Politician's at it again! Nitish Kumar not in favour of a central federal agency

The politicians are at it again. Not surprising at the very least. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is not in favour of setting up a central federal agency.

WTF quotes by him as reported in The Indian Express, Pune, December 2nd 2008:

"As law and order is a state subject, any likely intervention by a Central Agency would create confusion and possible confrontation. Rather, there can be a specialized trained force in every state to counter terrorism."

"Maharashtra Government should have been more proactive on matters of regionalism. The terror attacks have brought regional issues to the fore and people have taken attack on Mumbai as attack on the nation."

So is he implying that had Maharashtra Government been more proactive on these matters, people would not have taken this as an attack on the nation and thought of it as a regional matter? Foreign terrorists invading the country by sea and killing Indian nationals is a regional matter?

No wonder he does not want a central agency. Since he won't have direct control over them, the goonda raj so painstakingly built by the politicians in Bihar would be at a risk.

This is first in a series of posts following the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai. We will never forget!


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Penne Pasta - Indian Style

So, I tried making Pasta at home and it turned out to be a surprise hit. The family loved it and what do you know, I loved it as well. Here's what I did:

Penne Pasta Recipe

Ingredients
1. 250gms Penne Pasta
2. 1 Capsicum
3. 2 Tomatoes
4. 5 Button Mushrooms
5. 2 Green Chillies
6. 350gms of readymade Pasta Sauce (Tify is a good one)
7. 10 Green Olives (Optional)
8. 4 table spoon Olive Oil
9. 5 Jalapenos (Optional)
10. 4 table spoon Salt
11. Mozzarella Cheese

Preparation
1. Take two and a half litres of water, put in the salt and bring it to boil. Then put in the pasta for 12 minutes till al dente. Test it before you take them out, should be soft to chew but not stick to the teeth.
2. Chop the mushrooms, capsicum, tomatoes and green chillies.
3. Heat a pan with the olive oil and sauté the chopped vegetables. Mix with the readymade sauce on low flame.
4. Take out the pasta and mix with the sauce
5. Garnish with shredded cheese. If you are feeling exotic, top it up with chopped olives and jalapenos.
6. If you like your pasta hot and are using canned jalapenos, use 2 table spoon of the brine liquid it comes in to spice up the dish.


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James Bond - Bond no more (A quick critique on Quantum of Solace)

I am not going to descend into a lengthy tirade against the non-existent story but multiple action sequences stitched together, do not a movie make. I can watch any of those fantastic bombastic -tastic action sequence programmes on AXN for that. I entered the hall looking for a Bond I knew and loved. Suave, Charming, graceful and over the top even in the line of fire. One that knew how to walk the talk and talk the walk. What I got was another dose of Bourne, XXX and their likes. James is now Jason. Fill it, shut it, forget it.

I can't comment on Daniel Craig's acting because there is not a single scene that requires him to. He just walks fast, talks fast, runs fast, falls fast and flies fast turning his head like a robot all the time. He simply does not exude the charisma that made every single male exiting the hall think they are Bond for the next few days. That's a Blue Collar Bond for you. There is only one scene that evoked any emotion out of me and that had nothing to do with Bond. The villain dips one of James's lays in fossil fuel and leaves her dripping on the bed. Diabolical! If this is the new Bond who does not give a damn whether his martini is shaken or stirred, I say we nominate one of the villains to play bond next time. Best bond ever? Ha! Far from it.

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Windows 7 - Peek Feature

Windows 7 New Taskbar peek feature and free to roam widgets. For once, MS has outdone the competition. I want! And there better be a dirt cheap (read free) upgrade path from Vista.



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Lacey & Kameron - Leap of faith

The leap brings tears to my eyes. Watch the whole performance:

Performed by: Lacey Schwimmer and Kameron Bink

Music: "Dancing" by "Elisa Toffoli"

Choreographer: Mia Michaels

Source: So you think you can dance

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Paintball Mania

Yesterday afternoon, 40 people descended on a dusty ground in Baner, Pune to do their thing with Paintball. Organized by TURZ (The Unbound Riderz), a motorcycle club in association with Headrush Paintball who were having their maiden event.

It was sweat, blood and gore for 6 hours in the scorching heat but I didn't hear anyone complain.

Follow the hyperlinks for more details.

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Smoking Woes

The open air smoking zone at my work place has officially ceased to exist. People however, can't help but light up!



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Battle

A battle is infinite. When you fight with someone and win a fight, soon you will be up against even more stronger. If you defeat the next person, again someone more stronger will come by. It does not end with life and death. If you die in battle, someone stronger will come and take up your place. The battle keeps going on forever.

We seek power, we seek battle. Those who seek power, without exception seek battle. Do we seek battle to become stronger?

Derived from Kariya and Zaraki

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Jabra Bluetooth Headset BT 110

I had always wanted to own a bluetooth headset but was discouraged by the price and almost zero utility for me. While browsing moneycontrol, I came across an advertisement promoting a Jabra headset for Rs.749/-. Now I am a sucker for cheap bargains and even more so when it comes to gadgets. That Jabra is the no. 1 bluetooth headset manufacturer in the world didn't help things either and I succumbed to temptation. I can always use it while driving, couldn't I?

The link took me to Mobilenxt another network 18 venture, so I knew it was a site I could trust. There it was, lowest price on bluetooth ever. The shipped box indicated an M.R.P of Rs. 2830/-. The site was giving it away for Rs. 751/- (including Rs. 2/- for shipping).

What I liked:
1) Dirt cheap
2) No hassles of A/C charging while travelling. It runs on a single AAA battery but does not feel heavy on the ear. Good battery life.
3) Seamless pairing with my Sony Ericsson W950i
4) Supports voice dialing
5) World renowned Jabra's Mini-Gel technology.

What I didn't like:
1) Doesn't really hold on to the ear and at times gives the impression that it is about to fall off. Being new to bluetooth headsets, I don't know if it is true for other products as well.

If you want to get one for yourself, head here:
http://shop.mobilenxt.com/index.php/review/product/list/id/800/category/36


Another similar bargain:
USB LED Light Rs. 58/- with free shipping.


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Lost

I want to get lost.
Lost in a place unhurried by time, unhurried to find a new place to get lost in.
In a place where no one worries about finding me and i don't worry about anyone wanting to find me.
A place where time stops and i stop. STOP.

Thought of the day brought to you courtesy mumbai rains.

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Pooof...

...the disappearing act a few loyal readers are wondering about. Shantanu left a comment as well berating me for not having visited his blog recently and I thought the reply deserved a post in itself since there was a larger issue to address.

A year or so ago, I indulged in life so much, I started worrying about what I was taking back from those indulgences, most of the times it was indulgence for it's own sake. That's how this blog came about so that I could put in for posterity something about those experiences. I didn't really intend any readership, nor did I encourage one (at least not actively).

So why did I stop posting? Firstly, I have become a lot more involved in work at work, and that leaves me no time for personal pursuits while I am at work :-). Secondly, I have started indulging in life even more such that I don't have any personal time left to report them. Nor for my erstwhile daily online activities like mailing, social networking, reading blogs, etc. I am going out more, eating more, watching more, living more and time seems short for even that. I hope I can find a middle path but for the moment chances look bleak.

In conclusion, I am not going to stop posting, but I wouldn't depend on it's regularity.

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The Bourne Trilogy

I watched the Bourne trilogy (Identity, Supremacy and Ultimatum) back to back yesterday. Fast paced action, slick direction, a tight script and it was 5 hours of sheer adrenalin. I could notice myself do everything faster for the next five hours.

The movies deviate a lot from the books but do not take away from the spirit in any way. They provide what Ludlum always wanted to in his books. Edge of the seat entertainment.

He wrote only three of these but two more of the Bourne series (Legacy and Betrayal) have been published posthumously. Legacy seems to be in pre-production and might just make it to the silver screen!

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Acidity and Coffee

I just can't figure out the connection and popular perception goes the other way but while suffering from heavy acidity, a cup of coffee helps me counter it instantly.

On the other hand, drinking tea immediately after a few hours of this bout brings acidity back instantly.

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Transformers - A growing passion

I have made no bones about my passion for the Transformers movie and along the same lines I have been engulfed in its murky world of toys, animations and the likes. A few small indulgences are shown below:

The Transformers Two Disc Special Edition with Optimus Prime DVD Case

Optimus Prime: Leader of the Autobots

Megatron: Leader of the Decepticons

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Iron Man Super Bowl Trailer

The second Iron Man trailer debuted in Super Bowl. Check it out in its high resolution full wide screen glory:

http://www.marvel.com/movietrailer


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Getting Lucky...

...and winning prizes. I like participating in quizzes and contests. Unlike a few unfortunate ones I do keep winning the occasional pop quiz. The horde includes a t-shirt, books, movie tickets, etc. The latest one is a book. It's a book in the same vein as five point someone, this time highlighting the college life in JNU or Jawaharlal Nerhu University as it is uncommonly known. "Sumthing of a Mocktale" by "Soma Das" seems to be a decent attempt at the outset though I am yet to start reading it. However, it came for free and more so as a prize. Hip Hip Hurray!

Here's an interview with the author:
http://www.jammag.com/etc/etcshow.php?art_id=371



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Iron Man's Adventure

Marvel.com has a great photo-realistic animation video of Iron Man's Adventure. The video is in three parts and totally worth it. Check it out at:

http://www.marvel.com/movietrailer

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E Commerce

I have been buying stuff online for quite some time now. Of late Indiaplaza.in has endeared itself to me due to its considerable discounts, speedy delivery and an efficient customer service. While random surfing I came across these two new sites that seem to hold promise:

The first one is www.storeguru.com . From the looks of it, a one stop shop for everything that you can buy online. A direct competitor to Indiaplaza it has the powerful backing of Network 18. It remains to be seen if it will last the distance.


The second one is more interesting. Head to www.bigshoebazaar.com for buying various brands of shoes in all shapes and sizes. They claim to have standardized the sizes from all manufacturers so size 10 of Levi's will be the same as size 10 of Id. Definitely worth a dekko!


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