Still relevant. And will remain relevant as long as there is a Dictator using armies to kill his people.

Hattip: Buzzfeed

Blame the Brits for the mess they left on India’s borders. But 64 years after India became independent we have wonder what our own government has been doing all this time. If we’re going to seek a permanent UN Security Council seat then it is high time India moved to get off the fence – literally and figuratively.

The Economist has an interesting article ‘The land that maps forgot’:

EVER since Bangladesh achieved its independence in 1971, struggles over territory and terrorism, rather than the exchange of goods and goodwill, have dominated its relations with its mega-neighbour. Forty years on, both countries appear to be nearing an agreement to solve the insoluble—by swapping territory.

The planned exchange of parcels of each other’s territory is concentrated around some 200 enclaves. These are like islands of Indian and Bangladeshi territory surrounded completely by the other country’s land, clustered on either side of Bangladesh’s border with the district of Cooch Behar, in the Indian state of West Bengal. Surreally, these include about two dozen counter-enclaves (enclaves within enclaves), as well as the world’s only counter-counter enclave—a patch of Bangladesh that is surrounded by Indian territory…itself surrounded by Bangladeshi territory.

Via Economist: The Land That Maps Forgot

In honor of Palin’s visit to India next month, here’s a view into her thoughts on the region.

Seeing as how simple and easy her solution for India and Pakistan is, you’d think she wouldn’t waste a trip halfway around the world to discuss her ‘Vision For America.’

This should be total and absolute fun to watch. Sarah Palin in India!

Sarah Palin

As U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, this is, “enabling us to have real-time two-way conversations with people wherever there is a connection that governments do not block.” Chinese and Russian are also on the cards for other languages they’ll be tweeting in.

The State Department is already tweeting in Arabic using the @USAbilAraby twitter account. One of its first tweets in Arabic said, “The US foreign ministry has recognized the historic role of social media in the Arab world and we want to be part of your conversations” (Washington Post)

We’ll be watching to see what the first Hindi tweet will be. Probably something sufficiently stuffy,  uninspired and politically correct as state department jargon goes. Hey after all Secretary Clinton wouldn’t want to incur the wrath of that guardian of Indian dignity abroad Minister. S.M. Krishna.