What Ferguson teaches us

We are a nation of laws. All of us might not be very happy with all the laws but we are expected to follow it once it is signed into a law. The string of events which happened in Ferguson revealed how fragile humans are when it comes to reacting to a situation which did not turn in our favor. While it was shameful looking at the images on CNN with regards to looting, violence and bad behavior, I also felt a rush of emotions for the Brown's family who had to go through this ordeal. While race could be a problem in this particular case (I am not the one to judge or conclude), we need to take a step back and think about the following real issues:

1) Police presence in an area is directly linked to crime level in that area. The fact that this neighborhood of Ferguson had so much police presence itself means there is some work to do for the leaders in that community. Educating the youth, keeping them off the streets, providing jobs is #1 priority. This could have avoided what we have seen in August with Brown shooting.

2) Police force need to represent the areas demographics. Having 50 white and 3 black officers only means that they need to take a hard look at the applicants and make a genuine effort to hire a force which is in line with the area demographics.

3) I see lot of stats around blacks killing blacks and whites killing whites. It is stated as fact that blacks killing blacks happens 7 times more than whites killing whites. We have an inherent problem in the society with broken families who are unable to provide the best education for their kids and hence are unable to keep them off the streets.

Unless we address the core issues, no amount of policy changes would improve the situation in these areas. Hope we don't blow up this opportunity for change as we did before with the Newtown School shooting.

Oil spill

I wonder if the recent oil spill on Gulf Coast is an act of god trying to warn us about the destruction caused by humanity to this planet earth. I believe we have taken nature for granted and caused irreparable damage. May be, it is time for us to give up these materialistic pleasures and comforts to save the Planet Earth. Having got used to the current way of life, I find it really difficult to lead an environment-friendly lifestyle due to many reasons. Going green is just a buzz word and not many have really embraced this idea in real life except for few Hollywood celebrities who could afford. My first step towards going green was to replace all the bulbs to energy saving ones. My next big move could be to buy a hybrid vehicle. I would urge all of you to become environment friendly in order to save this planet and human race from extinction. I am afraid that some day we would be covered ourselves with oil (like the pelicans and fishes) paying a huge price for our own actions. That's when we would realize that death is better than being alive.

Golfing - An incredible experience

Today was my 3rd day @ the driving range and so far, I had a pretty nice experience golfing. Thanks to my colleague and my coach Marcin who has helped me with the basics. It took me more than 300 attempts to get some confidence in my swing though I am no where close to perfection. It would take few more months to get there. My wife accompanied me on my first day which turned out to be the last day too. Never mind as I would definitely try to impress her after few months. With this, I have also started watching the 401 channel i.e GOLF HD as it would help me in understand the game better. Hope this new passion of mine remains a passion forever.

UNITED STATES - Will it lose its 'super power' status?

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, the greatest country on this planet with the mightiest military machine and most advanced economy, is grappling with issues which could reduce its dominance in today's world. Fighting two wars, an inefficient healthcare system, failed educational reforms, rising poverty, rising unemployment are some of the issues which are haunting this great nation. Growing debt is what concerns me the most.If we do not tame the debt in next 10 years, US would no longer be a lone super power. Instead, it would be joined with India and China which are growing at a faster pace.

My view is that there is no country currently prepared to take over the responsibilities of United States. With Obama in the office, I am hoping to see changes in the Healthcare, education, fiscal policy, unemployment, homeland security and foreign policy. USA can still dominate the world if it can create opportunities for small businesses, revamp its educational system, reduce dependence on foreign oil, reduce borrowing, improve homeland security, create jobs and assure its people that there is still opportunities in this best country on the planet.

I am here to live the AMERICAN DREAM and I hope this country does not let me down. I still believe that I am in the right place at the right moment.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Fight against piracy...

There is hardly any Indian Grocery store in Dallas, TX where movie piracy is non-existent. Recently, I had been to a grocery store in Plano, TX where you get a free 'pirated' DVD once your grocery bill exceeds $50. It's the demand among the Indian population which is driving the sales for these $2 each DVDs. Indians are considered to be the most educated and one of the smartest in the community here. Yet, we completely turn a blind eye towards this growing problem. I personally fight this problem by avoiding renting/purchasing any pirated DVD but this would not deter others from doing the same. At this point, I am helpless and I hope that some day I would be joined by few others who have the same opinion as me so that we can collectively fight piracy and educate our future generations.

Summer 2010

Its been a harsh winter for Dallas..All I am waiting for is a warm spring followed by summer. This summer, I am planning to start a new hobby BIKING as there are lot of cycle trails in and around my neighborhood..Second option which I would seriously consider is GOLF. In the coming weeks, I shall scout for driving ranges, good deals on golf kits and accessories. Lot of my colleagues who play golf for passion have shown keen interest in training me. Hope this summer is warm enough for me to accomplish what I have desired for a long time.

Operation Moshtarak

This is the latest and the biggest offensive ever conducted by NATO troops against taliban in Helmand Province in Afghanistan. Includes over 5000 US marines and rest 4000 from around 43 nationalities. But how would one gauge the success of this operation? This remains questionable. One thing is for sure that if they succeed in driving the taliban out of this province, they could bring in some civilian aid and workers who could build the trust among the Afghans.

It is high time that we start thinking about the future of this war-ravaged country rather than arguing about the reason for its present situation. Ironically, rulers from Afghanistan looted most of India's wealth during the 15th and 16th century and today it is the poorest country.

My friend once said "May be continuous karma is haunting Afghanistan." Who is next in the line? Is it an obvious guess...Its neighbor PAKISTAN??? Let us wait and watch.