Princess Di

My fascination with Princess Di goes back to the time when she visited India and posed in front of Taj Mahal. Of course she was alone and I was unaware of the pain she as a lonely princess was going through. Nonetheless Princess Di never ceased to mesmerise people with her amazingly good looks, warmth, and most important of all her hard work and dedication towards uplifting the most unfortunate in the world. Princess Di gave royalty a new meaning, a new face. Before her monarchy was something to be either feared, respected or loathed about. Considering the fact that India was under British rule for over a century monacrchy does not exaclty carve any sweet corner in the hearts of its ex-colonies. But with Princess Di coming into the picture people took interest in the monarchs, their life style, their purpose. With Princess Di around royalty did not seem very intimidating to anyone.

To this day when I close my eyes and think of Princess Di I see those big bright eyes and wide smile that lit up the entire space around and beyond her. My interest in her was so great that I started reading books and magazines that gave complete account of her past and present. For me she was a princess in a fairy tale with no happy ending. I do not know what was worse for her, her life or death? It is very clear from what is known about her life that Prince Charles married her for two reasons; one she was a virgin and two she was not just as bright as him. He wanted to bask in glory and have a trophy wife by his side who he thought would tag along with him whereever he went whilst he slept with the love of his life Camilla Parker Bowles.

Alas, that was never to happen. Princess Di was not exaclty the most intelligent but as Tony Blair correclty said she was indeed,"People's Princess." She had this ability to match her vibration with anyone. And by anyone I mean anyone of any race, gender, or caste. She was there to be the princess and demanded her right as one, which of course did not go well with Prince Charles whose ego was bigger than life. Well one cannot blame him. He was raised to be a prince. He was made to believe that the world had to make way for him when he arrived. But when world not only made way for Princess Di but also stopped it did not go well with the Prince of Wales. He was angry and jealous and as a result their marriage soured.

Princess Di was once questioned who is to be blamed for the failure of her marriage and she went both of us and that one confession speaks volumes. As a princess she was locked in Kensington palace. Her every move was scrutinized by the royalty, her every action criticized. Her noble deeds were never praised and as she mentioned in her own words she was isolated so that she could be demoralized. Her numerous attempts to kill herself point towards the hedious acts of the monarchy who had difficulties accepting her as the better part of their family. Their stiffness suffocated her to death.

If today someone is to be asked who they think killed Princess Di without racking brains one would hold  the monarchs more responsible than the media. Every single video of Princess Di shows the pain in her eyes. She was nineteen when she fell in love with Prince Charles whom she adored. He was her first and I take liberty to presume, probably the last love of her life. And when Prince Charles introduced Camilla into the marriage something in her died.

There are numerous theories as to what happened the night of her death. Of all theories one prevails and is very clear which is that Princess Di died of a broken heart. She could never get over the fact that Prince Charles chose Camilla over her. She could never get over the fact that her marriage was a farce. With a decade of being together and two children she woke up with a jolt and agreed ot Prince Charles's request for a divorce.

Something that did not go well with the royals. It is the same royals who had stopped Prince Charles from getting married to Camilla in the first place which he eventually did at the cost of Princess Di's life. It was as if he was waiting for her to be out of his life. I am not furious that Prince Charles got to marry Camilla what makes me angry is that Princess Di did not get to live her life. She was miserable all her life unlike Charles who was al right with not having to be with her.

Everytime I read or watch her biography I end up in tears because she is this one person that I sincerely wish was around. The world needed her for all the good work she did. Every woman around the globe  could identify with her. Inspite of being a princess she went through the same set of problems that an ordinary woman would go through. The only difference would be the magnitude of the problem. And just like every other woman she stood up for her kids, faced her problems with a strong will till ugly reality of life took her away from the world.

In her short span of  life and in her death she inspired millions and millions of people around the globe. Her fairy tale did not end like it should but I hope that where ever she is now she be happy, eternally. She is a role model for every distressed woman, a source of strength, a torch to guide people to do good. She was all goodness bundeled in one package and not waity Katy or any other girl can ever ever be what she was and is Truly the,

"People's Princess."

To you Di. Today and forever!

Made in America

John Ratzenberger's, "Made in America" is a sweet program that propogates American products. I enjoy watching the intricacies that are involved in making the tiniest of product, the specifics of people who came up with the ideas, the art of hand making products with personal touch and of course the great American spirit that professes anything is possible in America. But towards the end so I have noticed John always stresses on the point,"Made in America" and that makes me wonder does he know what he is talking about or does he means to say buy American products that are the finest and the best. Because as a consumer when I walk into a store I always want the best product at the most competitive rate. My hard earned money is not there to show loyalty where it is not required. A while ago I was shopping for cool drink when I was advised by a complete stranger to not buy anything that's not American. Well I did not because with soft drink products I did not have much of a choice. Most of the products were American. I ignored the guy and moved on with the purchase.

For a long time I have heard people talk about sending jobs to India and China and to this date I do not get what the big debate is all about. To begin with companies run for profit. If companies do not get the tax break to run successfully then they have two choices to make; one is to stop operating for good, and second is to send some operations to a place where it is much more affordable there by creating a win win situation. That is to retain some jobs in the US and ship the rest to cheaper economies. So come to think of it which one of the options is better? It is simple economics which of course lot of people fail to consider. For instance the taxation policy.

Every one wants to tax the corporate and the rich. But then the downside of doing so is sending jobs to a cheaper country and the rich who probably build an economy around themselves by earning what they earn will stop doing so. So what is the solution. Simple try to give corporate a reasonable tax break so that they can afford their operations right here in the US and create a decent taxation policy for the rich which will encourage them to come forward and not hide. If neither of this is done then there is nothing much left to whine about. I am myself not a fan of taxation policies but desperate times call for desperate measures. The previous government ran a ponzi scheme of dumping all the money in war zones which was indeed a tragedy that will have severe repurcussions in the years to come but for now the best bet is to hike taxes since not doing so will not lead to expansion of economy but only increase budget deficits that will create crowding out problem. Little governement spending creates inflation and that is not good for any economy.

Especially for a developed economy like the US labor or capital intensive investments are not permanent solutions to the problem. This country needs innovation to move on. Universities have always been innovation powerhouses of this county and cutting back on their R&D is not a good sign. US needs to improvize its students from grass root levels and invest more in activities that are way above menial developments. Years ago when Toyota came to the US Ford and other car makers did not consider them as a threat because fuel was cheap but today things have changed drastically in the favor of the underdogs. China and India opened their doors and upturned the entire manufacturing business in the US. Cheaper rates, better labor, longer working hours, minimum union interference,... the list of benefits is endless for firms operating in these countries. Of course there is downside to everything but comapred to the US the downside can be easily managed. Atleast until now. Plus these countries are huge markets for products that are in saturation stage in the US. If a company does not have its operations in BRIC then they are seriously missing on the high tide.

So whose fault is that people in America where sold better and cheaper products by other countries? Whose fault is it that the gas prices rised and American car manufacturers did nothing to improvize their car technology? Whose fault is it that the other countries offered new markets to tempt the corporate? So whose fault is it that people in BRIC are getting higher quality education which is neck to neck with that of the US? So whose fault is it that employees chose to live on minimum wages in the US? Whose fault is it that education is super expensive in this country?

Is it fair to say buy "Made in America" products when the US products are more expensive than comparable products from other countries? Is it fair to say buy "Made in America" products when American products are shelved in other countries markets? Do you think a person working on minimum wages at this time and wage could afford a decent living if it were not for cheap "Made in China, Bangladesh, or Indonesia" products? Is it wrong to survive when death is the only choice. Is it not high time American products revolutionize and improvize themselves?

This country was built on hard work and impossible. "Once upon a time in west," gives a perfect account of how hard Americans fought to make America what it is today. Everytime I look at the big structures and people here I wonder if there is any other country that could match the determination of people who crossed icy mountains, fought Indians, travelled on raft for days without proper food, clothing or shelter? What makes America great is that this is a land of opportunities. There is no first, second or third this country offers its people countless chances then what happened? When did the blame game start. To say "Made in America" is to consider not sought after by its own people.

Globalization has become like water, indespensable! All countries need a share of the pie that is mighty tasty. There is no fighting it only competing it. It has its upsides and downsides but it is worth what it is. Imagine a world without globalization. Monopoly would be a huge problem and not to forget inflation that comes with high prices of goods, expensive labor, union trouble that destabilize the economy.
Globalization started for a reason. Some countries do try to rig market to keep most manufacturing jobs but then how long would that last. Everything that begins has to end and justice has to be withheld. Asian crisis is an excellent example.

At the end of the day a person who walks into a store needs to know that no matter how hard the other product tempts the best one wins and hopefully that one day for all products in all dimensions would be "Made in America."