Ideas News - Page 9

Illiberalism: Why they ban burkhas and we Aarakshan

Europe and India — both multinational unions — are liberal and illiberal in their own ways. Europe wants to ban the burkha, we want to ban books. What makes our illiberalism different?

Reader Debate: How can the govt handle internal security

What should the government do in the case of violence against its own people by its own people?

The curious love story of Beena and Savita: Three questions

A young runaway couple from Baghpat is making waves around the world. But this is not really a story about India's first "legally recognised" lesbian marriage. It may not even be about lesbian or gay rights.

Why 'effects of technology on the brain' debates are useless

Digital literacy is far too important a skill, for children and adults alike, to just throw away because of vague suspicions.

Netaji's sword and Subhas Bose's tears

Subhas Bose has become the stuff of legend, a source of inspiration to people as diverse as Naga militants and Nelson Mandela. A new biography by his grand-nephew Sugata Bose tries to make sense of a hero's life that often outstripped his legend.

Amy Winehouse and 27 club: the blinkered romance with celebrity death

The Western imagination has long been infatuated with the fatally young. Amy Winehouse's death is finally bringing home a truth that we Indians have always known: death is overrated.

Message to India-haters: Five reasons we don't give a damn

Some of us will get extremely worked up because some Aussie nitwit called India a 'shit hole'. It's unhelpful, counter-productive, and unnecessary, and here's why.

How dogs have played a part in killing wildlife

There are more dogs in our country than tigers, leopards, wolves, hyenas and all other wild predators put together. There is no doubt that the over-population of dogs in India has contributed to a tremendous amount of disruption and killing of wildlife.

What makes Bhutan happy: discos, cars, and Burberry bags

Americans come to Bhutan with romantic notions about a mysterious, faraway kingdom only to find the world's happiest nation increasingly infatuated with all things American.

Subramanian Swamy is a hate-monger. Let's not make him a martyr

Who's afraid of Subramanian Swamy? A petition to force Harvard to dump Swamy might just backfire on the angry students who are circulating it. Banned by Harvard could give him more cachet than Swamy deserves.

Congress under Sonia-Rahul is all about bland speeches

In the Congress Party today silence speaks volumes. Social scientist Shiv Visvanathan reads between the gaps in the silences of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.

Goodbye rohu, hello Chilean sea bass: the real price of the fish we eat

Have you noticed fish name-dropping on the menu of many high end restaurants? Chilean sea bass. Norwegian salmon. Yellow fin tuna. Tastes good but what does it mean that the fish we eat are coming from every further away?

The perils of anti-immigration politics: Lessons from Oslo

When a white Christian terrorist goes on a killing spree, it does indeed reflect the failure of multiculturalism in Europe -- but not in the way rightwingers would like to claim.

Meet the beggar-catchers: How Sharmaji captures his prey

The senior officer at the Beggars Court shares the special techniques our government uses to round up those pesky vagrants —including the high-tech Beggar Information System 2.1.

ABC Didi: An alphabetic guide to Mamata's victory rally

The heavens poured torrential rain on Mamata Banerjee's grand victory rally, turning it to mud and slush. Here are scenes from the historic day — in an alphabet soup.

Say no to religion in schools: Why both the BJP and the liberals are wrong

The BJP wants to impose the Bhagvad Gita on schoolkids. The liberals want a multi-religious, values-based education. Here's why neither has it right.

Potter casts a multi-billion dollar spell but I'm not falling for it

Everyone loves the young wizard, kids, adults, college professors alike. But a great part of the series success is about successful marketing rather than literary worth.

The Bengali who hates fish: The story of shame, suffering, and ilish

I was the quintessential good Bengali boy – bespectacled, obedient, diligent – except for this one fatal flaw: I didn't like fish. A failure that would forever mark me as an outsider.

Andhra and Telengana: A vast and bitter cultural divide

They don't share the same food, festivals and values, or speak the same dialect. Telengana people say they can never be equal citizens in a state that treats their culture with contempt.

Why smirk at Murdoch when our media has much to hide?

The Murdoch affair should force Indian media to re-examine their own ethics issues. We haven't seen serious soul-searching for a while, and this is as good a time as any.

The Murdoch melodrama: The Shakespearean edition

With Rupert playing King Lear and Rebekah Brooks channeling Lady Macbeth, the British Shakespearewallah put on a fine show last night.

Bhajji needs to grin and bear it

McDowell's spoof on Royal Stag has made Harbhajan Singh unhappy. But can he really do anything about it?

How Mumbai defeated the logic of terror

Terrorists seek to disrupt, destroy and fragment society. It's why they hate Mumbai, a city confident in its everydayness, dizzy with its own normalcy.

Casey Anthony and Maria Susairaj: Freed by the courts, damned by the media

Two sensational trials have come to an end - the Maria Susairaj case in India and the Casey Anthony trial in the US. Both women have been found not guilty but that seems to matter little in the court of public opinion.

Who said no good ever came of the Emergency? Jug Suraiya remembers

When Mrs Gandhi imposed the Emergency, Jug Suraiya was not yet one of India's best known columnists. A young reporter in Calcutta, he got a first-hand taste of what it was like to wait for that midnight knock. Except he just kept waiting. It never came.