Hail to the Chief !

Nouri Al-Maliki, had just finished explaining to the visiting UN chief Ban Ki Moon about the progress being made in Iraq. (28 sec video)



I don't understand Al Jazeera's arab commentary, nor Dubya's Iraq policy.

Forrest Gump Confesses

The Forrest Gump of Global Terror has confessed. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is one of the three hundred and twenty seven (courtesy : random number generator) people the US considers to be Al-Qaeda No 3. This Global terrorist was arrested in March 2003 in Pakistan and was placed in Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. The terrorist confessed on March 10th of 2007.

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You might have heard this one, but can't resist, this is my all time favourite. Once, way back in early 90's there was a competition for the best police force in the world. The top three finalists were the Russians, Israelis and Kerala police. The challenge was to go into the Muthodi forest and catch three "absconding" tigers.

The Russians took the first turn, and after a day returned with the tiger. Next the Israelis went into the forest and caught the tiger in half a day. Finally, Kerala police went in. Days passed without any news and after a week a search team was sent out to look for them.

The search team found the KP guys just half a mile into the forest. There was a Bear tied to one of the trees and a constable was standing next to it, punching the bear in the stomach. The bear was wailing "I'm not a tiger,I'm not a tiger". The Kerala police chief said " we caught the tiger in less than ten minutes, but this sonofabitch is not confessing".

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has confessed to personally beheading journalist Daniel Pearl, 1993 World Trade Center bombing,Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States,''Filka Island Operation'' in Kuwait, Bali bombings, Shoe-bomb plot for bombing trans-Atlantic flights, plotting to bomb Sears Towers and Empire State building, Plotting to assassinate all American Presidents including Jimmy Carter, Plotting to attack Straits of Hormuz, the Straits of Gibraltar, the Port of Singapore,Panama Canal, Heathrow Airport, Big Ben ,Canary WharfS,NATO headquarters in Brussels, Israel Embassies, US Embassies, plotting the Bojinka Operation to take down 12 American planes in Indonesia AND planning to Kill the Pope, Kill Musharraf and Kill Clinton.

Read full confession here (there are many that I left out after fainting)

Khalid is not just the Forrest Gump of terror, he is the James Bond of terror or rather the Rajnikanth of terror. Osama Bin Laden is reportedly fuming in his cave despite the Afghan winter. Reports say he feels betrayed and mugged in broad daylight. OBL is planning to confess and take responsibility for JFK assassination, Katrina Hurricane and Global Warming to regain his terror status.

Khalid in the meantime on a fast track to terror sainthood in Pakistan and the middle-east might claim responsibility for "plotting" in this mega case as well. That might be another feather in the cap for FBI and Kerala Police.

Women's Army and Jhansi Rani

"My short skirt is a liberation flag in the women's army," they read. "I declare these streets, any streets, my vagina's country."

they read the Vagina Monologues aloud and then they were suspended

So sad. What about those men who were fired for using the "V" word at work.

and back in India on this Women's day,

'A study on all aspects related to women officers in the armed forces, including induction in combat roles was conducted under the aegis of the Chiefs of Staff Committee -,' Defence Minister A.K. Antony said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha. 'The study has recommended exclusion of women officers for the present in close combat roles where chances of physical contact with the enemy are high,' Antony added.

Neihal, says Women's right activists have "slammed the findings of the study as the height of male chauvinism"

What is with this male chauvinist (but armed) pigs, this is the height of discrimination, that too in the land of the great and "highly successful in battle" Jhansi Rani. And whats with this "Physical contact" , haven't these morons heard about this thingy called "Guns" which other armed forces in the rest of the world have successfully put into use. Don't tell me we settle disputes with Pakis by playing kabaddi and wrestling (extreme physical contact conditions) - Indian army had decommisioned those weapons after the Chinese routed us.

Does anyone remember those rape cases, remember Jaffna of 87 ? Having women in the army*provided they have guns* will arguably reduce the chance of sexual abuse - well who knows. Now about winnability and compromising national security, when was the last time we fought a full fledged war - 1971 ? did we actually see the enemy in Kargil, let alone physical contact. So let these women be, give them whatever they want. Do whatever is needed to shut those feminists up. Oh those shrill voices.

According to me, all our Jhansi Ranis in short skirts must be given the freedom to go to hell in any frickin way they want. Say NO to discrimination in combat roles in Indian Armed Forces !!

The Great Indian Wall

Hush baby..hush ! We are about to finish the wall, did anybody know ?..hell no ! The British miserably failed to accomplish this in 1905-11 and they called themselves the most powerful empire on earth. The Americans fretting over that 700 mile fence with Mexico could learn a lesson or two from the great Indian empire of the 21st century. India is just about to complete a 4,100 km (2500 mile) iron fence across the fifth longest land border on earth, across its border with one of its poorest neighbours, Bangladesh. And nobody knew.

International Border	Post or Pillar Number	Area (km)
West Bengal (India)-Bangladesh	0001 to 1001	2217.70
Assam (India)-Bangladesh	1001 to 1067	0262.00
Meghalaya (India)-Bangladesh	1067 to 1338	0443.00
Tripura (India)-Bangladesh	1338 to 1397(North) & 1397 to 2250 (South)	0856.00
Mizoram (India)-Bangladesh	2301 to 2358	0318.00
Total		4096.70

Estimated cost of the fence and border roads is $1 billion (estimate) and the benefits ?



The reasons could be,

1. The very large number of Bangladeshi immigrants are changing the demographics of Indian border states like West Bengal and Assam. In Assam, Bangladeshi immigration is a very contentious issue that often determines many political futures, like the Mexican illegal immigration in the US. The illegal immigrants put added pressure on the already scarce resources of the Indian border states thereby coming in direct conflict with the local population.

2. Terrorism - The insurgent groups in India's north-east, often use Bangladesh as a safe haven and launch pad though Bangladesh does not support them in any way.

3. The secular state of Bangladesh is in turmoil with powerful fundamentalist groups working towards the creation of an Islamic state. This could put at risk the Hindu population of Bangladesh (16% of the total population) and could trigger an exodus of 1970-71 proportions.
This will hurt India bad and India would want to avoid this at any cost.

4. Some 160 odd Boundary disputes with Bangladesh relating to the implementation of the Land Boundary Agreement of 1974.



Why the wall will fall,

1. Elementary - The population pressure and severe poverty in Bangladesh will cause this fence to fail. The 2.6 meter iron fence will not prevent the Bangladeshi - the poorest of poor in the world - from crossing over into India in search of work and a living. The Bangladeshi has only two choices, starvation or migration and in between there is a 2.6 meter fence.

2. Culture and language - families are split across the border like the wall of Berlin. Bangladesh is 98% bengali and the culture is very much Indian. When Yunus got the Nobel, almost every Indian felt like it was another Nobel for India. That explains it.

3. India and Bangladesh are friendly countries except for a few occasional, random incidents of
conflict between the border troops which both governments maintain they have not authorized. There is no military need for a wall.

4. Walls and fences can be easily broken and cut through - this is an inherent property of walls.

5. Floods - there are numerous incidents every year when flood victims are rescued to the other side of the border. There are reported incidents where around 2000 Indians were rescued and kept in Bangladeshi shelters. The wall has a very high chance to fail when the flood comes again.

Despite this, why did we build a wall and shun our neighbour ?


The answer could be India's desire to "define" its fuzzy borders. This could be the real intention behind this wall. The Indian establishment has been on a overdrive in recent years to settle the territorial disputes. With China recognizing Sikkim, understanding with Pakistan on Siachen and Kashmir kept aside for the 22nd century, India very well knows that the North-East is where borderlines will now be redrawn in the sub-continent. The wall could serve this purpose, if you read between the lines.

The mammoth fence is no long-term solution to the problem of Bangladesh. It just adds to prevailing confusion and the wall is sure to fail. An 'innovative' idea is to adorn this wall with mural paintings on both sides and attract some serious tourism like China does, which could help Bangladeshi and Indian economy, at least the world would open its eyes to the beauty of India's North-east.

Its time we learn from the mistakes of others and history, its time we recognize the futility of building walls.

Good Night and Good Luck !

sources : Economist , CIA factbook

The Blanket of freedom

Nineteen-year old Mahammad Maqbool Dar was taken away by troops from his home near Charar-e-Sharief on Friday, his mother Hanifa Begum said. A day later, the boy, a daily wage labourer, was brought dead to a hospital sparking two days of protests in Charar-e-Sharief as anger continues in other parts of Kashmir.The government, concerned at a possible backlash ordered a magisterial enquiry and asked the army to take action against the guilty.

Earlier this month in Anantnag two civilians were killed by the army. No punishment for the army, which said, it was mistaken identity.

In September in Kupwara a girl and her uncle were killed - again no punishment, but a colonel in-charge of operations there was removed for inefficient command.

In February, four boys playing cricket in Handwara were killed by the army. A judicial inquiry has just begun.

Source : NDTV , Oct 23 2006

A team of doctors who performed autopsy of Maqbool at Charari Sharif Hospital on Saturday told Greater Kashmir that “he died due to cardiac arrest caused by extensive torture and multiple burns. His private parts had been damaged.”

Source : Greater Kashmir




Son, we live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns. Whose gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinburg? I have a greater responsibility than you could possibly fathom. You weep for Santiago, and you curse the marines. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know. That Santiago's death, while tragic, probably saved lives. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives. You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that wall, you need me on that wall. We use words like honor, code, loyalty. We use these words as the backbone of a life spent defending something. You use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said thank you, and went on your way, Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon, and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to.

Col Jessep , A Few Good Men




Terrorists intruded into the house of Sohan Lal Braroo and shot him dead during the night. They gang raped his wife Bimla and young daughter Archana. Archana succumbed during the gang rape itself and Bimla who was shot after being raped, died in hospital.

Naisarak, Srinagar - March '92

Early Monday, Hindu villagers were herded into the home of the village chief where gunmen started firing indiscriminately, according to S.P. Vaid, inspector-general of police in Jammu.35 civilians have lost their lives. Source : CNN

Doda,Srinagar - May 2006

Near two decades of violence, death and atrocities in Kashmir. Isn't it time that the insurgents realize they are fighting for a cause lost somewhere in the cacophony of interests in the valley, and what happened to the Indian PrimeMinister Manmohan's promise on zero-tolerance towards human rights violations in Kashmir. Its not that we are undermining a struggle gone terribly ugly or disrespecting the brave men of India who defend our freedom, but

Col. Jessep: You want answers?
Kaffee: I think I'm entitled.
Col. Jessep: You want answers?
Kaffee: I want the truth.
Col. Jessep: You can't handle the truth.

A Few Good Men - the movie

Dead man Walking - Afzal Guru

If the collective conscience of a nation becomes satisfied when one of us gets hanged without a chance to defend himself , it speaks a lot about ourselves.









Afzal Guru




Will Afzal Guru be hanged today ? He should be - says the great Indian middle class and its drum beater the Indian media. The mercy petition filed by his family - though he has not asked for mercy - is now in the hands of the President of India pending reference from the home ministry.


So are we ready to kill Afzal Guru for the December 13 2001 attack on the Parliament of India. Are we ready to ready to put the last nail in the coffin of popular resistance in Kashmir and terrorism in India. Yes we are as the euphoria clearly suggests.

The Supreme Court verdict says “The incident, which resulted in heavy casualties, had shaken the entire nation and the collective conscience of the society will only be satisfied if capital punishment is awarded to the offender.”

The question is who is the offender here ? Who perpeterated the crime - who did it ? Who investigated it ? Did this person whom the holy republic of India is about to collectively murder for the sheer xenophobic patriotic orgasm of it get a chance to defend himself.

Afzal Guru was not part of the attack - he surely was a sympathiser to the Kashmir cause, was aware of the attack and as the prosecution put it - did indirect favours to the terrorists. Is this reason enough for hanging him till death ?

Afzal Guru continues to maintain that he is being framed in this case - but all criminals say so - but the question is who investigated the case ? Oh our Delhi Police - they are renowned for their integrity and honesty and was recommended for the prestigious Jessica Lal and Priyadarshini Mattoo award for Justice. Then it must be correct and moreover not a single soul will come on the streets of Rajpath with lighted candles seeking justice for Afzal Guru.

And here is the best part - Afzal Guru was not given a chance to defend himself ! The Indian nation is about to hang a helpless person until he dies without giving him a chance to defend himself. We are not China,not Pakistan but we are very close to it.

There are clear indications that the Kashmir Valley will erupt in flames if Afzal is killed, fresh violence and insurgency could be the outcome. But do we - the great Indian middle class really care ? No we dont care about Kashmir, violence in Kashmir - state sponsored and otherwise has ceased to produce those necessary bowel movements for us these days, we skip that part of the newspaper in the morning. Kashmir resides in our collective amnesia. India has its largest military presence in J and K and we are safe - we can discuss about Iraq and North Korea and Bush while the valley of Gods burns its heart out in this conspiracy of nations.

On a selfish note, what do we gain ?

Will killing Afzal Guru stop the freedom movement in Kashmir ? No, but it will be a lesson to all those people out there on how tough we are. Like the British did in 1931, they hanged one Bhagat Singh from Punjab for attacking their assembly house and we Indians got so terrified that we stuck our tails in the cute space between our legs and ran home. We never asked for independence after that.

Do we need to confer martydom on Afzal Guru and make him a hero for certain causes we dont identify with ?

If the President of India decides to pardon Afzal Guru - what impact will it have on the Kashmiris. Will it be a graceful decision, a beautiful decision - its all yours to gauge. I think so.


Now if the Indian nation wants his blood despite all this ,what does it speak about us as a nation. If the collective conscience of a nation becomes satisfied when one of us gets hanged without a chance to defend himself , it speaks a lot about ourselves.



The founding fathers of our nation did not envision us to stand for wealth or power or religion. They envisioned a nation on this earth that stands for Truth. As the lion-head correctly reads - "Satyameva Jayathe" . Let us be well aware on which side of truth we are.

Will Kannur explode again ?

I'm not a soothsayer nor am I sitting on top of Kerala's state intelligence to say this. Its just a few news reports across the last few weeks and some conversations here and there. There have been reports of a gradual build up of ammunition and bomb making in the north malabar district of Kannur. There are reported incidents of accidental explosions and some real steel bomb testing being done. Anyone who follows Kerala's immediate political history will know the color of Kannur and the history of violence in the district.

Most of us in Kerala would remember the december 1999 and december 2000 incidents in Kannur which had a total death toll of around fifty and caused near stand-still in the state. I fear another build up this time as the 'martyr's month' approaches. It might be a wild guess of sorts but it needs to be read in the overall climate created by the release of the 'Marad riots' report last week. The hindu fundamentalist sangh could turn this to their advantage by inciting fresh violence in malabar as the Marad report squarely blames the NDF and elements within the Muslim league for the killings. We need to be careful ,very careful.

The clashes between the RSS and the communists had subsided after both parties agreed on a ceasefire and after the leadership of both parties realized the unacceptability of damages. The RSS must realize that they have nothing to gain politically from these violent acts - in the last elections BJP polled a pathetic 0.5% of the total votes in Kannur. The clout they have among the Bharatiya Masdoor Sangh could be put to better use than building bombs.

The CPIM should realize that retaliatory attacks from its side will not improve the situation any further. Moreover the wounds of Nadapuram and the muslim fundamentalist elements waiting there could use Kannur as a new ploy. As the governing party, I hope CPIM will show more maturity in case something bad happens. Kannur is the citadel of Communism in Kerala and let it not be a wound in our psyche. Revolution comes through disciplined, peaceful party building, and not through tit-for-tat acts of violence.

Peace prevails in Kannur today only because of the maturity of our political leadership - both CPIM and the BJP. Some credit also goes to A K Antony's police policy that reined in the IUML and NDF elements in Malabar. Let peace prevail but let us be aware of the ides of December. Let us be very aware.

Good Night and Good Luck !

Mid-East Explodes

"Let us not ignore the truth among ourselves ... politically we are the aggressors and they defend themselves... The country is theirs, because they inhabit it, whereas we want to come here and settle down, and in their view we want to take away from them their country" - David Ben Gurion, Prime Minister of Israel(1949-1963)

"We plan to eliminate the state of Israel and establish a purely Palestinian state. We will make life unbearable for Jews by psychological warfare and population explosion. We Palestinians will take over everything, including all of Jerusalem" - Yasser Arafat

There would not be another place in the world about which so much has been written,explained and hoped for.Conflicts of apocalyptical proportions and overtones have swept across this region throughout the last one and a half millenia,be it the Arab-Persian conflicts or the Crusades for Jerusalem or the Sunni-Shia rivalries or the conflict we all have grown up with - the Israel-Palestine deadlock.

They fight and kill in the name of old rivalries and from every killing, a new rivalry is born.

A vicious circle.What is it with this land ? Centuries of exploitation for the abundant resources of the region ? The tribal underpinnings of their religion ? or a direct message to God that time is ripe for kingdom come !

Israel finds herself surrounded by nations and mass movements that deny its right to exist and would love to wipe it off the map.Its a very sad state of affairs . Imagine being an Israelite in Jerusalem.When Iraq was invaded by the Allies during the first Gulf war,Iraq hit Israel - which deliberately didnt take part in the war,with Scud missiles . If the US attacks Iran and if Iran has a nuclear weapon,its anybody's guess whos going to get nuked . Israel has been attacked by all nations surrounding it,every child born in those nations grow up in an environment thirsty for Israels blood.Israel cannot afford to be weak.

They withdrew from Gaza,parts of WestBank and were ready to negotiate on parts of Jerusalem,Sharon had driven out his own people to give the land back to the Arabs.But that move was arguably treated as a sign of weakness.Israel was attacked again and as I said Israel cannot afford to look ridiculous.Now we see her rage,as her well oiled war machine pounds the mid-east.Israel has changed the game,it has raised the price of attacking it,Beirut is paying.

Do we remember the random gunfire by Israel a couple of weeks back on a Palestinian beach,do we remember the helpless girl child crying out her heart in the beach sand while all her family lies there dead.If Arab world found that worthy of revenge,would they be asking for a little too much.

Wherever conflicts happen in the world,muslims get killed.Be it Kashmir , Karachi , Bali , Bosnia , Chechnya , Kabul , Baghdad , Gaza or Beirut.Can you name anyother place where unabated killings happen.Their resources are held hostage by global hawks and western corporations,consider the anglo-american military presence across middle east,even in countries with prevailing peace like Saudi and Bahrain . What should the Arab-muslim think about this,what can they do,what can they imagine as a way out of this .

At the end of this barren imagination,they become a suicide bomber . What goes inside the mind of a fidayeen ? will it be cluttered visions of a promised heaven which would any given day be a better bargain than the living hell they are in or will it be the heart wrenching cry of a eight year old girl?

One day,I hope,mothers and fathers and sisters and wifes from Iran and Israel,Iraq and Syria,Palestine and Lebanon will sit together and count their losses.Finally they would realise that they all have lost.Lost sons,husbands,livelihood and future.They would realise that at the end of each war they had only a handful of ash left,that they cant distinguish the blood on the mutilated corpses as Israeli or Sunni or Shia.Then they would cry,every one of them,it would be the swan-song of the senseless killings,brutality and exodus of thousands of years . At the end of it,the whole world will hear a loud silence from Mecca and Persia and Nazreth and Galile and Damascus and Jerusalem.That will be serenity,there would be peace.

Good Night and Good Luck !