Spiritual Blackmail

Bishops and priests tell their followers that donating money will result in receiving more money, for which of course, there is no guarantee in the real world.

Non-profit organizations are audited regularly and have to submit detailed financial disclosure forms to the Tax Department. Religious organizations don’t have to submit anything. There is literally no oversight by the government. This, too, while taxpayers are footing the bill for lavish mansions these prosperity preachers often live in besides giving hefty salaries, perks and alms. This is double dipping and it costs the tax payers millions.

In turn, it’s an insipid heresy that encourages mainly the working class to live beyond their means. "If you pray the right way, God will make you rich" is fraud in the name of God, but because it’s in the name of God our legal system turns a blind eye on it. It’s a religious pyramid scheme. And worse, it’s a religious pyramid scheme that’s based on spiritual blackmail. The idea of material wealth as a sign of God’s favor seems to run counter to the centuries-old tenets of Christianity that have traditionally viewed its central figure, Christ, as being born poor in a stable and dying poor, executed by the state.

The gospel of prosperity, popularized in the 1970s and 1980s by three televangelists who are viewed as its founders: Kenneth Hagin, Kenneth Copeland and Frederick K.C. Price, turns Christianity into a vapid bless-me club, with a doctrine that amounts to little more than spiritual, magical thinking. Thanks.

Inclusion Vs. Exclusion

Why is it that every person of Indian origin who won a Nobel in the sciences after independence is not an Indian citizen any more? Hargobind Khurana won the prize for Medicine in 1968, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar for Physics in 1983 and Venkatraman Ramakrishnan for Chemistry in 2009. All of them flowered not because they were Indians per se but because they left India far behind.

In fact, Ramakrishnan was downright rude when many Indians called to congratulate him in 2009. He said: “We are all human beings, and our nationality is simply an accident of birth.” He also complained about “all sorts of people” writing to him and “clogging up my email box. It takes me an hour or two just to remove these mails". While his immediate reaction may seem churlish to us, underlying it is the real issue: the “Indian” successes abroad have little to do with the fact that they are Indians. They succeed because they abandoned India.

We need to ask ourselves: why does our system kill future heroes, while the US helps raise Indians to iconic levels?

Hence the point:
Our system is designed to keep people out, not in. The true value of an IIT or IIM is not the intellectual capital they produce, but their filtering expertise, which keeps all but the super- listers out of these institutions. When the people entering the institution are the best among the best, they will shine no matter what the quality of faculty or the curriculum is.
Exclusion and not inclusion, unfortunately, is our creed.

The Bottom Line is this– Sunder Pichai and Satya Narayana Nadella are supreme examples of the reality of the Indian Market. If you have talent and need to succeed– India is not the place for you. The only thing that India can offer is an entry into the Corrupt World of Politics and a Chance to Get into the Everyday Rut of an Overpopulated, Highly Superstitious, Prehistorically Religious-minded, Backward Country where today even, something as silly as Porn and Beef are Banned when Serious Issues Like the Rape of Women and Corruption in Politics is absolutely Ignored.

ഒരൊറ്റ ഹൃദയം..!

സ്വന്ത താത്പര്യം സത്യത്തിന് എതിരാണെങ്കിൽ 
അപ്പോൾ, സത്യ വിശ്വാസി സത്യം മാറ്റി വയ്ക്കുന്നു .

എന്നാൽ ആ സത്യം എന്നെങ്കിലും വെളിച്ചത്ത് വരുമ്പോൾ 
ദുഃഖം കൊണ്ട് സ്വയം തകരുന്നു .

മനുഷ്യൻ സത്യം സത്യം എന്ന് പറയുന്നതല്ലാതെ എന്താണ് സത്യം എന്ന് ഗ്രഹിക്കുന്നില്ല .

ബുദ്ധികൊണ്ട് ഗ്രഹിക്കുന്ന സത്യം സത്യമല്ല . 
ബുദ്ധി കൊണ്ട് സത്യം ഗ്രഹിക്കുവാൻ കഴിയില്ല . 

സത്യം എന്താണ് എന്ന് സ്വയം പഠിക്കാതെ മനുഷ്യന് 
അത് മറ്റുള്ളവരെ പഠിപ്പിക്കുവാൻ സാധ്യമല്ല .

മറ്റുള്ളവരെ പഠിപ്പിക്കുവാൻ കഴിയാതെ അത് 
അവനവനു ഗ്രഹിക്കുവാൻ കഴിയില്ല .

സത്യം "ഞാൻ " തന്നെയാണ് എന്നറിയാത്ത മനുഷ്യന് 
"സത്യം" വെറും ആചാരമാണ് ........ 

ആൾ ദൈവങ്ങൾക്കു കഴുത്തിൽ അണിയുവാനുള്ള 
ആഭരണമാണോ ആത്മീയത ?

പലതും കാണുമ്പോൾ അങ്ങനെ ചിന്തിക്കേണ്ടിയിരിക്കുന്നു.

സാധാരണ ജനങ്ങളുടെ ആത്മീയ അജ്ഞതയെ ചൂഷണം ചെയ്ത് ഉപജീവനം നടത്തുവാൻ മാത്രം അതുപകരിക്കും .

ആത്മീയതയെന്നാൽ - 
മിഥ്യയായ "ഞാൻ " സത്യമായി പരിവർത്തനപ്പെടുന്നതാണ് 

വ്യക്തിയിൽ പരിവർത്തനം ഇല്ലെങ്കിൽ അതു മറ്റൊരു നാടകം മാത്രമാണ്.

(post script after reading the news on Thomas Mar Athanasius' elevation as Suffragan Metropolitan of MT church)


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A great deed, but not too huge a feat... This underlines the need for all our hospitals having helipads on top of their buildings (if possible, right over their operation theatres and with efficient elevators) and a few suitable air-crafts (owned privately or by the state), besides alert medical professionals trained to handle emergency situations.. . This will not only help ailing patients (organ/ donor/ donee/ super- specialty) but also people involved in major accidents and dire situations (road/ fire/ fights/ psychiatric/ domestic violence etc.) from where they can be air-lifted and rushed to hospitals with well- equipped trauma units. Thanks.

പറഞ്ഞ്പോകും ബ്ലോഗ്

കേരളത്തിന് ഒരൊറ്റ ഹൃദയം..!

How about that?

In Sonnet 76, Shakespeare wrote, “invention in a noted weed,” which could be interpreted to mean Shakespeare's use of cannabis or the “noted weed,” for creative writing: “invention.” In the same sonnet, Shakespeare wrote he would prefer not to be associated with “strange compounds,” which could be cocaine.

A recent analysis discovered cannabis residue in 400-year-old clay pipes from William Shakespeare’s garden, the Independent reported. The analysis was performed by South African research scientists from the Transvaal Museum in Pretoria who used a technique called Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry, a forensic technology which found cannabis residue in four pipes.

The scientists' analysis studied 24 pipe fragments which were excavated from Shakespeare’s home- garden at Stratford-upon-Avon in South Warwickshire, England. The results, published in the South African Journal of Science, indicated cannabis in eight samples.
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Reputational Disaster

What is going to happen is a reputational disaster if this is widely reported. The compromise of the MT Church on gay marriage is incoherent, dishonest in itself, and reliant on dishonesty in others. I’m sure gay men will be thrilled by the exciting new job opportunity to become bishops, though perplexed as to how it will be policed by other churches. 
For many years in the history of the Church of England and the American Episcopal Church with whom the MT church has full communion with, bishop- celibacy was considered optional. Based on the customs of old times, it is assumed by many that most of the apostles, such as Peter, were married and had families.

The Catholic church is no exception. See,

Popes accused of being sexually active during pontificate:

1. Pope Sergius III (904–911) was accused by his opponents of being the illegitimate father of Pope John XI by Marozia. These accusations are found in Liutprand of Cremona's Antapodosis, as well as the Liber Pontificalis. 
2. Pope John X (914–928) had romantic affairs with both Theodora and her daughter Marozia, according to Liutprand of Cremona in his Antapodosis.
3. Pope John XII (955–963) was accused by his adversaries of adultery and incest. The monk Benedict of Soracte noted in his volume XXXVII that he "liked to have a collection of women". Some sources report that he was rumoured to have died 8 days after being stricken by paralysis while in the act of adultery, others say that he was killed by the jealous husband while in the act of committing adultery.
4. Pope Benedict IX (1032– became pope in 1044, again in 1045 and finally 1047–1048) was accused by Bishop Benno of Piacenza of "many vile adulteries." In his Liber Gomorrhianus, Damian accused Benedict IX of routine sodomy and bestiality and sponsoring orgies. In May 1045, Benedict IX resigned his office to pursue marriage.
5. Pope Paul II (1464–1471) is popularly thought to have died due to indigestion arising from eating melon in excess, though a rumour was spread by his detractors that he died while engaging in sodomy.
6. Pope Sixtus IV (1471–1484). According to the published chronicle of the Italian historian Stefano Infessura, was a "lover of boys and sodomites" - awarding benefices and bishoprics in return for sexual favours, and nominating a number of young men as cardinals, some of whom were celebrated for their good looks.
7. Pope Alexander VI (1492–1503) had a long affair with Vannozza dei Cattanei while still a priest, but before he became pope; and by her had his illegitimate children Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, Gioffre Borgia, and Lucrezia. A later mistress, Giulia Farnese gave birth to a daughter (Laura) while Alexander was in his 60s and reigning as pope. Alexander fathered at least seven, and possibly as many as ten illegitimate children, and did much to promote his family's interests - using his offspring to build alliances with a number of important dynasties.He appointed Giovanni Borgia as Captain General of the Church, and made Cesare a Cardinal of the Church - also creating independent duchies for each of them out of papal lands.
8.Pope Leo X (1513–1521) was accused, after his death, of homosexuality (Francesco Guicciardini and Paolo Giovio). I
9.Pope Julius III (1550–1555) was alleged to have had a long affair with Innocenzo Ciocchi del Monte. The Venetian ambassador at that time reported that Innocenzo shared the pope's bed.

I think the CONFUSION or the REAL PROBLEM with the majority is that they have been duped and not made aware of these things. The BIG question is why then the church leaders don't tell us that? And the EQUALLY BIG answer: 
to maintain and prolong a bishop's made-up, larger- than- life image and his exclusive nature with coloured dress and associated paraphernalia to command respect and loot money: a self- deception as our bishops who have studied Theology have read all the above stuff and consider marriages/ gay marriages/ sex outside marriage as already sanctioned. Thanks.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

In no way am I justifying the resourceful children who are averse in caring for their parents. But this is exactly where the state government should step in to protect and provide care to an Indian citizen for which the state is duty- bound. With more and more nuclear families getting older, we are going to see this a common phenomenon in most Keralite homes and we need to have more and more personal care boarding homes and nursing homes to cater to the needs of this fragile population. The state must form a new ministry for the aging and the old or at least constitute an independent department with sufficient funds pumped into it for caring the old and aging, with steps in place to prevent the looting of that money. In no way can the state run from this primary responsibility. Thanks.

Bishops

@ DMA, SZ, JP & TMP: Many a time the priest's dress acts as a shield against law enforcement and the colored dress of a bishop draws in a lot of money from innocent believers to pay for their extravagant life- style. You said "SELF-MADE Bishop"! Tell me who is not one! There are others who call him a fraud; show me anyone in the church hierarchy who is not a con- man! Nevertheless, most established church heads are more unethical and prone to corruption as well as unlawful acts- only that the law enforcement authorities are scared to go after them fearing repercussions from the government and unscrupulous politicians. They influence politicians by matching each bishop with a political party, canvass votes unfairly by using cops and rigging elections, create issues among people so as to intervene for conciliation and to reap both material profits and sexual favors thereof, manipulate, impersonate, distill and abuse alcohol, steal, rob, plunder, forge documents, evade taxes, flout foreign currency regulations, encroach upon public and private properties, construct buildings where they have no right (pattayam) over the property, lie, conspire, cheat, litigate, bribe, abet and execute hideous crimes, child- traffic, pimp, prostitute, kill and "will not do what" to achieve their mean and criminal ends (viz., to get elected as a bishop/ to amass money and power/ to make unlawful gains/ to harass and punish their critics and so on). They cultivate a group of second- fiddlers to insulate themselves and keep hench-men around them for quotation works and mass propaganda. For all these, there are any number of instances in front of us. Law enforcement officials dare to flex their muscles only by picking on "the single bishops" is the tragic side of the story. 

And the 'Doctor' he uses as prefix is the same as or equivalent to the degrees of most other bishops and priests in Kerala. It has rightly been commented that a Ph D in soft sciences is several bachelor's degrees bundled together. Many developed countries do not assign much importance to Ph Ds other than in hard sciences (Physics, Chemistry and Biology)- the reason why there are eminent professors in humanities in Harvard and Cambridge with only bachelor's degrees: in soft sciences/ humanities like Philosophy, Theology (a science at all?), History, Political Science and Languages including English, a doctorate is awarded if one completes certain requirements. A bishop of his church has several doctorates, according to Dr. Philipose Mar Chrysostom Valiya Metropolitan (I watched this speech in the Net). Again the quality of a degree is assessed or scrutinized only when considered as a requirement for a specific job or when it becomes an issue. There too, job- seekers and even college professors are said to circumvent rules as murmur persists about places and people that would write doctoral theses for a (huge) fees. Believe me, Muthukad, the Magician has every right to call himself Prof. Muthukad (again, pun intended).

The following, though an anecdote, conveys a serious message in this context: After watching sales falling off for three straight months at Kentucky Fried Chicken, Colonel Sanders (American business- man, best known for founding the fast- food chicken- restaurant chain, KFC) calls upon the Head of a Church (hereinafter referred to as the HOC) to request a favor. The HOC asks, "What can I do?" The Colonel says, "I need you to change the Lord's prayer from, 'Give us this day our daily bread' to 'Give us this day our daily chicken'. If you do it, I'll donate 10 Million Dollars to the church". The HOC replies, "I am sorry. That is the Lord's Prayer and I can not change its words." So the Colonel hangs up. After another month of dismal sales, the Colonel panics and calls again. "Listen your Excellency, I really need your help. I'll give you $50 million dollars if you change the words of the daily prayer from 'Give us this day our daily bread' to 'Give us this day our daily chicken'". And the HOC responds, "It is very tempting, Colonel Sanders. The church could do a lot of good with that much money. It would help us support many charities. But, again, I must decline. It is the Lord's Prayer, and I can't change the words". So the Colonel gives up. Again after two months of terrible sales the Colonel gets desperate. "This is my final offer, your Excellency. If you change the words of the daily prayer from, 'Give us this day our daily bread' to 'Give us this day our daily chicken' I will donate $100 million to the Church." "Let me get back to you", said the HOC and he did. On the very next day, the HOC calls together all his bishops and clamours, "I have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news is that KFC is going to donate $100 million to Us." The bishops rejoice at the news. Then one asks about the bad news. The HOC replies, "The bad news is that we lost the Wonder Bread account". Thanks.
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What is going to happen is a reputational disaster if this is widely reported. The compromise of the MT Church on gay marriage is incoherent, dishonest in itself, and reliant on dishonesty in others. I’m sure gay men will be thrilled by the exciting new job opportunity to become bishops, though perplexed as to how it will be policed by other churches.  For many years in the history of the Church of England and the American Episcopal Church with whom the MT church has full communion with, celibacy was considered optional. Based on the customs of old times, it is assumed by many that most of the Apostles, such as Peter, were married and had families.

The Catholic church is no exception. See,

Popes accused of being sexually active during pontificate:

1. Pope Sergius III (904–911) was accused by his opponents of being the illegitimate father of Pope John XI by Marozia. These accusations are found in Liutprand of Cremona's Antapodosis, as well as the Liber Pontificalis.

2. Pope John X (914–928) had romantic affairs with both Theodora and her daughter Marozia, according to Liutprand of Cremona in his Antapodosis.

3. Pope John XII (955–963) was accused by his adversaries of adultery and incest. The monk Benedict of Soracte noted in his volume XXXVII that he "liked to have a collection of women". Some sources report that he was rumoured to have died 8 days after being stricken by paralysis while in the act of adultery, others say that he was killed by the jealous husband while in the act of committing adultery.

4. Pope Benedict IX (1032– became pope in 1044, again in 1045 and finally 1047–1048) was accused by Bishop Benno of Piacenza of "many vile adulteries." In his Liber Gomorrhianus, Damian accused Benedict IX of routine sodomy and bestiality and sponsoring orgies. In May 1045, Benedict IX resigned his office to pursue marriage.

5. Pope Paul II (1464–1471) is popularly thought to have died due to indigestion arising from eating melon in excess, though a rumour was spread by his detractors that he died while engaging in sodomy.

6. Pope Sixtus IV (1471–1484). According to the published chronicle of the Italian historian Stefano Infessura, was a "lover of boys and sodomites" - awarding benefices and bishoprics in return for sexual favours, and nominating a number of young men as cardinals, some of whom were celebrated for their good looks.

7. Pope Alexander VI (1492–1503) had a long affair with Vannozza dei Cattanei while still a priest, but before he became pope; and by her had his illegitimate children Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, Gioffre Borgia, and Lucrezia. A later mistress, Giulia Farnese gave birth to a daughter (Laura) while Alexander was in his 60s and reigning as pope. Alexander fathered at least seven, and possibly as many as ten illegitimate children, and did much to promote his family's interests - using his offspring to build alliances with a number of important dynasties.He appointed Giovanni Borgia as Captain General of the Church, and made Cesare a Cardinal of the Church - also creating independent duchies for each of them out of papal lands.

8.Pope Leo X (1513–1521) was accused, after his death, of homosexuality (Francesco Guicciardini and Paolo Giovio). I

9.Pope Julius III (1550–1555) was alleged to have had a long affair with Innocenzo Ciocchi del Monte. The Venetian ambassador at that time reported that Innocenzo shared the pope's bed.

I think the CONFUSION or the REAL PROBLEM with the majority is that they have been duped and not made aware of these things. The BIG question is why then the church leaders don't tell us that? And the EQUALLY BIG answer:
to maintain and prolong a bishop's made-up, larger- than- life image and his exclusive nature with coloured dress and associated paraphernalia to command respect and loot money: a self- deception as our bishops who have studied Theology have read all the above stuff and consider marriages/ gay marriages/ sex outside marriage as already sanctioned. Thanks.

പുനർ വായനയ്ക്ക്...

1.
Adv. Kamlesh Vaswani is the lawyer responsible for porn ban in India recently. His statements, (1) "The ban is definitely a step towards protecting the country’s women and children. Watching porn itself puts the country’s security in danger, encourages violent acts, unacceptable behaviour in society, exploitation of children and lowers the dignity of women" is not factual; (2) “To say Indian women watch porn is an insult to their dignity” is nonsensical and (3) “My fight has been against obscenity. I feel watching porn fuels violence against women. It propels men to commit sex crimes. I saw no women come forward and speak up against pornography, so I did it,” is not directly related to the feeling of the people at large. Why should the Chief Justice say, "“Adults have a fundamental right to watch pornography within the privacy of their own homes” if his speculations are anywhere near truth? My view is that pornography is not to be copied but to be reflected and improved upon, though I don't view pornography due to other reasons. I consider the Government order banning porn sites a definite threat to individual freedom. Thanks.

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2.
ഗൗരവമായ ധാര്‍മിക പ്രശ്നങ്ങള്‍ ഉണര്‍ത്തുന്ന ഫ്ളെക്സ് ബോര്‍ഡുക ളെക്കുറിച്ചുള്ള ഓര്‍മപ്പെടുത്തലാണ് ഈ കുറിപ്പിന്‍െറ ഉദ്ദേശ്യം.
ഈ ബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍ വിളംബരം ചെയ്യുന്നത് എന്താണ്? കച്ചവട സ്ഥാപനങ്ങളുടെ പരസ്യങ്ങള്‍, ഉത്സവങ്ങള്‍, പെരുന്നാളുകള്‍, കലാസമിതിയുടെ വാര്‍ഷികം... എന്നാല്‍ എണ്ണമറ്റ ബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍ പ്രത്യക്ഷപ്പെടുന്നത് ജനനേതാക്കളെ അഭിനന്ദിച്ചുകൊണ്ട്! റോഡ് ടാര്‍ ചെയ്യിച്ച എം.എല്‍.എക്ക് അഭിവാദ്യങ്ങള്‍, കെ.എസ്.ആര്‍.ടി.സി.യുടെ പുതിയ ബസ്റൂട്ട് അനുവദിച്ച മന്ത്രിയ്ക്ക് അഭിനന്ദനം, ഏതോ പീറ സംഘടനയുടെ അഖിലലോക ജോയിന്‍റ് സെക്രട്ടറിയായി തെരഞ്ഞെടുക്കപ്പെട്ടതില്‍ അനുമോദനം- അങ്ങനെ നീളുന്നു പ്രാദേശിക - സംസ്ഥാനതല അനുമോദന- അഭിവാദ്യബോര്‍ഡുകളുടെ നൂറുമേനിവിളവ്. കേരളത്തിലെ കൊച്ചുപട്ടണങ്ങളിലും ഉള്‍നാടന്‍ കവലകളിലും കാണാം ഈ വിധമുള്ള അഭിവാദ്യബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍! ഉപകാരം ചെയ്താല്‍ കൃതജ്ഞതാപൂര്‍വം ഒന്നു മന്ദഹസിക്കാനോ ഒരു നല്ല വാക്ക് പറയാനോ അറിയാത്ത മലയാളി എന്നു മുതലാണ് തങ്ങള്‍ക്ക് വേണ്ടി ചെയ്ത നല്ലകാര്യങ്ങള്‍ ഓര്‍മിച്ചെടുത്ത് നേതാവിന് കൃതജ്ഞത പ്രകാശിപ്പിക്കാന്‍ തുടങ്ങിയത്? ഒരാള്‍ക്ക് നേട്ടമോ സ്ഥാനലബ്ധിയോ ഉണ്ടാകുമ്പോള്‍ ഊമക്കത്തും പ്രതിഷേധവുമായി രംഗത്തിറങ്ങുന്ന സഹപ്രവര്‍ത്തകര്‍ എന്നു മുതലാണ് അഭിനന്ദനം ഇത്ര പരസ്യമായി അറിയിക്കാനുള്ള മഹാമനസ്കതയുടെ ഉടമകളായത്? പൊതുജീവിതത്തില്‍ പുതുതായി ആവിര്‍ഭവിച്ച പ്രോത്സാഹനത്തിന്‍െറയും കൃതജ്ഞതാപ്രകടനത്തിന്‍െറയും ഈ പുതിയ അദ്ധ്യായം കണ്ട് "അത്ഭുതം; ആശ്ചര്യം' എന്നേ പറയാനാവൂ.
അല്ല, ആരാണ് ഈ സത്-വികാരങ്ങൾ ബോര്‍ഡുകളില്‍ പ്രകാശിപ്പിക്കാന്‍ മുന്നോട്ട് വന്ന "അവര്‍"?
ആരാണ് ഈ ബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍ വേണമെന്ന് ആദ്യം പറഞ്ഞവര്‍? ആരാണ് സാമാന്യം നല്ല ചെലവ് വരുന്ന ഈ ബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍ പ്രിന്‍റ് ചെയ്യിക്കുന്നതിനും വ്യാപകമായി പ്രദര്‍ശിപ്പിക്കുന്നതിനും പണം മുടക്കിയവര്‍?

അതൊക്കെ അന്വേഷിക്കുമ്പോഴാണ് അഭിന്ദനത്തിന്‍െറയും അഭിവാദ്യത്തിന്‍െറയും അനുമോദനത്തിന്‍െറയും പിന്നാമ്പുറത്തുള്ള രഹസ്യങ്ങളുടെ ഇടനാഴിയിൽ നാം എത്തിച്ചേരുന്നത്. അപ്പോഴാണ് നമുക്ക് അദ്വൈതാനുഭവം ഉണ്ടാവുക. വേദാന്തികള്‍ പൊറുക്കുക. ഇത് വേറെ അദ്വൈതം! ബോര്‍ഡ് എഴുതിച്ചതും അതിലെ ചിരിക്കുന്ന ഫോട്ടോ തെരഞ്ഞെടുത്തു കൊടുത്തതും ബോര്‍ഡിലെ പ്രശംസാവചനങ്ങള്‍ എഴുതിക്കൊടുത്തതും എവിടെയൊക്കെ അവ സ്ഥാപിക്കണമെന്ന് തീരുമാനിച്ചതും സര്‍വോപരി (കള്ളിന് സഹിതമുള്ള) മൊത്തം ചെലവുകാശു എണ്ണി കൊടുത്തതും ബോര്‍ഡിലെ കഥാനായകന്‍ തന്നെയാകുന്നു എന്നതാണ് പരസ്യത്തിനു പിന്നിലെ രഹസ്യം. പക്ഷേ ബോര്‍ഡ് വായിക്കുന്നവർ ധരിച്ചുകൊള്ളണം ഇതൊക്കെ അനുയായികളുടെ നിര്‍വ്യാജമായ അഭിനന്ദനപ്രകടനമാണെന്ന്!

ഇതിലിപ്പോള്‍ എന്താണിത്ര കുഴപ്പം എന്ന് ചോദിച്ചേക്കാം. നയനാനന്ദകരമായ ബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍ നമ്മുടെ നഗരങ്ങള്‍ക്ക് മോടിക്കൂട്ടുന്നില്ലേ- ആ ഇളിഞ്ഞ മോന്തക്കാരും കൈ വൈക്കാഞ്ഞാൽ? അതില്‍ സന്തോഷിക്കുകയല്ലേ വേണ്ടത്?
അങ്ങനെയും വാദിക്കാം.

എന്നാല്‍ ശീലംകൊണ്ട് ശ്രദ്ധിക്കാതെ പോകുന്ന വലിയ ഒരു അപകടം ഇതില്‍ ഒളിഞ്ഞിരിപ്പുണ്ട്.
അതിന്:
ക്വിറ്റിന്ത്യാസമരം വിജയിച്ചതില്‍ തന്നെ അഭിനന്ദിക്കുന്ന ആയിരം ബോര്‍ഡുകള്‍ സ്ഥാപിക്കണമെന്നും അതിനുള്ള പണം താന്‍ തരികയോ സ്പോണ്‍സര്‍മാരെ കണ്ടത്തെുകയോ ചെയ്യാമെന്നും ഗാന്ധിജി അനുയായികളോട് പറയുന്ന സന്ദര്‍ഭം ഒന്ന് സങ്കൽപ്പിച്ചു നോക്കൂ...
സങ്കൽപ്പിക്കാൻ പോലും പാടാണ്‌, ഇല്ലേ?
അതുമതി;
ഇനിയും നമ്മിൽ നന്മയുടെ കണികകകൾ അവശേഷിക്കുന്നു എന്ന് സാരം!

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Contempt of Court

1. Three public utterances that caught my attention recently: 
(1) Soon after Justice Thomas's comments, CM Chandy said " he forgets the way he came by" suggesting that the Justice reached his position due to help rendered by the CM or the Congress Party. If it is Congress that makes judges, it is to be further scrutinized and weighed against the prevalent norms.
(2) Minister Joseph exclaimed that everyone knows he was the junior of so and so (a Marxist lawyer) and that he was a govt. advocate while the Communists were in power, suggesting his comments against the congress regime were due to his allegiance to the left ideology. If Marxists have a Judge, then the public has a right to know how many judges each party has and their ratio in high court benches.                                                                          
Finally both the ministers need to know their utterances amount to contempt of court, esp. in the context of the CM's public statement that 
(3) government cases should not be sent to Justice Thomas's bench alleging he is partial. If one has objection to anything said by a judge in his official capacity, he should know that he has to approach the competent court to get those remarks expunged and not to respond in public forums or through media. Will welcome further comments on this. Thanks.

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2. On heart transplant after transporting heart from Thiruvananthapuram to Ernakulam by air:
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A great deed, but not too huge a feat... This underlines the need for all our hospitals having helipads on top of their buildings (if possible, right over their operation theatres and with efficient elevators) and a few suitable air-crafts (owned privately or by the state), besides alert medical professionals trained to handle emergency situations.. . This will not only help ailing patients (organ/ donor/ donee/ super- specialty) but also people involved in major accidents and dire situations (road/ fire/ fights/ psychiatric/ domestic violence etc.) from where they can be air-lifted and rushed to hospitals with well- equipped trauma units. Thanks.
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3. Porno

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His statements, (1) "The ban is definitely a step towards protecting the country’s women and children. Watching porn itself puts the country’s security in danger, encourages violent acts, unacceptable behaviour in society, exploitation of children and lowers the dignity of women" is not factual; (2) “To say Indian women watch porn is an insult to their dignity” is nonsensical and (3) “My fight has been against obscenity. I feel watching porn fuels violence against women. It propels men to commit sex crimes. I saw no women come forward and speak up against pornography, so I did it,” is not directly related to the feeling of the people at large. Why should the Chief Justice say, "“Adults have a fundamental right to watch pornography within the privacy of their own homes” if his speculations are anywhere near truth? My view is that pornography is not to be copied but it is to be thought upon and improved, though I don't view pornography due to other reasons. I consider the Government order banning porn sites a definite threat to individual freedom. Thanks.