own choices in life , you will face questions . You need to stand by your viewpoint and express it cordially.” I think of asking about open marriages since we were talking about freedom and decide to dig the matrimony thing. A lady, Adriana, 22, flares up, “ I believe marriage is a commitment. My man dies if he cheats me.” Mary Karuna, a communication student in Osmania Univerty sums it for us, “ Freedom is to be the person you want to be. People are always asking you to be a good daughter or a good wife, freedom is when you don’t have to oblige such demands just because you are expected to. This is what freedom means to me as a woman. “ By the looks of it India seems emancipated but nay, these women are just a handful of strong ones from the metropolis of the land, that’s it.
There an other side to our country .In India, records have it that more than 4,000 women are killed by their in-laws on grounds of dowry demand and so many more become victims of violence or abuse. More than a million Asian girls are forced in prostitution to accommodate men who fear falling prey to AIDS. These girls, in effect, are thrown at the monsters. So, is the talk of freedom for these women a surreal dream , in the present conditions.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
Since ages man had tried to break out of clutches and shackles while the other times he had been badly in need to of just them and nothing else. Man started off as an animal , free and inexorable but when he was obliged or rather felt the need to cook ( read burn) his food ,then a lot of other things came with it. But has this need for order made some cultures ,like the ones in the middle east, rigid ? Or is it in the other extremity – Man is badly in need of Law. That is the thought that strikes an average mind when it sees the lawlessness around it. Freedom means different things to different people ; to different cultures; and to different societies. If history has to be believed Vincent Vangof was at the mercy of LSD to create all those ethereal creations. For such souls world melts; trees are uprooted and people vanish and appear in their canvas of art. Such souls find it freeing.
To a child next door freedom means to play around much longer after the sun has long set. Pablo Picasso found angles very freeing for himself in his famous cubism but graphologists always believed that angles in any thing hand written is a sign of stubbornness, of self-opinionated minds. So, angles- those sharp edges can also give one a creative outlet that’s so freeing. The artist on stage is sure to find the thundering applause freeing, the wild almost raucous mad love for his work. But as long as social freedom is seen in the right perspective , so far so good. In fact , it’s essential.
But is all the increasing talk of liberty for mankind sometimes seems hallow. With all the techies around the world and with myriad airlines zooming the skies , they have not become as light as a feather. A bird flipping its wings in the sky will always remain more free than the souls in the aircraft who have nowhere to go but breath their last lest something goes wrong in the flight. With the submarine all heavy and loaded , they will always remain less agile , elegant and less dexterous than the fish flapping its wings to the unending waves of the sea.
But then, freedom is when one has the freedom of choice. With this kind of healthy freedom man can fly too , metaphorically. A student bhargava says , “ freedom is free thinking. It is freedom to love and be loved. And it certainly doesn’t mean being a frog in the well”. Talking of love , true love , says Bhagvad Gita is when one finds love that does try to possess , hurt or oppress. Says Priya , an IT professional , “ My grandma always ends up talking about my wedding . One day I decided to stand up for myself. I told her nothing is good or bad about it but marriage is a choice. I don’t have to follow a time table. I can breath, walk, smile and cry without it. I told her that after all it’s not oxygen.”, and she adds , “ if you really want to make own choices in life , you will face questions . You need to stand by your viewpoint and express it cordially.” I think of asking about open marriages since we were talking about freedom and decide to dig the matrimony thing. A lady, Adriana, 22, flares up, “ I believe marriage is a commitment. My man dies if he cheats me.” Mary Karuna, a communication student in Osmania Univerty sums it for us, “ Freedom is to be the person you want to be. People are always asking you to be a good daughter or a good wife, freedom is when you don’t have to oblige such demands just because you are expected to. This is what freedom means to me as a woman. “ By the looks of it India seems emancipated but nay, these women are just a handful of strong ones from the metropolis of the land, that’s it.
There an other side to our country .In India, records have it that more than 4,000 women are killed by their in-laws on grounds of dowry demand and so many more become victims of violence or abuse. More than a million Asian girls are forced in prostitution to accommodate men who fear falling prey to AIDS. These girls, in effect, are thrown at the monsters. So, is the talk of freedom for these women a surreal dream , in the present conditions.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
Astonishing Splashes of Colour By Clare Morall
Astonishing Splashes is a debut novel and was short listed for Man Booker Prize in 2003. One of the high points of this compelling novel is its strong narrative. The narrator Kitty Wellington is very perceptive , she draws the reader into her world , her own realm , her own emotional sphere. Morall with her simple style apparently presents a disturbing work of fiction. But the narrative tends to be least depressing and far from melodramatic with its matter-of-fact voice.
But the narrative tends to be least depressing and far from melodramatic with its matter-of-fact voice. The plot starts off with Kitty feeling empty within craving for a child and in need of a mother. She tries to build a family around herself , the elusive comfort zone. The motif of the novel throughout its length is - loss. She is brought up in a motherless family of a painter father and four brothers - Adrian , Paul , Jake and Martin. These characters are refreshingly built with each one of them having his own eccentricities. This male dominated family leads to Kitty searching for herself and her lost mother. It is apt when she describes herself as a pet in the house , some one non functional. As in , some one who exists and has to be taken care of. period . Her attempts to voyage into the family’s past are thwarted. What she ends up with are bits and pieces of the past. But the bombshell is thrown at her when truth arrives right before her in all its force. The day comes along when she is left to cope with not just the loss of her mother but with not knowing what the true identity of her mother is. Truth skims along in vivid splashes of colour. Synaesthesia chases her a wee bit more ardently then , a condition in which emotions are seen. Clare Morall’s writing even at this stage remains simple , the reader must think a second thought to notice Kitty’s internal turmoil.
The story comes a circle , it ends where it all began. It regains its initial momentum. So, one might just wonder what the whole point of the novel is. But through the length of the story , Morall does a good job in showing the dynamics of Kitty’s mind and her daily life. The way Kitty starts off with her journey afresh is quietly shaking. The contrast between Kitty’s and James’ personality is stark. Her cluttered colourful world as compared to his spacious black and white world deserves a good dekko. On the whole, a moving piece of fiction.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
But the narrative tends to be least depressing and far from melodramatic with its matter-of-fact voice. The plot starts off with Kitty feeling empty within craving for a child and in need of a mother. She tries to build a family around herself , the elusive comfort zone. The motif of the novel throughout its length is - loss. She is brought up in a motherless family of a painter father and four brothers - Adrian , Paul , Jake and Martin. These characters are refreshingly built with each one of them having his own eccentricities. This male dominated family leads to Kitty searching for herself and her lost mother. It is apt when she describes herself as a pet in the house , some one non functional. As in , some one who exists and has to be taken care of. period . Her attempts to voyage into the family’s past are thwarted. What she ends up with are bits and pieces of the past. But the bombshell is thrown at her when truth arrives right before her in all its force. The day comes along when she is left to cope with not just the loss of her mother but with not knowing what the true identity of her mother is. Truth skims along in vivid splashes of colour. Synaesthesia chases her a wee bit more ardently then , a condition in which emotions are seen. Clare Morall’s writing even at this stage remains simple , the reader must think a second thought to notice Kitty’s internal turmoil.
The story comes a circle , it ends where it all began. It regains its initial momentum. So, one might just wonder what the whole point of the novel is. But through the length of the story , Morall does a good job in showing the dynamics of Kitty’s mind and her daily life. The way Kitty starts off with her journey afresh is quietly shaking. The contrast between Kitty’s and James’ personality is stark. Her cluttered colourful world as compared to his spacious black and white world deserves a good dekko. On the whole, a moving piece of fiction.
By
Lakshmi Vishwanathan
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