We all know that Clinton was a good President, and Reagan was bad..right ?  Clinton's policies were good for the economy, and Reagan's were a disaster.  How about the internet (or the "information superhighway").  We all know that the internets have been good for the economy, right ?  And we know that wars are bad, and so we should not elect warmongers.

Elections have consequences...

Right ?

I grew up in a small hill station town in central India.  Ethnically, I am a foreigner there ~ I belong to the "Aryan" race, and have lighter skin than the "Dravidians" who inhabited India prior to the Aryan arrival, and who were pushed into the forests while the Aryans built civilized cities next to the rivers.

Please do not read this diary if you are looking for a substantial discussion on the health care reform debate... or even if you are looking for another meaningless addition to the cacophony of voices on the topic.

This diary is a rant on that which we consider to be important, and the difference between that, and what should really be important.

Let me start with a personal nugget as a starting point... I am told that all successful politicians who employ good speechwriters use personal nuggets... since I am not a successful politician, and do not have the funds to research other people's personal nuggets, I will just use mine.  

I am delighted by the results of the recent elections in India.  

You may have heard that most people were happy at the results as well, and that the stock markets shot up.  You may have read on various implications the election results would have on US-India relationships, etc. etc.  As a dual US-Indian citizen, I DO take delight in all that.

However, the primary source of my happiness is that the election results prove that India has turned a corner.  It signifies that Indian democracy has nucleated, and that the Indian union is strong, and will only get stronger.

You may wonder why I am celebrating the nucleation of democracy in India, when most people are eagerly awaiting the rise of India as the next big power.  Furthermore, everyone knows that India is the world's largest democracy, etc. etc.  

Well, it is not quite that simple.  And I do believe that the survival of Indian democracy was not guaranteed up until very recently.  Please follow me below the jump, and I will explain.

Link

MIDDLETOWN - Stephen P. Morgan wrote that he had a grudge against Jews and "beautiful," "smart" Wesleyan students -- but most of all, he had a grudge against Johanna Justin-Jinich, the 21-year-old Wesleyan University junior he is accused of gunning down in a cafe near campus on Wednesday.

"Kill Johanna," he scrawled in a notebook police found in his car. "She must Die."

On a page in the notebook dated May 6, the day of the shooting at the Red & Black Cafe at Broad Street Books, he wrote: "I think it OK to kill Jews, and go on a killing spree at this school."

Morgan was arraigned this morning in Superior Court in Middletown. A judge raised his bail to $15 million. The new revelations about Morgan were contained in the warrant for his arrest.

Morgan surrendered Thursday night to Meriden police after a manhunt that began shortly after Justin-Jinich was gunned down."

One of the most tragic outcomes of the partition between India and Pakistan has been the shutting down of the trade routes between India and Central Asia.

This has been tragic for all side, including the cities that would normally have been on the trade routes.  Take a look at the ancient "Silk Road" trade routes

Note to MyDD editors: the above image is from Wikipedia.  I am not sure if linking to that is violation of some copyright issue.  If so, please advise and I will edit.

From it's wikipedia entry, Schizophrenia (pronounced ˌskɪtsəˈfrɛni& #601; or pronounced ˌskɪtsəˈfriːni ə), from the Greek roots skhizein (σχίζει 57;, "to split") and phrēn, phren- (φρήν, φρεν-, "mind") is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a mental disorder characterized by abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality. It most commonly manifests as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking with significant social or occupational dysfunction.

Keep this definition in mind, as you read the desires and rationale of Pakistani strategic thinkers.

As a young boy growing up in India, the footwear of choice was the "Hawaii Chappal"... literally translated as Hawaiian slippers.  They kinda look like this

Of course, a young boy growing up in rural India does not know much at all (if anything) about Hawaii.  And so we just assumed that "Hawaii Chappal" meant Air-borne slippers... Hawa means Air in Hindi.