Wow! Haven’t we as a nation mastered the art of pretending normalcy? You know, that art of putting on a straight face and saying, “Everything’s fine!” Even when our world is going up in flames? It’s like we are in a small boat in the middle of a storm, and…
Robert Clements is a journalist and newspaper columnist. With an estimated 6 million readership, his column, Bob’s Banter is published in over 30 newspapers and magazines in nearly every state in India, as well as in the top newspapers of Bangladesh, London and Dubai and is also translated into Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.
Admit When Wrong..!
One night while watching George C. Scott acting as a New York cop in an old movie my thoughts went back many decades when dad had taken my brother and me to see the movie ‘Patton.’ I hero worshipped the General as he won battle after battle for the allied…
Divide Them-You Fall..!
As I hear about roads being renamed and unjust laws being passed, let it be noted, there’s a curious thing about governments that thrive on dividing people: they rarely survive long enough to enjoy the fruits of their mischief. History has a knack for toppling rulers who think they can…
Tapping and Nudging..!
Something that happens during our wet monsoons is the stubborn defiance of jammed doors, unyielding windows, and cupboard drawers with an attitude that could put the most obstinate of politicians to shame. We pull, push, heave, haul, and hoist, only to be met with rigid resistance, quite akin to an…
An India We Would Hate to Leave..!
Some of the reactions by our own people, about the deportees from America, were hilarious and ridiculous. Some cursed them, others ridiculed them and many laughed at them. But…. I know that most of these same people who reacted thus, if told they could go and settle in America would…
I Knew You’d Fix It…!
John believed engines made more sense than people. As a mechanic, he found comfort in gears, bolts, and oil-stained overalls. Machines were predictable; God, on the other hand, was a concept he had long discarded—somewhere between his business failing and the moment he realized no divine hand was coming down…
Shut Up, after they are Gone..!
Very often during funerals, I hear speaker after speaker giving lengthy eulogies about the boldness or courage of the man or woman who is to be buried or cremated. As I listen to them speak, and knowing how that dead person stood very often alone in adversity, I wonder why…
Entry Refused.!
As I watch Trump disallowing outsiders into his turf, I wonder why those who want to go to his land of milk and honey don’t make their own country, as good or better, so they can say, “Ours is now better than yours sir!” I imagined a day like that:…
Look Beyond the Lie..!
Very often I hear men and women telling me, “For me there is only black and white, it’s either a truth or a lie!” While I respect such people, and feel it’s commendable to be that way, I also see that many of them live miserable lives! Why? Because they…
Behind the Manipur Toothpicks…!
As I hear about the chief minister of Manipur finally resigning, a sad picture comes to my mind, of a thin fellow leading a woman who is scantily clad, along the road somewhere in Manipur. We hear that he finally raped and killed her. A skinny fellow as thin as…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.