New post?

I have been told that "I suck" because I haven't posted anything in a while! There you go you unhappy creature .....

Respect

Recently I became aware that someone dug through my blog posts to get a better understanding of me and my psyche and in that process found out that I might be agnostic and "hence" may not have respect for their religious belief system no matter how little sense it may make. That "hence" above has been troubling me.

1. I can not really wrap my mind around the idea that how mine not agreeing with anyone belief system could be disrespectful to them when at the same time them not believing in the same things as me is not disrespectful to mine?
2. Respect is not something which could be demanded. Many autocrats and despots have demanded respect through blade of sword, barrel of guns or threat to life and liberty and they have all failed. Respect is something which needs to be earned. It is not automatic. If one wants my respect for their beliefs then the quickest way to do it is if they be equally respectful to mine and that is probably only way it is going to work.
3. If you want to prevail upon me in matters of beliefs using false arguments then I am ready for a no hold barred debate as well where I WILL call out every argument one tries to make such as "because I believe in something or read it somewhere that is why it has be true" as a specious and farcical argument.
4. If one fails in persuading me with one's farcical arguments and as a last resort tell me that he/ she will pray for me then I consider that a lack or respect for my positions on their part hence they would get no respect from me either.

Having said that let me be clear, I have nothing against your religion or your religious beliefs as long as you keep them to yourself. As a matter of fact, I have nothing against any religion if it helps someone in finding the right path, taking moral decisions and becoming a good person in general. All power to you if religion and your religious beliefs helps you in anyway in becoming a good person but please do not go out and try to evangelize me or others thumping your chest or discriminate against others if they do not have the same religious beliefs as yours. That is not helping your cause!

More on free speech

Another amazing article worth being read. The article is titled "Despite the Riots and Threats, I Stand By What I Wrote". It was written by Johann Hari and first published in Huffington Post. Here is an excerpt from the article...

... Every word I wrote was true. I believe the right to openly discuss religion, and follow the facts wherever they lead us, is one of the most precious on earth -- especially in a democracy of a billion people riven with streaks of fanaticism from a minority of Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs. So I cannot and will not apologize.

...The protesters said I deliberately set out to "offend" them, and I am supposed to say that, no, no offence was intended. But the honest truth is more complicated. Offending fundamentalists isn't my goal -- but if it is an inevitable side-effect of defending human rights, so be it. If fanatics who believe Muslim women should be imprisoned in their homes and gay people should be killed are insulted by my arguments, I don't resile from it. Nothing worth saying is inoffensive to everyone.

...The argument that I was "asking for it" seems a little like saying a woman wearing a short skirt is "asking" to be raped. Or, as Salman Rushdie wrote when he received far, far worse threats simply for writing a novel (and a masterpiece at that): "When Osip Mandelstam wrote his poem against Stalin, did he 'know what he was doing' and so deserve his death? When the students filled Tiananmen Square to ask for freedom, were they not also, and knowingly, asking for the murderous repression that resulted? When Terry Waite was taken hostage, hadn't he been 'asking for it'?" When fanatics threaten violence against people who simply use words, you should not blame the victim.

The solution to the problems of free speech -- that sometimes people will say terrible things -- are always and irreducibly more free speech. If you don't like what a person says, argue back. Make a better case. Persuade people. The best way to discredit a bad argument is to let people hear it. I recently interviewed the pseudo-historian David Irving, and simply quoting his crazy arguments did far more harm to him than any Austrian jail sentence for Holocaust Denial.

Hushed into silence

This is pretty much the best article that I have read about freedom of speech. Here is the link to it. It was written by Kenan Malik and published in Outlook India News Magzine. He asks the question if it is morally unacceptable to cause offense to other culture? Why is freedom of speech important and and why should we not be hushed into silence by religious far right. It is a pretty good read.

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Update: How cool is it that Kenan Malik would himself check my blog after I wrote this post?!!

It turned out if you had searched for "Hushed into silence" on google, my page used to come as the second result on it but that is not the case anymore.

Looks like Outlook requires a subscription to read older articles. Here is an alternative link for reading "Hushed into silence".

Installation of Java-VTK on windows xp

In my quest for creating a binary distribution of Java-VTK I am facing a lot of pain and have decided to create a DIY for the benefit of humankind. Here is a partial list of what you need to do in this quest.

1. Install the latest version of Java Development kit (JDK)
2. Install Visual C++ Express Edition, complete Visual Studio Express Edition 2005 or 2008 version whichever you fancy most. It will require windows genuine check and a lot of other hoops to jump through.
3. Install Microsoft Platform Windows Server SDK II. It will require windows genuine check and a lot of other hoops. Make sure you follow the instructions given on this page to the last detail. To save time during web-install uncheck all the documentation and example option. that should bring down the download size from a horrendous 1.2 gb to somewhere around 80mb.
4. Install the latest version of CMake (2.4.5 or higher)
5. Download the latest version of Eclipse.
6. Download source code for VTK library from its website www.vtk.org
7. Now follow the instructions given in this file. The writer's instructions regarding cmake options are incomplete. You may have to change the java path as well as java virtual machine library path for complete compilation in the later stages.

Note: If you do not have installation privilege on your windows machine then none of this is possible.