People on the UK’s coronavirus furlough scheme should be put to work to help the country out of the crisis
by Rashmee
Posted on May 19, 2020 / The Focus
At the moment, 7.5 million jobs in the UK are covered by the government’s furlough scheme, that’s an awful lot of people out of work. They say there are always lessons we can learn from history. In that case, it’s worth examining an 18th century proto-Keynesian state intervention in north India that proved successful. It … Continue reading “People on the UK’s coronavirus furlough scheme should be put to work to help the country out of the crisis”
Read MoreUK furlough scheme could learn from 18th century proto-Keynesian state intervention in India
by Rashmee
Posted on May 17, 2020
With 7.5 million jobs in Britain now covered by the government’s furlough scheme, right through to October, there’s much to learn from an 18th century proto-Keynesian successful state intervention from north India. It was launched by the Nawab of Awadh, Asaf-ud Daula in 1784, when famine hit the region. Awadh was a wealthy kingdom in … Continue reading “UK furlough scheme could learn from 18th century proto-Keynesian state intervention in India”
Read MoreA world of Zoombies: What it means, really
by Rashmee
Posted on May 16, 2020
In the past 24 hours, I have been on three Zoom calls. The first on Friday night was with good friends, calling with birthday wishes. The second and third, on Saturday, were with disparate groups of family members, similarly reaching out across the lockdown with loving virtual hugs and kisses. The Friday night call ran … Continue reading “A world of Zoombies: What it means, really”
Read More‘Sell city, buy country’? The pandemic won’t empty London, NYC
by Rashmee
Posted on May 14, 2020
Some very clever people are writing off cities. Not altogether, but quite substantially. Consider a new piece in Politico magazine by Parag Khanna, bestselling author and managing partner of the data and scenario-based strategic global advisory firm FutureMap. The pandemic “may cause fundamental shifts in our human geography,” Mr Khanna writes. “Why choose to stay in a … Continue reading “‘Sell city, buy country’? The pandemic won’t empty London, NYC”
Read MoreAn Open Letter to the West: About toilet paper and other matters
by Rashmee
Posted on April 2, 2020
Dear Brothers and Sisters Born in the West In these extraordinary and difficult times, do you know what’s reassuringly familiar? Your panic about toilet paper. The last one that made headlines (and for much scratching of heads) was the American TP panic of 1973. Now that was the year of the oil shock and … Continue reading “An Open Letter to the West: About toilet paper and other matters”
Read MorePlato used the image of the political leader as a doctor. That is particularly true in a pandemic
by Rashmee
Posted on March 31, 2020
Taiwan’s remarkably effective response to the coronavirus pandemic is thought to be in some measure because it’s lucky enough to have an epidemiologist as vice president. (Click here for my blog from last week.) Technically speaking, the European Union should have the same advantage. After all, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, is a … Continue reading “Plato used the image of the political leader as a doctor. That is particularly true in a pandemic”
Read MoreTo be great, India and the US have to be good – part II
by Rashmee
Posted on March 7, 2020
I’m returning to a subject that has long preoccupied me. Both India, country of my birth, and the US, my adoptive country, must be good to be great. It is not enough to remind the world that India produced Mahatma Gandhi and that the US has exemplified rule of law and the separation of … Continue reading “To be great, India and the US have to be good – part II”
Read MoreWith Donald Trump’s visit, US-India chemistry can no longer be dismissed as fiction
by Rashmee
Posted on February 25, 2020 / The National
There were bespoke broccoli samosas in Ahmedabad in western India; a watermelon carved with the faces of Donald Trump and Narendra Modi in Theni in southern India; sand art featuring Mr Trump and his wife Melania on Puri beach in eastern India and the “Trump collection” of specially designed gold and silver-plated tableware in Delhi … Continue reading “With Donald Trump’s visit, US-India chemistry can no longer be dismissed as fiction”
Read MoreIndia vs Bangladesh. Bigger is not always better
by Rashmee
Posted on February 17, 2020
Indian TV anchor Karan Thapar made a fascinating case the other day for big countries to show a bit of humility. Ok, he didn’t really say that all big countries should be more humble. Just India. About Bangladesh. Rather than believing Henry Kissinger’s 1970s’ guff that Bangladesh is “an international basket case”, India … Continue reading “India vs Bangladesh. Bigger is not always better”
Read MoreBritish Columbia’s ‘first Indian-Chinese restaurant’ proudly serves up desi fare
by Rashmee
Posted on January 31, 2020
The sign outside the Green Lettuce, on Kingsway in eastern Vancouver, says it all: “Desi Chinese”. (Look to the far right on the red strip under the yellow shop sign.) Extraordinary, I thought. In India, where all the Chinese food on offer is “Indian Chinese”, they don’t describe it that way. But they’re doing … Continue reading “British Columbia’s ‘first Indian-Chinese restaurant’ proudly serves up desi fare”
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Rashmee has lived and worked in several countries in the past decade, including Afghanistan, India, Haiti, Tunisia, the UAE, US and UK