Elected Dictator

That's Vladimir Putin for you, Time magazine's person of the year 2007. This rather long article details Putin's rise to power, how he has been able to revive Russia from the days of Yeltsin and the problems that Russia is facing today. It's a must read; giving insight into the widespread corruptioin in Russia, the powerful leader's personality; and most importantly the way he has commandeered the ship with the right balance of democracy and dictator-like authority; earning himself the title of elected dictator from the author.

Goldman or Goldmine

Just read a report on CNNMoney about Goldman Sachs' awesome earnings this year; when most of other banks either reporting losses or huge writedowns, and the remaining few showing moderate gains (thankfully, DB is one of them), Goldman has shown record profit. However, what made me post this entry is one statistic on the report - "If ($20.2 B on employee salaries and bonuses) were to be handed out evenly among the 30,522 employees of Goldman ..., that would come to about $661,400 a person".
$661,400 on an average ... wow!!!

Pillars...

Life moves on, people change, friends change...life moves on. But some pillars are always there.

Searching for something on my gmail, i came across mails from my wing-mates, from each one telling what they had to say about the rest. And that led to memories...

Guys, this is an ode to those times. Our relationship was not perfect; far from perfect. But we were there during tough times, and good times. We learnt a lot from each other, we developed with each other; we found solace in each other; and i found an island of comfort in you when i was surrounded by the one of the very few dark times of my life.
Looking back, I couldn't have asked for more. Those memories are amongst the very core pillars of what I am today. New pillars get added, new stories get built, but these are there to stay.

Another Indian Achiever

Vikram Pandit is the new CEO of Citigroup. Go, go India. Wait for the time when this will be the norm and it won't be blogged about like this.

How many Maggies have you had?

Well, anybody who is from Kgp, or for that matter any decent Indian hostel, would know that for those years Maggi is practically the students' staple diet. It was mine too, back in college. The good thing is even after leaving college, it is not rate for me to have Maggi as dinner. So tonight is one such night; and an interesting thought came in my mind...what if I had kept count every time I had Maggi...what would that count be today? what would it be when I die, or Nestle goes bankrupt or ends producing Maggi, or I get a partner who loves to cook for me, whichever is before?
...OK, lets remove the last of the above triggers, that wont stop me from having and enjoying Maggi... [:)]

Maine Pyar Kiya

Was just watching the movie. I first saw this movie on a Weston Black & White tv on a Diwali night in the early Nineties. Those were the days when a recent hit movie on DD1 was an annual feature; and with little or no advertisements. So watching the movie reminded me of those beautiful old days; jab apan nanhe munne aur pyare se they...and most importantly innocent they. The only loud noise that I knew on that Diwali night was the noise of a bidi bum and an aaloo bum...not that of Saki Naka traffic! I was reminded of the times of Chhathh when we used to go to river banks at 4 in the morning and used to love it, surrounded by family, friends, good folk music and joy. Today, I don't remember the last time I saw sunrise; don't have any records of the traditional folk music; let alone participating in those big family gatherings. Well, I guess that all happens with time and I am able to accept it. The thing that I don't like is that slowly I have grown insensitive and emotionless. The tendency of seeing nafaa-nuksaan in everything has grown. Being a little tough in today's ruthless world is required; but at the cost of losing the human inside you - that frightens me. Perhaps that is why I still find stupid things to laugh at and let my imagination run wild and try to let myself loose when that child inside me wants to play (note the "try" in the last of the three activities). I hope this helps me be what I want to be at the end of the day - a good natured, companionable human being. The sad part is I am fully aware nobody can be just that in today's world.