Un-Jihad

This is on a sensitive subject. So if you aren't prepared to consider a radical view, just skip it. I dont want any1 telling me later that my view is unacceptable and they are offended by what i wrote.

Consider this - the violence post-Ayodhya in '91 was terrible, but it was an unusual incident. Then we had blasts in mumbai. There was a gap of two years. While I was in school, i used to hear about small terrorist attacks carried out by Pakistani operatives once in a while. Such incidents were not very frequent, and always blamed on a foreign enemy. And mostly they used to happen in faraway, war-like Kashmir.

What we have now is violent, disturbing acts being carried out shockingly close to 'home' - the Lal Qila, the Parliament, famous temples, the locals of Mumbai... its happening more and more often and gets getting closer to you and I each time. And its not foreign intruders anymore. Its now terrorists recruited from our own country.

This is a summary of stuff I recently read - which i have no way to prove or any justification for believing - but i think its true. The terror establishment in Pakistan - due to international pressure or whatever - is no longer directly involved in what is happening here. On the face of it, they are supporting the 'war on terror' and trying to be helpful neighbors. But they have some extremist elements there who plan, fund and supply arms and ideology to idiots in our country who execute the plans. That way, we cant blame any outsiders - and they can label it a 'freedom struggle' and make us look like authoritarian assholes who cant keep our house in order. Very meticulous and alarmingly efficient if recent history is anything to go by.

Now I dont care much for the fact that Im a Hindu. Nor do I have anything against the Muslims or Christians in my country. But I do have a problem with someone who is willing to die and kill me and my people because we are not of the same faith.

This is a time India is trying to develop into an economic power of the world. We have people working hard - improving their lives and trying to build a globally competitive economy. We dont need an asshole screaming 'Jihad' and striking terror at the heart of Mumbai. I have friends in Mumbai - who have toiled hard to obtain a world-class education and are toiling hard to make careers for themselves, and to contribute to the building of a nation we can all be genuinely proud of. Some of them are Catholics, some of them are Muslim - i dont care. I respect them and would like them to achieve something. I hate the assholes who plant bombs in the trains these guys travel in. And if religion is what drives them, I say remove the root cause.

Screw secularism. You are either an Indian - and loyal to India and its people. Or you get the fuck out of our country. I know this would sound harsh, but I suggest that the freedom of religion be revoked. Convert to Hindusim (or Christianity for all I care - thats not the point). And if you'd rather be a Muslim than be an Indian - get out of here. We dont need you fighting with us and holding us all back. Its not that i am agsinst giving people complete freedom. But if freedom is going to be abused, people dont deserve it. I'd love it if the entire Muslim community lived in harmony with us. But if the freedom to practice Islam leads to riots and blasts and trains being burnt and Pakistani cricket victories being celebrated by bursting crackers, I dont think its worthwhile.

Of course, our polity - who see the aggrieved and en-blocked Muslims as a vote-bank and a source of their obscene power - would never take any step of the kind Im suggesting. But I wonder how long the majority will just sit back and take so much shit. It was their frustration that created a Bal Thackeray. And it was bottled and oppressed passion that brought to power in UP - a BJP govt that promised a Ram Mandir. I hope the problem is not solved in such a violent manner in the future. But if the leaders keep trying to appease their votebanks, something will give soon.

I'm not a religious hardliner who has anything personal against Islam. But I think the whole 'Jihad' funda and trying to establish supremacy of one faith or one God - whose very existence no one has any evidence for- is a load of crap. I'd like to believe the process of 'civilization' has moved on to a place, where people stop fighting over territory or religion, and compete economically.

If a Chinese person can manufacture better than me, or a Pakistani can sing or bowl better than me, I'd accept defeat with dignity and give them the respect that is due. But is someone's idea of 'establishing superiority' is striking fear of bomb blasts in my heart, or forcing me to queue up at the security check at Forum mall and get my bag checked, I dont think they even deserve to be a human being in the 21st century.

Kotler Update

Philip Kotler was recently in India. He did an interview with Economic Times and Im noting some points I found interesting.

4Ps was updated to include People in the 21st century. This includes your own back office and frontline people, infact anyone involved in the entire sales and support process (CCDV - elaborated below). 'Our strength is our people' is probably the greatest corporate cliche of all time!

He chose the 4 'P's because his own name begins with a 'P'. He said it jokingly but I wont be surprised if it were true. This would support my hypothesis that great people have a 'me first' thought process!

The new Marketing framework is CCDV - Creating, Communicating and Delivering Value. Lets take Tata Indicom Broadband in Bangalore as a case here. The opinions hereon have nothing to do with Kotler, they are mine!

Tata Indicom Created value by ofering a broadband service at a competitive price with freebies like Static IP, Router, No hidden charges. So far so good.

They advertised like crazy and managed to contract with big residential complexes. They have Shankar Mahadevan doing a breathles jingle and billboards all over the place. Value Communicated!

But when it came to delivery - they fell flat on their face. People who applied for broadband connections - who would be impatient by default - were made to wait more than two months without any communication about the application status from the company, let alone actual installation and activation. Most people get frustrated and cancel. Those who get the connection are annoyed by the delay and then appaled by the poor service standard.

Therefore, they lose out to Airtel in this market and Reliance in CDMA telephony.

This is quite typical of companies in India. Nice ideas, lot of bureacracy and talk, little action. Nobody wants to put in the real effort and get their hands dirty. Thats why China kicks our ass in manufacturing. I hope im part of the generation that changes that!

Wired!

Finally! Broadband at home. These Airtel guys r gr8. Die Tata Indicom!

Sweet... will be more action on this blog now!