In The News Obama ready to pull all US troops out of Iraq by 2010Scotsman Parroting GOP talking points when the national spotlight was on him was not effective, and did not gain Jindal any memorable place in speech-making history. The morning after: What did Obama and Jindal really tell us? Los Angeles Times It wasn't technically a State of the Union speech, more of a Fate of the Union speech...... all the familiar dramatic elements: someone suffering from cancer, an unknown but earnest regular person plucked from obscurity to sit with the First Lady ...... The smooth, convincing delivery conveying empathy, connection, sincerity. ....... And certainly no recipe provided for how in this known world one country's government can pay for tax cuts for 95% of Americans, completely reform the entire health care system to cover everyone, develop an entire new energy system and technology, save the U.S. automobile industry, rebuild the country's crumbling transportation infrastructure as well as the entire educational system, stop high school dropouts, conquer cancer, save one-million-plus homeowners from foreclosure while bolstering the entire banking industry, protect national security by paying the military more, create "or save" 3.5 million new jobs, cut the trillion-dollar deficit in half in 46 months and one week, plus fight (and, who knows, maybe even not lose) a guerrilla war in a desolate mountainous region where no foreigners have "won" since Alexander. ........ poor, not-so-old Bobby Jindal was toast before he walked down that lonely hallway in the governor's residence in Baton Rouge ....... It was a hopeless assignment even if the personable, popular 37-year-old wasn't a rookie on the national stage. ....... coming from an historic, effusive, applauding Capitol Hill gang to one guy/gal talking alone to a staring camera and a gaggle of bored TV technicians earning evening overtime .......... (The texts of both, btw, are here for Obama and over here for Jindal.) ...... The son of an immigrant of color who brought his family from an impoverished far-away land to America awed by the openness, opportunity and abundance of the famous place. And the son went to school and worked hard and got elected to Congress and has two cute children and then returned home to right his chronically corrupt state as a reformer in public service. ....... "Americans can do anything!" Jindal's father told him one day in the grocery store.
Obama Scores Early Victory of Historic Proportions Washington Post Twenty-four days into his presidency, Barack Obama recorded last night a legislative achievement of the sort that few of his predecessors achieved at any point in their tenure. In size and scope, there is almost nothing in history to rival the economic stimulus legislation that Obama shepherded through Congress in just over three weeks. And the result -- produced largely without Republican participation -- was remarkably similar to the terms Obama's team outlined even before he was inaugurated: a package of tax cuts and spending totaling about $775 billion. ....... this is one remarkable president ...... The feat compares only with President Franklin D. Roosevelt's banking system overhaul in 1933, which cleared Congress within days of his inauguration.
Some Critics Blame Emanuel for Obama's Cabinet Troubles FOXNews Emanuel's combative style as political director in the early days of the Clinton administration earned him the nickname "Rahmbo," after the flame-throwing movie character Rambo. He was elected to Congress in 2002 and quickly became a major power. He wound up overseeing the party's House election efforts in 2006 and helped win a majority for Democrats through tireless fundraising and candidate recruitment.
Summers Says Obama Mortgage Plan to Focus on Lowering Payments Bloomberg gross domestic product will contract 2 percent this year, its biggest decline since 1946. ..... the stimulus will probably prevent the unemployment rate from going above 10 percent, after it reached 7.6 percent in January. ..... U.S. banks have sustained $758 billion in credit losses since the crisis began and have warned of more to come.
India Celebrates a Hollywood Victory New York Times Its depictions of filth and brutality fueled angry blogging and stray street protests. It drew unusually intense scrutiny, for everything from how much its child actors were paid to what the composer A. R. Rahman would wear to the Oscars. But on Monday, as India woke up to news of the spectacular wins by “Slumdog Millionaire” at the Academy Awards, this movie-mad country went “Jai Ho.” ...... The story dominated television news throughout the day. News of a hepatitis B outbreak in western Gujarat State and a southern politician’s threatened hunger strike seemed minor by comparison. ....... “We rocked the world” ....... India seized on its Oscar wins as a sign of its arrival on the world stage. ........ In his small town in south India, neighbors and kin were shown passing a big plate of sweets and crying tears of joy. ....... even the prime minister of India, Manmohan Singh, congratulated the “Slumdog” team, along with the makers of another winning film, “Smile Pinki,” a short documentary about a village girl with a cleft palate. “The winners have done India proud” ....... (In 1992 the Indian director Satyajit Ray was awarded the Oscar for lifetime achievement.) ....... It was shot on the streets of Mumbai, unlike most Indian films. And about a third of the dialogue is in Hindi. ........ Mr. Rahman, whose compositions weave sounds from all over the world with a deeply Indian sensibility. ....... “Even when ‘Gandhi’ won the Oscar for best picture all those years ago, we never felt that it was India’s victory,” he wrote. “I don’t know if this is a breakthrough for India, or whether we will be able to follow it up. But some things seem clear. Anil Kapoor is now the world’s most famous Bollywood actor — and it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Nobody will be able to talk about world music without including Rahman as its leading star.” ......... two of the film’s youngest stars, Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, 10, and Rubina Ali Qureshi, 9, are enrolled. The children still live in a sprawling shantytown whose name, Garib Nagar, literally means the enclave of the poor. The filmmakers pay their school fees. ........ the story of “Slumdog” echoed the stories of hundreds of Indian children she had met. “This is the way it really is,” she said. “We can’t ignore it. We have to face it. I mean Indians as a whole.” ..... the people of Garib Nagar had stayed up much of the night in anticipation, then greeted the victory on Monday morning with firecrackers and boisterous handmade drums ..... “She has crossed the ocean,” Mrs. Qureishi said. “With God’s blessing she will return.” GOP rising star Jindal's speech a 'coming-out party' CNN Bobby Jindal's moment in the spotlightguardian.co.uk Jindal the wonk The Moderate Voice Drive-Bys Try to Marginalize Jindal RushLimbaugh.com Gov. Bobby Jindal takes stimulus plan opposition to NBC's "Meet ... The Times-Picayune - NOLA.com Lalu-Paswan bonhomie worries Cong in Bihar Economic Times“Prasad’s sudden closeness to Paswan is aimed at pressurising the Congress into accepting to contest only on four seats, which we were forced to accept last time,” a senior party leader from Bihar, who declined to be named, said. Oscars Boost India Film IndustryBusinessWeekUntil this year, Indians never took much interest in the Oscars— ........ The country may have the world's most prolific film industry, but Bollywood has long had a dismal showing at the Oscars. ...... Lagaan, a colonial tale with cricket as a backdrop, was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film in 2002 ...... a rich haul of eight Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director. ...... Allah Rakha Rahman—known as the Mozart of Madras—getting the Oscar for Best Music Score and sharing the Oscar with countryman Gulzar for Best Original Song, and Resul Pookutty winning for Best Sound Mixing. The Slumdog victory is the top story on Indian news channels ....... unlike most foreign films made in India, Slumdog is like a typical Bollywood film, complete with the local industry's favorite seasonings of survival, love, and triumph. ....... people working in the local film industry say they suddenly are getting more calls from Hollywood producers ...... Hollywood has consistently "ridiculed our song-and-dance sequences, but when the same is done by a British filmmaker, the world laps it up," he says...... "Four of Slumdog's Oscars were won by Indian technicians," says Palekar. ..... the Pune-based Film & Television Institute of India, which churns out excellent technicians, could be in the limelight. ....global professionals looking for low-cost outsourcing possibilities. Clinton to visit Israel, West Bank Reuters Slumdog is ok, Delhi 6 not?' Bachchan criticises film critics Hindustan TimesBachchan noted that one critic exulted Delhi 6, starring his son Abhishek Bachchan, as "the greatest piece of cinema seen in a long time" Big B fumes over 'Delhi-6' reviewsHinduOn the eve of the release of 'Slumdog Millionaire' in India, Bachchan wrote that the film had received global recognition because it was made by a Westerner. Bachchan hails Rahman, Resul on golden win Business Standard Too much being made of a British movie: Jaya Bachchan Times of IndiaAmitabh Bachchan, writing in his blog, had made strong remarks against the movie to the effect that it was an exhibition of Mumbai's underbelly when such squalor was a reality even in developed countries. It was taken as criticism of the movie for selling the poverty of India, and had triggered a controversy. Oscars Telecast Attracted More Viewers Than Last Year Washington Post More than 36 million US viewers watch Oscar telecastReuters Jai Ho echoes in State prisons Hindu, India A country-wide toast to Oscar winners Hindu, India “A total Indian evening with Americans watching it” Hindu, India Rahman an amazing innovator, says Gulzar Hindu, India ‘In reality, it is a British film’ Times of India, India Do you dare hate Slumdog hoopla? Times of India, India It's a bridge for Indian cinema: AR Rahman Economic Times, India Aren't our slum people the world's best? Times Online, UK Jackman, Miley and those cute Slumdog kids — Oscar winners or losers? Reuters Oscars 2009: the biggest victory ever for British films Times Online, UKOnce upon a time a British film director called Danny Boyle had the brilliant idea of shooting a fairytale in the slums of Mumbai. He was awarded a budget of two shillings and told to sober up. Max Clifford couldn't have crafted a happier ending. On Sunday night in Los Angeles, Slumdog Millionaire lifted eight out of a possible nine Oscars (it was nominated for ten - twice for Original Song). ........ the two biggest prizes in showbusiness: Best Picture, and Best Director ...... David Fincher's tedious fantasy about an octogenarian who grows into a young Brad Pitt won just three awards out of a possible 13 for things such as Best Wrinkles and Receding Hairlines. ..... Slumdog Millionaire is the first film in Oscar history to win Best Picture without a Hollywood star in the cast. It made the heart sing to see the cast of orphans, who were airlifted from Mumbai, tripping up the red carpet. But what's unsettled the Americans is not the Slumdog landslide, which has been gathering an unstoppable momentum since the Golden Globes. It's the painful admission that Hollywood is no longer making the best independent films in the world. ........ He's not just a great director. He's a great human being. He may be useless with big budgets (The Beach). But his guerrilla attitude to film has defined the 2009 awards..... a bitter-sweet feeling for the Slumdog family. This is the last time that they will ever gather together under one roof. For most of them the awfully big adventure is now over. But for a lucky few it might have just begun. 'Slumdog didn't deserved so many Oscars' Times of India, IndiaNow, perhaps Indian artists will be taken more seriously. ...... `Jai Ho!' has become an anthem the world over and it's great for us Indians. It's a celebration of India. Slumdog scripting brand new history Economic Times, IndiaSome call it the Inflection Point in the history of Indian cinema. Some slam it as Poverty Porn. But in the wee hours of Monday, India’s Cinema
Inc took a giant leap into global markets with Slumdog Millionaire bagging a whopping eight Oscars........ Slumdog’s leading lady Freida Pinto gave away one of the Oscars ..... Smile Pinki, a heart-rending piece of work set in UP’s Mirzapur, romped home as the best short documentary, making it an all-India affair. ...... “Mere paas maa hai,” said Rahman in his acceptance speech, thanking his mother by quoting the immortal line from Salim-Javed’s Deewar. ..... Resul too added to the India rhetoric, “I come from a country and civilisation that have given the universal word... That word is preceded by silence, followed by more silence... That word is Om. So I dedicate this award to my country.” ......Danny Boyle on Aamchi Mumbai, “Just to say to Mumbai, unending, inseparable, unborn, all of you who helped us make the film and all of you who didn’t... Thank you so much. You dwarf even the sky.” ......Slumdog Millionaire may have done for India what Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon did for China nine years ago..... China’s economy was already soaring when Taiwanese-born American director Ang Lee walked away with the best foreign-film Oscar for the Chinese martial arts epic. That was in 2000. ...... A year later, China would join the World Trade Organisation and forever change the global economic order. The Oscar for Lee’s tale of flying monks and magical warriors became a symbol of the surge in West’s admiration for the rise of modern China. .... Other Indian cultural exports such as yoga, herbal cosmetics, the two-minute Rajma curry and Indian fiction in English may also benefit. ....... India’s moment on the world stage
