Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Scripted in the USA- " Thou shall be liable"


This is something that may come up in Wikileaks a few years from now.


Scene -1

The Ministry of public health and safety Government of Japan, Tokyo.

Bureaucrats and the cabinet minister are huddled around the conference table. Officials from the Ministry of energy are also standing around with devastated looks. The camera zooms into the middle aged man seated at the head of table. He is wearing a black suit with gold crested buttons. He is the only person at the crowded table who seems to be relaxed and gay.

The camera cuts and moves to focus the huge video screen at the far corner.

Scene -2 to interlay with scene 1
And it is the General Electric HQ in Connecticut USA

GE officials are cloistered in the brain storming room of the headquarters and are in video conference via satellite with the ministry officials in Tokyo. The GE officials are all grim faced.

Cut to the cabinet minister in Tokyo
Minister displays an exasperated look
“Gentlemen, to you guys in the USA, we have explained the terrible problem of radiation we have on hand here in Japan. All your lousy reactors have gone broke and are sending out toxic fumes. If this goes like this we will not have any edible blue finned tuna to consign you and no more sushis. No great sharks to slice the fins for soup, and no mink whales to hunt for hamburgers. We are already running out of birds that nest here in Japan and so no more 'bird- nest -soup' for us."..

Cut- to the GE HQ on the video screen
GE chairman beseeching and pleading - “Sir you must understand the stringent quality we maintain in all reactors manufactured here. Though we have dual standards that are adopted one for the reactors to be used here in USA and the other for export to the third world. Shhhh now Sir this is off the record please. But believe me the ones we sent you are better than and not as bad as the ones we are holding for shipments to India”.

Cut- to the Cabinet minister- “Ok CEO now this is getting a bit too far. Let me ask in simple English you guys stole from the English.When can we expect the accident liability compensation from you?”

-Cut to the GE CEO
 Sir, I implore you, please you must accept a reduced level of compensation. You see like the General Motors we are just about limping back from economic crisis. And a hefty compensation claim will put us out. You see my friend Anderson at the Union Carbide paid only $ 400 million to the blokes who got gassed by his company in Bhopal India. And that as well after twenty odd years!

Cut- Camera zooms into the cabinet minister in Tokyo-


“Look, you stupid, your good old George Bush had ensured that the liability in case of accidents on the reactors you send to India will only be pea nut skins. And that foolish Indian Sardar has signed the dotted line. Why do you fret then? You can add some of the liability you will not pay to India into our account. In any case we have an agreement that the USA will clean up the mess should it ever happen. You know that”.

Cut- camera zooms in to the video screen

The CEO displays a face of relief. And says grace to George W Bush.       



10 comments:

Insignia said...

That was one hell of an imagination. Yet it could be true isnt it?

Sad for the people, sad for all of us.

Shilpa Garg said...

Felt I was reading a thriller! Awesome description and narration.
Anything is possible now a days... so who knows!!??!!

Balachandran V said...

Wikileaks? What difference has it made? They even put Assange in jail as the criminals go around their usual business. Regurgitating vomit, thats what it is. Nothing is going to change the world.

dr.antony said...

Anil
You are getting too many dreams these days !
Did you two meet with our friend Glenlevit?

anilkurup59 said...

@ insignia,
B it is not imagination per se, it can be the fact and the likelihood.
The question over the limited liability clause Manmohan Singh signed has not been reasoned out by the government. And imagine the haste he showed in pushing the bill through in parliament.

anilkurup59 said...

@ Shilpa Garg

I hope that we will not have a painful thriller to live with in real time with all these grand agenda for nuclear power.

anilkurup59 said...

@ Balan,
Now you are turning cynical ?
Change, it may not. But hit the nail when ever and which ever way we can.

anilkurup59 said...

@ doc antony,

Now mentioning the elixir you are putting me in forlorn mood. No , no Glenlevit . The dreams as you call it are sans Glenlevit.

Happy Kitten said...

You have indeed hit the nail!
Wish more would think this way.. but then they keep quiet fearing that they would be labeled conservatives or even fools.

anilkurup59 said...

@ happy kitten,

The nuclear reactor deal is perhaps an underwriting from our government that the suppliers will not be liable for any damage that can happen or that their liabilities will be limited.
Our elected government has leased away the fundamental right of every Indian and that of posterity.

And conservatism is not foolery. In certain matters like finance for instance - look at what the so called innovative Banking practices have done to financial establishments in the West