*"Practice Random Kindness & Senseless Acts of Beauty"*

My friend asked me today while watching the Raj sabha and lok sabha ||ly with Ramlila ground live on TV... that who is funding this Ramlila Activities...


Here is a true inspiring and very well written experience from colnel Shivraj. A big salute to the team... 



>> Hi,
>>
>> Yesterday I went to the Ramlila grounds. Like you, me too have been glued
>> to the TV from the day the drama started. So, I wanted to get a "feel" of
>> the happenings on the ground. More specifically I wanted to make some
>> contribution (financially) to the cause.
>>
>> I'd like to share with you what I experienced. First the donation part.
>>
>> I approached the vounteer at the counter (there are two/three huge counters
>> and help desks set up by the India Against Corruption volunteers.). "But
>> Sir, we are not taking any donations." Shocked; I informed him that I am not
>> paying by cash, I have brought my cheque book. (They are extremely
>> meticulous in maintaining their accounts. I had experienced this when I had
>> visited their fast site at Jantar Mantar in April. Even if somebody gave
>> them 10 Rupees, they would insist on giving a receipt with details of
>> address, phone no. etc. This had caused long queues. They know that the
>> scoundrels in the Govt. are just waiting to pounce on them with allegations
>> of irregularities in accounts). "Sir, we are not accepting even cheques now.
>> We have stopped collecting donations."
>>
>> I pulled out my copy of the Times of India of the day and showed them the
>> report where it said they had a special cell for collecting donations. "We
>> know it Sir, but thanks to generous people like you, we have collected
>> enough money for our needs for the time being and since last night, we have
>> stopped taking any more money."
>>
>> In more than 65 years of my existence, this was the first time I was
>> coming across an NGO/ Institution/ Movement which was not taking money. I am
>> more used to their pestering.
>>
>> Just to double check, I approached a few other volunteers at different
>> desks. Same response. But doesn't an ongoing movement like this constantly
>> need funds ? The response was that they will restart the collection drive in
>> that situation. But for the time being, they had enough for their needs !
>> "Besides Sir, most of the activities that you see here on a large scale,
>> e.g. water, tea, food distribution etc. are being organised by individuals /
>> organisations. We are not doing anything on that front."
>>
>> (OK, I have made my main point and you may stop reading any further. I am
>> just wanting to put down on paper other tit-bits that I saw, but you may
>> not have the time to go through the same. I am not making any effort to
>> "condense it"!)
>>
>> Talking of volunteers, they are so young and well educated. Replace their
>> "India Against Corruption" T shirts with normal office attire and you will
>> see they fit into finest of the companies. A large no. of them indeed are
>> from very professional organisations. Clearly overworked, they presented
>> such a dedicated face. Not a single case of losing temper, at least as long
>> as I was there. Some achievement, considering that a huge no. of
>> not-so-educated people surround them at any given point of time. Some were
>> not even getting time to sip a cup of tea. The relief on getting a chance to
>> do so was so palpable on their face. There must have been more than a
>> hundred of them there. The true heroes and heroines of India.
>>
>> Every few minutes, a trailer van would be leaving the grounds after
>> collecting all the litter that was filling up the large bins kept all over
>> the ground. These bins kept getting filled up so fast because there was an
>> enormous amount of food being distributed free by individuals and private
>> organisations. There were long queues at the counters distributing full meal
>> (not just snacks). The food, served in clean thermocole type trays and with
>> plastic spoons was wholesome. Rice, Puri, Subji etc. They reminded one of
>> Bhandaras or Langars ! Snacks (Parle G biscuits, Grams (chana), some bananas
>> and sundries), water pouches, tea etc. were being so enthusiastially
>> distributed . They were literally catching anyone passing by and handing
>> over the same ! One such person (a Sardarji) was distributing biscuits; so I
>> asked him if he had come all the way from Punjab. "Nahinji, I am from
>> Faridabad". My chest swelled with pride; people from my town were also doing
>> their bit. Shook hands warmly, but couldn't talk much; he was so busy.
>>
>> The irony of it all was not lost on me. Here were these multitudes who had
>> come in support of a fasting man and were being filled to the brim by rest
>> of the society !
>>
>> Reverting to the topic of litter and bins, the ground, slushy and muddy as
>> it was, was full of litter. Despite the best efforts of the volunteers.
>> After all, we are Indians. How can we live in cleanliness ? Then I saw a
>> very well off, middle aged lady, the kind you will see in your (posh)
>> neighbourhood; pick up a cane basket and get down to the task of picking up
>> littered plates, trays, plastic pouches etc. and transfer them to the bins.
>> It was a strange phenomena. A high caste lady cleaning up the muck thrown
>> around by (metaphorically speaking) Dalits and lower castes ! This was the
>> new, emerging India. For the first time, during my stay at the Ramlila
>> grounds, I felt so ashamed of myself. Instinctively, I too bent down to
>> pick up a few of these. But within 3/4 minutes, realised that my back won't
>> support me. The hardest thing to remove were the plastic spoons that had got
>> embedded in the mud all around.
>>
>> That was not the only place where our sense of hygiene was on full display.
>> An artist had put up a very large no. of thoroughly enjoyable Poster
>> Cartoons on a wall. High quality. I believe they are also on Facebook and
>> Twitter. (For example, there was one showing one politician telling another,
>> "How can they call us all corrupt ? When half of us haven't even got the
>> ministries where we can make money !"). Yet it was so difficult to stand and
>> read all the cartoons. The Pee stink was so strong. My countrymen were
>> merrily peeing on the adjoining wall (at right angles to the Cartoon wall),
>> despite authorities having provided toilets just outside the gates. If that
>> was not enough, consider this : The wall on which they were peeing was the
>> side wall of a temple !
>>
>> When you looked at eye level, you saw a sea of humanity, tricolours
>> fluttering, massive and un-co-ordintaed slogan shouting, but when you looked
>> down, you felt sick. Muddy and uneven grounds with pools of stagnant water
>> every few steps (it has been raining heavily here). So difficult to walk
>> around; often having to jump around. This was Ramlila ground, where every
>> year, Ramlila celebrations take place on a large scale and any no. of
>> political rallies take place every alternate week, so to speak. Could the
>> Municipal Corporation of Delhi not pave it all these years ? You
>> automaticlly turned your face down when you saw a foreigner try to negotiate
>> the grounds. Yet, you just had to turn your face 90 degrees to see a massive
>> (32 stories, I believe), super-modern, massive building just on the other
>> side of the road. I was convinced it belonged to a top notch MNC. Finally, I
>> caught hold of a smart, though grey haired Police Officer and asked him
>> whose building was that. He was surprised, but let me know it was the MCD HQ
>> building and has been there for a few years. What a contrast and what a
>> shame. The rascals (MCD is currently controlled by BJP) can't see the
>> pathetic condition of the Ramlila grounds from their windows every moment of
>> their working day ? And BJP is lecturing us how the entire mess in the
>> country is because of the Congress.
>>
>> Well, enough of the side-shows and tit-bits. Let's come to the main
>> picture. Simply amazing. Huge no. of people. I think the media is grossly
>> under-reporting the same. They talk of the crowd size at a given point of
>> time. A static measurement, if you please. When I was there (it was
>> afternoon; supposed to be at its thinnest), there were at least 20,000 at
>> any given point of time. Yet the actual crowd is far, far bigger. Probably 3
>> times the estimates. For, people are constantly streaming in and streaming
>> out. Just like me. Families, the rich and the poor, handicapped people, I
>> even saw an almost 100 year old villager, barely able to walk, just a loin
>> cloth around him, panting very badly, come up to the main tent with the help
>> of what I believe was his grandson. Whoever has been spreading the canard
>> that it is a "middle class" phenomena needs to have his/her eyesight
>> examined. I saw far greater no. of very poor Indians from all over the
>> country than the so-called "middle class". The enthusiasm is amazing.
>> Slogans, patriotic songs and Bhajans are the dominant theme. The crowd does
>> not fall silent even for a minute. When I was there, Manoj Tiwari, a popular
>> Bihari singer was belting one patriotic song after another. And the entire
>> crowd was singing with him and waving with their hands raised up (no space
>> for any horizontal movement of the hands). For full one hour. And that
>> dynamo of a 62 year old lady called Kiran Bedi. She was waving a large size
>> tricolour vigorously from one side to the other on the stage. For that full
>> one hour. Try doing it for 10 minutes ! Besides them, a quite old, dark
>> complexioned villager, looking just like your or mine grandpa was sitting
>> cross legged on a wooden cot, wearing a constant smile and often swinging
>> his head or clapping lightly with the music. The epicenter of it all : Anna
>> Hazare.
>>
>> While the main crowd keeps up with the Stage, there are a thousand side
>> shows of patriotic commitment going on. Every group, some very small, enter
>> the grounds shouting their own slogans and waving the national flag. So, in
>> a sense, you also have a sense of cacophony. I saw a family consisting of a
>> mother and 4 daughters (I presume) enter through a gate and immediately
>> launch into "Vande Mataram" and other slogans. Irrespective of what slogans
>> or songs were being sung from the stage. They had to let the world know how
>> charged up they were. Total commitment to the cause. Huge no. of (mostly
>> handwritten) placards and painted faces greet you.
>>
>> So, overall, did I feel happy ? Or, proud ? Yes, immensely. This can happen
>> only in India. It was an authentic Indian Mela. For a very serious cause.
>> Where else in the world will you find such lofty ideals existing peacefully
>> with physical filth; where else would you find feasting co-existing with
>> fasting ; where would you have such massive crowds with no leader, yet not a
>> single case of violence. First time that I saw so many policemen and
>> policewomen with not a single one carrying a lathi . Where would you find
>> thousands to keep standing on their feet for 24 hours, for there is so
>> little of dry space to sleep or sit. When I was on my way to the grounds, I
>> stopped at a petrol station to fill in. I heard one attendent telling
>> another that he had returned at 3.30 am. Presumably from the Ramlila
>> grounds. It seems people like him are on duty upto 11 p.m. or so; then take
>> the Metro or some other transport, go to site to support Anna and team; take
>> the first available Metro in the morning to reach home or place of work.
>> What commitment!!
>>
>> I never saw Mahatma Gandhi (seen Vinoba Bhave though). But I got a great
>> feel for what mass movements of those days were like. Let's all pray that
>> this semi-literate man's health remains good and the SOBs in Govt. and
>> political parties see reason. Maybe, just maybe, we might yet see within
>> our lifetime, India move up dramatically from the 87th rank amongst the most
>> corrupt nations in the world. And instead of Gods and Goddesses, start
>> worshipping Anna's team members. The likes of Arvind Kejriwal. Have brought
>> a lost cause to center stage. With their leadership, immense hard work over
>> the years, zeal, sacrifice in personal life and with an intelligence that
>> has completely outwitted the entire Govt. and political class.
>>
>>
>> Till then, enjoy your TV show !
>>
>> P.S. Just when I finished typing the above, I saw a news item in today's
>> TOI that indeed "India Against Corruption" folks have stopped accepting
>> donations, because they have already collected "60 Lacs". What a joke
>> compared to what the policians want to collect. I remember, when my state's
>> former Chief Minister Chauthala was charged with illegally amassing Rs. 1500
>> crores, his retort was "What is 1500 crores for a politician these days" !
>> And here are these folks saying a mere 60 lacs is enough to run this
>> countrywide movement. Long live the new India!!!
>>
>> Col Shivraj

Myths about Cancer... Newsletter from Johns Hopkins

Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins :

1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer
cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have
multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients
that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after
treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the
cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable
size.

2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a
person's lifetime.

3. When the person's immune system is strong the cancer
cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and
forming tumors.

4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has
nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic,
but also to environmental, food and lifestyle factors.

5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing
diet to eat more adequately and healthy, 4-5 times/day
and by including supplements will strengthen the immune
system.

6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing
cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells
in the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract etc, and can
cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.

7.. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars
and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.

8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often
reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of
chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor
destruction.

9. When the body has too much toxic burden from
chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either
compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb
to various kinds of infections and complications.

10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to
mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy.
Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other
sites.

11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer
cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.

*CANCER CELLS FEED ON:-

a. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc are
made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural
substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses , but only in
very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make
it white in color Better alternative is Bragg's aminos or sea
salt.

B. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the
gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting
off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk cancer
cells are being starved.

c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based
diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little other
meat, like chicken. Meat also contains livestock
antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all
harmful, especially to people with cancer.

d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole
grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into
an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked
food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live
enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to
cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance
growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building
healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most
vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw
vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at
temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C)..

e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high
caffeine Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer
fighting properties. Water-best to drink purified water, or
filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap
water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.

12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of
digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the
intestines becomes putrefied and leads to more toxic
buildup.

13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By
refraining from or eating less meat it frees more
enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and
allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.

14. Some supplements build up the immune system
(IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals,
EFAs etc.) to enable the bodies own killer cells to destroy
cancer cells.. Other supplements like vitamin E are known
to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's
normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or
unneeded cells.

15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit.
A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior
be a survivor. Anger, un-forgiveness and bitterness put
the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to
have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy
life.

16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated
environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to
get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen
therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer
cells.

1. No plastic containers in micro.

2. No water bottles in freezer.

3. No plastic wrap in microwave..

Johns Hopkins has recently sent this out in its newsletters. This information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as well. Dioxin chemicals cause cancer, especially breast cancer. Dioxins are highly poisonous to the cells of our bodies. Don't freeze your plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from the plastic. Recently, Dr Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at Castle Hospital , was on a TV program to explain this health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad they are for us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the microwave using plastic containers. This especially applies to foods that contain fat. He said that the combination of fat, high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the food and ultimately into the cells of the body. Instead, he recommends using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers for heating food. You get the same results, only without the dioxin. So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should be removed from the container and heated in something else. Paper isn't bad but you don't know what is in the paper. It's just safer to use tempered glass, Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper The dioxin problem is one of the reasons.

Also, he pointed out that plastic wrap, such as Saran, is just as dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food. Cover food with a paper towel instead.

Matrix - Detailed Analysis and Implementation of Lokpal bill

Existing System	System Proposed by civil society
No politician or senior officer ever goes to jail despite huge evidencebecause Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) and CBI directly come under the government. Before starting investigation or initiating prosecution in any case, they have to take permission from the same bosses, against whom the case has to be investigated.	Lokpal at centre and Lokayukta at state level will be independent bodies. ACB and CBI will be merged into these bodies. They will have power to initiate investigations and prosecution against any officer or politician without needing anyoneⳠpermission. Investigation should be completed within 1 year and trial to get over in next 1 year. Within two years, the corrupt should go to jail.
No corrupt officer is dismissed from the job because Central Vigilance Commission, which is supposed to dismiss corrupt officers, is only an advisory body. Whenever it advises government to dismiss any senior corrupt officer, its advice is never implemented.	Lokpal and Lokayukta will have complete powers to order dismissal of a corrupt officer.CVC and all departmental vigilance will be merged into Lokpal and state vigilance will be merged into Lokayukta.
No action is taken against corrupt judges because permission is required from the Chief Justice of India to even register an FIR against corrupt judges.	Lokpal & Lokayukta shall have powers to investigate and prosecute any judge without needing anyoneⳠpermission.
Nowhere to go - People expose corruption but no action is taken on their complaints.	Lokpal & Lokayukta will have to enquire into and hear every complaint.
There is so much corruption within CBI and vigilance departments . Their functioning is so secret that it encourages corruption within these agencies.	All investigations in Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be transparent. After completion of investigation, all case records shall be open to public. Complaint against any staff of Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be enquired and punishment announced within two months.
Weak and corrupt people are appointed as heads of anti-corruption agencies.	Politicians will have absolutely no say in selections of Chairperson and members of Lokpal & Lokayukta. Selections will take place through a transparent and public participatory process.
Citizens face harassment in government offices. Sometimes they are forced to pay bribes. One can only complaint to senior officers. No action is taken on complaints because senior officers also get their cut.	Lokpal & Lokayukta will get public grievances resolved in time bound manner , impose a penalty of Rs 250 per day of delay to be deducted from the salary of guilty officer and award that amount as compensation to the aggrieved citizen.
Nothing in law to recover ill gotten wealth. A corrupt person can come out of jail and enjoy that money.	Loss caused to the government due to corruptionwill be recovered from all accused.
Small punishment for corruption-Punishment for corruption is minimum 6 months and maximum 7 years.	Enhanced punishment - The punishment would be minimum 5 years and maximum of life imprisonment.

  

Why Lokpal Bill is Important

Government Lokpal Bill is a joke, eyewash and totally ineffective !!!!!!

1)Why

Government is afraid of discussion of bill in public??Is it because its so called lokpal bill is garbage. While team Anna gave arguments regarding the effectiveness of the Jan lokpal bill and  severe shortcomings of Government Lokpal bill , Government simply has one argument “ Parliament is supreme and its member alone can decide the provision of Lokpal. They do not want any discussion on provision and shortcoming of their bill. Team Anna has asked government to publicly debate on this issue or videotape the meeting between civil society and government but government rejected both demand.


2)Team

Anna will get nothing from having week or strong Lokpal bill. But corrupt politicians will definitely be atloss if strong lokpal bill is passed ( the chances of them getting prosecuted and getting jailed will be more). Â In thiscase, the thief(politicians) himself is making law to lay parameter how investigationwill be done against him.


3) Government

Is acting like a local trader or Blackmailer by coming up with give and take offer. Inother words, it is asking Team anna to tone down their demands for strong lokpal and include weak government recommendations. Why?Why Government dont want strong lokpal ? Also it is following policy of “Divide and Rule by bringing fringe elements( like Aruna roy of NAC) and sayingcivil society is divided.


4) Since the Jan

Lok bill will create independent authority regarding the investigation of government officials and its ministers, MP’s etc.  it is required that independent agency should look after these matters. ( CBI has to start inquiry in 2G and CWG scam only after supreme court initiative). In government so called Lokpal Bill.

5) Government lokpal 


Will be elected by majority of governments nominees and will be under government control. A Just like CBI, CVC etc. So it will be atoothless body who will never initiate inquiry against government ministers. (Remember a government nominated CVC , supposed to be most honest person, has been charged by SC in corruption case). 

6) Government effectively gave chance to accused to be alert and remove/destroy the evidences by telling him that inquiry will be initiated against him/her.

7) Since all scam has its presence from low level to high level officials, by bringing only high level under investigation will effectively way to hamper a proper and full investigation.

8) The person who brings corruption charges against an official/ minister will get 2year Jail term if Corruption charges are not proved. In other words, Discouraging and intimating the person who brings corruption charges against corrupt.


9) The investigation for corruption will be effectively done by government agencies( CBI etc.),Lokpal will only supervise. In other wordno action against government ministers/ officials.


10) Want to bring NGOs under Lokpal investigation thereby increasing the workload of lokpal and remove the focus from political corruption. ( NGO could have been brought under any other investigation agency like CBI, police etc).


11)Governments don't want to provide sufficient manpower to lokpal under its bill making it a toothless body. A See how Lokpal Bill can curb the politicians, Circulate it to create awareness Existing System System Proposed by civil society No politician or senior officer ever goes to jail despite huge evidence because Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) and CBI directly come under the government. 

Before starting investigation or prosecution in any case, they have to take permission from the same bosses, against whom the case has to be investigated. Lokpal at centre and Lokayukta at state level will be independent bodies. ACB and CBI will be merged into these bodies. They will have power to initiate investigations and prosecution against any officer or politician without needing anyone's permission. 

Investigation should be completed within 1 year and trial to get over in next 1 year. Within two years, the corrupt should go to jail. No corrupt officer is dismissed from the job because Central Vigilance Commission, which is supposed to dismiss corrupt officers, is only an advisory body. Whenever it advises government to dismiss any senior corrupt officer, its advice is never implemented. Lokpal and Lokayukta will have complete powers to order dismissal of a corrupt officer. 

CVC and all departmental vigilance will be merged into Lokpal and state vigilance will be merged into Lokayukta. No action is taken against corrupt judgesbecause permission is required from the Chief Justice of India to even register an FIR against corrupt judges. Lokpal & Lokayukta shall have powers to investigate and prosecute any judge without needing anyone’s permission. Nowhere to go- People expose corruption but no action is taken on their complaints. 

Lokpal & Lokayukta will have to enquire into and hear every complaint. There is so much corruption within CBI and vigilance departments. Their functioning is so secret that it encourages corruption within these agencies. All investigations in Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be transparent. After completion of investigation, all case records shall be open to public. Complaint against any staff of Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be enquired and punishment announced within two months. Weak and corrupt people are appointed as headsof anti-corruption agencies. Politicians will have absolutely no say in selections of Chairperson and members of Lokpal & Lokayukta. 

Selections will take place through a transparent and public participatory process. Citizens face harassment in government offices. Sometimes they are forced to pay bribes. One can only complaint to senior officers. No action is taken on complaints because senior officers also get their cut. Lokpal & Lokayukta will get public grievances resolved in time bound manner, impose a penalty of Rs 250 per day of delay to be deducted from the salary of guilty officer and award that amount as compensation to the aggrieved citizen. Nothing in law to recover ill gotten wealth. A corrupt person can come out of jail and enjoy that money. 

Loss caused to the government due to corruption will be recovered from all accused. Small punishment for corruption-Punishment for corruption is minimum 6 months and maximum 7 years. Enhanced punishment -The punishment would be minimum 5 years and maximum of life imprisonment.