…the ICC Headquarters would be moved from Dubai to Mumbai. I shudder to think about it, but still will give it a thought. So here are the scenarios, some possible, some probable and some impossible. You figure out…

1. RIP Test Cricket. IPL will be passed off as international cricket.

2. The ICC HQ would serve three purposes – Firstly, a plush corporate-ishtyle office to run the NCP, then Krishi Bhavan (Agriculture Ministry) and perhaps coincidentally, also host the ICC.

3. Raj Thackeray will demand more Marathi employees in the ICC HQ. So, expect some action on that front. Also, demand that the name of the ICC must be prominently displayed in Marathi font. Else…”daha divsacha countdown laavnaar…”

4. The ICC will create a new post – “Commissioner” and no prizes for guessing who’ll occupy that seat.

5. Ajit Pawar, already disillusioned with Maharashtra politics could be the next CEO of the ICC, following the excellent footsteps of Malcolm Speed and Haroon Lorgat.

6. Another possible contender for that post, RR Patil, Maharashtra’s ekhaada haadsa minister. And of course, that fight will define the ICC Headquarters.

7. Pakistan will be de-rostered as a Test playing nation. Not that they play enough Tests anyway, but Mumbai after-all.

8. Bal Thackerey will become the chief patron of the ICC or something whacky-sounding title along those lines. He still continues to believe Mumbai runs and stops with his orders. And if you read closely, I’ve used two different spellers for the nephew and uncle. I’ll stick to that, yes.

9. ICC will *possibly* renamed as BCCI. Indian Cricket Council or whatever you want to name it as.

10. All of these things won’t come true. Sharad Pawar can concentrate on Agriculture Cricket. Because London looks like the possible destination for the ICC HQ.

Sudanese presidential adviser Salah Gosh (Al-Rayaam)

The Sudanese government said it will categorically prevent any attempts to stage demonstrations saying that the conditions in the country are not suitable for this form of expression.

The Sudanese presidential adviser and the former director of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) Salah Gosh told a convention for the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) that the government will crack down “on any attempts to stir up the absurdity and the destabilization of the country’s security”.

Gosh was referring to two failed attempts this month by a coalition of Northern opposition parties and Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) to stage a rally after hundreds of riot police were deployed to the streets and party headquarters to prevent the demonstrators from taking the streets.

—

Read the complete article at Sudan Tribune

THE CON IS ON – PART 3

WHAT INDIA LACKS?

India has thermonuclear bombs, India has nuclear powered submarines, nuclear capable missiles- aircraft, one of the biggest armed forces, technological superiority, aircraft carriers, a booming economy – yet we are the terrorists favorite whipping boy.

After every attack on its body all that India does is wail, whine and cry like a small puppy that is kicked on its ass by a pervert. No doubt, our friendly neighbor from the land of the pure is bleeding us to death.

However, nobody realizes that they are also slowly squeezing us to poverty. By producing and distributing counterfeit Indian currency. Counterfeit currency worth ninety thousand Crore Rupees is already circulating in India. This is called financial terror.

Since 1993 India must have invested at least 100 thousand Crore rupees in upgrading its security apparatus. Still the population of this country is as unsafe as ever.

WHAT IS IT THAT INDIA LACKS?

1 Accountability – Sonia and Rahul Gandhi are the best example of it.

2 Sensitivity and compassion for its citizens who have been the victims of terrorism for
decades.Inshort, no value for human life.

3 A dedicated non-corrupt police force.

4 Strong and stringent laws.

5 Capable and able bureaucrats.

6 A uniform and common civil laws for all citizens and states.

7 A composite Foreign relations, Media and War strategy.

MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, THE NATION NEEDS A VISIONORY AND SELFLESS LEADERSHIP WITH A BACKBONE.

The country needs some drastic measures if it has to survive. Spineless politicians cannot usher in drastic measures. The demand for more and more separate states is nothing but the first signs of a country bursting at the seams. Maybe some wily politicians want it so (divide and rule) the world is watching us, specially our friendly neighbors like Pakistan and China.

Pakistan understands that in India strings are discreetly pulled by the large Muslim vote banks; hence, the Con- gress Ncp govt can never take a real working action on the terrorists and or on Pakistan.

History is witness to the Indian national congress’s shameful surrender to Muslim separatism and bullying for the last 100 years.

As I said in my first paragraph – India has nuclear weapons, aircraft carriers, submarines, missiles, state of the art weapons, booming economy, a mighty army. But we do not have the will to use them. We can just flaunt them.

WHY WE DO NOT HAVE THE WILL TO USE THEM?

Because the politicians do not put the nation before self, country before the party, citizens before self-interest. The acts of the politicians are totally in contrast to the oath they take. The attitude of the politicians has filtered down to every segment of the society. The comment mostly heard from people is ‘When the ministers are squeezing the country dry why should I not do the same’

I am just about watching on television how the Congress politicians from Bengal and New Mumbai go about hitting and threatening public servants. Some austerity this is?

Everyone is making money no one wants to blow the lid. However, someone has to.

I only hope the innocent citizens of my country realize the game before it is too late.

THE CON IS ON . . .

Al Jazeera English - The two main political parties in Sudan’s north and south have agreed to hold a key referendum promised over four years ago.

The deal on Sunday resolves issues that had threatened to undermine the 2005 peace accord – signed after decades of civil war and millions of deaths.

The south’s dominant Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) will now remain in a coalition government with President Omar Hasan al-Bashir’s northern National Congress Party (NCP).

Relations between the former foes had been strained, most recently last week when authorities in Khartoum arrested two senior SPLM officials and scores of their supporters during a protest.

Analysts have warned of a risk of a return to conflict if the parties could not agree terms for laws supposed to pave the way to elections, due in April, and a referendum on southern independence in 2011.

Both were promised under the original peace deal.

“We have reached agreement on three very important laws which have been grounds for serious disagreements between the two parties,” Pagan Amum, the SPLM secretary general, told reporters.

Crucial meeting

He was speaking after a meeting between President al-Bashir, who heads the NCP, and south Sudan’s president and SPLM leader Salva Kiir.

Amum said the laws covered the national referendum, a consultation exercise for people living in boundary areas between north and south Sudan and a referendum on whether the oil-producing region of Abyei should join the south.

NCP official Nafie Ali Nafie also confirmed a deal on those issues had been reached during the meeting.

Amum said the two sides also agreed to form a committee to discuss remaining issues, including differences over a security bill which the SPLM has argued gave too many powers to security services.

Both sides have met repeatedly over the past year to try to break a deadlock on the bills. The parties have announced breakthroughs before, but failed to end long-term wrangling over the details of the peace accord.

Michigan rules derail child support payments | detnews.com | The Detroit News

Every once in a while, a state comes to a realization that the rest of us have known for a rather long, long time. It is tempting to be sarcastic in that sense (as I am guilty of many times myself), but sarcasm does not equal production. So when Michigan realizes that, by artificially inflating the payments of parents who have fallen back on hard times they have discouraged parents from making payments in the first place, even though the first thought is “ya think” our real first thought should be relieving that burden from the parents.

There are other points that the article doesn’t get into, first and foremost is where exactly is that uncompounded variable surcharge goes? Somebody’s pockets are being lined, and I would bet dollars to donuts that it isn’t going to the kids (or even to the custodial parents). Second off there is this line:

David Pate, co-director of the Wisconsin-based Center for Family Policy and Practice, said that states with heavy arrearages could face challenges when seeking federal dollars.

“If you have a very high debt in the state coffers, it looks like you’re not making your collections,” Pate said.

This is very different from the picture that was painted for me when a lawyer described Colorado’s system: if you get a collection it goes down as a payment no matter how much you collect. Maybe they’re talking about the fact that the arrearages are discouraging payments in the first place. Who knows?

3 juli 2009

Kritische reactie op een opinieartikel in het NRC van 27 juni 2009 ‘moraal op reis’ van Sierk van Hout (reisjournalist en lid van Transparency International) over corruptie bij internationaal ondernemen

De problematiek die de heer Van Hout beschrijft voor de toeristensector is herkenbaar en niet anders dan bij andere sectoren die internationaal georienteerd zijn. Zijn conclusie is echter voorbarig en kort door de bocht en doet onrecht aan alle mensen die in aanraking komen met corruptie en daar mee worstelen.

Corruptie bij internationaal ondernemen is een lastig vraagstuk. Zowel grote als kleine corruptie. Het lukt de internationale gemeenschap overigens nauwelijks deze begrippen te definieren. Voor deze reactie de volgende werkdefinitie. Met grote corruptie bedoelt men grote sommen smeergeld of andere goederen om opdrachten binnen t krijgen. Met kleine corruptie doelt men op een kleinere steekpeninigen als een 100 dollar biljet in een paspoort om een land binnen te komen of een container in te kunnen klaren. Beide vormen van corruptie ontwrichten een samenleving en weerhouden economische ontwikkeling, rechtvaardigheid en vrijheid.

Vanuit ondernemerskant speelt het vraagstuk van het behoud van ‘level playing field’. De krachten die dit playing field beinvloeden zijn complex. Aan de ene kant zijn er de opkomende landen als China en rusland die wat minder belang hecht aan een ethische waarde als eerlijk zaken doen. Hiernaast zijn er instellingen als de OESO-landen en de UN. Deze organen maken zich hard voor de strijd tegen corruptie. Enerzijds vanuit deeerder genoemde ethische gedachte, maar anderszijds ook vanuit het beschermen van haar eigen belangen: sinds bijvoorbeeld China Afrika overrompelt met lange termijn grondstofcontracten en bouwbedrijven met steekpenningen van miljoenen het ene na het andere infrastrutrele project binnenhalen, lopen westerse bouwers steeds meer opdrachten mis, wat weer zijn effect heeft op economische ontwikkelingen van deze landen.

Toornend aan deze invloed van mondiale instituten is dat een land als China bijvoorbeeld de OESO-richtlijnen niet heeft ondertekend en zich dus niet veel aantrekt van inspanningen van dit orgaan om bijvoorbeeld verantwoorde en ethisch onderwerpen op te nemen in gunningscriteria. Hiernaast zorgen de nieuwe economische verhoudingen in de wereld ervoor dat opkomende landen als China en Rusland meer zeggingskracht eisen en krijgen in dergelijke mondiale instituten en het dus maar de vraag is of deze organen intern nog wel draagvlak behouden om zich in te zetten tegen een onderwerp als corruptie.

Het is overigens ook nog maar de vraag of wij ons ook in het Westen blijven inzetten voor een dergelijk ethisch thema. Wanneer door de nieuwe machtsverhoudingen in het Westen het niveau van welvaart afneemt, worden lagere lagen in de piramide van Maslow meer leidend; dan wordt het weer overleven. Het valt nog te bezien of corruptiebestrijding dan hoog op de agenda blijft.

Hiernaast blijkt dat partijen als het IMF, de Wereldbank of specifieke donorlanden ondanks alle mooie woorden, uiteindelijk vaak gunnen op laagste prijs, waardoor extra corruptiemaatregelen nauwelijks haalbaar zijn.

Dit is de werkelijke wereld waar ondernemers mee te maken krijgen. Ga er maar aan staan als je aan het eind van de maand je werknemers weer moet uit betalen en dus omzet moet draaien, je handel in een container gaat bederven of je al twee maanden geen telefoonleiding krijgt aangelegd.

En aan de andere kant staan de (inter)nationale overheids instanties. Corruptie is strafbaar. Waar het ook plaatvindt, je kunt ervoor voor de rechter gesleept worden in je land van herkomst. De Siemens case is daar een groot voorbeeld van. In Nederland lopen een aantal zaken. Vooralsnog echter heeft dit niet tot een veroordeliong geleid. Amerika loopt overigens mijlen voor op Europa als het gaat om corruptiebestrijding.

Praten met ondernemers over dit onderwerp is, zoals ook de heer Van Hout aangeeft, lastig. In gesloten bijeenkomsten komt het ter tafel en ook op handelsmissies is het onderwerp waar men onder elkaar over praat. Het overgrote deel, wil er niet aan mee doen, maar geeft tegelijkertijd aan dat ze in het bovengenoemde speelveld weinig keuze hebben, dan een paar dollar in een pasport, om ‘level playing field’ te behouden.

Hier komt bij dat de dubbele rol van de overheid weinig inspireert. Aan de ene kant ervaren ondernemers dat zij gezien worden als boeven en aan de andere kant is Nederland een actief donorland in een organisatie als bijvoorbeeld de Wereldbank die corruptie in de hand werkt. Ook blijkt telkens weer hoe de overheid binnen Nederland gevoelig is voor corruptie. De bouwfraude is hier een bekend voorbeeld van. En ook in de UK, Duitsland, Italie, noem het maar op: overal is corruptie, kleine en grote.

De crux van het effectueren van de strijd tegen corruptie ligt in het verbeteren van de relatie tussen de verschillende spelers in het veld. Ondernemers, overheden, NGO’s allen willen af van corruptie zowel vanwege ethische als vanwege economische aspecten. Allen hebben eigen krachten en eigen mogelijkheden. De vooroordelen tussen de verschillende partijen zijn echter groot. Het vraagt lange adem hieraan te werken.

In ieder geval sinds 1999 gebeurt dit binnen Nederland op kleine schaal. Het ministerie van Economische Zaken en het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken zetten zich gezamenlijk in voor de strijd tegen corruptie. Naast het uitvoeren van onderzoeken zijn ook een drietal besloten conferenties georganiseerd.

Deelnemers waren voornamelijk bedrijven en overheden. In de eerste bijeenkomst was nog sprake van afstandelijkheid en slechts aan elkaar ruiken. De derde bijeenkomst die in 2007 plaatsvond werd naast de ministeries mede georganiseerd door VNO-NCM, MKB Nedeland en ICC International. Deze bijeenkomst waar tientallen bedrijven aan deelnamen karaktiseerde zich meer als een ontmoetingsplaats waar professionals vanuit hun eigen kracht gezamenlijk verkenden waar mogelijkheden en verantwoordelijkheden lagen om tot verbeteringen te komen.

Uitkomsten van deze bijeenkomsten waren onder andere aanpassingen in bepaalde subsidieregels, inzicht in hoe ambassadeur een meer ondersteunende rol op zich kunnen nemen met behoud van de amntelijke meldingsplicht (wat heeft geresulteerd in trainingen voor ambassadeurs), verbetering van de website van het Nationaal Contactpunt, inzicht in verschillende vraagstukken en behoeftes van MKB-ers en multinationals, inzicht in wat deze partijeen aan elkaar kunnen hebben en een vervolgonderzoek naar welke rol brancheorganisaties kunnen spelen om bedrijven te ondersteunen in hun strijd tegen corruptie.

Grootste eye-opener voor beide partijen was dat beiden hetzelfde nastreeften, namelijk geen corruptie. En daarnaast begrip voor elkaars positie. De heer Van Hout beschrijft de problematiek concreet, zoals die daarwerkelijk voorkomt. De website http://www.oesorichtlijnen.nl/ geeft nog veel meer van deze praktijkvoorbeelden van ondernemers uit allerlei sectoren met concrete ervaringen en tips.

In zijn laatste alinea stelt de heer van Hout zaken te simpel voor en te kort door de bocht. En spreekt mij aan alsof ik een PVV-er ben. Dat inspireert niet en vermindert commitment voor het vraagstuk. Transparency International heeft jarenlang kennis van dit onderwerp. Ik hoop dan ook dat de heer Van Hout komende vrijdag in zijn reactie met meer komt dan belerende en denigrerende zinsnedes zoals ook bovenaan zijn inbreng in deze discussie ‘mag je een ambtenaar omkopen tijdens een reis’, en dat hij ons verrast met constructieve voorstellen voor verbeteringen in dit maatschappelijk vraagstuk.

Als strategisch adviesbureau voor maatschappelijk verantwoord ondernemen is Good Company sinds 1999 nauw betrokken bij de strijd tegen corruptie em bij de trajecten van de ministeries van Economische Zaken en van Buitenlandse Zaken.

What you may never find in your mainstream news sources THE CON IS ON – PART – 1

Hundreds of police officers armed to the teeth are seen guarding a prison in Mumbai; it is the famous Arthur Road Prison. Since the November 2008, it is the most heavily guarded prison in India. Most of the security is to safeguard one single prisoner. More than 30 million dollars have been spent to secure his safety. Ironically, he is the most secure person in India today.

This person happens to be Ajmal Kasab the sole surviving Pakistani terrorist who indulged in mass killings on 26/11/2008 in Mumbai, India. The people of India would love to see him hanged at the earliest. However, the ruling political class could have other designs.

On the night of 26 November, the whole world saw Ajmal Kasab live on their television sets spraying bullets on the innocent citizens. More than a billion people were witnesses to the mass massacre of innocent citizens of different countries. Yet there is a court case going on to decide if he is guilty. Strange isn’t it?

Another terrorist Afzal Guru has been awarded the death sentence by the highest Indian courts yet the Congress govt is reluctant to execute it. The Congress govt very cleverly invents ten different excuses for the delay. The sentiments of the people of this country are the least of its concerns. The crying emotions of humanity do not move them a bit.

Dossier after dossier, I do not remember how many, may be 7, 8 or even 9 which have been sent to Pakistan have not generated the results which the Congress – NCP party wanted us to believe they would. Right from day one, it was a foregone conclusion that the Islamic republic of Pakistan would never take action on terrorism. They are not fools to cut off and dismantle their only industry, which brings in the moolah.

The citizens of India may be fools but the Pakistanis are not. Terrorism is a large-scale enterprise for them and they hold the sole copy rights for it, of course they have franchisees and outlets numbering in millions spread all over the world.

Just like the Pakistanis, it could be possible that the Con – gress and NCP party politicians are also masters at lies, deceit, deception and betrayal. I will not at all be surprised, if either Afzal Guru or Ajmal Kasab contract some disease like malaria, jaundice, swinflu or even some kidney problem in their highly secured prison cells. Don’t you think it would be convenient for some ‘Sickularist’ politicians if these two terrorists whither away and die? Remember Harshad Mehta?

Or

Suddenly one fine day we may hear Ajmal Kasab has committed suicide. Now please don’t ask me stupid questions as to why will such a deed be allowed to? Every one knows why

‘THE CON IS ON’

Varon B K Sharma

Author of the reality based fiction ‘Assassination Of George Bush’ www.varonbksharma.com

Please do await the next in the series ‘THE CON IS ON’ – 2- IF you like, my articles please forward it to friends and all patriotic Indians.

As’salaamu alaikum

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After an extended wait of 15 days, Maharashtra has finally seen its new Chief Minister.  Mr. Ashok Chavan of Indian National Congress will be sworn in as the new Chief Minister of the State; while Mr. Chhagan Bhujabal of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) will take oath as the new Deputy CM.

Chhagan Bhujbal Source: Google photos

Ashok Chavan Source: Google photos

A few may describe this interlude – of the last 15 days – as one of the worst displays of greed, power and political manipulation that the public has witnessed in recent times. Despite a clear majority, both Congress and NCP could not reach a consensus about ministerial posts and the entire state had to wait for 15 days for its new government to assume office. Negotiations between both parties over the two week period could not reach an agreement. Each party wanted certain economically beneficial ministries for itself, resulting in an impasse.

As per the election results, Congress won 82 seats while NCP has won 62 in the 288-member assembly. The people of Maharashtra clearly voted in favour of the Cong-NCP alliance, as they had in the 2004 elections also. According to NCP leader Ajit Pawar, “After the 2004 elections, even though NCP had 71 seats compared to Congress’s 59, it agreed to accept the post of deputy chief minister and allowed Congress to retain the chief minister’s post.” Therefore, NCP demanded a change in the pattern asking for restoration of the portfolio sharing formula of 1999.

However, Congress was in no mood to retreat. Congress leaders completely refused to follow the 1999 pattern whereas nothing else was acceptable to NCP. This drama continued for 15 days. Governor of Maharashtra, S.C. Jamir had to call both Ashok Chavan and Chhagan Bhujabal to break the deadlock. The situation worsened and at one point, NCP declared that it will support the Congress government from outside.

According to the 1999 pattern, the Congress will get the CM’s post, while NCP will get the Deputy CM’s post along with key portfolios including Home, Finance, Power and Public Works. But since the Congress had garnered more number of MLAs this time than NCP, Congress wasn’t too happy with the idea of using the 1999 formula. But NCP had the last laugh, as the Congress had to give up a few important portfolios such as Home and Power. As a result,  Congressmen are not at all happy with the outcome, which they believe is heavily tilted in favour of NCP.

The opposition in the State was silent throughout. They didn’t even bother to condemn the delay in government formation. The already paralyzed Shiv Sena carried a few editorials in its mouthpiece Samna about the elections, but there was nothing criticizing the government. On the other hand, the Shiv Sena mouthpiece chose to carp on marathi manus for voting in favour of Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). MNS was largely responsible for eating into Shiv Sena’s vote share which led to Congress victory in a number of constituencies.  Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) sees no future for itself in Maharashtra. Its top leader Gopinath Munde has openly said that “two fighting brothers (Raj and Uddhav) caused us (the BJP) defeat” in this election.  

Raj Thackrey Source: Google photos

MNS has emerged as a new force in the state as a result of this election. The charisma of Raj Thackeray and his emotional rhetoric about marathi manus and Maharashtra helped MNS to garner 12 MLAs in its first election. The much publicised Third Front (led by Left and Republican parties), who offered the great promise of changing the political vista in Maharashtra, could not make much difference and hardly reached double figures.

With such a disorientated opposition, the Congress-NCP alliance has no one to fear. People also voted for them despite constant failures in the fields of agriculture, power and employment over the last five years.

After the drama which lasted for 15 days, the State has a new government. The people have voted for this government and it is government’s responsibility to fulfill the people’s mandate and work efficiently. Because if they don’t, this might be the final term for Mr. CM and Mr. Deputy CM!!!

This is nothing new. Bal Thackerey of Shiv Sena did this in the sixties and the seventies. His nephew Raj Thackerey is doing it in the first decade of the twenty first century. The mantra is the same, the players are different. If we go back a few decades earlier Mohammad Ali Jinnah did this in the name of religion. This is a quick fire way of distinguishing oneself from the rest. One stands out, if only for the lunacy of it all. That is good enough in politics. Many would contend that this is the USP that politicians are looking for. In a society that is so diverse and the difference between the have and the have-nots is so wide, such postures pay rich dividends – at least in the short run.

I am talking about chauvinism of all kinds that the Indian people are subjected to by those aspiring to making it big in the Indian political landscape. Chauvinisms are of different kinds. Some are linguistics, others are caste based and yet others pander to the religious sentiments of the people. This is not an attempt at casting aspersions at any one individual but trying to point out a sordid trend that can lead to strife and discord in the society.

Bal Thackerey of the Shiv Sena first raised the issue of outsiders versus the Marathi manoos (people) and he targeted the Tamilians who had been a part of the Mumabi landscape for decades by then and most of them were fishermen and worked in the docks. He then turned his attention on the North Indians, especially those from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Shiv Sena became a force as a political outfit and even came to power with their allies the Bharatiya Janata Party in the nineties when Manohar Joshi became the Chief Minister.

His nephew who for long was a part of the Shiv Sena later formed his own Maharashtra Navnirman  Sena (MNS) and is doing an encore of what his uncle did in the sixties and the seventies and even later. He has made a mockery of law and has taken this regional chauvinism to ridiculous extent. His contention, as was his uncle’s, is that Maharashtra is for Maharashtrians, especially Mumbai and outsiders are not welcome. He is targeting the people from UP and Bihar, which is nothing new. He made his first such violent ‘protest’ when his men started manhandling boys who had come from North India to write exam for railway recruitment board.  Somehow the media came to know of what was going to happen and the assault on the boys and girls who had come from thousands of miles to write the test was captured in camera. The helplessness of these young men and women was pathetic and they were seen running helter-skelter trying to escape the wrath of the MNS goons. It was a very sordid way of gaining popularity and to make a political point.

The second salvo by Raj Thackerey’s MNS was when the man gave an ultimatum to all shops and business establishments to put up their sign boards in Marathi. This was a diktat given by the strong man and soon enough most shops and business establishments had their boards and hoardings in Marathi. This was again an attempt at showing the people of Mumbai that there was the MNS that cared for the Marathi manoos and the Marathi asmita (pride).

Then there was this case of a film maker having had to apologize to Raj Thackerey for having overlooked the fact that Mumbai was called as ‘Bombay’ in his film. Raj Thackerey made it clear that he would not let the film be released in Mumbai unless the ‘mistake’ was rectified. The film maker not only redubbed those lines but called on Raj Thackerey to personally apologize for the oversight!! This not only did trivialize the Marathi people but also the politics of the state.

Come the state elections, and the MNS did particularly well and won 13 seats in the assembly. Clearly, the Mumbaikers are suckers for this variety of politics, though it may not be anything new. This has emboldened the man. The other fact is that the MNS cut into the Shiv Sena – BJP votes such that the Congress-NCP alliance romped home effortlessly. Chauvinism of the regional kind had the last laugh. Having ensured a Congress-NCP victory, the MNS has been let loose by the powers that be and Raj Thackerey is playing to the galleries again. In politics, it is power any which way. If that means that the social fabric of the society is being torn apart, so what?

The latest diktat from Raj Thackerey is that the State bank of India should not recruit anyone from outside Maharashtra for positions within the state. This is ridiculous. The fact is that the SBI, the Indian Railways and many other such institutions are pan-India bodies and it is impossible for anyone to restrict the appointment from any one region or state. These are Indian institutions and the selection is based on merit and nothing else.  It will be impossible for any of these institutions to select on the basis of region. This is demeaning and absolutely impossible demand and if the SBI or the Indian Railways were to bow down to the diktats of such rowdy elements it will start a wrong precedent.

There may be some Maharashtrians who may be proud of Raj Thackerey but there are many others who are absolutely embarrassed by the man’s chutzpah. The limit was crossed when the MNS legislators barged into the well of the state assembly shouting slogans, threw aside the mike and assaulted Abu Azmi of the Samajwadi Party. Their grouse was that the man was taking the oath in Hindi. It appears that Raj Thackerey had issued a diktat that all MLA’s must take oath in Marathi. Azmi was manhandled and there was a ruckus in the house. These are attempts at scoring cheap brownie points and playing to the galleries in the most disgusting way. I know that Abu Azmi is no saint and he is by no means a parliamentarian worth emulating, but this does not give license to anyone to assault the man for taking the oath in Hindi. It may be added that there were others who had taken the oath in English, prominent among them was Baba Sidique. But that was alright with the MNS. It was Hindi which is the national language that was difficult for them to digest. It amazes me as to how low can one stoop to get political mileage from an issue that is of no consequence. Legislatures in Maharashtra assembly taking the oath in Hindi is nothing new. Many Maharashtrian legislatures have taken oath in Hindi in the past as it is our national language, though they knew Marathi. Such chauvinism may warm the cockles of the heart of some deprived sections of society but there are others who hang their head in embarrassment when such postures are taken by regional parties. Raj Thackerey is successful as there is a void in Maharashtra politics now that Bal Thackerey is in semi-retirement. This politics of regional chauvinism would not work if there was a credible alternative to the old man of Maharashtra politics ready to fill the gap. Udhav Thackerey is at best reacting and emulating Raj and has reduced himself to B team of the MNS. Were Udhav able to communicate effectively and firmly that he was for Mumbai for Maharashtrians as well as those from other parts of the country Raj Thackerey would be singing a different tune. The fact is that if the outsiders were to withdraw from Mumbai the city would come to a standstill. MNS is pandering to a section of the society and playing cheap politics. There is a political void and he is trying to fill in, or claiming to fill the gap. It is more a crisis of credible leadership than anything else. The shortcut is to be as outrageous as possible. Another attempt at asserting his Marathi lineage was when he insisted on giving all interviews in Marathi only when the man can speak Hindi fluently!!!

Regionalism is one issue, the other is religion. Religious chauvinism is also pandered to by the various political parties. Muslims are encouraged to assert their separate identity and they are indulged by the various political parties purely for political gains and they call it secularism. The Muslims were in for a surprise when Baba Ramdev started his address to the Muslim audience in Deoband with “Bismillah Rehman-i- Rahim’, an oft used incantation by the Muslims before starting anything. They found this way of reaching out to the Muslims by the Hindu clergy touching. The clergy at Deoband then declared that practicing Yoga was not un-Islamic. This was a step in the right direction. There are a lot of misgivings and misinformation between the Muslims and the Hindus of this country and they need to be addressed.

It is easy for anyone to say that one is different because of language, religion, caste or region. It is those that say that they are Indian first and anything else later are the ones that need to be emulated. Sachin Tendulkar, a Maharshtrian has said this loud and clear. He is a role model in more ways than one. The Raj Thackerey’s of this nation could take a leaf out of the book of Sachin Tendulkar.

Update 16.11.2009: Bal Thackerey, the Shiv Sena supremo has chastised Sachin Tendulkar in Saamna for his comment about being an Indian first. Essentially, the Shiv Sena has shot itself in the foot when they went ballistic against the darling Maharashtrian cricketer. The man has lost it. It will be best for the Shiv Sena to keep their mouth shut and not try and prove that they are more for the state than their adversary, Raj Thackerey. This impresses no one and only makes Raj Thackerey stronger.

Update 20.11.2009:‘At least 25 people were hurt when Shiv Sena allegedly attacked the offices of IBN7 and IBN Lokmat, the Hindi and Marathi news channels of the IBN Network on Friday afternoon. According to sources, several journalists were beaten up and office property was damaged. CNN-IBN sources quoted Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and State Police Chief D.Shivanand as saying that action would be taken promptly against the attackers. The attack on the IBN offices was in response to the channel airing negative reports about the Shiv Sena and its chief Bala Saheb Thackeray. Media networks across the country have condemned the incident, saying it amounts to a clear attack on press freedom.’ Source:  (ANI)

From being outrageous to absolute asinine – this is surely the nadir. The CNN-IBN offices in Pune and Mumbai were attacks in concert. It was a pre-meditated attack. It is said that such attacks have taken in the past too. The Shiv Sena has taken responsibility for the attacks and seven attackers have been apprehended. CNN-IBN is insisting that the people who have directed the attack must be brought to book – which means the top leadership of the Shiv Sena. The irony is that the Shiv Sena is taking the responsibility for the attacks as if its a feather in their cap. They fail to understand that such acts do not help them at all and chances are that these will backfire. Having said that, it is very unlikely that the top leadership of the Shiv Sena will be charged for these attacks. If the Congress does show this kind of courage it will be welcome. Sena has a bloated sense of grandeur. They should know that they are not a law unto themselves. Udhav Thackeray should relinquish any political ambitions. It is said that he is a good photographer – I am sure he will excel in this vocation.

Update 21.11.2009: There is a race to prove as to who is more for the Marathi manoos. After the attack on CNN-IBN by Shiv Sena the MNS has come up with a demand for a Marathi option in the stock market. This has some weight because if the site is in Gujarati in addition to Hindi and English, then a Marathi version should be there. What bothers most observers is the reason as to why this is being done. They are pandering to a particular audience and this brings in regionalism of the worst kind. Having said that all Indians respect Marathi and the people of Maharashtra have contributed immensely to Indian freedom struggle and have always been at the forefront as saviours of Dharma. The politicization of a people, a language is what irks most Indians.

MNS’s latest demand was reported by the PTI thus:

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) today asked Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to provide all the information in Marathi on its newly launched website. Arvind Gawde, MNS leader from Colaba, met SEBI’’s Deputy Chief Executive officer Ashish Kumar Chauhan and submitted a memorandum highlighting the party’’s demand.

SEBI has recently re-launched its website with options in English, Hindi and Gujarati, Gawde said. “It has conveniently forgotten Marathi despite having its headquarters in Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra.

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Penulis         : LINDA S. WILLIAMS, MSC, RNC
Penerbit        : 2003 by F. A. Davis Company
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On October 22nd results were declared of the 2009 Maharashtra Sate Assembly Elections which were held on October 13th.
‘Indian National Congress and Nationalist Congress Party’  Coalition won majority by touching the magic figure of 144 seats out of 288. That was a border line victory for them.

So it’s been 10 days since results are declared in a state which is facing more than 10 hours of ‘load shedding’ (a term used to describe ‘power cuts’ to give power to Mumbai) in towns and cities other than Mumbai, irregular rains, massive number of immigrants from other non-developed states, job cuts, sky-rocketed grain prices, bad infrastructure.. etc.
But still the so called “the saviors of the poor”; Mrs. Sonia Gandhi led Indian Congress, and Mr. Sharad Pawar led Nationalist Congress parties are fighting with each other on distribution of high profile (or should i say ‘high income’?) ministries in their ‘coalition’.  And nobody, not even Chief Minister has taken office and started working !

The Politician’s of Maharashtra has wasted a whole week of Assembly working !

In a situation where each day is important to be utilized for the development of the state, our honorable MLAs and their leaders are fighting for ministry distribution which makes me sad.

In last 5 years, more than thousand farmers have committed suicide in Maharashtra, the rate of suicides has gone down a little after declaration of waiving of agriculture loans. But even if one farmer is committing suicide, then that’s a problem. is it not?
But these politicians are simply not bothered about it.

Today they were showing in the news that since last 4 days, The Government of Maharashtra has already booked a hall, with more than 2000 seating chairs, air conditioners, caterers etc for the ‘Swearing-in-Ceremony’ of the newly elected Ministers. Each day is costing more than 2 lac rupees as rent of all that.
But our winning parties are carelessly busy in solving the ‘math’ of ministry in Delhi.
Many MLAs are traveling to Delhi (who pays for their first class flight ticket?) to get the stamp of Minister from party’s ‘High Command’….

The Dance of Democracy is going on…

By the way, just wanted to pull your attention to a fact that this government, which is elected in Maharashtra, has voter support of only 19% of total voters in the electoral of Maharashtra. This means, out of 7 crore legitimate voters of Maharashtra only 1.3 crore have voted for the winning parties.
Which means, 1.3 crore people are deciding fate of 12 crore Maharashtrians !
Surprisingly, same percentage of votes were won by the ruling parties under Congress’s lead in National Elections.

No wonder, face of politics in India is corrupted, shameless, mafia, violence, etc.
I used to be a Congress supporter until recent, to be honest. But after knowing all the ground realities and facts that Congress has been in power for more than 50 years, still India is struggling on basic infrastructure and poverty issues, whereas a Communist China is progressing many times faster than us. I lost respect and faith in this party. Doesn’t mean I am supporting their oppositions. They are hopeless nonetheless.

Bottom line: Are you interested in Indian Politics?

From all the action we’ve seen, pre-polls, during the polls and now after the polls, one can safely conclude that Maharashtra politics is never short of drama. Yes, the Congress-NCP might have done well to secure a third consecutive term by default, but even less than a week after the results were announced, there are interesting configurations emerging within all major stakeholders in the election – be it the opposition – Shiv Sena-BJP, or even the ruling alliance.

Firstly, Uddhav Thackerey broke his silence yesterday in a press conference at the Sena Bhavan, and brazenly refused to concede defeat, claiming that his party and the BJP raised the people’s issues. Wrong. He musn’t forget that he used most of his own rallies to trade pot-shots at Raj Thackerey, who only stood to gain from them. If anything, they failed miserably to do remind the DF (Cong-NCP) Government of it’s continued failures and non-performance over the past five years. Now, on a rather bizarre note, Uddhav has come up with reconciliatory messages towards his cousin, which I am sure would not move any further than press rhetoric. In this report, he’s openly advocated a *possible* coming together of sorts with the MNS and urging all stakeholders in the Marathi Manoos’ cause to come and fight together. He said, “Marathi sathi sagle ekatra aale tar toh suvarna din asel.”  (It will be a golden day if everybody comes together on the issue of Marathi manoos). Long shot with odds heavily stacked against it, I’d say. But, not within the realms of impossibility, given Raj Thackerey’s only aversion or problem being Uddhav’s leadership of the Sena (or in this case) – the lack of it.

Secondly, and more glaringly – there is clearly a turf-war playing up between Chhagan Bhujbal, the NCP’s nomination for the Dy CM post, and Sharad Pawar’s very own nephew, Ajit Pawar. Today, they came up with a compromise formula, whereby Bhujbal would hold the post for 18 months, and handing over the reigns to Pawar soon after that. Clearly, signs of a split within the NCP. And, it’s been on for a while now. There are two clear factions emerging within the ranks there, one which “wouldn’t mind” a merger with NCP’s former parent body – the Congress, and the other which wants to retain it’s independent identity as a political party. Praful Patel, throughout his campaign stumps across Maharashtra hinted at the possibility of a merger if the party didn’t do well, and with Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin issue that of the passe, even Supriya Sule (who claimed to idolize Sonia Gandhi as a woman leader) wouldn’t mind that. And thereby assumed, Mr. Sharad Pawar too. The problem-man here, is Ajit Pawar – who is a product of the Western Maharashtra sugar/education institutes/co-operatives/money-lenders lobby, who would want to enable the NCP retain it’s own identity and might create a splinter there. Not major, considering that he doesn’t enjoy too much support both within the MLAs and the party organizers. Mr. Ajit Pawar was also not shy of flirting with the MNS for a possible alliance post-elections, even though the Cong-NCP never needed their support. Interesting developments in that camp too.

As I see how things are at the moment, there’s nothing much to worry for the Congress-NCP. All the problems are in the SS-BJP camp, where there could be large-scale third and fourth rung leaders defecting (particularly from the Sena) to the MNS, considering Raj Thackerey’s impact in these polls. For these 18 months at least, I don’t see any major problems as far as the ruling alliance is concerned. But, enter Ajit Pawar and things could start unfolding for the worse. The relationship between both the Congress and NCP would be put to the test after he takes over, largely because he’s not someone who’s known to share a close rapport with the Congress leadership. His open dissension against his uncle’s decision to let the Congress appoint it’s CM isn’t helping the cause either. And a threat of supporting the govt from the outside by Mr. Ajit Pawar if the Congress doesn’t revert to the 1999 formula (2 and a half years for CM from both parties), is something that will just let the unease grow.

As things stand today, one thing is clear – both the NCP and the Shiv Sena have something to think about, as far as their own ranks are concerned. The Shiv Sena has everything to lose – right from the cadre to its confidence, while the NCP has it’s credibility as a coalition partner at stake. 18 months later, you never know what could emerge in this state. Because, this is Maharashtra politics, after all.

The results are not yet out as I write this, but from the trends and the leads one can safely say that the pundits were right. The Congress and its allies have swept the polls in all the three states that have gone to polls just now. Arunachal was a foregone conclusion. Any opposition to the Congress was only a token electoral exercise there. In three constituencies in AP there was no opposition, so the Congress candidate there won without having to fight. In Haryana, the results have been rather startling. The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) the largest opposition party at the center has been decimated. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) has performed much better than expected and has proved that they are not a spent force. The Haryana result has also shown that the calculation of the BJP that going alone will be to their benefit has gone horribly wrong. The leaders who made this decision must be made to account for this huge blunder. The Congress has come to power in Haryana for the third time in a row which is a record of sorts. One cannot help but wonder as to what the result would have been had the BJP not annulled its alliance with the INLD. Any chance to form a government in any of these states will come five years from now, and that is a long time in politics.

The most interesting result has come from the critical state of Maharashtra. The Congress along with its ally the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has swept the polls and will comfortably form the government. The focus of these state elections was Maharashtra and the BJP and the Shiv Sena were hoping to topple the Congress applecart. They have failed miserably. The reasons could be many. The fact is that the state has had a very insipid government at the helm for the past ten years. There has been a power situation that has not improved. There has been a drought and farmers have committed suicide in the Vidarbha and Marathwada region. There was this audacious attack – the 26/11 attack on Mumbai. The condition of Mumbai has not improved either. There has been no industrialization in the past decade or so and to top it all there has been a price rise that has affected the common man like nothing has. Sugar is selling at Rs 40 a kg and yellow dal at Rs 100 a kg. This was an ideal situation for the opposition to play on the huge non-performance of the Congress government. The situation can be gauged from the fact that the chief minister was changed after the 26/11 attacks and the new chief minister was seen as one who had done nothing of note in these few months. And yet the Congress is back in power. The fundamental question is why?

The apologists for the failure of Shiv Sena and BJP are pointing out the debilitating effect of the Raj Thackrey’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) eating into their vote bank. It is true that the MNS has made a dent in the BJP-Sena combine but to be content in the knowledge that because of this they have lost is failing to look at the larger picture. The fact is that both in the Shiv Sena and the BJP there was a crisis of leadership. Politics the world over is personality driven. India is no different. Any party worth its salt must have a credible national leaders and state leaders. Any regional political outfit like the Sena must have a credible leadership that can give direction to state politics. Evidently, the people did not see any credible leader either in the Sena or the BJP. Udhav Thackrey is too gullible and soft to be a leader of any political outfit. He is a misfit in politics. The BJP also lacks a credible face. Gopinath Munde may have worked hard for the party but people would not accept him as the chief minister of the state. There were other names being floated by the BJP and the Shiv Sena but they were minnows. In the Congress and the NCP there is no dearth of leaders. Ashok Chavan may be seen by some not to have done anything in his short stint but he was a credible face as the chief minister. Vilasrao Deshmukh was another name. There are many in the NCP like Chagan Bhujbal and Supriya Sule and others who can fill the gap. The BJP lacks such depth. Besides the Congress and the NCP have so many heavy weights that have a strong base in their region that it is difficult to dislodge them. Men like Narayan Rane and Sharad Pawar have strong base in Konkan and Marathwada regions respectively. In contrast the BJP and the Sena have pockets of influence and the number of personalities who have grass root support is almost zilch. Many of these political heavy weights have recently shifted from the Sena to the Congress most prominent among them being Narayan Rane. The exit of Raj Thackrey from the Sena was the final nail in their political coffin. Both the Sena and the BJP in Maharashtra are rudderless ships. That they could reach somewhere around the 100 seat mark is a testimony to the fact that the anti-incumbency was marked and the people were fed up of the Congress rule. Had the Sena-BJP combine shown some leadership and given voice to the woes of the people they would have easily toppled the Congress-NCP government. But there was no charismatic leader with whom the people could identify and therefore the people played it safe and gave thumbs up to the tried and tested Congress-NCP combine. The MNS can take solace in the fact that they did not allow the Sena-BJP combine to come to power. Those who say that the MNS has been propped up by the Congress and the NCP therefore stand vindicated.

While the state unit of the BJP stands exposed, being a national party, the central leadership cannot wash its hands away from this electoral debacle in Maharashtra and Haryana. The central leadership of the BJP is as clueless as to where the party stands today and where it wants to get to tomorrow and how, as are the state units. There is a complete lack of leadership and direction in the party. The top leadership of L.K. Advani and Rajnath Singh are to be blamed. But then the second tier cannot be absolved of their omission and commissions either. The Arun Jaitley’s and the Sushma Swaraj’s and the Venkaiah Naidu’s need to stand up and owe up the debacle as their failure. The party is lacking in direction and seems to be adrift. The top leadership needs to step up and resign immediately and even the second rung cannot stay on shamelessly. The largest opposition party has a role to play and they cannot absolve themselves of their responsibility so easily. A vibrant democracy needs a credible opposition. Sadly, the BJP is sinking into a never ending abyss.

The BJP needs to rejuvenate itself. There needs to be a complete overhaul. And they should stop looking towards the RSS for solutions. The RSS can help only so much and no more. The RSS is not a political outfit and the chaos is of their own making. The BJP also needs to answer some very fundamental questions. Should they remain just to the right of center or should they move further right. If they show a ‘secular- rightist’ face they are equated as a B team of the Congress. The minority votes still escape them and the Hindus fail to vote as a block. Till the Hindu votes are consolidated the BJP and its allies have a very slim chance of coming to power in the center. They also need a charismatic leader. The remarkable thing is that they have a credible leader who also veers to the right and has a personality that has endeared him to the masses. He is verbose and is educated. He knows the ropes in politics and is tech savvy. He comes from the most famous political family of the country. He is also very much part of the BJP. Yes, I am talking about Varun Gandhi. I guess that if the BJP are serious about their chances in future elections they will have no choice but move further right and prop up such young dynamic leaders as Varun Gandhi. That is the only way forward. The man has a political lineage and has a mass following. I know that there will be a complete sense of horror within the BJP at what I am suggesting. They may even say that this will be perpetuating the Gandhi-Nehru legacy in a party that has traditionally been against The Family. But from the current crop of second rung leaders within the BJP I do not see anyone that has the capability to take the party forward. The oldies like Advani and Rajnath have done what they had to do. Their time is up. They need to pass on the baton. The question is – to whom? Jaitley, Swaraj and Naidu can be good satraps but they cannot be national leaders. They have the capability to carry out the directions of the high command in letter and spirit but they do not have the leadership qualities to decide what should be the direction of the party. They cannot lead the party to an election victory. Varun Gandhi, from what little we have seen has a bunch of die hard supporters. He can cultivate his own team and plan things methodically. Something on the lines of what Rahul Gandhi has been doing. The BJP has been presumptuous when they have scoffed at Rahul’s efforts in organizing a membership drive in different states. The BJP should take a leaf from the young man and start their own party membership initiative and make the organization more democratic. Varun Gandhi, if given a chance, I hope will have no such hesitation in emulating his elder cousin brother. My only fear is that the fight between the cousins does not turn ugly. The way NSA was slapped on Varun during the UP elections was politics at its worse. These boys need to have a sense of proportion if the two siblings are to fight it out in the political arena. I hope the BJP shows the resolve and the fortitude to acknowledge that young Varun is the answer to the leadership crisis within the party. And they should have no hang-ups in following the young man. The nation needs a rightist alternative and a credible opposition. The times of Advani and Rajnath are over. The sooner they decide to step down, the better it will be for the party and the country.

There is much speculation about who will be the next chief minister of Maharashtra. Many people are proposing Vilasrao Deshmukh as the next CM. I will hedge my bet on Ashok Chavan. Deshmukh has had this unfortunate incident in the 26/11 attacks during his tenure. Bringing him back will show to the world that we are not serious about our war on terror. Deshmukh realizes this and therefore has said that he is happy in Delhi. My guess is that Ashok Chavan will be given another chance with clear directive that he must perform and make development his top priority. The Congress is on a high. It will take some doing to stop this political blitz.

A Footnote: The Haryana results have not been quite as decisive as one had thought. This has come as a surprise. Congress is short by some six seats. Bhajan Lal’s party has won just that number. However, getting Bhajan Lal and his son Kuldip Bishnoi to support the Congress may not be that easy. They are at loggerheads with Bhupinder Hooda, the present chief minister of Haryana. Congress may decide to throw up another candidate as chief minister. Names being touted are Kumari Shailja and Ms. Chaudhary, the daughter-in-law of late Bansi Lal. This has been a bit of a dampener to an excellent day for the Congress at the hustings.

NCP ผู้นำด้านหน่วยความจำสำหรับโทรศัพท์มือถือและอุปกรณ์พกพา นำเรื่องความรู้เกี่ยวกับหน่วยความจำ SDHC ในยุคที่หน่วยความจำ Flash Memory ได้รับความนิยมเป็นอย่างสูงในการจัดเก็บข้อมูลภาพ เสียง วีดีโอ บนเครื่องเล่นเพลง ภาพยนตร์แบบพกพา โทรศัพท์มือถือ ทำให้มีความต้องการในการจัดเก็บข้อมูลที่มากขึ้น ต้องการขนาดความจุในการเก็บข้อมูลสูงขึ้น ทำให้ข้อจำกัดของ SD Card ซึ่งรองรับระบบไฟล์ FAT16 ความจุขนาด 2 GB ไม่เพียงพอต่อความต้องการในอนาคต จึงได้มีการสร้างมาตรฐานใหม่ของหน่วยความจำ Secure Digital ซึ่งได้รับการพัฒนาขึ้นในรูปแบบ SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) หรือเรียกอีกอย่างหนึ่งว่า SD 2.0 นั่นเอง เป็นรูปแบบการจัดเก็บข้อมูลสำหรับการ์ดหน่วยความจำชนิด SD แต่รองรับความจุที่สูงถึง 4 – 32 GB

มาตรฐานสื่อบันทึกข้อมูล SDHC ใช้ในการจัดเก็บไฟล์ที่มีขนาดใหญ่กว่า 2 GB จึงใช้ระบบไฟล์แบบ FAT32 เมื่อเทียบกับรูปแบบ SD Card แบบเดิม ซึ่งใช้ระบบไฟล์ในรูปแบบ FAT16 โดยมีขนาดเท่ากับ SD Card แบบเดิม แต่ก็ควรจะตรวจสอบก่อนว่า อุปกรณ์ที่เราใช้ รองรับ SDHC หรือไม่ และควรพิจารณาไปถึง Card Reader ด้วย

ในปัจจุบัน กล้องดิจิตอล เครื่องเล่นเพลง โทรศัพท์มือถือรุ่นใหม่ๆ ต่างก็ขานรับมาตรฐานใหม่ ออกผลิตภัณฑ์ที่รองรับ SDHC มากขึ้น จะเห็นได้จากมาตรฐาน MiniSDHC และ MicroSDHC ดังนั้น เรื่องความเข้ากันได้ของมาตรฐานใหม่ ก็ยังคงต้องรอเวลาสักนิด ให้ผลิตภัณฑ์ใหม่ๆออกมารองรับ SDHC ให้แพร่หลายเสียก่อน เช่นเดียวกับมาตรฐานการเชื่อมต่อ USB ซึ่งปัจจุบันเป็นมาตรฐาน 2.0 เรียบร้อยแล้ว

พิจารณาความเร็วในการเขียนข้อมูลก่อนเลือกซื้อ

ทาง SD Association ได้กำหนด Class อัตราความเร็วในการเขียนข้อมูล โดยระบุไว้บนการ์ดหน่วยความจำ ดังนั้นในการตัดสินใจเลือกซื้อ จะต้องพิจารณาระดับ Class ความเร็วบนฉลาก (Class 2: 2 MB/วินาที, Class 4: 4 MB/วินาที, Class 6: 6 MB/วินาที)

ดังนั้นในการเลือกซื้ออุปกรณ์ในยุคนี้ หากเป็นไปได้ ควรมองหามาตรฐานที่รองรับ SDHC จะดีกว่า เนื่องจากรองรับทั้ง SD และ SDHC หากเลือกอุปกรณ์ที่รองรับ SD ก็จะไม่สามารถใช้งานกับ SDHC ได้ ยกเว้นมีการอัพเกรดเฟิร์มแวร์เพื่อปรับปรุงความสามารถในการรองรับ SDHC เท่านั้น

คลิกเลย! ตู้สาขาโทรศัพท์ ราคาถูก คุณภาพดี

કેટકેટલાં વરસોથી આ બૂરો તમાશો ચાલ્યો,

અવગત અઢળક તેમ છતાં હું દેવાને મત ચાલ્યો

બોલો લોકશાહીની જય, બોલો ઠોકશાહીની જય…

એકવાર પંજો પંપાળ્યો એણે તમાચો માર્યો,

પછી કમળને ઝાલ્યું એમાં કાદવમાં પછડાયો,

સંભાળી જ્યાં જાત વળી ત્યાં હાથીએ ઠમઠોર્યો,

ઘડિયાળની ટિકટિકે તો જીવ ખરેખર વ્હોર્યો,

મારી સત્તા, મારું ભારત, મારા ભ્રમનો માર્યો,

આતમને વેચી હું આંગળી કરીને કાળી આવ્યો,

બોલો લોકશાહીની જય…બોલો ઠોકશાહીની જય…

પછી એક સાઈકલવાળાએ લઈ લીધો હડફેટે,

ક્યાંકથી વળી દાતરડું લઈ આવીને કોઈ વેઢે,

અધમૂઓ થ્યો ત્યાં દેખાયાં ઓલાં ધનુષ-બાણ,

શંખ વગાડી ટોળું આવ્યું લુંટવા બાકી જાન,

એન્જિનવાળો પણ આવ્યો ને સીડી-પાંદડું લાવ્યો,

ભેગા થઈને બધાએ મારો લાભ મજાનો ખાટ્યો,

બોલો લોકશાહીની જય…બોલો ઠોકશાહીની જય…

- સંજય વિ. શાહ ‘શર્મિલ’

NUTRITIONAL CARE PROCESS (NCP)

Apa yang dimaksud dengan NCP?
NCP adalah suatu metode pemecahan masalah yang sistematik di bidang gizi. NCP dibuat agar para Ahli Gizi (Dietetic Profesional) mampu berpikir kritis dan membuat keputusan yang tepat terkait dengan masalah gizi pada pasien untuk menyediakan pelayanan gizi yang aman, efektif dan berkualitas.

Apa Beda Antara NCP dan Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT)?
NCP adalah suatu metode pemecahan masalah berdasarkan problem yang penekanannya pada sistematika proses yang dilakukan sedangkan MNT ditekankan pada kualitas dari diagnosis serta penanganan dari masalah yang ada pada pasien NCP yang baik akan menghasilkan MNT yang baik.

Bagaimana Tahapan Dari NCP
NCP terdiri dari 4 tahapan proses yaitu:
Tahap 1 : Nutrition Assessment
Tahap 2 : Nutrition Diagnosis
Tahap 3 : Nutrition Intervention
Tahap 4 :Nutrition Monitoring dan Evaluation

Bagaimana Aktivitas Dari Nutrition Assessment serta Indikatornya?

No. Aktivitas Indikator
1. Dimulai dengan melakukan pengumpulan data melalui riwayat gizi, pengukuran antropometri, serta data penunjang lainnya (laboratorium) serta data kebiasaan/ perilaku makan, data pendidikan dan kemampuan serta data sosial ekonomi lainnya. • Kesesuaian alat dan prosedur yang digunakan
• Validitas dan reliabilitas alat pengkajian serta aplikasinya
• Kesesuaian data yang dikumpulkan
• Validitas data
2. Setelah semua data tersebut dikumpulkan maka selanjutnya dilakukan analisa data dengan membandingkan dengan standar yang telah disepakati oleh para ahli gizi berdasarkan temuan-temuan ilmiah sebelumnya untuk menentukan adanya ketidaknormalan dari data tersebut.
Data-data yang tidak normal tersebut bisa berupa faktor resiko yang potential dapat menyebabkan timbulnya masalah gizi atau kelainan gizi aktual.
Sumber data dapat berupa data primer (observasi langsung) maupun data sekunder dari rekam medik pasien
• Pengelompokan dan pengkatagorian data dalam kerangka yang jelas dikaitkan dengan masalah gizi.
• Efektifitas metode (interview) yang digunakan
• Pendokumentasian dan terkomunikasi hasil kajian yang lengkap, relevan, akurat dan periode waktu yang jelas

Bagaimana Ativitas Dari Nutrition Diagnosis serta Indikatornya?

No. Aktivitas Indikator
1. Dimulai dengan melakukan identifikasi dan penomeran (identification and labeling) dari data yang tidak normal. • Pernyataan diagnosis yang clear, consise, spesifik (clien centered), Acurate (relate to the etiology) serta reliable
2. Dilakukan pengelompokan berdasrkan kelainan tertentu analisis serta sintesis data untuk menuju diagnosis gizi tertentu yang sering disebut Domain
• Pendokumentasian diagnosa gizi yang relevan, acurate dan timely
• Pendokumentasian revisi diagnosa gizi sesuai dengan data terbaru

Apa Beda Diagnosa Gizi dengan Diagnosa Medis?

Diagnosa medis dibuat oleh dokter berdasarkan kriteria diagnosa tertentu yang telah disepakati dan sifatnya permanen selama penyakit tersebut masih ada pada pasien. Diagnosa gizi dibuat oleh ahli gizi berdasarkan atas kriteria diagnosis gangguan gizi tertentu. Akan tetapi sifatnya lebih cepat mengalami perubahan sesuai dengan respon pasien.
Sebagai contoh seseorang pasien yang mempunyai diagnosa Demam Tifoid mungkin akan mengalami beberapa kali perubahan diagnosa gizi selama perjalanan penyakitnya tersebut, pada awalnya terjadi gangguan intake makan selanjutnya bila pasien sudah membaik bisa saja akhirnya akan makan banyak melebihi kebutuhannya.

Apa Komponen Dari Diagnosa Gizi?

Diagnosa gizi terdiri dari 3 komponen, yaitu:
1. Masalah (problem) yang termasuk dalam komponen ini adalah semua masalah gizi nyata yang didapat pada pasien termasuk:
• Perubahan dari normal menjadi tidak normal (alteration)
• Penurunan dari suatu kebutuhan normal (decrease)
• Peningkatan dari suatu kebutuhan normal (increase)
• Resiko munculnya gangguan gizi tertentu
2. Sebab (etiologi) yang termasuk dalam komponen ini adalah semua hal yang dapat menyebabkan munculnya masalah (problem). Komponen ini bisa merupakan komponen medik yang dibuat oleh dokter.
3. Gejala/ tanda (sign/sympton). Yang termasuk dalam komponen ini adalah semua temuan berupa gejala dan atau tanda (bukti) yang didata pada pasien yang terkait dengan munculnya masalah gizi.

Bagaimana Aktivitas dari Nutrition Monitoring and Evaluation serta Indikatornya?

NO. AKTIVITAS INDIKATOR
MONITORING
1. Monitoring gizi dikerjakan terhadap parameter status gizi yang akan mengalami perubahan akibat dari implementasi dari intervensi medik maupun gizi yang dikerjakan. Kemampuan untuk memonitoring data-data yang meliputi:
a. Parameter gizi: pengetahuan gizi, intake, status gizi, dll
b. Parameter klinik dan penyakit: nilai lab., tekanan darah, BB, keluhan dan gejala, status klinik pasien, infeksi, komplikasi, dll.
c. Parameter pasien : kepuasan, kualitas hidup, kemampuan merawat diri sendiri, perbaikan fungsi tubuh dll.
d. Parameter penggunaan fasilitas perawatan: lamanya dirawat di RS (lenght of stay) dll

EVALUASI
1. Evaluasi dikerjakan dengan membandingkan parameter-parameter yang dimonitor sebelum dan sesudah intervensi gizi, atau dengan nilai standar yang direkomendasikan 1. Kemampuan untuk melihat apakah intervensi yang dikerjakan sudah mencapai sasaran atau tidak.
2. Kemampuan melakukan modifikasi atau perubahan dari rencana intervensi gizi.

Apakah Sasaran Yang Diinginkan (OutCome) dari NCP?

Sasaran yang diinginkan dari proses NCP yang dikerjakan baik pada individu maupun sekelompok pasien adalah terjadinya perbaikan-perbaikan parameter yang tersebut di atas.

Transport Minister, Sbu Ndebele gave the keynote address

The Keynote address at the 2010 National Communication Partnership Conference (NCP) which is underway at the Sandton Convention Centre was delivered by the Minister of Transport, Mr Sbu Ndebele.

We Must Learn the Whole National Anthem

Key points from his presentation:

• The transport department’s roll out plan will continue, there’s no turning back
• We must learn the anthem and sing it with pride
• We must fly the flag with pride
• We need to communicate the progress we’ve made
• Our people must know about the lasting benefits of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup Media Exposure – Feedback

Wadim Schreiner analysed the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup media exposure – how the international media reported on the Confed Cup.

• Overall we had positive exposure internationally
• All media seemed to be “surprised” by construction workers’ strikes
• Coverage about SA overall is positive
• Local and international media differ in opinion on South Africa
• Around the issues of safety, transport, accommodation and African support, the international media is more negative than positive
• Wrote to organisations, social situation, nations support and host team – the international media seems to be positive

Got to the 2010NCP blog for more information for live blog updates of the conference.

                       We should thank the Nationalist Congress Party for making the holy celebrations of Janmashtami, the birthday of Lord Krishna, an important Hindu deity, an Avatar (Reincarnation) of Lord Vishnu truly global and international more interesting just like the IPL cricket. Now, people can have more fun, just like they had during the IPL matches with more prominence given to cheerleaders at times, than cricket or cricketers.

Now experts would not offer just religious celebrations, but more than that they will show the latest cheerleaders gyrating. And if one has got bored of the annual Dahi-Handi event, one should definitely thank the caring and prudent organiser of the Janmashtami celebrations at Khar, near Bandra in Mumbai. Vijay Kamble, the NCP leader, very rightly used the Ukranian dancers for his Dahi Handi event.

It is quite ironic that a party which had strongly voiced for as well put a ban on bar girls in Maharashtra suggests such a style, without any second thought.

But what can we do? In India, strange ideas come up and things that should not be allowed to be implemented is also done without much thinking.

Instead of worrying now, I just laugh over some friends who seemed to be devastated by just the thought of such an incident and have been crying shame shame –, it is difficult to change some people and everyone can not be as progressive as the smart political partiers like the NCP. In fact, I will suggest such friends, who sometimes put themselves on a high moral pedestal and start criticizing the evergreen and smart social actors like the NCP leader and cry foul that these people or incidents have destroyed their culture and religion. They should grow up above these small incidents and start enjoying their lives more with modern entertainment tools like these.

In fact, I would suggest a Special award for Innovation in Religious Festivity to Vijay Kamble. Being one of the most modern governments in India, the Maharashtra State government should take the new initiative.

* Radiance News, Features and Content Service