When I grew up the national flag and St George’s flag were both synonymous with racism. They had both been hijacked by the racist party – the national front (note the lower case!).  Are things any different now?

On Saturday 12th June 2010 I was invited to join a group of friends to watch England’s first world-cup match against the USA. The event was televised on 4 screens, including a large projection wall display. We all decided to congregate at the Indian Gymkhana, first established in 1916. Click here for a full history of its inception.

Back to the match. The majority of those watching the match were of Indian decent – Representatives from all of Indian’s wide and varied community were present. Even my next door neighbour with his entire family attended.

Interestingly, there was one thing they all had in common. 80% wore an England football shirt and the atmosphere was electrified by the chants of ‘Come on England’!

I managed to catch some of the excitement, especially just after the first and only goal that was scored: See below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

I found this new loyalty to the English flag amazing on many levels.

• Was this a demonstration that Norman Tebbit’s rules had been broken?
• Did Enoch Powell’s  rivers of blood speech now mean nothing as people felt comfortable with accepting England as their true home?

My mind tells me that we have a further journey to travel – for the general community to accept people from different backgrounds, many who have fathers and mothers that struggled since the 1950s to be accepted as equals and who laid the foundations for today’s youth and generally more comfortable life style.

Why do I still feel some cynicism regarding the flag ? Firstly, there is no acceptance from the media at large to acknowledge that the UK is varied in its cultural make-up. TV, radio and the majority of featured celebrities is orientated towards a sub-culture and the pretence that the average viewer or listener is from a ‘white’ background. What also does not help are shows like Britain’s Got Talent displaying a weekly / seasonal undertone of inequality and class distinction. The BBC are quick to chop the BBC Asian Network (Why call it Asian!) yet commitment to Radio 3 continues. Remember too that ‘ethnic’ programming is still late into the night!

Maybe, I was shocked due to my personal experiences of being bullied on race grounds at school. Maybe, I consider that today’s loyalty to the flag displayed by others is based on convenience. NB We do have a lot to the Thank the UK for.
Or, maybe I should be more optimistic that ‘times are a changing’ ?

It is now over 24 hours since Gordon made that comment in Rochdale. Obviously, the transcript from both the outside broadcast and Radio 2’s face-to-face playback have been analysed by the majority of the media.

Interestingly, it amazes me about how quick the press were to jump, form a scrum and ‘go for the jugular’!

Looking up the term ‘bigot’ from Wikipedia, it is publicly defined as:

A person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices.
The correct use of the term requires the elements of obstinacy, irrationality, and animosity toward those of differing devotion. The origin of the word bigot and bigotry in English dates back to at least 1598, via Middle French, and started with the sense of “religious hypocrite”. Forms of bigotry may have a related ideology or world views.

That is enough of the history lesson, let us focus on the issue.

If Gordon used the word it at a point of frustration, then it can be considered as ‘throw-away’. It is hard to be a politician. Just imagine your every moment being recorded and played back in front of you.

Gordon is very highly educated and a few years ago he really revealed his depth of intellectual capacity when he spoke about some of his other interests.

The press are suggesting that the ‘I’ word (Immigration) is avoided as an issue due to political correctness. I believe that there is no need for the ‘I’ word any more. Even on BBC Breakfast this morning, a Conservative MP was using one of Maggie’s old term’s, ‘Swamped’.
The public appear to have forgotten that ‘immigrants’ have made the UK economically better off and stable. New arrivals yield new opportunities, have passion, drive and a sense to better their situations. This all ‘rubs off’ on the general community.

On BBC Radio4 the BNP leader said that, ‘the country is full-up’! Generating fear Griffin, never helped anyone!

If we consider for a few moments that the World Wars were fought with a multi-national force, many from Commonwealth countries and the British occupied India for 200 years, we should be able to see that the UK represents an example of multiculturalism where there is strength through diversity and mutual respect. Churchill encouraged migration, suggesting that the UK needed to be rebuilt after the war and needed help from the ex-Empire.

Coming back Mrs Duffy’s comments about immigration. She reportedly said:
“All these eastern Europeans that are coming in – where are they flocking from?”

Did she not realise that her expected answer was already within her question!

Gordon ended the conversation with her with a sense of care, asking about her family. He has to do the best he can given the time he can physically allocate.

In terms of his sense of genuineness, do his comments suggest a hypocritical stance?
I suggest that Gordon may have attempted to match his passion for Labour’s belief of fairness and equality verse someone who was specifically challenging him about her views on immigration – NB Gordon may have seen a conflict situation between someone who in theory should believe in the same values as the Labour party, especially as she proclaimed herself as a life-long and loyal member of Labour.

A balance of Immigration!
Maybe the lack of statistics is the issue. People from all walks of life in the UK have not fully understood the balance of immigration figures.
If there are 1M new people, people should realise that 1M have also left. We probably need more data published to settle the FUD factor – fear, uncertainly and doubt.

The motive of the Eastern Europeans coming to the UK is likely to be driven on their desire to improve their own countries and like many others seek a better life. By accepting them into a multicultural environment we will be collectively helping our own community and helping others too. For example, a Polish person sending money to their homeland helps to fuel / develop both economies.

In summary, if personal passion doesn’t match what you thought someone also believed in, then accidental frustration can result.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Dr Sarab, is both an inspiring and committed film-maker. Starting off as a medical Doctor he has also spent the last 10 years and managed a budget of $1.5million to deliver a film that really moves you. His connections to Hollywood have assisted in the development of the film and its themes.

As you watch the film you realise that it is not preaching in manner. There are some scenes that as a Sikh make your heart sink. In others, you recognise similar public stereotypical influenced episodes.

The films delivery is based on generating a universal message of self-realisation of who you are and the importance of what you represent. Other themes explored by the film include seva (service) and dilemmas introduced by different health systems.

Please see the trailer below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Please visit the Website too:
http://www.oceanofpearls.com

After the movie the audience had a chance for Questions and Answers with Dr Sarab. Dr Saran spoke of the impact that the film had on people from different denominations. In the US film-goers expressed they felt  the need to know more about their own religion and some from the Sikh faith reflected on the importance of their own faith. Interestingly, I have heard this phenomena before. As chair of the Interfaith Youth Trust, we often hear that kids who attend interfaith awareness events often wish to learn more about their own religion. Thus deepening a respect for parallel ethics and greater meaning of their own elements.

Currently, European plans for this movie are under review. It is certainly a must buy to share with your family, local community, services agencies and your library.

The more we communicate who we are and our stories and we have many of those, the greater an understanding between ourselves and  diverse world will develop.

This is a fictional adaptation of what might have happened when Facebook was first inspired, created and then exploded!

Ben Mezrich publication is drawn both from research and imagination.

If you read the associated inside notes, it is interesting that he DID NOT met or get a response from Mark Zuckerberg. The reader is therefore left wondering what was is actually fact, adlib or opinion from those that Ben interviewed/researched.

The review at Entertainment Weekly (ew.com) suggests that:

‘the book is a breezy blend of fact and fiction’.

What is dangerous, is the risk a movie being produced that is far from reality.
I’m half way through the book and although it is a quick read, I’m struggling with the concept of clubs, fraternities and in-crowds.
Am I too shocked about how business really works or should I take this book as motivation to strive forward in an honest and thankful manner.

The latter is what I was taught.

We can only hope that success was based on a sincere approach.
NB Facebook now has more than 300 million members around the world. The privately owned company has been valued as high as $15 billion!

Although the video focuses heavily on ‘the trouble’ with twitter being an exhibitionist’s tool. It fails to outline practical benefits.
For example, potential pooling or what I call meshing of information into a stream of reliable data. The latter is often described as Mindcasting.

As computers have become increasingly part of our daily lives there is a natural emergence of dependency and sharing of information.

I remember reading about one of the pioneers of IT strategy, Joanna Woodward. She was way ahead of her time, writing back in the 1950s about how one day computers would be prevalent throughout an organisation.

Interestingly, whilst at University one of my lecturers suggested slyly, ‘Have you ever heard of people uploading stuff’!?
However, I doubt if at the time anyone realised that blogging would one day become so influential on the way modern day publications and corporate Public Relations now consider their place in society.

The video is extremely amusing, especially when it shows the range of Twitters, life-blogging!
It misses out on mentioning the race to get as many followers as possible? In my view the latter just results in lots of noise.
Being in the attention economy should not mean that there is no value in what you read or see.

I love the line from the video:

Question: Who are they talking to?
Answer: Noone and everyone!

Click here to view the embedded video.

You could argue that maybe I would not have come across the original item if it  had not been for Twitter !

Twitter will find its place, especially when all the noise has subsided.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Stevie and Sting are also inspiring – Maybe they’ll issue a CD with all this great music – recording a sense of hope…

Click here to view the embedded video.

What is really signed, sealed and delivered ? Its the latter word for the world we need to focus on now:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Terrorism in my view is not born out of frustration. It is vile and a portrayal of cowardliness. Many issues for India and Pakistan are a result of a mis-managed and some historians have suggested deliberate ‘divide-and-rule’ policy/legacy. I often feel that independence day in India is both a celebration of freedom but also recognition of British Raj’s oppression. The people of the lands that remain divided cannot move on. They will and should not forget their divided families. I still believe in the power to convince people of their wrong doings by first reasoning and asking them to look into their hearts for a solution.

Having also read a recent piece from another / completely separate blogger on Obama’s attempt to ‘reach’ both sides, India and Pakistan to work towards solutions, the article was quick to point out personality issues with the Obama’s appointees.

Any attempt at dialogue has to be a positive step. However, there appears to be not enough momentum from either the UN or independent teams on both ends to work towards peace. I’m certainly not suggesting that both sides do not want a solution as that would be cynical, honest! Too much is based on the past mistakes.

No doubt security will continue to be even tighter around the world as we all suffer the ripple effects.

We need a positive channel for news. A channel that can communicate what the world would be like if we all got along.

We also need new political models that encourage communities to take charge of their regions. This means collaborative communities / empowered with more autonomy in terms of local controls, for example in farming and what is paid to a centralised system.

We have to remember that the minority spoil it for the majority but the power is still with the majority to contain radicals.

The death toll continues to rise in Mumbai as the attempt by terrorists to use a many-to-many attack strategy has lead to a longer and harder campaign to control them. The risks to innocent people is higher and the ripple effect that it will leave behind in Mumbai will be greater.

The following article shows 20 business uses of Twitter

The following video outlines how the concept of sharing and getting closer to people can be assisted with Twitter.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Similar to Facebook you can update your status for selective friends or a wider community. Many industry observers have described Twitter as a lifestreaming device, i.e. An online record of a person’s daily activities, either via direct video feed or via aggregating the person’s online content such as blog posts, social network updates and online photos. NB There is now a Facebook application that allows you to update your status from Twitter, therefore facilitating a once only update. Our featured article looks at Corporate uses of Twitter. For example, communicating with clients to inform them of product or project updates. Twitter also has the ability to send status updates to mobile devices.

This power to communicate when combined with valuable online content can be a powerful medium for Public Relations and clients. Clear and concise information flow is essential.

A Podcast combined with a web posting can facilitate company updates, re: products and services. It can encourage accessibility and ‘reach’ in an increasingly noisy environment. With regard to the latter, competition in business is a major challenge. Therefore, interactivity and efficient access to information can provide a useful competitive advantage.

In December typically families from all over the world will be getting together. We should be optimistic that new technologies like Twitter are being developed to bring people closer. All we can now hope for is that this closeness will materialise into motivation for the world to become a better place with hope and peace for all.

You can follow me at: http://www.twitter.com/drsavi and also Sikhwithin at:
http://www.twitter.com/sikhwithin

However, I was appalled by a 10min film on this morning’s Milkshake programme entitled ‘PLAY’, broadcast on Channel 5 (UK) at 6:45am. It went something like this…

Imagine a grey concreted street in India. The sun shines yet kids roam the streets watching their mothers use large steel bowls to wash their or others clothes.

The camera focuses on hose pipes ejecting clean water then slowly moves into a wide angle shot to reveal the inside of peoples homes… concrete shells.

The voice-over narrative then starts with a gentle female voice talking about how a child has just had a wash. The mother wraps the child in a thin grey towel hugging her to keep her warm.

The next scene shows a naked child, possibly no older the 2 years old walking towards another mother. The child blinks slightly and then points to her mother. This mother is crouching down pulling out cloths and then beating them to the ground to rinse out germs.

The voice over narrative resumes suggesting that the child is now joining her mother to wash clothes and how fun it is.

The video continues to communicate what the children depicted must be thinking, adding further tones of fun on what looks like a desperate situation…

At the end the context is left unclear.

• Why are they washing their streets in public in such a way?
• Is this acceptable for people who live in these countries?
• Should we as society show these images as reality with a subtext of apathy?
• Are the women aware that they are being filmed?
• What kind of message is this video communicating to a child – That poverty is a matter of fact and that nothing can be done to help change?
• The programme is called, ‘PLAY!’ – Sadly, I was left in shock thinking about the 75% of people in that country that are still trying to eat.
• Yes, we know nothing of the circumstances of the people featured but they clearly do not have what some of the other people have who live in India, i.e: Washing machines…

The following is what I sent to OFCOM today as a note of concern/complaint:

As humanity we need to strive to make poverty history. However, narrating to a child through 10mins of people washing their cloths on the streets of India has the potential to condition children to accept poverty. For youngsters this kind of portrayal is damaging and does not help in motivating change.

I also suggested…

Next steps:

I think the producers of this programme need to question their motives in potentially promoting poverty in such an apathetic way.