After arrack went off the rack

Father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi, had no place for alcohol in his grand vision for India. In prompt compliance to this ‘vision’, his condemnation was written into the constitution. All the states, according to it, are supposed to be making it gradually more complicated to obtain alcohol until none is available. The motives of our founding fathers were commendable: in rural India booze is a dominant anaesthetic against the pains of destitution and yet it exacerbates that deprivation and ruins families! But there was never a pragmatic chance of eradicating the ‘demon drink’ completely. Many efforts were made, but with little success.

In 2007, during the reign of BJP-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka, B S Yediyurappa (BSY), under the capacity of Dy. Chief Minister took a ‘very brave’ step of eradicating the arrack by banning it. Though it was a bloody blow to the arrack barons, it was, however, well received in the rural areas. The Stree Shakti Group, an NGO, and other Seers of Hindu Monasteries, who have been campaigning hard for the eradication hailed the former Dy. CM for his commendable measure. It can be called commendable because in Karnataka 50% of revenues from the liquor industry come from arrack alone. To put it in figures: of 3,414.94 Crores excise collections in 2005-06, arracks share was 1,565.40 crores.

Threat that can be severe than Terrorism

By U. Mahesh Prabhu

Do you think Islamic terrorism is the worst thing ever to be faced by mankind? If ‘Yes’ is your answer, perhaps you shall change your view point, and completely, after reading this.

Egypt’s authoritarian regime is currently facing a mounting political threat. Other countries in similar state are: Cote D’Ivoire, Cameroon, Mozambique, Uzbekistan, Yemen and Indonesia. If not riots they are forced to face increase in public demonstration. Recently Jacques Edonard Alexis, Prime Minister of Republic of Haiti, a Caribbean nation, was kicked out of office foreseeing the hospitals filled with wounded following the riots. These riots, interestingly, are neither for the sake of religion nor for unswerving political rationale. It is all happening for the sake of food!

Globally food prices have risen nearly 40% since mid-2007. And the nations who import nearly all of its food are facing their worst crisis ever. The prices of wheat have jumped by over 120% which means the price of a loaf of bread has more than doubled in places where poor spend as much as 75% of their income just on food. It is needless to say that if such rise in prices go on, then its consequence on population in a large set of countries will be terrible.

Zimbabwe: A dreadful saga of inflation

In Zimbabwe every person is a millionaire. He has a capacity to spend millions of Zimbabwean Dollars (ZD) every month. It is true, have no doubts. Actually he does spend millions of dollars. It’s fact, not fiction.

However, it is also true that knowing this very truth revered economists deny calling it a prosperous nation. Not out of psychosis, but of sanity. A mere sausage sandwich here costs 30 million ZD. That’s true, thirty million! That apart a 30 pound bag of potatoes, which would cost 90 million in the first week of March, is now estimated to be costing over 160 million ZD. Why? That’s because of inflation, which in case of this African nation has surpassed over 1,000 %.

Before I dive a bit deep into the subject here’s a brief definition of inflation, for those who have never heard of this economic terminology: ‘Inflation is a measure of rise in price level of goods and services, measured up by taking set of goods and services and then prices of the items in the set are compared to prices one period ago.’

In 1979, when Mugabe’s nationalist rebels overthrew the white dominated government of Rhodesia, and changed the name of the country to Zimbabwe, it was among the most prosperous of the African Nations then. All the farms which once would have enough and more of food grains and thus export to earn a foreign exchange now lay barren – virtually. Needless to say that agricultural productivity is at all time low. This year the country’s shortfall in maize is 360,000 tones, and its short fall in wheat is 255,000 tones.

The unrealized siege of Capitalism

There is no need for an elaborate justification to say that ‘Money’ rules not just our lives but also our Institutions and other social framework, in totality. This is the hallmark of Capitalism. Capitalism, that which became very persevering theme after the World War II and grew to be an even major objective, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, is what ruling us today.

But how good is Capitalism? No doubt it gives a great lifestyle, lots of opportunities for growth and all that. But have we ever spent time to realize its constraints? I bet – never. Why? That’s because capitalism hardly gives you any chance to think about zilch, but riches.