Tuesday, January 27, 2009

neo economics by dr. jagdish bhagwati

The Japanese save a lot. They do not spend much. Also Japan exports far more than it imports.Has an annual trade surplus of over $100 billion, yet Japanese economy is considered weak, even collapsing.

Americans spend, save little. Also US import more than it exports.Has an annual trade deficit of over $400 billion. Yet, the American economy is considered strong and trusted to get stronger. 
 
But where from do Americans get money to spend?They borrow from Japan , China , and even India .Virtually others save for the US to spend. Global savings are mostly invested in US, in dollars. India itself keeps its foreign currency assets of over $50 billions in US securities. China has sunk over $160 billion in US securities. Japan 's stakes in US securities is in trillions.

Result : The US has taken over $5 trillion from the world.So, as the world saves for the US , Americans spend freely. Today, to keep the US consumption going, that is for the US economy to work, the countries have to remit $180 billion every quarter that is $2 billion a day to the US !Otherwise the US economy would go for a sick. So will the global economy. The result will be no different if US consumers begin consuming less. 
 
A Chinese economist asked a neat question. Who has invested more, US in China , or China in US? The US has invested in China less than half of what China has invested in US. The same is the case with India . We have invested in US over $50 billion. But the US has invested less than $20 billion in India .
 
Why the world is after US? The secret lies in the American spending, that they hardly save. In fact they use their credit cards to spend their future income. That the US spends is what makes it attractive to export to the US . So US imports more than what it exports year after year.

The result: The world is dependent on US consumption for its growth. By its deepening culture of consumption, the US has habituated the world to feed on US consumption. But as the US needs money to finance its consumption, the world provides the money. It's like a shopkeeper providing the money to a customer so that the customer keeps buying from his shop. The customer will not buy; the shop won't have business, unless the shopkeeper funds him. The US is like the lucky customer. And the world is like the helpless shopkeeper financier. 
 
Who is America 's biggest shopkeeper financer? Japan of course. Yet it's Japan which is regarded as weak. Modern economists complain that Japanese do not spend, so they do not Grow. To force the Japanese to spend, the Japanese government exerted itself. Reduced the savings rates, even charged the savers Even then the Japanese did not spend (habits don't change, even with taxes, do they?). Their traditional postal savings alone is over $1.2 trillions, about three times the Indian GDP. Thus, savings, far from being the strength of Japan , has become its pain. 
 
Hence, what is the lesson? A nation cannot grow unless the people spend, not save. Not just spend, but borrow and spend.

Dr. Jagdish Bhagwati, the famous Indian-born economist in the US , told that don't wastefully save. Start spending, on imported cars and, seriously, even on cosmetics! This will put all nations on a growth curve.'
 
Saving is sin, and spending is virtue.'

Before you follow this neo economics, get some fools to save so that you can borrow from them and spend. This is what US has successfully done in last few decades.

Written by Dr Jagdish Bhagwati an economist - share your thought

originality and creativity.....perspectives!


Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadow. Select only those things to steal that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent. And don’t bother concealing your thievery- celebrate it if you feel like.
 
In any case always remember what Jean-Luc Godard said, "Its not where you take things from- Its where you take them to."
- Jim Jarmusch

Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns to look at things in a different way.

- Edward De Bono

Man’s mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimensions.

- Oliver Wendell Holmes

People should think things out fresh and not just accept conventional terms and the conventional way of doing things.

- Buckminster Fuller

Monday, January 26, 2009

just a few questions!

I was just sifting some of my old mails and found this short exchange:

"CAT: 'I do not wish to intrude but this is gnawing into me......Axxxx on her 18th birthday appeared so full of spirits ,why within days was there a despondency. For a person who usually appeared so animated, chirpy this seemed unnatural. If you do care to share, I would be grateful......as it would a catharsis for all the dark feelings I have been experiencing since I heard about her hospitalization and death. If you cannot, I will understand. '

KS: 'Axxxx was a person who was loved by all. She was the type of person who could not be rejected by anyone who was close to her. A few days after her birthday, she found out that she was adopted. However she did not break down, she continued her fight to find her real parents. But I guess when she found the truth of why her parents left her and the events that followed their meeting hurt her. She was wounded on the inside and did not let anyone see it. Only a few people know what happened to her. ' "
________________________________________

Why is the human psyche so fragile? 
What makes the past paramount and negate all that is terrific in the present? 
Does nurture always lose out to nature? 
What is the right age to tell a child that he/she is adopted? 
Are there several adoption stories with unsavory detours? 
Why do some couples prefer remaining childless rather than adopt? 
Why am I stuck in a groove :-( ???
 
ALL SAID I DO NOT WANT THIS TO SEEM LIKE A QUESTION MARK OVER THE MERITS OF ADOPTION.
 
I KNOW OF A FEW FAMILIES UP CLOSE WHO HAVE ADOPTED 2 KIDS EACH AND ARE ONE OF THE MOST LOVING WELL ADJUSTED FAMILIES I HAVE COME ACROSS!
 
IT ALL BOILS DOWN TO ATTITUDE AND WISDOM. 
 
AND IF ADOPTION IS ON YOUR MINDS GO FOR IT....WITHOUT INHIBITIONS,WITHOUT BIAS. 
 
GENES ALONE ARE NOT GUARANTORS OF PARENTAL FULFILLMENT /GRATIFICATION!!

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Friday, January 23, 2009

a comedy of errors !

This is a short story written by Dr Kishore Shah....he is a gynaecologist in Pune and a very gifted writer....enjoy this funny story. 
 
"My wife is an ENT Surgeon while I am a Gynaecologist. This can lead to some complications, as I recently learned to my anguish. A General Practitioner called me up and told me that she is sending a patient of hers for an abortion. Unknown to me, she had also referred a female with earwax for removal of the wax to my wife. I duly informed the receptionist to send the patient right in as she was expected (and expecting!) 
 
As Murphy lays down the laws of our hospital, it was but natural that the patient who wanted the wax removed from her ear, landed up with me. This is the conversation that I had with the patient. "Please come in. Be seated." I said with a big smile. I always have a big smile, when I am going to earn some money. The patient gave a feeble smile and sat hesitantly on the edge of the chair. "Relax." "Doctor, will this hurt a lot?" "Not at all." The patient relaxed visibly. "You know something, Doctor, we tried removing it at home, but failed." I was shocked. "Thank God. Trying this at home can cause serious complications. " "I first tried to remove it by jumping up and down, but it just wouldn't budge." I smiled and said, "If it were that easy, who would need doctors?" She gave a cute smile and said, "Yeah! My neighbour tried to remove it with his finger, but the hole is so small that he used a hair pin." "Oh my God!" "Yes! My mother even tried a matchstick." My blood pressure was shooting skywards. I just sputtered without uttering a word. 
 
"Tell me, doctor, how do I avoid getting this dirt inside me?" I knew that it was an unwanted pregnancy, but calling it dirt was too much. I replied a bit angrily, "There are tablets which can prevent this happening. Or you could use protection at night." Now it was the patient's turn to be confused, "You mean to say that it happens only at night?" I saw her point. "No! No! I meant anytime of the day, whenever you are in the mood, you should use protection." She was even more confused, "It depends on my moods?" Again I saw her point. "My mistake. You need not be in any sort of mood. It just happens." 
 
"My neighbour advised me to go to one of those chaps who sit by the roadside." "You mean that pin man?" "Yeah!" This neighbour of hers seemed to be a very dangerous man. Besides using pins, he was sending her to such quacks. The only safety he knew was among the pins. "You were wise not to heed his advice." "But I tried his other advice. He told me to put warm oil inside and wait. However, that also did not work." 
 
This was getting more and more bizarre. Her neighbour deserved to be locked up either in a padded cell or a barred one. "But have you taken your husband's permission?" Now the patient looked confused. "Do I have to take my husband's permission? Because if you need his sign, he is working in Dubai. We were not able to meet for the last one year." It was my turn to be shocked. I gave a sly smirk. It was one of 'those' cases. The pin-wielding neighbour seemed to me the usual suspect. I reassured her. "No! No! The husband's sign is not at all needed." "However, I did inform him on phone." 
 
Her husband seemed to me a very broad-minded fellow. I didn't know whether to congratulate her or to commiserate with her. So I hastily turned to other aspects. "Its good that you came a bit early." "Actually I wanted to come early in the morning, but I had some other work." "Oh! I did not mean early today. I meant that if you had delayed this removal, it would have started moving. Then it would have developed a heartbeat." 
 
The patient was staring at me wide eyed as if watching a horror movie. Looking at her face, I decided that she was not fit to listen to the grotesque details. I decided to relieve her a bit. I said, "You will bleed a bit, but only for a few days." By now, the poor patient was trembling, "how-H-How much bleeding?" "Oh, only slightly more than your menstrual period, and it will continue only for a week or so." By now the patient was clutching her hair in her fingers and staring at me wide-eyed. I asked her soothingly, "Why don't you lie down on the examination table? This was the final straw. She didn't even wish me goodbye. I saw just a blur of motion leaving my consulting room at top speed. "

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

thought for the day

Life is a Banana Peel!!


copyright CAT


Tuesday, January 13, 2009

a simple fish story

The Japanese have always loved fresh fish.
But the waters close to Japan have not held many fish for decades.
So to feed the Japanese population
Fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever
The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring in the fish.
If the return trip took more than a few days, the fish were not fresh.
The Japanese did not like the taste
To solve this problem, fishing companies installed freezers on their boats
They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea.
Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer
However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen and they did not like frozen fish
The frozen fish brought a lower price .
So fishing companies installed fish tanks.
They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin
After a little thrashing around, the fish stopped moving
They were tired and dull, but alive.
Unfortunately, the Japanese could still taste the difference
Because the fish did not move for days, they lost their fresh-fish taste
The Japanese preferred the lively taste of fresh fish, not sluggish fish
So how did Japanese fishing companies solve this problem?
How do they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan?


If you were consulting the fish industry, what would you recommend?
Scroll down for answer :..................

















Here is How Japanese Fish Stay Fresh:

To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies still put the fish in the tanks
But now they add a small shark to each tank.
The shark eats a few fish,but most of the fish arrive in a very lively state.
The fish are challenged
Have you realized that some of us are also living in a pond but most of the time tired & dull
So we need a Shark in our life to keep us awake and moving?

Basically in our lives Sharks are new challenges to keep us active and lively

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

destruction without a cause or is there?

In an attempt to clear some of the murkiness in my mind, around the ongoing Israel/Hamas stand off, I have been reading and trying to crystallize my own amongst the vistas floating around the virtual space.

Am sharing this and this and this and this which were the latest reads in my endeavour to clear the smokescreen (not the white phosphorus one though)

Thursday, January 1, 2009

an onion of another kind!

I accidently discovered the onion today and unlayered this satirical pastiche of the year that was and our dumb world . Enjoy!