Well that’s what the Chinese think!!! We were all born in the Chinese Year of the Pig in 1947. The Year of the Pig repeats itself after every 12 years. But 2007 is going to be an extremely lucky year for the Pigs. “A rolling barrage of fireworks greeted the Year of the Pig in Beijing as residents chased away any lingering bad spirits and celebrated the new moon in boisterous fashion. “Fortune tellers say this is a ‘golden pig’ year, which comes around once every 60...

Will the Protestant and the Catholic churches be able to heal their centuries old rift and unite under the Papal authority in Rome? Difficult to say but some interesting developments are taking place in that direction. Writes Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent of The Times: “Radical proposals to reunite Anglicans with the Roman Catholic Church under the leadership of the Pope are to be published this year. The proposals have been agreed by senior bishops of both churches. “In a...

We are now flooded with the imagery of violence on a daily basis. From reports coming in from Iraq or Afghanistan…to our daily speech / thought / writing / newspapers / TV / blogging. So how does one survive in such a world in a healthy manner? “The Laughing Club of India” a film by internationally-acclaimed filmmaker Meera Nair allows her subjects to tell how being part of a laughing club affected them — in some cases, simply relieving stress, in others, helping to live...

Thank you Hollyrob for sending me the article from the Jerusalem Post about the old synagogue at Cochin in the South Indian state of Kerala. It revived memories of my visit to the synagogue almost two decades ago. Even if one is not a Jew you would find wonderful vibrations once you are inside. Some sources say that the earliest Jews were those who settled in the Malabar coast (in Kerala) during the times of King Solomon of Israel, and after the Kingdom of Israel split into two (David de Beth Hillel,...

Oh! Is this a big bubble or a big Indian vegetable? With investment banks predicting that India will become the world’s third largest economy within two decades and a CIA report forecasting that the 21st century will be India’s, this national self-confidence is spreading fast, says Amelia Gentleman in The Observer. “Beneath the headline ‘Empire Strikes Back’, one paper reminded readers that British colonial administrators had repeatedly tried to stifle the growth of...

The International Criminal Court (ICC), world’s first permanent war-crimes tribunal, is proving more robust than expected; even skeptical America is softening its line, says The Economist. The ICC (not to be confused with the World Court, also in The Hague), aged only four-and-a-half, “is proving a lustier infant than many predicted. Its prosecutors have delved deeply into horrible wars in Congo, Sudan and Uganda. The court’s first trial — of Thomas Lubanga, a Congolese...

When the British (and European) colonists began their conquering drive worldwide a century or two (or more) ago some among them had explained this as a mission. The mission was the ‘White Man’s Burden’ to civilize ‘the primitive and barbaric’ non-Christian world. Now from the ‘White Man’s Burden’ let’s fast forward to ‘White Man’s Trash’. And here is the self-explanatory story from The Independent of London. “Lianjiao,...

Although India became free of the British yoke on 15 August 1947, it declared itself a Democratic Republic on 26 January 1950. Ever since the occasion is marked with ceremonial pomp and display of India’s military might and the cultural diversity. Last year, India invited the Saudi King to be the Chief Guest on the occasion of the Republic Day. Tomorrow the Russian President Vladimir Putin would grace the function in New Delhi. Writes Rediffnews: “With the focus of public attention on...

Here is some more startling news that is likely to create a storm. Taleban leader Mullah Omar is living in Pakistan under the protection of its ISI intelligence agency, a captured Taleban spokesman has said, according to the BBC. “The spokesman, Muhammad Hanif, made the apparent confession to Afghan agents who videotaped the questioning. “Mr Hanif is seen sitting in a dimly-lit room telling agents that Mullah Omar is in the city of Quetta (Pakistan). Correspondents confirm the voice...

President Pervez Musharraf is again under pressure with top American defense/security officials alleging infiltration of Taliban radicals into Afghanistan from Pakistan. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has been repeatedly making the same accusations. In a recent Senate hearing US National Intelligence Director (NID) John Negroponte was blunt: “Al Qaeda has found ‘a secure hideout in Pakistan, from which it is rebuilding its strength’.” And today’s Associated Press report...

The chief of Israel’s armed forces has resigned over the conduct of last year’s Lebanon war, generating further pressure on the political leadership that oversaw the conflict, reports The Financial Times. “The departure of Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz, 58, late on Tuesday, followed an internal inquiry pointed to his responsibility in a conflict in which Israel failed to fulfil its initial war aim of liquidating the Hizbollah movement. “Politicians from across the spectrum...

Saddam’s death is Mr. Maliki’s moment of truth, says Ned Parker in the London Times blog. He is the Baghdad Correspondent for The Times and has been based in the country since March 2003. He has also filed extensively from Israel and the Palestinian territories. “Maliki must take the political capital from executing Saddam to prove that the Shia have moved beyond their fears of the old regime. If he cannot lead the Shia on a moderate path, Iraq looks likely to fall into civil...

Saddam Hussein of Iraq…PAST. President George Bush of the USA…PRESENT. Now let us hear something more incisive and insightful about the FUTURE…!!!

In the Indian subcontinent carol-singing is not so uncommon even among Hindus, Muslim and followers of other faiths. This was few of the wonderful legacies bequeathed by the British Raj. In cities the joyful carol music reverberates in the streets. People of different religious denominations visit churches and other public places just to listen to the melodious carols. This is the magic of carol-singing which transcends narrow religious boundaries…and it generates warmth and a feeling of love....

In an Israeli-Palestinian conflict where both sides are ever more entrenched, Bethlehem stands in the front line, just a few miles from the glitter and prosperity of Jerusalem but enclosed in a separate universe, writes The Economist.

Not as much as expected, it seems. The Asian Affairs magazine highlights certain important points. Also, other articles in the current issue, and the archives, of the magazine should be of interest to those who wish to understand Asia.

Most Britons back the country’s Army chief who said British troops should be withdrawn from Iraq soon because their presence was making security worse, a poll showed on Sunday, says a Reuters report. “In an ICM telephone poll for the Sunday Express newspaper, 74 percent of those questioned agreed with Dannatt.” “Chief of the General Staff Richard Dannatt sparked a media and political storm last week when he criticised post-war planning for the 2003 U.S.-led invasion in a...

Hey! That’s a nice cartoon I got in my email from a friend, and I share it with you. The source, I am told, is foolzparadize.org

When asked his secret of love, being married fifty-four years to the same person, he said, “Ruth and I are happily incompatible.” —Billy Graham New love is the brightest, and long love is the greatest; but revived love is the tenderest thing known on earth. —Thomas Hardy Marriage is the foundation of the family and the family is the foundation of society: if we strengthen marriage, we strengthen the family, we strengthen the children and we strengthen the community. If...

Should Mohammed Afzal, convicted for aiding five terrorists who stormed the Indian Parliament Dec 13, 2001, be hanged for his crime? Afzal was sentenced to death by a trial court, and the Supreme Court had later upheld the verdict. He is due to hang October 20 (in less than a week). His family’s mercy petition is pending before the President of India. Indian TV channels and newspapers are highlighting this debate for the past few days now. But in this debate the “threat element”...

That’s what Mary Riddell says in The Observer in a well argued piece that also gives a historic perspective. “History will forgive the war on Iraq. Or so Tony Blair told the US Congress in July 2003, as the first cold shadows fell on the invasion. The Prime Minister also warned of ‘many further struggles ahead’. He cannot have imagined that these would include being gunned down by the head of the British army. “By calling for a pull-out from Iraq, General Sir Richard...

Julia Wilson, a student at C.K. McClatchy High School in Sacramento, California, is shown Friday, Oct. 13, 2006, in Sacramento. The 14-year-old high school student was pulled out of class and questioned by Secret Service agents after posting a message threatening President Bush on the social networking site MySpace.com. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) For details click here.

One of India’s leading columnist and former Ambassador G. Parthasarathy thinks so. “A blame game has started in the US, with no dearth of media and non-proliferation pundits stating that it was because the US confined itself to a ‘slap on the wrist’ for India after its 1998 nuclear tests that others like Pyongyang and Tehran have been emboldened to seek the acquisition of nuclear weapons. “With President Bush and the Republican party already on the run because of...

While big leaders in the United States and some other nations are tearing their hair in the face of North Korea Kim Jong-il’s defiance, some sensible guys are suggesting that the sanctions should be such that hurt the dictator the most. Believe it or not but high on the agenda of the UN members is to deprive Kim of his favourite food and drinks that are mostly imported. “No one enjoys luxury goods more than paramount leader Kim Jong-il, who boasts the country’s finest wine cellar...

Muhammad Yunus of Bangladesh and the Grameen Bank have been jointly awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. Nobel Committe has done something unusual…taking notice of the pioneering work being done at the grassroots level to promote entrepreneurship and alleviate poverty. Second, the women are the greatest beneficiaries. “Mr Yunus set up the bank in 1976 with just $27 from his own pocket. Thirty years on, the bank has 6.6 million borrowers, of which 97% are women, according to the Grameen...