Rakesh Jhunjhunwala view........

Trading is against human nature


One of the worlds greatest super traders operating in one of the worlds toughest stock markets, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala is as bullish on India today as he has been since 1985. Here he explains his investments approach and the influences which have shaped it.

All risk taking is associated with two human conditions, viz the greed for profits and the fear of losses. The ability to strike the right balance between fear and greed is the most vital determinant of profitable risk-taking. Human nature operates on the chance of a gain rather maximizing gains. There is lack of focus on the magnitude of gains and losses, which is why I maintain that good trading requires you to go against the basic tenets of human nature. In both trading and investing, it's important what you buy, but it's more important at what price you buy.
Even traders who use the latest technology to help them take decisions, or use sophisticated proprietarymodels developed by big investment institutions such don't really know why they have bought or sold aparticular stock. It is a combination of empirical evidence, gut feeling, other people's opinions, or sometimes it's just because he or she is feeling bullish that day. Yet when one takes a big loss; why do we continue to trade? We are programmed to learn, and we learn to avoid pain. But in trading, you have to learn to take a loss.
Good judgment comes from experience, experience comes from bad judgment. You can't teach trading, trading has to be learnt, but to some extent, I think traders are born.It's a knack. It is a rule of human nature that it is very difficult to change ourselves. The ability to adapt and change and mitigate prejudice is critical to success for someone who wants to earn a livelihood from the markets. I can be a bull and a bear, and sometimes both at the same time. I've done a 1800 turn when necessary. I used to be a bear during Harshad Mehta's time, I'm very bullish now. In the market you have to be like a chameleon, always changing your colors.
I have a passion for equities. In fact, I love trading and investing, and even if I had to pay for doing it, I would have surely done so.
Just like most children, I first wanted to be a pilot, and then dreamt of being a journalist. As a child, I was introduced to the world of stocks due to my father's hobby of investing and trading in shares. I would listen to conversations about stocks among my father's friends and the fluctuations in stock prices fascinated me.
On quizzing my dad, he advised me to link the fluctuation in prices to the news flow. I read newspaper columns on stock prices with absolute fascination, and decided early on in life that stocks and shares were going to be my calling in life.
After graduating from Sydenham College, I completed my chartered accountancy in 1984. The childhood fascination with stocks was compounded with the realization that capitalism is going to prevail in the world, and that the temples of capitalism, the capital markets, are going to be the new temples. This led me to embark upon a career in the capital markets. This was most unorthodox and unacceptable to most people, including my family. But, having a democratic father was a big help. He stressed upon me the fact that he would not support me financially in this endeavor.
At the same time he offered the security of a house in Bombay, where I could always live, and impressed upon me the fact that I was a qualified professional and that I could always make a living even if I failed in my endeavors in the markets. He also wanted me to never forget that, "My word is my bond", and to not attempt any shortcuts. My father, the person from whom I have learnt the most in life, may not have backed me financially, but he always blessed me and my endeavors, whatever they be, from the bottom of his heart. I do not think I could be anywhere near what I am today without the guidance and blessings of my parents. Despite our differences of opinion, I have always lived with my parents, as I do today. They have been my greatest source of succor and support in times good and bad.
I had a capital of just Rs 5,000. With this capital, my skills and dreams, along with the blessings and guidance of my elders, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala arrived in 1985 on the streets of the Bombay Stock Exchange with the firm conviction and belief "Hum honge kaamyah!"
One obviously cannot be a trader or investor in capital markets without capital. My brother, a practicing chartered accountant, had many rich clients; and helped me raise about Rs1.5mn from his clients. With this capital, in a short period of one year I earned nearly Rs1mn and invested the gains in 5,000 shares of Tata Power.
Those days will always be etched in my mind. My office was the pavement outside the stock exchange, my cupboard was the brief case I carried and my computer was a calculator.
The markets went through a lean period of about two to three years, during which I had no activity, no income and often wondered whether I had made the right decision. In the meanwhile I got married and it was only the fact that I lived in a joint family that allowed me to see through this trying period.
Initially, I did not trade or speculate but! soon realized that to be an investor you need big capital. And the only way I could get substantial capital was through trading income. The markets recovered and my investments in Tata Power along with the profitable trades in Sesa Goa and Telco soon brought my net worth close to Rs15mn. I now had the capital to risk and to make investments.
I will never forget the budget delivered by the finance minister, Madhu Dandvante, in 1990. All of India was bearish on equities with the lone exception of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala. I think that budget was an inflexion point and quintupled my net worth. It is such pendulum shifts that create the opportunity to trade, to invest or disinvest wisely and profitably. Over the years I have learnt that not only is it critical and extremely difficult to identify such inflexion points, it is even more difficult to deal with such situations.
It also gave me confidence in my own abilities for I had held my own against some of the most influential and venerated opinion makers in equity markets. As my trading activity increased, I realized its nature as well as its importance. Trading taught me to see the world as it is rather than as one would like it to be.
Trading also gave me the money required to make investments.
In a capitalistic society, superior returns without risk taking is but a flight of fancy. Risk-takers we all are, but I think measured risk-taking in the right dose and manner is the key to performance in markets. Never forgetting my father's words, "My word is my bond"; I have always been a risk-taker( but one need to take), albeit a responsible and measured one. I have always borrowed money in these markets full of fire, but I am proud and happy to say I have an impeccable financial reputation, and have always lived up to my father's guidance on responsibility and prudence. To most people, it is a paradox that one who deals in risk continuously by trading or speculating or investing, can at the same time consider himself financially responsible and prudent. in trading, the first and the last principle is that trading is trend and price based, and not opinion based.
This requires you to square an unfavorable trade regardless of your opinion. This means that if I buy a stock at Rsl00, and then the price falls to Rs95, I take my loss and square off my trade. This is counterintuitive to most people. This is the one common quality of all successful traders. I have tried to rationalize this many a time, and am always reminded of Churchill's words, ''You have to lose many a battle to win the War". I think anybody who wants to trade should not only remember what Churchill MS said, but also what George Soros says, "It's not important whether you are right or wrong, it more important how much you lose when you are wrong and how much money you make when you are right". This requires you to square unfavorable trades, and to pyramid your profitable ones. In trading, everything else is illusion and hope, the sole reality being price. The great fortunes are made by the occurrence of the unknown, and the first portends of the unknown is price, price and only price.
Good trading requires three qualities:
1. broad idea of direction
2. knowing what and how much to risk
3. knowing when and how to take a loss
I have only traded in Indian equity markets in my life so far. But having learnt the broad principles of trading, I have the confidence that I can trade in any market and or any asset class. Today, with confidence, I am preparing myself and Rare Enterprises (my trading firm) for the day when we can trade and invest internationally. Of course, this is subject to capital account convertibility.
Lot of people quiz me, "Doesn't the volatility inherent in trading, combined with the financial implications of gains and losses impact me mentally and emotionally, or bring about a change in the quality of my life?" I always risk a miniscule portion of my wealth when I trade, and in any case, trading gains and losses do not impact my lifestyle. Sure, I would be lying if I say that it has no effect whatsoever, but then I am also reminded of Churchill's words again. I also believe that the process of earning wealth is far more exciting than actual wealth. And I believe in life that it's only those who can lose a battle with a smile, are the ones who will win the ultimate battle. To my mind, the inhibition of making a mistake or being wrong is the biggest stumbling block to progress and gain in life. I am not afraid to make a mistake in life, but it should be one that I can afford, so that I may live to make another one.
Trading also requires tremendous conviction and independence of thought. Just, as in all walks of life, discipline is the key to success in markets. I wish I had the same discipline in my personal habits as I have in markets.
All trading is trend-following and momentum-playing.
And all investing is about perceiving the future and linking it to a value, besides understanding the role of time. I have learnt that trend is my friend and never pre-empt or question trends unless the reversal becomes apparent. In investing, one should always be greedy, but be long term greedy. to many, leverage is poison. But as they say, one man's poison is another man's food. For me, disciplined and emotionless leverage have been the key to my success. We should also remember that we earn wealth in consonance with the market opportunities and our risk taking abilities, rather than with our desire to earn a measured quantum of wealth every year, regardless of market opportunities and liquidity.
Investing success requires that one does not always react to the apparent. It is not about buying the optimism and selling the pessimism. This was proved magnificently in my purchase of PSU (public sector undertaking) stocks in 2001 when the whole world was buying dud pseudo- technology stocks. Superior investment returns are not gained without pain, time, introspection and doubt. There are a certain people whose views I value, some friends with whom I discuss matters. In the early days, I learnt all great deal from Radhakishnan Damani. But the best decisions in trading and investment are essentially very lonely decisions. I have also learnt in life that regardless of whoever has advised or influenced any decision that I have made, good or bad, I am responsible for it. I take all credit and all blame.
My ten commandments for trading
1. be realistic: Make trading price dependent, not opinion dependent
2. trading is a full time profession, not a part time job. It cannot be half-hearted
3. know the rules and verify them for they many not to what you assume
4. never aspire to be the markets master. Its best to be its slave. Leverage your skills, not your capital
5. have a broad idea of direction. Remember, trend is your friend
6. dont be afraid to make a mistake. Only ensure you make one that you can afford so that you may love to make another
7. play Seen, not Blind for the market offer many an opportunity even after the cards are open
8. know what and how much risk. Assess risk
9. take a loss. The first loss is the best loss. Pyramid your profits
10. good judgment come from experience. Experience comes from bad judgments. Trading can only be learnt it cant be taught.
Ive had my fair share of doubts, and have made ,some mistakes, but you have to believe in yourself, whatever you do. Many a time, it takes time for markets to realize value. But my experience in markets have taught me that ultimately markets do what is right, and hence when I am wrong in markets I do not blame markets but blame myself. I think the first important lesson that we must learn to be successful in markets is that markets are supreme. We also have to remember that markets are ruthless and very intelligent. A market participant should always respect markets as being the ultimate arbitrators and deciders. I believe that the markets always decide rightly and correctly over a sufficient period of time.
We should never forget the words of Sir John Templeton, "Markets are like a woman, always commanding, always mysterious, always uncertain."We should hold our conviction with patience. If we do not accept the supremacy of markets, we will end up defying them and will land up being consigned to the poor-house. Believe me, this is the one quality which is most required to be successful in markets.
My ten commandments for investing
1. be an optimist: the necessary quality for investing success
2. expect a realistic return. Balance fear and greed
3. invest on broad parameters and the larger picture. Make it an act of wisdom, not intelligence
4. caveat emptor. Never forget this four letter word R-I-S-K
5. be disciplined. Have a game plan
6. be flexible for investing is always in the realms of possibilities
7. contrarian investing: not a rule, not ruled out
8. its important what you buy, its more important at what price you buy
9. have conviction, be patient. Your patience may be tested but your conviction will be rewarded
10. make exit an independent decision, not driven by profit or loss
To be successful in investing, many elements have to fall into place. But four things are critical. There has to be an attractive, addressable, external opportunity; a sustainable competitive advantage; scalability and operating leverage; and the management should be of high quality and integrity. All have to be present but they still constitute only 50% of our necessary requirement. It is important what one buys, but its more important at what price one buys. The price at which we buy is the ultimate determinant of our profit or loss. I am happy to say that a loss in investing has been a rare occurrence in my career, and the key to it is that I am an investor who focuses obsessively on value. Therefore, I may have made a mistake in buying NUT in 2001, but I still made a profit.
I am not easily convinced about an investment, but when I am convinced, I keep my opinion despite the world differing with me even if it persists over a long period of time.
Fundamental analysts are obsessed with predicting profits correctly, forgetting that we are investing in an uncertain future, and in the realms of possibilities( very important according to me). When I make an investment, I try and understand the factors that I drive profits rather than worrying about the absolute quantum of profits. The opportunity should be so compelling that we should not need to interact with anyone before seizing the opportunity.
We should invest first, investigate later.
I have also learnt that many opportunities lie in crisis.
It is very apt that the Chinese symbol for crisis is the same as that for opportunity. It was the crisis at Titan that offered one of the best investing opportunities of my life.
The determinants of the price of any stock are a simple mathematical formula:
It was apparent that when both the variables determining price viz EPS and PER gain, stock prices explode.
I learnt that EPS was specific to each company while the PER was dependent on various factors, both internal and external to the company. I should not look only at the EPS of the company but also the quality of the EPS. The quality depends mainly on three factors:
1 accounting practices
2 cash profile of the profits
3 return on capital
The internal conditions that determine PER include the reward model of the company, predictability of earnings. the risk model, perceived growth opportunity and the perceived integrity of the management. I believe prediction of EPS is mainly science and part art; but prediction of PER is an art with very little science. Apart from being the most difficult aspect of successful investing, it is also the most critical.
I was the most dogmatic person when I first interacted with markets. But, markets and time have humbled me and I have learnt to realize and say, "I can be wrong" whenever I express an opinion. I have also learnt that the quest to learn and perform in markets as in life is a journey and not a destination. I have shared with you some of these learning's and shall further learn and further share with you in future.
I would like to end by sharing with you that the greatest learning i have it is that the key to success is God's Grace and Elder's Blessings.(WHY he should say so?) We should never forget that success can be temporary and transient, and should never take it for granted.

Ten strategic technologies for 2009

Gartner Inc analysts have highlighted the top 10 technologies and trends that will be strategic for most organisations. The analysts presented their findings during Gartner Symposium/ITxpo held recently.Gartner defines a strategic technology as one with the potential for significant impact on the enterprise in the next three years. Factors that denote significant impact include a high potential for disruption to IT or the business, the need for a major dollar investment, or the risk of being late to adopt.Strategic technologies affect, run, grow and transform the business initiatives of an organisation, said David Cearley, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. Companies should look at these 10 opportunities and evaluate where these technologies can add value to their business services and solutions, as well as develop a process for detecting and evaluating the business value of new technologies as they enter the market.

1)Virtualisation

Much of the current buzz is focused on server virtualization, but virtualisation in storage and client devices is also moving rapidly. Virtualisation to eliminate duplicate copies of data on the real storage devices while maintaining the illusion to the accessing systems that the files are as originally stored (data duplication) can significantly decrease the cost of storage devices and media to hold information. Hosted virtual images deliver a near-identical result to blade-based PCs. But, instead of the motherboard function being located in the data center as hardware, it is located there as a virtual machine bubble. However, despite ambitious deployment plans from many organisations, deployments of hosted virtual desktop capabilities will be adopted by fewer than 40 per cent of target users by 2010.

2)Cloud computing

Cloud computing is a style of computing that characterizes a model in which providers deliver a variety of IT-enabled capabilities to consumers. They key characteristics of cloud computing are delivery of capabilities as a service, delivery of services in a highly scalable and elastic fashion, using Internet technologies and techniques to develop and deliver the services, and designing for delivery to external customers. Although cost is a potential benefit for small companies, the biggest benefits are the built-in elasticity and scalability, which not only reduce barriers to entry, but also enable these companies to grow quickly. As certain IT functions are industrialising and becoming less customised, there are more possibilities for larger organisations to benefit from cloud computing.

3)Cloud computing Servers -- beyond blades

Servers are evolving beyond the blade server stage that exists today. This evolution will simplify the provisioning of capacity to meet growing needs. The organisation tracks the various resource types, for example, memory, separately and replenishes only the type that is in short supply. This eliminates the need to pay for all three resource types to upgrade capacity.It also simplifies the inventory of systems, eliminating the need to track and purchase various sizes and configurations. The result will be higher utilisation because of lessened waste of resources that are in the wrong configuration or that come along with the needed processors and memory in a fixed bundle.

4)Web-oriented architectures

The Internet is arguably the best example of an agile, interoperable and scalable service-oriented environment in existence. This level of flexibility is achieved because of key design principles inherent in the Internet/Web approach, as well as the emergence of Web-centric technologies and standards that promote these principles. The use of Web-centric models to build global-class solutions cannot address the full breadth of enterprise computing needs. However, Gartner expects that continued evolution of the Web-centric approach will enable its use in an ever-broadening set of enterprise solutions during the next five years.

5)Enterprise mashups

Enterprises are now investigating taking mashups from cool Web hobby to enterprise-class systems to augment their models for delivering and managing applications. Through 2010, the enterprise mashup product environment will experience significant flux and consolidation, and application architects and IT leaders should investigate this growing space for the significant and transformational potential it may offer their enterprises.

6)Specialised systems

Appliances have been used to accomplish IT purposes, but only with a few classes of function have appliances prevailed. Heterogeneous systems are an emerging trend in high-performance computing to address the requirements of the most demanding workloads, and this approach will eventually reach the general-purpose computing market. Heterogeneous systems are also specialised systems with the same single-purpose imitations of appliances, but the heterogeneous system is a server system into which the owner installs software to accomplish its function.

7)Social software and social networking

Social software includes a broad range of technologies, such as social networking, social collaboration, social media and social validation. Organisations should consider adding a social dimension to a conventional website or application and should adopt a social platform sooner, rather than later, because the greatest risk lies in failure to engage and thereby, being left mute in a dialogue where your voice must be heard.

8)Unified communications

During the next five years, the number of different communications vendors with which a typical organisation works with will be reduced by at least 50 per cent. This change is driven by increases in the capability of application servers and the general shift of communications applications to common off-the-shelf server and operating systems. As this occurs, formerly distinct markets, each with distinct vendors, converge, resulting in massive consolidation in the communications industry. Organisations must build careful, detailed plans for when each category of communications function is replaced or converged, coupling this step with the prior completion of appropriate administrative team convergence.

9)Business Intelligence

Business Intelligence (BI), the top technology priority in Gartners 2008 CIO survey, can have a direct positive impact on a companys business performance, dramatically improving its ability to accomplish its mission by making smarter decisions at every level of the business from corporate strategy to operational processes. BI is particularly strategic because it is directed toward business managers and knowledge workers who make up the pool of thinkers and decision makers that are tasked with running, growing and transforming the business. Tools that let these users make faster, better and more-informed decisions are particularly valuable in a difficult business environment.

10)Green IT

Shifting to more efficient products and approaches can allow for more equipment to fit within an energy footprint, or to fit into a previously filled center. Regulations are multiplying and have the potential to seriously constrain companies in building data centers, as the effect of power grids, carbon emissions from increased use and other environmental impacts are under scrutiny. Organisations should consider regulations and have alternative plans for data center and capacity growth.A strategic technology may be an existing technology that has matured and/or become suitable for a wider range of uses, said Carl Claunch, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. It may also be an emerging technology that offers an opportunity for strategic business advantage for early adopters or with potential for significant market disruption in the next five years. Companies should evaluate these technologies and adjust based on their industry need, unique business needs, technology adoption model and other factors.Courtesy: Gartner

An article from Arif Mohammed Khan....former Union Minister....

Pak textbooks build hate culture against India
27 Dec 2008, 0239 hrs IST, ARIF MOHAMMED KHAN (taken from TOI)

The empowerment of terror in Pakistan has not happened overnight. This is the logical culmination of the politics and policies pursued by Pakistan
for years now.

Terrorism in Pakistan has its roots in the culture of hate and the ethos of inequality on the ground of religious faith, leading to their being deeply ingrained in the Pakistani psyche and mindset.

One factor that has played a crucial role in creating this culture of hate is the educational policy of the government of Pakistan pursued since 1977. The officially prescribed textbooks, especially for school students, are full of references that promote hate against India in general, and Hindus in particular.

A cursory glance at Pakistani school textbooks - especially the compulsory subjects like Pakistan studies and social studies - gives an idea of how history has been distorted and a garbled version prescribed to build this mindset and attitude.

The objective of Pakistan's education policy has been defined thus in the preface to a Class 6 book: "Social studies have been given special importance in educational policy so that Pakistan's basic ideology assumes the shape of a way of life, its practical enforcement is assured, the concept of social uniformity adopts a practical form and the whole personality of the individual is developed." This statement leaves no doubt that "social uniformity", not national unity, is a part of Pakistan's basic ideology.

The Class 5 book has this original discovery about Hindu help to bring British rule to India: "The British had the objective to take over India and to achieve this, they made Hindus join them and Hindus were very glad to side with the British. After capturing the subcontinent, the British began on the one hand the loot of all things produced in this area, and on the other, in conjunction with Hindus, to greatly suppress the Muslims."

The Std VIII book says, "Their (Muslim saints) teachings dispelled many superstitions of the Hindus and reformed their bad practices. Thereby Hindu religion of the olden times came to an end."

On Indo-Pak wars, the books give detailed descriptions and openly eulogize ‘jihad' and ‘shahadat' and urge students to become ‘mujahids' and martyrs and leave no room for future friendship and cordial relations with India.

According to a Class 5 book, "In 1965, the Pakistani army conquered several areas of India, and when India was on the point of being defeated, she requested the United Nations to arrange a ceasefire. After 1965, India, with the help of Hindus living in East Pakistan, instigated the people living there against the people of West Pakistan, and finally invaded East Pakistan in December 1971. The conspiracy resulted in the separation of East Pakistan from us. All of us should receive military training and be prepared to fight the enemy."

The book prescribed for higher secondary students makes no mention of the uprising in East Pakistan in 1971 or the surrender by more than 90,000 Pakistani soldiers. Instead, it claims, "In the 1971 India-Pakistan war, the Pakistan armed forces created new records of bravery and the Indian forces were defeated everywhere."

The students of Class 3 are taught that "Muhammad Ali (Jinnah) felt that Hindus wanted to make Muslims their slaves and since he hated slavery, he left the Congress". At another place it says, "The Congress was actually a party of Hindus. Muslims felt that after getting freedom, Hindus would make them their slaves."

And this great historic discovery is taught to Std V students, "Previously, India was part of Pakistan."

Commenting on this literature that spreads hate, leading Pakistani educationist Tariq Rahman wrote, "It is a fact that the textbooks cannot mention Hindus without calling them cunning, scheming, deceptive or something equally insulting. Students are taught and made to believe that Pakistan needs strong and aggressive policies against India or else Pakistan will be annihilated by it."
(The author is a former Union minister)

The feedbacks posted at TOI ,I am pasting only one feedback and that is from a Pakistani citizen:

Khan,Lahore,says:I have read the same Pakistani Textbooks that the author is talking about. Every line he has written is true. And I am a Pakistani and a practicing Sunni Muslim.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/3898659.cms

This the feedback link........read them......worth going through once...to see how people reacts..

My Comments:

I would not like to say anything on the above article.I leave to understand what is what to my readers.....I know they are matured to see what is true and what is not....

Bernie Madoff arrested over alleged $50 billion fraud .........

Bernie Madoff arrested over alleged $50 billion fraud
Bernie Madoff, a former chairman of the NASDAQ stock market, has been arrested and charged with running a multi-billion dollar hedge fund swindle in New York.


By James Quinn, Wall Street CorrespondentLast Updated: 10:41AM GMT 15 Dec 2008

Bernie Madoff, former chairman of the NASDAQ stock market Photo: AP
Mr Madoff is alleged to have operated the scheme through his hedge fund business, which was separate from his better-known market-making business, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities (BMIS).
Mr Madoff told senior employees of his firm on Wednesday that "it's all just one big lie" and that he was "finished", according to a criminal complaint filed on Thursday night by the US Attorney's office and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).
He allegedly went on to say that the business was "a giant Ponzi scheme" – a reference to Charles Ponzi, one of the greatest swindlers in US history – and estimated that the scheme had lost investors $50bn over many years – which would make the hedge fund one of the biggest frauds in history.
"There is no innocent explanation," Mr Madoff said, according to the criminal complaint. He told the agents that it was all his fault, and that he "paid investors with money that wasn't there", according to the complaint.
He allegedly told his employees that he had, for years, been paying returns to certain investors out of the cash received from other investors.
Mr Madoff, 70, was charged with a single count of securities fraud and faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $5m if found guilty.
The criminal complaint was accompanied by a separate civil lawsuit filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which accuses Mr Madoff of defrauding clients of his firm and seeks emergency relief for the victims.
"Our complaint alleges a stunning fraud – both in terms of scope and duration. We are moving quickly and decisively to stop the scheme and protect the remaining assets for investors," said Scott Friestad, the SEC's deputy enforcer.
The complaint details that as of Jan 7, 2008, Madoff's investment advisory business had assets of $17.1bn, serving up to 25 clients.
Although Mr Madoff is thought to have few direct British links, he did open a London office in 1983, with Madoff Securities International becoming one of the first American members of the London Stock Exchange.
Stephen Raven, chief executive of Madoff Securities International said: “We only became aware overnight of the news relating to our Chairman, Bernard Madoff. Our business in London is not in any way part of Bernard L Madoff Investment Securities LLC. His major shareholding in our firm is a personal investment. Our business activities are not involved in any way with the US asset management company with which the reported allegations appear to be concerned. We do not have any further information beyond what is already in the public domain."
In 2000, his market-making business BMIS partnered with Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch to the form the new Primex Trading platform, one of the early rival electronic exchanges to the main bourses which eventually fell by the wayside following a partnership with NASDAQ.
BMIS is also credited with ending the old practice of quoting New York Stock Exchange-listed securities in eighths of a dollar in 1997, instead listing them in sixteenths.
Mr Madoff began BMIS with just $5,000 of savings from jobs lifeguarding at Rockaway Beach and installing sprinkler systems.
The firm grew to become a leading market maker, with brother Peter, nephew Charles, niece Shana, and sons Mark and Andrew all involved in the business at some stage in recent years.
His firm's website claims that BMIS ranks among the top one per cent of US securities firms, and states that "clients know Bernard Madoff has a personal interest in maintaining... high ethical standards."
Mr Madoff's lawyer, Dan Horwitz, called his client "a person of integrity" and said he intends to fight the charge. "We will fight to get through this unfortunate set of events." His client was released on a $10m bond secured by his New York apartment.


My Comments:
Well, Vasanth was asking me whether I will write on Bernie Madoff's scandal.
He wants to know how banks get involved.The matter of fact is that banks like HSBC, Fortis Bank,Nomura and Neue Privat Bank,Swiss private bank Reichmuth & Co.,the list is very long which includes charity trust, school trust and they are still added.
The reason banks are fix here is the banks gave loans to their clients to invest in Bernie Madoff''s
Hedge Fund and see the anamoly here.......In last one year we have seen wrost kind of financial MESS from the foreign MNC hedge funds and big names like Citi,UBS, Lehman Bros,Bear Stern,Bank Of America,Wachovia Bank , National City and many many more where the top honcos of the banks and hedge funds have actually played with the investors money in America and they have actually drowned those money of Old people in America and these people who needs the money so badly had lost 60-80% of their savings.
As Rakesh said somewhere in interview that what are these MNC's?Investors in India buys these MNC's which makes such fraud , against them Satyam is nothing!Lol.....that is what I some times feel and have written here or somewhere else.....
Well, Vasanth....Bernie Madoff was a Ponzi scheme....named after a reference to Charles Ponzi, one of the greatest swindlers in US history –
As he himself has said there was no money, no profit.He paid interest from the money he use to get for investment.These is the biggest fraud in the history....$50 bn is big big by any standard....

Obama plans infrastructure blitz to boost US economy..........

"Only two persons are very happy in this world. First is Mad And Second is Child.Be a Mad to achieve what you desire & Be a Child to enjoy what you have."

Obama plans infrastructure blitz to boost US economy

Posted Sun Dec 7, 2008 12:50am AEDT
Updated Sun Dec 7, 2008 1:20am AEDT

Mr Obama has promised to move quickly to pull the US economy out of a recession which has already pushed the unemployment rate to 6.7 per cent. (AFP: Scott Olson/Getty Images, file photo)

• Video: Obama pledges infrastructure investment to stimulate US economy (ABC News)

President-elect Barack Obama has said his plan to create at least 2.5 million new jobs would include the largest infrastructure investment since the 1950s and a huge effort to reduce US government energy use.

The United States will also make a big push to expand access to high-speed Internet and modernise school buildings across the country, he said.

"We need action, and action now," Mr Obama said in the Democratic Party's weekly radio address, one day after government data showed US employers had axed 533,000 jobs in November, the most in 34 years.

Mr Obama, who takes office on January 20, has promised to move quickly to pull the US economy out of a recession which has already pushed the unemployment rate to 6.7 per cent and could take it above 8 per cent by late next year.

He has started by asking his economic team to come up with a plan to create at least 2.5 million new jobs by 2011.

Congress is also expected to pass a hefty new economic stimulus bill in January that could be ready for his signature immediately after he is sworn in.

"First, we will launch a massive effort to make public buildings more energy-efficient. Our government now pays the highest energy bill in the world," Mr Obama said.

Replacing old heating systems and installing energy efficient light bulbs in federal buildings would save taxpayers billions of dollars, as well as create new jobs, he said.

Millions of new jobs would also come from "the single largest new investment in our national infrastructure since the creation of the federal highway system in the 1950s," Mr Obama said, without providing a precise amount.

Under the plan, states would lose federal money unless they act quickly to build or repair roads and bridges.

"We'll set a simple rule, use it or lose it," he said.

Mr Obama's plan, which he said would be fleshed out in greater detail in coming weeks, includes modernising schools to make them energy efficient and putting new computers in classrooms.

"We'll also renew our information superhighway. It is unacceptable that the United States ranks 15th in broadband adoption," he said.

He said he wants to hook more schools and libraries up to the Internet and also ensure US hospitals are connected to each other electronically.

Making sure that every doctor's office and hospital in the United States is using cutting edge technology and electronic medical records would "cut red tape, prevent medical mistakes and save billions of dollars each year," he said.

- Reuters

My comments:

Well friends this has been a big shot in an arm for the US economy if that will be implemented and I have no doubt that what Obama has spoken will implement it.This is America and not India.

Did our market get the clue of this coming out and hence it rallied?We have to see whether our rallied fizzles out soon or it is a real turn around and we did make a bottom at 7600! and no looking back from there.

But the clear winners in US market would be GE.GeneralElectric co where the power system starts for the world and a leader in itself.Warren Buffet hiking stake through the right issue was no bad a decision but actually it is turning out to be a very good decision.

I remember when I was reading the 1929 great depression ,I read that Franklin Roosevelt took over as the president in 1932.The depression last for 10 yrs at that time.He immidiately declared to build roads and new buildings that can help decrease the unemplyement.He did it very fast and implement it as well in no time and the fruits were there to be seen in next decade.

Obama ,the elect president is doing the same things as he also has declared building new school buildings,and replacing new system to old ones....

Let us see what he wants to do and which sector can be beniffeted .

1)He wants to make public building more energy efficient.

2)Wants to replace old heating system and installing energy efficient light bulbs.

3)His will be the single largest investment in Infrastrcuture, highway projects, in last 50 years.

4)Modernising schools to make them energy efficient and putting new computers in classrooms.

5)Renew information superhighway. It is unacceptable that the United States ranks 15th in broadband adoption...

6) Wants to hook more schools and libraries up to the Internet and also ensure US hospitals are connected to each other electronically.

Now we will see which cos without taking name will be beniffited.The cos are

A) Producing energy efficient bulbs...

B)Cos producing energy efficient heating system

C)Infrastrcuture bulding cos for highways.

D)Co making computers

E)Broadband network cos....

F)Electronics equipment making co....

I have been saying this here many times and elsewhere that whenever world thinks USA is gone it stands up and shows that she is still the leader.

I remember somewhere I read that Warren Buffet said that look at the world.Look at this.We are leaders and developed since 200 yrs and we are still the leaders.Countries like China, Russia , Japan, Korea etc etc were thought of becoming the next power , all were there since 200 yrs but they never prospered.So if they do not prosper in 200 yrs then when they will?It means that there is something terribly wrong in the system of other countries and that is where America have the edge and that will remain forever.

Dear Friends,
Some of my readers aren't happy as I am writing something out of stockmarket.
I know you all are eagerly waiting for my writing on Indian Stock market but I think wee are still not out of woods and hence I am remaining dorment on our market view.
I think still we can see a down trend and the best time would be to buy will be after Feb 09.
Sure the Oil has come down,Inflation is getting down to single digit,commodities are down and are at 4-5 yr low.
These aall augurs well for our economy but the dent that has been created due to FII selling and world slow down is taking the toll.
One thing is clear and that is , if world economy is slowing down then market will take time to have a come back.We can't ignore the world economy.Ofcourse ours is a domestic comsumption economy but still the money comes from overseas as well.Like say the people working for IT co , at BPO centre etc...they use to get good salary.Now if the BPO works is going to get trimmed down then it is obvious that the consumption is going to be slowed down as well.
I just read on CNBC USA that Dow Chemical is also laying off some 5000 employees.These are hard time to go through and one need to be very stock specific.
The winners will be different.Mostly the stocks which took the lead in last bull run will not be the front runners this time and we need to find those sectors and stocks that will give us multibagger return but one thing is clear about one sector, which seems to me as an evergreen sector, and that is Ore/Mines sector like Iron Ore, Copper mines , Energy ingrediants sector like Coal,Coke etc as it is obvious that whenever the world economy will again become good there will be demand of commodities and hence again Iron ore, Mines,Crude will go up......
These sector is going to be an evergreen sector for decades to come as without that no raw material is made and as demand increases the prices goes up.
But I think we have still got the time to write and discuss on stocks and sector.Let the market stabilize.The valutaions has become compelling or so it seems like that.They may go below what it is now.
But rest assured I will write as and when I feel like writing on stock market.I have always thrived on helping small investors and that has become one of my aim that I have targetted.

Are we heading to being a failed State?...........

Taken from rediff.com

Are we heading to being a failed State?
December 08, 2008

The invasion of Mumbai by Pakistani terrorists is but a replay of times past: The periodic and predictable arrival of barbarians over the Khyber Pass, laying waste to the countryside, and wreaking untold damage on a long-suffering populace. The only crime that the average Indian committed was to focus on the creation of wealth; of course, the barbarians came because of the wealth. Today, once again, India is generating capital, and the intention is to thwart its economic rise.
Then, as now, the rulers failed the populace. There is an implicit contract between the rulers and the ruled: You pay the taxes, obey the rules, and we ensure that your life, liberty and pursuit of happiness are unhindered. India's ruling class failed signally to honour this contract -- they never did figure out that the simple expedient of defending the Khyber and Bolan passes would be enough to save the plains, because nature had been kind enough to build the impregnable Himalayas all around India.
I have never got a satisfactory answer to the question as to why we didn't build the Great Wall of India. The Chinese built a 1,500-mile wall; Indians could surely have built a 15-mile wall and kept the marauders out. But there was clearly a failure in leadership and in strategic thinking. Time after time, the barbarians would pour in through the passes, march to Panipat or Tarain, and there, in a desperate last-ditch battle, the Indians would lose, again and again. The result: Disaster.
Furthermore, there were traitors in-house, too. They would collude with the invaders to the detriment of their fellow Indians. Jaichand, during the second battle of Tarain in 1192, turned the tide of the battle by allying with Mahmud of Ghori against Prithviraj Chauhan, with the result that northern India suffered 700 years of tyranny -- it was a clear tipping point. Or take the battle of Talikota that ended the magnificent Vijayanagar empire: it was their own troops that betrayed them.
Fast forward to today. India is under withering attack on all fronts. To the east, there is the demographic invasion by Bangladeshis, including unhindered infiltration by terrorist elements. The entire north-east is in danger of secession, given both the narrow and hard-to-defend 'chicken's neck' that connects the area to the Gangetic plain, as well as the Christian fundamentalism and terrorism that is on the verge of turning into a move to secede on religious and ethnic grounds, a la East Timor.
The northern frontier is restive, with Nepal, a former ally and buffer State transformed into hostile territory, with its porous borders turned into a way of infiltrating terrorists into India, with the declared intent of capturing the 'Pasupati-to-Tirupati corridor', in other words, most of the eastern half of the country.
China is making increasingly belligerent noises about Tawang and all of Arunachal Pradesh. They are gambling that, despite the summit that just took place in Dharamsala, the steam has gone out of the Tibetan resistance movement. They have been emboldened by the fact that Tibetans were not able to disrupt the Olympics [Images], and the more immediate betrayal by the British (see the International Herald Tribune's Did Britain Just Sell Tibet?), who declared, contrary to all the historical evidence, that Tibet [Images] was always a part of China. Besides, the Chinese fully intend to move forward with the diversion of the Brahmaputra, which is in effect a declaration of war against the lower riparian State, India.
It is likely that the Chinese will march into Tawang -- there is a lot of chatter in Chinese circles (see, an analysis by D S Rajan at the Chennai Centre for China Studies) about a 'limited India-China war', a replay of 1962. The Chinese have, in addition to pure geopolitics, another reason to do this, as was pointed out by strategy expert Brahma Chellaney -- as in the years preceding 1962, the world is now once again hyphenating India and China. By handing India a sharp conventional military defeat, China would like that hyphenation to be removed decisively, as it surely would be. India will once again be seen as the loser it has been during the entire 1947 to 2000 period.
In the northwest, Kashmir burns. The population clearly views India as a colony -- they want Indian money, but they are not willing to make the slightest concessions to Hindu sentiments. It is very convenient for them to have the cake and eat it too -- there is the little-known fact that J&K has practically nobody under the poverty line (2 percent and falling), as compared to the average of some 20 percent in the country as a whole. Kashmiris have prospered mightily despite -- or is it because of? -- the brutal ethnic cleansing of 400,000 Pandits now languishing in refugee camps.
In the traditionally quiet peninsula, there is evidence of tremendous terrorist activity. In Kerala [Images], it has been reported widely in the Malayalam media that 300 youth have been hired, trained and dispatched to Kashmir with explicit instructions -- kill Indian soldiers and support Pakistani intrusions. Terrorism [Images] is just another job. Sleeper cells exist in every town. The Konkan and Malabar coasts are dotted with safe harbours, where weapons, counterfeit currency and contraband are cached. The preferred mechanism -- bomb blasts to inflict maximum damage. Logistics, safe houses, surveillance, forged documents, etc. are provided by a wide network.
The fact is that all these threats are overwhelming the security apparatus in the country, such as it is. It is quite likely that the Intelligence Bureau and the Research and Analysis Wing and the Anti-Terrorism Squad had some inkling of something big being planned, including the movement of small arms on the Ratnagiri coastline, and the logistics-related activities of known suspects. It is unclear why they didn't take preventive action.
There is a terrifying possibility -- that they in fact had no idea this was going on. There is an aphorism that you cannot stop all terrorist activity, but in India the situation is such that no terrorist activity is stopped -- they strike at will, and the populace is left to pick up the pieces of broken lives. This is no way to run a country.
The frightening possibility is that the Jaichands have in fact taken over the State. In which case, we can anticipate the total dismemberment of India -- possibly preceded by an interregnum where it is a failed State -- in the near future.
There is one other possibility -- that the army will have to take over. It is a remote possibility, for two reasons -- the Indian Army [Images] has been determinedly apolitical; and the State has continually striven to weaken it. Someone once made the ridiculous statement that India really didn't need an army, only a police force, and it appears the entire political class and bureaucracy have internalised this slogan.
From 1962 -- as always, on November 18, I silently saluted the martyrs of the Battle of Rezang-La, where C Company, 13th Kumaon died heroically to the last man -- when the ill-equipped troops froze to death on the Himalayan heights, to the refusal to increase military salaries when the bureaucrats awarded themselves 300 percent increases recently, the State has told the military that it doesn't value them. All the services are starved of funds.
One possible outcome is that the Indian military forces will gradually wither away and die, thus making the statement about India not needing an army a self-fulfilling prophecy. There is another possibility -- that of a military coup d'etat. Normally, the prospect of a military takeover -- given that they all end up badly -- from a democracy is not something one would welcome. But then India is not a democracy -- it is a kakistocracy, rule by the very worst possible people -- which has the trappings of a democracy but not the substance, so I wonder if military rule could possibly be any worse.
But the chances are getting increasingly good that the Indian State will collapse, just like Pakistan already has. A recent risk assessment by the World Economic Forum and CII considers the economic, energy, food/agriculture and national security that face India. The report is more concerned about the first three items, assuming that India is secure enough as a nation.
I hope they are right, but this invasion of Mumbai -- so daring and audacious -- makes me wonder. I have considered a nightmare scenario of Chinese battleships arriving in triumph at the Gateway of India [Images], to be welcomed with marigold garlands by the Jaichands, but I have to admit I never thought a motley crew of Pakistani terrorists would invade. The very future of the Indian State, suddenly, is in question. And it is mostly from self-inflicted, avoidable wounds. The failure of leadership is causing India to cease to exist.

Rajeev Srinivasan can be reached at http://rajeev2007.wordpress.com

Atlast....."Pak agrees to 48-hour timetable for action against LeT": ..........

Pak agrees to 48-hour timetable for action against LeT: Report
7 Dec 2008, 0141 hrs IST, TIMES NEWS NETWORK & AGENCIES

WASHINGTON/ NEW DELHI: Pakistan has agreed to a 48-hour timetable set by India
and the United States to formulate a plan to take action against Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and to arrest at least three Pakistanis who Indian authorities say are linked to the multiple attacks in Mumbai , a top US daily reported, citing a top Pakistani official. ( Watch )

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivities, said India had also asked Pakistan to arrest and hand over LeT commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhwi and former chief of Pakistan's spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Hamid Gul, in connection with the probe into the Mumbai carnage, which killed nearly 200 people, the Washington Post reported on Saturday.

This development comes in the wake of reports in the Indian media that some top Pakistan military and intelligence officials had admitted that the perpetrators of Mumbai were Pakistani terrorists owing allegiance to the Lashkar. According to the reports, Pakistan officials admitted this in Islamabad before Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the US Joint Chief of Staff, who conveyed it to government officials in India.

The agency report from Washington, quoting the newspaper, said that Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari is expected to consult his nation's top military and intelligence officials on how to follow through on India's demands. "The next 48 hours are critical," the official was quoted as saying by the influential US daily.

A week after the terrorist assault in the Indian financial capital, Indian officials have stepped up their efforts to make a clear case of link between the carnage and Pakistani elements. According to the Post, a high-level source in the Indian government, speaking on condition of anonymity, said India has "clear and incontrovertible proof" that LeT had carried out the attacks and that the group's leaders were trained and supported by Pakistan's ISI.

"We have the names of the handlers. And we know that there is a close relationship between the Lashkar and the ISI," the source said.

Indian and US investigators have identified Yusuf Muzammil, an LeT leader, as the mastermind behind the attacks. US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice has already asked Pakistan to turn in Muzammil and other suspects, the report said.

Mullen visited India on Thursday when he is said to have conveyed this to officials in India. He had visited Islamabad before that. In India, he met NSA M K Narayanan, defence minister A K Antony and navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta. "It's possible that in the face of international pressure some of them admitted in a private conversation what we believe is a fact. Even if it is true, we don't think it is enough," said an Indian official.


According to Indian officials, US is convinced about the involvement of Pakistani nationals because it has been able to establish the identity of lone terrorist survivor Ajmal Amir Kasab and his family members living in Pakistan. The US also has access to evidence to prove where some of the perpetrators trained in Pakistan.


Earlier, Mullen had asked Pakistan's top leadership to "investigate aggressively any and all possible ties to groups based in Pakistan", the US embassy had said in a statement. While taking note of the recent success of Pakistani security forces in operations against militants on the Afghan border, Mullen "also encouraged Pakistani leaders to take more and more concerted action against militant extremists elsewhere in the country", the statement said.

Hezbollah blames Sunni group for Mumbai attacks
7 Dec 2008, 0326 hrs IST, Himanshi Dhawan, TNN

New Delhi: Lebanon-based Hezbollah has blamed the Mumbai terror attack on the Sunni fundamentalist group Takfiris. In a statement which can raise
eyebrows because of Hezbollah's unrelenting hostility to Israel, the Hezbollah said that the group which carried out the Mumbai strikes was of Takfiri ideological lineage.

Takfiris are ultra-fundamentalist Sunnis who view the non-Muslim world as a battleground and all non-Muslims as infidels. The statement issued by Sayyid Nawwaf al-Musawi, the international relations head of Hezbollah, is significant because it comes at a time when huge sections in Pakistan continue to deny any link of the notorious Sunni fundamentalist Lashkar to Mumbai attack, and have even blamed the crime on a wider conspiracy involving Hindus, Americans and Israelis.

Hezbollah represents Shias who have been at the receiving end of the brutality of Sunni fundamentalists groups including — al-Qaida, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Sipahe Sahaba and Afghanistan-based Taliban.

Takfiris condone acts of violence as legitimate methods of achieving religious or political goals and do not accept any deviation from Islam in the strictest sense. According to them, Shias have deviated from the teachings of Islam, thus justifying the use of violence against them.

While Islam forbids suicide, Takfiris believe that those who deliberately kill themselves while attempting to kill enemies of Islam are (shahid) who go straight to heaven. As such, all sin is absolved when a person is martyred, allowing carte blanche(Complete freedom or authority to act.) for the indiscriminate killing of even non-combatants.

The Hezbollah statement comes when a section of even the Urdu press in India seems to be coming around to suspect that the carnage was a conspiracy by Sangh Parivar to thwart the Malegaon probe into the "Hindutva terror" by eliminating Hemant Karkare of Maharashtra ATS. Karkare was leading the probe into the alleged involvement of Hindutva radicals in the Malegaon blast of September 29.

Group editor of Urdu daily 'Roznama Rashtriya Sahara', Aziz Burney, in his edit piece recently said that Hemant Karkare, encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar and additional commissioner of police Ashok Kamte were killed under suspicious circumstances. Speaking to TOI, Burney claimed that the attacks were part of a larger conspiracy hatched in connivance with the Congress government, Leader of Opposition L K Advani, Mossad and Chotta Rajan to disable the Malegaon investigations. He also names Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Rajnath Singh as involved in the conspiracy.(What a jusitification!)

My Comments:
The anamoly here is the only militant that got captured by India says that the ISI assured him to give $1250 to his family if he dies doing the terrorist act in India....
I am really really surprised to see how a 21 year young get ready to do the terrorist act in other country with a mere , a peanuts compensation of just Indian Rs 66,000....!
Why youngster are getting deviated and get brainwashed in this way....maybe due to poverty?
Pakistan should remember that all the TOP Heros in Indian Film Ind are Khans and that they are loved by every Indian....
But as I wrote , the entire existance of Pakistan is based on hatred of India.....No way one can help....

SPEAKING TREE ....I uasually created a habit to read this ....

Column in TOI daily when I was in India.
I came today a very good wisdom talk and hence am pasting it here for readers.....

Rajeev

SPEAKING TREE
Life Is Just A Process Of Transformation
Swami Sukhabodhananda

Life has to go through a process of transformation. If transformation is not your goal then life will be a drift. Every experience should allow you to grow in love, in silence and joy. You have to learn to frame an experience in such a way that there is growth. Your focus is to convert samsara into nirvana or bondage into salvation. For that to happen, what is important is atma smaranam or self-remembrance. If we can remember to be constantly awake to our inner world of thoughts, interpretations, emotions, likes and dislikes, a new level of reality will open up and thus we will be free from our i nner prisons. There are both legitimate fears and illegitimate fears. When a tiger comes near you, there is fear, and it is a legitimate fear. The fear of the future is not legitimate. In fact it is interesting, even exciting, not to know about the future. A lady came to me and said, I am afraid of what my future is going to be since my husbands company has been taken over by another company. I told her that it is not something she has to be afraid of. Look into your life... lots of wonderful things have happened. You were born in a poor family, and see how well placed you are now. So, draw your energy from the best things which have happened to you. As children we dont have fear. Elders sow the concept of fear. Then fear becomes a part of us. A child easily falls. Then a fear is installed. Slowly as the child grows up he is afraid to fall. The body becomes rigid and resists a graceful fall. In martial art we are taught to fall gracefully, but the mind creates the fear of injury and makes the body rigid. There is a process one has to unlearn in martial art... not to bring in the mind so that you can be free to learn to fall gracefully. Then a fall has an element of pleasure. A person who lives only in the level of senses and sense pleasure is at one level. Another person who has developed the joy of opening up the body lock and the energies hidden in the body by right dieting, right exercise... is at another level. The next level is that of a person who has opened the emotional lock. He brings in the energies of love, compassion and gratitude instead of anger and jealousy... he has opened up his emotions. One is at yet another level when one has opened the intellectual lock... the energies of right thinking, having the right clarity and intelligence. Finally, what about one who has opened up the spiritual lock, the hidden energies in oneself ? This happens when there is inner purity and inner calmness. Such a person is at the highest level. Life is a combination of ignorance and knowledge. It needs fine-tuning. Suppose your house has Italian marble but if it is not polished, then it will look like ordinary flooring. Similarly, you have knowledge but if it is not polished with humility and understanding, then such knowledge will not shine forth. Look at life with awareness. Everyone at some level is stupid, is helpless and this recognition helps us to act wisely. If people think, I know, i need not change, such knowledge will bind a person; it will not free him.

A chat with Dr.Devi Shetty, Narayana Hrudayalaya (Heart Specialist) Bangalore was arranged by WIPRO for its employees . The transcript of the chat is given below. Useful for everyone.

Qn: What are the thumb rules for a layman to take care of his heart?

Ans: 1. Diet - Less of carbohydrate, more of protein, less oil 2. Exercise - Half an hour's walk, at least five days a week; avoid lifts and avoid sitting for a longtime 3. Quit smoking 4. Control weight 5. Control blood pressure and sugar

Qn: Is eating non-veg food (fish) good for the heart?

Ans: No

Qn: It's still a grave shock to hear that some apparently healthy person gets a cardiac arrest. How do we understand it in perspective?

Ans: This is called silent attack; that is why we recommend everyone past the age of 30 to undergo routine health checkups.

Qn: Are heart diseases hereditary?

Ans: Yes

Qn: What are the ways in which the heart is stressed? What practices do you suggest to de-stress?

Ans: Change your attitude towards life. Do not look for perfection in everything in life.

Qn: Is walking better than jogging or is more intensive exercise required to keep a healthy heart?

Ans: Walking is better than jogging since jogging leads to early fatigue and injury to joints


Qn: You have done so much for the poor and needy. What has inspired you to do so?

Ans: Mother Theresa , who was my patient

Qn: Can people with low blood pressure suffer heart diseases?

Ans: Extremely rare

Qn: Does cholesterol accumulates right from an early age (I'm currently only 22) or do you have to worry about it only after you are above 30 years of age?

Ans: Cholesterol accumulates from childhood.

Qn: How do irregular eating habits affect the heart ?

Ans: You tend to eat junk food when the habits are irregular and your body's enzyme release for digestion gets confused.

Qn: How can I control cholesterol content without using medicines?

Ans: Control diet, walk and eat walnut.

Qn: Can yoga prevent heart ailments?

Ans: Yoga helps.

Qn: Which is the best and worst food for the heart?

Ans: Fruits and vegetables are the best and the worst is oil.

Qn: Which oil is better - groundnut, sunflower, olive?

Ans: All oils are bad .

Qn: What is the routine checkup one should go through? Is there any specific test?

Ans: Routine blood test to ensure sugar, cholesterol is ok. Check BP, Treadmill test after an echo.

Qn: What are the first aid steps to be taken on a heart attack?

Ans: Help the person into a sleeping position , place an aspirin tablet under the tongue with a sorbitrate tablet if available, and rush him to a coronary care unit since the maximum casualty takes place within the first hour.

Qn: How do you differentiate between pain caused by a heart attack and that caused due to gastric trouble?

Ans: Extremely difficult without ECG.

Qn: What is the main cause of a steep increase in heart problems amongst youngsters? I see people of about 30-40 yrs of age having heart attacks and serious heart problems.

Ans: Increased awareness has increased incidents. Also, s edentary lifestyles, smoking, junk food, lack of exercise in a country where people are genetically three times more vulnerable for heart attacks than Europeans and Americans.

Qn: Is it possible for a person to have BP outside the normal range of 120/80 and yet be perfectly healthy?

Ans: Yes.

Qn: Marriages within close relatives can lead to heart problems for the child. Is it true?

Ans : Yes, co-sanguinity leads to congenital abnormalities and you may not have a software engineer as a child

Qn: Many of us have an irregular daily routine and many a times we have to stay late nights in office. Does this affect our heart ? What precautions would you recommend?

Ans : When you are young, nature protects you against all these irregularities. However, as you grow older, respect the biological clock.

Qn: Will taking anti-hypertensive drugs cause some other complications (short / long term)?

Ans : Yes, most drugs have some side effects. However, modern anti-hypertensive drugs are extremely safe.

Qn: Will consuming more coffee/tea lead to heart attacks?

Ans : No.

Qn: Are asthma patients more prone to heart disease?


Ans : No.

Qn: How would you define junk food?

Ans : Fried food like Kentucky , McDonalds , samosas, and even masala dosas.

Qn: You mentioned that Indians are three times more vulnerable. What is the reason for this, as Europeans and Americans also eat a lot of junk food?

Ans: Every race is vulnerable to some disease and unfortunately, Indians are vulnerable for the most expensive disease.

Qn: Does consuming bananas help reduce hypertension?

Ans : No.

Qn: Can a person help himself during a heart attack (Because we see a lot of forwarded emails on this)?

Ans : Yes. Lie down comfortably and put an aspirin tablet of any description under the tongue and ask someone to take you to the nearest coronary care unit without any delay and do not wait for the ambulance since most of the time, the ambulance does not turn up.

Qn: Do, in any way, low white blood cells and low hemoglobin count lead to heart problems?

Ans : No. But it is ideal to have normal hemoglobin level to increase your exercise capacity.

Qn: Sometimes, due to the hectic schedule we are not able to exercise. So, does walking while doing daily chores at home or climbing the stairs in the house, work as a substitute for exercise?

Ans : Certainly. Avoid sitting continuously for more than half an hour and even the act of getting out of the chair and going to another chair and sitting helps a lot.

Qn: Is there a relation between heart problems and blood sugar?

Ans: Yes. A strong relationship since diabetics are more vulnerable to heart attacks than non-diabetics.

Qn: What are the things one needs to take care of after a heart operation?

Ans : Diet, exercise, drugs on time , Control cholesterol, BP, weight.

Qn: Are people working on night shifts more vulnerable to heart disease when compared to day shift workers?

Ans : No.

Qn: What are the modern anti-hypertensive drugs?

Ans : There are hundreds of drugs and your doctor will chose the right combination for your problem, but my suggestion is to avoid the drugs and go for natural ways of controlling blood pressure by walk, diet to reduce weight and changing attitudes towards lifestyles.

Qn: Does dispirin or similar headache pills increase the risk of heart attacks?

Ans : No.

Qn: Why is the rate of heart attacks more in men than in women?

Ans : Nature protects women till the age of 45.

Qn: How can one keep the heart in a good condition?

Ans : Eat a healthy diet, avoid junk food, exercise everyday, do not smoke and, go for health checkup s if you are past the age of 30 ( once in six months recommended) ....

LETTER TO PRIME MINISTER

Dear Mr. Prime minister

I am a typical mouse from Mumbai. In the local train compartment which has capacity of 100 persons, I travel with 500 more mouse. Mouse at least squeak but we don't even do that.

Today I heard your speech. In which you said 'NO BODY WOULD BE SPARED'. I would like to remind you that fourteen years has passed since serial bomb blast in Mumbai took place. Dawood was the main conspirator. Till today he is not caught. All our bolywood actors, our builders, our Gutka king meets him but your Government can not catch him. Reason is simple; all your ministers are hand in glove with him. If any attempt is made to catch him everybody will be exposed. Your statement 'NOBODY WOULD BE SPARED' is nothing but a cruel joke on this unfortunate people of India.

Enough is enough. As such after seeing terrorist attack carried out by about a dozen young boys I realize that if same thing continues days are not away when terrorist will attack by air, destroy our nuclear reactor and there will be one more Hiroshima.

We the people are left with only one mantra. Womb to Bomb to Tomb. You promised Mumbaikar Shanghai what you have given us is Jalianwala Baug.

Today only your home minister resigned. What took you so long to kick out this joker? Only reason was that he was loyal to Gandhi family. Loyalty to Gandhi family is more important than blood of innocent people, isn't it?

I am born and bought up in Mumbai for last fifty eight years. Believe me corruption in Maharashtra is worse than that in Bihar. Look at all the politician, Sharad Pawar, Chagan Bhujbal, Narayan Rane, Bal Thackray , Gopinath Munde, Raj Thackray, Vilasrao Deshmukh all are rolling in money. Vilasrao Deshmukh is one of the worst Chief minister I have seen. His only business is to increase the FSI every other day, make money and send it to Delhi so Congress can fight next election. Now the clown has found new way and will increase FSI for fisherman so they can build concrete house right on sea shore. Next time terrorist can comfortably live in those house , enjoy the beauty of sea and then attack the Mumbai at their will.

Recently I had to purchase house in Mumbai. I met about two dozen builders. Everybody wanted about 30% in black. A common person like me knows this and with all your intelligent agency & CBI you and your finance minister are not aware of it. Where all the black money goes? To the underworld isn't it? Our politicians take help of these goondas to vacate people by force. I myself was victim of it. If you have time please come to me, I will tell you everything.

If this has been land of fools, idiots then I would not have ever cared to write you this letter. Just see the tragedy, on one side we are reaching moon, people are so intelligent and on other side you politician has converted nectar into deadly poison. I am everything Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Schedule caste, OBC, Muslim OBC, Christian Schedule caste, Creamy Schedule caste only what I am not is INDIAN. You politician have raped every part of mother India by your policy of divide and rule.

Take example of former president Abdul Kalam. Such a intelligent person, such a fine human being. You politician didn't even spare him. Your party along with opposition joined the hands, because politician feels they are supreme and there is no place for good person.

Dear Mr Prime minister you are one of the most intelligent person, most learned person. Just wake up, be a real SARDAR. First and foremost expose all selfish politician. Ask Swiss bank to give name of all Indian account holder. Give reins of CBI to independent agency. Let them find wolf among us. There will be political upheaval but that will better than dance of death which we are witnessing every day. Just give us ambient where we can work honestly and without fear. Let there be rule of law. Everything else will be taken care of.

Choice is yours Mr. Prime Minister. Do you want to be lead by one person or you want to lead the nation of 100 Crore people?


My Comments:
I have reposted Mr.Dinesh Chhajed post on the front page.The striking para I liked is which I have highlighted in RED letters.
We are everything and we need to respect every religion but we are not Indians.That is absolutely TRUE . As soon as someone takes name of a perticular religion we just stood up and start speaking that we shouldn't speak of any religion.....India is secular.....but what if they do not behave like an Indian?
The prime question which arises is why we are not Indians?But the problem is Indian is a Hindu name ,that is what other religion thinks and that is where the trouble is.....then we need to change our country name from INDIA to something else like say, SECULAR STATE OF ALL RELIGION OF WORLD ( SSOAROW).......and that we need to amend the constitution as well that each and every religion will have different LAWS and hence there will be a different COURTS FOR EACH RELIGION and they will not abide by any rules others then their what written in their religion and that the JUDGES will also be of same religion so that they don't feel discreminated. And the day will come one day when all the STATES will become individual state according to the religion and then one day each will ask for their own soverign idendity like Kashmir......
Just imagine where we will end up if these will go on and on....what is going on now...we will definately land in this situation .....in near future.....I am seeing this very clearly.......

Why India needs Narendra Modi? .......by....Indian Muslim Suhel Seth....

Indian Muslim Suhel Seth, Managing Partner of Counselage

Let me begin with a set of disclosures: I have perhaps written more articles against Modi and his handling of the post-Godhra scenario than most people have; I have called him a modern-day Hitler and have always said that Godhra shall remain an enduring blemish not just on him but on Indias political class. I still believe that what happened in Gujarat during the Godhra riots is something we as a nation will pay a heavy price for. But the fact is that time has moved on. As has Narendra Modi. He is not the only politician in India who has been accused of communalism. It is strange that the whole country venerates the Congress Party as the secular messiah but it was that party that presided over the riots in 1984 in which over 3,500 Sikhs died: thrice the number killed in Gujarat.

The fact of the matter is that there is no better performer than Narendra Modi in Indias political structure. Three weeks ago, I had gone to Ahmedabad to address the YPO and I thought it would be a good opportunity to catch up with Modi. I called him the evening before and I was given an appointment for the very day I was getting into Ahmedabad. And it was not some official meeting but instead one at his house. As frugal as the man Modi is.

And this is something that the Gandhis and Mayawatis need to learn from Modi. There were no fawning staff members; no secretaries running around; no hangers onjust the two of us with one servant who was there serving tea. And what was most impressive was the passion which Modi exuded. The passion for development; the passion for an invigorated Gujarat; the passion for the uplifting the living standards of the people in his state and the joy with which he recounted simple yet memorable data-points. For instance, almost all of the milk consumed in Singapore is supplied by Gujarat; or for that matter all the tomatoes that are eaten in Afghanistan are produced in Gujarat or the potatoes that Canadians gorge on are all farmed in Gujarat. But it was industry that was equally close to his heart.

It was almost like a child, that he rushed and got a coffee table book on GIFT: the proposed Gujarat Industrial City that will come up on the banks of the Sabarmarti: something that will put the Dubais and the Hong Kongs of this world to shame. And while on the Sabarmati, it is Modi who has created the inter-linking of rivers so that now the Sabarmati is no longer dry.

He then spoke about how he was very keen that Ratan Tata sets up the Nano plant in Gujarat: he told me how he had related the story of the Parsi Navsari priests to Ratan and how touched Ratan was: the story is, when the Navsari priests, (the first Parsis) landed in Gujarat, the ruler of Gujarat sent them a glass of milk, full to the brim and said, there was no place for them: the priests added some sugar to the milk and sent it back saying that they would integrate beautifully with the locals and would only add value to the state.


Narendra Modi is clearly a man in a hurry and he has every reason to be. There is no question in any ones mind that he is the trump card for the BJP after Advani and Modi realises that. People like Rajnath Singh are simply weak irritants I would imagine. He also believes that the country has no apolitical strategy to counter terrorism and in fact he told me how he had alerted the Prime Minister, the Home Minister and the NSA about the impending bomb blasts in Delhi and they did not take him seriously. And then the September 13 blasts happened! It was this resolve of Modis that I found very admirable. There is a clear intolerance of terrorism and terrorists which is evident in the way the man functions; now there are many cynics who call it minority-bashing but the truth of the matter is that Modi genuinely means business as far as law and order is concerned.


I left Modis house deeply impressed with the man as Chief Minister: he was clearly passionate and whats more deeply committed. When I sat in the car, I asked my driver what he thought of Modi and his simple reply was Modi is God. Before him, there was nothing. No roads, no power, no infrastructure. Today, Gujarat is a power surplus state. Today, Gujarat attracts more industry than all the states put together. Today, Gujarat is the preferred investment destination for almost every multi-national and whats more, there is an integrity that is missing in other states.


After I finished talking to the YPO (Young Presidents Organisation) members, I asked some of them very casually, what they thought of Modi. Strangely, this was one area there was no class differential on. They too said he was God.


But what they also added very quickly was if India has just five Narendra Modis, we would be a great country. I dont know if this was typical Gujarati exaggeration or a reflection of the kind of leadership India now needs! There is however, no question in my mind, that his flaws apart, Narendra Modi today, is truly a transformational leader! And we need many more like him!


http://islamicterrorism.wordpress.com/2008/11/12/why-india-needs-narendra-modi-indian-muslim-suhel-seth-managing-partner-of-counselage/>

My Comments:
I will not be surprised if there is any Fatwa taken out by Moolha's for Suhel Seth who has written this! Just like they use to write a Fatwa for Salman Khan who goes for Ganesh Chaturthi ceremony.....but they forgets that his mother is a Hindu....Salim Khan first wife is a Hindu and she still lives with him.....

I donno which religion has the tolorence of other religions....

A Pakistan Plot! ....trying to FIX India and USA....simultaneously

Well, Freinds,
This is a exact copy of a post of Todays TOI edition.
It is really a good analysis and I agree fully with it and hence I have copy pasted it here for my readers...
As usual I have highlighted para and sentences as I normallyt do so that readers can understand it more easily....

Rajeev


US, India face Pak blackmail on terror
1 Dec 2008, 0054 hrs IST, Chidanand Rajghatta, TNN

The United States and India face tactics bordering on blackmail from a militarized Pakistan - where civilian control is still very dodgy - as they coordinate efforts to eliminate terrorism in the region, according to analysts and officials on both sides.

In what is turning out to be an elaborate chess game in the region, Islamabad on Saturday made its "Afghan move" to counter the US-India pincer, telling Washington that it will have to withdraw some 100,000 Pakistani troops posted on its western borders to fight the al-Qaida-Taliban and move them east to the Indian front if New Delhi makes any aggressive moves.

In Washington, Pakistan's ambassador to the US Hussain Haqqani said there is no movement of Pakistani troops right now, but if India makes any aggressive moves, "Pakistan will have no choice but to take appropriate measures."

Stripped of complexities, Pakistan is conveying the following message to the US: If you don't get India to back down, Pakistan will stop cooperating with US in the war against terror. Consequently, this also means Pakistan will use US dependence on its cooperation to wage a low-grade, asymmetric, terrorism-backed war against India.

Pakistan's withdrawal of troops from the Afghan front would obviously undermine the US/Nato battle in Afghanistan and allow breathing space for Taliban and al-Qaida. It would also ratchet up confrontation with India, which is at low ebb right now because Islamabad has been forced to engage on its western front and this minimizes Pakistan-backed infiltration into Kashmir, allowing India to tackle the insurgency in the state.

In fact, some experts surmise that the terror strike on Mumbai may have been aimed at precisely this - taking the pressure off Pakistan on its Afghan front, where it is getting a battering from US predators and causing a civilian uprising on its border, and allowing Islamabad to return to its traditional hostile posture against India on its eastern front.


The US-India-Pakistan tangle was the subject of intense debate among analysts on Sunday talk shows, with some analysts like former CIA Deputy Director John McLaughlin expressing apprehension that al-Qaida could be achieving its objective of getting some relief through such proxy attacks.


Vexed US officials have been in constant communication with their Indian counterparts to deal with the complex situation arising from what both sides privately agree has become a chaotic country dominated by rogue elements from its military and intelligence services.


Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been speaking with India's External Affairs Minister regularly to get a sense of India's mood and moves, worried that any overtly aggressive response by New Delhi will undermine US effort in Afghanistan.


President Bush and President-elect Barack Obama have also spoken to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to show US support, but also to moderate Indian response. Both Washington and New Delhi are starting to realise that the Pakistani military still calls the shots in Islamabad behind the civilian façade, officials here concede privately.


The weakness of Pakistan's civilian leadership was fully exposed on Saturday when the countrys army chief once again overruled a civilian government decision - this time to send the Director General of its spy agency ISI to India to coordinate the investigation into the latest terror attack on Mumbai.


Pakistans President Asif Ali Zardari explained it away saying there was a miscommunication and Islamabad only meant to send a ''Director'' and not Director-General, at Prime Minister Manmohan Singhs request. But no one was fooled by the ''clarification'' -- the reversal of the earlier decision came after a midnight meeting Pakistans Army Chief Pervez Kiyani, a former ISI chief himself, had with Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani.


Pakistans threat about troop withdrawals from the Afghan front also followed the Zardari-Kiyani-Gilani meeting, leaving little doubt about the real power center in Islamabad despite the recent return to democratic rule.


The situation is made even more complex by the transition process in the US where President Bush is winding down from the White House and President-elect Obama is readying to take charge. Both sides have made the Pakistan problem a top priority as they coordinate response, tactics, and communication relating to developments in the region.


The latest attacks on Mumbai also threatens to torpedo Obama's stated objective of promoting good ties between New Delhi and Islamabad, so that Pakistan can focus its energy on the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan that are controlled by Islamic extremists.


But hardliners in Pakistan's military and strategic circles, who resent what they see as the country's civilian government doing Washington's bidding and fighting what they argue is a US war, are against this. The terror strike on Mumbai evidently has several objectives - one of them being to cause a rift between Washington and New Delhi and damage US-India ties.


While Pakistan's fledgling civilian government has made all the right moves and noises about cooperation with India, officials here reckon it is being continuously undermined by the hard-line military whose importance, and lavish funding, depends on keeping up a hostile posture against India.


Even in the political sphere, Pakistan's continued existence as a single entity is premised on enmity with India, the glue which keeps the country together. Some Pakistanis have suggested in recent months that take away animosity ( means hatred,dislike,resentment)against India, then Pakistan's founding itself becomes questionable. ( this is very important to understand....the finer lines ...that I have always discussed with my father when I was in India)

Already, many Pakistanis are starting to question the relevance of a country where more people are killed in intra-religious warfare between Shias and Sunnis than in Hindu-Muslim communal riots in India. Two of Pakistan's four territories are wracked by insurgencies, and the intelligence community's reading is that resurrecting the hostile posture against India is one way the hard-line elements in Pakistan hope to contain this domestic conflagration.


While Pakistan is playing its one desperate Afghan card, both India and US can separately bring Pakistan to its knees in no time. The US and its allies are dependent on Pakistan for supplies to its troops in Afghanistan, but they can also plug the economic plug on the country and cause it to collapse in no time. India controls Pakistan's lifeline and jugular with river waters that originate in India and flow into Pakistan.


But punishing Pakistan with this levers would also throw the country into absolute chaos and bring extremists elements to the fore leading to a Somalia kind of situation -- with nuclear weapons in the mix. This is the fear that Pakistan is exploiting to stay afloat and stave off sanctions from the west and punishment from India.


The solution, analysts say, is to get Pakistan's civilian leadership to exert control over its hard-line military and intelligence which functions on its own existential agenda.


This is easier said than done. America's foremost strategic guru Henry Kissinger told Fareed Zakaria's GPS program on CNN, which devoted an entire hour to the crisis, that Pakistan's civilian government had made good statements vis-à-vis ties with India,"but its capacity to implement them is questionable."