The gang that cannot shoot straight!

I am horrified and upset about the terrorist attacks in Mumbai which appear to have come to a fiery end at hotel Taj, just a few hours ago. Thanks to Internet, I could follow the events through the 'live' broadcasts of Indian T.V. (NDTV and IBN). I used to believe that India is superior to U.S. A. in her capability for intelligence gathering, and enforcement of security against terrorism. This impression was primarily based on the strict security procedures at Indian airports I saw anytime I visited India since the early 1970’s. Now, I know how wrong I was. The word ‘pathetic’ best describes the performance of the Indian authorities and security forces at these horrific events in Mumbai. Here are my reasons:

1. Lack of preparation: Despite Mumbai being the target of frequent terrorist attacks starting from 1993, Indian police and security forces there are not set up for instant response to an act of terrorism. The majority of the Mumbai casualties occurred at their main railway station CST (old Victoria Terminus). The airports, seaports and railway stations of big cities are the most vulnerable spots for a terrorist attack, and they need extra security. However, at CST, two gunmen could walk in with their AK 47’s, and fire away without anyone stopping them or fighting back. Where were the armed police? Did they run away? According to reports, the gunmen killed as many as they wanted, and walked out of the place, unharmed, to kill more somewhere else in the city! This is truly unbelievable. The killings of the top the National Security Group (NSG) officer at the very beginning of the terrorist attacks, show how poorly organized they were. A military commander is expected to strategize and give directions from a safe place – not to be the in the war front wearing a gun vest!

2.Poor training and execution: I saw a press briefing where a commando described the terrorists as young and wearing T-shirts. Were they killed? ‘No, because it was too dark, and they knew how to escape as they were very familiar in the layout of the hotel’, was the answer. If it was that dark, how could they see the terrorists? Have not NSG heard of ‘night goggle’s? How about the rule of covering the 'exits' first before moving into an area? I watched these commandoes shooting at the Nariman House, supposedly to free the hostages of a Jewish religious group. They were just pumping away bullets at the windows of the building while standing in a wide open area. Safety of the hostages was the least of their concerns. It took an army of these commandoes nearly three days to subdue just four or five terrorists who were at large at the Taj Hotel building -- and they made a huge mess in the process, setting fires and random shooting resulting in deaths of innocent hostages and even some of their own, caught in cross fire.

3.No clear communication: The primary goal of the terrorists is to terrorize a city or a country. Indian authorities appeared to ignore the importance to clear and frequent communications to the public to calm them. There was no spokesperson or communications center to do this. There was utter chaos whenever a police officer or a politician briefed the press, that too at places where the fighting was still going on . They were not consistent or clear in their messages (They sorely lacked the services of communications experts specializing in disaster management). This resulted in all sort of rumors which fanned the fears of the people. For example, there was a story or rumor that a captured terrorist admitted that there are forty (40) of them. This means that a good number of terrorists are still loose in the city, as only nine or ten hostages have been accounted so far! No wonder the whole city had come to a standstill, with people afraid to come out. (By the way, a huge crowd of T.V. and press with cameras, was allowed to be at close proximity of sites which were still under siege. It was bizarre to see some ministers dropping in to talk to the press, while firings were going on in the background.)

4.Poor Intelligence: According to the reports, the terrorists, numbering over twenty, came from outside India, and spent days in the city getting familiar with the layout of the sites they wanted to attack. Such a ‘foreign’ group should have caught notice. I consider it a serious flaw of Indian intelligence to have missed this completely.

Playing the game of chicken!

I find the hesitancy of the U.S. Congress to help the ailing U.S. auto companies quite annoying. No one can challenge that a collapse of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler would cost two to three million jobs in this country. Such a huge bump in unemployment will plunge this country into a deep depression from which it will take years to recover. In short, there is no alternative but to save this industry. And these companies are begging for a loan of $25 billion dollars which is a ‘paltry sum’ compared to the money the U.S. Government has already sunk into finance companies like AIG (over $80 billion) and Citigroup ($25 billion, and counting). The real reason of the delay? Republicans would rather have this issue kicked down to January when Barack Obama becomes President, so that they can blame him later if things do not work out, while the Democrats want to make sure that the public understands how careful they are with their money. So, all types of delay tactics, coated with a show of prudence, are now going on. The big fuss about the CEOs of these companies using private jets is a good example. These Congressmen, who bum corporate jet rides whenever they can, know that it is not practical for a CEO and staff, who have to travel perennially, to waste time in airports waiting for commercial flights. They are not outraged about the millions of dollars these CEOs make based on short term results; but are spooked about a few thousands of dollars spent on air travel! Meanwhile, the auto companies, especially General Motors, are on the brink of declaring bankruptcy. Unlike the airline industry, where companies can declare bankruptcy and come out of it later, in auto industry a bankruptcy declaration is the end as no one will buy a car from a bankrupt company. I really hope that this game of brinkmanship does not end in disaster for everyone!

Loyalty versus Practicality

Hear that President-elect Barack Obama has asked Hillary Clinton to be his Secretary of State, a spot Senator John Kerry was aspiring to. Clinton showed utter disdain for Obama during the primaries calling him ‘unelectable’ and naive, while poor Kerry campaigned for him right from the New Hampshire days. But Clinton has worldwide name recognition, and her hawkish image may allow Obama to make some peace overtures through her, without looking soft. Also, as President Lyndon Johnson crassly put, ‘it is better to keep your enemy inside your tent pissing to the outside, than to have him outside, pissing into the tent!’ I understand that a national book seller, ‘Team of Rivals’ by Doris Goodwin, which narrates Abraham Lincoln’s success by appointing his rivals in his cabinet, has impressed Obama. I hope he is right in his selection of Hillary Clinton, although I feel that having a loyal, but dull, John Kerry as Secretary of State would have been better a choice.

Barack Obama, the first ‘black’ President of USA!

I am thrilled to see Barack Obama getting elected as the 44^th U.S. President. As ex- Secretary of State Colin Powell said, Obama will be a ‘transformational’ President which this country desperately needs. He has a superb intellect, right temperament and amazing charisma to lead this country in one her most trying times. Yet, the focus of the news media is on his African heritage, and how wonderful it is to see a black man getting elected as the President of USA. They ignore the fact that except for his looks, Obama is least like a black in USA. He had a white upbringing, being brought up by his white mother and white grandparents. Starting from grade school, he went to the best schools which had very few blacks. Until his days as a community organizer in Chicago, I do not think he had much contact with the black population. But the ‘one drop rule’ in this country which labels everyone even with a single drop of African blood as black, makes him one!