Slumdog Millionaire and the 2009 Oscar

Hollywood is getting ready for the Academy award ceremonies to be held tomorrow at the Kodak theatre. Without doubt this is going to be a sensational show with the incredible reviews for Slumdog Millionaire (SM). I have never heard this much of discussions about any movie as in the case of SM. I have been taking an informal poll of what viewers thought about the movie. I must say it is wide range of opinions. These include - violent, funny, sad, very fast moving, engaging and happy. As for the music by A.R. Rahman, fans of Rahman in India will be happy to know that Californians who have never heard his music before SM, are buying the CD of music from SM! All this appreciation for this movie and the music is truly phenomenal.
Yesterday I learned that the youngest stars of the movie are travelling from Mumbai to California. I presume they will participate in the award ceremonies. I hope this arrangement to have the young actors participate in the celebrations is a reflection of what is due to them as part of the team in the production of the movie and not because of the controversy about the movie among some quarters in India. I will be watching the ceremonies tomorrow and am very hopeful that SM will indeed win awards in more than one category - becauee - as an acquaintance of mine said "Hollywood likes movies that are different".

Barak Obama's inauguration

What a sight! The swearing in of the 44th President of the United States - Barak Obama! It is indeed fascinating to be a witness to this amazing expression of democracy. I am excited not because Obama is an African American - but because of his truly presedential personality - intelligence, wisdon, humility and charm. After 8 years, Americans can finally hold our heads high and be proud of what citizens in a true democracy can do to bring chance.

Pondering during the final days of 2008

The end of 2008 is fast approaching. The world has had to grapple with numerous serious issues. To start with the economic and financial situation is very serious. What are the consequences of this situation that the world is facing? I have always felt that economic dissatisfaction is invariably associated with social unrest. Does anybody know what needs to be done to avert such problems? Talking about enacting policies to address the econoic issues may help to some extent. In that respect I hope the activities of the President elect Obama will have some effect not only in the U.S. but around the world.
The unfortunate incident in Mumbai the day before Thanksgiving, in which innocent people lost their lives was another unforgettable event of 2008. What is the role of economic dissatisfaction in the actions of the perpetrators ? There is undoubtedly some role that dire economic situation plays in the self esteem of any individual. The world needs to pay attention to the economic and educational needs of as many of the world citizens as possible for the security of all.
Steve Lopez, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times, often writes stories that touch your heart. In 2005 he wrote about Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, a homeless musician with schizophrenia who sleeps each night on one of skid row's most dangerous streets http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lopez-skidrow-nathaniel-series,0,1456093.special. Today's paper has another such story - one about a homeless mother and daughter who live in ther car in a parking lot in Southern California. To add to the situation the daughter suffers from high risk acute leukemia http://www.latimes.com/news/columnists/la-me-lopez21-2008dec21,0,6262927,full.column. This is happening in a wealthy, developed nation. Is this happening because of some kind of inadequacy on the part of the system or despite the adequacies in the system? The human psyche is so complex that one has has to accept the fact that society can do only that much to help some in need of help. Develpoing resources to circumvent traditional modes of delivering help to such individuals and ensuring their safety is absolutely critical.

2008 General elections in Orange County, California

I never quite understood the meaning of the term conservative until I moved to the city of Irvine in southern California over ten years ago. After eight years of Republican governance, most American are more than ready for a change. The driving force behind this craving for change is the younger generation. Having an eighteen year old at home who is all wired up and supporting the Obama campaign brings the election all the more close to home. On our street our house has an "Obama-Biden" and a "No on prop 8" garden signs. Two of our neigbhors have "McCain-Palin" garden signs. I only wish they would ask me why I support the the Obama-Biden ticket, I would happily invite them for a cup of tea and explain the reasons why I support that ticket. The last two evening I have seen more than one group at crossroads with signs supporting prop 8 . For those who do not know what prop 8 is, it is a vote against same sex marriage. While the whole country is reeling under financial turmoil and dealing with two wars that are draining the nations financial resources, I doubt there are very many rational folks who are bothered about issues such as same sex marriage, other than the conservatives!

2008 U.S. Elections Part IV

There is less than three weeks before the elections in the U.S. The recent weeks have been more than exciting - what with the Wall Street crises. We need intelligent, young leaders capable of bringing together a team of able individuals who can help to lead the country out of this economic mess and facilitate in improving the image of the U.S. in the eyes of the international community. In this regard, Obama wins hands down compared to McCain. Obama not only brings a certain amount of energy required to bring about these changes, but also somebody new with some fresh ideas.

2008 U.S. Elections Part III

Seven weeks before the elections is when the press is finally addressing the role of racism in elections in the U.S. The most recent studies from Stanford shows that despite all the so called advances in this country, mabny still hesitate to vote a non-white to the post of the President of the U.S. Ability to handle the responsibilities of the President does not appear to be significnat in peoples mind. This should not come as a surprise. A great deal of what is talked about by the Americans is all mere talk with no substance. Can the youngsters who are pro-Obama help over come the racism component and lead to an Obama victory this November? They have a serious task ahead to be able to achieve this goal.

U.S. Elections 2008 Part II

Sarah Palin's acceptence speech was shocking! Do the American politicians realize that they are being watched by viewers all over the world. Gone are the days when such events were viewed only by those who have access to American TV networks. Palin's self description as "pit bull with lipstick" was not in the least pretty.

It was extremely disappointing to hear Palin mock the value of education. How is this country going to value education when politicians has no regard whatsoever for it. America beware - just as the rest of the world is catching up very fast in the field of science and technology, if politicians are not told to revere education (which in turn bestows wisdom) the rest of the world will be a wiser lot compared to the americans. What is the value of politicians providing lip service to improving education in the country when the politicians are bent on ridiculing its value? This is an obvious disconnect.

University education in America is considered one of the best in the world. It is rather surprising that educational institutions are not standing up to these politicians who have utter disregard for the contributions of these institutions. I guess one way to show their displeasure is to ensure that the Republicans are defeated in the elections.