"Either you are with us ..."

I have been sampling news on different news channels, of late. What I find concerning is that the news channels expect you take a stand on any and every topic. You have to have an opinion. You cannot remain neutral. Well, I am a layperson. I may not have sufficient knowledge to have a well formed opinion. Or I have so much other stuff to worry about, I choose to be indifferent. But that won't do. You are all the time urged to press Y(es) or N(o) and text it to the number flashing on the screen.
Most of such questions are about personalities and not issues.
News of late is turning out to be as melodramatic as a soap opera.

Moonset over Sankey Tank, again

Posting a picture of moon setting over the Sankey Tank.

Our terrace garden

Some pictures of the our terrace garden lovingly nurtured by my dear wife Amita.

The Curious Case of Missing Garbage on a Moonlit Dawn

Bangalore is also known as the city of lakes. There is a small lake close by where I live, by the name Sankey tank. Probably named after a high ranking British official of the Raj times. In recent times, the lake has got renovated with a park and jogging track around it.
I often go for early morning walk around this park. One unique thing about this place is its absolute cleanliness. You would rarely find plastic cup, half eaten corncob or used paper tissues strewn around. Just step out of the park and it is exactly the opposite picture. Almost at every corner there is garbage piled up. To be fair to the Bangalore Municipal Corporation, they do pick up garbage regularly. But the garbage remains open for sufficient time for stray dogs to be invited.
I wonder how Bangaloreans get transformed the moment they enter into Sankey tank park precincts. Mind you there are steetside vendors selling ice cream, corn and bhel just outside the park. But none falls to the temptation of taking the eatables inside the park, nibbling at it watching the still waters and then being oblivious to leaving the trash behind.
All this seems to be out of the visitors' own volition. There is no security staff there to chide too. Once in while you see a scrawny uniformed chap carrying a makeshift baton in his hand. He would hardly scare anyone.
So why none feels like dirtying Sankey tank park is a mystery. If someone solves it, it will be great to replicate it all over Bangalore and then the rest of the cities in India.
Anyway, the most scenic sight at Sankey tank is the early morning moonset. Its a rare sight as full moon comes around only once in a month! Bangalore sky is overcast in most of the mornings making the moon invisible. I managed to take a picture some years back. See it along. You can see the moonlight reflecting in the water.

"The Inconvenient Truth"

Watched "The Inconvenient Truth" last night. What a powerful film. Brings home the urgency of the problem very loud and clear. Getting inspired by the film, I will take public transport wherever and whenever feasible. I wish, they had shown Al Gore riding a bus or the metro instead of driving his car or being driven in a taxi. Private transport is probably a big contributor to global warming. Although everyone complains of traffic snarls and pollution and the other related stuff, the very next day they travel solo in their cars. Unless one sacrifices one's conveniences, the inconvenient truth will loom large.

"The Management Imperative" again. 3 guys run the place.

Quoting from Berg's book ("The Management Imperative").
"There are three kinds of humans on this planet – the ones that make things happen, the ones that see things happen and the ones that wonder what just happened."
Thanks to knowledge of the above principle, nowadays I always ask myself "In the given situation, who am I, leader, doer or just an observer?". I must admit that I was an observer most of the time. But with self questioning, I am becoming more of a doer and sometimes a leader.

Scarier than death

A few hours back I gave a talk before an audience of about fifty. They say that fear of public speaking is bigger than the fear of death. I was reminded of a technique to get rid of this fear. This was taught by my English teacher, Mr. R. S. Rathore, during my schooldays.
I studied in a residential school - Sainik School, Balachadi, Jamnagar. We used to live in dormitories. A dormitory was a big common hall with beds in two rows and cupboards along the wall. Each dormitory used house about 20 boys.
Our day would typically start very early necessitating a break after lunch. Probably an hour. To be a good public speaker, Mr. Rathore gave us a simple exercise. During the break, stand up on the bed and speak on any topic in any language for three minutes. You had to do this for ten consecutive days ignoring the indifference, applause or heckling by the other boys. In case you missed a day, the count would start from one again.
I cannot claim to be a great speaker. I think, I do reasonably well. Mr. Rathore's exercise definitely helped me overcome my fear.
I think the biggest fear while speaking in public is the fear of ridicule. Would the audience jeer at me? Are they getting bored? Why is the gentleman in the left corner smiling? Why is the lady on the right looking at her watch? etc. etc. You need to manage a contradiction. Say what the audience appreciates and at the same time not get very attached to their visible response.