Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Saturday, 23 November 2013

Demand Vs Supply



Kapil Sibal is a Master of Law


But his knowledge of Economics is not negligible


Recently , he proved it by saying ,


"  Prices of vegetables have gone up because poor people now are earning more and want to eat vegetables ( what a cheek ! )


Demand has gone up but supply has not kept pace


And , Law of Economics says ,


Prices go up when demand exceeds supply - and vice-versa  !  QED  !  "


Thank God , Kapil  did not ask poor to stop eating vegetables so that prices can come down  !


Or , ask rich people to stop eating 3 different vegetables at every meal  !


He could have even asked ALL Indians to forgo all meals for one day per week , so that demand gets reduced  !


Or , he could have quoted ,



>   Raj Babbar ( MP ) , who said,
     "  In Mumbai , you can get a rice plate for Rs 12 / -  "
     (  address please ! )


>   Congress Rajya Sabha MP , Rasheed Masood , who said ,
     "   In Jama Masjid area of Delhi , you can eat well for Rs 5 /-  "
     (  He is now getting his meals totally FREE in Tihar Jail  !  )


>    Montek Singh Ahluwalia , who proclaims ,
     "  Any person in a city , spending more than Rs 26 per day , is RICH  "



Now , not being Agriculture Minister , Kapil cannot say why supply failed to keep up with the rising population of 20 million per year ( a well kept secret ? )


But he must be considering it " Utterly Unwise " of his Government to be trying so desperately to bring 400 million people above the Poverty Line ( remember Rs 26 per day ? )


Would not that make them " Rich " enough to demand vegetables  ?


Wouldn't that make matters worse  ?


Why can't we keep them poor like our Lok Sabha MPs , who get their food in Lok Sabha canteen , at the following prices ?



*   Tea............... Rs      1.0

*   Soup..............Rs      5.5

*   Daal...............Rs      1.5

*   Meals............. Rs     2.0

*   Chapati...........Rs     1.0

*   Dosa...............Rs     4.0

*   Veg Biryani......Rs      8.0

*   Fish................Rs     13.0

*   Chicken..........Rs      24.0



And prey , why are our MPs  poor  ?


Because their cooks  /  drivers  /  maids  /  gardeners  / servants  /  watchmen  / peons  ..etc are all poor !


These servants are all staying in out-houses of the small 10 bed-room living quarters of the MPs   !


Of course , rent free since the MPs are so poor  !

 No need to vacate either , when you stop being an MP  !


Why can't Kapil persuade the Lok Sabha canteen contractor to open branches , all over India  ?



*   hemen  parekh  (  24  Nov  2013  )

  


Friday, 22 November 2013

Thank You ! Thank You ! Thank You !



Thank you ,



>   SUSHIL KUMAR SHINDE ,


     -   for ordering a probe into foreign funding of AAP


     because ,


    _   now you have made it possible to expose the funding of other political
     parties , hopefully leading to amendments of Foreign Contribution Act  /
     Representation of the People Act  /  Model Code of Conduct .. etc



>   ANNA HAZARE ,


     -   for deciding not to join AAP


    because ,


    -    if you had , you would have paralyzed the working of AAP , by
     insisting that corruption be eliminated thru a " Change of Hearts " only !




>   BABA RAMDEV ,



      -    for declaring that AAP has hijacked the Jan Lokpal Andolan of Anna


      because ,


       -    to prove you right , AAP will now pass Jan Lokpal Bill on 29 Dec





>   SHEILA DIKSHIT ,


        -    for releasing Congress Election Manifesto on the same day as the
      release of AAP manifesto


      because ,


       -   that gave Delhi-ites, an opportunity to compare , " Apple for Apple ",
       which party will solve their " Top Priority " problems






>   ANURANJAN JHA ,


      -    for conducting a sting operation on 9 AAP leaders , then " Editing "
     ( not " Doctoring " ? ) the video tape and refusing to give a copy to AAP
     (  encouraging , a " Trial by Media " ?  )


     because ,


     -      you would have to expose  your " Sponsors " when Election
     Commission calls you for interrogation




>   DR. HARSHVARDHAN ,


     -     for proclaiming that AAP is nothing more than a " B Team " of
     Congress and may win 1 or 2 seats at the most


     because ,


     -     if for nothing else than to prove you wrong , Delhi-ites will vote to
     power AAP on 4th Dec  ( with 50 + seats ? )



What a fantastic coordination among you !


What a perfect orchestration  !


What a gift to AAP  !


Thank You , all  !



*    hemen  parekh   (  23   Nov   2013  )


Thursday, 21 November 2013

Much Ado About Nothing !



American spy-agencies , FBI and NSA , regularly  " spy "  upon , not only its own citizens ( - including its Congressmen / Senators ), but also on foreign dignitaries such as ,


>   Chancellor Angela Merkel   ( Germany )


>   Prime Minister Hollande      ( France  )


>   Prime Minister Cameron      ( Britain )


>   Prime Minister Kerzai          ( Afghanistan )


>   Sundry Indian Politicians...  etc



When revealed by whistle-blowers like Asange / Snowden , American Secretary of State , John Kerry simply said ,


"   All of this spying is crucial for the security of America.  We just cannot discontinue spying even if persons being spied upon are our close friends. If anyone feels hurt , we cannot help "


What Kerry left unsaid is ,




"  Period . Put up or shut up !


   Every country spies on its own citizens .


   If you don't know about this fundamental fact of statehood , you must be
   an ignoramus !  "




Those high and mighty kept quiet , since they are guilty of the spying , themselves  !


So , what is all this hoolaboolu about Gujarat police spying on a girl , as requested for , by her own father  ?


But since opposition politicians have run out of serious election issues , they must clutch at the straw to remain afloat  !

They know this is their only hope of appearing on TV news channels  !


What they seem to forget  is :


TV anchors - and their businessmen owners - know too well that people will stop watching a debate on a 5 year old " Non-Issue " after just 3 days  !


So , if they wish to continue to be invited on TV panel discussions , opposition politicians must find another " Non-Issue " - and fast  !


Much ado about nothing !




*    hemen   parekh   (  22   Nov   2013  )  



Wednesday, 20 November 2013

The Real Issue



Elections or no elections , there is only ONE real issue before the nation


India's net population is growing at 20 million per year


This perfectly tallies with addition of 100 million first-time voters ( during past 5 years ) , since last general election in 2009


These young men and women, are asking Congress / BJP :


Where are our JOBS  ?


Ans :


Sorry , there are NO JOBS  !


Proof  :


>    During 2004 - 2009 , only 2.76 million jobs were created ( some
    5.5 lakh jobs per year ! )


>   I have no idea how many jobs got created during 2009-2013


>   With 42 million ( 420 lakh ) registered jobless on their rolls , India's
   Employment Exchanges manage to find jobs for less than 1 lakh persons
   per year  ( 1 job for every 420 jobless registered !  )


>   Remaining  4 / 5 lakh jobs must have been found by jobless themselves


Now , both , BJP and Congress Manifesto are promising to create 15 million jobs in next  5 YEARS , if voted to power in 2014


Except that their manifestos are silent on how they will find an investment of Rs 150,000 Crores required to create these jobs  !


I hope it is still not too late for Narendra Modi to announce :


"  If BJP is voted to power , we will facilitate and encourage the businesses / industrialists / politicians / bureaucrats / religious trusts etc, to invest their stashed away - and non-productive BLACK MONEY , into INFRASTRUCTURE / EDUCATION / HEALTHCARE / HOUSING ..etc, thru an AMNESTY SCHEME

 

We will create 15 Million jobs , EVERY YEAR  "



*    hemen   parekh   (  21  Nov  2013  )




Tuesday, 19 November 2013

Ignorant All !



American Congressmen are not much different from Indian " Congress "-men , when it comes to Modi-baiting  !


They are all , equally ignorant  !


American Congressman , Keith Ellison ( Democrat ) and Joe Pitts ( Republican ) , have introduced a resolution in their House of Representative , demanding that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi should continue to be denied a visa


Except that they don't even know ( or seem to ignore ) , that Modi has NOT even applied for an American visa  !


So , where is the question of " denying "  ?


I pity Mr Pitts  !


He has lost his only chance of being named , American Ambassador to India , when Narendra Modi takes over as Prime Minister of India , in 200 + days  !


But ,


if he wants to sit in the opposition , along with our very own " Congress "-men , in India's Parliament ,


>   India's Congress party , would be too happy to give him,- a " foreigner " - a ticket for 2014 elections ( - they have a precedent to go by  !  )


>   NaMo would be too happy to grant him Indian Citizenship


Provided he formally " Applies " for one  !


No " denying " in advance , assuming that he will apply  !


No " anticipatory denial  "  !


Till then , he , along with his 14 co-sponsors , should continue to welcome - and entertain on American soil , - dozens of ruthless dictators from Africa , Middle East and Latin America , who are still going around killing thousands of their own citizens , year after year


And that includes the Bosses of the Communist Party of China , who continue to torture thousands of Tibetans


Obviously , having " Double Standards " is not an exclusive prerogative of Indian " Congress "-men  !




*    hemen   parekh   (  20  Nov   2013  ) 

Monday, 18 November 2013

Issues Vs Non - Issues



For the forthcoming elections ( State + Central ) , what are the " Issues " for the contesting politicians ?


If that is your question , here is a partial list  :


>   Labeling of Opponents


     (  Shehzada / Sahebzada / Chor / Terrorist / Murderer / Criminal ..etc )


>   Blaming the Incumbent Governments


     (  Riots / Phone-tapping / Illegal Surveillance / Not awarding Bharat
      Ratna / Misuse of CBI ....etc )


>    Running down of Opposite Political Parties


      (  Foreign funding / Lack of transparency  / Freebies in Manifesto /
        Dynasty  /  Giving tickets to sons - daughters  / Opinion Polls...etc )


>    Complaining to the Election Commission


      (  Over-spending / Use of foul language / Paid advertisements /
       Breaking Model Code of Conduct / Religion-Caste based canvassing / Distribution of currency notes. etc )



Do they have any insignificant / trivial issues which are not worth debating ?

I mean , "  Non - Issues  " ?


You bet they have !


 A partial list follows :


>   TB killing 1,000 people per day


>   Starvation killing 6,000 children ( under 5 ) per day


>   20,000 farmers committing suicide per year


>   48,660 malaria-induced deaths per year


>   620,000 pre-mature deaths per year due to air - pollution


>   13,000 new cancer cases per year


>   1,100 people dying in accidents every day


>   8,233 dowry deaths per year ( One every hour )



I can go on and on


But who has time to debate such " Non - Issues "  ?


Because , if you do , you will be asked ,


"  How do you plan to solve these ? "


Why rake up a hornet's nest ?  Let sleeping dogs lie / die !


Mud - slinging is so much easier !


You can speak without thinking  !




*    hemen  parekh  (  19   Nov   2013  )

Sunday, 17 November 2013

To Hell with History !



Are voters bothered whether ,


>   Alexander reached Ganga or Godavari  ?


>   Taxila was in Bihar or Bengal  ?


>   Chandragupta was a Gupta or a Gandhi  ?


>   The patriot who died in London was Shyamji Verma or Shamaprasad
      Mukherjee  ?


>    China spends on education, 3% or 30 % of its GDP  ?


In case our political leaders have failed to grasp the truth , even after 66 years of Independence , the simple answer is :


No  ! They are just not bothered  !


Voters couldn't care less for such high level intellectual pronouncements - and rebuttals - on either history or on geography  !


They are telling the politicians  :


"  To hell with history  !


   Do you have answers / solutions to our following current problems  ?


   *  My graduate son is jobless , even 3 years after graduation


   *  My daughter cannot get admission in any college in my city


   *  I have no money to buy medicines for my ailing parents


   *  I must commit suicide because my crop is destroyed without water


   *  Municipality is demolishing my hut to hand-over land to builder mafia


   *  If my 5 year old child does not beg on street , she will die of starvation



  Before we decide which party to vote for , tell us exact date by which you will solve our CURRENT problems


For God's sake , don't waste your time - and ours too - discussing , what " wrong things " long dead people did or what " right things " they failed to do  !


To hell with someone else's long-lost - and now useless -  HISTORY

 
We are only concerned with useful solutions to our own immediate FUTURE  "





*   hemen   parekh   (  18  Nov   2013  )

  

Thursday, 14 November 2013

Pied Piper of Gujarat !




Naresh Agrawal ( Samajwadi Party ) says,


"  Any Madaari can attract crowds  /  A tea-vendor cannot have perspective of national issues  / Even if a Sipahi becomes a Kaptan , his thinking will continue to be that of a Sipahi "


May be Agrawal does not consider Tea-Vendor  /  Madaari  /  Sipahi to be respectable professions  !


Apparently , he believes that a tea-vendor's son must continue with his father's profession only  !

How dare he aspire to become  the Prime Minister of India ?


But Narendra Modi is playing a haunting tune


"  Congress hatao , Surajya lao  "


And millions of voters are coming out of their homes to listen to him , making the likes of Agrawal squirm


There is a good chance that voters will follow NaMo to the polling booths and kiss the lotus  !


Why should that happen ?


>   People attending the rallies of NaMo belong to hundreds of "respectable"
      professions such as ,



      *   Welder  /  Carpenter  /  Mason  / Electrician  /  Plumber


      *   Vegetable vendor  /  Dudhwala  /  Paperwala  /  Courier-boy


      *   Delivery boy  /  Bus Conductor  /  Sales Girl /  Receptionist


      *   Panbidi shop owner  /  Tyre Repairer  /  Boot-polish boy


      Endless others . And all earning an honest livelihood


>    These professionals feel terribly offended / insulted by Agrawal running
      down their trades / skills / vocations


>    They are all fed-up of corrupt / criminal / power hungry politicians


>    Forthcoming elections ( State / National ) are their only chance to prove
      Agrawal wrong and re-write their own future


Obviously , likes of Agrawal feel haunted by the tune of the Pied Piper of Gujarat and feel doomed to oblivion  !




*    hemen   parekh   (  15   Nov   2013  )  



Wednesday, 13 November 2013

Freedom of Speech ?



Today , on Nehru's birthday , I am reminded of his following speeches :


>    Our tryst with destiny


>    A light has gone out of our lives



Then there were other memorable speeches in the distant past, viz:


>    Mahatma Gandhi     (  Quit India  )


>    Martin Luther King   (  I have a dream  )


>    Abraham Lincoln       (  Of the people / by the people / for the people  )


>    Winston Churchill     (  Never have so many owed so much to so few  )


>    Brutus                     (  but Caesar is an honorable man  )



Then I end up comparing some " famous " recent speeches , viz:,


>    Sonia Gandhi           (  Maut ka Saudaagar  )


>    Narendra Modi         (   Khooni  Panjaa  )


>    Rahul Gandhi           (  ISI  )


>    Kapil Sibal                (  No loss in 2G scam  )


>    Manish Tewari           (  Anna is most corrupt  )


>    Ranjeet Sinha            (  Enjoy rape  )


>    Naresh Agarwal         ( a tea-vendor cannot become PM  / even Madari collects crowds  )




No doubt , amongst the living politicians , " Freedom of Speech " has totally different connotations  !


For them , apparently , it means,


"  License to Kill ( - if words can kill  !  ) "


Obviously , Gandhian Anna Hazare  is pained


In his TV interview with Rajat Sharma yesterday , he expressed his anguish at the lowly depths to which , political mud-slinging has descended during current election campaign


Whether he / she is a leader of any political party , all politicians are talking the same language , the language of ,


PHP   =   Power Hungry Politicians


Who cares for ,


C = Civility / Code of Conduct / Courtesy  ?



I  miss T N Sheshan   !



*    hemen   parekh   (  14   Nov   2013  )