Of terrorists and other awful things.

Two weeks ago, this time, I was in Chicago with friends, all sitting around a TV. We were watching CNN-IBN's live coverage of the Mumbai terrorist attacks. All the talk was that this time, "they" have stepped too far. But have they? Our country has been bleeding for a long time, longer than most people remember. Remember the 1993 blasts? All that changed this time was that they wanted some really worldwide attention, and they clearly have it. But even two years ago, when terrorists set off almost simultaneous bombs in the Mumbai train system, more than 200 people died: the death toll was higher. But the difference is that they were commoners. "Aam junta", as people would describe it. No one cared enough on the worldwide stage. But this time around, they took hostages at the Taj and other posh places. That did get their attention.