Views on News - Part 1

This was meant for a vlog, but my camera's audio quality was not up to the mark. A rather delayed opinion some items that made the news and one that should have.

The Abhishek- Aishwarya wedding
The media coverage was thrilling, to say the least. Now that we have had a happy closure to the Bhopal gas tragedy, 1984 Sikh massacre and other malaises that had been plaguing India since independence, the A-A wedding was the most anticipated event for the common man. I was thrilled to know that Mani Ratnam was (probably) the only invitee from Chennai. I thank the media for keeping me up-to-date on what is most important to me. If only they could tell me the name of the courier boy who delivered the invite, I can rest peacefully.

Meaning of the above paragraph: You idiots in the media, get a job!

She becomes a 'He', should 'He' receive alimony?
CNN deemed it fit to cover this piece on its front page as a top news item:
A divorced woman underwent sex change and is now a man. Her ex-husband refuses to pay alimony because the 'woman' he divorced no longer exists. Court rules that he has to pay until the ex-wife dies or remarries.

I should say I am thrilled with this news item full of family values that it needs to appear on CNN for two consecutive days. Sure, it is more important that Iraq or Darfur. Right?

Interestingly, in this case, in Tamil, the money received by the transsexual would be 'ali money'.

Bindi Irwin - Australia's tourism ambassador
The daughter of the 'killed in action' Croc Hunter Steve Irwin is touring the world. All of 8 years old, she has been nominated Australia's tourism ambassador. What comes to my mind? Just two words: Child labour.

Cricket World Cup 2007
My interest in the cricket World Cup 2007 pertained only to Kensington Oval, in the country where I lived and worked. I had a secondary interest too. I was hoping that India would reach the semi-finals, albeit for selfish reasons. Had India reached the semi-finals, a horde of BCCI officials would have been given a free flight to West Indies.

My hopes: You know, flights take off, accidents happen, you know what I mean, right? A bright future for Indian cricket! Alas, but that was not to be.

The item that didn't make the news, but should have:
School faces Laya's music
Parents of Laya, a 10-year old, took her to one of Chennai city's premium educational institutions as it was closer to their place than the current one. The school (belonging to a group of schools run like the mafia by a 75+ year old woman) offered the happy parents admission for their child, but Laya turned it down with something on the lines of, "There is not a single tree in sight. I don't want to join your school".

Moral of the story: The kid has her priorities right, the educators and the parents (including myself) don't.