About: This is a beautiful story, told from my perspective, on what happened this week, in our World.

Everywhere

The New American Gangster

The United States of America (USA) is hogging the headlines, all for the wrong hurt reasons. President Donald Trump continued to unabashedly find unavailable fault lines in America’s just concluded ‘democratic’ Presidential Elections, which he lost, – speaking figuratively – by about the distance between Washington and New York. And refused to acknowledge defeat. He had the temerity to call up Georgia’s Secretary of State to find new dishes to cook up a victory for himself, and poison Biden’s food. ‘Bold abuse of power’ said the incoming Vice-President-Elect. Needs to stomach this and perhaps much more, before Inauguration Day on 20 January 2021.

Over the past four years the US has been offering the world high quality technicolour ‘cowboy – red-Indian’ entertainment, and it’s now reaching a crescendo. Actually, it did, when on Wednesday, Trump-supporting Protestors stormed Capitol Hill where Election Results were being counted, ahead of final certification, in a first-ever Capitol breach since the British attacks in the year 1814, and ransacked offices inside; also ‘occupying various chairs’. A woman was shot dead in the process. Unbelievable scenes out there. The President cooly told the invaders, “We have to have peace, so go home. We love you, you’re very special”. Christopher Columbus must have been pleased. The mayhem started after Trump told his supporters that he will be joining them in a march to the Capitol. Isn’t that fuel enough? I say fire him!

After these bizarre action scenes, Trump finally agreed to ensure a smooth transition, once Congress certified the Biden-Harris win later that day. However, he continued with his rant that the Presidential Election was stolen from him and that he will not attend the inauguration of the new President.Cheese!

Meanwhile, the blue Democrats won both run-off Elections in the State of Georgia making it a tie, and giving them control in the Senate, with the Vice-President having to lean-in to tilt the balance. The Biden-Harris team now has control of both law-making Houses and can push ‘change bills’ without a sweat on their brow.

America’s democracy is forever stained and the people who ‘rode the trail’ with the President are equally to blame for allowing him to gallop in to this crazy stage. Should have used the lasso, long ago, or truthfully borrowed one from Wonder Woman 2021 (is there one?) to rein him in.

I think this is the nearest to a coup the USA has ever seen. And we thought India’s noisy, mike-pulling and throwing democracy was lousy? We have competition, but India has never seen a challenge to its National Election results in this fashion.

There’s a joke doing the rounds on the internet, “Due to the pandemic travel restrictions, this year the US had to organise the coup at home”. Maybe, it’s time other countries offer their Peace Keeping Troops to force democratic peace in the US? I’ve admired America all my life and have never seen it go so low down. Wonder who has the stars & stripes in their eyes. We are awed & struck by the world’s awe & strike specialist. The new American Gangster?

Vaccinating India

India was running behind the USA in the COVID-19 infections and while the USA started out on another track – Vaccinations, India is yet to start. Nevertheless, India is ‘doing the heats’ with dry vaccination runs all over the Country. The confidence is visible in every step the Government takes, but where is the Vaccine? Close-friend Israel has already punched over a million arms and India is just beginning to roll up its sleeves. This Sunday, the Drugs Controller General of India approved two Vaccines for ‘emergency use’, The Oxford AstraZeneca Vaccine – already being used in the UK – will be jabbing under the name ‘Covishield’, and the homemade ‘Covaxin’.

The homespun one has stirred the proverbial hornets nest on being approved far too quickly, with unknown results of Phase-III Trials and unspoken efficacy levels.

Has India jumped the gun? I would trust the Government, the approving Authorities, and the hard-working Scientists behind the home effort… and offer my arm.

We Are The Children. The Child is the Father (& Mother) of Man.

The United Nations Children’s Fund, originally called United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), has estimated that about 371,504 babies will be born around the world on New Year’s Day, out of which a Himalayan 59,995 will be born in India. That’s a damn good start for the Government’s ‘Make in India’ programme. China comes a poor second with 35,615 babies. Finally, we have beaten China! And this is one area India is unmatched and unbeatable?

2021’s first baby will be born in Fiji and the last in the USA. UNICEF goes on to say that, in total, an estimated 140 million children will be born in 2021 with an average life expectancy of 84 years. Naturally, the UNICEF, itself born in the year 1946, has dedicated its 75th year to reimagining a better world for children. The job of the UNICEF is to work full-time in saving children’s lives around the world and ensuring that they survive, find, and develop their true potential – lurking inside their genes, to make this world a better place, and to carry forward the story of humankind. Of course.

Ever since my wife and I started our Women’s Apparel Design and manufacturing Company, we have dressed-up many women for their Wedding Day. And in the recent past, most have returned with a baby – inside or outside. I witness, first hand, ‘the swell’ in India’s population. One of our customers who has failed to make complete payment for the Wedding dresses, and used the lockdown to her advantage, suddenly sprouted up on Friday to settle. She said she now has a two-month old baby boy. My, that’s a job very well done!

Never mind, my School Teacher – I still keep in touch with her- who lives, retired in Bengaluru, India, worries to no end that none of her married children have gone into the production mode, and the wait for a grandchild seems never-ending. I hope these statistics enable her keep the faith, and bring her children to sow their seed in India’s fertile environment. New vista’s for development, around the corner!

Please Yourself. Aim for the Stars.

The New Year invariably brings us to the start of making new resolutions, to accomplish various tasks during the year, and turn the page on the old. Goal-setting is actually good, it works wonders and gives direction and meaning to an otherwise meandering life.

You need to decide where you want to go, else anything will take you anywhere!

I follow Larry Kim, the CEO of Mobile Monkey and Founder of Word Stream, on Twitter, and he dishes out some sane advice. Here is one of them – ten ways to make 2021 your best year:

Review your past years. Show your appreciation. Set Big Goals. Make a Vision Board. Plan your Calendar. Organise using an agenda. Create a reading list – reading stimulates the mind and improves focus and concentration (I’ve already ordered two books, on Amazon, to read. Nina Stibbe’s, Reasons To Be Cheerful, and Elle McNicoll’s, A Kind Of Spark). Set a morning routine. Commit to eat healthier. Monetise your passion(I’m trying with my writing).

I leave you with this thoughtful saying, by Khalil Gibran, which I keep on the opening page of my Bullet Journal, every year. It inspires me, hope it does the same magic to you.

“A traveller am I and a navigator and every day I discover a new region with my soul”

Have a great fulfilling year ahead. Work that arm, shake that leg, and crank that ‘supercomputer’, between your ears. There’s nothing you cannot do with such awesome resources at your command.