Wednesday 21 September 2011

Bangaloreans Ain't lookin for nothin', But a good time!



Yesterday, The BFlat Bar facebook fanpage broke the news of a new draconian rule introduced in the city. 
All Bangalore restaurants with bars have been served notice by the cops with the following orders:
No bright coloured flashing lights.No dancing.No loud western music.Anyone found violating the above will have their licence revoked.
...spoke to the cops and told them about the music we have and that there is no dancing etc. and no disturbance to the neighbourhood. Received a categorical “No”. Only recorded music at a low volume allowed.
So now, instead of listening to a live band showcasing their musical talents, while you enjoy the food at your regular hangout in the city, you could now listen to the same old recorded non-western music played at a "low volume"!


This is a death-knell to many live bands performing western music & the DJs in the city. There are several bands who earn a livelihood by playing gigs - mostly in restaurants and pubs. It gives them the exposure, recognition and perhaps even the hope to hit it big time! And it's not just the musicians, but also organizers and venues who are affected by this.


Killing their dreams


Why discriminate only western music? Why should loud Bollywood / Regional music be exempt from the rule? How could a Munni Badnaam Hui be fine while a John Lennon song about world peace be unacceptable? Isn't this against our rights?


Many festivities (and some processions) in the city are no different - and they happen on the roads! There's that loud blaring music played (with that Indian version of the vuvuzela and drums), hot 'flashing' lamps, uninhibited reveler type 'dancers' engaging in a raucous romp, causing all the traffic pile ups in the city, which sometimes goes way into the night causing distress to 'neighbours'. Why not ban that?


I fail to understand the rationale behind this rule? Shouldn't the police be focusing on issues that really matter - like reducing crime rates in the city. Do they actually think that flashing lights and live western music would increase criminal incidents?


Many facebook pages have already sprung up for voicing people's disagreement and discontent over this new rule. Save Bangalore Nightlife already has over 4000 likes. Protest against the ban of Live Music in Bangalore page which spawned in the last 24 hours is garnering rapid support. Keep Live Alive is another. Show your support. Save Bangalore's Nightlife!


Like in that Poison's 1988 cult hit - Bangaloreans Ain't lookin for nothin', But a good time...


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India Deal Sites blog

Friday 9 September 2011

Lokpal Bill for Corporations (LMAO version!)


There are quite a few govt. institutions empowered to look into corporate scams and frauds - and they are armed to the teeth to take action on erring companies/individuals - like SEBI et al. And they ain't doing that bad a job...

So, as I can't be too serious on the topic of Corporate Crime, here are the initial provisions for an Anti-Corruption Bill for Corporates (LMAO version) that could be tabled by.... uhm.. the government?!

Anti-Corruption Bill for Corporations
1. This draft will consist of a special 367-page loophole section to give those fraudsters an easy way out despite strong evidence & paperwork.
2. Since the Satyam scam, CEOs in conjunction with the accounting firms may misrepresent the company's earnings only by a margin of 94% or less. Anything more, must be approved by the company's board.
3. Corporate Bonuses for people in plum-paying positions should not exceed 257% of the total company earnings. 
4. Charges of Insider Trading will be dealt with seriously. Serious enough to make sure that the company's stock prices go to the earlier level... and that's about it.
5. The most serious cases of fraud are punishable by making the scamsters repent by listening to Kapil Sibal's 6 hr. sermon on The Top Practices for Corporates  (reviewed by that ex-Satyam guy in jail and signed-off by those scamsters who took down Enron) while forcing them to appear poignant all the while.
6. Cases of nepotism, etc. do not come under the purview of this bill
7. Once an individual or a corporation is found guilty of a 17th serious offence, the company will be forced to buy back its own stock until it goes 50% higher. There will also be close monitoring of the people who embezzled the company. These people will also be made part of the company's very ownSerious Fraud Investigation Team.
8. Whistleblowers - before blowing the whistle will need to take permission from the manager first, before approaching the Sr. Manager followed by the director and then the VP. The VP may choose to forward the complaint to the executive board if he believes he's not involved. And then the board will take a call whether the whistleblower can go ahead and...  well.. blow the whistle!

The anthem for the campaign will be the Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO

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You can follow me on Twitter @prajaret
I'm also the author of the India Deal Sites blog 
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World Map Index of perception of corruption (2010) - Wikipedia