Author Archives: Abhi

About Abhi

Abhi lives in Los Angeles and works to put things into space.

We are wanting to rock you!

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The Washington Post features (thanks Maisnon) the hottest new band from straight out of my ‘hood.  The H1Bees have earned plenty of street cred in their Gaithersburg, MD area.  Now it’s time to go national:

The computer programmers arrived in the United States unknown to each other but united in their quest to rock.

On the surface, they were not unlike many others who have left India over the past decade on the H-1B visa, a guest worker program for highly skilled professionals. They wore glasses and mustaches and collared shirts. They could exterminate Y2K bugs and code Java and link Unix.

But as they toiled in cubicles, they dreamed of banging on keyboards of a different sort, of a world where C-sharp is just a musical note, not computer code.

And then their worlds became one.

“H1Bees,” an album recorded in a Gaithersburg basement-turned-studio, will be released today, its music a mix of Indian and Western beats with lyrics exploring the high-tech immigrant’s experience in the United States.

I wonder if they have a manager yet.  I know the area well and have been looking for the right horse to back.  They got a funky throwback type of sound.  To be quite honest I like them better than M.I.A., whose stuff is just noise to me. 

The languages differed: Tamil, Hindi, COBAL, BASIC. The journeys seemed parallel: Young man leaves India to earn U.S. dollars, works hard, buys car, returns home to marry, gets green card, buys townhouse, has kid, decides to stay.

“H1Bees,” Devarajan said. The album, which will be sold via South Asian Web sites and stores for $6, boasts songs in English, Hindi and Tamil. By setting their sagas to music, they hope to duplicate the success of other immigrant artists catering to diasporas, much of it via the Internet.

Listen to a sample track here. For those about to rock, we salute you.

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"Maybe God is unkind and sends less water in the river…”

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As I have stated on this blog before (met by derision from some), when I think about my future and the future of my eventual offspring, terrorism and the rise of fundamentalism has a considerably smaller profile on my radar screen when compared to what I consider larger dangers.  Global climate change and natural resource mismanagement being the largest.  I only compare the two because often, when deciding where taxpayer dollars go, this is an either/or competition.  CNN reports:

Imagine a world without drinking water.

It’s a scary thought, but scientists say the 40 percent of humanity living in South Asia and China could well be living with little drinking water within 50 years as global warming melts Himalayan glaciers, the region’s main water source.

The glaciers supply 303.6 million cubic feet every year to Asian rivers, including the Yangtze and Yellow rivers in China, the Ganga in India, the Indus in Pakistan, the Brahmaputra in Bangladesh and Burma’s Irrawaddy.

But as global warming increases, the glaciers have been rapidly retreating, with average temperatures in the Himalayas up 1 degree Celsius since the 1970s.

A World Wide Fund report published in March said a quarter of the world’s glaciers could disappear by 2050 and half by 2100.

“If the current scenario continues, there will be very little water left in the Ganga and its tributaries,” Prakash Rao, climate change and energy program coordinator with the fund in India told Reuters.

And keep in mind that the “disappearing” water will find the lowest ground…the ocean.  The ocean will then rise of course.  That means you will have many more cities in the same geological predicament as New Orleans.

Tulsi Maya, a farmer on the outskirts of Kathmandu, has never heard of global warming or its impact on the rivers in the Himalayan kingdom, but she does know that the flow of water has gone down.

“It used to overflow its banks and spill into the fields,” the 85-year-old farmer said standing in her emerald green rice field as she looked at the Bishnumati river, which has ceased to be a reliable source of drinking water and irrigation.

“Maybe God is unkind and sends less water in the river. The flow of water is decreasing every year,” she said standing by her grandson, Milan Dangol, who weeds the crop.

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Apology issued for mislabeled “package”

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I bet you are all wondering (well at least those that swing from a particular side of the plate) what’s under that forbidden black box (who says SM only features pics of hot women?).  Seyd tips me off to yet another one of those “I can’t believe they put a Hindu icon on that,” controversies (see previous 1,2).  Now my position on this is that I personally don’t care one way or another since I don’t concern myself with religious icons.  Other people get upset and sue over this stuff and it’s their prerogative to do so.  So what is the situation here?  Rainbownetwork.com has the details:

DNA Magazine, Australia’s top gay publication, has censored their latest cover in an effort to quell outrage from the Hindu community.

The cover features male fitness star Matt Walch wearing a Roberto Cavalli brief that is screen printed with an image of the Hindu goddess Laxmi.

In a letter to the Hindu community, Editor Andrew Creagh, apologized for the offence and let it known that the magazine had no “deliberate intention to cause offence, antagonize or show disrespect to people of the Hindu faith.”

He added that the magazine was “unaware that the garment portrayed a specific Hindu deity.”

That sounded like a pretty sincere apology.  I mean he’s not going to pull the magazine off the shelves or anything because then they’d lose money, but at least on their website there is a black box over the bacon.  What truly offends me is that the picture is of the goddess Laxmi.  If they had even half a brain they would have more appropriately offended the Hindu community by using an iconic image of the Hindu diety that is associated with the Lingam.

Also, although I’ve been meaning to invest in a good thong, I don’t think that I would buy this design. The last thing I need is for a conflicted Hindu girl to re-discover religion at the…ummm…wrong moment.

So you guys want to see what is under that black box?  Click below (might not be safe for work).

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Howard Dean wants you bad

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Howard Dean sat down with India Abroad Editor Aziz Haniffa recently to convince you Indian Americans out there that the Dems will lead you to the promised land if only you take their hand.

The new chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Dr Howard Dean, believes the Indian-American community should find the Democratic Party more attractive as it is not only more favourable toward immigration, but also is a more diverse and welcoming than the Republican Party.

In high school English class I learned that a concise thesis statement is the difference between an A and a B grade.

Q: Why should the Indian-American community vote for the Democratic Party?

A: We are friendlier on immigration issues than the Republican Party. We are a truly multicultural, diverse party. We welcome everybody. We have been very, very pleased first of all, by the support we got from the Indian-American community, and secondly, we are the party that has a history of reaching out to people, instead of pushing them away.

Indian Americans will feel more comfortable in our party.

I like Dean.  The kid’s got spunk.  Surely he could come up with a better answer than that though.  I don’t want him to pander to me but if you take a look at the above question and answer, you could replace “Indian-American” with say “Mexican-American,” and not skip a beat.  I want depth and nuance.  All the things that the Republicans can’t provide to the masses.

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Bobby speaks his mind

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Congressman Bobby Jindal weighs in on the Wall Street Journal’s editorial section (thanks for the tip Olinda).  The man ain’t happy:

There have already been a number of instances in which an overly inhibitive bureaucracy prevented an appropriate response to the disaster. For example, on Wednesday of last week a company called my office. With only three hours before rising waters would make the mission impossible, they were anxious to send a rescue helicopter for their stranded employees. They wanted to know who would give them a go-ahead.

We could not identify the agency with authority. We heard that FEMA was in charge, that the FAA was in charge, and that the military was in charge. I went in person to talk with a FEMA representative and still could not get a straight answer. Finally we told the company to avoid interfering with Coast Guard missions, but to proceed on its own. Sometimes, asking for forgiveness is better than asking for permission.

The first half of his op-ed seems to rail against big government and bureaucracy.  It’s hard to accept a Republican doing that when his traditionally government-hating party has been in charge for so long.  Maybe this means we should cut even more taxes to make the government even more efficient.  I agree with the other side in believing that years of undermining the importance of the federal government in the lives of people (especially the poor) is what contributed to a disastrous response. 

Spending my days on the ground in Louisiana last week, I did not see much television. But I understand that some media let the violent and destructive acts of a few overshadow the many acts of compassion and heroism.

Contrary to the pictures you may have seen, the vast majority of New Orleanians did not take to the street with weapons–far more risked their own safety to help neighbors and strangers.

I’m glad he set the record straight.  This past weekend while on a long car ride, I had the misfortune to listen to AM radio.  Every conservative crackpot radio show host seemed to be obsessed with the “widespread crimewave” in New Orleans.

As I struggle to explain to my 3-year-old daughter why her prayers that the hurricane spare our hometown were unanswered, we as a nation must make sure that we learn from our initial mistakes and cut through the red tape to help people rebuild their homes, their hopes and their lives.

Ahh the obligatory reference to their young child.  A politician wouldn’t be a politician without this trademark.

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Don’t freak

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Immediately after the London terrorist bombings there were plenty of comments left on numerous SM posts that all seemed to express a particular opinion that was VERY distasteful to me, and to some other readers.  To paraphrase, the opinion went like this: “We need to educate the public better so that when a racist or bigoted backlash occurs following a terrorist attack, they will be wise enough to target Muslims instead of people that only look like Muslims.”  I thought that such an opinion would find no support at all but I learned that I was wrong.  Dave at DNSI points to an article in the Guardian that shows just how wrong I was.  Some Sikhs and Hindus facing the prospect of a backlash are taking unusual approaches:

The explanation as to why Sikhs and Hindus are targeted…is quite simple: “your average hate-crime perpetrator isn’t going to stop and ask what religion you are before attacking you – or even care, for that matter, about such distinctions.”

If you travel on London’s public-transport system you may have spotted them: stickers and T-shirts with “Don’t freak, I’m a Sikh” written across them. On the tube, they tend to be greeted with wry smiles, but they have sparked heated debate on Sikh online message boards. “Don’t wear these T-shirts, they’re anti-Muslim,” writes one contributor. “We should wear the T-shirts,” says another. “We need to think of ourselves first – let the Muslims take care of themselves.”

In the weeks following July 7 it was widely reported that hate crimes against Asians had increased dramatically. They were not just attacks on Muslim Asians, of course: they were attacks on Asians of all faiths. The fact is that your average hate-crime perpetrator isn’t going to stop and ask what religion you are before attacking you – or even care, for that matter, about such distinctions. But this point seems to have been lost on the media. There’s been a huge focus on the impact on Britain’s Muslim community, but the plight of Britain’s 560,000 Hindus and 340,000 Sikhs has been largely ignored.

Sure, it’s easy for me to judge.  I sit here safe and don’t have to endure suspicious eyes checking me out on the Underground every day.  Still, this rubs the very heart of me.  I think these t-shirts should all be burned.  Prior to WWII, Hitler forced the Jews to wear the Star of David on their clothes so as to single them out with ease.  Here it seems some citizens are volunteering for that sort of indignity in order to make their lives a bit easier, at the price of a higher ideal.  We shouldn’t be declaring that we are different from Muslims.  If anything we should be educating people on how similar they are to us.  I fully support declaring that you are Sikh, loud and proud.  To do so in order to differentiate yourself from a Muslim, specifically to avoid a potential hate crime, is just loud without the proud.

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Underneath Bangladesh’s success story

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An article in the Christian Science Monitor takes a closer look at the 500 bomb blasts that rocked Bangladesh last month:

For years, they gathered in hidden training camps, mosques, and madrassahs, learning how to use weapons and build bombs. In their diaries they scrawled slogans of political alienation. On Aug. 17, their ideology culminated in a series of nearly 500 bomb blasts that shook the nation and killed three people.

 In the aftermath of the attacks, Bangladesh is confronting a realization long suspected but consistently overlooked: Islamist militant groups have taken firm root here, demonstrating a widespread, highly coordinated, and well-funded network. The government, after consistently denying the threat, recently blamed Jama’atul Mujahedin Bangladesh (JMB), for the attack.

Bangladesh is not supposed to be a breeding ground of extremism. Although one of the world’s poorest countries, it is often lauded as a development success story. Poverty rates have declined, life expectancy is up, and the economy has consistently grown by 5 percent annually for years – above average for most developing nations.

But remarkable development and extremism are not mutually exclusive.

I feel a bit ignorant right now.  I didn’t know that the word on the street was that B’desh was considered a “success story.”  The only time I ever hear about it in the news is when some Typhoon wipes it out.  Seriously, I’ve always felt that it’s one of the most underreported on countries.

Abdur Rahman, the spiritual head of the organization, told the press last year that he admired the Taliban and had traveled to Afghanistan. He claimed his organization had been operating underground since 1998, with the aim of founding an Islamic state. His network was active across the country, he said, with 10,000 trained full-time operatives, and 100,000 part-time activists, funded with a payroll of more than $10,000 a month, a huge sum by Bangladeshi standards.

I’m sorry did he just use “admired” and “Taliban” in the same sentence, and then say that he went to Afghanistan?  People are going to start calling for his assassination real soon now.

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Oh Oh. It’s a Patel wedding

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One of my closest friends is getting married this Thanksgiving.  We went to the same high school in Maryland and were roommates at the University of Michigan.  I know his lovely fiancé as well (she coincidentally has the same last name).  With two months to go I was starting to look for a present for them.  Then, both FOBish and Neha sent in this tip.  In Neha’s words “Kaliyug  is upon us for sure.”  The Telegraph reports:

Young Patels getting married in Britain apparently expect the most expensive wedding gifts from their guests, according to research conducted by John Lewis, the Oxford Street department store.

On their “wish list” are items such as plasma television screens — they alone cost £5,000 each — Royal Doulton crockery, champagne stoppers and top-of-the-range fridge-freezers.

John Lewis picked four of the most common surnames in Britain by consulting the Office of National Statistics — Patel, Jones, Smith and Cohen — and compared their wedding gift lists.

Ha!  Patel is the new Jones.  I’m a bit skeptical of the so-called “research” cited in this article though.  To be fair, my friend and his fiance are not at all like the couples described in this article.  If they secretly are then they are going to be sorely disappointed by their broke-ass friends.

… research done by John Lewis reveals that Indians are becoming as shameless as the English. Young Patel couples come into the store before the wedding and draw up their ideal list by choosing from the 500,000 goodies that are available. They think nothing of sticking the priciest gifts on their list…

Mr and Mrs Jones tend to ask for cheaper gifts such as hammocks, champagne buckets and coffee makers, with a £500 barbecue the most expensive item asked for.

Mr and Mrs Smith go for sofas, board games and microwave equipment for the kitchen. Although John Lewis would not dream of saying so, they seem even duller than the Jones.

Mr and Mrs Cohen request items such as fondue sets, Le Creuset pans and egg poachers from their wedding guests. Again, their taste leaves much to be desired.

I’m sorry but I’m with the Patels on this one.  If someone brings me a board game or a fondue set then they are dead to me.  Here is the take-away message:

McCulloch said: “Our latest research has highlighted some fascinating insights into wedding list preference, including the fact that couples with the same surnames are more likely to have similar wedding gifts. If you are after the ultimate and most opulent wedding lists, full of luxury goods and sensational extravagances, then it’s keeping up with the Patels that really counts.”

The Kali Yuga is upon us all.

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The funeral of Hatim Kathiria

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Per his wishes, slain U.S. citizen and Army soldier Hatim Kathiria was laid to rest in his home town of Dahod in the state of Gujarat.  The BBC reports:

Thousands of mourners have attended the funeral in India’s Gujarat state of an Indian-born US soldier killed in Iraq.

Hatim Kathiria, a 23-year-old Muslim, who died in a rocket attack in Baghdad on 22 August, was buried in his home town of Dahod.

I hate to sound cynical on such an occasion but this is the first time I’ve seen such a large public Muslim funeral reported in the media that was not for a “martyr” or an innocent victim of collateral damage.  I know this is because such “regular” stories are not as sensational and so the media is uninterested, but it’s good to see an actual soldier being honored for giving his life in battle. 

His mother, Shirin, said: “He was my only son. His ambitions took him to the US and then to Iraq. We lost him, but he died a martyr’s death.”

Damn, maybe I spoke too soon.  It sucks that the word martyr has been co-opted by terrorists to the point where it’s hard to distinguish a true martyr (and I’m not sure if I know what qualifies a true martyr).

Of course there was also some drama that took place at the funeral.  Kathiria’s parents apparently didn’t know he was married.  Probably because the girl wasn’t Indian:

The crowd fell over each other to catch a glimpse of his Anglo Indian widow Lisse Jean Pierre, who reached Dahod along with the body.

Amid rumours that Kathiria’s family was unaware about the marriage, which took place earlier this year, a jeans and T-shirt clad Ms Lisse – also a US army specialist – met her in-laws. However, sources said the women of the Bohra community were not allowed to talk to her. She was also kept away from the media, which was present in large number to cover the incident.

So tight was the security around the Hussaini Mosque, where the last rituals took place that not even his close relatives were allowed inside. “Normally, Bohra community is better known for its trading prowess but we are proud of Hatim as he joined the US Army and laid down his life for a cause,” Kathiria’s cousin Abuzar Mirchiwala said.

Sigh.  Some things never change.

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A new comic book hero

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The late American astronaut Kalpana Chawla is the subject of the newest comic book (or graphic novel) in the Amar Chitra Katha series (thanks for the tip Cecilia).  The BBC reports:

The life and achievements of an Indian-American astronaut who died in the Columbia space shuttle disaster in 2003 has now been illustrated in comic form.

An Indian publishing house has released the comic book based on Kalpana Chawla, the first American female astronaut of Indian origin to have gone on a National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) mission…

“If Kalpana Chawla inspires even two more students to go out there and achieve what they are dreaming for, well, then that’s our job done really,” she said.

About 437 titles have been released under the comic series and 90 million copies sold.

That should be an interesting read.  I am curious as to how much fiction might be added into her real story to play to the young Indian audience that is most likely to pick up this book.  Likewise, I want to see how much nationalism might be displayed by the comic book character.  Bottom line though is whatever gets young kids interested in space and science is good to see.

Fifteen-year old Meghna Pithadia says her ambition is to become an astronaut.

She says a comic on Chawla’s life is a great way of introducing her to small children.

“They can come to know about her, what was her life, what was her history. It’s a good thing, they can learn from her.”

Nine-year old Sakina Machiswalla said she read a little of the comic book and realised that girls can do everything that boys can do.

“She wanted to become an astronaut and she went out there and became one. If boys can do it then so can girls. Now I have a goal that I must do something big in life.”

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