The IPL cleanup

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Finally the corruption cloud lingering over the IPL is coming to the fore. Lalit Modi and his gang of looters had orchestrated a massive chain of scams each ultimately leading to filling up of Modi's coffers.

The revelations are so stunning, it sort of changes the landscape of the IPL entirely. For example, Shilpa Shetty as it turns out is merely the 'face' of the Rajasthan Royals (RR) team. She's neither the owner nor a stakeholder in the team, something she has been claiming all along. The IPL committee now is giving the excuse that proper papers havent been sorted regarding the stakeholders of RR. What the heck? You have a huge tournament like the IPL and you dont have papers in order? Is this even believable? Turns out that the real stakeholder is the RR team is Lalit Modi's brother-in-law (whatever his name is).

And of course, the television rights scandal, which is so complex that it took me a minute to understand what reports in the newspapers meant. BCCI now is trying to paint a picture where Lalit Modi is the lead offender and BCCI is the spectator. However are things really that simple? What was the BCCI doing when Lalit Modi so categorically made dodgy deals and biased auctions? To wash their hands now of the scam is really crappy clarification. Instead of Lalit Modi, its the BCCI which should come clear on the matter.

And finally, how can a tournament survive when its sole purpose is profit? There's no sense of pride (most of the domestic players are not in their home teams), no sense of humility and no sense of honour anywhere in the IPL. Its all about money, money and money. In the process of making money if the team wins, well then it can only mean one thing, more money, more money and more money!

Spare us this brazen display of might and financial prowess. We the fans of the great game deserve better. Much better.

Shashi Tharoor - bad

Image by MEDEF via Flickr

Shashi Tharoor - bad.
MPs with criminal records - good.
MPs with corruption charges - good.

Yee! Lets celebrate the Indian democracy.

So, a person with a credible past (not consisting of murder charges, corruption allegations, riot charges) had the bloody guts to enter the "system" which celebrates people who take part in the bracketed terms, and what was he met with? Allegations. Baseless charges. Mockery. And last but not the least, pure and utter quintessential trademark Indian nonsense, mastered by our hallowed "experienced" politicians.

If anyone wants to know the "revised" criteria to be popular in politics in this country, its as follows:
1. DON'T be tech-savvy.
2. DON'T speak out about what you think.
3. DON'T be open and accessible to the public.
4. DON'T speak English in a way which doesnt include Indian words.
5. DON'T have a girlfriend if you are over 50!
6. Last but not the least, DON'T "mentor" anyone.

Be a dumbass with a Nokia 3210, always have a phone diary in your pocket in case you need to call someone (coz one cant check the address book on the phone, that would be counted as tech savvy), be QUIET for heaven's sake (aka SHUT THE F*CK UP!) and dont talk to ANYONE among the public about anything that concerns the...erm...public(?), speak English the Indian way replete with erm "chakki pissing" (pissing in this case is a Hindi word) type things (or even better dont speak English!), DON'T for heaven's sake have a girlfriend when you are in your 50s (its against the Indian kulture!), get married like a good mama's boy in your early 20s and be screwed (erm...that wasnt a slang) for the rest of your life and stick to your wife (coz thats the Indian kulture).

Right, listed above is the recipe for the perfect Indian politician. Follow the above mentioned things and thou shalt be a successful politician in India.

Things beyond my comprehension

Why am I so angry? The official sites of the Government of India regarding new PAN applications are so complicated, especially when it comes to that hallowed AO Code explanation, that its virtually impossible for a non Chartered Accountant to fill up those columns. I honestly cannot fathom the thought process behind this. If the govt wants us citizens to file our income tax returns, why cant it make the process of filing it a bit simpler?

I understand that this is a period of recession and that CAs are as much in need of moolah as us non-CA folks. But harassing new potential tax payers by complicating the process in a bid to make them pay up for the CA's fee is an absolutely unrealistic idea (thats the only possible reason they could have made the application procedure so complicated).

The rest of the form is so simple, a nursery student can fill it up. However the AO code is where things mess up. And from the looks of it, perhaps this has been done intentionally.

I want to frakin get a PAN, let me get it. NO, says the govt. I'll screw up your life and make you look like a moron and force you pay that CA. Fine so be it. In the land of whatever, you have to be a whatever.

Does closed source somehow contribute to open source?

Image via Wikipedia

In my earlier posts I have openly discussed my doubts about the relevance of closed source softwares and OSes in today's world. However as I delved deep into the matter, a deeper understanding has struck me.

Closed source OSes like Windows and Mac are the epitome and prototype of functionality. Eg. Windows supports practically an innumerable amount of hardware across the planet and still manages to mesmerise the user with its intuitive and friendly interface. Mac on the other hand is an icon of style and glamour. The hardware is exquisitely designed and the same goes for OSX. Linux OSes however arent as user friendly as Windows. Although a lot has changed and Ubuntu has created a benchmark for usability as far as Linux OSes are concerned, but it still has a long way to go.

Now frankly, these closed source OSes set the benchmark for usability and open source ones (harsh and unkind as it might sound) kind of follow those 'set paths'. I therefore believe that its very important that closed source apps and OSes coexist with open source ones.