Suresh Chandrasekaran's Blog, page 29

Important, at last

What a boon it must be to be so sure that you are important to the rest of the world. You know, like when someone says what an ideal friend should be like, you automatically start assessing how your friends fare on that sort of scale. I mean, quite obviously they all should be worried about how they impress you, you being the center of the world and all. Why would it even cross your mind to

Of bootleggers and the law

There is probably almost no law which does not interfere with what someone or the other wants to do. Well, if no-one wanted to do a thing, why would you need a law to prohibit him from doing so? Like, say, a law that prohibits people from poking their own eyes out? And, if everyone wants to do something, why would you need a law insisting on their doing so? Like, say, a law to make it mandatory

Morality and legality

The strange thing about us humans is that we first put in place systems and procedures to serve a purpose and then promptly forget the purpose. Thereafter, we either start worshiping the systems we have put in place or think of the systems and the purpose as antagonists warring with each other. This case of morality and legality is a prime example of that behavior. What are laws but a way of

The law is an ass?

Humanity has a strange relationship with laws. Being a basically chaotic species, it would be impossible to have stable societies unless we have laws that provide a modicum of predictability to the daily affairs of life. So, first, we strive to put in place laws and, then, bend every effort possible to cast off the restraints that the laws impose on us. When we are unable to do what we want to

Outrage

There is this problem with writing anything, anywhere. (Or drawing or painting or singing or...) You write the damn thing because you sort of enjoy the writing; you put it out thinking that you will not care a damn if anyone likes it, you did it for the joy of it after all; and, hello, the moment it is out you are looking up every other second to see if someone liked it, someone said something

Say Nothing - Politician

You can hardly talk about succeeding by saying nothing without bringing in politicians at some stage or the other. Yes, there may be those politicians, mythical beings almost, who say some concrete things and even, horror of horrors, DO some things but they are altogether too rare to warrant talking about. Start with the election speeches (Where else?). Other than, of course, the usual

Say Nothing - Manager

There is this interesting thing that economists love to say. "You cannot see the wood for the trees." It has a kernel of truth and meaning in it, of course. That, when you make policy for an industry, or for a country, there can be serious problems for ONE company or so. But concentrating on individual cases while making policy can end up harming the entire industry or country. The problem,

Say Nothing - Student

By now you know I have been the recipient of a lot of advice that has ruined my life. The one I speak of today, though, was possibly good advice which I misunderstood rather badly and, however did you guess, ruined my life as a consequence. They told me "When you have nothing to say, say nothing." Maybe, knowing me, they should have told me the thing in full. If they had, I may have fared

Here it comes again

There is this peculiar phenomenon about these special dates - birthdays, anniversaries etc. They do not always affect you the same way as time goes on. Ah! No, no, I shall leave marriage anniversaries out of it, having no experience of it. If you expect me to say that you start out feeling 'Time just flies when you are happy' on your first anniversary; getting lambasted for not remembering it

How not to preen?

Ever noticed this strange fact? Whenever people start advising you about how to conduct yourself in Society, it seems like they just love telling you about the manner in which you are NOT supposed to do things. Well, if there is ONE right way to do things, it stands to reason that there are likely to be a million wrong ways to do it. Would be easier, one would think, to just tell you the right