Corona Daily 269: Have a Beard? Join UPS

Two years ago, David Hunger, 48, from Derbyshire, UK went to a job fair. At his age, getting a job was not easy. He was interviewed at the UPS (United Parcel Service) stall. The interviewers liked him. Based on his experience, he would be an ideal candidate. As he started filling out the application form, he was stunned by one of the job requirements. The job aspirant must shave off his facial hair.

When asked, the recruiter pointed to David’s beard and said, ‘You can’t have that, the beard. Unfortunately, the policy dictates you can’t have a beard because that could be offensive to the customer.’

David had his beard for more than twenty years. It was not an unruly, thick, Osama-Laden type beard, but a well-groomed one, only a centimeter long.  David’s choice was clear: take off his beard, or give up the UPS job opportunity.

*****

United Parcel Service is a multinational delivery giant. It employs more than half a million people, many of them delivery drivers. The company was founded more than 100 years ago by Jim Casey who insisted on always wearing a suit. The strict UPS uniform policy regulates hair on the face and head. Ideally clean shaven, no beard, moustache, if at all, should not cover the upper lip. No afro, no braids please. Hair never longer than the collar. Tattoos, if they exist, should not be on the visible part of the body. Piercings restricted to earrings, which must be small and business-like. Length of uniform shorts is prescribed in proportion to the employee’s height.

In the USA, lawsuits were filed against the policy. It violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits employers from discriminating on religious basis. Muslims, Sikhs proud of their beards could not get public-facing UPS jobs. Black people with natural Afro hairstyles couldn’t either.

In 2018, UPS settled a class religious discrimination lawsuit for $4.9 million. It also introduced something called a “shaver waiver”. Potential employees could produce evidence confirming religious or medical reasons for the beard. David Hunger from Derbyshire had no religious reason to apply for a waiver.

*****

The clean-shaven policy can be seen among US presidents as well. In the last 100 years, there has not been a US president with any type of facial hair. Other than the business suit, most of UPS policies apply to the US presidents as well. Some historians attribute it to America’s enemies. Hitler, Stalin, Fidel Castro, Emperor Hirohito, Yasser Arafat, Ayatollah Khomeini, Osama Bin Laden, Saddam Hussein. Surely, no American president wants to join their ranks. A red face and orange hair are ok, but not facial hair.

Clean-shavenness has become part of the corporate uniform.

*****

Yesterday, UPS abandoned the policy. From today, all UPS employees, customer-facing included, are free to sport beards, moustaches, afros, braids, curls, coils, locks, twists, knots. The company spokesman said they wanted UPS employees to feel comfortable, genuine and authentic. (Meaning until now they felt uncomfortable, fake and spurious). The company wants to celebrate diversity rather than corporate restrictions.

UPS now has Carol Tome, the first woman CEO. This change of policy could be related to that. But I think there are two more reasons.

The pandemic lockdown revolutionized the world’s outlook. Look at TV anchors.  Look at Justin Trudeau. Look at CEOs working from home. They want to feel relaxed. If we are having such a rotten time, let us express it. This could be the end of the world, let me at least enjoy not shaving. There is this freedom in the air, and UPS employees are entitled to share it.

Secondly, UPS delivery business is booming. UPS hired 39,000 permanent employees in Q2 (2020), and intend to hire another 100,000. What difference would it make if the delivery driver had a stubble or an Afro hairstyle?

Ravi 

Corona Daily 270: Shhhh…. The Cathedral Trial is on

During the pandemic, social media is hyperactive. When locked down, this is your only socialization. Recently, a new phenomenon has startled users. Their tweets may get deleted, or hidden behind a warning. (Not only Trump’s). A former ambassador’s account was blocked for retweeting a math theory proving the USA election fraud. Same with Facebook. Coronavirus denial for FB is equivalent to the holocaust denial. How much can be censored and by whom? This week an interesting trial, Cathedral Trial-II, is happening in Australia.

*****

Coincidently, yesterday itself, the Vatican published a voluminous report on a sexually abusing Cardinal. Theodore McCarrick is now 90 years old and defrocked as a result of his passion in younger years. His episodes with altar boys, seminarians, other priests were well known. Pope John Paul II had asked him if any of the rumours were true. He denied them. The large-hearted Pope believed him. Pope Benedict XVI went on record saying ‘male celibate priesthood was morally superior to other sections of society’. McCarrick had compromised that celibacy more with adults, less with minors. That perhaps justified his transgressions.

Pope Francis is different. In July 2014, he said about 2% of the Catholic clergy, including cardinals and bishops were pedophiles. (Like covid cases, this could be an under-reported statistic.) Pope Francis not only defrocked McCarrick, but instituted an enquiry, which published its findings in the 449-page report yesterday. If you are a diehard Catholic, please don’t read it.

Pope Francis is to the Vatican what Mikhail Gorbachev was to the USSR. While Twitter and FB are blocking, Pope Francis is willing to wash Vatican’s dirty linen on the internet. (He just needs to take care the Vatican doesn’t go the way Soviet Union did).

*****

The Cathedral Trial in Australia is different but related to this story. An Australian cardinal George Pell, now 79, was the third most powerful man in the Vatican. He was the Vatican treasurer.  Last year, he was found guilty of rape and sexual assault of two 13-year old choirboys in the mid-1990s. He was sentenced to six years in a Melbourne prison.

*****

Australian judges have the power to suppress reporting court trials. The court used this right during George Pell’s jury trial. Australian media was prohibited from reporting it, because Pell was to face another case. The learned judge didn’t wish to prejudice the jury’s mind in the next case. As a result, when this highest-ranking cardinal was sentenced to six years, there was no media coverage.

However, the gagged Australian media tried to improvise.

Melbourne’s tabloid, the Herald Sun, had a black front page with CENSORED written large. “The world is reading a very important story that is relevant to Victorians”. That was all the editorial said.

“A high-profile Australian known across the world has been convicted of a serious crime but the details can’t be published in this country.” Said another report.

“Can’t tell you who it is.” The Sydney radio commentator said,” I encourage you to Google high-profile Australian/ worldwide reputation/ conviction of an awful crime, and you’ll find out who he is.”

*****

21 publications, 6 corporate groups, and 19 individual journalists are charged with breaching the suppression order, a serious crime. If convicted, they face imprisonment up to five years and fines of up to AU$ 500,000.

The Washington post and other foreign newspapers could not be charged. The Australian population that gleefully spread the news on social media couldn’t be charged.

 *****

This was a jury trial. Australia’s highest court reconsidered the case, and during the pandemic, acquitted Pell. After spending 400 days in prison, he was free. Though he hasn’t got his position back, he is on good terms with the Pope.

*****

Cardinal Pell is back in Vatican. And the journalists who tried to find clever ways of bypassing suppression may go to the prison that Pell left.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 271: Pfizer Vaccine – Celebrate with Caution

In an earlier chapter on the vaccine race, I wrote: God forbid Pfizer wins the race. God answered my fears. Yesterday, Pfizer announced with aplomb a 90% effective vaccine. Editors changed headlines, stock markets vaulted, people made new Christmas plans, respectable newspapers foresaw the end of the pandemic.

The Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at -80 C (-112 F) all the time. The ultracold logistics rule out most of Asia and Africa. In the best case, it is accessible to 2.5 billion people in 25 countries, mainly North America and Europe.

Dr Fauci called the results extraordinary, at the same time admitting he hadn’t seen the data yet. May the vaccine truly have extraordinary success, and spell the end of the pandemic.

*****

When such joyous news is announced, it is in bad taste to criticize or express concerns. The critic will be termed a spoilsport, a pessimist, a conspiracy theorist, or antivaxx activist. I am none of these. I am, however, puzzled by the way Pfizer has gone about the process. I would like to voice these concerns so as to tone down the hype, if it is hype.

As I wrote earlier, in the trials, the company must reach pre-agreed numbers of Covid-19 cases, in the vaccine and the placebo groups. Since the beginning, Pfizer has been aggressively demanding more interim points, and fewer cases. Their minimum point for seeking authorization was 32. (32 patients among 30000 participants). Anybody who has studied statistics would know the number doesn’t look significant. In fact, scientists not working for Pfizer raised this concern. This was summer time, and the curve was going down. The Pfizer scientists were worried about the time it may take to reach a higher figure. But they amended protocol to look at the data at 62 cases. Not only the numbers, Pfizer’s plan allowed the mildest cases to be counted.

 Most other trials including Johnson & Johnson and Oxford, even the Chinese vaccine trial currently, were paused because of adverse events. This is when a participant develops a condition that may have been caused by the vaccine. The trial remains paused until the condition is investigated. Pfizer enlarged its sample size to 44,000 but didn’t face a single adverse event, which must be attributed to its luck.

On 26 October, Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s CEO said they didn’t have 32 covid cases yet. The interim data, when available, is reviewed by an independent board. Pfizer was once again lucky, the cases surged dramatically. On Sunday, 8 November, the independent board came, reviewed the data of 94 cases, and let the company management know the conclusion without sharing data.

*****

The trial is not over. It will be over once Pfizer reaches 164 cases. The right thing was to wait till the end of the trials, and then publish the data in a medical journal for peers to review. Once it is peer-reviewed, the results can be published worldwide. Instead of that, Pfizer opted to release unpublished, unreviewed half-baked data as news.

Not only that, the news was released consciously early on Monday morning before the US stock markets open. Stock markets are like dogs who will drool and jump at the sight of a dummy bone. When the markets opened, Pfizer shares leaped by 15%, its partner BioNTech’s by 24%, and the major indexes reached new records. Such outright corruption was glossed over in the euphoria of the 90% effective vaccine.

FDA now has stricter standards after botching hydroxychloroquine and plasma episodes. Scott Gottlieb, the previous FDA commissioner, is now on Pfizer’s board. That may help in the approval process.

*****

Though times are exceptional, and any vaccine may be better than no vaccine, knowledge of Pfizer’s maneuvers dilutes the joy of their 90% effective news.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 272: Hyperloop, the Fifth Mode of Transport

The world changed yesterday.

For the last hundred years, there has not been a new mode of transport. To sea, road, rail and air a fifth mode was added yesterday: Hyperloop. A man and a woman were the first human beings to take the test ride. They emerged safe and smiling.

Elon Musk, of Tesla fame, first talked about Hyperloop in 2012. Hyperloop is about building a hundreds-of-miles-long steel tube that looks like a circular tunnel. This can be above or below the ground. Passengers will sit inside a capsule and travel at hypersonic speed from the start point to the destination. Hyperloop is collision free and immune to weather. The steel tube is airless. The vacuum allows the capsule to glide smoothly. Like the bullet trains using magnetic levitation (Maglev trains in China and Japan), the capsules don’t touch anything. Friction and air resistance can be a problem for bullet trains. Those are removed in hyperloop. Musk described his dream product as a cross-breed between a Concorde, a railgun and an air hockey table.

In good traffic conditions, a car can cover the 560 km between Los Angeles and San Francisco in 6 hours, by bus or train in 10 hours. A flight with all security hassles takes 3 hours. Hyperloop will take 30 minutes. That is the vision.

*****

To Elon Musk’s credit, rather than protecting intellectual property, he has made it open, and has encouraged the brightest young brains to keep improving and innovating. So far, the Technical University of Munich (TUM Hyperloop) team has won all the competitions. In the latest, they managed to reach speeds of 288 miles (460 km) per hour. Yesterday’s test carrying the first human passengers was conducted at 100 miles (160 km) per hour. The projected speeds go up to 750 miles (1200 km)/ hour, faster than a flight.

*****

The first actual Hyperloop project is expected to run in India. In February 2018, Virgin Hyperloop, the American company marketing Hyperloop, signed an MOU with the Indian state of Maharashtra. The 150 km Hyperloop will connect Mumbai and Pune. 20 million residents in Greater Mumbai and 6 million in Pune region are expected to benefit. Instead of the 3 hours+ drive through pollution, traffic, toll booths; the capsuled passengers would whizz like bullets in 28 minutes.

The other high-speed project, India’s planned bullet train, has been politically inflammable. The Indo-Japanese initiative may or may not happen depending on India’s political landscape.

On the other hand, the Mumbai-Pune Hyperloop project is almost unknown. Today, in only the second live experiment, Tanay Manjrekar, an engineering graduate from Pune, will take the test ride in Las Vegas. But there is not a single word about this in the Indian media. Such non-publicity increases the prospects of Hyperloop actually happening. The expected start is 2029.

Several Indians, including government officials, were expected to ride the demonstration hyperloop in the USA, but the coronavirus pandemic has made that impossible.

*****

Of course, Hyperloop is not without its critics – particularly those who run airlines or rail companies can find several faults. Questions have been raised about the potential uncomfortable feeling of passengers. But then, people must have been terrified when they started flying in planes for the first time.

The greatest plus of Hyperloop is that it is clean. It doesn’t need fossils fuels like trains. It is energy efficient, can be run on solar as well, immune to weather variability, focuses on low density and high volume. Hyperloop is ideal for the post-pandemic, climate-changing world. Finally, we have something that looks like the twenty-first century mode of transport.

When the Mumbai-Pune Hyperloop begins, I won’t hesitate to travel on the first day.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 273: China’s Debt Trap Diplomacy

Ricardo, a Mexican friend, once told me the story of how he managed to get his house cheaply. In the 1990s, with a well-paying job, he had taken a long-term mortgage from the bank. Then Mexico had a major financial crisis. The Peso went down by nearly 50%. Ricardo decided it didn’t make any sense to keep on paying the mortgage. He went to the lending bank with the house keys. Can’t pay any more, please take over my house, he said. He expected the banker to be pleased.

Instead the banker started begging him not to do so. He had more than 2000 customers coming to him with their house keys. What should the bank do with so many houses? Our business is money, not real estate, the banker said. Ricardo negotiated, and got the house for 20% of the original cost. The bank wrote off 80% of the debt, rather than confiscating the collateral.

*****

Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is China’s major vehicle to literally make inroads into several geographies. This spectacularly grandiose infrastructure and investment project covers more than 68 countries, benefits 4.5 billion people. “Belt” are land routes including roads and rail network. “Road” are sea routes. The ambitious project due to finish in 2049, will nostalgically reproduce the historic silk road routes that connected China to the west. BRI will facilitate the seamless movement of goods and people across the vast geography of Asia, Africa and Europe. USA is welcome too but has not joined. China, as the sponsor of the project, plans the investment and lends money.

The project is not smooth sailing. For example, the China-Pakistan economic corridor will cut the transport time from China to the Middle East from 12 days to merely 36 hours. But the route goes through the disputed Kashmir region, Taliban territory and Baloch insurgents.

The stated objective of BRI is smooth international trade. Centuries ago, the East India Company was also formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region. That company ended up creating the world’s largest empire.

*****

The trillions of dollars that China is investing abroad could have been used to make China’s own citizens wealthier. This is the hallmark of Communist dictatorships. In order to conquer the world, they are willing to keep their own people poor. When Soviets were queuing for rations of bread and meat, their nation was busy throwing unconscionable amounts of money to propagate communism abroad.

The Chinese people, particularly in pandemic times, have started expressing their displeasure about China lending so much money abroad.

*****

Chinese companies with Chinese money planned to build a cross-country rail line in Malaysia, a truly showcase project. Last year, Malaysia’s new prime minister called it unfairly expensive, and threatened to cancel it. After negotiations, China brought down the loan from $16 billion to $11 billion. This was an acknowledgement of corruption, whereby the local leaders are bribed to trigger over-invoicing.

Since March, countries, one after another, have started throwing up their hands. There is simply no money to pay the principal or the interest. Laos has handed over to China its national electric grid. China can send Laos into darkness if it wishes. Pakistan has allowed China to run its Gwadar port for the next forty years.

But most of China’s borrowers are in such bad economic shape that there is a danger of the moneylending business boomeranging on the lender. If the pandemic continues for another year, China may be similar to the Mexican banker described at the beginning of this article. When the cash inflows dry up, and the local Chinese start protesting, capturing and managing physical assets in different parts of the world is not easy.

China’s so-called “Debt-trap diplomacy” along with its Belt and Road initiative are in serious danger in pandemic times.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 274: Shylock Demands His Pound of Flesh

In August, the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with officials from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia and offered them Chinese vaccines.

Cambodia’s PM Hun Sen said his country highly appreciates the efforts of their friend China. Earlier the Philippines President Duterte had beseeched China for vaccines. China’s foreign ministry had confirmed it would give Philippines priority access. Latin American and Caribbean nations will get $1 billion in loans for coronavirus medicines. Sinovac Biotech, a Beijing vaccine maker, is running a vaccine trial on 4200 health workers in Dhaka. The Chinese company will provide 110,000 free vaccine doses to Bangladesh. Pakistan will not touch any vaccine other than a Chinese vaccine.

“There will certainly be no strings attached.” Said Ruan Zongze, VP of the China Institute of International studies. “It is for a global public good.”

On hearing that, an academic from Indonesia said: “Should we be suspicious or grateful? Probably both.”

*****

Moneylenders. Pawnbrokers. Usurers. Loan Sharks.  

We know the character of Shylock who lends money to Antonio. They agree to keep Antonio’s pound of flesh as security. When Antonio is bankrupt and unable to return the loan, Shylock demands his pound of flesh, as agreed.

*****

China has been lending big money to Sri Lanka. During the 2015 Sri Lanka elections, China financed Mahinda Rajapaksa’s election campaign through a Chinese port construction company. The secret payments were confirmed by documents and checks in a government investigation. Over the years, Sri Lankan debt grew beyond what Sri Lanka could repay. The China Development Bank, generously, widened a credit line by $700 million, lowered the interest rate, and delayed the payment timeline by two years. Anyway, a loan is usually given against a collateral.

In 2017, Sri Lanka couldn’t bear the pressure any more. After months of negotiations, the Sri Lankan government officially handed over the strategic port of Hambantota and 15,000 acres of land around it to China on a 99-year lease.

Tajikistan owed China $2.9 billion. It handed over 1158 sq km territory to China to reduce the debt to $1.2 billion. Other nations in a similar debt trap are Pakistan, Madagascar, Mongolia, Maldives, Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, Iraq, Ethiopia and Laos.

Modern Shylock manages to get his pound of flesh.

*****

China’s role in international trade is well known. It is difficult to find a house without a single ‘made in China’ product. What is less known is China’s role in global finance.

The Paris Club is a group of creditors which coordinates their activities in relation to debtor countries. China is not part of it. It has no disclosure requirements. It can lend to countries with nobody except the borrower knowing the terms and conditions of lending. That gives rise to many hidden debts. The Chinese state is the sole lending body. It is not governed by any market forces. At least 50% of China’s lending to developing countries is not reported to IMF or the World Bank. Between 2000 and 2017, China’s total lending to foreign countries rose from less than $500 billion to more than $5 trillion, or from 1% to 6% of the global GDP. That makes Beijing a bigger lender than either IMF or the World Bank. China’s lending involves higher interest rates and shorter maturities, forcing the debtors to get the loans refinanced often.

Djibouti’s debts to China are now higher than 80% of its annual economic output, Ethiopia’s is 20% and Kyrgyzstan’s 40%. All these countries will administer the Chinese vaccines to their populations, irrespective of their effectiveness.

*****

Imperialists can subjugate nations through guns or lending. China is very successful with the latter. More on that tomorrow.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 275: Measuring the Height of Mount Everest

To promote the “2020 Visit Nepal” campaign, 108 sculptures were built around Nepal. The chosen mascot was the Yeti, the mythical creature from Himalayan folklore. Within weeks of the national lockdown in March, the 2020 Visit Nepal campaign was cancelled. Airports were shut. Nepal has eight out of the world’s tallest 14 mountains. Mountaineers and hikers were prohibited from climbing any of them.

By May, people in Kathmandu began to see the Everest summit clearly for the first time. All these years, pollution had hidden it.

There was only one delegation that went to the top of Everest in May 2020 - a large official Chinese delegation. What was it doing there?

*****

Everest’s official height of 8848 meters is mentioned in travel books. In 1956, it was measured by the Survey of India. Over the last couple of decades, China and Nepal have been arguing about the height. China measures it up to the top rock, whereas Nepal measures it up to the top snow point. The difference is 4 meters. China uses the Yellow sea, while Nepal uses the Bay of Bengal to identify the sea level.

In October 2019, XI Jinping made a state visit to Nepal. In Kathmandu; China and Nepal excitedly announced a co-operation project of remeasuring Everest and jointly announcing the findings. Nepal completed its fieldwork in January. Once the pandemic started, China announced in May it would like to take advantage of the unexpected free time to measure the height.

A strong Chinese surveying team of fifty-six reached the summit and conducted their own measurements. They used Beidou, the Chinese GPS. A Chinese plane carrying precision gravity survey equipment hovered over the mountain, during the delegation’s climb. In Mount Everest’s history, May 2020 is believed to be the only time when there were exclusively Chinese people on the peak.

In September, Yang Yuanxi, a member of the Chinese Academy of Science, described the importance of the project: “A precise measurement of Everest was a demonstration of China’s technological development. It is a symbol of the country’s sovereignty, and carries huge international impact and societal recognition. The precision of this measuring mission will be better than any previous mission.”

***** 

In the past seven months, more than a million Nepali people, including Sherpas, cooks, tourist guides, porters, pilots have become unemployed. Some plant barley, or graze yaks for survival, but the majority face a deep financial crisis. One shop owner selling jackets, tents, hiking boots and survival equipment said he had not seen a single customer since March. He merely keeps the shop open to avoid going insane.

In 2019, remittances from abroad were $9 billon, mainly from the Gulf. Nepal exports security guards and maids who in total remit 30% GDP of Nepal. Since March, remittances stopped. Nepali workers returned home. Their families were forced to take their children out of private schools.

For a population of 30 million, Nepal has 2600 ICU beds and 930 ventilators in total. All of them are currently in use. Yesterday, a record 30 people died of Covid-19.

At the bottom of the tallest mountain lies one of the poorest nations.

*****  

Last year, some 90% of foreign direct investment in Nepal came from China. During the state visit, Xi promised $ 500 million in financial aid. This doesn’t include the massive Chinese investment in Nepali infrastructure projects on new airports, railways and hydropower plants.

Common Nepalese get upset about Chinese claiming co-ownership of mount Everest. As you may have guessed, a Chinese delegation measuring the height is a geopolitical show. Three or four meters make no difference, but establishing Chinese hegemony is critical. Photos of a Chinese delegation monopolizing Mount Everest symbolizes that power.

After the pandemic crushes the poor nation’s economy, Nepal has little choice. When the Chinese announce the precise height of Everest this month, Nepal will happily accept that measurement.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 276: Goddess of the Sky

The official name of Mount Everest is Sagarmatha (Goddess of the Sky), but hardly anyone uses it. It was named by Andrew Waugh, the Surveyor General of India, after his predecessor, George Everest. Everest, in fact, was not in favour of this naming, believing it was important to use local names.

Since the time Tenzing Sherpa and Edmund Hillary reached the 29,029 feet (8848 meters) summit in 1953, the climb has become one of the most aspirational, superhuman, daredevil challenges.

Most climbers prefer the South side approach (Nepal) rather than the North (Tibet). From Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital bustling with foreigners, mountaineers take a short flight to Lukla, then trek about 10 days to reach the Everest base camp at 17,500 feet. In spring, they spend a few weeks there to acclimatize to the altitude, go on day treks, rest, hydrate, and start for the summit in May.

An equally great challenge is arranging finances. A permit for Everest costs $11000. But that’s not all. A foreign mountaineer needs to spend $60000-$70000 if he dreams of making the ascent. Other than the permit, you pay the wages of the Sherpa guides, porters, kitchen staff, transport, hotels and food.

Nepal is one of the poorest countries, the average wage is $3 a day. Everest is a key source of income. Considering the treacherous climb, there should be some criteria for age, fitness and experience. However, the Nepal government hands over permits to anyone who pays. Dubious adventure companies take untrained climbers. 2019 was a boom year for Nepal. It earned $ 2 billion from tourism. A million Nepalese including pilots, porters, Sherpas and cooks were employed in tourism. It was also the deadliest season when at least 11 deaths were reported in May 2019.

Out of the nearly 5000 people who reached the top since 1953, more than 300 have perished. 200 of those bodies are still scattered on Everest. The subzero temperatures preserve the bodies for years. The body of George Mallory, an English mountaineer, who disappeared in 1924, was found in 1999. Morbid as it may sound, several well-known bodies now serve as milestones. (One corpse is called Green Boots). This is because getting the frozen bodies back is a greater challenge. I recommend an extraordinarily poignant NYT story “Deliverance from 27000 feet” that describes the Sherpa attempt to bring back the body of an Indian climber several months after his death.

The unregulated permit regime has resulted in making the climb more dangerous. One climber described the long chain of climbers pushing and shoving one another to take selfies. Some 20 people standing on a surface the size of two ping-pong tables. Because of the crowding, people wait for hours in line, chest to chest, on an icy, rocky ridge. This climber stepped around the body of a woman who had just died. Climbers complain of theft and heaps of trash on the mountain. Sherpas say some deaths occur because the long lines prevent the climbers from replenishing oxygen supply. The government inspectors found many oxygen cylinders were leaking, exploding or improperly filled in the black market.

Obviously, there are no cops at the top of the mountain to keep an eye.

*****

Despite the criticism, the Nepali government issued a record number of permits last year. 2020 was declared as the “Visit Nepal Year”. The government had an ambitious plan of doubling the number of tourists to 2 million.

On 12 March 2020, fearing the novel coronavirus, Nepal closed its borders, and all peaks including Mount Everest.

*****

(To be continued tomorrow.)

Ravi 

Corona Daily 277: The “American” Rule

Today, the American elections are top of mind. Here is a covid-19 related US election story.

As you know, America elects not only a president, but senators, representatives and many others. David Andahl, 55, of Bismarck, North Dakota, was a Republican candidate for the State Legislature. A rancher and a land developer, he was keen to succeed as a politician. He had worked hard, and in a competitive primary election in June, defeated an incumbent republican to qualify for the November election.

His Facebook entry talked about his chairing the county planning commission for sixteen years. He promised to bring the same commitment to the legislature. He would appreciate the voters’ support. On 1 October, David Andahl fell ill with Covid-19. He was hospitalized. His last FB entry was on 4 October. On 5 October he died. His mother later said he was very careful about the virus. She didn’t know where he contracted it from. His funeral took place on 14 October. In his obituary, he was described as a compassionate, generous, ambitious, and inviting soul.

*****

The Attorney General’s legal advice was sought. What should be done when the Republican party candidate has died?

It was too late, everyone agreed, to change the ballot papers. For early voting, they were already sent with the dead man’s name. One can’t simply change and reprint ballot papers so close to the election.

The attorney general sent a considered opinion. He talked about the “American” Rule upheld by the courts. The ”American” Rule holds that (1) the purpose of an election is to carry out the will of the people (2) votes for a dead candidate represent a choice by qualified voters among the options on the ballot (3) to disregard such votes is to frustrate the popular will and therefore (4) votes for the dead candidates should be counted like any other votes.

In short, David Andahl, though dead, must be on the ballot paper as if nothing has happened, voters may or may not vote for him as if he was alive, and votes for him must be counted as if he was alive.

*****

The skeptics pointed to the provision in the constitution, which said the candidate must be a North Dakota resident on the election day. The Republicans and Democrats argued whether Andahl ceased to be a resident simply because he ceased to be alive. He was freshly lying in a cemetery in his constituency.

Another faction argued about what “election day” meant. In America, election day was more like election month. Was it when the ballots were sent, was it when the mail-in voting started, or the actual election day?

The debates went on for so long, it was 3 November. David Andahl continued to be the Republican candidate on the ballot.

*****

Why is it called the ‘American’ rule? To distinguish it from the ‘English’ Rule which American judges have criticized. In England, if a candidate dies any time before declaring the results, the votes given to him are null and void.

In the UK, if a party candidate dies, that election is cancelled, and after a replacement, held after 28 days. If an independent candidate dies, he continues to be on the ballot paper, but votes given to him are ignored. The UK rules also explicitly state that a dead candidate is not allowed to take his/her place in the House of Commons.

*****

USA managed to declare many winners today, among them was David Andahl, who defeated the democratic opposition handsomely.

As the “American” rule prescribes in such situations, David Andahl was declared as the winner to respect the will of the voters.

The result is a vacancy in the office.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 278: Life becomes Spicy

In 2020, it is difficult to find businesses that are truly booming. But the global market for spices has dramatically grown this year.

More meals are now prepared at home. People, even singles, are cooking and baking at home. Spices and herbs make food tastier and often healthier. Young or first-time cooks want to experiment with something more than salt and pepper. Like yoga and aerobics, cooking advice is now available on YouTube from any part of the world. Consumption of spices, seasonings, marinades and rubs has gone up by 50% in some western countries. In one of the world’s largest spice companies in Hunt Valley, Maryland, USA; dry recipe mixes, mustard, hot wing sauce, and barbecue sauces have reached record sales. Buyers are willing to pay a premium for new flavours and ethnic spices.

Much of the increase has been accounted for by breakfast and lunch, two meals eaten out by many working people. Instead of rushing into a standing café or an office canteen, households now have more time. More attention is given to preparing breakfast and lunch. North America and Europe have realized how their meals can be enriched by Indian, Mexican, Italian or Chinese cuisines. (It’s unbearable to eat sandwiches and chips every day in a lockdown). The English talk of Tandoori chicken and Curry as if they were English recipes. Many companies are now selling ready-to-cook spice mixes, offering exotic fusion flavours.

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The global spice market was $13.77 billion in 2019. India is the largest producer, consumer and exporter. Ginger, cinnamon, pepper, cumin, turmeric, cardamom, coriander, cloves, mint, parsley, oregano… who can read this list without salivating? Ayurveda, India’s alternative medicine, talks about the health benefits of spices. Spices are said to have anti-oxidant properties. Cumin is anti-septic and turmeric helps against Alzheimer’s and joint inflammation. These benefits may be real or imagined. But that has become an important issue in virus times. Indians, depending on their WhatsApp groups, consume garlic, hot peppers, boiled ginger, bitter gourd juice, turmeric, neem leaves to boost immunity against the coronavirus.

Asafetida (Hing in Indian languages) has an overwhelming aroma. It is India’s answer to Japanese Umami. Hing is considered good for health as well. India consumes 40% of the world’s hing, and all of it is imported from Afghanistan, Iran, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

It took a pandemic for Indians to realise they should start producing it locally. Last month, the first hing saplings were planted in Himachal Pradesh, in the region of the Himalayas.

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The spice market growth could have been higher, but for packaging materials. In America and Europe, consumers buy spices in small plastic bottles. The lead times for jugs, shakers, bags, plastic tubs, glass jars, plastic containers are stretched to two to three months. Corrugated packaging for gift sets is taking even longer. This logistical problem is faced by several industries. USA has too much beer and soda, but is short by 10 million cans.

Maybe this can teach the western shopper to go to a neighbourhood shop and buy spices from large gunny bags, the way it is done in Asia.

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I wondered why the sales of spices have grown so dramatically just because people have started eating in. The logical conclusion is that when we eat out, restaurants and other places don’t use as many spices as we use at home.

In this respect, we should be happy the pandemic will last a couple of years. That will allow Europe and America to cultivate a taste for good and healthy spices. This benefit will outlast the pandemic. Is life worth living without exotic spicy food?

Ravi