‘It is only natural!’ defense

I find the defense of cyclist Floyd Landis against doping charges stupefying. He claims that his blood is naturally high in testosterone. It was just a coincidence that the officials of the race noted this increase in testosterone level after he performed unbelievably well in a crucial phase of the race! I am now waiting for actor Mel Gibson, who was arrested today on DUI charges, to claim that the alcohol content in his blood is naturally high also!

A Cheshire Cat who loves pomp!

I do not know if this is only me -- I find the USA Secretary of State of Condoleezza Rice a little too cheery any time I see her on T.V. However the grim the world events may be, there she is, grinning like a Cheshire Cat, chatting with world leaders. She is obviously excited and thrilled to be the center of attention. I hope that somebody tells her that there is more to her job than traveling around the world in her own jet plane, and getting to meet the world leaders at an equal level.
Rice was expected to become a powerful Secretary of State as she has the ‘ear’ of President Bush. But she is proving to be a big disappointment. She clearly lacks the vision and tact which are required for her job. Instead of providing a strong leadership for American foreign policies, she acts like a puppet of the powerbrokers of the Bush administration who have consistently showed a lack of understanding about the use of world diplomacy. Many of Rice statements and actions do not make sense or have logic. She threatened North Korea with ‘dire’ consequences if they tested their long range missiles. But when the North Korea went ahead and fired the missiles, she did nothing about it other than asking China to continue talking to North Korea. (What an incentive it must have been for Iran to continue with her nuclear program). Her recent statements about the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah again defy logic. ‘There can be no cease fire until it is permanent and sustainable’. Doesn't she know that one has to first stop fighting first, to sit down and talk about long term peace? What about ignoring the suffering of the Lebanese people who are caught in the middle? Does she not realize that until recently USA was a supporter of Lebanon who was claimed to be a 'beacon of democracy' in Middle East? What message will this stand give to other countries who count on US support? Why is USA too proud to include Syria and Iran in the peace talks, the two countires who have the most influence on Hezbollah? Despite of her excellent credentials as a teacher of international politics, Rice comes across as an amateur and light weight in diplomatic circles. It is time that she is replaced with someone in the caliber of former Secretaries of State James Baker and Madeline Albright.

School bully learns his lesson!

The Hezbollah appears to be teaching Israel a new lesson about the price of attacking their neighbors. Until now, Israel could just move across the border and inflict heavy punishments on their neighbors without any repercussions. (Poor Palestinians used to get the brunt of such attacks). I am sure that Israeli population is freaked out to see rockets coming at them in response to their attack on Hezbollah. This the first time someone has hit them back! Reminds me of a school bully who unexpectedly got his nose bloodied by a weakling. It took him some time to recover from that shame. Hopefully, next time Israel will consider diplomacy first before bombing their neighbors.

God must be disgusted!

I am upset about the ongoing Israeli attack on Lebanon, and the tacit approval of USA for it. Although Hezbollah started the conflict by killing and kidnapping the Israel soldiers across the border, the reaction of Israel is way beyond what is required. However, many countries want the Israel attack to continue, as it suits their hidden agenda. For Bush administration, this war is a nice distraction from the horrible sectarian violence that is raging in Iraq. Iran possibly loves to see the world attention diverted from her nuclear program. Sunni dominated countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia may be happy to see the Shiite dominated Hezbollah getting destroyed. The poor people of Lebanon are caught in the middle! It is heartbreaking to see the sufferings of the people there. Yesterday, they showed on T.V. a six year old girl with eyes brimming with tears, saying, ‘My mummy and daddy are in heaven now’, after all six members of her family were killed in a bomb attack. How can the so called civilized countries in the world stand back and allow this type horror and destruction to continue? God must be disgusted to see that many of these bystanders claim to be ardent believers of Him and His message!

The Frat Boy President

It was painful to watch President Bush at the recently concluded G8 Summit conference in Russia. He looked out of place among the polished and learned world leaders there, and he knew it. He tried to cover up his sense of insecurity by some frat boy antics causing embarrassment to all. (His ‘groping’ of the German Chancellor was a classic!). The ‘open mike’ conversation he had with Prime Minister Blair and other world leaders was an eye opener. In addition to chewing with his mouth open, he talked like a third grader (‘Russia a big country’.. ‘China a big country’). He did not appear to have a clue about the USA stand on the most important world event at that time – the Israel Lebanon conflict (‘I think Condi is going to Middle East’). His notion that one phone call from Syria to Hezbolla could stop the fighting in Lebanon, showed his naïvete about diplomatic protocols. It is no wonder that under his leadership USA has plummeted from her glory days.
I understand that many people voted George Bush for President as he came across like a guy they would like to have beer with (as opposed to pedantic Al Gore and John Kerry). Well, they did not think about the beer drinker staying too long, and making a total mess of things!

Fools and Copycats!

The news of the bombing of the commuter trains in Mumbai is quite disturbing. Having lived in Mumbai for a few months, I know that people are packed like sardines in those commuter trains during rush hour. I expect the casualty toll to top 400. It appears that nobody wants to claim responsibility for these horrific acts. All that the terrorists accomplished are the deaths of hundreds of innocent people, and the sorrow and suffering that goes with it. I wonder if they realize that terrorism will never accomplish their goal of getting world attention to their grievances or demands. The reaction to any terrorist act is on catching the terrorists to prevent such attacks in the future – not to resolve their complaints! For example, take the 9/11 attacks on USA. The immediate reaction of the people in USA was that someone in Middle East attacked us, and we have to destroy them to prevent such attacks in the future. Nobody wanted (or dared) to analyze why Osama and company are so upset about USA, and if there is anything basically wrong with the USA policy towards Middle East. Osama failed miserably in his goal to lessen USA involvement in the Middle East. Instead, he accomplished the opposite. He simply woke up a sleeping giant, causing unimaginable amount of deaths and destruction in the Muslim world.
By the way, I could not help notice the similarity of the date of the bombing in Mumbai (7/11) with the dates of other terrorist attacks - 9/11 (in USA) and 3/11 (in Spain). Indians love to imitate. Not surprised if the terrorists in India chose a date which will make them look like Al Qaeda ('Acha idea hai!')

Roar of a toothless tiger

I think USA is starting to look like a toothless tiger to the rest of the world. She has no bite any more. When North Korea announced their plans for testing long-range missiles, President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made tough statements warning them of ‘serious’ consequences. North Korea went ahead and fired the missiles anyway. USA reaction? 'Maybe, we should talk’. Similarly, Iran was threatened with military action for their foray into nuclear technology (even the option of using nuclear weapons was ‘on the table’ for this). It made no impression on Iranians, and they continued with their nuclear program.

All countries in the world now know that the Iraq war has completely drained the USA, and that she has no capability for any more military misadventures. So, they just ignore the roars of the toothless tiger, and go about their business!