Some 20 years ago, at the start of this century (and the new millennium), organizations and countries enthusiastically took up a new term – Vision 2020 – to provide an umbrella for ambitious plans for a grand and prosperous future. And let’s admit it, 2020 with its alliterative ring, sounded so promising, so energetic, and yes …. So visionary! Little wonder then that everyone loved this expression.

Social Distancing in the New Normal

A cousin in New Jersey held his fortieth birthday party this week. Forty relatives attended. Everyone sang out happy birthday for 40 seconds by the clock. Social distancing was strictly maintained, with thousands of kilometers separating the attendees, located all over the world from Canada to Australia, UK to Pakistan, Sweden to Singapore, and one relative even joining in from South Africa! You guessed it; the birthday party was on Zoom! The birthday ‘boy’ got lots of presents, ordered well in advance by the senders and delivered to him by Amazon.

How speedily some words and phrases have become an integral part of our daily lexicon these days – lockdown, isolation, social distancing, virus, vaccines, sanitizer, the new normal ….
 

Oxford University – The world’s number one ranked university

A ranking of practically anything, from top universities to let’s say the all-time greatest love songs, is invariably the subject of debate, disagreement and even controversy. Many a ranking is quite subjective, strongly reflecting the personal preferences or biases of the individual or organization coming out with it. One must however not disagree that some rankings are more credible than others, with their wider acceptance being based as much on the credibility and transparency of the organization putting forward the ranking, as on the methodology adopted and the empirical and measurable criteria used, even if some would still disagree with the selection of the criteria itself.

Well actually, easily a hundred words to eliminate from one’s usage of the English language can be listed! Words and phrases that have become either extremely clichéd and overused by now, or are too often wrongly used, or are really too basic and inexpressive to be used by even a moderately literate person. But here I will not list a hundred, but only my top 10 ones to be consciously given a wide berth verbally and in writing. You may not agree with all of them and are welcome to draw up (and put into practice!) your own Top 10 list of words and phrases to be shunned.

My first blog under this title was posted on August 25, 2015. It is a useful (convenient?) title under which I can periodically ponder over our times and give you some food for thought. So here is ‘In Our Life & Times # 2’ – just random ramblings; though mind you, not unimportant by any reckoning.

Prelude

The USA is, and has been for a long time, the most powerful country on the planet, in terms of economy, financial strength, resources, technology, military might and still more. It also follows the democratic political system, with all that democracy enshrines, at least in theory – equality, liberty, human rights, freedom of speech, rule of law, and so forth.

RSS India

R.S.S. or Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (meaning National Volunteer Organisation or National Patriotic Organisation) is an ultra “right-wing charitable, educational, volunteer, Hindu nationalist, non-governmental organisation. It is the world’s largest voluntary non-governmental organisation.

I write

this piece at the risk of being ostracized by friends and condemned to purgatory by the ultra nationalists. But write I must.