By Aarti Johri  First things first, what is a pishvee? A pishvee, in Marathi, is nothing but a square piece of coarse cotton cloth, or jute, stitched together with a foot long handle, and slung on the shoulder. In other words, it is nothing but a re-useable, definitely re-cycleable bag that reduces the use of innumerable plastic or paper bags. In the city of Pune, where I grew up, it is slung carelessly over the shoulder of every housewife as she does her daily purchases. It is seen on bike riders, on overfull buses, on scooters, and in the energy efficient but pollution causing auto-rickshaws. I would dare to guess that even in the air-conditioned “Marutis” and “Toyota Quallises”, somewhere amongst the fancy Shopper’s Stop and Bombay Store paper  or plastic bags, there lies a folded “pishvee” made of humble cloth.

By Vidya Pradhan It has long been a political cliché that Democrats are stronger when talking about the economy and Republicans own the foreign policy arena. This year, the Democratic candidate, bolstered by his prescient opposition to the war in Iraq, is taking on the Republicans on their home turf saying famously, “If George Bush and John McCain want a debate about protecting the United States of America, that’s a debate I’m happy to have, anytime, any place, and that is a debate that I will win, because George Bush and John McCain have a lot to answer for,” As I write this piece, Senator Obama is in the Middle East, seeking to shore up his credentials against an opponent who is a veteran of the Vietnam War.  With astonishing serendipity, recent events on the ground, notably Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s support, are bearing out Senator Obama’s longstanding policy position, namely that a withdrawal in Iraq is necessary if terrorism is to be combated in Afghanistan. A poll conducted on July 22nd showed that 60% of Americans agree about a timetable for withdrawal. Here are the two candidates on foreign policy and Iraq.

By Vidya Pradhan An American on a steady diet of Hindi movies may be forgiven for thinking that most Indian men are called "Raj Malhotra" - a name that is popular in Bollywood these days in the way Vijay used to be a couple of decades ago.  Even the heroines have some pretty standard names - Pooja for the A-list and wannabe A-list, Priya for the low budget movies and Aditi for the offbeat ones.  Kismat Connection tries very hard to be offbeat and quirky, though it does not seem very low budget, and is completely undone by pedestrian direction and a weak script.

By Vidya Pradhan For Hindus, the single syllable “OM”, repeated the right way, represents the creation of the universe and the sum of all existence. Om is a mantra, a hymn( shloka) or phrase that is supposed to raise consciousness when recited over and over. Mantras have power and meaning independent of the understanding of the person chanting them if chanted the right way, so say the scriptures. Nina Patel has experienced this for herself.

Now that the Presidential nominees for the Democratic and Republican parties have more or less been determined, we think it would be useful to compare and contrast the two candidates on their positions and voting records on various issues. Before we begin, though, here is a video for those who are wont to take this election season more seriously than it deserves( courtesy JibJab) [youtube r0Cwm_Rw8X0] Here are the two candidates on energy and the environment. Update( Aug. 15, 2008):Senator Obama, recognizing the importance of offshore drilling to the American electorate, has signaled his support for a bi-partisan energy initiative that includes a limited amount of offshore drilling. The initiative is brought by the group calling itself the "Gang of 10" and contains a fast-track approach to reducing American dependency on foreign oil. Sneator McCain has not yet backed this plan. Update 2( August 24, 2008): Here is an excellent article that outlines McCain's voting record on key aspects of clean energy. As Senator Obama's alternative energy policies( and consequent job generation possibilities) gain traction, we've been seeing a gradual shift by the McCain campaign towards the same. To the casual observer, it may seem that there is not much difference in the two candidates' policies ( even the pictures of windmills on their ads are the same!) so it is worth looking at their voting records on the environment and seeing if they walk the walk. It must be emphasized that the League of Conservation Voters give the two candidates very different scores on their voting performance.

By Isheeta Sanghi College in India is something that would never enter the mind of an Indian American. Because really, that’s why our parents moved to the States, (besides the whole ‘chasing the American dream’, that is). My parents moved to California for that, well that and the great weather in Sunny San Diego. The thought of college in India sounded twisted to me; it was like some sort of joke that just wasn’t funny at all. When my Dad drove me out to the Integrated Institute of Learning Management in Delhi I remember just thinking about the my situation in total disillusionment and disbelief. I kept telling myself that it wasn’t happening, that I was going to go back to the States and finish my degree, that my parents were just tricking me trying to see how hard they could push me into saying that I wanted to stay.

By Rennu Dhillon  Speaking confidently and having the confidence to speak in public is a critical life skill to survive in today’s competitive society. To be able to verbally communicate clearly and effectively to other individuals and groups is essential in schools, business and your own personal life. As a successful recruiter for many years, one of the things I ran into as I sent my clients out for interviews was that many people lacked clear communication and the confidence to interview. Just having a great resume or a collection of degrees from ivy colleges is not suffice to advance in your career or improve your business. It is now as important for people to be able to make effective presentations and the knowledge and skills to speak to others.

How refreshing, that a movie about upwardly mobile young people should actually cast upwardly mobile young people! Jaane Tu...ya jaane na, a romantic comedy about privileged South Bombay kids, is the ultimate multiplex date movie, a sweet confection that entertains even the most jaded of Hindi movie viewers. Abbas Tyrewala, who has written for movies like Munnabhai M.B.B.S and Main Hoon Na, is one of the few original and talented scriptwriters in Bollywood today. He makes his directorial debut with Jaane Tu...and brings the same sparkling dialogues and sense of joi de vivre to this movie.

By Enakshi Choudhuri (Continuing a discussion on Integrated Math )  In the past month I have had the opportunity to delve a little further into the realm of fuzzy math. I must say, I have yet to meet a parent who thinks that the integrated math curriculum is the next best thing since disposable diapers. On talking to parents the common refrain that I heard repeatedly is that supplementing math education is not an option, it is a necessity whether the child attends the local public school or the toniest private school in town. So, in this post, I thought I would touch upon some of the more common options for supplemental math instruction that are available to parents.

By Vidya Pradhan  Is there a market that will pay to watch Indian TV online? That is the crux of the problem S.G. Sangameswara( Sangam) and his team at GluTV are trying to figure out. Despite the popularity of online videos on sites such as YouTube, television online is still a nascent idea, thanks to the stranglehold that networks impose on their content. Some shows are available, but watching on the computer is as much a matter of surfing between channels as it is on the television. A few players like Hulu, Joost and Miro have attempted to jump start the idea of the aggregated provider but apart from Hulu, which offers shows from Fox and NBC, the content is hardly mainstream.