Bunch of Thoughts

Truth be told , the visit of the Indian PM to US is not only over hyped but also mis-understood by many in the US administration ... There are multiple red-herrings here, lets address them one by one .. a) Strategic Indo-US partnership - Partnerships are built on shared values, common goals. Fact is that there is little in common between India and US. Neither do we have a shared history nor a common view of the future. A partnership based just on economic negotiations is hardly strategic. US views India as a 'market' and nothing more. India has all that she needs to build a strong future ( money, manpower, muscle), there is little value that US can add. b) Lame duck Presidency - What can anyone achieve by talking to a lame duck indecisive President. What change can you bring about in the world when you cannot even get a budget passed in your own back backyard for many years. Meeting with Obama will yield little. c) Nuclear Power Deal - Operationalization of the US - In...

We often wonder what is common between India & China ...  a) 2 of the oldest civilisations in the world b) Larget countries by population - 30% of the human race resides in India and China c) Influence of Buddhism on culture d) Shared border  e) Failed attempts to eliminate poverty with socialist policies - Nehru in India and Mao in China only ended up increasing poverty with their socialistic ideas.. f) Allegiance to USSR - Both Nehru and Mao were once smitten by whatever USSR did g) Distrust of the west ... The list can go on ... with such a shared history, one could imagine that India-China should be allies rather than adversaries as portrayed by the Indian media.... Having spent 3 years living in China, I often wondered as to what caused the trust deficit. Is the trust deficit real ?  3 years in China and after thousands of interactions , I learned the following.... a) Respect for India & Indians - In all my travels across mainl...