The Age of Intolerance

Last night I watched an absolutely thought provoking movie starring Denzel Washington. The movie tells the story of a group of black students studying in Wiley College who are egged on by their teacher to fight back racism through debating and claim what is rightfully theirs, human dignity. The narrative also dwells on the lives of the black community in Texas (and the intolerance that whites show to blacks, racism and conflict could have been anywhere in the South during the 1930s when racism was still rampant, The Klan was the leitmotif of white America in the south and lynching a common occurrence).

Based on a true life story the Great Debaters is directed by Denzel Washington and he stars in the lead role. Not surprisingly Oprah’s Harpo Production produced the movie. While Denzel gives a power-packed performance (as is usual) it is Forest Whitaker and Denzel Whitaker as James Farmer Sr and James Farmer Jr who draw you in. While Dead Poets Society is a coming-of-age movie and urges you to live life, The Great Debaters provokes you to look beyond your immediate self and fight for humanity.

“An unjust law is no law at at all”. This line is a refrain through the movie.

And does it hold good now or what as we hurtle forward in Intolerance: between races, religions, ethnic groups, rich and poor.

We precariously live in an Age of Intolerance, where students get suspended for cheering a sporting team from an ‘enemy’ country and even booked under sedition; where (girl) students are arrested in the middle of the night for expressing their opinion on social media; where journalists come under the scanner for being unbiased and objective; where stones are thrown and lives in peril for going against the body politic; where women are maimed and brutalised for daring to be ‘modern’; where publishers withdraw books because an unheard-of group complains it hurts religious sentiments; where going against populist agendas and ‘popular’ politicians can have dire consequences; where oppression is key to enforcing global capitalist policies and people are easy pawns to do with as governments deem fit.

Instead of freedom and economic prosperity what the 21st century will witness are more Arab Springs as citizens fight to throw off self-serving governments and oppressive forces.

Graphic Courtesy: map report

Good news: The educated class and our youth are not apathetic after all. We care.

Awake Asleep Awake……..

It’s been 10 days since I logged out of Facebook.

Quitting the stub was easier I think.

Tempted to go back and re-log, not to stay connected but to be a voyeur.

All the people I’m truly connected to stay on. I’m back to calls and starting to meet folks I haven’t met in ages. I was too busy trawling to comment on a feed or a photo they were tagged in.

How long will I stay off? Your guess is as good as mine.

I have never been the truly fortunate who multitask and accomplish much. I do one thing at one time and try to do it well. I would describe myself as mediocre at best. I thrive on my mediocrity.

I know if I die tomorrow and an obit is sent I will have 2 handfuls of friends who may shed a tear and sport a smile. High hopes?!

Am I rambling on?

Mayhap yes. But here is my list of accomplishments during the FB-off phase.

Unpacked my books, indexed them and stacked them in the library
Opened P Sainath’s Everybody Loves a Good Drought and Roald Dahl’s Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Half way through the first and almost done with the second)
Started my driving classes
Seldom log on to the laptop once I’m home
Miss my dog constantly, make up by picking fights with my mom (at least I’m starting to communicate)
I call up random friends, who send me snide, sarcy messages for remembering them finally, and oh yea, did I want something? (I deserve that I guess)
I have learnt to say no (lying actually but starting to say No when I mean No)
Taking care of myself (You detect the I-me-my pattern right?!)
I call up folks I care about more often (Sure I don’t get browny points for this but heh, you love me so better put up with this)
I’m sporting a smile and humming a song (I actually mouth lyrics these days, a huge WOW for me)
I hope to catch that interactive theatre my friend has been telling me about
Organised my wardrobe and my bills and my closet and gave away gunny-bag full of clothes and books (Oh yes, I’m wasteful but trying not to be)
I text friends (again, greeted by snide remarks, sarcy messages, etc etc..)
Dusted my dictionaries and my french notes (no, not the ones which says 1001 ways to french kiss but the legit stuff)
Cleaning up the workspace
I have 2 guppies that have survived in a fish bowl placed on the table at the work bay and a money plant that gave its first lil’ leaf (Thank you God, I love you)

Well, I think that’s enuf. I didn’t realise I actually managed to do so much till I started writing down this post. So Awake I’m. Trying to make the most of the 14-hour day. Yes, yes I still haven’t given up on sleep.

P.S: Rocksta I came back to Greyzed. Finally decided this suits me the most. And yes, we must meet. Let me know if next weekend works for you.

Spamming

I have written on Netiquette earlier but a spate of incidents in the recent past prompt me to add a postscript to the post 😉

Nearly everyone’s FB wall has been spammed with links that proclaim to contain Bin Laden’s video (the Seals attack!!) and links that claim to let you know who your top follower is and how it may include your ex and not to mention all the comments on IPL!!!! NOW REALLY….Are we living in such a voyeuristic culture that we need to click every link that promises SHOCK value when we know its spam.

Not only Facebook every day living has gotten to a point of getting spammed.

Mobile phones are replete with messages from banks promising personal loans, health insurance, great investments; travel agents promising once-in-a-lifetime offer and free tickets to godknowswhereandwhocares; yoga classes at your doorstep and home delivery of something akin to ATKINS diet….NOW REALLY….

Emails have too few mails and too much junk. You would never realise you were important or even LIVING until you have mails from YAHOO, MICROSOFT, SHELL, BRITISH PETROLEUM,GOOGLE sending you lottery winning notifications; mails from MARUTI, VIDEOCON, WINDSOR SHERATON, BPOfirms, unknown recruitment firms offering you a BIG break, a GREAT job; mails from your Nigerian uncle, Chinese grandad, African relative and European cousin offering you an inheritance; mails from the FBI, WHO, UN asking you for personal details……….NOW REALLY….

And try having a conversation with someone and if the topic, God forbid, is politics or cricket, everyone and his uncle has an opinion on it and the conversation is no longer a dialogue but a frenzied babel…NOW REALLY..

Spamming culture is here my friends, and where do we go from here??!

YOU TELL ME would love to know………………………………..

Netiquette

I have not been as prolific in posting as I used to, maybe the corporate angst is slowly being replaced by a drive to give back to society and all those who mentored me along the way.

I’m in the midst of a corporate makeover where collaboration replaces competition, information replaces misinformation, mentoring replaces backbiting and condescension, experimentation is welcomed and complacency ridiculed, where the old and young work together for a better today and a promising tomorrow.

Sounds ideal, well that is the way my state of affairs are turning out to be and I hope not to wake from this hallucination any time soon.

Now in the midst of this drastic change came another jolt. Of late I have returned to netting with a vengeance, whether it is browsing my sites of interest for news and contexts or whether it is facebooking and getting linked in with my worthy peers.

I have to admit netting has become addictive to some extent.

What all this two way communication has done is open my eyes to how archaic my language has become. Words that were innocuous before are now double intendre- loaded. And there is nothing like a private conversation either since the WALL is public.

My takeaways after a good friend had his wall bombarded with lewd comments, the net is here to stay and FACEbook is very much going to be a part of it, so get used to the public-city that this networked world brings in. Having said that, a few things stay the same:

Netiquette is as important in a virtual world as etiquette is in the real world, meaning:

Do not post lewd comment and innuendos on the WALL, not every body appreciates rauncy humor which can be NOT so humourous at times

Apologise

If a friend’s friend has tagged a photo of your friend you DO NOT need to comment, like, dislike, super like or express any of the myriad emotions

Do not send FRIEND requests to someone just because Facebook prompts you to with a You may know this XXX

Do not tag friends/people you do not know or merely acquainted with. Facebook allows people to tag themselves

Do not publish photos that may be distasteful or shows someone or even yourself in poor light

Do not pepper comments on people’s profiles when the flow of conversation does not relate to you (Remember just as it is rude to interrupt conversation in the real world so it is in the virtual one)

Spread the good word..there are times when things are worthy of reposting and bringing it to the world’s attention, so join the Cause without fear of public ridicule

And most importantly…be yourself. Just because you are in a virtual world does not mean you put on a MASK.

Great times

in the field of education. Here are some interesting experiments that are going on..

For quite some time now there has been this silent movement to propagate home schooling. The movement is starting to attract a lot of followers and is no longer as silent. Bullying, inability of dyslexic, differently-abled children, sexual harassment, peer pressure, non-conformism and a whole host of reasons are leading parents to take their kids away from a traditional learning environment to home school them, and technology has given warp speed to this movement. From virtual classrooms to e-learning to online tutorials and educational kits for parents teaching their kids at home, there is so much that is happening.

And guess what, Skype seems to have come with something unique. Check this out. Skype in the Classroom and tell me what you think. Is this the future of education? Will we need lesser teachers like Sam Pitroda remarked recently causing a furore among the teaching community in India. We still have some way to go but UGC, IGNOU and DD have already shown us that distance education is possible, but how effective it is ..well that is an answer worth finding out!!

Underpaid + Unappreciated

This is the third attempt at writing the post. Perhaps because the title affects me on an extremely personal level.

Left an organisation for the second part, left another for the first, seen a few good friends leave for both parts while some are hanging on by a thread of sanity for want of anything better. UNDERPAID + UNAPPRECIATED – the recession helped companies/individuals to spread this knell along. StOP already.

A word of appreciation or a letter of commendation in front of people who matter is not that difficult a task. Value your Employees and They WILL STAY, and even if they don’t, you have built a positive network who may help you sometime.

A friend said my posts are angsty. Had to refer to a dictionary first!! , and here is what I got.

angst – an acute but unspecific feeling of anxiety; usually reserved for philosophical anxiety about the world or about personal freedom

Bang on.

Why is it difficult for corporates to get rid of corporategiri and why do normal people live up to the adage Nothing Corrupts Like Absolute Power.

Over the span of a decade I have been mentored and groomed by some amazing professionals, some did it intentionally and some unknowingly. I have learnt to:

Be professional at work=Don’t carry a baggage and your kitchen sink to work; Stay focused; Don’t Take your work home=prioritise work/ Make a list of Things to Do/ Work at Getting Things Done on Time or Well Before

Don’t Overpromise & Under-deliver = Walk the talk. If you can, you can. If not YOU CAN’T. Don’t Commit yourself if you do not have the specifics and Do not know what is required. DO YOUR HOMEWORK always.

LEARN– Constantly upgrade your skills. Spread yourself and learn. Teach yourself if you can’t be taught. Never be afraid to ASK even if it means you make a fool of yourself. BE OPEN to receiving.

DON’T UNDERPRICE – yourself and the work you do. Find out the market value for the services you offer. After all, you are the product and undervaluing and underestimating yourself will amount to a Huge LOSS and possible bankruptcy. I learnt this the hard way when I offered to write an article for 100 bucks a piece, and found that the market rate was five times that. WHICH ALSO MEANS when it is appraisal time do not be afraid to ask for a hike and that promotion you deserve.

SHOW YOU CARE– Whether you Start Green Horns, a green initiative, like a few friends did, and they even went on to win an award for their documentary OR you are just saying Thank You to the lady at the reception who goes out of her way to make Life easy for you OR your young colleague who shares his insights into the workings of your organisation.

DE-CLUTTER – How can you get work done if your desktop is filled with a zillion icons and redundant folder or your table strewn with paper and chocolate wrappers or your mind anxious about the upcoming appraisal when you actually have a looming deadline waiting to be completed. Take one thing at a Time.

ADOPT NEW MEDIA – You do not have to be on Facebook constantly to adopt new media. There are networking platforms aplenty to suit your requirements but a few that any professional is well-advised to adopt. Linkedin and Slideshare being a few. Most HR professionals these days check your Linkedin profile and use their network to check and evaluate you. Who knows New Media may be where your next paycheck comes from!!

Leveraging Social Media

Often heated arguments erupt between Bambubhai and I over the power of the Social Media. (A quick note: Bambubhai is my sounding board, thick as brick and sharp as a harp with his tongue and wicked wit!!) Oh where was I, ah yes the arguments. He being a SM-hater and me being PRO-SM or New Media as I prefer calling all these great platforms.

Bambubhai: Pah and boo to Social Media, what social media?? This is nothing but intrusion of privacy. I don’t know why fool people want to waste time posting pics and boasting about stuff they would normally dare not get associated with including sloshed out pics and rave parties!!!!! And don’t you ever talk about getting me into all this NONSENSE.

Me: But honey, you don’t get it do you?? You need to be on these platforms and increase your network. Who knows someone may be needing your help right now.

Bambubhai: Like hell I care. If someone wants my help they can call me or meet me. See, that’s what social media does. It takes away the human connect. People spend more time on FB than they do with family. What’s the point? And networking, well I go out for a beer with my boys and yap with the gang. What better way to network, eh??

Naysayer though Bambubhai is, he still has hooked up with buddies across the globe on FB but not capitalized the rich network that Linkedin provides. Well to those of you interested to taste some of my pickled wisdom, here goes:

Facebook not only serves as a great place to hook up with friends, keep tabs on shall we say pppl whom u r green-eyed about, catch up with DJs/RJs/MCs and all the other alphabets, know the latest dos and win free tickets…FB is also a great place to set up your page if you are interested in getting your business/hobbies off the ground. I know of a theatre group, Yourstruly, which has optimally used FB to capture a ready audience.

The like/share button available on FB page also allows you to get more people involved in this type of marketing who would attract even more people on their page to see your project and thus it goes on.

Trick is to keep the content INTERESTING, involve reader participation, encourage comments, make it INTERACTIVE

Linkedin is a great platform to network professionally not only with peers or seniors in your field but related fields too. I have checked out other sites like ApnaCircle and Viadeo but personally, did not get much value from these as compared with Linkedin. (No: not getting paid to promote).

Look up for people whom you know ONLY and get connected. Very simple reason for this thumb rule: you do not want STRANGERS/ppl with whom you share a bad rapport use this site to badmouth you or spike your chances of creating helpful connections.

Join groups that are from your area of expertise or potential area so you can gain valuable insights into the industry or market. Unlike FB where you would go around adding folks with whom u would share a Hi once in six months, be selective about whom you add on in professional networking sites.

I scratch your back, you scratch mine may be crass..but it works best this way for those who are just starting off on a professional networking platform. Later, you can use even more discretion in adding folks on your connected list.

Do not go around plastering recommendation with/from people whom you have not worked on in a personal level. And even if you do, specify the key adjectives on which the commendation can be framed so it at least has credence of authenticity.

Participate in group discussions and follow normal etiquette that you would in a formal face-to-face conversation. Smart alecks and Talking down are not welcome. Initiate discussions. Be genuine.

Twitter isn’t a fad. Yes, I wrote it off a few years back when it started but the micro-blogging platform has survived and thrived despite naysayers like me. I’m a believer in Twitter reach especially after the Brigade Carlton episode. Twitter is yet to be harnessed fully.

Twitter not only provides you the freedom of creating lists but also allows you to create new trending topics with the use of a # tag. Again, follow common day-to-day etiquettes. Your stepping into the loo doesn’t require a 140-word tweet, does it 😉

Blogging is more than a personal journal.

And some new age consultants like businessblogging.com are an eye opener as was the great social media experiment I was privileged to be a part of. CIIConnect 2010 was a great experience and ardently hope that I get the opp to participate in more such events. Meanwhile, remember a blog is a great outlet to outpour your angst and showcase your wit aka ‘A’ Corner but also is a great way to increase your network and visibility.

Whether WordPress or Blogger, all the widgets these blogging hosts provide can be creatively used to increase traffic. Check HellBound Bloggers and Mashable for updated+Tips on optimal use of New Media.

Rules to be followed are same as the other platforms. Refrain from foul language unless that is your USP, but be wary of the followers you attract. Always Pay It Forward. It helps to give because end of it all .. what you give is what you get my friend.

Happy networking, and do keep on coming back to share your valuable insights and great feedback.

Mob –(ab)- ility

Mad men and mobs. Plenty getting written about on New Media Platforms (read: Facebook/Twitter/Forums/Blogs) on impending Ayodhya verdict and possible mob violence. State governments across the country have (hopefully) taken preventive measures to ensure there is no replay of what happened in the past.

Not giving my two bits coz that is bound to have all the flag-bearing powers flag me down. After all there is much ado about nothing, if you look at it from my perspective – a mythical character representing the ‘Ideal Man’ when he disbelieved his wife and considered every angle but his life partner’s. What more do I say?

My only bit – mob mentality shouldn’t over take the sane mind. Seen mobs chasing neighbours and terrorizing friends in the name of religion, a dead film icon, the release of a new movie and even allowing outsiders write national competitive exams but never to protest against denial of their human rights, lack of nutrition, lack of education, and so many other (un)important things.

Our mobility to move beyond the pettiness is what has held us in good stead, let us not let mob (Ab) ility to DO us in and ROCK our existence.

Let PEACE prevail, and not pieces.

POST-SCRIPT

The majority favored in the Ayodhya verdict and life goes on or only time will tell. Meanwhile, some gems on the verdict plastered on SM.

Saumyadeb Chakrabarty The verdict is simple — there will be a temple, there will be a mosque and there will be a gym.

Gurdeep Singh ik tarf mandir, ik tarf masjid, tey vich nange pehelwaan

Gunajit Brahma begin_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Just read the Ayodhya Verdict!

My take.. History has shown us that division of land (eg. Pakistan and Bangladesh) has only created hatred and war. Instead, utilise the land to make an Educational institute of world repute where students from any and every religion can come and study.
Education should come before religion for building a… Great Nation.
Right to Education. Right to Prosperity. Right to Peace. Jai Hind.

Debabrata Debabrata Acharjee

We have built enough mosques and temples. Lets build the nation now

nehamaini Neha Maini

The problem with all our collective blogging about the #ayodhya verdict is that no Kar Sevak is going to read these posts and weep

PeaceTalksCfP PeaceTalks http://bit.ly/cgy0p2

vikramadhiman Vikrama Dhiman

+11 ka prasad RT @harmanjit @timesofindia should publicly applogise for its inflammatory & irresponsible Headline today on #Ayodhya verdict!

SnehaGee Sneha G

Discussing the Ayodhya verdict with the rickshaw walla. Rather educated & disinterested man. We shall get along.