Not a bad idea

India 'to register all marriages' from BBC

India's Supreme Court has given the federal and state governments three months to enact legislation making it compulsory to register all marriages.

The court said the public's views would be invited on the new legislation.

Under the proposed changes, proof of a traditional religious marriage ceremony would not be sufficient.

Supporters of the move say it will curb crimes such as bigamy and marriage without consent. Critics say the state is interfering and the law unnecessary.

Comic effect

I have been refraining from putting anything related to major havoc caused buy a cartoon published somewhere in Europe. Was this the reaction the republisher's(the cartoons were initially published many moths ago and had gone unnoticed) were hoping for? I have been reading that in the Muslim countries it has just been used to launch all sorts of protests. And in Pakistan it is used to attach Indian embassy. Jokes apart... I am wondering how can a small sheet with scribbles can cause such reaction with people who have not even seen it?

An additional thought why is there no such protest against the treatment of prisoners? Isn't it worth more than a piece of paper?

What the hell???????

Govt. asks for number of Muslims in armed forces from Silicon India [via anitha]

A major political storm is brewing in the country after the central government asked the defense ministry for details on Muslims, their ranks and their roles in the armed forces.

Why would the goverment want data on how many people from x religion are in the army. That is one place where only and only qualification should matter. Now I wonder if they will make the army also a battle ground for religion.

Never Let Go of Hope

One day you will see that it all has finally come together.
What you have always wished for has finally come to be.
You will look back and laugh at what has passed and you will ask yourself,
"How did I get through all of that?".
Just never let go of hope.
Lust never quit dreaming.
And never let love depart from your life.

-- Jancarl Campi

Why???????????

95 Pounds Heavier, Angry Son Faces Mother Who Starved Him from NYTimes

CAMDEN, N.J., Feb. 10 — Bruce Jackson rose in a packed courtroom here on Friday, 95 pounds heavier and 15 inches taller than he was 27 months ago when he was found rummaging through a neighbor's garbage can looking for food.

He looked directly at his adoptive mother, who was about to be sentenced to seven years in prison for systematically starving him and his three younger brothers in a case that drew national attention to the failures of New Jersey's child welfare system.

"You would make us eat pancake batter, dried-up grits and oatmeal, uncooked Cream of Wheat, and raw potatoes instead of cooked food," Mr. Jackson, now 21, told her and the crowded courtroom. "You didn't take us to any doctor's appointments. You wouldn't let us watch TV or play with our toys. You wouldn't let us take a shower when we were dirty."

He read from a piece of paper in a calm and determined voice betrayed by a slight slur.

"You yelled at us, cursed at us, hit us with brooms, rulers, sticks, shoes and belt buckles; I still have the marks to prove it," he told Vanessa Jackson, 50, who took him in as a foster child when he was 7 and later adopted him.

...

"If we knew why these kinds of things happen, we would be able to put ourselves in the shoes of defendants, in the shoes of mass murderers, in the shoes of people who do horrible things to young children," said Vincent P. Sarubbi, the Camden County prosecutor. "We'd have to become them, and that's why it's impossible in some circumstances to truly understand what may motivate people."

funny quote

"Half the lies they tell about me aren't true."
--Yogi Berra

Australian spectators

Show Murali the respect he deserves from The Hindu

Certainly Australians need to confront and correct their growing reputation for bad sportsmanship off the field. Australian cricketers are raised always to accept the umpire's decision. It's about time locals realised that this applies constantly and sometimes inconveniently, and that the game is greater than any man or any nation.

I always thought that the Australians were the most sporting spectators who would call a spade a spade and not flow with their emotions. But looks like the sub-continent passion of cricket is rubbing on them too....