opinions

Who really is Sickular?

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Sickular is an intended insult term used by Right wing trolls online against anyone standing up for the secular values our nation was built on.

A lot many have also started wearing this title to reverse the shaming, or what we could even call “Troll the Trolls” by openly declaring themselves as Sickular, and continuing to stand up for what they believe in. While this is a really good thing to do, and not give up your beliefs because of some trivial name calling.

I think the term better suits the accusers.

These guys standing for things the ails our democracy and threat to our secular country. They are the ones who put the Sick in Secular!

Occupy Mumbai

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On my way back from work today I was happy to see that the potholes near Liberty Garden, Malad had been filled. I always thought that if the BMC couldn’t fill up these potholes outside their own ward office, of what good they were to this city… But my joy was short lived further down the road near SNDT college the potholes were still there, each almost 5inches if not more deep.

So it is obvious that they just filled the potholes across a small stretch for Dahi Handi, a quick job which would not last more than a week so that they don’t get any complaints from the politician sponsoring Dahi Handi outside liberty garden tomorrow.

This particular stretch from Marve Road to liberty garden is a perfect example of how the BMC maintains our roads, layers after layers of hack job tar is added which mostly gives way and leave crazy potholes. Here you will not find single stretch of road even as little as 1 ft long where you find the road evenly paved.

Everyone knows about the kind of money that these politicians put in during BMC elections because once they win or even come second, no matter which party they belong to they can start dealing in and negotiating in BMC tenders, funded by our money which they pocket and thus we get these shabby roads.

Occupy Mumbai is my call to people who feel we deserve better to come together to voice it out and TAKE WHAT WE TRULY DESERVE.

Sign up for #Occupy Mumbai here

follow this call on @occupy_mumbai / Occupymumbai.org / Occupy Mumbai on FB

Jai Maharashtra??

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I have to confess that I don’t know the National Anthem by heart, but can sing along.. And that I do aloud with a lot of pride (not being my sarcastic self here) at the start of a movie (not the only place where I sing it). And I get a lot of people turning back, some saying “kaun hai be”, friends saying “politician you are” and the likes.

But at the last movie, something really disturbing happened this one group who couldn’t even stand straight during our anthem, let alone sing it, in a chorus shouted Jai Maharashtra at the end.

Simple question what good is your Jai Maharashtra without a Jai Hind. Doesn’t a part need a whole to even exist.

We have been so disillusioned by the politicians of this state who can’t give us the bare minimum but are ready to tax us, to fund their money making rackets/government projects.

They have filled our minds with such crap that we are ready to fight another brother for jobs that we don’t really need or even want. Jai Maharashtra, shouldn’t be your slogan, but the feeling when you see actual development around us.

We should demand this from our mayors and CM.

I take pride in singing the National Anthem, because it makes feel proud of my freedom, and our constitution. And makes me feel like a citizen of this country, who deserves a good life.

Even if I’m not really getting the good life, I deserve, thanks to our politicians.. Dissing the National Anthem just doesn’t feel right.

Law makers breaking a law

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Trai recently tightened their regulations on bulk SMS spam, which was becoming a nuisance for mobile phone users. Post which 90% of such spam has stopped, but the Maharashtra Pollution Board has started out on spamming spree sending out messages at odd times like 2am, 6am and so on, which was allowed even before this recently tightened regulation.

Here’s the latest message I just received

Let’s resolve on National Pollution Control day.. Save Water & Power. Minimize waste. Enrich our Vasundhara- Maharashtra Pollution Control Board.

Credit it

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Recently a colleague told me that credit cards are the root cause of modern day debt woes people have. It’s an evil instrument designed to make people spend needlessly.

Yes a lot of people have fallen into credit card debt, but that’s because they’ve not got a simple thing in their heads that they shouldn’t spend to the extent of their card limit but to the extent of what they can afford when payment will be due and you’ll be surprised what this amount could be.

First we need to understand a simple fact that our money has potential to earn i.e. money can make you more money. So when you go and spend hard cash your loosing out on that opportunity to earn and on the other using credit cards let’s you keep your money with you longer and still spend it now, thus at one point in time you will have more money which also increases your spending power.

So imagine you earn 10k/month and spend 8k during a given month thus saving you 2k/month. Now imagine instead of paying you used your card to pay the 8k and thus your bank a/c would have the entire 10k in it. And by the time your card would be due your next month’s salary should be in your account as well, from which you would pay the 8k, leaving 12k in your account. And even a fool would tell you that banks would pay more interest on 12k than 2k.

Using the above example instead of the expense being a regular 8k expense imagine if it were a one time 18k expense with a 10k income. I would still make the purchase in the first month with 10k in the bank and pay it once the second months salary comes in, when I would have a total of 20k in the bank.

I know this is easier said than done but then I have used credit cards without having any problems for seven years now.

Quick review: Sucker Punch (2011)

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Sucker Punch is the manifestations of a geeks wet dreams where he would play a warrior battling villians both futuristic and historic.

Just one bit more: The geek added awesome sauce by making his character and that of accomplices, really HOT CHICKS.

Must watch, awesome treat to the eyes.

I take responsibility for the attack on Mumbai.

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8-12 hours after the attack I logged into Facebook Mobile from my cell phone, as I didn’t have access to my PC and just wanted to check messages.

Everybody had something to say.. about the attack. Someone said it was inhuman. while others said they are sad about this, some others said mumbai will bounce back and the best was this one where somebody pleaded for somebody, anybody to stand up and bring change.

What’s the point of all this. We are quick to condemn such incidents, complain about the security situation, the cop whose just looking for the next bakra to pay him a bribe, the size of that cops belly… who knows if he could run to save his own life, let alone the lives of ordinary citizens… and we do this with all we have and with so much gusto, but only among our peers… not where it would matter or make a difference.

Like in the last comment I highlighted above, the commenter wanted somebody, anybody to bring the change and not herself.

We need to show worthiness to deserve the change we so desperately want. Question what your getting if not you’ll continue to get the same i.e. bad roads, bad cops, bad everything.

Q:Who is to blame?
A: The Politicians

and Q: why I may ask?
A: just because they are elected representatives…

and Q: who elected them?
not us… because we don’t vote.

How can you expect something from a leader that you didn’t help get elected. and if we have helped get him elected then its even worse, because we haven’t clearly set expectation.

I take responsibility, because I voted but never stood up and questioned those whom I voted for… why this and why not that!!

Never Questioned Mr. Govinda, “where are you?, why aren’t your attending parliament, the same parliament for which I chose you to represent me.”

Never did I question the system of drawing lots for deciding reservations for Women and ST/SC/OBC in the Municipal Corporation, because of which we often see candidates being imported from other areas as there aren’t (or local party strongmen chose to ignore) candidates that fit the profile, what follows is term with virtually no corporator to serve the ward.

For this and many more that I would term my inaction or my failure to be a contributing citizen of this democracy of ours, I take responsibility for the wrongs that have happened including this attack, because at the end of the day it all happened and reached such a stage because of the inadequacy of our City, State and Nation… which was the responsibility of our leaders, whom I either didn’t help getting elected or even if I did, I didn’t look at / question what they did or didn’t do for My City, My State and My Country.

Learn to Question! because you deserve better. Start small and then grow… its something like planting a tree… every small bit would count.

For example, You know how Auto rickshaw guys could be hard to come by and many would just refuse to go where you want to. I decided enough was enough as I wasn’t asking for charity or a free ride, I was paying for it, So a few months back i started this thing where if the rick showed “for hire”, I’m boarding it, regardless of the guys saying yes or no. It hasn’t always gone smoothly, often it takes up time arguing with the guy and after several delays to where I was heading, two really ugly verbal spats and one fist fight… I continue because I know someday people will look and learn and if many start this, it won’t be long before rickshaw guys learn that they are public transport and don’t have the right to refuse.

Similarly we can question the guys who want your precious votes, what they gonna give us in return and what if they don’t deliver… would they like a punch on the face or a kick up the ass. And if you haven’t got a precious vote, please head to Jagoore dot com… haven’t you watched the ads on TV (shame on you if you’ve seen it and continued to ignore it.)

If you have something to say, please do so below.

P.S. Indian News channels especially those shady hindi ones and Headlines today… Don’t run it on your ticker that “One of the Mumbai attackers claims responsibility” this is just a way of expressing myself and my anger at all things leading to this and many other things. I have nothing and will continue to have nothing to do with those MF who have no respect for the life of individuals like themselves… and attack civilians who aren’t armed or trained like them.

Note to terrorists: :) if you think so much of yourself that you can take on our democracy, then just a give us level playing feild come down to any of our mumbai railway stations unarmed and I can promise you that we will take you down with our bare hands… no cops… no secuity agency would be involved, ask any pickpocketer who has ever been caught in the act in our local trains (if theres one who has survived what follows).