Tuesday, January 29, 2008

literally random!

so much has happened since christmas. i made a contribution to the casino for new year's. chaitra met my folks and acts as if she likes them (she probably gets along ok) and we've finally started shopping for le ring. yes yes, i have always despised the idea of giving a ring in exchange for a woman's hand, but it seems, it's more about giving something as a remembrance. now i'm actually looking forward to it. also, formal engagement dates have been set and formal wedding dates are being planned out. God willing, everything will be fine.
my effective time-management thing lasted 10 full days. i'm no longer maintaining a list and am no longer striking things off. i am keenly watching the primaries and am hoping for an obama win. i somehow wish i could afford to work for the dem party; i'll help them better craft a message- they suck at doing it.
international law continues to be boring; i think i'll maintain a B/B+ grade this time and be happy with it. oops, our second moot court is this week.
megha took me to an italian place that had the best sauce ever! i need to take all my friends there at least once! i could have my wedding dinner there!
seriously man, i sometimes act like i'm the woman in the relationship. plus, she totally has balls.
*yawn*
ps: i have a french beard now; pooja wants a pic hehe
pps: rajkiran thought i should paste this in a blog; i know he was taking my trip, but what the heck
==
rajkiran: ok...
3:13 PM elections follow autunnava ?
3:14 PM me: sorta
i'm beginning to hate kill blinton
rajkiran: he he
3:15 PM its inevitable that he takes centerstage
3:16 PM me: seriously
i'm hating this whole 'dynasty' thing
3:17 PM rajkiran: its prevalent everywhere...india, pak, srilanka...u name it...
me: point
but i never expected it in amrika ;)
3:18 PM rajkiran: "known devil is better than unknown angel" syndrome
me: it's been absent for generations now
3:19 PM rajkiran: kennedys wouldve been the first if they all hadnt gotten killed...
me: well
roosevelt was there before that
3:20 PM and before that, adams family was there (father-son presidents)
teddy roosevelt and franklin roosevelt were 4th of 5th cousins (and i dunno what it means)
3:22 PM rajkiran: so it exists...its getting highlighted more in this media-crazy age...
3:23 PM me: like i said
we haven't had it in a coupla generations
and i hadn't expected one
3:24 PM rajkiran: who do u think will get the nomination or rather should get it ?

15 minutes
3:40 PM me: hillary has enough corporate backup to raise money and win
obama should win ;)
3:41 PM rajkiran: y ? becos he is young ? or can he truly reduce the polarity that exists right now ?
3:42 PM and also restore world order...

7 minutes
3:49 PM me: nah
i'm not that optimistic about him
but in the short run, i think he and his party will question/change the status quo over the next 4 years
we are in dire need of that as of now
3:50 PM clinton, i think is an "establishment" candidate (she wouldn't have been back in 1992), but with an ex-potus behind her, she cannot win without that establishment
3:51 PM if there is one reason why obama isn't doing as well as clinton is because he is badly failing at providing an articulate narrative for his positions
i'll give an example:
they threw a question at him
3:52 PM 'your advisers used to advice clinton way back in 1992. with such advisors how can you claim that you're a candidate of change?'
hillary said 'i wanna see you answer that' and cackled'
this fellow got smart and said 'i look forward to you serving me as well'
3:53 PM done, over. the media said 'obama made a good comback and won his argument'
but in reality, he was beingfunny- he made no argument and was not articulate about his position on hiring ex-clinton (potus) advisors
3:54 PM he could have said 'back then, clinton stood for an agent of change- mainly because he stood for changing against 12yrs of republicchaan administration. now i have the same team routing for ME instead of routing for HIS wife'
how easy was that narrative? but he didn't pull it. that's why he's trailing in some polls
sigh
3:55 PM anduke ra nannu evvarru emi adagaru
rajkiran: in-depth analysis avasaramu babai....
3:56 PM entha mandi pattichukuntaru anedi important...
me: yup
but if you read my argument carefully
it tells you volumes on why ex-clinton advisers aren't advising hillary clinton
1. she has empty experience
3:57 PM 2. she claims that she really is the wife of a black president (clinton was hailed as the first black president, metaphorically, because of his background)
3. she won new york by fluke!
this fellow has had grassroots experience man
anywho
3:58 PM rajkiran: but natl. level takkuva kadaa ?

5 minutes
4:03 PM me: bhalle vaadivi ra nuvvu
national level experience evariki undhi?
woodrow wilson, teddy roosevelt, john F kennedy - were all considered great presidents.
4:04 PM they all had modest political experience when they became presidents
it's that fresh blood that doesn't mix in properly with the DC blood that makes these blokes stand out
4:05 PM and even the more average presidents- reagan, clinton, nixon, etc - had only state-level experience (all governors) (i chose these guys because they all won 2 terms)
4:07 PM rajkiran: thats true...but in the current scenario, its not just abt lifting this country out of economic doldrums kadaa...its also abt getting back some credibility in the world...
keeping these in mind...can obama do it given enuf time ani...
me: you can save the world babai
but you do it one step at a time
4:08 PM i want young fresh blood, who can challenge the status quo and can make a coupla good steps first.
world credibility will automatically fix itself. i don't think world credibility is gonna be on the leader's mind in the beginning- the leader needs to serve his constituents well. everything else is peripheral
4:09 PM so right now, the question isn't "given enough time will he be a good leader?", but is "what's the best replacement to overturn what's been done over the last 8 years?". this guy is your guy
4:11 PM rajkiran: lets hope so...
me: yup
you know what upsets me though...
4:12 PM we've not had a senator from the democratic party win the presidency after JFK
in fact, after JFK- no senator has won the election
they were all governors
(executive experience)
so why is the democratic party not encouraging guys like bill richardson and howard dean? i don't get it
4:13 PM rajkiran: maybe they dont have enuf clout
4:14 PM me: good point
if they don't- then we gotta ask why they are not able to manage that
do people simply do not want democratic governors?
here's an argument:
4:15 PM the people who needed the welfare dept (so called poor people), the people who needed equal rights (women, colored, etc) and people who wanted help from the govt are the ones who used to vote for democrats
maybe that demographic has changed
and the party isn't realizing that
they still quarrel about getting the female vote (for abortion issues) and about getting the black vote (for something they did 50 yrs ago)
4:16 PM why still worry about that?
why not talk about alternative fuel reserach and investments in climate change and about saving social security for the extremely young and extremely old?
these are the new issues- and they don't talk about it enough
4:18 PM rajkiran: i think once it comes down to crunch time they go back to tried and tested "roti-kapda-makaan" formula
4:19 PM me: the fundamentals
rajkiran: yup
me: it's time to change them
and the 18-24 yr old age bracket said that
they couldn't understand the big deal about why blacks were studying in separate classrooms and had diff bathrooms until 1955
4:20 PM they don't count it as a big deal
and they are worried about how they are taking loans for college, and aout social security being cut from their taxes not knowing if it'll be there in 45 yrs for them
people don't want equality in name anymore, they want opportunity
4:21 PM (which is actually a republican party formula)
4:23 PM rajkiran: it will change if more ppl in that bracket come out and vote...right now dems r only worried abt black votes and women's votes
me: concur
4:24 PM it's difficult to get new people to vote in this country (esp 18-24 yr olds)
it's a small technicality but it goes a long way in a majority of the counties
4:25 PM 1 voter registration requirements for some are stringent (since a lot of students are out of state, it becomes difficult for them to vote in state where they go to college) so students have difficulty registering
2 voter registration deadlines are at least a month before the election in most states (MN is one state that has same-day registration- and it has had 70% of voter turnout in some races)
4:26 PM 3 elections are on weekdays - students have exams (one big reason why Kerry lost Ohio in 2004)
so, the electoral process as of now, needs to be reformed
4:27 PM i can't believe no one talks about it and even if they do, they get accused of being unpatriotic
should i stop yacking ;)
you have no idea how many people every year go 'fuck i wish i registered' or 'fuck- is that what i need to do to register?' etc
rajkiran: go ahead babai...u should blog all this....
4:28 PM me: the parties need to spend money in a bipartisan electoral commission to fix this!
blog hehe
4:29 PM inka enna samachara?
rajkiran: fix the electoral system so that right demographic can vote and we can have the right ppl at the helm...thats the solution...
nice...

Thursday, January 3, 2008

another year

new year is always exciting for me. this year, my new year resolution: effective time management. i won't read useless things, watch simpsons, sopranos or tintin without finishing up all my chores and errands. i even started making a list of todos and am scratching out items as soon as they are done. so far, it's working ;)

new year eve was different this time; i made a donation for a change. to the casino. hundred dollars. per hour. for five hours. great start, i say.

i already feel 28! and now i gotta go clean up my room. what am i doing here?! hopefully next year by this time, i will use the phrase "my wife". *sigh* i hate what she's done to me.

the person who i borrowed w00t from? i forgot her birthday yet again! and i'm so good at remembering birthdays. a big belated happy birthday to lauren ;)

studying sucks. i just wanna drink single malts, eat nachos and watch cartoons.

why is it that every time i look at obama, i picture a bullet in his chest? i'm gonna vote in the IL primaries, god damn it. we're gonna put him in the office!

ps: i need to get my IL id.