Fidgety Foots

Wishing all of you a very Happy New Year.

Teju and I will be in India for 3 weeks. Lots of stories and photos from the trip after we come back on Jan 16th, so stay tuned.

A federal judge ruled that Intelligent design (ID) cannot be taught in science classes and delivered a scathing attack on the tactics used by the proponents of ID.

It would be naive to think that this is the end of this issue, but the manner and tone of the ruling by U.S. District Judge John E. Jones will certainly make the religious right think twice about raking it up any time soon.

I still think ID and creationism should be presented to students, but in a class dealing with theology, not science, and it should be an elective class, not a mandatory one. And they should also consider that creationism beliefs vary depending on which religion you adhere to.

My rant about how mainstream newspapers in India have completely sold out to sensational, commercial and, glamorous news. Been observing this for a while now, and I am glad that I am not the only one noticing it.

News report from the front page of Times of India. Very newsworthy I think.

Good tidings are in store for all Amitabh Bahchan fans. After having sent the entire nation into a frenzy over his hospitalization and subsequent surgery, the condition of India’s iconic star has improved.

The superstar is likely to be discharged from the hospital in a day or two, sources revealed.

Bachchan, who is recovering from diverticulitis of small intestine, for which he was operated upon, is recuperating at Lilavati Hospital at suburban Bandra and has overcome the problem, the sources said.
Bachchan may be sent back home in a day or two, although the dietary restrictions will continue, they added.

Meanwhile, Bachchan’s wife Jaya and son Abhishek visited the famous Siddhivinayak temple at Dadar to offer prayers.
They performed pooja at the temple and also took ` prasad’ for Amitabh and other family members.

The Bachchans are devotees of Siddivinayak Ganesh, and previously have walked from their home in Juhu to Dadar, a distance of over 15 kms, to perform pooja at the temple.

News report from me the way I read it:

Finally every indian knows about how harmful diverticulus of the small intestine can be, I mean why worry about HIV, malaria, TB and all the millions of people who are currently afflicted by these and other diseases from which they will inevitably die since they cant afford medical care, when you can get…….gasp…….diverticulitis!! We would also like to enlighten you with the fact that the Bachchan family visited a temple to pray and also used the restroom while they were there, Abhishek wore beige pants, a white shirt and black shoes, hadnt shaved for 2 days and didnt sign any autographs for people who had gathered there to pray. Amitabh Bachchan who had mosambi juice today morning has been told not to eat any spicy food from now on and the country hopes that his team of celebrity chefs can manage. Oh ya and btw, a dozen or so MP’s were caught taking bribes for asking questions in Parliament but since they dont have diverticulitis, we wont be concentrating on that too much this month, we will leave that to all those unprofessional Indian bloggers who will not let this embarrassing subject die.

Disclaimer: I am a HUGE Bachchan fan, and hope that he gets well soon. This post is directed at the media which seems to have lost its priorities.