Selling an orange

How an advocate sells an orange to his customer if he becomes a salesman.

Here it goes....

I herby convey and transfer into you all my estate duty, rights, privileges of ownership and possession vested in this orange, together the outer covering, the inner fruit, pulp, seed and juice with full powers for you to go ahead and cut, slice, eat, bite or chew either in part or in sole or to transfer to whomever you want but not withstanding to any other previous document with regard to this orange............

Ladies and gentlemen 5 simple word “Sir please take this orange” 

Freakonomics

Freakonomics:

A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything is a 2005 non-fiction book by University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner. The book has been described as melding pop culture with economics. By late 2009, it had sold over 4 million copies worldwide.

Which is more dangerous, a gun or a swimming pool? What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? Why do drug dealers still live with their moms? How much do parents really matter? How did the legalization of abortion affect the rate of violent crime?

These may not sound like typical questions for an economist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much-heralded scholar who studies the riddles of everyday life—from cheating and crime to sports and child-rearing—and whose conclusions turn the conventional wisdom on its head.

Freakonomics is a ground-breaking collaboration between Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, an award-winning author and journalist. They usually begin with a mountain of data and a simple, unasked question. Some of these questions concern life-and-death issues; others have an admittedly freakish quality. Thus the new field of study contained in this book: Freakonomics.

Through forceful storytelling and wry insight, Levitt and Dubner show that economics is, at root, the study of incentives—how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing. In Freakonomics, they explore the hidden side of … well, everything.

Freakonomics establishes this unconventional premise: If morality represents how we would like the world to work, then economics represents how it actually does work. But Freakonomics can provide more than that. It will literally redefine the way we view the modern world.

One classic example of Freakonomics: In the 1990’s violent crime in America started increasing, experts predicted that the crime rate would increase drastically in the near future but for everybody’s surprise the crime rate in America started decreasing. The experts now stated that this is because of better policing, better administration and good governance. But Freakonomics proved this wrong; 20 years ago(1970) in America abortion became legalised hence the children who were supposed to be born and grown in adverse environment who latter would have grown up and become criminals were now not born at all. Hence the crime rate in America started decreasing.

This is what Freakonomics is by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.

Freakonomics challenges the conventional wisdom and proves that it is often wrong it asks fresh interesting questions, most economics even wouldn’t have taught of.

Other example of the authors' use of economic theory involves demonstrating the existence of cheating among sumo wrestlers. In a sumo tournament, all wrestlers in the top division compete in 15 matches and face demotion if they do not win at least eight of them. The sumo community is very close-knit, and the wrestlers at the top levels tend to know each other well. The authors looked at the final match, and considered the case of a wrestler with seven wins, seven losses, and one fight to go, fighting against an 8-6 wrestler. Statistically, the 7-7 wrestler should have a slightly below even chance, since the 8-6 wrestler is slightly better. However, the 7-7 wrestler actually wins around 80% of the time. Levitt uses this statistic and other data gleaned from sumo wrestling matches, along with the effect that allegations of corruption have on match results, to conclude that those who already have 8 wins collude with those who are 7-7 and let them win, since they have already secured their position for the following tournament. Despite round condemnation of the claims by the Japan Sumo Association following the book's publication in 2005, the 2011 Grand tournament in Tokyo was cancelled for the first time since 1946 because of allegations of match fixing.

Well, my motive is to find out the Indian examples of Freakonomy, here is a small example of typical Indian Freakonomy.

An IAS topper becomes topper in the Exam not because he had attended a particular Coaching institute but he  maight have topped the exam due to his determination and hard work, he would have become topper even if he hadn't attended any of the Coaching institutes.

I know this is just a vague example but i wanted to tell you this is how we can extract the concept and build it justifiable taught and prove it.  

will be back after finding out some valid taught on Indian Freakonomy.

Hell to the celebrations

It was 5^th march 2011, a special day to celebrate that was a final match between India and Sri lanka at the world cup in Mumbai.

Captain M.S Dhoni hit the winning run with a fabulous six and India won the match, but it did not give the same zeal when we won the match against west indies in 1984 world cup at the Lords.

Because our worthy opponent Sri lanka has almost become a integral part of our sub continent, when you buy the map of India you get the map of Sri lank for free below.

But you may say winning is the moment that is to be cherished.

But I say hell to the celebrations…..

Yes you have heard it correct to hell with the world cup, to hell with the celebrations, to hell with IPL.

Even I was excited when Dhoni hit the winning run with a fabulous six, I called my friend Swamy who lives  about 150 km away from Bangalore to share the joy of the winning moments of India at the world cup but I was shocked to hear that Swamy’s parents had committed suicide.

Because they had borrowed a money of Rs. 80,000 which is a monthly salary of an IT couple’s or just 2 or 3 EMI. They were unable to pay back the debt because they were hurt by the government which announced a huge reduction in import duties for silk in this year’s budget i.e. from 30% to 5%. Decrease in import duties means the market will now be flooded with cheap Chinese silk. Swamy’s parents were struggling silk farmers and instead of help from the government they get this!

On average 17,000 farmers have been committing suicides every year. Can you believe it? Most of us wouldn’t know this fact. Why? Because our great Indian medias are not interested in reporting this! They are more interested in covering the fashion week extravaganzas. They are more interested in why team India was not practicing when Pakistan were sweating it out in the stadium on the eve of the match. They are more interested in sania mirza and lara dutta’s marriage.

The media is supposed to be the third eye of the democracy and also called fourth estate but now they have become real estate.

So any attention from the media is out of the question, then who is left? The government? But we all know how it works.

The other day I was passing by Vidhana Soudha(legeislative house) in Bangalore and happened to read the slogan written at the entrance “government work is a god’s work”. Now I know why the government has left all its work to the god.

A government owned bank will give you loan at 6% interest rate if you are buying a swanky sedan or SUV and the same bank charges 16% interest rate to a farmer to buy a tractor. Look at the depth of inequalities. The recent onion price fiasco was just a trailer.  “Picture abhi baki hai doston”.

60% of the India’s rural population lives below Rs. 20 a day it is a matter of a diet coke in urban India. The electricity used in day and night match could help farmers irrigate their land for more than few weeks. Do you know that load shedding is more of a class dependent? 2hrs in metros 4hrs in towns and 8 hrs in villages. Now, who needs electricity more? A farmer to look after his crop or a few bored, young professionals with disposable incomes to log on to facebook or to watch IPL.

Let me tell you a small story.                       

Centuries ago, there was a roman emperor, called Nero. He was a strong ruler and very fond of parties, art, poetry, drinking and life full of pleasures. Once he decided to organize a party and invited all the poets, writers, painters and artists. Everybody was having a great time drinking, eating, laughing and socializing. The party was at its peak when it started getting dark. Nero wanted the party to go on, so he ordered his men to get all the arrested criminals who were in his jail around the garden and put them on fire! Burnt them alive so that there was enough light for the guests to keep on enjoying! The guest had a gala time though they knew the cost of their enjoyment. Here what kind of conscious those guests had?

What is happening in our country is not different from Nero’s party. We the middle class young  well earning mall hoping IPL watching celebrating Junta are Nero’s guests enjoying at the cost of our farmers.

In the beginning I said hell to the celebrations!

But let me tell you I am not against the celebrations. I am not against the cricket. I am not against the world cup. I would be the first person to scream, celebrate and feel proud of any of the India’s achievements but, only if all fellow countrymen, farmers, villagers also stand with us and cheer, only if there is no difference between interest rates for a luxury sedan and a tractor. That would be the day I also zoom past on a bike, post India win with an Indian flag in hand and shout Bharat matha ki jai.

But no, not now, not at the cost of our feeders. Until then I say to hell with the world cup, to hell with the malls, to hell with the IPL and to hell with the celebrations.