Category Archives: Government

In Which Basab Gets UIDed

Posted on July 7, 2011 by Basab Pradhan

A couple of weeks back, I was in the Infosys Bhubaneswar offices. On Friday, which was my last day at work before my vacation, UID enrollment was going on on campus. SBI, one of the agencies entrusted to enroll people … Continue reading →

Posted in Government, India | 10 Comments

Investment Hates Uncertainty, Especially in the Law

Posted on November 17, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

A couple of unconnected things are throwing dark shadows over this dream run that Foreign Direct Investment into the Indian economy has been having. One, the Income Tax department’s claim on Vodafone for $2.5 B related to its acquisition of … Continue reading →

Posted in Government, India | 4 Comments

The Problem With Being Unsure

Posted on June 15, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

Felix Salmon writes about Helen Thomas having to quit her job after she said some nasty stuff on camera Thomas gave voice to an opinion which she then, almost immediately, retracted; no one, in the subsequent debate, defended the substance … Continue reading →

Posted in Government | 1 Comment

The Politics of Financial Reform

Posted on April 25, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

Frank Rich writes a hard-hitting piece in the NYT. But he gets one piece wrong: .. Those who shorted the housing market shorted the country. There were many things that went wrong with the housing market – people were being … Continue reading →

Posted in Finance, Government | 3 Comments

Why Pre Existing Conditions Must Go

Posted on March 20, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

In response to my previous post on healthcare reform, a reader writes in from India …Why should an insurer agree to insure a pre-existing condition? It does not make sense to expect a business to agree to a proposition wherein … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Government | 20 Comments

My Personal Tale of Healthcare Insurance

Posted on March 19, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

I wanted to get this story out before the Sunday vote in the House. If you believe in healthcare reform, call your Congressman. Most of them will have their offices open tomorrow. Here’s my personal experience with healthcare from this … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Government | 3 Comments

Online Education is Coming, And Fast

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

An in depth piece in the New York Times magazine looks at an effort to improve teacher quality through training. While this particular initiative may be better than the hundreds of other such initiatives, I find myself wondering if teacher … Continue reading →

Posted in Government, Technology | 7 Comments

Europe is Getting Less Secular

Posted on February 20, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

The latest flap over halal meat served in a restaurant in France A French fast food chain’s decision to serve only halal meat in eight restaurants with a strong Muslim clientele has sparked a wave of criticism from politicians decrying … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Government | 3 Comments

Money Begets Power Begets Money

Posted on February 5, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

Larry Lessig calls campaign fund-raising another form of corruption. It is interesting that in India if it were possible to get special interests to lawfully contribute to the campaign funds of politicians and not their own private accounts, we would … Continue reading →

Posted in Government | 2 Comments

Corrupt Congress

Posted on February 5, 2010 by Basab Pradhan

Larry Lessig has an important article in The Nation about how campaign fund-raising has corrupted Congress. This is corruption. Not the corruption of bribes, or of any other crime known to Title 18 of the US Code. Instead, it is … Continue reading →

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