Whats with McCain????

I have tremendous regard for John McCain's service to the nation and his tragic past as a Vietnamese prisoner of war. With that being said, is McCain a viable presidential candidate? In light of the events over the past few years, and more specifically, the past month, the answer is a resounding no.

Between 2000 and 2004, McCain gained popularity as a maverick figure in the GOP, standing by his beliefs rather than towing the party line. However, according to Wikipedia - "McCain's voting record in the 109th congress was the third most conservative among senators".

It is no coincidence that McCain's pandering to the GOP's ultra conservative base coincides with the rise of his presidential ambitions. The desire for the office of the presidency is understandable, but the complete lack of conscience makes McCain's campaign practically unforgivable. McCain jumped at the first opportunity to take cheapshots at a fellow vietnam hero John Kerry, by criticizing his "botched joke" about the troops just before the 2007 midterms. However, when criticized for singing the "bomb Iran" song, he asked his critics to "...lighten up.."!!!! His Iraq trip fiasco painfully highlights his ignorance of the reality on the ground, and his willingness to jeopardize the safety of American troops and Iraqi citizens to score political points.

It is still very early in the race, and at this stage, judging by McCain's weak campaign fund raising, it is apparent that many Americans feel the same unease with his candidacy.

Get a life... leave the laptop at work...

For the first time in many months, I felt a great sense of freedom this weekend, coz my office laptop simply did not work. I spent the whole of last year, way too engrossed in my job. Now, thinking about it, I probably was not as effective as I could have been, as I was simply exhausted. This year, a light bulb is suddenly burning bright in my head. For me to be effective at work, I've got to work less, and hence work more. Sounds like an oxymoron, but I have seen many crackberry addicts "working" all through the weekend, and then spending precious hours during the workweek, bitching to their colleagues about how they are overworked...I'm now itching to go to work this monday morning after three whole days away from my office laptop. I hope this new strategy of mine works, i hope i get to see at least some sunshine during the day, and i hope i get a life at least this year!

The case for Obama

Opinion polls for the past few months constantly pitched Hillary Clinton as the democratic front runner, and I viewed these with constant disbelief. The opinion of Washington pundits aside, it is hard to imagine the average Jane or Joe rooting for Hillary. Voters can be roughly divided into two groups - people who do not really follow politics, and people who do. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that the former will have a major perception problem with Hillary, and the latter will most certainly have a problem with Hillary's stance on Iraq.

It is probably unfair to judge a book by it's cover, but politics is all about perception, and people do not really get the warm fuzzies when they see Hillary. She is too guarded, too practiced, too focus-grouped, and too opinion-polled. As she is afraid to be herself, she comes up short when compared to a slick Edwards or a warm, self-effacing Obama. Much like conventional desis, Americans are also typically guarded when it comes to rooting for strong willed, independent, career-oriented women. It is not a mere coincidence that a Laura Bush has wide spread support across party lines, and even Nancy Pelosi works over time to promote her nice ol' granny image. Hillary's performance as the junior senator from New York has been admirable, but, for a majority of the voting public who do not really deep dive into real politics, it is simply way too easy to dislike her.

For diehard democrats, it is really difficult to get past Hillary's vote for the Iraq war. She can nuance her stance on this forever, and her consultants can come up with all the necessary shpiel, but this does not change the reality; the consequences of the war have been disastrous, and also sadly anticipated by millions across the world....except, seemingly those who cast their votes. While voting for the war, Hillary could have either predicted these consequences or not. If she had predicted the consequences and still cast her vote, that makes her an unscrupulous politician who would rather give up her beliefs than cross paths with a then popular president. If she had not predicted the consequences, and cast her vote based on the "intelligence", that raises serious questions about her competency and capability to rule this nation. The same logic also taints all other contenders who voted for the war - John Edwards, John Mccain, and the likes.

The general unease about Hillary's candidacy is totally reflected in the first quarter fund raising numbers reported last week. Obama's 25 million came from thousands of average Janes and Joes, as opposed to Hillary's 26 million which was bolstered by her senate account, an undisclosed amount of general election contributions, and many friends left over from the Clinton years. I have nothing against Hillary - in fact, before Obama announced his candidacy, I was a major supporter. I do not have perception problems with her, but I simply cannot look past her Iraq vote.

...If you get only one great love, then Chennai may just be mine...

Qoute source: Carrie Bradshaw (and ofcourse, substitute Chennai with New York!)

I'm back after two blissful weeks in the most fabulous city on the planet, Chennai. I've been to India and the UK a few times before, but I have never had such a wonderful time. Everything somehow came together...perfect times with my family, friends, cousins, and ofcourse, beautiful Chennai. I spent the next couple of weeks back in Naperville feeling rather bad for myself, terribly homesick, and missing all the smiling faces around me. Anyway, i guess our hearts are more tenacious than what we think... i am back to slogging away at work, catching up with American politics, shopping for groceries, and remembering my times with my baby loves without getting a lump in my throat...