The restrictive and punitive abortion legislation recently passed and signed into law in states such as Georgia, Alabama and Missouri has brought abortion into the national spotlight again. The debate around abortion is usually cast as pro-life vs. pro-choice. The pro-life side is anti-abortion and focused on the fetus in the womb. The pro-choice side is pro-abortion and focused on the woman and her bodily autonomy and reproductive rights. As we reflected on it and considered the context … [Read more...]
Articles
Frank blogs regularly for the Huffington Post and writes occasional columns and articles for publications such as the International Business Times and The Economic Times of India.
Frank writes on a wide variety of topics that are critical to shaping the future of America and the American dream and to making the United States and the world a better place. These include: Business; education; poverty and inequality; politics and public policy; immigration; manufacturing; innovation; leadership; citizenship; and social commentary.
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Modi’s second term: Need to replace FEAR with HOPE (Comment)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's re-election by such large margins in a sweeping victory is testimony to his popularity across India. Many media articles during the seven-week long election process, however, expressed fear that a Modi victory would disenfranchise tens of millions and threaten Indian democracy itself. This perspective is attributable to what I call the FEAR (False Events Appearing Real) syndrome. This syndrome is caused by thinking that the past is a prologue and believing that … [Read more...]
William Barr: His “Truths.” Our Consequences.
In a May 31 CBS This Morning TV interview, Attorney General William F. Barr said, “Everyone dies, and I am not you know, I don’t believe in the Homeric idea that you know, immortality comes by, you know, having odes sung about you over the centuries.” In that part of his interview, Barr told the truth. This stands in stark contrast to his cursory and inaccurate four page summary of the 400+ page Mueller Report released on March 24. And his misleading … [Read more...]
The Modi government must restart the reforms process
For India to grow and flourish, it should also focus on jobs, education, healthcare and climate change. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s victory in the general elections is a testament to his immense popularity across the country and his supreme talent as a campaigner. His sweeping victory gives Modi a mandate to pursue a bold agenda. As an Indian American who has followed Indian politics and its economy closely from afar, here are my suggested policies and priorities for an agenda … [Read more...]
The $2 Trillion Infrastructure Plan: Lots of Rhetoric. No Reality.
Push came to shove on May 22 in a 3-minute non-meeting in the White House between President Donald Trump and Democratic party leaders and the 2 trillion infrastructure plan collapsed, blown apart by the tornadic winds from the President’s mouth. The demise of the alleged plan was predictable, because from the start it was built not on strong pillars with deep pilings, but on a house of cards in which the joker was wild. The victim of all of this was the nation’s infrastructure, … [Read more...]
Pakistan’s bid to reform Madrassas
Pakistan has recently announced to mainstream its 30,000 religious schools known as madrassas in a long overdue move to curb militancy. According to spokesman of Pakistan’s military Major General Asif Ghafoor, these autonomous religious schools would be brought under state control. Under the reform agenda, modern sciences will be included in the curriculum of these schools and hate speech will be excluded from their existing syllabus. The announcement is an important step for independent … [Read more...]
National Service An Idea Whose Time Has Come?
Is national service an idea whose time has come? The answer is maybe. The one thing that can be said definitively is that in the first half of 2019 it has re-emerged as a concept for consideration. Fareed Zakaria, journalist and author, suggested a national service program of some type in his commencement address at Ohio State University on May 5 of this year. Mr. Zakaria concludes his article for the Washington Post,adapted from that address, by opining, “National service will … [Read more...]
May 23: A day to Celebrate India’s Democracy
On May 23, the seven-week long Indian election process will come to an end. The votes will be counted and a winner will be declared. No matter who wins, the real winner will be Indias democracy. I say this as an Indian American who has had the privilege of living in the two largest - and, I would add, greatest - democracies in the world. I have watched in awe as this years election in India has unfolded. It brought back memories of Indias national election of 2014. The scope and size … [Read more...]
There will be no winners in US-China trade war
The United States and China, the two largest economies in the world, are currently engaged in what might be called the mother of all trade wars. The first salvo of the trade war was fired by President Donald Trump in January 2018 — less than a year into his presidency — when he announced tariffs on products of several nations, including Chinese solar panels and washing machines. In spite of several rounds of bilateral talks over the past 17 months, major … [Read more...]
Pakistan Needs a Master Plan to Win the Climate Change War
Pakistan is among the leaders in climate change. Unfortunately, it is leading not in fighting climate change but as being one of the countries most affected by and at risk because of climate change. That’s what Yale’s 2018 Environmental Performance Index revealed. The Index ranked 180 countries in terms of their environmental health and ecosystem vitality. The five countries at the bottom of this list included neighbours India, Bangladesh and Nepal. It should be of little solace … [Read more...]