A video of the Indian pond heron:

 
I found this Indian pond heron foraging for food in the marsh near our home. A not uncommon bird, that flies around ponds and marshes. 
I took this 2nd video clip of the pond heron flying away:

MP3 Xmas carols and songs- free:

http://songsofpraise.org/christmas.htm
I've visited a number of web sites on google search for free MP3 Xmas songs. But most of them including amazon's so called free mp3 downloads have hiccups or demand a credit card before the downloads. The link above actually offers mp3 songs with both lyrics and music. An I could not only download it, the songs worked beautifully. There may be other sites out there.. will add them to this blog as I find where these "gems" are hidden.

Video of Helicopter aerial display

Managed to grab this video from my Western balcony. Fun  to watch.. enjoy.

Apathy, indifference and today's world:

We are already there- this is the brave new world of Aldous Huxley. In this world, especially in secular, democratic countries like India, thinking the wrong thought could become a crime. There is not much or rather, no thought working in anyone's minds. The thinking process has come to a standstill- full stop. A devastating road traffic accident, or other misfortune, and nobody has the time to think, to ask the inconvenient questions- what was the cause of this road traffic accident? Did the police do anything to prevent it? Was every step taken to prevent it? Will we, as citizens and the keepers of the law take steps to prevent these incidents from happening again? The degree of negativism with respect to any or every event is amazing. The typical attitude is -firstly one of indifference. If there has been a bomb blast- it is not in my city, so who cares! Or this road traffic accident occurred on that road, not mine.. or worse.. the victim was not one of us.
   The police are seen as indifferent or worse....and since nothing more is expected of them...they dont seem to care one bit. The municipal (city) corporations are considered as a means of acquiring wealth quickly, for the scheming no goods, the scum of society.. "who else would want to work there?"
The result is obvious- you can find in my own city (Cochin)- telephone poles bending precariously, waiting for the next wind, to fall onto the road or onto somebody. High voltage fuses and wires and contact points are left open, on roadside posts, waiting to zap the next unsuspecting passerby. A friend of mine, a college student, had the misfortune of stepping on a protruding spike of iron from a roadside slab - the result was serious foot injury. But who is complaining? Who is there to listen to complaints? Is the government listening? Does the government have funds to maintain roads, make life less dangerous for the common man? Where do the massive funds allocated to maintain our cities, go? Is anyone answerable for all that goes on in the name of government.
    Again, does anyone think? Is thinking about these things one of those no no areas in today's society? I believe social decay starts with the mind. A dead mind leads to a dead, decaying society... no I am not referring to the USA.. it is very true of modern day cities in India. Without the process of feeling, thinking and expression of thought, society undergoes the same thing that the individual experiences, .. it is called a "death wish". (to be continued)......