Blog Action Day 08

Today's blog action day, and this year, the issue being dealt is poverty.
I have personally been doing some research on poverty for some time now, for next year's Imagine Cup. Poverty also happens to be one of the millennium goal that's been set by the UN and by far the most important one.

Coming back to Imagine Cup, that's one of the most prestigious competition held for students and is backed by Microsoft. Even though they pass it on as a non-profit event, everyone's expected to use only Microsoft software, so much for Open Source Movement.
I'm going to save my views regarding the Imagine Cup for another post.
Now looking into the blog action day issue, I find myself in a similar situation as while I was deciding for a topic for the Imagine Cup. Money is one of the four parameters required to be happy (the others being health, family and job satisfaction).

While the world goes all berserk over the financial tsunami, we find ourselves in such an ironical situation today. On one hand we have millions of people who have no guarantee for their next meal, and the other side we have the other half of the world who are worried about their extra-materialistic wealth. Even in a developing country like India, the city dwellers are relatively cushioned from acute poverty. Most people at least end up with a meal in a day. But the real challenging situation lies in the rural areas of the country. The number of suicides by farmers is proof that India is dying in its villages.

I believe there is a solution for poverty somewhere out there. Where? I don't know. But I am going to do my bit for looking for that solution.

Economics

There are 10^11 stars in the galaxy. That used to be a huge number. But it's only a hundred billion. It's less than the national deficit! We used to call them astronomical numbers. Now we should call them economical numbers.
- Richard Feynman (On the US of A financial situation)

.....and I always thought India was in a poor financial state