Lets look at the papers shall we?

After yesterday's stunning announcement by ET that broadband was free, which somehow it isn't, lets see what the papers had to say today. Firstly, both the ToI and HT carried the same lead pic, and I saw that Basu made the flyer of the Times, with a story I am still trying to fucking decipher. The legalese was lost on me. Then I was just reading Today where some girl named Divya Jha has no clue of Literature and just printed that Brecht wrote Antigone. Google, google, google. Antigone incidentally was written as the finale (but in George Lucas fashion was actually first in the timeline) to the Oedipus trilogy by a guy named Sophocles.
The ET annoucement was peculiar, 'Free' for me means 'No fucking money out of my wallet whatsoever", which somehow is beyond the comprehension of telecom journalists. This 'Free' service from MTNL would cost a whopping Rs 2/MB. That people is a rip-off. Just typing this page would be a few MB, and the way I work I use a lot of bandwidth, at Rs 2 a meg I'll be down at least five grand for the month. Idiot. But then again, Economic Times is by far and away the worst of all Jain and Jain Company Limited when it comes to truth bending, the mother paper doesn't even come close.
But, lets look at the Express, no thats the job of The Spindian Express, which does a far better job than me. But, another telecom correspondent in the Express today tried to say that TRAI shouldn't give bandwidth away free. Maybe, but honestly isn'ty the government already making money from revenue sharing. I think 3G-type services are still a long way away. What will happen is happen though soon is the addition of 3G-style network compression - more calls on less bandwidth. Now, that said, telecom companies are getting away giving shitty service, godawful customer care and then making Rs 1400 crore in profits (like Mr Mittal). Only Hutch is a semi-decent operator, Airtel sucks on mobile (but I have few problems with their DSL service - no pain no worry - other than that time I tried to change my bill plan but then I ended up pulling out rank. There have to some advantages to being a biz journo). No Idea about Idea.
Now, there is old employer - HT. Hmmm... Lets see, stupid FM adverts, stupid TV adverts, stupid campaign and stupid news. Really, I know half the bleeding ass liberal bloggers in this country hate Jain and Jain Company Limited, I mean Desi Media Bitch has a single point agenda against them, but none of those fuckers have worked in HT. I have never witnessed a culture of corruption so ingrained in a newspaper, and after spending time in that culture, where it was alright to take any 'gifts', 'freebies' or 'junkets' that came your way, where the former editor wanted to fuck anything with boobs, Times felt like manna, and ethically, they are far beter. I mean Jojo and ASG are clean to a fault. I know HT has changed, but their concept of news hasn't, no harm intended Nag, but really I think HT comes very close to carrying the maximum permissable amount of foreign content. Lots of pictures, no news. That said, HT City is now better than Delhi Times in terms of presentation, but I still think Today is bitchier, but other than a few writers, the afternooner is quite sad.
Anyways, on my way to work today I was hearing a lot of U2, and I started to wonder who the hell was the first guy to think that With or Without You, was a love song. Just look at the lyrics.

See the stone set in your eyes
See the thorn twist in your side
I wait for you

Sleight of hand and twist of fate
On a bed of nails she makes me wait
And I wait without you

With or without you
With or without you

Through the storm we reach the shore
You give it all but I want more
And I'm waiting for you

With or without you
With or without you
I can't live
With or without you

And you give yourself away
And you give yourself away
And you give
And you give
And you give yourself away

My hands are tied
My body bruised, she's got me with
Nothing to win and
Nothing left to lose

And you give yourself away
And you give yourself away
And you give
And you give
And you give yourself away

With or without you
With or without you
I can't live
With or without you

With or without you
With or without you
I can't live
With or without you
With or without you

Love song? Or song of despair? I am still trying to a figure out. Because U2 is the top gospel rock band of all time, they may not sound like it, but there is a surpringly huge amount of Christian whatdoyoucallit ... thoughts and ideals scattered across their songs. Pay attention, the amount of times the songs direct their message to the man up there. Anyway, I was thinking that its even stranger that U2 other than Adam Clayton (who sexuality is suspect anyway!) are Protestant. I mean an Irish Protestant gospel rock band. Ironic.
Anyway, will go eat lunch, because I'm rather hungry right now.