Another Olympic medal for India

Abhinva Bindra's gold medal in the Beijing Olympics gave the billion plus population of India a huge boost in self confidence and now there is another medal in the grappling sport of wrestling. Indian wrestler, Sushil Kumar won the bronze medal in the men's 66 kg freestyle wrestling. This medal in wrestling has come after 56 years. I would say that after years of being enslaved and persecuted by foreigners we are slowly starting to rouse ourselves and rise above the treachery of invaders who not only plundered our country of wealth and riches but also ensured that our mindset changed to become corrupt, dishonest and un-patriotic. But now after 60 years of independence we are experiencing a slow but steady turnaround. And these Olympic medals are evidence to that.

Independence Day Celebrations - Radio Style

Today's India's independence day by date (August 15). Our compatriots back home have already celebrated this momentous occasion of India turning 61 and into a young, dynamic, fast-growing, vibrant nation in the world. As for me, I achieved something unique today, for our country and for our state (Karnataka). In the morning show of Radio Salaam Namaste 104.9 FM, surprisingly the presenter offered to play three regional language songs. And I was probably the first to call him and request for a Kannada song and I directed him to Geetganga.org, a website of patriotic songs compiled from all sources. The site features over 200 patriotic songs, mantras and couplets in different Indian languages. And within a few minutes the radio was playing my request and I guess this was probably the first time a Kannada song was played. I used to rue the fact that there were dedicated programs for all languages except Kannada and now I was finally successful in getting them to play a song in my mother tongue.

Travelling to Phoenix
As per our original plan we started off from home early in the morning and started our journey towards Phoenix, Arizona. It is about 1,000 miles away and the journey brought us through a completely different terrain, a facet of Texas we had not seen. Driving on I-20, we drove through thousands of acres of desert-like lands where we saw wind farms with hundreds of wind mills generating electricity and then we passed through vast tracts of ranch land with numerous oil and gas wells. This part of Texas between Abilene and El Paso seems to be rich with minerals, especially natural gas and petroleum. The number of oil wells quietly working away drawing gas and oil from the depths of earth is amazing.

Mountainous terrain enroute El Paso

Rolling hills is a pleasant change from flat Dallas

I hadn't heard or known much about El Paso, except that it was a city near the border of Texas-Mexico. I was under the impression that El Paso would be a small city, but we were in for a surprise. El Paso is a large and spread out city surrounded by craggy mountains. The open skies, beautiful cloud formations and mountainous terrain is awe inspiring. I would like to visit this city some other time with leisure and take a closer look.

Interesting cloud formations

Mountainous terrain and clouds with the stunning blue sky as background is picturesque

Right now we are checked into a room in a city known as Deming. Something interesting about this city is the fact that they organise a annual "Duck Race" in August. And unfortunately this years Duck Race is scheduled for next weekend (August 23-25). We will get to watch it some other time maybe.

Happy Independence Day!

Today, as India celebrates its independence day, I sit in the US where several people are celebrating Pakistan's independence. It is still 14th in the US but I am missing the celebrations because this is the first time I am NOT in India on the Independence Day. Feeling nostalgic I was browsing the net for patriotic songs and videos and this is one of the best videos I found on You Tube. I hope you will agree.

Movie Review: Singh is Kinng

A film sans logic but a great entertainer
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Javed Jaffrey, Ranvir Shorey, Sonu Sood, Om Puri, Neha Dhupia;
Director: Anees Bazmee

The wait for this highly entertaining comedy masala flick is finally over. And does the film live up to the hype and expectations it created? You bet, it does; Singh Is Kinng has all the ingredients which make it a great entertainer: generous dose of laughter; drama; emotions and of course two hot heroines. All these will surely keep you glued to the silver screen.

The medium paced film starts off the usual way. Our hero, Happy Singh (Akshay Kumar) is a simpleton who wants to help people but somehow ends up creating problems than helping. His attempts to help which turn into disasters are portrayed in a sublime manner which will leave you laughing out of your seat. The people of the village get frustrated with his antics and ask him to leave. Left with no alternative Happy and his best friend Rangeela (Om Puri) set out on an aimless sojourn.

Now the scene shifts and the spotlight is on Lakhan Singh aka Lucky (Sonu Sood), the King of the Australian underworld. Like all underworld dons Lucky also has a sidekick, Neha Dhupia and few henchmen: Javed Jaffrey, Yashpal Sharma, Kamal Chopra and Sudhanshu Pandey. Quite expectedly Happy’s journey leads him to Egypt and then to Australia where he becomes the king of underworld. During the journey he meets his lady love Sonia (Katrina Kaif) and finds warmth and affection in an elderly lady (Kirron Kher).

The action sequences of the movie are excellent and in typical Akshay style and once again he has proved that he can excel in comedy too. The timing of his funny dialogs and actions in the movie is just fine. Akshay Kumar is really the king of situational comedy and witty dialogue delivery. And of course Om Puri has also delivered a stellar performance which seamlessly blends with that of Akshay Kumar’s.

Sonu Sood too done a good job and Neha Dhupia looks sizzling and it seems like that is all there is to her. Javed Jaffrey adds some more laughter to the movie. And of course Kiron Kher in the role of an elderly lady has done a wonderful job.



As a director Aneez Bazmee has extracted great performances by everybody. Singh is Kinng will go down as another successful comedy flick in his portfolio. Ben Nott and Sanjay Gupta’s cinematography is excellent. Lilting music in the movie became a hit much before the the film was released. Pritam has done a great job in delivering numbers like Bootni Ke, Jee Karda and Teri Ore and the title track ‘Singh is King’ is catchy too.

Taking a bird’s eye view of the movie, I would say this is a must watch for all the fans of Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif. Akshay Kumar is definitely getting better at comedy, I had watched his movie Heyy Babyy and it was a great entertainer. And with Singh is Kinng Akshay Kumar has successfully created a niche for himself in the genre of comedy film heroes too. And coupled with his penchant for delivering stunning action shots, Akshay Kumar is definitely set to go places.

On the downside the movie has a pretty lame climax, I wish the director had added a punch to make the climax memorable. And then once the intermission is over the movie becomes painfully slow and boring when compared to the first part. Either ways it is a movie worth watching.

Olympic Glory for India!

Jai Hind! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Vande Mataram!

We have done it! We have won the hitherto-elusive Olympic gold medal and where did we win it? in China, the fiery dragon country which is always competing and strategising on how to take over large parts of our nation. The gold medal couldn't have been won in any better occasion or location or even the sport.

My Heartiest congratulations to Abhinav Bindra who won the first ever individual Olympic Gold medal for India. And heartfelt thanks for bringing glory to our motherland.

Abhinav Bindra (25), already a world champion has shattered the track record of India by winning the first ever individual gold medal at the Olympics. Sharp-shooter Abhinav Bindra won in the 10m air rifle event at the Beijing games today in a nailbiting finale. The whole nation went into great revelry when Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore won the silver medal in shooting in 2004 Olympics in Athens. But this feat of Abhinav Bindra has surpassed this and I am sure that Indians across the world will get a big booster of national pride.

Bindra, a Khel Ratna awardee, had earlier won the gold medal in 2002 Commonwealth Games in the pairs event and silver in the individual event. It is a moment of great pride to our nation and I sure hope that there will emerge more athletes and sportspersons who will surpass these achievements and catapult our nation to glory that it truly deserves.

We will take on the world and win over the entire universe not by military invasion or by crooked and deceitful religious conversion, but by our achievements, honesty and righteous ways. We won our freedom from colonial British through the predominant use of non-violent means. Despite thousands of years of invasions, persecution and slavery which let our nation impoverished, we have turned it around and started achieveing good economic growth. It is only a matter of time before we will take over the world and regain our original glory which we enjoyed till the marauding Muslims invaders and Britishers set foot and made our country chaotic and impoverished.

The Indian Economy has always been compared to the elephant which walks slowly but steadily. But I would like extend this connotation to sport, it takes time for an elephant to get up and start moving but once on the move it can run really fast and when it runs the earth around quivers.

An unusually interesting profession!

Ever heard of anyone making a living out of old newspaper clippingsand other media? Well as a journalist one of my interests was to clip interesting and relevant news items from newspapers and magazines for future reference. But I had never thought or even imagined that someone could actually make a living doing newspaper clipping, till I read about Dallas resident W.K. Jeffus (61). I was intrigued when I saw a front page headline screaming "Yesterday's news is Dallas man's current occupation" and read the entire article spread across two pages.

According to the article Jeffus is passionate about the history of Dallas and is pained to see little being done to preserve the city's past. He is particularly sad to see that people in Dallas don't care much about history. He scouts through flea markets, garage sales and even houses under demolition to collect newspapers which is stores in a home in Oak Cliff, south of Dallas. The newspaper article talks about how frugally Jeffus lives, his office in Oak Cliff doesn't have airconditioning, he drives an old car and guess what his electric bill was: $1.85. I think it would be impossible to pay such a low electric bill even in India. I wonder how he survives the heat of Dallas in such circumstances. Jeffus makes about $1,000 a month, which is abysmally low by American standards and can't lead a decent life within that money.

Having read this much about Jeffus one would think that he is probably not educated to get a mainstream job or he is retired from work and does this as a pastime. Well the latter could be true, but Jeffus has a bachelors degree in Marketing from Texas A&M University and has worked in several places. But he has been associated with old news since long time.

Back-to-School Fair in Dallas

I read about this wonderful initiative of the Dallas City Council in Dallas Morning News couple of days ago. The article showcased the annual Back-to-School Fair which attracted about 50,000 people (double from last year). During the fair people were handed out free school supplies, administered innoculations, given haircuts etc.

The initiative is primarily aimed at poor families who find it difficult to put their children through school. Through this initiative the parents get free supplies and feel less burdened. And with slumping economy in the US the numbers queueing up for dole is only going to get more.

This initiative was started in 1997 and is funded by the federal government and began as a drug prevetion program. But since the city identified other needs in the community they expanded it to include several other facets to the program. Like every other free offering there are simply too many people wanting to get them, for this fair too there were people who waited in the line for upto six hours so that they don't miss out on anything.

But something that really impressed me is the spirit of the people who attend and take help at such fairs. They know they are taking help and gratefully acknowledge it, and in the same breath they say that they want to become rich and sponsor such fairs. That is the spirit of enterprise which needs to be inculcated in every individual in the world.

I was wondering that in India we have lot of initiatives to give free stuff to school children. But most of them are centered around government schools and children who attend private schools are not beneficiaries of such initiatives. Moreover if an independent fair of this type were to be held it would attract people who can afford to buy supplies too and the real target of the program may not actually benefit. This shows an abject lack of self-respect and enterprise and a desire to get everything free from the government.

I wish things change sooner and we start developing quicker.

Low price Postcards for your communication!

In these days of inflation and rising prices, an increasing number of people are depending on coupon clipping to save small amounts of money. Like the saying goes "Little drops of rain water makes a mighty ocean" people are trying hard to make a difference in their home budgets with the small savings that coupons provide.

The worst hit by inflation are perhaps small businesses who are finding it very difficult to be competitive and remain in operations. One of the new methods of improving sales, through promotional Postcards is being increasingly used by businesses. And guess what there are businesses who are willing to provide discount coupons on products for business consumption too. Like Vistaprint is offering 50 over sized postcards FREE when you use the coupon code: PC50 with your purchase.

Vistaprint a leading business-to-business marketer is offering several discount coupons on its offerings such as 50% Off on Address Labels (coupon code: Labels50); 10 Free Invites (code: FreeInvite); 50% Off Business Cards (code: BizCard08); and lots more. I found this website very useful for both personal as well as business use and in these days of rising prices, this site is definitely recommended to everyone who wishes to save some money.

San Antonio, site of the Battle of Alamo

The last two days I have been travelling close to the southern tip of Texas state close to the US-Mexican riverine border. This is one of the lesser developed cities in this country. By lesser developed I don't mean there is any lack in infrastructure or facilities, this city is equipped with everything one could ask for. An international airport; millions of sq ft of shopping malls, parks, and leisure spaces; several old and new religious shrines; tourist hang outs; hotels catering to every taste and flavour. The only thing that is unlike Dallas in this city is the absence of large roads, but then downtown Dallas also has narrow roads.

The mainstay of the economy appears to be tourism on the surface, the city was formed in late 16th century by the Sapnish who came travelled from Mexico making a headway into north America. The city is set around the river San Antonio, which was perhaps the sole source of drinking water few centuries ago, now the river has shrunk to a few feet wide and has become the venue of cafes, shopping and other commerical activities. It is basically a tourist attraction and a place to walk by the river, there are 8 miles long walking area along the green algae-filled river. One could even take a boat ride along the historic parts of the city along the river.

Visitors enjoying a boat ride in river walk area in San Antonio

The Battle of the Alamo was fought in February and March 1836 here and was the decisive part of the Texas Revolution. Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna wanted to unify Mexico by capturing independent Texas after an insurgent army of Texan settlers and adventurers from the United States had driven out all Mexican troops the previous year. Mexican forces began a siege of the Texian forces garrisoned at the Alamo Mission on Tuesday, February 23.

For the next twelve days, Mexican cannons advanced slowly to positions nearer the Alamo walls, while Texian soldiers worked to improve their defenses. Alamo co-commander William Travis sent numerous letters to the acting Texas government, the remaining Texas army under James Fannin, and various Texas communities, asking for reinforcements, provisions, and ammunition.

I walked around San Antonio which is a happening place now, a la Goa in India but without the beach and mountains. This is full of shops, malls, music, food, bars etc. Tourists enjoy all these facilities and return to their homes. Accessibility is a great feature here, the city has its own international airport which kinda makes it easy to visit even from other countries. The city has some beautiful architecture, churches, walkways and a few parks. Here are some pictures of my travels.

Gazebo built by Mexican government in a park in San Antonio

Old Market square, San Antonio

Statue in the park in San Antonio

Old Church - San Fernando Cathedral, San Antonio

San Antonio district court

River San Antonio around which the river walk shopping area has been created

San Antonio is known for its Christian missions.. there are several old churches here

Another old church in San Antonio

Modern art, sculpture installed in one of the main intersections

Schooling system passes laws to discourage over-achievement

In the 1960s and 70s and even during the recent decade of 1990s, USA was considered a land of great opportunity and where people were provided opportunities to excel in the field of their choice. The concept of American Dream has been hyped up and continues to stir passions among people here.

But sometimes when I read newspapers I feel that the American Dream is perhaps only for Americans i.e. White people. Couple of months ago I had blogged about Anjali Datta a student of Grapevine High School, Texas who had completed the four-year high school diploma in just three years and had managed to achieve the highest GPA. Anjali's GPA surpassed the topper in the four-year category by a large margin. Yet despite this demonstrated superior achievement, Anjali was denied the title of Valedictorian by the School district, which cited an age-old rule to prevent a brown-skinned Indian from attaining the top-honor and ensured that a "White American" got it.

But naturally people of all color and race stood in support of Anjali who had truly worked hard for three years to achieve the grades that others would not be able to in four years. There was a huge outcry and loads of media coverage on the issue which led to public shaming of the Grapevine ISD. Despite all the uproar Grapevine ISD went ahead and conducted its graduation as planned, Anjali was not named the Valedictorian. Indeed the ISD was stubborn enough to carry out its discriminatory policies.

Now the latest news is that Grapevine ISD learnt its lesson thanks to the Anjali Datta controversy but did not reform itself, rather it went ahead and passed a new law which denies any honor to a student who over-achieves. According to the new law any student who takes lesser than 4 years to complete high school will not be considered for the title of Valedictorian.

I was under the impression that school boards in India had absurd rules and stupid administrators. But US school boards have outsmarted Indians in this aspect, denying honor and recognition to someone who truly deserves it and giving it to their own preferred candidates.

Anyway, in the US, enforcement of rules is very high. So once the law is passed, can anyone question it? No. Students have to just sit back and relax and forget about working hard or attempting to stretch themselves to achieve more than normal.

Illegal immigrants number reducing!

One of the biggest complaints of the US government as well as a majority of its citizens was about illegal immigrants (mostly hispanic) living, working and enjoying the facilities paid for by the taxpayers. According to the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies this number was pegged at about 11.2 million, about 4 percent of the entire population. When I came to know of this statistics I was a little surprised. Consider this population break up of the US:

Total population: 300 million
Adult population: 230 million
Population in Jail: 3 million
Illegal immigrants: 11.2 million (12.5 million in August 2007)

I read a newsreport in todays Dallas Morning News which talks about illegal immigrants reducing in number by a staggering 1 million. This was kind of expected with prices of essential commodities rising rapidly and falling employment and salaries. Many illegal immigrants from Mexico and other Latin American countries left US to return to their home countries because living here had become too expensive.

These findings are the result of an exhaustive study conducted by the Center for Immigration Studies, Washington. Among the report’s conclusions: “The decline in the illegal population, whatever the cause, seems to directly challenge the argument that illegal aliens are here to stay and there is no way to induce many of them to return home. … In fact, if the current trend were sustained, it would cut the illegal population in half within just five years.”

A majority of the US legal population is hoping that this trend would continue and grow.

Technology solutions for businesses

With the advancement in communications and telecom, the proliferation of internet is increasing at an exponential pace. This has spawned new markets and created a level playing field for businesses to compete for markets. Now small businesses, irrespective of their size can use the WWW and derive immense benefits, which were hitherto the preserve of large corporations. The ability to reach customers around the world is one of the greatest boons of internet.

But as a small business owner you are probably not quite sure if you want to set up a complete technology division to drive your online business. You don't have to do it, you can just take help from network solutions, a professionally managed company where the focus is on helping small businesses gain a confident and lucrative online presence. Network Solutions works towards enabling small businesses to realize their dreams of self-reliance, entrepreneurship, creativity, and financial independence. Network Solutions will do everything a business needs to establish an online presence. From domain name registration to web design and from search engine marketing to online security, e-commerce solutions, and the whole works.

Network Solutions has been in business since 1979 and has helped numerous businesses succeed and establish strong online presence. Their commitment to customer service has been recognised by J.D. Power and Associates Certified Call Center Program for the third consecutive year. Your business needs support and Network Solutions is best equipped and willing to provide it.

My first flying experience

I had blogged about my experience of flying or rather co-piloting a small Cessna 4 seater aircraft. Well I hadn't been able to edit the mediocre video I had shot at that time and post it on Youtube. I finally got to it last night and here you are. The video of my flying experience. Since I was co-piloting I couldn't really do a good job of shooting the video. This is the best part of whatever I shot on that flying trip from Addison to Sherman.

Volunteers needed to walk for Alzheimer's Disease

One of the biggest health awareness events in the entire US is the Alzheimer's Memory Walk. Organised by the Alzheimers Association this national event brings together family, friends, caregivers and concerned community members and motivates them to make a difference to the world. First organised in 1989, the Memory Walk has helped raise over $200 million in cash which has been used to aid individuals and families battling Alzheimer's disease.

This year the event is expected to attract over 200,000 people from across the country. To ensure the success of this walk the association needs new leaders, captains and volunteers to participate in the event.

What is Alzheimers disease and why is it so important to help people afflicted by it? Alzheimer’s disease afflicts nerve cells in certain areas of the brain and becomes progressively worse leading to the degeneration of the brain. People afflicted by the disease often appear completely normal but will suffer internally. The symptoms of the Alzheimers include gradual reduction in abilities such as judgement, reasoning, speaking and cognitive.



In the US the Alzheimer's Association conducts the annual Memory Walk® with the sole aim of raising awareness about the disease and funds to help people afflicted with the disease. Patients are helped by providing care, support and research. The association invites volunteers of all ages to become champions in the fight against Alzheimer's. The volunteers can help in organising and conducting the walk which are held in over 600 communities.

The Memory walks are usually about 2-3 miles and held on a weekend during fall. Now is the right time to sign up with the Alzheimer's Association and join forces to fight the deadly disease. Make a difference to this world by teaming up with Alzheimer's Association.

Biker Memories

It has been 8 months since I sat astride a motorcycle and felt the raw power at the end of my palm. Being a biker-by-birth, to be without riding motorcycles for such a long time is something like not living. But then circumstances are such that I have not been able to ride a motorcycle. Do I miss riding my bike, weaving in and out of choc-a-bloc Bangalore traffic? Honking incessently? Riding out on the open but dangerous highways in India? You bet I do and now all that I have are memories of those days when I would take off without a thought or care out into the wilderness to explore the teeming countryside of India.

Now in America, I feel claustrophobic driving a car. Though the roads, speeds and relative comforts are much greater in this country, I miss India and sometimes I wonder if I will ever get back to my country? And after experiencing so much different scenario, like driving on the right side of the road I wonder if I will be able to drive on Indian roads again? Initially adapting to American roads and traffic rules was difficult and now I am comfortable in this scenario and I wonder if I will be able to fit into the chaos and disorder that prevails on Indian roads.

I don't know I will find out only if and when I return to my motherland. Till then all I can do is to remember and feel nostalgic.

Hindu Unity Day

The last two days (July 19 & 20) were celebrated as Hindu Unity Day at Dallas. Organised by the Sanatana Dharma Foundation, the event was held at the DFW Hindu Mandir, Irving, Texas. The first day's events featured talks about the Rama Sethu Agitation, which took place in India amidst high political drama and finally saved the rock bridge built by Lord Rama across the Palk Strait. One of the main speakers politician-economist Dr. Subramanyan Swamy presented conclusive evidence about the Hindu heritage of India and how Rama Sethu is important to preserve the unity of our country. Dr. Swamy has written a book about the Rama Sethu issue compiling various archaeological, geological and historical evidences to prove that there was indeed a bridge built several thousand years ago.

The other speaker Dr. S. Kalyanraman has been doing tremendous amount of work as the chairman of the Sarasvathi River Center in India. His work in proving that Sarasvathi river existed and that is where the original Hindu civilisation/ Sanatana Dharma thrived and provided knowledge to the rest of the world is taking the academia by a storm. But it will take some more time before academics, especially the communist-ideologues from India will recognise it. These people are hell bent on accepting the now-dead Aryan Invasion theory which was propagated by the Englishmen to make us Indians feel inferior. But now thanks to the work of people like Dr. Kalyanaraman, ancient truths are coming out and soon we will be able to prove that India or more apropriately Bharat was indeed the cradle of civilisation and the place of origin of several advanced scientific knowledge.

Today's deliberations were more for the really committed Hindus and people who were concerned about the threats our religion is facing from within and also from external forces. Today's panelists included Dr. S. Kalyanaraman (mentioned above) and Dr. Raghavendra Prasad, a Dallas-based geriatric care professional. The sessions discussed the threats faced by Hinduism from the two of the largest religions, Christianity and Islam. The missionaries of both are hell bent upon decimating and killing our religion. It was interesting to note that each presenter didn't just make passionate statements but gave conclusive evidence in the form of numbers, statistics, quotes from research papers and other evidences which are accepted by the "Worldly wise academics and sceptics".

But one surprising thing I noticed at the sessions on both days. The participants were predominantly, at least 95%, older and born-in-India people. There were hardly anybody who were second generation Indians or American born Indians. This is really a matter of concern, this means that the youth of today, the teenagers are just not interested in Hinduism or Hindu Unity or anything like that. If these people born in America are not interested in Hinduism it is not completely their fault, a major portion of the fault lies with their parents who haven't educated them properly or instilled in them the love for their religion and respect for India.

Anyway to bring these youth towards Hinduism will be another programme or campaign and I am sure it will be far more difficult than fighting against proselytisation or war against terrorism.

A "Fine" way to enforce language

I had blogged about lingual conflicts in the US due to a heavy influx of legal and illegal Spanish speaking Mexicans. I read this bit of news online which gives a new twist on how the authorities/ government of US is dealing with the lingual conflicts. The enforcement of English language is now being done by levying heavy fines on people who don't speak well.

According to the article Manuel Castillo, a truck driver ferrying onions through Alabama was fined $500 for not speaking properly. He was not speeding or didn't break any law, his only crime was that he couldn't speak proper English. Quite expectedly Castillo is outraged and thinks this fine is not fair but since he doesn't have the time or resources to travel to Alabama and fight the case he is paying the $500 fine. The article further states that last year 25,230 tickets for language violation.

Of course this fining is debatable and I am sure lot of people are not pleased with this system of language enforcement. But as far as I am concerned I think this is a fantastic system to ensure that people learn the local language. I was born and brought up in Bangalore which, in the recent has experienced massive influx of outsiders, especially from neighboring states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala and of course from several north Indian states too. These immigrants have not only made Bangalore their homes but have established their own ghettos.

Whenever I have travelled and met people the first thing they say when they hear I am from Bangalore is that "You don't have to know Kannada to live in Bangalore." This statement always was like a tight slap across my face. When we go to other cities in the country it is almost impossible to do anything without knowledge of the local language. In some places people just ignore you when you try asking them for directions in English. And in Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka, I have had people approaching me and asking for directions in an array of languages such as, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi etc.

It it frustrating to see this happening. To see the city I was born and brought up in being consumed by people of other languages who have scant respect and show little regard for local culture and history. I had been to a panel discussion organised by Max Mueller Bhavan, Bangalore where the panelists were all people who didn't speak a word of Kannad and had come to the city seeking fortunes. And a common sentiment echoed throughout the discussion was "Bangalore is a boring place, with no history, culture or character." And of course they complained about bad roads, Kannada speaking locals who insist on speaking their language as opposed to English or Hindi or Tamil.

If this was the case why the hell do they continue to live and thrive in Bangalore. They can go to their native places and live there. Millions of people have come to Bangalore from all over the country seeking fortune and great weather. Kannadigas by nature are very friendly and adjusting and as such we welcomed everyone into our state expecting that they would become part of us. But they come with their own agendas of making us part of them and to kill the local culture.

This is the same thing that is happening in the US. An increase in the number of Hispanics residing in the country has ensured that Spanish is the fastest growing language in the US. And now the problem is so much that the federal government has had to put in place regulations and fine people who are in violation of it. I wish this kind of regulation could be put in place in Karnataka to ensure that everyone in the state speaks the local language.

Hurtling down the slide into Guadalupe river

Last weekend I had gone caving with a group of avid cavers from DFW Grotto. After a day under the earth's surface exploring underground passages and marvelling at the amazing stalactite and stalagmite formations we decided to head back towards Dallas. And enroute Bill Steele suggested that it would be a great idea to stop at Mo Ranch and enjoy a swim in the Guadalupe river. When I heard the name I didn't give much thought to it.

But when I reached there, I was pretty impressed by the facilities and features of the ranch. The management describes itself as a camp and conference affiliated with the with the Synod of the Sun of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The ranch was founded in 1949 and its full name is Presbyterian Mo-Ranch Assembly. Sprawling across 500 acres of lush green countryside complete with rolling hills with the river Guadalupe slicing across it, Mo Ranch presents a idyllic picturesque setting for a great family holiday.

The reason we went there was to enjoy a dip in the waters and to enjoy rolling down the 50 ft tall water slide into the cool waters of the Guadalupe. Here is the video of each one of us plummetting down the slide and splashing into the waters.

Power Steering: One of the most important parts of your car

Most of the cars available in today's market come equipped with Power steering which makes driving very easy by reducing steering effort. How does the power steering system work? And how does it derive power? Writing about this will take a little complicated explanation. To put it in one line I would say "Power steering using an external power source to assist in turning the roadwheels and makes it easy on the driver".

According to Wikipedia, power steering was invented in the 1920s by Klara Gailis and George Jessup in Waltham, Massachusetts, USA. But they didn't patent the technology and in 1932 Francis W. Davis patented this in the US. But it was only in 1951 that Chrysler Corporation introduced the first commercially available power steering system on its 1951 Chrysler Imperial under the name Hydraguide.

Let us come back to knowing about the basic parts of a power steering system. The basic parts of a power steering system includes a steering rack and steering box. These two parts functioning properly will ensure your car running smoothly. But then these parts are subject to wear and tear and you will need to buy new parts to replace and rejuvenate the system.

There is a brand new online store which has all the power steering rack parts you need. They offer full warranty and free shipping on all orders. The array of parts is simply amazing and every product is passed through the most stringent quality tests before putting it up for sale. Especially the steering box and steering rack. There are other parts of the steering system including the rack and pinion, rack and pinion assemblies, rack and pinion units or gearbox. If you take good care of these parts, the car will never give up on you.

This is one store to buy all the parts of steering systems such as racks and boxes at affordable prices. These parts are the same high quality ones as the dealers use and there is no compromise on quality. But price yes, you get better rates than at dealerships and you get free shipping too. There are moder technologies such as Magna Steer, Servotronic, Speed Proportional Steering, Variable Assist and the resurgence of the Center Steer design. All these systems use racks and boxes but each with an highly evolved design and high technology components. You just need to visit the online store of Power Steering Pros and you will get all the parts.

India related events this weekend

Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is a happening place... at least as far as the desi community is concerned. Every weekend something or the other is happening, film screenings, concerts, dance programmes, charity events, cricket matches etc. I am not too much into Desi socialisation and as such I have attended few events and missed lot of them for obvious reasons.

Anyway there is this upcoming event during the coming weekend July 18-19, 2008 which I hope to attend. The theme of the event is rather close to my heart. The event is titled "Hindu Unity Day", something that is vitally needed in order to make the world a better place for not only Hindus but for everybody.

The schedule of the event which will be held at the DFW Hindu temple at Irving promises an action-packed weekend. There are group discussions, lectures on the Rama-Sethu issue; history of Sanatana Dharma etc. I have been listening to their radio programmes since the past couple of months and they are very informative and insightful. It is great to know that someone is doing something to uplift the image of Hinduism at the global level.