Democracy is the ultimate pragmatic system possible. Socialism and capitalism both are ideal and can never be completely achieved in the real world. Democracy smoothens out the sharp transition between the capitalism and socialism and achieve the maximally possible efficiency in inherently imperfect society.

When people talk about socialism as the thing of the past and give Russia and Eastern Europe as examples of its failure and capitalism as the panacea for every possible problem and give US and modern Europe as the examples, then they appear like bunch of fools. Capitalism and socialism both hate democracy. Despite high level propoganda, freedom and sovereignty is not loved in US, and in imperfect capitalist society where big corporations have more say than the common people whose lives are at stake, democracy is never welcom. In the imperfect capitalism, it is the big coroporations that have huge chunk of market share to loose when completely democratic market is allowed. In socialism, full democracy threatens the existence of central authority itself. Democracy on the other hand socialist as well as capitalist at the same time. Whatever depending upon the time circumstances is good for the society is chosen not based upon its idealistic value, but simply as its pragmatic value.

What do I think of Prchanda's interview with BBB reporter Charles Haviland (link)? I am asking myself. Couple of days ago when I read their (with Baburam Bhattarai on his side) interview, I wrote they were sincerely coming forward for peace this time. I say the same thing this time again.

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is how people talk about Maoist atrocities. Even some of the most apolitical person you can imagine, when given ,an ear, starts to talk like he (my use of 'he' is intentional here, because predominantly these kind of smart alecks are male) is an expert in this matter. He knows everything from Nepalese class and caste structures, underlying background of the Maoist insurgency, everything about Nepalese political leaders, democracy, constitution, and every other thing that is remotely somehow connected with this. He talks about the need for Maoists to stop everything and come for peaceful protest. Wow!!! At those moments I sometime feel I donot know anything. For sometime I have trying to untangle to web of global interrelationships because I believe that we cannot decide by ourselves about what kind of political structure we want to have in Nepal. Or may be, I shouldn't say 'we cannot' because we have to have our own kind of political structure, but rather say 'we have to take into account the existence of other bigger dogs in global political arena who might have some interest in us and work out some solution in concert with them.' Prachand, in the interview, has pointed out the military support our R[sic]NA got from US, UK, and India, among other countries.

It is no longer possible to isolate ourselves from rest of the world and workout our own solution. Don't worry about other, this is not even viable for ourselves. This is a networked world now and we have to find our place in this vast financial, economical, cultural, and political interconnection. No country is isolated anymore. What happens in one place has effect everywhere. Recent Danish cartoon about Prophet Mohammad is such an example. Some Danish newspaper published 'seemingly innocuous' cartoon of Prophet Mohammad, muslims all over the world came out on the street. This 'seemingly innocuous' cartoon was actually not so innocuous after all. Many people died.

I am glad such interconnection is acknowledged by party supremo of CPN(Maoist). That is the way to go.

How do you find out the true parents of a child? King Solomon's idea was to try to divide the child in half by cutting it from the middle. If one of the parents asked to stop it, then that would be the real parents.

Why did I bring King Solomon's story in this post? Well, I just read Prachanda and Baburam's interview in Kantipur online. Tone of their responses, content of what they said, and how they responded to some of questions, made me wonder. When King and all his men are moving ahead trying to cut the child in half, these people who have been fighting for their own ideologies since more than a decade now come forward and say 'Look we don't want the control. Just stop it. It's enough. Enough blood has already been shed. In stead lets go to the people. Whatever they say we will accept.' I think that shows true courage to say that. I don't think there was any hidden agenda behind all that and I believe they are truly fighting for the cause.

Now, we have a child (Nepal) and two parents (The King and the rest) claiming to its true parent. Who is the King Solomon now?