Brief:
Its official now : The recession will have no impact on IPL 2009.
Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Piterson have been auctioned for 7.5 crores.
The recent auction made me do a retrospect on this entire IPL turn of events.
-IPL Idea was derived from NBA, European Football Leagues and ICL.
-Its the Ultimate Reality TV: Team owners, actors without makeup,News channels, Newspapers and the on-field antics of players.
-The IPL shows that it is completely possible (as the economists Paul Baran and Paul Sweezy had argued long ago) for monopoly capitalism to create social wants and then proceed to fill them.
Economics:
The Stakeholders are :
Franchisees, Players, BCCI, TV Channels, Advertisers, DLF, Audience
BCCI gains 1 b$ from TV channels by selling rights
TV channels gain from advertisements
Players gain from money paid by franchisees
Franchisees gain from :
a) Popularity of brand value.e.g. for Kingfisher
b) Tickets sold at stadium, sale of merchandise at stadium.
c) Sponsors which they inturn get. e.g. Tag heur supported SRK for kolkata Knight Riders
d) Part of revenue from selling TV rights
e) Part of money from central sponsor (DLF)
f)Every franchisee has a built-in insurance policy, at least partially, in the form of inflation. The franchise fees, which forms the bulk of their expenses, will remain constant through 10 years. But revenues they earn by way of ticket sales, team sponsorships, merchandising, etc., are expected to rise each year, thus, making it easier for them to become profitable as the years go by.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Whats The Big DEAL!
Bravo Mr. PM! For finally going ahead with the deal!
The trust vote came as a big moral victory for Congress, which finally took some strong decision in its 4 year long rather mediocre tenure.
The trust vote came down hard on the BJP though.7 deflectors, despite all assurances of party unity by Mr. Advani. Mr. Advani's stand, though politically correct, was unfortunate for the nation."We are in favor of strategic ties with US for nuclear energy, but we still do not accept the deal in the current format", said Mr. Advani, despite knowing that the current format was the best possible one for India.
Left's illogical ideological stand was destined to doom them, and the same happened too. How does Mr. Karat intend to help the poor and satisfy the energy need of the agricultural sector without investing in the energy sector?
In my opinion, the deal provides the following distinct advantages to India:
1)Without signing the NPT, India can trade in nuclear material.This puts India in a uniquely advantageous position.
2)Nuclear energy contributes to just 3% of energy needs of India. After the technology transfer by US, this will soon grow to 7%. Once India has the requisite nuclear technology , India may grow this percentage to as high as it wants!
3)Most nuclear plants in India are under-utilized due to lack of nuke raw materials, or poor consumption of fuel,etc.This problem is bound to be solved by the deal.
4)Fourthly, even if India conducts a test sometime in the future and US withdraws the technology transfer, we shall be much much better off then, than what we are now(without the deal!).
The above were the direct implications. As far as the indirect implications are concerned,
1) Health Care sector will be a beneficiary, because now access to the sophisticated X-Ray /other radioactive machines will be granted to India.
2) High quality Steel, to which India was denied access, because it could be used in nuclear reactors will now be accessible to India
3)High end technology which comes in will be good for our Software,Electronics and Space research sector as well.
So under all circumstances, the deal is completely pro-India.
The trust vote came as a big moral victory for Congress, which finally took some strong decision in its 4 year long rather mediocre tenure.
The trust vote came down hard on the BJP though.7 deflectors, despite all assurances of party unity by Mr. Advani. Mr. Advani's stand, though politically correct, was unfortunate for the nation."We are in favor of strategic ties with US for nuclear energy, but we still do not accept the deal in the current format", said Mr. Advani, despite knowing that the current format was the best possible one for India.
Left's illogical ideological stand was destined to doom them, and the same happened too. How does Mr. Karat intend to help the poor and satisfy the energy need of the agricultural sector without investing in the energy sector?
In my opinion, the deal provides the following distinct advantages to India:
1)Without signing the NPT, India can trade in nuclear material.This puts India in a uniquely advantageous position.
2)Nuclear energy contributes to just 3% of energy needs of India. After the technology transfer by US, this will soon grow to 7%. Once India has the requisite nuclear technology , India may grow this percentage to as high as it wants!
3)Most nuclear plants in India are under-utilized due to lack of nuke raw materials, or poor consumption of fuel,etc.This problem is bound to be solved by the deal.
4)Fourthly, even if India conducts a test sometime in the future and US withdraws the technology transfer, we shall be much much better off then, than what we are now(without the deal!).
The above were the direct implications. As far as the indirect implications are concerned,
1) Health Care sector will be a beneficiary, because now access to the sophisticated X-Ray /other radioactive machines will be granted to India.
2) High quality Steel, to which India was denied access, because it could be used in nuclear reactors will now be accessible to India
3)High end technology which comes in will be good for our Software,Electronics and Space research sector as well.
So under all circumstances, the deal is completely pro-India.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Just Imagine...
The earthlings were being observed for the past 28 days now, by 2 dozen pairs of elliptical eyes deeply socketed into perpendicular elliptical green colored heads.
As the sun dusked from the earth's surface, the elliptical eyed creatures realized : the moment they had been waiting for had finally arrived.
Facing a space crunch in the overpopulated Planet Xeta-B-12, the aliens had been planning to extend their population on some other habitable place in the Milky Way. After a month long study of this beautiful planet 'Earth' and and its most powerful creatures, the humans,the aliens had made up their mind to conquer the place.
The moment had arrived to strike the planet and take the useful beings as slaves.
In one shot, 72 missiles with a Hydrogen fusion Nuclear warhead were darted at the planet.Instantaneously, 7 continents erupted into 7 flames, which eliminated almost the entire living population. The war ended before it could begun and planet earth was captivated.
Left behind on planet earth were some 10 dozen humans who were digged out from the debris by the aliens, and who considered themselves "lucky" to be still alive.The aliens took the humans,who hardly knew about their future,into captivity.
Working as per a plan,the aliens put the "hostages" into 'useful' work, in an extremely 'systematic' manner, a manner learnt from the intelligent human race itself. After all, the aliens had observed, how intelligently humans 'used' the other species on earth.
The plan was to make the blasted continents habitable again,using these new found human slaves.
The females amongst the 10 dozen hostages were put into longitudinal cages.The aliens had a plan to use them for producing more 'slaves',by 'nurturing' them in captivity for the next few months.
In the cages, the females were fed on raw straw and water, twice a day.
Day in and out, they were injected with heavy doses of oestrogen to produce the 'future slaves' fast.
The aliens needed men to plough their fields and to carry material across locations.
So the males were put onto physical labor instantaneously.
Holes were darted into their noses and ropes passed via the holes.
The ropes were used to keep them tied to iron pillars during the night and to carts during the daytime.
Flat iron pieces were nailed into the men's feet, so that their skin did not wear out ,walking barefoot, drawing the carts around.
Eye Straps were tied to their heads, so that they did not look sideways while pulling the carts.
The whole idea was of course derived from the aliens' observations of the earth, prior to their conquest .
The few brave men who tried to retaliate had their torsos smashed with iron rods and left to bleed to death.
Meanwhile,
Within 4 months , 11 human fetuses were born and immediately, bottles of glucodyin were thrusted into their tiny bodies to help them grow fast. 4 months for one fetus was an abysmally long waiting time for the aliens. Immediately after the delivery, the females were given 24 hours to recover,in their filthy cramped cages. A day later, they were inseminated again and thrusted with innumerable injections..
One female who was taking a lot of time recovering was immediately stabbed and bled to death and her flesh was used for feasting that night. "Hey, the human flesh tastes superb !!",exclaimed all the aliens.
Immediately the capacity was expanded to produce more humans.
The strong ones were put into the fields. The weak ones served as food for the aliens.
50 years later..
A sizable human population once again roamed on the earth's surface..but this time as slaves.
They were tired and wanted to die..They were weary of watching what was happening to their kinfolk around them..
Their brothers and sisters were being tortured and prodded around...
Kids were reproduced in laboratories and then bled to death, painfully, to savor to the aliens' tastes..
Men were kept ,day in and out, tied via ropes ,hanging down from their noses ...They were made to run around , irrespective of whether they were crippled or sick or injured, carrying tonnes of load ..until they passed out.
The weak slaves were roasted alive in kitchens, with their shrieks being audible to the fellow humans in the vicinity.
Females were stuffed into 6X6 wired cages,locked with dozen more fellow beings ..
And the entire alive human race spent sleepless nights, thinking that Hitler's Nazis were Angels ...
_____________________________________________________________________
If you've read this far...you would be wondering about me, the author..No, I am not a serial killer at large.
Neither am I a psycho..Am just a member of PETA, who wants to speak out about the ordeals faced by domesticated animals at our hands..
Whatever inhumane stuff I have mentioned in the writeup above is happening every moment around us.
Don't believe it? ???
Watch this: www.meat.org
As the sun dusked from the earth's surface, the elliptical eyed creatures realized : the moment they had been waiting for had finally arrived.
Facing a space crunch in the overpopulated Planet Xeta-B-12, the aliens had been planning to extend their population on some other habitable place in the Milky Way. After a month long study of this beautiful planet 'Earth' and and its most powerful creatures, the humans,the aliens had made up their mind to conquer the place.
The moment had arrived to strike the planet and take the useful beings as slaves.
In one shot, 72 missiles with a Hydrogen fusion Nuclear warhead were darted at the planet.Instantaneously, 7 continents erupted into 7 flames, which eliminated almost the entire living population. The war ended before it could begun and planet earth was captivated.
Left behind on planet earth were some 10 dozen humans who were digged out from the debris by the aliens, and who considered themselves "lucky" to be still alive.The aliens took the humans,who hardly knew about their future,into captivity.
Working as per a plan,the aliens put the "hostages" into 'useful' work, in an extremely 'systematic' manner, a manner learnt from the intelligent human race itself. After all, the aliens had observed, how intelligently humans 'used' the other species on earth.
The plan was to make the blasted continents habitable again,using these new found human slaves.
The females amongst the 10 dozen hostages were put into longitudinal cages.The aliens had a plan to use them for producing more 'slaves',by 'nurturing' them in captivity for the next few months.
In the cages, the females were fed on raw straw and water, twice a day.
Day in and out, they were injected with heavy doses of oestrogen to produce the 'future slaves' fast.
The aliens needed men to plough their fields and to carry material across locations.
So the males were put onto physical labor instantaneously.
Holes were darted into their noses and ropes passed via the holes.
The ropes were used to keep them tied to iron pillars during the night and to carts during the daytime.
Flat iron pieces were nailed into the men's feet, so that their skin did not wear out ,walking barefoot, drawing the carts around.
Eye Straps were tied to their heads, so that they did not look sideways while pulling the carts.
The whole idea was of course derived from the aliens' observations of the earth, prior to their conquest .
The few brave men who tried to retaliate had their torsos smashed with iron rods and left to bleed to death.
Meanwhile,
Within 4 months , 11 human fetuses were born and immediately, bottles of glucodyin were thrusted into their tiny bodies to help them grow fast. 4 months for one fetus was an abysmally long waiting time for the aliens. Immediately after the delivery, the females were given 24 hours to recover,in their filthy cramped cages. A day later, they were inseminated again and thrusted with innumerable injections..
One female who was taking a lot of time recovering was immediately stabbed and bled to death and her flesh was used for feasting that night. "Hey, the human flesh tastes superb !!",exclaimed all the aliens.
Immediately the capacity was expanded to produce more humans.
The strong ones were put into the fields. The weak ones served as food for the aliens.
50 years later..
A sizable human population once again roamed on the earth's surface..but this time as slaves.
They were tired and wanted to die..They were weary of watching what was happening to their kinfolk around them..
Their brothers and sisters were being tortured and prodded around...
Kids were reproduced in laboratories and then bled to death, painfully, to savor to the aliens' tastes..
Men were kept ,day in and out, tied via ropes ,hanging down from their noses ...They were made to run around , irrespective of whether they were crippled or sick or injured, carrying tonnes of load ..until they passed out.
The weak slaves were roasted alive in kitchens, with their shrieks being audible to the fellow humans in the vicinity.
Females were stuffed into 6X6 wired cages,locked with dozen more fellow beings ..
And the entire alive human race spent sleepless nights, thinking that Hitler's Nazis were Angels ...
_____________________________________________________________________
If you've read this far...you would be wondering about me, the author..No, I am not a serial killer at large.
Neither am I a psycho..Am just a member of PETA, who wants to speak out about the ordeals faced by domesticated animals at our hands..
Whatever inhumane stuff I have mentioned in the writeup above is happening every moment around us.
Don't believe it? ???
Watch this: www.meat.org
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Shrill in the Hill
Darjeeling is in turmoil.So are the neighboring cities such as Siliguri.
The Gorkhas(Nepali speaking Indian population) in the uppermost tip of West Bengal, have been demanding for a separate state since 1907.Post independence when they were clubbed with West Bengal, there hopes were thwarted.
The center has been turning a deaf ear to their demand, since long. Never did the center try to see the ground reality.The fact is that the West Bengal government has done absolutely nothing for this region,ever. In every 5-year plan of the state govt, the region is simply ignored. Many feel that root causes are racism and linguism (Gorkhas speak Nepali and not Bengali).
The sacrifice of the Gorkha Regiment during war time cannot be forgotten. Its high time the center pays attention to the region and puts an end to the Gorkhas' continuing misery. The region badly needs growth and development opportunities for people's upliftment.
Trilateral talks involving WB govt. are not going to help. The center needs to listen to them.
The Gorkhas(Nepali speaking Indian population) in the uppermost tip of West Bengal, have been demanding for a separate state since 1907.Post independence when they were clubbed with West Bengal, there hopes were thwarted.
The center has been turning a deaf ear to their demand, since long. Never did the center try to see the ground reality.The fact is that the West Bengal government has done absolutely nothing for this region,ever. In every 5-year plan of the state govt, the region is simply ignored. Many feel that root causes are racism and linguism (Gorkhas speak Nepali and not Bengali).
The sacrifice of the Gorkha Regiment during war time cannot be forgotten. Its high time the center pays attention to the region and puts an end to the Gorkhas' continuing misery. The region badly needs growth and development opportunities for people's upliftment.
Trilateral talks involving WB govt. are not going to help. The center needs to listen to them.
Monday, June 2, 2008
SRK
I think SRK is grossly overpaid.
The man stammers while speaking.
A Good Dancer? I don't think any one who can move his feet would agree.
Looks? Ha!
In "Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hain", he looks like an old woman with thick layers of makeup. (Of course coupled with a heavy dose of botox).
What made this man click initially?
This man's unique romantic style touched the chords of many a Indians..But then aren't Indians generally speaking emotional fools...
Emoting a few contortions should not make some one eligible for getting payed more than a crore per episode. Aren't the producers promoting incompetency by such a fat salary package? Look around dear producers : You can find smarter and more deserving presenters around you! Infact an average urban Indian could host the serial in a more entertaining way..and he would work for you for a quarter of SRK's package!
The man stammers while speaking.
A Good Dancer? I don't think any one who can move his feet would agree.
Looks? Ha!
In "Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hain", he looks like an old woman with thick layers of makeup. (Of course coupled with a heavy dose of botox).
What made this man click initially?
This man's unique romantic style touched the chords of many a Indians..But then aren't Indians generally speaking emotional fools...
Emoting a few contortions should not make some one eligible for getting payed more than a crore per episode. Aren't the producers promoting incompetency by such a fat salary package? Look around dear producers : You can find smarter and more deserving presenters around you! Infact an average urban Indian could host the serial in a more entertaining way..and he would work for you for a quarter of SRK's package!
The IPL Fever
The Indian Premier League (Cricket) ended on 1st May 08 and on hindsight, it was a huge success.Lets look at what different people gained(or lost) from the same :
1) Mohali Team : The lucky bastards, Mohali players, got multiple hugs from my favorite actress and their team owner, Preity Zinta.
2) Crowd : Cheerleaders in Indian sports was a new phenomena. The gorgeous cheerleaders kept the male fraternity in the crowd happy. At the same time , they caused fights in many a families, where the husbands were glued to the TV set all because of the cheerleaders!
3) Dravid & Ganguly : Got the last stage for playing professional cricket .Its high time they bow out before they get kicked out.
4) Vijay Mallya : Though he invested in as multiple teams( to balance out the risk in his portfolio), none of them managed to get into the finals. Lesson learnt : Sometimes just reputation is not enough. Dont write off the startups without evaluating them (The underdog, Team Jaipur, had no initial takers, and went on to win the tournament !)
5) Cricketers in general: Earned huge bucks in millions.Seeing this example, parents will now support their children who want to actively pursue sports.
6) Me : I learnt the lesson from the IPL winners, the Jaipur Team : Even if you are an underdog when you start off, keep working sincerely and you can beat your talented competitors .Also , keep your cool under pressure and do the Basics Right!
1) Mohali Team : The lucky bastards, Mohali players, got multiple hugs from my favorite actress and their team owner, Preity Zinta.
2) Crowd : Cheerleaders in Indian sports was a new phenomena. The gorgeous cheerleaders kept the male fraternity in the crowd happy. At the same time , they caused fights in many a families, where the husbands were glued to the TV set all because of the cheerleaders!
3) Dravid & Ganguly : Got the last stage for playing professional cricket .Its high time they bow out before they get kicked out.
4) Vijay Mallya : Though he invested in as multiple teams( to balance out the risk in his portfolio), none of them managed to get into the finals. Lesson learnt : Sometimes just reputation is not enough. Dont write off the startups without evaluating them (The underdog, Team Jaipur, had no initial takers, and went on to win the tournament !)
5) Cricketers in general: Earned huge bucks in millions.Seeing this example, parents will now support their children who want to actively pursue sports.
6) Me : I learnt the lesson from the IPL winners, the Jaipur Team : Even if you are an underdog when you start off, keep working sincerely and you can beat your talented competitors .Also , keep your cool under pressure and do the Basics Right!
The New Bangalore Airport
Bangalore has got a new Airport, The Bengaluru International Airport.
It was a sad goodbye for many Bangaloreans to the old HAL Airport which had been operational since 1964. People like me, who have been staying a stone's throw from the HAL Port for many years now, were all the more saddened on the morning 24th May 08. No more deafening plane sounds and no more busy traffic on the Airport Road. And we missed it badly.
But things happen for good.
The old Airport was being over used at a super saturation level of 7.5 million passengers a year, though its capacity was just 3.6 m. Flight delays were quite prevalent due to such a traffic rush. And the risk was high too considering every 5-10 min, a flight was landing or taking off on the same runway.
The new Airport offers the following advantages :
1) Can handle 12 m passengers keeping in mind Bangalore's burgeoning "flying population" .
2) Is thoroughly connected via luxury buses(Volvos) and rail.
3) With the shift, the traffic on the HAL Airport Road will ease out a lot and reduce the area's ever rampant traffic problem.
4) And lastly, the very obvious benefit will be the decrease in flight delays .
The only disadvantage is for the bachelors staying in the HAL area, as most air hostesses would move out of this place.
;-)
Lastly HAL should take care not to rent out this huge unused space of the old airport for commercial purposes. This would prove disastrous for the already existing traffic problem on the HAL Airport Road.
It was a sad goodbye for many Bangaloreans to the old HAL Airport which had been operational since 1964. People like me, who have been staying a stone's throw from the HAL Port for many years now, were all the more saddened on the morning 24th May 08. No more deafening plane sounds and no more busy traffic on the Airport Road. And we missed it badly.
But things happen for good.
The old Airport was being over used at a super saturation level of 7.5 million passengers a year, though its capacity was just 3.6 m. Flight delays were quite prevalent due to such a traffic rush. And the risk was high too considering every 5-10 min, a flight was landing or taking off on the same runway.
The new Airport offers the following advantages :
1) Can handle 12 m passengers keeping in mind Bangalore's burgeoning "flying population" .
2) Is thoroughly connected via luxury buses(Volvos) and rail.
3) With the shift, the traffic on the HAL Airport Road will ease out a lot and reduce the area's ever rampant traffic problem.
4) And lastly, the very obvious benefit will be the decrease in flight delays .
The only disadvantage is for the bachelors staying in the HAL area, as most air hostesses would move out of this place.
;-)
Lastly HAL should take care not to rent out this huge unused space of the old airport for commercial purposes. This would prove disastrous for the already existing traffic problem on the HAL Airport Road.
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