Showing posts with label news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label news. Show all posts

Nov 14, 2013

* রাজধানীতে বাসে আগুন, আহত ৬
* সাভারে যাত্রাবাহী বাসে আগুন
* কলাবাগান থানায় তালা, সাংবাদিকদের 'না'
* পরিবেশবাদীদের আন্দোলন অর্থহীন: অর্থমন্ত্রী
* খালেদার বাসায় ‘বিশেষ পানি’ বন্ধ: বনমন্ত্রী
* হাসিনার পা ছুঁয়ে দোয়া চাইলেন পাঁচ প্রতিমন্ত্রী!
* খালেদার সঙ্গে দেখা করলেন বিএনপিপন্থী শিক্ষকেরা
* কুমিল্লায় কাভার্ড ভ্যানের চাপায় নিহত ৫
* মাদক নেই বললেও ইয়াবাসহ গ্রেপ্তার দেখিয়ে মামলা
* কক্ষ দখল নিয়ে ছাত্রলীগ-ছাত্রদল হাতাহাতি
* ...

Posted on Thursday, November 14, 2013

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Oct 29, 2013

PM asks AL men to help police: যেন বিয়ে বাড়ির অনুষ্ঠান! What? Help plan a birthday party? (New Age)

Hartal violence kills 5: At 5 deaths a day, are death tolls with 3 + pre-hartal day violence at 25? Salute to our democracy! (The Daily Star)

Non-stop Dhaka blockade planned: মাইরালা রে! মাইরালা! Interesting how much losses we counted over the years for this thing which is called 'care taker'. Interim now I suppose. (The Daily Star)

China hails Hasina-Khaleda talks: Huh? Do you guys have translators that good? (BDNews24)

BNP slams govt for tele-talk telecast: Wonder who this'll tip the scale towards! Interesting.  (BDNews24)

Govt schools asked to install hoardings on govt’s success: My word! :S (New Age)

Posted on Tuesday, October 29, 2013

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May 7, 2013

Finally, we see the government. Not in any way close to the way we want to see them. On the other hand, the points I fret upon last time, came out in an article today (more than a week later) in the Daily Star, titled Silver Linings Generation. The tone is a bit different, praising the youth for its contributions to the rescue effort. Some young groups are still active and taken on ways to contribute to the rehabilitation of the survivors and the families who has lost their sole bread winners. Some of these are
As for how we recently saw the government, it was in a shady tone of suspicious. They allowed a group to declare and carry on with a blockade of Dhaka city, and to hold a meeting and rally in the same day in the center of the old commercial area of Motijheel. They spent the whole day there doing their thing, one guy carrying a board with a message "Want an Atheist Free Bangladesh", and carried on till night time. Just after darkness fell, something somewhere went wrong, no one seems to know what exactly. Our media reported that apparently someone was trying to burn a car, when police tried to stop them, and then clashes broke out. Any party who is in opposition will tell you burning cars is a democratic right, so is the occasional death or deaths of random people on the street, but anyhow, hell did break loose. We saw on TV lots of fires, lots of stones being thrown, lots of gunshots. Now if you think we all know how it started and ended - there are two versions to that story. Its anyone's guess what those versions may sound like. But if you consider that Diganta TV was unplugged  (TV sympathetic to the Islamic cause) in the middle of the night, you were bound to see some channels interviewing Police personality with questions like - "Everyones in awe of how you guys handled this situation, how did you do it?" Meanwhile, Facebook and other social channels are flooding with pictures of dead protestors from the Hefazot-e Islam (Protectors of Islam, remember He-Man?) which definitely points towards more deaths than the uncensored papers and TV channels would admit to.

Now, with the way things are, the definition of "death from natural causes" have expanded almost, to include:
Road Accidents/Treatment Errors/Political Assassinations/Death at the hands of Extortionists with Political Clout/Others ... as you can see, we're pretty open about how we die, no hullabaloo required in the form of protests or actions. This was almost the case, but its noticeable that some are outraged by this recent thing, even though the real version of the story is still not verified. Either way, I hope we can agree one day on one point - our government is (governments are) shady.

I feel that most of our youth activism is holding parallel actions to the government, like the rescue of trapped workers, followed by rehabilitation. I can sense their lack of faith in the government, but I am still convinced that sooner than later, we should come together to point our fingers at Them, and demand they do their jobs properly.

Posted on Tuesday, May 07, 2013

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Apr 28, 2013

If the Savar collapse wasn't the prime opportunity for the sarkar to put some shine on their armor otherwise laden what what hit the fan, I don't know what is! However, my problem is I always think I am too smart for the sarkar, when I've been totally outrun by them my whole life.

I apologize for the title, since there is a matter other than the sarkar that is eating at my grays. Its our media. Its no secret that the news media, especially the TV news channels, get a chance to get more viewers in this case, but hey, we the people, appreciate getting a direct telecast of the gruesome events also, its information we crave. And of course, one has to notice the 'emotional journalism' that takes place often here (as opposed to passionate journalism, terms I've come up with), e.g. juxtaposing violin and cello music on top of slowed down footage of those suffering loss and pain.

But whats more troubling is the blind eye they all turned on the massive civil action (not a lawsuit) that is taking place to help this rescue operation. Anyone who turns on Facebook now sees the different groups and individuals who have been communicating back and forth between the Savar site and those who are on their toes to go out and give blood, buy supplies - anything from medicine, dry food, shrouds, torch lights to oxygen tanks. Not to forget, cash donations also. You can even see advertizing agencies lined up there among medical students and pharmaceutical companies and Walton -  a crazy and passionate mix of people there.

From day 1, there has been one noticeable party who has been slow to respond - Le Sorkar! (or is it La Sorkar?)

However, on Day 3, we hear from our Health Minister AFM Ruhal Haque, respond to the media's coverage:
“Last night, Ekattor Television in a talk show said there is scarcity of medicines. But we have stockpiles of drugs in Savar hospitals. We have supplied double the demand. I talked to them (doctors in Savar). No one says there is a dearth. We have enough blood, enough oxygen. We have deployed an agent of the government’s oxygen supplier. They are instructed to supply any amount.”
The minister assured that government would provide Bangladesh’s ‘best treatment’ to the injured ‘as long as they need.’  [BDNews24]
On Saturday, we also saw Tuku from the Home Ministry answer about government initiatives first with a rant on how the visit by Khaleda Zia (Opposition Leader) wasted 3 hours of rescue time, and then with a vague "we will tackle this with the help of the people". To which the reporter thanked him. Intense stuff!

Social media's role in overthrowing governments have been widely covered by media corporations before, but seeing them ignore these valiant efforts that are clearly taking place now in mitigating this catastrophic situation is beyond me. Then again, I am the lunatic.

Overpowering my skewed sense of justice, is of course a sadness, at the deaths, and also at those who are making it out alive without an arm or a leg, disabilities that might take away their livelihoods. That is still another issue that is being widely avoided at the mainstream media desks, and if you want to see what has been done, switch to your Facebook.

You could follow:
Red Blood
HelpSavarBuildingCollapseVictims
Iresh Zaker
1 Degree Initiative
Shanto

Related:
Story of one survivor: http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2013/apr/27/back-grave
(Some survivors have shown signs of psychological trauma and fought off the rescue workers)
Thoughtless? http://www.dhakatribune.com/editorial/2013/apr/28/think-things-through 

Posted on Sunday, April 28, 2013

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Sep 16, 2012


This is all you get! "Lau" and "Kodu" are two names for one vegetable in the Bangla language. And they're used in the "To-may-toes .... Tomuhtoes" sort of expression in the language.

Related:
Good Morning Bangladesh!

Posted on Sunday, September 16, 2012

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Aug 26, 2012

Diplomacy. The recipe for diplomacy has secrecy, disguised statements, or sweet nothings. As politics have evolved throughout the world, we've seen how dear they hold their right to secrecy.

In highly educated societies who have a certain level of consciousness and enlightenment, the population has been ascertained certain levels of access or guarantee of openness with regard to public or international policies the state establishes.  At least thats how I perceive how things are, in contrast to living here in Bangladesh, where the politicians word, not matter how far away from reality, is seemingly final and 'true'.

The contrast to everything as it stood came in the form of the Wikileaks/Assange affair. Before that we were able to get government documents out of the USA every 5 or 10 years, a provision by which let us know that the Nixon/Kissinger regime was against granting independence from Pakistan. That seemed like quite a gesture from the biggest or loudest proponent of democracy. Wikileaks however has taken off the tablecloth off of it and now we can see who are rubbing legs or kicking under there.

We saw the website and the founder Julian Assange come under fire not long after major news vendors started peddling articles with information from the leaks. The sites were being taken down and Assange charged with rape! Assange is now eagerly waiting for a way out of his stay at the Ecuador embassy in UK, but being careful still. The man has every reason to be careful, with fear that he might disappear and no one would leak that story.

Seeing these events turn out on my TV screen, I am pressed to believe once more, that politicians are just all alike. I wish I was a psychology major, because I would like nothing better than to study the psyche of these guys in whose hands we put our tax money and all the resources of our lands.

Related:
Assange Is A True Democrat: Chomsky
Assange Extradition Fact Sheet
UK 'withdraws threat' to Ecuador embassy

Posted on Sunday, August 26, 2012

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Aug 1, 2012

Many people call her many names, but me, I don't go for the 'PM', to me she's QM... she is my, our - Queen Mother. Lately, she had visited our other Queen Mother - The Queen of England, and BBC was blessed with a chance to be graced by her pointing finger and excellent democratic constitutional vocabulary ~



মহাজননেত্রী জাগ্নাখোয়াবে দেখেছেন কোটি কোটি মানুষ মুকুট আর সিংহাসন মাথায় করে আসছে তাঁর বাড়ির দিকে, তারা খুঁজছে তাদের প্রাণপ্রিয় রাজকন্যাকে, এবং তাঁর মাথায় পরিয়ে দিচ্ছে মুকুট, নাচতে নাচতে তাঁকে বসাচ্ছে সিংহাসনে. আমরা বুঝতে পারি আগামী বছরগুলোতে বারবার বিদেশভ্রমণে তিনি ও তাঁরাই যাবেন.

রাজনীতিবিদগন (১৯৯৮)
হুমায়ুন আজাদ

  Full Transcript of the Interview
(The beginning of the transcript says its missing some parts. Those parts contained questions from Stephen Sackur about human rights violations, the murder of a labor activist and the disappearance of a political activitst. The reply from QM on the disappearance issue was in the form of another question - let me as you, how many people disappeared from the UK last year? Stephen, quite shocked or bemused, replied you mean political disappearances? I would have to say none! - of course, these are not exact words, but really close. God Save the Queen)

Posted on Wednesday, August 01, 2012

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Jul 24, 2012

The government did a good job! Ask anyone in the government, they'll always claim they always do! Yes, they kept our (or my) heads (head) spinning like a top. I woke up every two days asking myself the question I placed as the title of this post.

When one day its 'Get lost World Bank! We don't need you!', the next would be 'We're still thinking about it, we'd like some dialog', and then followed up by 'We can do this, we don't need the world bank's money! Even little kids want to give up their lunch money... they called the Prime Minister and said so themselves!'. They had even set up policies for a special bank account where citizens can contribute for the bridge over river Padma (M is silent for all you non-bengali folks).

The citizens of course filled up with patriotic fervor, even after the rising oil prices, rising prices of goods and necessities, rising taxes and VATs. Though, some channels showed some people on the streets who were not filled up with fervor (almost the opposite).

The WB, to recap, had laid down a few conditions to releasing the money for building bridges approved. We fulfilled many of these, and were staunchly opposing a few others. The sensational of these was the point of removing Mr. Abul Hossain from the ministry while investigators made sure there were no premise for corruption in the execution of this very large project. The government really stood proud behind him and said 'No!'. At one time, they moved him from the Communications ministry to Information ministry to calm WB down, but refused to take him away completely. They loved him too much, even though as a Communications minister he made serious oversight.

There are a few parody newspapers out right now. I know of two - Dainik Motikontho, and Dainik Maghbazar. They had started putting absurd news titles and events surrounding actual events, which really reflected the lunacy of the overall situation. But in recent times, even when I read the real news, from the serious newspapers, I can't tell apart the real and the parodied.

But after months of news and parodies, reality checks and escapes, yesterday it was announced that he might be resigning. This, at the peak of our defiance of World Bank (and ADB).

MP Abul said yesterday:  "আমার শুভাকাঙ্ক্ষী এবং আমি যাঁদের শ্রদ্ধা করি তাঁরা বিভিন্ন সময় আমাকে বলেছেন, তদন্ত চলাকালে আমার মন্ত্রী পদে থাকা উচিত না। আমি সিদ্ধান্তটা নিয়েছি। কার্যকর ব্যবস্থাও নিয়ে ফেলেছি। আমি দায়িত্বে থাকব না।"
He also added: "আমি মন্ত্রী থাকব কি না, সবকিছুই আল্লাহর ইচ্ছে। আর দপ্তরবিহীন মন্ত্রী হওয়ার বিষয়ে আল্লাহ প্রধানমন্ত্রীকে ক্ষমতা দিয়েছেন। তিনিই এ বিষয়ে সিদ্ধান্ত নেবেন।"

These are from Prothom Alo.

Posted on Tuesday, July 24, 2012

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Jul 5, 2012

I picture my government dressed up like Ali G and crossing her hands in front of her in the hip-hop fashion and saying the above to World Bank who is standing across, ICE-T-ish in its stature and demeanor, with his hands crossed across his chest showing unflinching sternness.

This is historic though, at least I think it is! Has a poor country ever before lashed out at World Bank saying its corrupt? It would've been doubly historic and AWESOME if that same charge wasn't thrown at us first and had funds meant for us canceled based on those charges. So we wanted their money, they refused and now we're bad mouthing them in the parliament and the news. A-h-a. That has 'sore' written all over it. And 'Loser'. When we have such such low opinions of WB, why gun for their funds!? A-ha ... 'Cuz we need it! WB's pull out from the Padma bridge project also influenced the ADB (Asian Development Bank) to pull out too. Only our friends, the Japanese, are sticking around.

In most countries that are careful of the people's opinions, slight corruption charges and even a single instance of failure have inspired ministers and other government officials to resign to make way for fair investigations and to make way for better representation. This is something, Bangladeshis are deprived of. Amidst the first corruption alerts, we saw the minister being moved to a different ministry. Sahara Khatun, our state minister is another example, where a series of failures weren't good enough for her to step down. They can face reporters and deny with a straight face any failure.

Our PM has finally risen to the occassion last night on parliament, broadcast throughout the nation, and given her views. The World Bank is corrupt! So our governments' overall response is a "How dare you!" and a "Did you look at yourself?!". :) Merry!

PS, The PM also gave out a mobile phone number and an email address to receive corruption allegations against members of her family. She denied any of her family is corrupt first.
sheikhhasina@hotmail.com / 01711-520000 and 01819-260371

Ludicrous? I think so!


Related:
পদ্মা সেতু প্রকল্প: প্রয়োজনে নিজেদের অর্থেই পদ্মা সেতু
PM on phone to receive family graft allegation
PM trashes WB graft allegations
Commentary: Public interest sacrificed to protect one man

Posted on Thursday, July 05, 2012

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Jun 4, 2012

What are we first? This question is often asked when trying to prioritize the identity of a person. You might hear someone say, I am an American first (though some Mexicans will take offense to that and that the correct term should be United States of American), then a Muslim, and then a father, and so on. Based on the religion you subscribe to, a philosophy, a profession, a nationality, you could prioritize them to reflect how you judge a circumstance, or how you act.

We saw these questions come up recently in the news. When newsmen got beaten down by the police, they took a more intense stance on their reports against them than before. There was a lack of that intensity when the receiver of that brutality were ordinary citizens. Before, we heard of reporters being persuaded to not publish a story by some mild push from higher ups in the government, and two TV channels had magically disappeared off air due to some pushing from some 'mysterious' quarters just before the opposition's meeting was about to be aired. This current intensity also didn't last long, went largely amiss just before the "Meet the Press" fiasco with Sahara Khatun.

REHAB (Real Estate & Housing Association of Bangladesh) is a bunch in a frenzy buying up land from those who own it, with deals that are hard to pass up. Their identity is clearly established. Though I am not fond of them in any way, I have to say I agreed once with something they've said. When Sahara Group came over and suddenly emerged here as the company of choice for the government in building small towns outside the city, REHAB had to come out and say "Hey! What about us?". I have often mused in the frantic fashion that I do, that "we need to get these developers to do projects outside Dhaka before they cover up the view of the sky with these tall buildings". Its a shame that they are being sidelined quickly by the rich and powerful of India. The govt. could've also initiated this with REHAB (the point the latter is making), but I guess they like what this Sahara had to offer (well, they like what both Saharas have to offer, despite or becuase of). My 'consumer' identity however, has no respect for most of these developers, since their profit margins still don't seem to allow safety provisions and weekends for their workers, and their products leave a lot to be desired frankly. There are also reports of unlawful or unjust land acquisitions.

As part of a democracy (ho ho ho), we also have to be 'voters'. Now this is important, cause for 5 years, or more, you have to live with that decision. We have a booming democracy, two parties who have democratically selected their party founder's family members for years, and will for years to come, at the helms of their parties. They use their freedom of expressions to lick their feet and bottoms and their freedom of speech to flower them with odes. 

Just today, news came that the parliament discussions had concluded that Abdullah Abu Syed, who is an educator and famous for his "Bishwo Sahityo Kendro" (which has been encouraging kids to read for years), has been undemocratic, unpatriotic, unconstitutional and should apologize. This due to his appearance at the TIB show the day before, and calling names to politicians ("unethical" or "corrupt"). I didn't vote for BAL (Queen Mother, I still love you! Please don't get me whipped), and now I must suffer them standing up in parliament and claiming that politicians voted in by people, should not be called names, its like calling names to those voters, to the countrymen! Damn! Ship me out already!

I don't know where this is going, so I'll try to conclude here. Whether you are a REHAB businessman, or a person who is a fan of either of the parties' founders, or a reporter, whatever your identity is, think both of humanity and justice when you put your voter caps on. A few ministers has had done very well, in their fields - food, agriculture, you can identify them clearly and vote for them. For the rest of us, we should give the 4th/5th and 6th man/symbol a chance (considering the 3rd man might be H M Ershad - we already ousted him out once! Don't tell me you forgot?!!!).

Related:
Open Letter to Prime Minister:

Posted on Monday, June 04, 2012

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May 29, 2012

After a satisfactory bout of beating up protesting teachers, it was time to get their itchy hands on a few photojournalists. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the glorious story of Democracy as never seen before. Even the German president said so, and many showered certificates and other praises on our Queen Mother for it. You have a minute to win it, and if you don't you are poor, and then maybe prone to going to protests, or maybe photographing them as part of your job (day, or part-time).

So, now the journalists are going to protest, protesting the police. Where do you go from here pals? Did you think about that?! Now that criminals attack your house and chop you up and leave you bleeding, now who are you going to turn to!?


"দায়ী ব্যক্তিদের দৃষ্টান্তমূলক শাস্তি হো - সাংবাদিক পেটানো পুলিশ" says one news, meanwhile, fresh off the grill is this one: "Criminals attack bdnews24.com journos" (be careful, the photo of bloody office floors can cause sick stomachs for some). Should've listened to Queen Mother when she said, "Don't be so prolific! I'll turn off the electricity!", but you never listen! You never listen!

Posted on Tuesday, May 29, 2012

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May 21, 2012

Posted on Monday, May 21, 2012

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Jan 25, 2012

Ok, the title is awkward, as are all my innards and all that makes up my cognitive system. Recent events had included a young boy from Bangladesh being beaten up at the hands of some young BSF guards (Indian Border Guards). A video was circulating around, thanks to NDTV, and is also available on YouTube. Now, I knew it was going to be something really bad, and just avoided it, not in the sense that I had a happier reality to live with, I could tell the reality is as ugly as it gets.

The outrage that it has created in me, my friends, my countrymen is due to the fact that no matter what the fault on the young kid's part, BSF's was an unlawful act. He was held up, legs tied, totally undressed, and beaten, and the video apparently has voices of the BSF guards contemplating on other methods of torture (on the version that runs for about 11 minutes). Sadly, for me, my friends and my countrymen, and most sadly, for the poor people like Habibur Rahman (the young guy violated in this case), our government thinks this is an "it happens" kind of normal thing that has happened, and WILL CONTINUE TO HAPPEN. !

We know from The Daily Star that even an editorial in an Indian paper called The Hindu called out to the Indian government for an apology. You can hear the grief and guilt in the voices of the reporters of NDTV. But neither governments, nor our opposition BMP who readily speaks ill of BAL, has failed to do or say anything regarding this! Shame, its a bloody shame to know your representatives are missing spines! Raise my tax if you will, if there is a surgery that can give you one, you imbeciles!

Related:
NHRC (India) notice to Union Home Secretary

Posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012

3 comments

Jan 19, 2012

It was an interesting phenomenon, to see how major websites came up with different ideas to protest the passing of the SOPA and PIPA bill to curb on how materials like photos, videos and music are posted online, a bill that was backed by the movie and music industry. Wikipedia posed a blackout for 24 hours to demonstrate a world without user content and others found their own way of getting the word out, e.g. - Google started a petition. This morning we are met with the news of senators backing out of the bill. I really wonder why we couldn't come up with these kind of ideas to protest the changes made to our constitution which are highly undemocratic to the point of being tyrannic or oppressive. Many intellectuals wrote about it in the papers' editorials, but was that enough? Why couldn't the newspapers, TV channels and news websites come together to raise their voice, or to at least let everyone know what the implications are for such a bill. The Googles and Wikipedias did marvelously to spread awareness of the issue on the whole as much as they did on the actual protest. Is that too much to ask for here?

Posted on Thursday, January 19, 2012

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Sep 29, 2011

Don’t dismiss the Wall Street occupation

  - Anthony DeRosa

Link

 

A local Update > Link

Posted on Thursday, September 29, 2011

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Sep 20, 2011

On and off I read newspapers. Blah blah blah...., I tend to find my looney head oppose the habit after some time.

But what of the times, when something you know happened doesn't reach the news? What exactly is happening there? Who decides people should know about it, or not know about it?

Human rights, was that part of achieving MDGs? I hear we have jumped leaps and bounds in getting to our MDGs - statistics are being built right now to make sure we do. But anway, yes, who decides? I know rock music, especially those who growl and screech are not very mainstream - meaning not liked by a majority. So, minorities of youth, are the ones listening there, and when DJuice a brand thing of Grameen Phone, arranged a series of contests to find rock bands and award them a recording contract, it provided a much needed platform for the musicians living underground. The winner of the last contest, was a band called Powersurge, where Nahiyan was a guitar player. They didn't sing songs I usually listen to, but I could appreciate the energy and the power of their genre and their performance. So, anyway, one fine day Nahiyan gets arrested for stealing gold from a neighbor. Now I've seen news of young guys getting picked up and tortured before, and I've read news of stolen gold also. But in this case, neither seemed to make a stir! Two of the english papers put something out, other than that, zilch.

While trying to see whats there online throught Google, I find other instances where the news seems to have been selectively spread.

Labor rights activist Moshrefa Mishu

If our news dealers don't realize the power they hold, in keeping this country honest,  then there is not much left to write here. Its all quite useless.

Posted on Tuesday, September 20, 2011

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Sep 6, 2011

Been thinking about writing down my thoughts on the hullaballoo that is going on over increasing road safety. Before I could do so, Mr./Dr. Mohammad Ali Akbar Mallik, who is an engineer, already put his in Prothom Alo which I readily agree with.

BRTA's corruption is of course the first area to discuss. I have been to their Ikuria campus and the mirpur campus, and its easy for any simple man to get lost there. Its not that the place is big, but its crowded, with "Dalals" - the unofficial middlemen. The counters are either not labeled, or they are empty. The only way to determine what a counter is meant for unless there is a line in front of it, since then someone might entertain a question or two from you. It is indeed not a friendly place, and no civility is there. In terms of the writer's urge to modernize BRTA in the form of making a bigger campus, I hardly think that should be necessary. Considering how Dhaka has spread over and is jammed all the time, I think their operations should be more decentralized. The written tests, verbal tests etc, all tests short of the driving test, doesn't require a large area, and those could be arranged according to where people reside.

The idea of showing a video explaining road etiquette, how road accidents occur, and what the effects are of road accidents to the victims is a very good idea. That is just in line with how I was thinking about it. I drive everyday along the airport road, along Biswa road, and I see that most drivers are in fact, professional drivers. Regardless of whether there is a boss in the backseat, they are driving like absolute lunatics. I have usually seen car owners drive their cars cautiously, my father, my uncles, my wife, myself, or my friends, except maybe my younger brother and other youngsters who are mostly thrill seekers, and not really driving for practical reasons*.  Our professional drivers, they either have very little regard for the vehicles they drive, or just no regard for people. They wil cut into your lane very abruptly creating a risky situation, or come dangerously close to your car, to make you feel threatened and stop. Most of the time, a owner in the backseat, doesn't even care, as long as they can get to their destination fast. Others, like my father and eldest uncle, can go through 3/4 drivers in 3/4 months. My father currently doesn't have a driver. Meanwhile, the bigger the vehicle that a professional driver is manning, the bigger the risks he brings to everyone else. Buses have a habit of stopping in the middle of the road to take on customers. While the police can be seen stopping my car or other private vehicles often, they are very kind to these buses. Buses can be seen competing with other buses, to the point they drag along each others bodies. I have seen such a display on many occassions in the presence of the police. There is no reason to allow those drivers to sit behind a steering while for the rest of his life! These are clearly perverted individuals.

Whereas the author mentioned a video, I was thinking licenses would be conditional to a more elaborate training BRTA would conduct, including road safety issues, and visits to a hospital treating those who had lost a limb or suffered in any other way from an accident. Also, owners of vehicles should feel more responsible about how their hired drivers are conducting themselves. You can be the safest driver in town, but due to the professionals all around you, you are in now way out of danger. Talk to your drivers, and let them know what is right and what is wrong. Be human, for everyone's sake.

Related:  সড়ক শৃঙ্খলা: বিআরটিএ সংস্কারে কিছু সুপারিশ

* So, there is a good reason to restrict licenses to younger people. As far as I've heard, in USA licenses are given in stages. A 15 year old can only drive when in presence of a father or mother who can also drive, and then they graduate to being able to drive any family member, but not friends, and then slowly graduate to being able to just drive.

Posted on Tuesday, September 06, 2011

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Feb 1, 2011

It seems that one property of a government is they want to be right. I had no idea that the Egyptian people held so much beef against their government, and from the news you can see how hard it was to prove to the government that they were wrong.

Relative to that, we have a news today that the TIB officials who were accused of libel have gotten their bail. Poor chaps tried to gather people's opinions on what the people thought were the most corrupt sectors of country. Through this lawsuit, TIB is being told that they are wrong, and since the TIB report, and subsequently, a portion of the country's people accused mostly government offices of corruption, the government's stance here is that they did, or rather DO, nothing wrong.

Article: TIB officials secure bails

Meanwhile, my last blog about the need for an online account of bribery in the country has led to a reader from India pointing me to this website:
www.ipaidabribe.com! I think This shows a kind of vigilance that is really required in countries where corruption and lawlessness is dangerously a way of life almost!

Posted on Tuesday, February 01, 2011

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Jun 28, 2009

Back when i was in school, we first started getting CNN. Cable tv was not there at the time and we used to get free broadcast of CNN for some portion of the morning in the same stream where our national tv would start broadcast at around 5 pm everyday.

Now, with cable tv everywhere, CNN can be seen in a new light. I have to say first of all, that I am not sure, whether programming is different in other parts of Asia or what, but I start comparing CNN now, mainly because I have Al Jazeera to compare with! BBC could be compared in the same light, they were once a good source of news, still not too bad.

Now, the channel of choice when it comes to news is Al Jazeera, and while watching I always get this in my head "Hmmmm, I wonder what CNN is showing!". This is how I found out 2 mornings ago, that Michael Jackson had died. Sad news, but also, the ONLY news almost for the whole day on CNN on that day! I guess I also don't compare BBC that much in these scenarios, coz of the way my tv is programmed... Al Jaz and CNN are next to each other, a click away.

CNN feels the need to be able to entertain with their shows, more than really covering what is happening in the world. They bring what is happening in the USA to the world, and nothing to take back I guess.

Al Jazeera has news of every country's elections, and sometimes has people with conflicting views on a single program that really help to show the two sides of the coin. Their music shows, go all over the world, and bring you really interesting views of all kinds of music scenes from around the globe, their philosophies and struggles and does not only focus on the best selling music category. Their show about movies is the same and has really great interviews.

CNN's news has lost all appeal to me, and the time I watch CNN is to catch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, who is really funny, and his show is brought to CNN courtesy of Comedy Central!

For Some Other Viewpoints:
Is It Al-Jazeera Or CNN International?
CNN to Al Jazeera: Why Report Civilian Deaths?
CNN's Anderson Cooper: What’s up with Al-Jazeera’s phone?

Jon Stewart:

(Thanks to Rajiv bhai for the lead on this. Apparently, the show Crossfire shut down after Jon Stewart's appearance and critique!)

Posted on Sunday, June 28, 2009

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Sep 23, 2008

Y'day McCain was on CNN describing his plans for rescuing the financial institutions and the US economy from their downfall, and all the while, i kept thinking that his manner of speaking resembled someone. All the thinking led to the character of Dr. Evil from the Austin Powers series of movies! :) Its mostly how stiff his upper body is and his arm motions when he is stating points. The voice too I think.

Posted on Tuesday, September 23, 2008

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