Loneliness is arguably the overarching theme of Naruto. At a high level, the anime follows the story of a boy who is shunned by most in his village because they are afraid of a demon fox is sealed within him. Naruto is a Ninja and, like many others in his village, is able to use […]
Sheathing Power with Accountability
Today, I came across several posts condemning a case of police brutality in Tamil Nadu. It is indeed a most unfortunate incident, and the outrage against it is fully justified. What surprised me, however, is that some of my friends who are outraged by this incident are also supporters of the Armed Forces Special Powers […]
The Power of Dailies
Of the many ways in which I have been wasting time over the years, a recent one is a game called Guild Wars 2 (GW2). This game employs some very interesting devices to engage players and make them come back to it. Of these, the most important in my opinion is a type of achievement […]
A Word to Supporters of Extrajudicial Killing
The news of the four accused in the sensational Hyderabad rape case being shot dead by police in an alleged encounter is worrying. But what is more alarming is the fact that many educated and otherwise sane persons support this extrajudicial killing as a case of justice served. If one were to say “I kill […]
Humans of the Future
This is an age where you hear many talking about the Earth getting destroyed, about humans having to migrate to another planet. There are those who believe it possible and those who think otherwise. The answer to which of these is true can be known for sure only by humans of the future. How will […]
Triple Talaq Law
The passing of Triple Talaq law marks a dark day in Indian democracy. The eagerness with which we celebrate this historic murder of liberty and secularism is reminiscent of the scene from Star Wars where Padme remarks, “So this is how liberty (democracy?) dies, with thunderous applause”. I must make it very clear at the […]
On the Call for Special Laws to Handle Violence at Hospitals
With the recent developments in West Bengal following incidents of violence at some hospitals, there have been calls from many quarters for newer and stronger laws specifically to deal with such cases of assault against doctors, hospitals and medical staff. I am of the opinion that such laws will not help address the problem faced […]
Diversity and Segregation in Society
I recently came across an interesting, playable, animation that showed how a small preference for individuals to be among people who are like them will result in a segregated society. The illustration has two types of polygons – squares and triangles. If each square prefers to be in a square majority area and each triangle […]
The Wisest Way to Invest
Ever since the beginning of civilization, humans have been trying to devise ways in which they can store the results of their hard work for the future. For a hunter-gatherer, since he dealt with perishables such as fruits or meat, the options were limited. His best bet was to share what he got with others […]
Divorce in India and in the West
There is a stark contrast in the attitude towards divorce in India and in the west. This is best understood in terms of an analogy. Consider I want to leave my job for another. I only need to let my employer know and give them an advance notice as specified in our contract. On the […]