City: past perfect or future tense-d?

We often dream. A dream of a bright future and an anticipation that the future will bring in all the things that we aspire for. Whether it is money, happiness, relations and security, we always look forward to the future. The cities are no less and somewhere each city dreams of its existence. We, the inhabitants of different cities can shape / de-shape a city into making a ‘city of dreams’ or a ‘city only in dreams’. The local authority constantly ‘fights’???? to create a ‘healthy’ future of the cities. But one must question whether these decision makers share the same dream as the common man?? Crores of money that is pumped in for the pretext of development of the cities find its several routes wither into the already wealthy pockets of these decision makers or into procrastinating things to make it work in the city. The denizen should be curious enough to question the authorities as to where does the money go.

One question that constantly pesters me is whether: The money is directed to make the cities of the past or cities of the future? Are we making a forward transgression or a reverse progression? The question then is: What is a city of the future, anyway?

Insofar as stimulus funds are available to repair failing bridges, dams, roads and vital infrastructure, that's where they should be invested.

To begin putting each city on the road to the future should be a on high priority. Which means building communities that are secure from energy supply disruptions and crippling energy prices. Laced with safe routes for people to walk and bicycle; able to provide a variety of mobility options so that everyone - including the young, old and disabled - has access to vital services.

Cities of the future condemn no neighborhood to be the dumping ground for waste, pollution or traffic; conserve vital resources such as water; prepare to withstand the anticipated impacts of climate change, including heat waves and extreme weather; protect and restore natural places so that kids of all ages have contact with nature; foster social interaction; and avoid urban sprawl, to name a few criteria.

If the benefits of building for the future are not clear, the urban leaders should think of it this way: If they plan to invest in buildings, transit systems, streets or infrastructure and those improvements are meant to last more than a decade, they are not building the city for themselves. They're building it for their children. The goal should be to create a community that remains competitive for generations to come as a wonderful place to live and do business.

The only anticipation is these urban leaders should have a vision that shouldn’t make the city as a brilliant example of ‘past perfect and future tense-d?’

School of Thought

‘We, as human being have as much as sixty thousand thoughts running in our mind, on an average, in a particular day’. I came across this interesting piece of information while reading a book. Most of these thoughts are repetitive in nature.

            I was trying to intrigue within myself as to how these thoughts monitor each other. If we as human beings recycle the same thoughts again and again, why aren’t we tired of thinking? Coz sixty thousand thoughts in a particular day come to an average of 42 thoughts in a minute. These 42 thoughts, if varying, can create marvels for the humans, for the city, for the nation at a broader context.

            But what human beings generally do is churn out the similar thoughts  every day, perhaps every minute???

            An interesting fact to look at , esp the way these thoughts shape our lives. As one of the points of the philosophy of existentialism goes: man chooses to act or behave in a particular situation, because of the way he has been conditioned. These thoughts are the only feeder to condition the human mind. The thoughts can make or break a person. Make him worthwhile to be a sensible figure in the society or break him to being unavoidable in the social eye.

            Just for a change, if one tries to simulate a situation where 1/10^th of those thoughts of an individual (i.e. 4 thoughts in a minute probably) are streamlined to process different productive and proactive situations, then the results can be astonishing. This holds true for a single individual. A collective exercise amongst a massive bunch of people can reap in manifold options which can lead us to mind-boggling results. That’s where one can dream of making a city / nation into a more meaningful and productive means of human existence. 

            Man’s greatest struggle for all time has been to master his/her mind. If we feed the mind with healthy and productive thoughts, we can accomplish this task with an ease. But as it is said, it is so difficult to be so simple.

            Shape…deshape….reshape is a constant process to stay fit internally and the muscles (read thoughts) need constant nourishment and necessary proteins to help it grow in proper spirit. If given proper treatment can shape it less or can make it shapeless. One needs to be a ‘thinking man’ and a ‘re-thinking’ man too perchance??? That is perhaps my school of thought. 

Blue vs Red

What a match…IPL final..Deccan Chargers versus Royal Challengers Bangalore!!!

Ranked last two for the first edition of the cricket contest clashed for the top two spots in this one….and the team which had no glamour but game plan, super performances and a purple cap winner clinched their hands on the golden India with a batsman driving the trophy. A deserving team all the way through slowly and steadily became the strong contenders for the plaque.

‘They-can Charge us’ (DC) is what they proved on to the Wanderers on 24^th May ’09 as they proved no wanderers but focused strongly on a crucial win.

Bangalore started hot favorites with lot of emotional backing for the two veteran players, who might be playing their last version of the short game.

Watching the cricketing bonanza live at the luxury of your home is priceless especially when family members are around, cheering every run by the DC and every wicket of the RCB. To cheer it up was the delicious bhel and some coke to quench the thirst (for a DC win perhaps !!)

But the most interesting part was all of my friends were watching the game at one of my friend’s place, while I was praying for the chargers at a fixed location at my home (some superstition I believe).

Tons of expectations from Gilchrist were shattered with the very first minute of the match when he unnecessarily stepped out only to be bowled by the opposition captain. By I was ‘bowled’ over by the temperament and stroke play of Gibbs, choosing sensible balls to hit and guiding the DC to a comfortable total. The cracker of an innings by Sigh-man-ds….gave a sense of sigh! coz those hard hitting shots proved match winners later on in the game.

The slow start of RCB gave a sense of a cautious run chase which proved extremely dismal at the end of the game. Wickets at regular intervals proved helpful to distance the chasers from the set total.

A sense of joy with fists pumping high in the air was the kind of expressional verb that can be used to describe the moment that made me proud of myself of the self belief that I had in the DC and the fact that didn’t prove me wrong. It was the similar feeling which rushed through my blood when I saw the Indians thrashing the Pakistani team in the T20 world cup finals two years back when the men in blue thrashed the men in green for a thumping win. I was assumingly joyful for my silent intuition since the start of the game was unfolding in front of my eyes and I was one cheerful spectator who saw a thumping win of the DC-ians in a clash of colour blue vs red. 

Kaun-t??

16^th may 09, the day India ‘counts’!!! Literally, India ‘count’-ed on for this day so that all those who ac-count-ed themselves will be stamped with a number. A number giving a meaning to their ‘character’ or the image in the people’s mind. Some loose, some win, but what stays them is this number that will be with them for 5 years, till the time they contest again (perhaps if the people allow him/ her to do so in that time span). 

Lot of speculation goes in, TV channels feature all these ‘role models’ (rolled up as models perhaps) as the next successor or failure for the next 5 years. Some go on to become ‘prime’ as ‘ministers’, some with the aspirations of being a ‘ ‘prime minister’, while most of them ‘prime-arily’  want to be a ‘minister’. 

Successors go on to win hearts of people??? with the added responsibility J of performing to save their ‘created image’ and failures retrospect to analyze which area (in the city / ward) did they spend less ‘ to build up a public image’.

Some surprises that spring up feel proud of themselves not knowing that its the money that has made them ‘surprised’ J. 

Some genuine persons who stand for the elections…are supported only by the genuine people, and are out numbered in every dept of the game that they wonder whether to risk being ‘genuine’. 

To add to the ‘fury’ is the ‘fuel’ in the form of astonishing number of voters that go on to vote. 50% is the average number of voters that go and actually vote for the country. Vote are the others doing? Take the luxury of ‘declared holiday’? 

People vote and forget, results are out and forgotten, what really rules the hearts of the people is the ‘trust’ that people have in the ‘cream of the crop’ and anticipation that these ‘creams’ who buttered them for the ‘chair’ deliver : deliver not only in terms of responsibilities but also by enhancing the city image and that of the nation at large…..so they can be a-kaun-ted.