Grin And Beer It

                    

I know, I know. Bad pun. But that was the only thing one could do when there were blunders after blunders at the FIFA games just because the powerballers-that-be at FIFA hold on tight to Tradition and just don’t let go. Between their adamant attitude and the arrogance of the referees and the linesmen, there’s a bit of a bad taste that’s entered the game. Nothing that a few more gulps of beer won’t cure, mind you, but it’s sad.

Time was when it wouldn’t have mattered. The cameras were old world, so were the TVs, the transmission indifferent and it all added up to giving the referees the benefit of the doubt. Today, the tech raven quoths ‘Nevermore!’ Let’s face it, in the age of high-definition LED TVs that practically fill a wall, of 3-D transmission, when every kick, every lunge, every header is seen larger than life, right in your living room, when it’s not just like being there at the game but even better, then it’s time to wake up, guys and smell the scent of technology. Breathe deeply and upgrade because if you don’t, you are going to have some very disgruntled fans out there. Fans who would have recorded the game and will rewind, replay, pause and dissect every little error. It’s no use saying, ‘But that’s the way it’s always been!’ It’s never been so up close and damning, buster!

So let’s rewind and look at those few major blunders that probably changed the course of the World Cup this year. Accompanied of course with a beer for the occasion. With the footie season on, beer is very much top of mind so a bit of reminiscing about this brilliant beverage can be forgiven. No ad can ever be good enough for a glass of chilled beer. Nothing can ever quite describe the warm glow that spreads through the body as this cold concoction makes its way down, never mind what the mood or temperature is like outside. The admen have tried their best to paint this feeling with words though – and some have come pretty close. Some of those slogans seem to have been written with just these FIFA football lows in mind.

The offside that Tevez scored – the Mexicans just slumped after that. 

Ah well, according to the FIFA boss, errors should be a part of the game.

Budweiser. Where there's life, there's Bud.

(And even where there isn’t!)

Then of course, the Lampard goal, replayed again and again and every time you just had to admit it was in. Things might have gone very differently for England if the goal had been granted.

Heineken refreshes the parts other beers cannot reach.

(Especially that crushed, down-in-the-dumps feeling!)

How far can you send Klose? 

All the way off the field for something that was so minor. C’mon, guys!

Coors beer. It won't slow you down.

(Never mind how disappointing the game has been. In fact, you down it faster to cope better!)

Offside or not is the question. It wasn’t but the referee said it was and autocratic referees rule the roost at FIFA – cheered on by the deafening vuvuzelas of course!

Guinness Irish Stout. Out of the darkness comes light.

(The only bright spot for moments like these!) 

Handball or football, Brazil? What does it matter when the referee thinks it’s OK? 

The Ivory Coast just had to retreat to their ivory tower.

I feel like a Toohey's.

(Says it all, doesn’t it?)

Good Bacteria vs. Global Warming

Global Warming and Recession seem to be the two large black clouds looming over the world today. My cousin, a microbiologist who lives in Chile and I were, the other day, chatting online about the climate changes that were taking place all over the world. She feels that global warming, while being an issue of importance, tends to have become a bit too hyped up somewhere along the way, being hijacked as it were as a platform or soapbox for politicians to come into the public eye. (Her hub)

I was pondering over this when a few days later, a news item caught my eye. In a city in India, a group of researchers had discovered an organism that can devour carbon dioxide and spew it out as harmless calcium carbonate. Now that might seem like something out of a cartoon strip or a sci-fi movie but the fact is, it’s real life. It’s probably Nature’s wonderful way to keep the balance in spite of her wayward human children and the devastating damage they do to everything around them.

Suddenly, there seems to be a glimmer of hope in what seemed to be a hopeless situation. Would growing the bacteria in areas that were known to be contributing actively to global warming reverse the effects of global warming? Could we, once we’ve tried to accelerate this process, be able to control it – or would there be so much of a reverse trend that we lean dangerously to the opposite end?

At this point in time, one cannot really foresee how it is going to work and whether a lab situation can be replicated on a mammoth scale all over the world. Today, the pollution-devouring biological bacteria have, in the laboratory, been purified to a great degree with high titration, and what is in progress is the expression, the cloning and the purification in bio-reactors. What is also being actively looked at is the economic viability of the process. The scientists who are involved in this programme feel that the bacteria could be used at the point of emission in order to filter the waste carbon dioxide and ensure that it does not enter the atmosphere. All this, and a by-product like calcium carbonate which has value.

All said and done, this is the wedge in the door where before there seemed to be none. It’s early days yet and this progress can be seen as a pointer in the right direction. Not as a cure for all global warming ills but as something that will help when the efforts that we otherwise need to take are not enough. When we consciously try and reverse the effects of global warming by taking informed decisions – and keeping this as a buffer – the just-in-case factor.

We need to try and make the world a better place for our children. We’ve raped and ravaged the earth and all she has to offer. It’s time for reparation and the time is now. Here’s Nature opening a door to let us see how she can lend a helping hand. Instead of seeing it as a fix-it, we need to see it as a part of an ongoing heal-the-earth process.

Spring in India and Boom Bhang a Bhang!

Traditionally, Holi the festival of colours was a kind of letting down of one’s hair after the harvest was over. When all the toil and work was done, it was time for a bit of levity – and maybe levitation of the spirits. So, along with the riotous splashing of colours on everyone, the mood is also on a high thanks to bhang, without which no respectable Holi celebration especially in North India is complete.

What exactly is ‘bhang’?

It’s a paste that is made by pounding the buds and tender leaves of the female cannabis plant. It is usually pounded with a mortar and a pestle and then mixed into a drink or added to food. During Holi, the most popular way to have bhang is to mix it into milk which has been sweetened and into which spices and almond paste have been added. It is usually drunk cold. At some Holi parties, bhang is also served in snacks like pakoras – or savoury fried dumplings.

Bhang’s been around

It’s very much a part of Indian history and culture. The plant is considered holy and has been associated with Lord Shiva who, it is said, was the one who discovered the transcendental properties of this plant. This is probably why even today on the banks of the Ganges in the holy city of Benaras, you will still see bhang being prepared all round the year. It is after all, Lord Shiva’s holy place.

The benefits of bhang

The practice of making bhang a part of the happy events in one’s life goes back to at least a thousand years. While some believed it was an enjoyment not to be missed, especially during celebrations, others firmly believed it was beneficial to health. Physically, bhang is said to be good for so many ailments from indigestion to fever to dullness. Mentally, it is said to make you very alert. And spiritually, it is supposed to raise you to the plane of ecstasy. According to traditional nutritionists, it is a complete food that corrects any deficiency in the body and strengthens the immune system.

Bhang moments – each to his own

Every bhang experience is different. Some keep laughing and can’t seem to stop. Others just have this warm feeling inside of them. For most, it’s a great sense of freedom that washes over them, helping them forget proprieties and plunge headlong into the fun the festival demands. It’s an enlivening experience that has no equal.

Bhang and music

Besides Holi, bhang is popular at music festivals too. Mixed into flour which has spices added, it is then made into papads or poppadoms which are carried into the venue. With bhang inside you, the sound of music affects all your senses, filling you with joy with each note that is played or sung.

A plant you probably wouldn’t notice if you didn’t know – and it has such power. The potent way it affects the mind, body and soul is something that stays on in the memory long after the last bit of colour of Holi is washed off.

R.I.P in the Rye

You said Goodbye to the world a long time before you actually left it. You never wanted greatness – you had it thrust upon you and you did the only thing you felt you could – you retreated into your own private space. But not before you gave us Holden Caulfield. Rebellious, never-grow-up Holden who became the symbol for teenage turbulence. More importantly, the symbol of the non-phony.

What was it all about, this book that grew bigger than you and became the inspiration for a whole generation? Was it just a journey of self-discovery? Or was it a treatise about integrity, of being true to oneself above all else? And does being true to oneself and shunning phoniness set you apart, put you in the fringes?

Whatever it was, the heart of the book captivated us – maybe because we saw a bit of ourselves in the protagonist? Maybe because those were the idealistic years when being a part of the herd didn’t always matter.

They say you wrote more – a lot more. Will it all come pouring out now that you’re gone? The question is: do we want it to come pouring out? Or would we rather hold onto that one dream you inspired, hidden beneath those memories of the way things were, before the masks were in place? Sometimes, ‘just enough’ is a lot more powerful than ‘too much’.

Gin a body meet a body comin’ thro’ the rye …. there’s no need to cry. Just rest in peace. Did you just say, ‘Sleep tight, ya morons?’

You Can Do It If You Try

A Collective Thumbs Down To Bt Brinjal

Brinjal. Eggplant. Aubergine. By any name, it sure is better without the ‘Bt’ tag, or so people in India decided as they came out loud and strong to stall the introduction of Bt Brinjal in the country. And one guess where the seeds were going to come from? From Mayco-Monsanto, the local supplier of these new generation seeds which were touted as being the saviour of farmers – no more pests, higher yields, better profits….you know, the usual hyperbole. Fortunately, there are some issues where the Indian population comes out in numbers and this is one of them…..now if only there were more such instances!

On the face of it, it all sounds so good, so Utopian almost. A perfect world where crop infestation and diseased grains and now vegetables are a thing of the past. The thing is, when one interferes with Nature, there usually are repercussions. However, what might constitute future problems are swept under the carpet – and why not, when the company that has been in the forefront of this ‘humanitarian’ research stands to gain millions?

Let’s rewind a bit to another GMO seed that was introduced in India – Bt Cotton. In 1995, Monsanto came together with India’s Mayco to import Bt cotton seeds into India to be crossed with local varieties. They were made available in the local market in 2002 ostensibly to end the poor Indian farmer’s woes and blow the winds of prosperity across his holdings with this new pest-resistant strain. Unfortunately, while there was so much research that was going on in the government-funded agencies (where did the funding come from, one wonders?), there was little if no transparency when it came to the findings. In less than a year, the crop failed to meet farmers’ raised expectations and there were many suicides across the land, thanks to failed crops. What happened was the growth of pests – Bt-resistant bollworms in fields. Half the pesticides in the country are used against this one pest – and now, we have a resistant strain growing and spreading. The other factor of course, is the fact that these are ‘terminator’ seeds – you need to buy new seeds every time you want to plant a new crop. Which means that you once they get to you, you are chained to the company for life.

Consider this. There are more than 2000 varieties of brinjal in India and they have been grown in the country for over 4000 years – do we really want to wish them all away and replace them with a few ‘robotic’ strains? The country’s educated said ‘No’ and ‘Enough’. Suddenly, there was a huge outcry, snowballing into the Environment Minister’s office overflowing with emails, faxes, letters to stop this monstrous march to what was being termed a technological revolution. The research that had been released by the company was too sketchy and not objective to warrant its introduction without proper research. Till then, the political leaders, some of the newspapers and media channels and the companies involved were singing its praises. On January 30, the anniversary of  Mahatma Gandhi assassination, 100,000 people across the land went on a fast to protest. Sensing a revolution, the Environment Minister put the introduction on hold. No, the danger isn’t past as yet and we should be vigilant. All they have done is to postpone the introduction – indefinitely.

We need to do what Europe is doing. They’ve banned fabric made of GM cotton and they have always said an emphatic No to all GMO foods. How can we base the safety of the rest of our lives and the lives of future generations on research that has been funded by the company that promotes GM technology? How can we expect it not to be skewed in their favour? Awareness is the only answer and the more of us who stand up and say No when we have to, the better for the world. We can do it if we try. And when we do, we can move the world.