SORRY.

“SORRY” – There is so much power in these six letters when said with the utmost sincerity. It has the power to heal the wounds that are centuries old. The Australian prime minister, Kevin Rudd did as he had promised in his election campaign. He apologized to the thousands of Aborigines and the now called “the stolen generation” for the hundreds of years of sufferings inflicted by the Australian Government.
“For the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry”.
It takes a ton of courage to utter these words, especially if it’s on the behalf of other people. The response he got after he uttered that magic little word was overwhelming and shook the land down under.

Imagine, just imagine a day: we all apologize for the pain inflicted on each other: Individuals and Nations alike:
Imagine India and Pak apologize to each other and move towards bigger and better things, Imagine Israel and Palestine do the same, Imagine Shias and Sunnis saying “Sorry”, Imagine Hindus and Muslims saying “Sorry”, Imagine Muslims and Christians apologizing, Imagine the US apologizing to the Iraqis, Imagine me apologizing to the guy I showed the finger this morning for tail gating me and he doing the same, Imagine parents saying “Sorry” to their kids and the kids returning the favor. JUST IMAGINE!

Such magic this word has.

The complete speech can be seen here. Watch the response in the third video in the ninth minute.

Equal Opportunity Employment?

I was talking with a friend a couple weeks ago about an article I read in a newsmagazine when I was in India early this year. The article was written by an American pilot working for an Indian airline. The article was about the job postings for receptionists, air hostesses, secretaries, etc. The article was mocking at the way these postings described the requirements for the jobs:

"Tall, Slim, Fair, Handsome, Clear Complexion, Between the ages of 21-27, Height and Weight Proportional". The article was particularly taking pot-shots at the "Fair" part. It was addressing a serious issue in a humorous way. I had never taken much notice of this until someone from a different country pointed out to me. I felt ashamed, I felt low, I felt Sorry for all those "not so tall, not so slim, not so fair, not so handsome with an unclear complexion" population which is probably fully qualified for the job, but cannot even apply.

This friend forwarded the attached job posting from today's TOI. I decided to do an experiment with this - I made an American colleague and Indian colleague read it. These are the reactions I got:

The American colleague said - "This is funny!!" She seriously thought this was a mock posting or a practical joke.

The Indian colleague said - "Had not heard about Indigo airlines, so many new airlines in India"

When I explained to the American colleague that this is a real posting she looked at me like I am on drugs. When I pointed the discriminatory aspect of the posting to the Indian colleague, he got the point and realized the bigotry. So in conclusion, if I have to explain this to an educated working professional Indian, how long would it take make a nation realize this?

Our Government has always pushed reservations down everyones throat (including the private sector soon..) to eliminate discrimination on the basis of caste. Can we have some basic laws for all castes, religions, genders for not allowing corporates to discriminate based on physical appearances?

Death of Honor?

Marion Jones pleaded guilty to have taken performance enhancing drugs. She will be stripped of her 3 gold medals and 2 bronze medals that she won at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She was proclaimed as the Fastest Woman on Earth, she was the Golden Girl, she was the epitome of dedication, strength and edurance. Today, she remains as a fallen hero, her honor, her honesty has been tarnished.
Some questions that arise in my head:
Are we too harsh on our sportspersons when we who hailed them as our heroes, our inspirations denounce them as soon as we know they used performance enhancing drugs?
Comparing the Individual achievements in other fields:
Do we take the Oscars away from the film stars when we know they underwent a cosmetic surgery, took god-knows-what to enhance their assets?
Do we not think Cobain was a creative force even though we knew of his addictions? Do we think he could have created that music if he was not high most of the time?
Do Da Vinci's masterpieces become any lesser in our eyes knowing that he was also high most of the times when he was at his creative best?
Could Viriginia Woolf's writing be as creative as it is today if she was not a regular pot smoker?
Most (not all) of the major artists - musicians, artists, performers - were or are regular users of some form of contraband drugs, or have resorted to artificial physical boosters (botox, cosmetic surgeries, silicone implants, etc)

I know I am comparing Apples to Oranges, Sports and Arts - not the same deal? Right? But then how do you measure Individual Achievements? Why is it OK in one and not in the other?

Mind you I am not advocating use of these drugs, I am just questioning why do we punish the baseball stars, the runners, the boxers, the swimmers or any other athletes? Why do we not give the same treatment to individuals from other fields? Why these double standards?
Aren't they all equally possesed with ambition , aren't they all equally driven to achieve or create or push those limits (creative, mental or physical) that were established by someone else?
I cannot answer this, can you?

Say my "Hello"

Have you have ever had someone say to you - "Hey its great that you will be seeing X next Monday, say my Hello "? Now really, what good does this do? What is the noble idea of asking me to say Hello on this person's behalf? Why cant they muster up the courage, the time, the motivation, the dedication or whatever it is that takes for him/herself (in most cases its a HER) and say Hello themselves? Some people do not stop at just asking you to be their "hello" carriers, but they ask feedback when you see them next time - "So did you say my Hello to Jack when you met him?"

Another such meaningless phrase that the general populace uses liberally:

• "Good for you" - the only thing I can think of when someone says this is "Thank you but F%&k you."