Category Archives: News

Is 9-1-1 a joke in my town?

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The latest nationally recognized incident of excessive use of force by the LAPD police in Los Angeles (the third this week) came Tuesday night right here on the UCLA campus’ main library. Apparently UCLA has a policy by which they do random ID checks at the library after 11 p.m. That’s all good, since it is for the benefit of student safety. That’s what started this incident:

According to a campus police report, the incident began when community service officers, who serve as guards at the library, began their nightly routine of checking to make sure everyone using the library after 11 p.m. is a student or otherwise authorized to be there…

When [Mostafa] Tabatabainejad, 23, refused to provide his ID to the community service officer, the officer told him he would have to show it or leave the library, the report said.

After repeated requests, the officer left and returned with campus police, who asked Tabatabainejad to leave “multiple times,” according to a statement by the UCLA Police Department.

“He continued to refuse,” the statement said. “As the officers attempted to escort him out, he went limp and continued to refuse to cooperate with officers or leave the building.”

Witnesses disputed that account, saying that when campus police arrived, Tabatabainejad had begun to walk toward the door with his backpack. When an officer approached him and grabbed his arm, the witnesses said, Tabatabainejad told the officer to let go, yelling “Get off me” several times.

“Tabatabainejad encouraged library patrons to join his resistance,” police said. “The officers deemed it necessary to use the Taser.”

Officers stunned Tabatabainejad, causing him to fall to the floor. [Link]

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Religious Visas

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Thirty-three people including two Massachusetts imams have been arrested for abuse of the Religious Worker visa program:

Federal immigration agents arrested imams from two Boston-area mosques yesterday on charges they were involved in a scheme that provided religious worker visas to immigrants who used them to enter the United States and work instead as gas station attendants, truck drivers, and factory laborers. …

Under the scheme, described by federal authorities yesterday, the immigrants, who were mostly Pakistani, paid a fee to US religious organizations, which then sponsored them for the visas.

The Religious Worker Program was created under the Immigration Act of 1990:

…churches, synagogues, and mosques can ask the government to approve visas for foreigners to fill vacant positions. Several thousand visas are issued each year that permit immigrants to enter the United States exclusively for religious employment. To obtain the visa, immigrants must have religious training and experience in their native country. Once here, they are not allowed to hold secular jobs. The religious worker permits can ultimately lead to green cards, or permanent residency. …

Federal immigration officials believe that abuse of the program is widespread: an August 2005 audit found signs of fraud in more than 30 percent of applications.

That wasn’t the prevailing view in Congress two years earlier, when the program was extended to 2008 in a fine display of bipartisan blather. Here’s Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.): Continue reading →

This Is Doha

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Al-Jazeera’s English-language channel launched today. I just watched the inaugural broadcast of Riz Khan’s daily one-hour show. It consisted of two long interviews, one with the Palestinian prime minister, Ibrahim Haniyeh of Hamas, and one with Shimon Peres, Israel’s vice-premier. Riz posed questions that were substantive and reasonably challenging, including a number sent in by viewers. It was interesting enough though the demure pace — you might say sedate — took some getting used to; the long-form interview format is only as good as the interviewees. The Peres segment was the more watchable, while the Haniyeh segment suffered from long, awkward pauses while Riz’s questions were being translated, off air, into Arabic.

AJEset.jpgAs I write this, an hour-long news show is under way with anchors in Doha, London and Washington and correspondents deployed in a number of locations. The global-South aspirations are made clear, with a reporter in Tehran, an interview of Congolese president Joseph Kabila, and a feature story from Brazil. The voices are mainly British, and of these, several are desi; others include former BBC reporter Rageh Omaar and other veterans of established UK and other outlets. The weather announcer is British and blonde.

The news hour pace is slower than CNN but faster than Riz’s show, very much in line with what you get on British and European news channels. It’s quite pleasant, actually. The overall production values are strong. So is the website, which has been totally overhauled from its previous atrocious state; it now looks very nice and has a good clear interface, although it’s still quite thin on content. To watch AJE in the United States, you will need to go through the website as there are no US distribution deals in place yet, and who knows when there will be. The site offers two feeds through RealPlayer: the low bandwidth feed, which I watched, worked fine, although it automatically ends after 15 minutes (you can just press play and it restarts); a high-quality feed is also offered for $5.95 per month.

The jury is out and no doubt will be for quite some time, but once I lowered my metabolism to the right level, I actually started to find the broadcast quite interesting and refreshing in its choices of topics. Nothing politically controversial has happened yet, and the presenters regularly read viewer email, including negative comments. It’s been striking so far how many of the comments, both positive and negative, come from people in the US. Perhaps the producers are emphasizing these on purpose.

My principal criticism so far is the overall global-antiseptic style that makes you feel like you are in a hotel room on some business trip even when you aren’t. But that’s a problem all these international news channels share. Here’s an early, generally positive, assessment from The Times of London; a profession of faith by the English program editor in The Guardian; and a Washington Post feature on Dave Marash, the Washington anchor. Continue reading →

“My Kind of Exile”: The Silencing of Tenzin Tsundue

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Via DesiPundit, I came across a string of news articles and posts on Tenzin Tsundue, a talented activist poet and essayist of Tibetan extraction; in 2001 he won the Picador Outlook Non-Fiction essay prize for this moving piece of work. Tsundue was also born on Indian soil, and is therefore Indian in somewhat the same sense as I consider myself American. But with a difference: Tsundue’s people, the many thousands of Tibetans who have taken refuge in India, are effectively denationalized. They aren’t full Indian citizens (though legally they ought to be), and they can’t go back to a home country that doesn’t exist anymore.

In 2002, Tsundue got attention in the Indian and international media when he took advantage of a construction ladder and climbed the outside of a fourteen story building (Express Towers) directly facing the Oberoi Towers in Nariman Point, Mumbai. The Chinese Premier was in town, and when he and his delegation arrived at their posh, high-rise hotel, they were undoubtedly chagrined to see Tsundue in the building directly across, unfurling a 30 foot “Free Tibet” banner stitched together entirely out of Chinese flags. (More details)

One of the interesting comments Tsundue made at that time was in response to the danger he faced as hotel security officials were threatening to drop a materials lift above his head on him, when he refused to come down: “‘I did not worry about the threat being carried out, knowing that I was in India and not in China,’ he said.”

Telling words; are they true? The Indian government has recently placed a restraining order on Tsundue in connection with Hu Jintao’s coming visit to India (see Nitin Pai’s outraged post on this). Tsundue has been ordered not to leave Dharmsala during the Chinese Premier’s visit — on threat of deportation to Tibet! It’s understandable that the Indian government would want to protect the Chinese delegation from intrusive protesters, but I think Tsundue ought to have the right to go to Delhi and express his opposition to the Chinese occupation, especially since we know that Tsundue and other Tibetans will do so peacefully. India may be worlds away from China on matters of personal freedom and respect for human rights, but as this case shows, it’s still far from perfect.

One other thing: Nitin points out that the Indian news-media has yet to pick up this story. I did find something on “Telugu Portal,” but otherwise it’s mainly newspapers in places like Malaysia that are covering the story. [Update: There has been some coverage.] Continue reading →

A Cyber Farewell

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It is with great relief and extreme sadness that I leave the mutiny today ending the sequel to my Mutiny-Wallah gig. I think there may have been a way to bribe the head macacas to hang around the bunker blogging some more, but my lawyer and I have decided against it. I came back on board to Sepia Mutiny months ago with the expectation of blogging on the 2006 elections and am leaving today having spent more time researching cyber law than should be legal (bad pun, I know). You didn’t think I was going to leave without sharing some of the research I dug up, now would you?

1) It is a misdemeanor in the state of California to be sent multiple e-mails after you sent one that said stop contacting me, even if the perpetrator is in another state (check to see what your state’s laws are). My advice: never block or delete e-mails until you’ve accumulated enough evidence, never respond to the e-mails except for a one liner that says ‘stop contacting me’ and file a report with the police immediately.

2) Those IP addresses are a tricky thing — they are often anonymous to protect the bloggers and commenters. But IP addresses can be tracked with a court order, and sites like MySpace, Friendster, or Blogspot have a wealth of IP information that they have to give to the police if given a court order, especially if the perpetrator used those sites to contact you. Also, if you do blog, get a sitemeter, and monitor those IP addresses religiously.

3) If you Flickr, photolog, whatever — copyright your pictures. According to blog laws, sites such as Brown People can post your pictures up legally as long as they link to the source. If you copyright your pictures, they are not allowed to take your image. The laws around image copyright infringement are pretty harsh (known as the Digital Millennium Copyright Act), and the Google law team is standing by to make sure Blogspot users don’t infringe this aspect of the law. You should copyright your blog too.

4) Save everything, take screenshots (go to File, Save page as…) of everything. In a world where the Internet can be so easily manipulated and deleted, it is important that you save things immediately. Not just saving e-mails in your inbox, but take screen shots of profiles, blogs, websites and accumulating your data. Both your lawyers and law enforcement will be pleased to see that you have evidence to back your claim.

The rest of the list continued after the jump…

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The state of the U.S.-India nuclear deal

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After the election last week, in which Democrats took over control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, many people (including much of the Indian press) were running around screaming “the sky is falling.” What would this mean for the precious India-U.S. nuclear deal? Let’s take a look at the reality behind the hype. Outlook India reports today:

The United States Senate is expected to debate and vote this week on a bill that would permit civilian nuclear cooperation with India.

Congressional and diplomatic sources told this correspondent the long-awaited vote could take place on Wednesday or Thursday. The United States Congress commenced its lame-duck session on Monday and the U.S.-India nuclear deal features prominently on the agenda…

On Monday, both Republicans as well as Democrats indicated their intention to take up the India nuclear deal in the lame duck session. But before that they will vote on a bill that makes permanent trade relations with Vietnam.

In his remarks Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Republican, said, “This week, the Senate agenda will focus on completing the remaining appropriations bills. And in the days and weeks ahead, we’ll also need to consider the nomination of Bob Gates as Secretary of Defence, Vietnam trade legislation, and the U.S.– India civilian nuclear technology bill, among others.”

Mr. Frist’s Democratic counterpart, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, said, “We have our mind on concluding the appropriations bills and the very important nuclear agreement with the largest democracy in the world, India… [Link]

So the Democrat and Republican leadership are both on record as supporting this bill but both seem like they have a lot of domestic items on their plate they need to first take care of in the lame duck session, especially since Bush is fleeing going on a long trip to Asia in a few days. Not so fast though. Many arms control experts are recommending changes to the bill before it gets approved:

Arms control advocates urged changes in a U.S.-India nuclear cooperation agreement on Tuesday as the U.S. Senate prepared to resume action on the long-stalled deal…

…Meanwhile, a new report by the Congressional Research Service, which examines issues for Congress, found that while India does not want Iran to have nuclear weapons, New Delhi’s “views of the Iranian threat and appropriate responses (to that threat) differ significantly from U.S. views…” [Link]

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T Minus 5 Days: November to Remember

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A gentle reminder that the NYC Mutiny Meetup is this SATURDAY at Epistrophy Cafe. I believe it will be Siddhartha’s first meetup and probably number 4 or 5 for me. Macaca’s far & wide, commenters & lurkers, bloggers & illiterate are all welcome to attend.

Based on the comments to the original announcement post, this one’s got potential to hit new heights of attendance. I’d give it even money that we’ll beat out September’s record-breaking LA meetup.

In contrast to the Desi fast food joints we’ve hit for past NYC meetups, Epistrophy is a wine bar. Siddhartha will be the honorary sommelier for the evening and I’ll be tossing my hat into the ring should the subject of California reds hit the fore.

Because of other evening engagements, we’re “officially” scheduling this one a tad on the early side at 5-7pm. So, you should be able to stop by without tipping off your cool crew that you met your other, ‘real’ friends on a blog. Of course, if prior NYC meetups are any indication, there’s likely to be a good sized group lingering till the wee hours engaged in senseless acts of debauchery.

What: Sepia Mutiny Meetup: November to Remember
Where: Epistrophy Cafe, 200 Mott Street (between Spring and Kenmare)
When: Saturday, November 18, 5-7pm

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November to Remember: The NYC Meetup, 11/18

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The election is over, and it leaves our community divided. We have happy macacas, upset macacas, indifferent macacas, and those who object to the term macaca. But surely the one political development of the last couple of days that has won broad-based approval is the apparent defeat of Sen. George Allen, for the reasons we all know. And in response, there have been calls for a party.

We’d love to fly all of you out to the bunker, where we could throw an outrageously debauched event away from prying eyes. Maybe someday. But for now, we offer the next best thing. On behalf of the whole crew, Vinod and myself invite you to The Sepia Mutiny “November to Remember” New York City Meetup, Saturday, November 18, 5:00 – 7:00 PM, at Epistrophy Cafe, 200 Mott Street (between Spring and Kenmare).

We’ve chosen this timing so that folks can join us and still go on to their fabulous New York evening activities, so no excuses! Epistrophy is a low-key, high-quality wine-oriented cafe with small food, both veg and non-veg, and reasonable prices. It’s owned by a couple from Sardinia and named for a Thelonious Monk classic. After 7, those who are so inclined can move on to dinner somewhere, but in the spirit of Monk, we’ll improvise.

FAQ: Regulars are welcome. Lurkers are welcome and encouraged. Aunties and Uncles are welcome. Aishwarya Rai, Kal Penn, M. Night Shyamalan, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Bipasha Basu, Jhumpa Lahiri, Arundhati Roy, Dr. Vijay, Salman Rushdie, Laloo Prasad Yadav, are all welcome. Macacas and non-macacas are welcome. Exotifiers and orientalists are welcome. Those who aren’t welcome are velcome.

Please to kindly RSVP in the comment thread, so we get a sense of numbers and whether we need to move the party to Bungalow 8 or Madison Square Garden. Zindabad! Continue reading →

Showing his appreciation

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UPDATE: Comments from people who say they know Sidarth indicate that this is not him. Thank you very much for the correction.

Webb showed a classy touch during his “victory” speech last night – standing behind directly behind him is S.R. Sidarth! [OK, no ID for sure, but the source I cite claims its him]

It’s a nice way for Webb to show his appreciation. Whether the Macaca incident was large or small in and of itself, it was the turning point for the Webb campaign. I’m happy to see that he remembered the little people who helped get him where he is today …

[Via TPM ElectionCentral]

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Colonel Sekhon runs for Congress

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We blogged earlier about the congressional races of Jindal, Bhakta and Nigam. However, we neglected to tell you about Colonel Sekhon’s campaign for Congress in California’s Second District (thanks big bhapa!).

Sekhon is an MD, and a Colonel in the Army Reserves. He’s also one of only two turbaned and bearded Sikhs in the US military (grandfathered in from an earlier time when there was no outright ban). Like many other veterans and reservists running for office, he’s opposed to the war in Iraq and running as a Democrat.

Sekhon started the race strong, with a surprise win in the Democratic primary against favorite Bill Falzett. He’s also running in a district with a large desi population, even if it is still 75% white:

The Punjabi population in the Yuba-Sutter area has grown to be one of the largest in the United States and one of the largest Sikh populations outside of the Punjab state of India. [Link]

However, the incumbent, Wally Herger, has been in office for nearly two decades and has loads of money. Herger has spent almost 11 times what Sekhon has spent, and has almost 7 times as much cash as Sekhon has remaining. For this reason, most pundits and prognosticators think Herger is likely to be re-elected.

Here’s what Esquire Magazine has to say about the race

For someone who has been in Congress for 20 years, Herger seems not to do much more than issue press releases. To wit: “I strongly support the Pledge Protection Act because Congress must not stand idle and let activist judges remove ‘under God’ from our Pledge.” We agree with this small point. But the larger point is: Herger’s pathetic. His opponent is an MD and an Army Reservist. Esquire endorses: Sekhon. [Link]

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