Karma V/S Dharma

For those of you who don’t understand the title, here’s what it means :

‘Karma’ or ‘Deed’ V/S ‘Dharma’ or ‘Duty’.

I found these thought provoking videos on you tube.1st video is an interesting debate between Ram Jethmalani and Sagarika Ghose (w.r.t JM fighting for Manu sharma ). If you are not aware of who these people are, I encourage you to go through the links.

My friend wrote to me :

“cut out the rhetoric and heed the point the old bloke was trying to make. 'EVERYONE is entitled to an unbiased trial and best available defense'. That is the crux of his argument... Professionalism does not preclude a conscience, it fosters it..”

I was impressed, but knew something was wrong.

I was quite restless about the whole video that day. I mean, this doesn't sound right – but its defended so perfectly. I went to you tube and started watching other interviews of JM (Jethmalani).Almost immediately, I found this :

Nobody could have done a better job I guess. I was all smiles after after watching this.

This is what I posted to my friend:

“No one is denying the fact that 'every case is indefensible' .. Who would? All I want is for you to not fall prey to JM's trick of putting the values of his institution as a defense against what he is justifying. Hypothetically ,If we were top lawyers, would you or Jose or myself take up Manu Sharma's case? We probably won't, right?That's the difference!
In saying that you believe 'everyone is entitled to an unbiased trial' , you are hardly defending JM or Manu Sharma, you are just defending the values of court as an institution which no person in right frame of his mind will disagree with...But it is his cheap trick to confuse simpletons like u and me by putting fwd something so undebatable. Watch the 3rd part where Karan repeatedly questions his conscience, and that's what its about.”

Many of you would have probably seen it, but I am so cut off from Indian news channels , that I was able to locate it only now.

Which of the two videos do you root for??

Religious Fanaticism

One of the status meme on FB reads

“2012 gives people false hope. with satellite off track, whatever evacuation plan cannot even be carried out. i'd rather place my hope in Jesus.”

I wonder if the person is confused between ‘believing in god’ and ‘discrediting humanity completely’.

I have seen hindu fanaticism in India. Now, I am in Singapore and I must admit I have never come this close to Christian Fanaticism. Also – I believed the problem could almost be conquered with education and better economic conditions. But no!I think it might have been a naive calculation.

I have this another guy who posted the below video on his profile with message “A true story... Please share this video with your friends or by posting it on your profile”.

Same guy has an album titled ‘Fellowship | Discipleship’ in his Facebook. He’s also running a cell group with all its members under age 21, some non-Christians and we probably know the motive.

I don’t know if you find it disgusting, but I do. I have read and heard of Christian Fanaticism in India and the violence by Hindu groups against churches and Christian organisations that follows.Now, I am so close to it, and have a much wider perspective on the whole subject.

Why can’t people simply follow their religion?Why do they have to manipulate it ?The above cases are just examples from today - SINGLE DAY!

Note : No offense to any particular religion.No offense to any particular person. I am just against 'Religious Fanaticism' as a larger threat to a peaceful society.

Freedom of Speech

Freedom of speech is being misused in US.

Excerpt :

"Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen has requested US President Barack Obama to hold a new investigation into the 9/11 attacks as he believes them to be staged by the Bush government."

On a similar note have a laugh watching the below video :

Those days…

Came across this wonderful summarization of pre-1991 era (in India’s context), from one of Gurcharan Das’s articles :

“Dreaded days prior to 1991 when our government did believe that the way to make a poor person rich is by making the rich poor”

Gurcharan Das almost always impresses me.A lot of my thoughts are reflection of his.