I think we should call it the 'commentator's curse'? Have you observed the phenomenon of a television expert commentator speaking in moving terms of how well settled a batsman looks at the crease, or of what a tight line and length a bowler has been able to maintain, or of how much a fielder reminds him of Jonty Rhodes with his agility in the field? And how often have the poor batsman's stumps fallen, the bowler hit for a six, or the fielder dropped an easy catch scant seconds later!
A disease on the same line appears to have caught the American media. Take a look at what two magazines said, and at what transpired immediately after. In its February 28 issue, Newsweek carried a cover-story on Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh. Titled 'Team Players: How India's Odd Couple Have Made Power Sharing Work', it made several laudatory references to how both Congress politics and the machinery of governance were humming along nicely. The debacle of Jharkhand -- exposing the limitations of both the United Progressive Alliance chairperson and of her nominated prime minister -- was in full swing before the next issue hit the stands.
Jharkhand: Drama without heroes
Not having learned a lesson from its competitor, Time had two stories concerning India in its March 28 issue. One was 'Investing: Investors Are Increasingly Giddy With The Indian Stock Market'. The BSE Index lost about 120 points even as the issue hit the stands. The second story was titled 'A Welcome Guest', and spoke on how US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had charmed her Asian hosts. This was immediately followed, of course, by the news that the United States had taken back Narendra Modi's visa...
The Condoleezza Rice interview
Am I the only person who feels that the 'issue' of the United States denying Narendra Modi a visa is something of a 'non-issue'? When you think about it, much of the sound and fury seems a wee bit contrived. Who, after all, has not made some political gain out of it? Narendra Modi has been able to don the martyr's robes. The Left Front and the Congress have gleefully gone back to the old game of America-bashing. (Who would have imagined that we would see the day when Jyoti Basu issued a statement backing the chief minister of Gujarat?) Even the Christian conservatives and the leftist 'human rights' lobby in the United States -- rather an unlikely coalition -- have reason to cheer. If you exclude the anti-Modi faction in the BJP itself, it has been a win-win situation for everyone, false indignation be damned!
There