Mumbai, Lets not Forget and Forgive

The recent terror attack on Mumbai has many different forms of impact on us. Even being a Bangladeshi, I just think there’s a lot to learn and see from this.

Most notably perhaps is to learn not to forget and forgive. Like in India, people in our country have too often forgotten what the government has done, and we forgive too easily. It is our indecisive mind that leads to such horrors, as we forget the irresponsibleness of those who promised to protect us. While the security forces, especially the Indian commandos, have done an incredible job, my mind also brings into question the credibility of the top officials, just like those in our country. I often times witness the reactive nature of government officials in Bangladesh, where we promise to do everything after the damage has already been done. There’s a lack of proactiveness, which too often results in such situations in South Asian countries. Such incidents only bring more hurdles for people of third world countries. In toughest times like these, as if we could not add more hopelessness to ourselves. But I wish to ask, when do we see a transformation?

It also leaves me in doubt. While I do see media stating getting the 10-12 terrorists – isn’t it clear there were more terrorists in action when they attacked 9 of those regions? What is the exact count, and where are the others? For more than 4 days, I have tried to know the stats for this incident, but have constantly failed in getting the accurate picture.

I am deeply grieved from this incident, and my prayers are with all of those who lost their lives. This is a place where dreamers have redefined possibilities, a place where vision comes to reality, a place of life, and I hope Mumbai will bring back the spirit back to its people soon. I salute all those heroic hearts who have put their lives at risk to help others. As a Bangladeshi, I would love to let people of Mumbai know that, every step you take to fight it, we are with you.

Taking Shortcuts

Growing up in a city where rules are only meant to stay in the books, it’s easy to find people who willingly and consciously break rules on street every day. My experience has made me come across some of the most awfully unconscious drivers at streets of Dhaka. Changing lanes is one of those rules that is almost always ignored by people here. I guess what we do outside, also reflect how we are on the inside. Although definitely not the first time, when I saw this happening yesterday, something did clicked my mind.

There were four lanes on the road, and drivers showing off their zigzag skills by going from one to the other. Once the stop signal was lit, cars became static. We were approaching the traffic from behind, and I saw these four lanes, waiting to pick one. So I came across this interesting view. We’re supposed to be on the right most lane, which also was heavily congested, so we had to be on a longer cue,  or of course, like everywhere else in this country, there were shortcuts. Each lane on the left seemed like a better option compared to the one  on its right. So the leftmost lane was the best shortcut. But of course, it would be breaking the law, not that that means much here. So I stared at the four lanes, and asked myself, what do I do? – change the lane and take the shortcut, or be in the longer cue.

I decided to be on the right lane, and stick to the rules. I’m not particularly a fan of shortcuts, and always had an odium for such; which sort of mostly added to my frustration, as life probably is never fair. But then I saw this incredible message, as to what happened. The left most lane had mostly rickshaws, and as they take much less space compared to the cars, the lane always seems like an easier option. But when the signals go green, and we all started to move, it was our lane that went ahead. The rickshaws, that makes the left lane attractive, also is the reason why movement is much slower. Therefore, cars behind cant go any faster. When cars move, they rapidly pickup pace, and go forward, the rickshaws can’t keep up. And that’s the realization, how something so regularly seen be related to life.

Those who seek for shortcuts, can only go a certain distance. There is always the time, where hard work, and real skills come into the game, and to be ultimately be successful, you need to know everything that came from that journey, not just the shortcuts to move around issues. A growing number of people I know, have mastered the art of taking shortcuts. People have started to look for the immediate benefit something brings, rather deciding to struggle and do something that’s right (just like sticking to the right lane). Our lack of interest in looking at the philosophical aspects to such big and small things, have made us crippled.These days, falling for someone for the advantage of immigration or status, going for easy scholarships to universities that have no values, getting masters degrees to make resumes look good, and easy PhDs for business cards – such shortcuts are common. The real good things take more than ’shortcuts’ or changing lanes; it takes time, effort, and determination – many of which only comes from pure desire. With learning not to look for shortcuts, or cheap benefits that kills whatever part of humanity is left in us, we must start to admire something for which we are so willing to go through hardships. While hardships, may not always guarantee success, it almost certainly does guarantee that without it, we, as humans, are fake personalities who never really dealt with the toughness that life can bring, let alone learning to live with it.

We must learn to see through such temptations (shortcuts), and be strong to our belief, our morals, our dreams, and work on a plan to work it through. I think you can’t bargain on somethings in life, and taking shortcuts will only help if you have learned not to look inside yourself. Question yourself, are you compromising with the truth, trying to make yourself believe that you need to take a decision, follow a path, because you always wanted it, or only because it has a certain advantage to it? Learn not to take shortcuts, and along with it, learn sticking to your morals and working it out the hard way, because real winners never quit.

Why Linux Needs Marketing?

I came across this funny comic strip that seems to say what Linux means in a world of Windows. I would say, we do need help these folk market such a powerful technology to consumers, especially when Linux has really started to evolve.

Insight on Global Financial Crisis from USC

The web’s been a good place to have a look at real time updates on the Global Financial Crisis, one of the worst nightmares of our time. It’s not a good sign for any nation or man, as the chained reaction bombed pretty much every one of us. What’s probably worse is just like a nuclear holocaust, the effects of this are here to stay, at least for a while. Although there are certain opportunities for third world countries to put their products forward, especially when the “real” purchasing power of developed countries has come into question; but gaining back trust, and get the spirit of the world economy moving the same way is hard to see. Do I hate the credit economy for this? Absolutely not! I’d say the credit economy must live through this, for the enormous amount of hope and standard it brings to many. But yes, I do believe the “culture” should change to some extent. As the saying goes, too many people jumped into the pool, and this time the water ran out. Everyone played their role on setting up the fire, and factors like real estate and war are some of the major fuels of the war, but almost certainly not all of it. So it brings into question the fact that why someone else must also face the consequences for another family’s non-sense expenditure. More or less, too many people took advantage of the credit culture, and this was “certain” to come. But I personally believe such environments for reinvesting despite of risk brings a lot more than mere joys of affordability. It brings jobs, it brings entrepreneurships, it brings development, and most important it helps someone believe that they can bring their dreams come true via hard work. How much of it can we assure in our country? Someone has to make people believe we can and will overcome this, but this shouldn’t stop reasonable customer behavior. Does bailing out banks really help? It’s more of a temporary fix that can only cure as much. Some policies must be changed, and limit those activities that many has taken advantage of to make money. I guess we all are worried about our jobs, our future, our retirement, our savings, and this may lead to considerably low amount of expenditure – a fact that seems deadly, as less people willing to spend may actually effect economy even further.

I had an excellent chance to see the live webcast from Marshall School of Business on this issue, a truly fantastic time with some of the gurus of the investment banking industry. If you’ve done your homework on the fundamental understanding of this crisis, I would highly recommend you take some time off to watch this session. The live link is no longer available on USC website, but I did a recording from the live stream that I’d love to share among all the readers of my blog. This is one of those things you don’t want to miss.

This is a big stream, as the discussion was hours long. You may download the recoded video from here. Rapidshare link can be found here.