India-US Strategic News and Discussion

sanjaykumar · Post by **sanjaykumar** » 18 Oct 2010 02:34

Hence my posts on China which are quite deliberate. The aim is to question Chinese legitimacy at every step-it puts Westerners in a very uncomfortable position. Kills two birds ....Indians need to interrogate the Great White Establishment persistently-a Nobel economist gave a sympathetic lecture on the China/India economy noting the 10% growth; I asked him about economics reports with Chinese charactieristics. He did not even pause before acknowledging the native creativity in China. That is this is not something beyond their understanding. But it is instinctively suppressed.

What are the dynamics of this dichotomy? A legacy of colonialism as it relates to the failure of Christianity in India is one explanation. Another very potent is the dismantling of the moral certitude of the westerner by a degraded people leading to an overthrow of religion, self-righteousness and national self-worth. The expose of the hypocrisy, mendacity and mercantilism of the European.

India substitutes in their moral compass as compensation for their acquiescence to China's cooperation in the cause d'jour-fighting Soviets, keeping voters narcotised with cheap goods, controlling inflation.

Displacement: A psychological defense mechanism in which there is an unconscious shift of emotions, affect, or desires from the original object to a more acceptable or immediate substitute.

Jarita · Post by **Jarita** » 18 Oct 2010 04:59

Acharya wrote:
Jarita wrote:

They can follow the same modus they used before to get in into "rich white people" world and wield influence.
Look at USA as a gaint social engineering experiment where each generation is "influenced" by some outside group.

A write-up by person X

One talk I gave compared how harvard studies China with great respect, while India is seen through the human rights lens - caste, women's "oppresion", minority "oppression", etc...
Can you give me some source for this. Now this is a deep subject. This needs lot of data and analysis. Can you find some more article around this subject. Thanks in advance

Only article

http://tarun-vijay.blogspot.com/2010/10 ... aires.html

Arjun · Post by **Arjun** » 18 Oct 2010 09:34

Mort Walker wrote:
darshan wrote:http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... 01034.html

I am not sure why this was missed by BRF.
The Anand Mahindra donation of $10 million for Harvard humanities is very troubling. The liberal arts and "social sciences" are a bunch of crap at the Ivy Leagues who put out all sorts of garbage.

Surprising that two of the supposedly more 'Indic' industrialists, Anand Mahindra and Narayanamurthy, have donated to Harvard social sciences faculty ! Hopefully they've been smart enough to put in 'utilization' conditions. Should start holding Anand and NRN to account for any future bilge coming out of Harvard.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 18 Oct 2010 09:48

Arjun wrote:
Surprising that two of the supposedly more 'Indic' industrialists, Anand Mahindra and Narayanamurthy, have donated to Harvard social sciences faculty ! Hopefully they've been smart enough to put in 'utilization' conditions. Should start holding Anand and NRN to account for any future bilge coming out of Harvard.

There is some attraction for that generation that social science is a real science and West is studying India to know and be friends.
They have not clue as to the real motive of social science which is colonial science to create a orientalist narration and long term domination of the Indian people. The Indian elite have not understood the deeper motive to wipe out the narrative of the colonized people

With India , they encountered a context-free grammar/language and a context-sensitive experiential framework. It was necessary to transform these into variants of Abrahamism (coded language and context-free ethics/meaning).

When worded this way, it becomes clear which framework is conducive to propaganda and which is true discourse.

Foucalt, his predecessor Marx, and the western relativists are objectionable because they seek to transform all discourse as instances of propaganda, ignoring the heathen sensitivity. The believers object to Foucalt because theirs is not propaganda but Truth. BUT THE BELIEVERS DO NOT REALIZE THAT the relativists take their position only to smother the last instance of heathenism i.e., the possibility of context-free grammar/language and a context-sensitive experiential framework; that is, the believers do not realize that the relativists ultimately and conclusively affirm Abrahamism by stating that all frameworks are 'interpretative' frameworks and instances of propaganda (as opposed to experiential frameworks).

To finalize the Abrahamic design, it becomes necessary to state that only propaganda is possible, but this transforms the Abrahamic claims as hollow.

And the blind heathens mistake Foucalt's 'relativism' as relational.

I think, with the movie 'Avatar', the colonizer overplayed its hand (for the first time) and exposed the mask dynamic for a brief period. To resurrect the colonizer dynamic, it will be necessary to shown in the next `movie how the Na'vi are themselves colonizers. This means that Orientalist caricatures of the native have a brief period of vulnerability as they switch between the colonizer's narrative and the native's narrative (in assumed voice and donned clothes)..

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 18 Oct 2010 13:10

US pastor says yoga 'demonic', sparks row

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 766178.cms

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 18 Oct 2010 13:29

abhishek_sharma wrote:US pastor says yoga 'demonic', sparks row

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 766178.cms

While many Indians in the US see in Driscoll's sermon a conspiracy against Indian culture, Hari Gopinathan, an Oracle employee in San Francisco, finds streaks of rebellion in Christian yoga practitioners, especially women.

"With an increasingly nuclearised society, women, at the first chance of a free choice, rebel. Yoga started off as one such sub-culture avenue for rebelling. It cuts out middle-men when it comes to spiritualism and offers freedom of expression and minimal diktats on things like sex and gender equality. Add to this the health benefits, and you have a potent adversary to organised religion," says Gopinathan.

Good explanation

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 18 Oct 2010 20:26

Christopher Sidor wrote:Rules for a frugal superpower

There is no mention of "south asia" which will be subject to sudden policy changes.
Rapid changes in the policy will upset the balance of power and it can create chaos in economy and market.

Rule II: Concentrate on the Elephants
The functional equivalents of elephants are Europe, East Asia, and the Middle East. These are three of the most important parts of the world, and in each the American military presence plays a constructive role.

In the first two, the US reassures each of these region’s countries that there will be no sudden change in the balance of power that will threaten them. In Europe, Germany can be confident that the US would help to contain an aggressive Russia, while Russia knows that Germany will remain tied to, and thus restrained by, the US. In East Asia, American air and naval forces provide a check on China, but also serve one of China’s strategic interests by keeping Japan from conducting an independent military policy. To keep the peace in both regions, a continuing US military presence of some kind will be needed. Complete American withdrawal could lead to suspicion, arms races, and, in the worst case, wars among the countries of Europe and Asia.

In the Middle East, the US confronts Iran. Nuclear weapons would make the threat all the more severe.

sanjaykumar · Post by **sanjaykumar** » 18 Oct 2010 23:26

US pastor says yoga 'demonic', sparks row

clap clap clap clap

Thank you for making the job of rationalists easier.

Pulikeshi · Post by **Pulikeshi** » 18 Oct 2010 23:45

Need to collect all thought on the impending visit by Sri Obama to India:

Brajesh Mishra on Obama's India visit

arun · Post by **arun** » 19 Oct 2010 07:11

X Posted.

Excerpt dealing with a question by Raghubir Goyal about the Pakistani origin Islamic Terrorist Daood Gilani aka David Coleman Headley at the US State Department Daily Press Briefing:

Philip J. Crowley
Assistant Secretary
Daily Press Briefing
Washington, DC
October 18, 2010 ………………………….

QUESTION: P.J., another topic. There is a New York Times story about the – one of the wives of David Headley, who was involved in the Mumbai attacks, that apparently a year before that attack, she went to the American authorities in Pakistan to warn them that she thought that he was involved in some type of plotting for an attack, but it was never followed up on. And this was not the first warning – that there was another wife who did it years before. Is this a communications breakdown? Do you know anything about this? Number one, can you confirm that that is the case and –

MR. CROWLEY: Well, let me – I will respond in the context of two meetings that we did have with one of Mr. Headley’s spouses in late 2007 and early 2008. She did provide us some information. We followed up on that information and provided it to relevant agencies across the U.S. Government.

QUESTION: Just to follow up on – P.J., as far as – I’m sorry, you want – as far as these training camps are concerned which Mr. David Headley told U.S. and Indian officials when they interviewed him. And also, in an interview General Musharraf also told a German magazine that 22 terrorist camps were in Pakistan. One, are they closed now? Can you make sure that those camps are now closed, if you have told the Pakistani authorities or if you are going to tell them here when they meet during this coming meeting?

MR. CROWLEY: Well, there’s a lot to your question, Goyal. We have cooperated extensively in investigating the tragic Mumbai attacks, including giving Indian officials access to Mr. Headley. Beyond that, I’m not going to comment about any alleged particulars in those discussions. We have been pressing Pakistan to take more aggressive action inside its borders to deal with a threat that is of concern to us, a concern to the region, and a threat to Pakistan itself.

We – as we’ve noted many times, Pakistan has taken aggressive action within its own borders. But clearly, this is an ongoing threat and more needs to be done. That will be among the issues talked about during this week’s Strategic Dialogue.

QUESTION: And P.J., when President and Secretary visits Mumbai in November first week and they will be staying at the same hotel which was the target of the terrorist bombings from Pakistan, what message do you think they are carrying for the people of Mumbai?

MR. CROWLEY: Well, we continue to cooperate extensively with Indian officials. We were doing so prior to the Mumbai attacks. We have done so since the Mumbai attacks. Security is an area of significant dialogue between our law enforcement and intelligence agencies and those of the Indian Government. We will continue to cooperate with India on the security front, but even as we expand our dialogue and our cooperation with India on many, many fronts. And obviously, this will be part of the President’s visit to India next month.

QUESTION: Can we get back to the wife’s –

QUESTION: Yes, you said that you had this input from them. So did you follow up on that input? Was that input from Islamabad reach Washington? Did you share it with any other countries – India, Pakistan? Because allegations in the articles are coming out you did not do anything on it.

MR. CROWLEY: Well, let’s go through those. Did we follow up? The answer is yes. Have – did we share information with our security partners, including India, prior to the Mumbai attacks? The answer is yes. We have cooperated with India since then. I think Ambassador Roemer put out an extensive statement in Delhi over the weekend that highlighted both the – our cooperation with India in – prior to and after.
Needless to say, I will just say that going back over some of the information provided to us, there was concern expressed by both spouses at the same time; the information was not specific. I think everyone should understand that if we did have specific information on this, we would have absolutely provided it to the Indian Government beforehand. The fact is that while we had information and concerns, it did not detail a time or place of the attack.

QUESTION: Did – have you noticed has there been any change or uptick in cooperation between India and the U.S. on intelligence matters like this since the – everything you’re talking about now happened under – not – it was not on your watch; it was under the previous Administration. Has there been an increase in cooperation now?

MR. CROWLEY: It’s – I mean, the short answer is yes. We have an extensive dialogue with India, and as we build a strategic partnership with India and security is one of those areas, and I would say that yes, our cooperation with India has expanded.

QUESTION: So can you say if anything would have been done differently – if this administration would have done anything different than what the last one did?

MR. CROWLEY: It’s an impossible question to answer.

QUESTION: A follow-up on the same issue? You said that the information which was provided by the wives of Headley was taken seriously and further investigated upon. Then why wasn’t he arrested during or soon after Mumbai? Why it took so many years – more than one and a half years to arrest him?

MR. CROWLEY: I – that’s –

QUESTION: You had some credible information about Headley.

MR. CROWLEY: That’s not – I can’t – I can’t make – I can’t answer that question.

QUESTION: So what are you --

QUESTION: Same issue, same issue. You said the information was not specific enough to be followed; did I get that right? The wives’ information?

MR. CROWLEY: In the contacts that we had with his spouses, there was not specific information as to who he was associated with or what they were planning to do.

QUESTION: But didn’t she say Lashkar, she was training at the Laskhar?

MR. CROWLEY: Again, I’ll just say there was not specific information provided

US State Dept

csharma · Post by **csharma** » 19 Oct 2010 07:12

Now even BM is talking about two front confrontation. When Bharat Verma talked about that last year, people thought he was crazy.

arun · Post by **arun** » 19 Oct 2010 07:15

X Posted:

India questions FBI’s reluctance on disclosing Headley identity

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 19 Oct 2010 09:14

No headscarf, Obama may skip Golden Temple visit

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/no-he ... it/699380/

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 19 Oct 2010 12:37

why exactly do foreign heads of state seem to make a beeline for the golden temple?

why not jama masjid on friday to promote peace and dialogue and take questions from the devotees ?

why not akshardam temple ?
why not mathura?
why not the nearest big buddhist or jain temple?
bush2 visited a church here iirc.

if he wants to distance himself from religion, stay away from all places of worship.

arjunm · Post by **arjunm** » 19 Oct 2010 13:08

I hope President Obama would have a good trip in November, this strategic pact with Pakistan may not go down well with GOI just before his upcoming another strategic trip to India-

US to offer security pact to Pakistan: New York Times
Indo-Asian News Service

Washington, October 19, 2010

To repair ties damaged by the American military's tough new stance in the region, the Obama administration will offer Pakistan a multi-year security pact complete with more reliable military aid, according to the New York Times. The offer will be made to the Pakistani civilian and military
leaders who arrive in Washington this week for a strategic dialogue, the influential US daily said on Tuesday.
Pakistan's delegation will be led by its Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, but much of the attention will be on army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who is viewed by many as the most powerful man in Pakistan.

"Among the sweeteners on the table will be a multi-year security pact with Pakistan, complete with more reliable military aid - something the Pakistani military has long sought to complement the five-year, $7.5 billion package of non-military aid approved by Congress last year," it said.
The administration will also discuss how to channel money to help Pakistan rebuild after its ruinous flood, it said.
But the American gestures come at a time of fraying patience on the part of the Obama administration, and they will carry a familiar warning, a senior American official was quoted as saying.
"If Pakistan does not intensify its efforts to crack down on militants hiding out in the tribal areas of North Waziristan, or if another terrorist plot against the United States were to emanate from Pakistani soil, the administration would find it hard to persuade Congress or the American public to keep supporting the country."

The Pakistanis will come with a similarly mixed message. While Pakistan is grateful for the strong American support after the flood, Pakistani officials were quoted as saying, it remains frustrated by what it perceives as the slow pace of economic aid, the lack of access to American markets for Pakistani goods and the administration's continued lack of sympathy for the country's confrontation with India.

Another potential bone of contention is one of President Obama's nuclear objectives: a global accord to end the production of new nuclear fuel. Pakistan has led the opposition to the accord. And without its agreement, the treaty would be basically useless, the Times said.
Qureshi blamed the US for the situation, saying Washington signed a civilian nuclear accord with India that discriminated against Pakistan. "You have disturbed the nuclear balance," he said in a recent interview in New York, "and we have been forced to develop a new strategy."

http://www.hindustantimes.com/US-to-off ... 14864.aspx

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 19 Oct 2010 13:27

More trouble for the latter-day "Crusaders",as this evangelical giant collapses bankrupt!

US megachurch Crystal Cathedral files for bankruptcy
Crystal Cathedral, the megachurch birthplace of the US televangelist show "Hour of Power," has filed for bankruptcy in Southern California after struggling to pay back a debt that exceeds $43 million (£27m).

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... uptcy.html

In addition to a $36 million (£22m) mortgage, the Orange County-based church owes $7.5 million (£4.7m) to several hundred vendors for services ranging from advertising to the use of live animals in Easter and Christmas services.

The church had been negotiating a repayment plan, but several companies filed lawsuits seeking quicker payment, which prompted a coalition formed by creditors to fall apart.

"Tough times never last, every storm comes to an end. Right now, people need to hear that message more than ever," Sheila Schuller Coleman, the Cathedral's senior pastor and daughter of the founder, said.

"Everybody is hurting today. We are no exception," she said.

The church, founded in the mid-1950s by the Rev. Robert H. Schuller Sr., has already ordered major layoffs, cut the number of stations airing the "Hour of Power" and sold property to stay afloat. In addition, the 10,000-member church cancelled this year's "Glory of Easter" pageant, which attracts thousands of visitors.

Vendors owed money by the church formed a committee in April and agreed to a moratorium to negotiate a repayment plan with the Crystal Cathedral.

Kristina Oliver, whose Hemet-based company provided live animals for the church's "Glory of Christmas" manger scene, said she doubts she will recover in full the $57,000 she is owed.

"The church never made any kind of advancement that they wanted to pay their debt, that they were willing to try to make it happen and every time we tried they told us, 'You can't tell us how to run our business,"' Ms Oliver said.

"I'm upset because I have a 30-year relationship with them and you need to be up front, put all your cards on the table."

Crystal Cathedral was founded at a drive-in theatre and attracted congregants with its sermons on the power of positive thinking. The "Hour of Power" telecast, filmed in the cathedral's main sanctuary, at one point attracted 1.3 million viewers in 156 countries.

aditya · Post by **aditya** » 19 Oct 2010 15:00

Headscarf row keeps Obama away from Golden Temple

Indian officials were informally told that Obama wearing a headscarf to visit the Golden Temple may convey an image of him appearing to be a Muslim.

Obama's aides finally came up with the idea of a "modified" baseball cap . It would have to be modified because the Golden Temple does not permit a baseball cap instead of a headscarf. In fact, the temple authorities have no problems with skull caps.

As Giani Gurbachan Singh, head priest of the Golden Temple, puts it: "We have no problems if he wears a skull cap, the kind that Muslims wear to the mosque -- or any other cap that is modified to something similar. But we don't allow baseball caps or Army hats."

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 19 Oct 2010 15:08

abhischekcc · Post by **abhischekcc** » 19 Oct 2010 15:45

My only desire from the Obama visit is that we should not give the fighter deal to US. Period. They are not reliable partners.

abhischekcc · Post by **abhischekcc** » 19 Oct 2010 15:49

Philip wrote:More trouble for the latter-day "Crusaders",as this evangelical giant collapses bankrupt!

US megachurch Crystal Cathedral files for bankruptcy
Crystal Cathedral, the megachurch birthplace of the US televangelist show "Hour of Power," has filed for bankruptcy in Southern California after struggling to pay back a debt that exceeds $43 million (£27m).

Finally, something fell through!!!!!!!!!!

It is generally not well known, but the Churches are heavy investors in stock markets. The financial crisis has led to a destruction of value of their investments, along with all other types of investors. No divine intervention there.

The prolonging of the economic pain in the west will hollow out the finances of a number of churches, leaving them less capable of raking up trouble in India and other countries.

chetak · Post by **chetak** » 19 Oct 2010 20:47

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/opini ... 1&emc=eta1

Rare and Foolish
By PAUL KRUGMAN
Published: October 17, 2010

Last month a Chinese trawler operating in Japanese-controlled waters collided with two vessels of Japan’s Coast Guard. Japan detained the trawler’s captain; China responded by cutting off Japan’s access to crucial raw materials.

And there was nowhere else to turn: China accounts for 97 percent of the world’s supply of rare earths, minerals that play an essential role in many high-technology products, including military equipment. Sure enough, Japan soon let the captain go.

I don’t know about you, but I find this story deeply disturbing, both for what it says about China and what it says about us. On one side, the affair highlights the fecklessness of U.S. policy makers, who did nothing while an unreliable regime acquired a stranglehold on key materials. On the other side, the incident shows a Chinese government that is dangerously trigger-happy, willing to wage economic warfare on the slightest provocation.

Some background: The rare earths are elements whose unique properties play a crucial role in applications ranging from hybrid motors to fiber optics. Until the mid-1980s the United States dominated production, but then China moved in.

“There is oil in the Middle East; there is rare earth in China,” declared Deng Xiaoping, the architect of China’s economic transformation, in 1992. Indeed, China has about a third of the world’s rare earth deposits. This relative abundance, combined with low extraction and processing costs — reflecting both low wages and weak environmental standards — allowed China’s producers to undercut the U.S. industry.

You really have to wonder why nobody raised an alarm while this was happening, if only on national security grounds. But policy makers simply stood by as the U.S. rare earth industry shut down. In at least one case, in 2003 — a time when, if you believed the Bush administration, considerations of national security governed every aspect of U.S. policy — the Chinese literally packed up all the equipment in a U.S. production facility and shipped it to China.

The result was a monopoly position exceeding the wildest dreams of Middle Eastern oil-fueled tyrants. And even before the trawler incident, China showed itself willing to exploit that monopoly to the fullest. The United Steelworkers recently filed a complaint against Chinese trade practices, stepping in where U.S. businesses fear to tread because they fear Chinese retaliation. The union put China’s imposition of export restrictions and taxes on rare earths — restrictions that give Chinese production in a number of industries an important competitive advantage — at the top of the list.

Then came the trawler event. Chinese restrictions on rare earth exports were already in violation of agreements China made before joining the World Trade Organization. But the embargo on rare earth exports to Japan was an even more blatant violation of international trade law.

Oh, and Chinese officials have not improved matters by insulting our intelligence, claiming that there was no official embargo. All of China’s rare earth exporters, they say — some of them foreign-owned — simultaneously decided to halt shipments because of their personal feelings toward Japan. Right.

So what are the lessons of the rare earth fracas?

First, and most obviously, the world needs to develop non-Chinese sources of these materials. There are extensive rare earth deposits in the United States and elsewhere. However, developing these deposits and the facilities to process the raw materials will take both time and financial support. So will a prominent alternative: “urban mining,” a k a recycling of rare earths and other materials from used electronic devices.

Second, China’s response to the trawler incident is, I’m sorry to say, further evidence that the world’s newest economic superpower isn’t prepared to assume the responsibilities that go with that status.

Major economic powers, realizing that they have an important stake in the international system, are normally very hesitant about resorting to economic warfare, even in the face of severe provocation — witness the way U.S. policy makers have agonized and temporized over what to do about China’s grossly protectionist exchange-rate policy. China, however, showed no hesitation at all about using its trade muscle to get its way in a political dispute, in clear — if denied — violation of international trade law.

Couple the rare earth story with China’s behavior on other fronts — the state subsidies that help firms gain key contracts, the pressure on foreign companies to move production to China and, above all, that exchange-rate policy — and what you have is a portrait of a rogue economic superpower, unwilling to play by the rules. And the question is what the rest of us are going to do about it.

Pulikeshi · Post by **Pulikeshi** » 19 Oct 2010 21:24

Not sure if this was posted here before - Menon @ Carnegie:

India–U.S. Relations on the Eve of President Obama’s Visit

Altair · Post by **Altair** » 19 Oct 2010 23:50

Not exactly India-US related but I guess its significant when Obama comes to India and talks about Nuclear disarmament and commitment to NPT blah blah!!

US tested subcritical Nuclear tests last month

The US government said on Tuesday that it had carried out a subcritical nuclear test, which does not entail a chain reaction for a nuclear explosion, at a Nevada underground test site in September.
It was the first subcritical nuclear test since US President Barack Obama took office in January 2009. Obama has promoted his vision of a world free of nuclear arms, which helped win him last year's Nobel Peace Prize

what a hypocrite!

girish.r · Post by **girish.r** » 20 Oct 2010 01:55

Obama mission: Billions to Pakistan, billions from India

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/worl ... 776948.cms

Another round of charity?

putnanja · Post by **putnanja** » 20 Oct 2010 02:21

SERIOUS, BUT NOT EQUAL- Both the US and India have failed to decode Pakistan’s DNA

...
Both the US and India have failed to decode Pakistan’s DNA. The cancer in Pakistan is its military, which believes that it is the sole custodian of Pakistan’s integrity. Along the way, it has developed huge economic and other stakes to maintain status quo. Unless this institutional mindset undergoes a tectonic transformation, not only will periodic tremors be felt within the fledgling democracy in Pakistan, but this state will pose a grave security challenge to India and the international community. The Pakistan military’s view of a soft India, its use of terrorism as an instrument of State policy, and the perceived invincibility behind it’s nuclear arsenal and close partnership with China to keep India on a strategic leash and the US guessing make the Pakistan military leadership adventurous and unpredictable. With such a shaky finger on the nuclear trigger, not just India, but the international community must worry.

When Obama and the Indian prime minister sit down together in November, one hopes for introspection on the strategic implications of an imploding Pakistan financed by American largesse, egged on by an expansionist China, and the strategic responsibility this endows on two major democracies of the world.

India’s ability to be an equal strategic partner to the US will depend as much on the strength of its democracy and economy as on the integrity of its national security system, the robustness of its decision-making processes, a clear identification of the threats posed to its national security and a wilful determination to counter them. This is the homework we need to do to be taken seriously by the international community.
...
...
The author is a retired air marshal of the Indian Air Force

RamaY · Post by **RamaY** » 20 Oct 2010 02:28

^

Indian can aspire to be an equal partner to US only when it convincingly destroys Pakistan Military's war fighting capabilities. What happens to Pakistan nukes is not India's problem; Pakistani nukes are USA and PRC's problem.

India already has this capability.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 20 Oct 2010 02:28

On BRF we did decode the TSP DNA as the TSPA which is the kabila guards.
TSP is a gaint kabila uprooted from Indian subcontinent and allowed to pitch its tent outside the borders. The kabila guards in concert with the mullas, don't let the people settle down and constantly give them dreams of ruling over Cuddalore. Every once in a while to keep the morale up they launch attacks on India.

The US and West with China feed those dreams for some crazy religio-political reasons.

All that has to be done is to downsize/demilitarize the guards and let the people be free to settle down and become a normal state.

harbans · Post by **harbans** » 20 Oct 2010 03:17

What happens to Pakistan nukes is not India's problem; Pakistani nukes are USA and PRC's problem.

Really Ramayji? Paki Nukes are OUR Biggest problem. You have no solution, neither i or the present GOI for them, in case they do explode and most probably they will on OUR soil and not on US or European. This is precisely the thinking that let them have nukes in the first place. India never bothered about these animals getting hold of them by crook. India never made a realistic decision in the practical world who should and should not possess nukes. Surprisingly i've met an equal number of Psec libs and right wing types who've equally rubbished Paki nukes as someone else's problem. If anything this common ground assumption is India's biggest security nightmare and has been in the past and will be in the future.

arjunm · Post by **arjunm** » 20 Oct 2010 04:47

Seriously, do we need this visit? Looks like Mr.Hussain has a serious bone of contention in respect to India, how low this administration can go to humiliate us. Companies engaging in out sourcing? I think Info sys, Tata, Wipro should show this people a middle finger. I mean it. This administration on drugs and out of control.

b]Queries ahead of Obama meet upset India Inc[/b]
Indrani Bagchi, TNN, Oct 20, 2010, 01.47am IST

NEW DELHI: Top honchos keen on attending the US president's business event in Mumbai on November 6 will have to answer intrusive questions on whether they engage in "BPO" or "outsourcing" work for American companies in India.

The US-India Business Council (USIBC), which is one of the hosts of the event, appears to have brought US domestic politics to Indian shores. That may end up clouding probably the best of India-US relationships -- of the business communities.

All prospective participants at the daylong presidential event at the Oberoi will have to answer a questionnaire -- how much they export to the US, how much they import from the US, how many people do they employ in the US and how many in India. And then, whether they are engaged in BPO or outsourcing work for US companies in India.

India Inc is unhappy and angry. They wanted to have a high-profile networking event with US President Barack Obama. Two premier Indian business organizations, CII and FICCI, are co-hosts of the event and, sources said, have stoutly opposed Indian entrepreneurs having to answer this questionnaire. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee is listed as a special speaker at the event -- it is believed he may address the outsourcing issue.

The USIBC wanted to charge $500-$1,000 for every participant. This went against the grain for Indian business organizations. "We never charge participants either in the US or in India, particularly for head of state events.

This is a matter of prestige," said senior CII officials. After many arguments, the USIBC has now agreed not to charge members of CII or FICCI. But that is offset by a huge charge for companies that are "sponsors" -- they will have to pay $75,000 each, which has led to many complaints from the Indian side.

Outsourcing is a huge Obama bugbear. In the past few years, he has hit out against outsourcing a number of times, with particular reference to India. In an election year, this issue has gained a lot of momentum in a US racked by economic problems. In the past few weeks, Obama has gone on record to say, "We should be using our tax dollars to reward companies that create jobs and businesses within our borders. There is no reason why our tax code should actively reward them for creating jobs overseas."

Read more: Queries ahead of Obama meet upset India Inc - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... z12qojnUJm

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 777563.cms

uddu · Post by **uddu** » 20 Oct 2010 07:09

No headscarf, Obama may skip Golden Temple visit
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/no-he ... it/699380/
Better he skips rather than go there without wearing a Pagri. Pagri signifies self respect, courage, high moral standards, dignity and all the good qualities that the man stand for. If Obama feels he is not qualified to wear it. Better not.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dastar
Some idiots in the government and within the Sikh community itself believes that head covering is more important rather than wearing a Pagri. It is not. Pagri is more important than anything else. The qualities of a man value more than mere rituals and the representation of that quality is the Pagri. If Obama cannot wear and if he things it as something bad, he did not deserve to be in Golden temple.

uddu · Post by **uddu** » 20 Oct 2010 07:23

It's not that Obama did not wear skull cap. He did.
http://www.nowpublic.com/world/obama-sk ... lling-wall

Now what's the problem with Pagri which is the representation of self respect and good qualities.

putnanja · Post by **putnanja** » 20 Oct 2010 07:50

It is better if Obama cancels the visit to India, instead of trying these antics!

csharma · Post by **csharma** » 20 Oct 2010 08:11

One of the strange ideas the Americans came up with was that Obama would talk to public on both sides of Wagah. Luckily it was shot down by PMO.

Obama administration is essentially looking to enhance ties with China and Pakistan. Since it has been rebuffed by them it is looking at India. Say if China had accepted their G2 proposal, things would have been different.

As Brajesh Mishra said, for India the most important thing is what will US do when China and Pak gang up on India militarily and put India on pressure. As Ashley Tellis had mentioned earlier during Bush's time, US had assured India that it will support India if China were to become aggressive. After Obama came to power, we know what the Chinese have been doing: in Arunachal last year, in POK this year.

These Headley revelations are also showing that US prettymuch knew what this guy was upto but did not share it with India. They also should know that ISI and PA are involved and these are the people who floated this theory of "non-state actors" when 26/11 took place.

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 20 Oct 2010 08:32

Headley activities were known in 2005 by the Bush administration, but the CIA/FBI did nothing arguing they didn't know. From Bob Woodward's book, it was revealed that for every terrorist, the CIA creates a flow/contact diagram that follows a time line of where the person was and whom he met and then who these contacts are linked to. The potential Times Square Bomber was mapped directly to the TTP, but the book didn't say much after that, however Zardari and Kiyani were informed about it where they couldn't deny it. I suspect Fiasal Shazad was linked to Pak military operatives or the Obama administration would not have been so blunt with the Pak leadership.

The Obama administration can be faulted for denying information, timely access and extradition of Headley to India. The administration is no friend of India either. On the trade/economic front this administration has irritated India, so from that POV they suck even more than the Republicans. It is best for the Indian-American community to support Obama's opposition in mid-term elections so that they can deny him the legislative capacity to harm US-India trade relations.

Pratyush · Post by **Pratyush** » 20 Oct 2010 09:47

It is better for ombaba to skip india and only visit TSP if his admin is going to continue to act this way

Pranav · Post by **Pranav** » 20 Oct 2010 09:50

Obama mission: Billions to Pakistan, billions from India - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/worl ... 776948.cms

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 20 Oct 2010 10:12

This is quite significant and positive news.

NBC: Mumbai attack prompts intelligence review
Did a breakdown in sharing keep a suspect from being identified?

The Obama administration has ordered a review of U.S. intelligence about an American conspirator involved in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack to determine if there was a breakdown in information sharing among U.S. agencies that might have helped identify the suspect before the attack, two administration officials tell NBC.
The "after-action review" was ordered by James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, and is being overseen by White House counterterrorism adviser John Brennan. It was triggered by reports over the weekend that two ex-wives of the Mumbai plotter, Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley, had separately reported concerns to U.S. officials that he may have been involved in militant activity in Pakistan, the officials said.
There is a dispute among U.S. agencies about whether all the information provided by the two wives were shared among U.S. law enforcement — and whether it rose to the level that should have prompted a more aggressive inquiry into Headley’s activities. There also could be questions about whether information about Headley should have been passed along to the Indian government prior to the attack.
<snip>

putnanja · Post by **putnanja** » 20 Oct 2010 10:30

Just some cosmetic stuff before obama's visit so that India won't think US did it deliberately??

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 20 Oct 2010 17:58

The Mess-iah is proving himself to be a false "God".While he happily wears a skull cap in Jerusalem,which could be interpreted either way-both Jews and Muslims wear skull caps,he is loth to visit the Golden Temple in India for fear of being labelled as a Muslim! This is a gross insult to the Sikh community and Indians,who treasure and value India's great Sikh heritage.Why is he coming here at all? Dr.Singh,as a Sikh are you not upset at this insult by Obama?

Barack Obama 'will not visit Golden Temple over Muslim photo fears'
Barack Obama has reportedly abandoned plans to visit Amritsar's Golden Temple during his visit next month to India over fears photographs of him with his head covered would revive false claims that he is a Muslim.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... fears.html

Members of Mr Obama's White House team reportedly visited India last month and told Indian officials they were concerned that if the president wore the traditional headscarf during a visit to the Golden Temple, the photographs might be used to portray him as a Muslim, according to the New Delhi-based Indian Express

The temple's head priest Giani Gurbachan Singh was quoted saying a baseball cap would not be allowed, but Dalmir Singh, secretary of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandhak Committee, the Sikh governing body, said the president could wear anything to cover his head.

"Whatever he wishes to wear, he can. Our concern is to make sure he does. We don't have problem even if he wears a baseball cap or Muslim skull cap. We are all set to welcome him. It will a great honour. If the visit is cancelled just because of American politics, its will be disheartening," he said.

Hari Seldon · Post by **Hari Seldon** » 20 Oct 2010 18:00

^^ US is paying some $2bn in arms financing for TSPA - this was announced last week.

That alone is excuse enough to downplay if not postpone or cancel the pointless visit, IMVHO.