<EOM>

What World Cup??

Oops, sorry, thought this was off topic, hehe!!

cricket

altho technically india hasnt been eliminated yet but it will be.

Yes.... very sad. I was there

The whole thing about the murdered coach is sad too.

We went to the Aus/SA game and it was nice. The west indies are amazing!

We stayed in the same hotel as the teams I have photos

I can actually remember HOLDING (and being photo'd--unofficial, for souvenir only) the Prudential Cup at Begumpet Airport in 1983.

My guy in India is into it and tells me how they are really down about India’s bad performance… and how the people are voicing their support for the team.

That's what you get for being too complescent. They got whipped by a country whose was not consider a major threat. In world cup whatever games it is you never know what kinda surprise you would get. YOu perform you stay, you slip you GO HOME.

i feel terribly sad for it
you play u stay u dont u loose
i was imaging tht this time we will win the cup but alas was disheartened by the loss frm bangldsh
but , for sure its matter of luck and lots of team pressure and stuffs
lots of young outstanding youngsters should be given a chance at smaller level to improve the team i feel

IT's the system that needs to be change, a lot of it in india has to do with WHO YOU KNOW. How much bride you can Pay to get on the team, you can be good but if you don't have the right contact, you may never see the light of the day. I recall watching this movie about this young kid who dream to become a cricket player and play on the national team, Lot of struggle he had to go through but finally made the team at the end, how many happy endings do we get in real life story, it's all about Bowllywood, celebrity status and so on.

Most things in India are like that. I wonder when it will change, if ever?

Okay, I'm gonna attempt a hijacking on this thread (sorry Ari).

Does anyone have any suggestions about anything a lowly concerned world citizen can do to help combat the corruption that is rampant in countries like Nepal and India. It really is on my mind all the time. What can be done??? I know it's bad here, too, and we need to work on our own "house". But it just sickens me to see politicians (and NGO's!!!) lining their pockets when there are people starving on the streets, not getting access to basic vaccines and kids dying by the thousands of preventable disease.... sometimes I think my head will explode, but there are so many unskillful solutions out there, so much mis-directed goodwill.... <rant over>

Any ideas about good resources/books/programs/organizations that are worth investigating and/or supporting to help increase "transparency" of these governments?

Do I just need to go home and have a glass of wine and tune in to American Idol???




Maya

Wine and American Idol is definitely the way to go.

Agreed. Sorry Maya but that is the way the cookie crumbles.

I lived in India 21 years and was consistently frustrated at the way bribes are demanded for every small thing, or else nothing gets done. Even the postman would expect gifts now and then, or “mysteriously” letters would start to go missing.

Sometimes the government attempts to make things better (like last time I was in Delhi trying to deal with my visa, I say a HUGE sign declaring that no bribes were allowed and asked us to report anyone accepting bribes, as they would be reported). However in daily, practical life there, the fact is that most things don’t get done without bribes. (Recently a friend in India asked if I could help get his aunt’s son a job in the army – as the army was demanding a Rs 50,000 bribe before accepting him.) (NO I didn’t send it, silly!)

Sorry I can't help you with names of organizations trying to combat the rampant corruption. Surely they must be in existence, right Gupt???

i too hope the system , bribes change soon
there are loads of talented youngsters that are worth it !

http://www.transparency.org/

OK... I did the wine/Idol thing and that was good for two nights, but not a long-term fix.

For anyone else who's interested... please check the above link. Has anyone heard of this group, or run into them overseas?

Maya

Hmm the website is familiar... I think I looked at it sometime in the far past, though can't remember how I got the address. Looks good! :-) http://www.tiindia.in/

This is a horrible thing to say, but it's the truth - I like the corruption. It means in a city of a few million people with a small office of 20 babus processing applications, I get to skip to the front of the line if I can pay big bribes. It's an incentive to work hard and be rich! And maybe one day, your application will be the one at the front of the line!