The Digital Grapevine 6:12 AM

Blogging is hard work ain't it?

Maybe not if you think a blog is your online vent-space, something most people end up doing. What could be better than kicking off your shoes off at the end of the day, settling into that lazy chair, laptop on lap and music in ear, to type your frustrations away? It can be relaxing to write about the boss' bitchy secretary or the nosy clerk sitting next to you. In fact, it is easy.

But that's not how it should be.

I think our words betray not only our intentions, they also convey a kind of power. Case in point: two colleagues of mine had a fight where hurtful words were hurled and friendships frayed. Colleague A takes the liberty of reporting the incident, not so discreetly, in his blog. Colleague B incidentally has her blog linked to his, and ends up reading said post. Needless to say, it didn't end neatly for either party. I don't know how, but the blog incident actually leaked all the way to upper management, deepening the conflict and feeding the drama. Such is the capacity of blogs that demands blogger ethics.

Some people keep blogs as digital diaries. That's fine - I'm all for saving the trees. However, there is a limit to what we should or should not write, can or cannot do, especially since blogs are open to the entire world. Where are our boundaries? Its up to you. Do with it what you will, as you please, but be mindful that it is not a space to sully anyone's name or reputation. Gossip should not be recorded or immortalized for the world to see, it is best kept for water cooler conversation (and despite how juicy it gets, it never did anyone any good anyway).

That said, I am not suggesting that blogging shouldn't be fun. By all means, criticize the government, your parents, your bosses, the movies, the music, Hollywood, Paris Hilton etc etc. Never self-censor, the world needs more honesty and transparency! Just remember that people can actually read what we put out there and take it to heart.

The Mumbai Massacre 6:07 AM

I would like to take one moment to remember the victims of the recent Mumbai terrorist attacks. There are no words, no media reports, and no video footage that can adequately convey the sheer horror of the massacre and the feelings of those close to the victims.

For several excruciating days, the whole world followed this incident with jaws agape, hands over mouths. I was in disbelief. It reminded me of the Munich Olympics massacre in 1972 when 11 Israeli athletes and coaches were taken hostage and murdered by Palestinian militant group Black September (for an unstinting look at the violence, check out Steven Spielberg's acclaimed movie 'Munich'). The Mumbai murders unfolded before our eyes like a well-scripted movie, only we weren't watching it in the cinema but in the nightly news.

There is no need to go over the sordid details here - suffice to say, mass murder was conducted in the name, or misuse, of religion. Witnesses described the gunmen spraying bullets with a smile etched on his face. I don't know what training these people underwent to attain such barbarism. I'm just glad the whole ordeal is over, but it revealed significant cracks in the government.

Why, people are asking, did the Indian armed forces react so slowly? They apparently took 3 hours to arrive on the scene where they could have taken 2, and after the slew of terrorist attacks plaguing India in the last 5 years, why is the government still responding at a snail's pace? The rule is that crises of this scale must be dealt with in 30 minutes or it will spiral out of control.

Home Minister Shivraj Patil's resignation is too little too late. It is small compensation for the dearly departed and the government's failure to swiftly resolve the crisis. This just goes to show the importance of an efficient government mechanism. If a country is to adequately defend itself and its people from certain death, there is no room for complacency.

As India, and in some way the world, recovers from this tragedy, one can only hope that more is done in the future.

R.I.P.