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Why I’m Going to India

155 points by denzil_correa 13y ago

marcosscriven 13y ago
While what he's doing is obviously good, I am uneasy with the whole idea that one man accumulates so much wealth in the first place, and then decides as an unelected individual what's best for a country. Having said that, I'm not sure i have a particularly good answer to this conundrum.
- jisaacstone 13y ago
  Neither being elected nor success in business necessarily qualifies someone to decide what it best for a country. And I don't consider one worse than the other, each will be biased in a different way.
  - russgray 13y ago
    Out of interest, what does qualify someone to decide what is best for a country?
- GauntletWizard 13y ago
  I'm fairly uncomfortable that one elected individual with a fairly small majority and a rapidly declining approval rating can decide what is best for a country. Consolidation of power is the problem; not the method by which it is acquired.
  - lmm 13y ago
    And yet a committee of hundreds is if anything worse (I'd certainly trust any one of my representatives individually over the full house), and some decisions really do need to be made at the national level.
- kiba 13y ago
  Who care if he represents nobody if he do good for humanity? There are lot of people in this world that represent a people and they're rotten. Think about the representatives that you elect to represent your district. By default, they only represent the interest of your district, but not for the greater good of everyone. Otherwise, they get booted out of office for failure to do their job. Bill Gate can afford to care about poor people, because he doesn't have to answer to anyone. It's not his job to care for India versus the United States. It's not his job to hate China. It's not his job to ensure 25 years in technological advantages against America's enemies.
- znowi 13y ago
  You think philanthropy is an evil conspiracy of the wealthy? :)
- sharkweek 13y ago
  It took me a while to understand this thinking but deep down I end up agreeing -- this "billionaire with a heart of gold" is far too familiar to the old thought of "I hope the king is just." We far too often end up with billionaires using their money to fund an art museum or ballet for rich people in the name of charity (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/30/100830fa_fact_mayer http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/30/100830fa_fact_...). Living in Seattle, I have several friends who work for the BMGF and there is no doubt they are doing amazing things in the world, but the cynic in me still struggles with the idea that a private citizen is deciding how and where to help. Not like I particularly trust the state to handle these decisions either though, so I am normally left scratching my head and just trying to appreciate the good that Gates is ultimately doing.
  - harichinnan 13y ago
    I think India needs the exact opposite of Bill Gates. We need more people who could industrialize India fast, employ masses of people and take us on par with China,Japan or Korea. India's political parties are left leaning and try to create Europe styled social safety nets. We need more libertarians and rich lobbyists and more copies of Ayn Rand to change the anti - laissez faire policies we have. It's still easy to start a Delaware C corp over internet from India than to register for a local corporation in most states.
  - MartinCron 13y ago
    We far too often end up with billionaires using their money to fund an art museum or ballet for billionaires in the name of charity You seem to imply that there's something wrong with funding art museums or ballet... The world needs beauty in it, and if people choose to support the arts in a way from which we all benefit, that's great.
    - sharkweek 13y ago
      I completely agree that we need beauty -- I love the concept of funding the arts, but there have to be priorities and we should not rely on the rich to make decisions like this in the name of charity. I quoted it lower in the thread, but I LOVE the poem by Gil Scott-Heron "Whitey on the moon" -- "A rat done bit my sister Nell, with Whitey on the moon"
- skaevola 13y ago
  People voluntarily gave their wealth to him.
  - rjbond3rd 13y ago
    Do you mean people who bought MS software, or other billionaires like Warren Buffet who gave money to the Gates Foundation?
  - lmm 13y ago
    He was able to acquire wealth because he was able to take risks that most people wouldn't, because of his wealthy background. And if you trace back far enough, most old-money families acquired their wealth through violence (or at least the patronage of a ruler who acquired their wealth by force).
- dmethvin 13y ago
  As if elected officials have the best interests of the poor in mind? I suppose they do, but only to the extent that they need those votes. Whether the goal of the Gates Foundation is simply to redeem the image of Microsoft's founder or not, it's doing great things for the downtrodden of the world. Perhaps that's what people like Nobel and Carnegie had in mind as well, cleaning up their PR image. But that's the cynic's view. If you listen to Bill Gates speak, he honestly sounds like someone who believes what he is saying and backs it up with money. As a rich man he certainly has other options. He can give a hearty "fuck you" or even a dismissive "I don't care" to the world and take his money to do whatever he wants. You know, like Larry Ellison or dozens of other people who've made their fortunes off the public.
- statictype 13y ago
  Having said that, I'm not sure i have a particularly good answer to this conundrum. Well, let us know if you do. The speculative opinions of message board nerds is as important as someone who became wealthy and is putting his money where his mouth is.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
chris_mahan 13y ago
Uh, there's plenty of poor people in America. There are kids at my son's elementary school who don't have enough food. In Los Angeles. In California.
- cinquemb 13y ago
  Maybe one day a Chinese billionaire will show up and help solve the issues surrounding the food desert/insecurity present in LA?
- blinkingled 13y ago
  You haven't seen real poverty then. Go visit India someday. (Hint: You will find kids that have to work, beg, get abused just so they can eat once, often rotten or throw away food. Forget clothes, forget school, forget sanitation, forget having even some kind of roof on the head and blanket to sleep.) Besides I am not sure bringing nationalism into charity is classy or even logical - given Bill Gates is spending his own money as opposed to tax payer one or national funds.
- knocknock 13y ago
  If there's a chance to help more lives elsewhere I think he should do it. Why should he limit himself to America? I don't really understand what you're trying to get at with this comment.
  - chris_mahan 13y ago
    I just want to point out that there are very poor, desperately poor people in America, and that perhaps his statement "But we don’t have everyday experience with the problems of the poorest. We don’t see people living in extreme poverty next door or pass by them in a slum down the street. " might lead some to think otherwise. Yes, there are worse places, and while I've never traveled to Mumbai, I do know people who live there, and there are plenty of people with money there, and it's not all slums. There are rich everywhere, and there are poor everywhere. The reasons for poverty are diverse. It's not: America is rich and India is poor as he seems to show. But what do I know...
curiousDog 13y ago
Mr.Gates is obviously doing this with good intentions, I'm not sure how much this is going to actually help India though. Having lived in both places, I think India and Africa pretty much have the same deep-rooted culture/religion problem of ignorance, corruption and generally not giving a shit about others. Throwing tons of aid at them isn't going to solve anything. This sort of culture has been accumulated over centuries and isn't going to go away anytime soon. In India, we could actually start with trying to emulate Scandinavian countries considering the number of educated folks we have, but that probably isn't going to scale. Mr.Gates is trying to solve a NP-hard problem here.
- denzil_correa 13y ago
  > I think India and Africa pretty much have the same deep-rooted culture/religion problem of ignorance, corruption and generally not giving a shit about others. >This sort of culture has been accumulated over centuries and isn't going to go away anytime soon. I agree with the overall sentiment in your post. Some more explanation about the culture in India which is accumulated over "centuries" would be nice. Which centuries are we talking about?
  - harichinnan 13y ago
    Caste System(More like Racism. Keeping groups of people away from economic opportunity), Families where people have been desperately poor for generations(poor people create more kids on average and most of them end of poor and desperate)... 100's or millions with no primary education/even literacy...
    - statictype 13y ago
      Can you give me examples of this caste system probem? After actually living in India for some time - my impression has been the opposite - overzealous affirmative action
      - phaus 13y ago
        If you're in a position where you even have to submit a resume or deal with an organization that even knows what affirmative action is, you are already in a better caste than the majority of India.
narrator 13y ago
If he's like most westerners who go to India the first thing he's going to say is that these people should learn to use toilets and not throw their trash in the street.
- scdoshi 13y ago
  He's been to India a few times now, so I would imagine he's no stranger to the problems there.
- pekk 13y ago
  Do those people have nice strong flush toilets in their houses? Regular sanitation service they can afford? Are there third parties which go around cleaning up? Once these things are in place like in the developed world then you are entitled to blame their personal behavior for the problem.
tn13 13y ago
Bill Gate's work is amazing but yet the same I wonder why is he meeting people like Amir Khan who are nothing but hypocrites. I am pretty sure Gates will figure out this on his own. :P
kailuowang 13y ago
If seeing how the poorest live is the purpose of this trip, I am not quite sure I understand why meeting Aamir Khan, the Bollywood star, is a highlight of it and the only one that has a picture in the beautiful poster. What I do sense there is a little bit heroism - he feels like a superhero(and justly so). It's just interesting that every time I hear about Gate's foundation and the wonderful stuff they did, there were also some other high profile name mentioned, be it Warren Buffet or Mark Zuckerberg. Maybe it feels even better to work with other people who also has super hero power? PS: I have nothing against that mentality. It's just that now I realized it I am more curious about it.
- denzil_correa 13y ago
  > If seeing how the poorest live is the purpose of this trip, I am not quite sure I understand why meeting Aamir Khan, the Bollywood star, is a highlight of it and the only one that has a picture in the beautiful poster. To understand this, you may want to look into Aamir's show titled "Satyamev Jayate" [0]. Each episode of the show picks up various issues from healthcare, female foeticide to manual scavenging. All episodes of the show are also available online on Youtube (I assume). [0] http://www.satyamevjayate.in http://www.satyamevjayate.in
- tokenadult 13y ago
  I was startled by the mention of Aamir Khan (who I first learned about by watching the movie Three Idiots) until I did some looking up. I see that Khan is now a social activist, and he has recently been designated a program "ambassador" by UNESCO. Khan apparently cares about his country and its problems, and is using his star power to promote change. http://movies.ndtv.com/bollywood/aamir-khan-on-time-cover-as-india-s-first-superstar-activist-261185 http://movies.ndtv.com/bollywood/aamir-khan-on-time-cover-as... http://time100.time.com/2013/04/18/time-100/slide/aamir-khan/ http://time100.time.com/2013/04/18/time-100/slide/aamir-khan... http://www.hindustantimes.com/photos-news/Photos-Lifestyle/aamirkhanunicef/Article4.aspx http://www.hindustantimes.com/photos-news/Photos-Lifestyle/a...
- iamshs 13y ago
  If I understand it correctly, Aamir Khan is one of the biggest stars of Indian Cinema and all of his movies have been hit with indian public. Another big thing is, he has been associated with a TV Show, which airs on NDTV (presumably a well known channel) and DD (India's BBC). This TV Show is about perverse social situations in Indian Society and how to make India aware of its evils at the grassroots and take eradication steps. The show has been very well received. I presume it to be a very good step, tapping into mass appeal of Indian Cinema and collaborating with an actor who has already done work in the field and understand the nuisances. For these initiatives to be successful, you have to pull force behind it. India's polio eradication schemes were massively popular because of various celebrities endorsing it day in and day out. They were the source of major line-ups at vaccination centers.
tn13 13y ago
Last time I was in Pune Gates arrived in Pune unannounced by a private plane and straight away drove to the red-light area (prostitution business area) to meet the social workers there. A lot of local politicians rushed to the place for photo ops. He had to virtually physically fight his way out from them.
- phaus 13y ago
  If they're anything like our politicians, they didn't have to rush anywhere. They were probably already in the red light.
dwc 13y ago
What's up with HN lately? It seems like being contrary to contrarian is the new thing these days. Bill Gates is someone I admired at first, because he built something huge from humble beginnings. Then I reviled him for the damage I saw him cause to the industry. Then I admired him again for the global effect he managed. He is a single person trying to do the best he knows how for humanity at large. If anyone thinks resources would better be spent in, say, LA, please earn huge loads of cash and make it happen. Much to your chagrin it might benefit someone in India as well. Bill Gates seems genuinely concerned with elevating the level of humanity as a whole, and if you oppose that? Is this a zero sum game? No, it's not.
- cinquemb 13y ago
  I wonder if people would be as vocal if he decided to buy a private island… Buy a private island, few care and those who might, will most likely fawn in amazement. Decide to take an interest in helping human beings you might not identify/associate with, welcome to the "The White-Savior Industrial Complex"[0]. [0]: http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the...
  - jlgreco 13y ago
    If he bought a private island instead of doing the charity stuff, then I imagine people would be less vocal just because he would be in the news far less often. Were he to do both, I doubt people would be less vocal. I mean, the guy has got plenty of yachts right? I don't see why an island would be much different. Dean Kamen bought an island. Few know, even fewer care, and I would say that even fewer fawn in amazement. And he acts outlandish with it! People would care even less about more dull island owners.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
  - adamdavis 13y ago
    Have you considered that perhaps he spent his career as ruthless business man as a means to an end? It's hard to make any serious change when you're at the bottom of the totem pole, or even halfway up for that matter.
aashaykumar92 13y ago
I'm seeing a lot of "What Mr. Gates is doing is great BUT [insert negatives]". Timing is everything. IMO, this is the perfect timing to start a mission such as the one Mr. Gates is. Why? Well having just been to India last year, my cousins were complaining about how India is filled with geniuses, yet very few who want to take risks (whether it be to help fix the poverty, the political system, or just start cool companies). A couple months after I got back from India (I live in the States), I was talking to my cousins and they were telling me how some cities in the south are really starting to embrace a tech culture and were trying to resemble that of Silicon Valley. And it's grown magnitudes since then; in fact, in recent months, there have been a lot of posts on HN about India's tech expansion. So Mr. Gates says it well: "To make real progress on the problems of the poorest, you need at least two ingredients: a deep understanding of the problems, and the technical ability to solve them." He probably is going there to better understand some of the problems that exist, but I bet he also understands there are a lot more people there that can help solve these problems. He's a pretty smart guy, I trust he'll actually do good on his visit and it will be constructive to India and its people.
- dwc 13y ago
  He is a pretty smart guy. He set aside some "feel good" philanthropy and seems to go straight to the heart of things. He's done a lot of good, beyond the money he brings to the table.
  - jacquesm 13y ago
    He's done a lot of damage too, and every pc that I buy that has some useless piece of windows junk on it he does just a little more.
    - lifeisstillgood 13y ago
      Oh come on, Gates is the least damaging Robber Baron we have ever seen and is the one most likely to produce meaningful impact in the robber baron second philanthropic life. It's one thing wishing that history had thrown up dedicated public servants who also ran vast software empires, but we play the hand we have been dealt. If we lose net neutrality, privacy, if the Internet is used against us, not for us, it's our fault. We can ensure the train runs on the lines we want. Sorry not meaning to have a rant, just I think gates has stopped being part of the problem now - there will be another one along, probably worse, and we need to engage. Just frustrated. I respect your posts here normally.
senorcastro 13y ago
Because everyone loves butter chicken.
droopyEyelids 13y ago
I'd really like a picture of Bill G shaking hands with someone who is basically starving in India. It'd be a picture of the richest person in the world standing with the poorest person in the world, and it'd be a cool testament to the inherent complexity of life.
- aditgupta 13y ago
  I will certainly not call it "cool"
  - droopyEyelids 13y ago
    It'd be far cooler than the conspiracy theories and assumption of malice that mediate poor and rich relations right now.
aresant 13y ago
India has some incredibly promising science in the pipeline that has the potential to change the world such as, for instance, a true male contraceptive: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/04/ff_vasectomy/ http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/04/ff_vasectomy/ I love that he highlights that he's going to "Discuss how Indian-made vaccines can save lives in other countries too. . ." Very cool - I hope that his mission helps bear light on the fact that these emerging world economic powers have much to contribute to the world besides the often reported technology-piracy.
thoughtcriminal 13y ago
Godspeed Bill!
vishnu_t 13y ago
India's problem is well - Indians. The country needs to be broken up into ethnic republics with people getting real control to take decisions for themselves. Today India is an unjust empire perpetrated from Delhi.
anuraj 13y ago
India would prosper if it is not governed like an empire from Delhi. Each ethnic state must form a republic with full autonomy and power should reach into the hands of citizenry.
androidb 13y ago
If you haven't already I urge you to watch the BBC Documentary on India: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpdoRUMeshw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpdoRUMeshw This is the first part, there are 2 more. It's an incredible journey that helps you understand better the problems they're facing.
jongraehl 13y ago
Ranbaxy is an anomaly, right? http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/business/global/ranbaxy-in-500-million-settlement-of-generic-drug-case.html http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/business/global/ranbaxy-in...
kumar_navneet 13y ago
To remove poverty providing good education is the best way which will lead to all other things like population control, erasing corruption etc.
jyothi 13y ago
Gates is finding a sample where (India) it is easy to implement solutions (knowledge of understanding, having a support system to solve the problems) and then take them to the larger audience. It is debatable if food & nutrition issue of India or Polio in India is comparable to problems in Mosambique or Brazil. It seems like the basic problems of food, shelter, hygiene, health and education are basic needs and can be solved in similar ways across the nations without having to depend on govt policies. I think this is a very sound approach. He should however pick a smaller geographical region than India.

155 points by denzil_correa 13y ago

While what he's doing is obviously good, I am uneasy with the whole idea that one man accumulates so much wealth in the first place, and then decides as an unelected individual what's best for a country. Having said that, I'm not sure i have a particularly good answer to this conundrum.

jisaacstone 13y ago
Neither being elected nor success in business necessarily qualifies someone to decide what it best for a country. And I don't consider one worse than the other, each will be biased in a different way.
- russgray 13y ago
  Out of interest, what does qualify someone to decide what is best for a country?
GauntletWizard 13y ago
I'm fairly uncomfortable that one elected individual with a fairly small majority and a rapidly declining approval rating can decide what is best for a country. Consolidation of power is the problem; not the method by which it is acquired.
- lmm 13y ago
  And yet a committee of hundreds is if anything worse (I'd certainly trust any one of my representatives individually over the full house), and some decisions really do need to be made at the national level.
kiba 13y ago
Who care if he represents nobody if he do good for humanity? There are lot of people in this world that represent a people and they're rotten. Think about the representatives that you elect to represent your district. By default, they only represent the interest of your district, but not for the greater good of everyone. Otherwise, they get booted out of office for failure to do their job. Bill Gate can afford to care about poor people, because he doesn't have to answer to anyone. It's not his job to care for India versus the United States. It's not his job to hate China. It's not his job to ensure 25 years in technological advantages against America's enemies.
znowi 13y ago
You think philanthropy is an evil conspiracy of the wealthy? :)
sharkweek 13y ago
It took me a while to understand this thinking but deep down I end up agreeing -- this "billionaire with a heart of gold" is far too familiar to the old thought of "I hope the king is just." We far too often end up with billionaires using their money to fund an art museum or ballet for rich people in the name of charity (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/30/100830fa_fact_mayer http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/30/100830fa_fact_...). Living in Seattle, I have several friends who work for the BMGF and there is no doubt they are doing amazing things in the world, but the cynic in me still struggles with the idea that a private citizen is deciding how and where to help. Not like I particularly trust the state to handle these decisions either though, so I am normally left scratching my head and just trying to appreciate the good that Gates is ultimately doing.
- harichinnan 13y ago
  I think India needs the exact opposite of Bill Gates. We need more people who could industrialize India fast, employ masses of people and take us on par with China,Japan or Korea. India's political parties are left leaning and try to create Europe styled social safety nets. We need more libertarians and rich lobbyists and more copies of Ayn Rand to change the anti - laissez faire policies we have. It's still easy to start a Delaware C corp over internet from India than to register for a local corporation in most states.
- MartinCron 13y ago
  We far too often end up with billionaires using their money to fund an art museum or ballet for billionaires in the name of charity You seem to imply that there's something wrong with funding art museums or ballet... The world needs beauty in it, and if people choose to support the arts in a way from which we all benefit, that's great.
  - sharkweek 13y ago
    I completely agree that we need beauty -- I love the concept of funding the arts, but there have to be priorities and we should not rely on the rich to make decisions like this in the name of charity. I quoted it lower in the thread, but I LOVE the poem by Gil Scott-Heron "Whitey on the moon" -- "A rat done bit my sister Nell, with Whitey on the moon"
skaevola 13y ago
People voluntarily gave their wealth to him.
- rjbond3rd 13y ago
  Do you mean people who bought MS software, or other billionaires like Warren Buffet who gave money to the Gates Foundation?
- lmm 13y ago
  He was able to acquire wealth because he was able to take risks that most people wouldn't, because of his wealthy background. And if you trace back far enough, most old-money families acquired their wealth through violence (or at least the patronage of a ruler who acquired their wealth by force).
dmethvin 13y ago
As if elected officials have the best interests of the poor in mind? I suppose they do, but only to the extent that they need those votes. Whether the goal of the Gates Foundation is simply to redeem the image of Microsoft's founder or not, it's doing great things for the downtrodden of the world. Perhaps that's what people like Nobel and Carnegie had in mind as well, cleaning up their PR image. But that's the cynic's view. If you listen to Bill Gates speak, he honestly sounds like someone who believes what he is saying and backs it up with money. As a rich man he certainly has other options. He can give a hearty "fuck you" or even a dismissive "I don't care" to the world and take his money to do whatever he wants. You know, like Larry Ellison or dozens of other people who've made their fortunes off the public.
statictype 13y ago
Having said that, I'm not sure i have a particularly good answer to this conundrum. Well, let us know if you do. The speculative opinions of message board nerds is as important as someone who became wealthy and is putting his money where his mouth is.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]

chris_mahan 13y ago

Uh, there's plenty of poor people in America. There are kids at my son's elementary school who don't have enough food. In Los Angeles. In California.

cinquemb 13y ago
Maybe one day a Chinese billionaire will show up and help solve the issues surrounding the food desert/insecurity present in LA?
blinkingled 13y ago
You haven't seen real poverty then. Go visit India someday. (Hint: You will find kids that have to work, beg, get abused just so they can eat once, often rotten or throw away food. Forget clothes, forget school, forget sanitation, forget having even some kind of roof on the head and blanket to sleep.) Besides I am not sure bringing nationalism into charity is classy or even logical - given Bill Gates is spending his own money as opposed to tax payer one or national funds.
knocknock 13y ago
If there's a chance to help more lives elsewhere I think he should do it. Why should he limit himself to America? I don't really understand what you're trying to get at with this comment.
- chris_mahan 13y ago
  I just want to point out that there are very poor, desperately poor people in America, and that perhaps his statement "But we don’t have everyday experience with the problems of the poorest. We don’t see people living in extreme poverty next door or pass by them in a slum down the street. " might lead some to think otherwise. Yes, there are worse places, and while I've never traveled to Mumbai, I do know people who live there, and there are plenty of people with money there, and it's not all slums. There are rich everywhere, and there are poor everywhere. The reasons for poverty are diverse. It's not: America is rich and India is poor as he seems to show. But what do I know...

curiousDog 13y ago

Mr.Gates is obviously doing this with good intentions, I'm not sure how much this is going to actually help India though. Having lived in both places, I think India and Africa pretty much have the same deep-rooted culture/religion problem of ignorance, corruption and generally not giving a shit about others. Throwing tons of aid at them isn't going to solve anything. This sort of culture has been accumulated over centuries and isn't going to go away anytime soon. In India, we could actually start with trying to emulate Scandinavian countries considering the number of educated folks we have, but that probably isn't going to scale. Mr.Gates is trying to solve a NP-hard problem here.

denzil_correa 13y ago
> I think India and Africa pretty much have the same deep-rooted culture/religion problem of ignorance, corruption and generally not giving a shit about others. >This sort of culture has been accumulated over centuries and isn't going to go away anytime soon. I agree with the overall sentiment in your post. Some more explanation about the culture in India which is accumulated over "centuries" would be nice. Which centuries are we talking about?
- harichinnan 13y ago
  Caste System(More like Racism. Keeping groups of people away from economic opportunity), Families where people have been desperately poor for generations(poor people create more kids on average and most of them end of poor and desperate)... 100's or millions with no primary education/even literacy...
  - statictype 13y ago
    Can you give me examples of this caste system probem? After actually living in India for some time - my impression has been the opposite - overzealous affirmative action
    - phaus 13y ago
      If you're in a position where you even have to submit a resume or deal with an organization that even knows what affirmative action is, you are already in a better caste than the majority of India.

narrator 13y ago

If he's like most westerners who go to India the first thing he's going to say is that these people should learn to use toilets and not throw their trash in the street.

scdoshi 13y ago
He's been to India a few times now, so I would imagine he's no stranger to the problems there.
pekk 13y ago
Do those people have nice strong flush toilets in their houses? Regular sanitation service they can afford? Are there third parties which go around cleaning up? Once these things are in place like in the developed world then you are entitled to blame their personal behavior for the problem.

tn13 13y ago

Bill Gate's work is amazing but yet the same I wonder why is he meeting people like Amir Khan who are nothing but hypocrites. I am pretty sure Gates will figure out this on his own. :P

kailuowang 13y ago

If seeing how the poorest live is the purpose of this trip, I am not quite sure I understand why meeting Aamir Khan, the Bollywood star, is a highlight of it and the only one that has a picture in the beautiful poster. What I do sense there is a little bit heroism - he feels like a superhero(and justly so). It's just interesting that every time I hear about Gate's foundation and the wonderful stuff they did, there were also some other high profile name mentioned, be it Warren Buffet or Mark Zuckerberg. Maybe it feels even better to work with other people who also has super hero power? PS: I have nothing against that mentality. It's just that now I realized it I am more curious about it.

denzil_correa 13y ago
> If seeing how the poorest live is the purpose of this trip, I am not quite sure I understand why meeting Aamir Khan, the Bollywood star, is a highlight of it and the only one that has a picture in the beautiful poster. To understand this, you may want to look into Aamir's show titled "Satyamev Jayate" [0]. Each episode of the show picks up various issues from healthcare, female foeticide to manual scavenging. All episodes of the show are also available online on Youtube (I assume). [0] http://www.satyamevjayate.in http://www.satyamevjayate.in
tokenadult 13y ago
I was startled by the mention of Aamir Khan (who I first learned about by watching the movie Three Idiots) until I did some looking up. I see that Khan is now a social activist, and he has recently been designated a program "ambassador" by UNESCO. Khan apparently cares about his country and its problems, and is using his star power to promote change. http://movies.ndtv.com/bollywood/aamir-khan-on-time-cover-as-india-s-first-superstar-activist-261185 http://movies.ndtv.com/bollywood/aamir-khan-on-time-cover-as... http://time100.time.com/2013/04/18/time-100/slide/aamir-khan/ http://time100.time.com/2013/04/18/time-100/slide/aamir-khan... http://www.hindustantimes.com/photos-news/Photos-Lifestyle/aamirkhanunicef/Article4.aspx http://www.hindustantimes.com/photos-news/Photos-Lifestyle/a...
iamshs 13y ago
If I understand it correctly, Aamir Khan is one of the biggest stars of Indian Cinema and all of his movies have been hit with indian public. Another big thing is, he has been associated with a TV Show, which airs on NDTV (presumably a well known channel) and DD (India's BBC). This TV Show is about perverse social situations in Indian Society and how to make India aware of its evils at the grassroots and take eradication steps. The show has been very well received. I presume it to be a very good step, tapping into mass appeal of Indian Cinema and collaborating with an actor who has already done work in the field and understand the nuisances. For these initiatives to be successful, you have to pull force behind it. India's polio eradication schemes were massively popular because of various celebrities endorsing it day in and day out. They were the source of major line-ups at vaccination centers.

tn13 13y ago

Last time I was in Pune Gates arrived in Pune unannounced by a private plane and straight away drove to the red-light area (prostitution business area) to meet the social workers there. A lot of local politicians rushed to the place for photo ops. He had to virtually physically fight his way out from them.

phaus 13y ago
If they're anything like our politicians, they didn't have to rush anywhere. They were probably already in the red light.

dwc 13y ago

What's up with HN lately? It seems like being contrary to contrarian is the new thing these days. Bill Gates is someone I admired at first, because he built something huge from humble beginnings. Then I reviled him for the damage I saw him cause to the industry. Then I admired him again for the global effect he managed. He is a single person trying to do the best he knows how for humanity at large. If anyone thinks resources would better be spent in, say, LA, please earn huge loads of cash and make it happen. Much to your chagrin it might benefit someone in India as well. Bill Gates seems genuinely concerned with elevating the level of humanity as a whole, and if you oppose that? Is this a zero sum game? No, it's not.

cinquemb 13y ago
I wonder if people would be as vocal if he decided to buy a private island… Buy a private island, few care and those who might, will most likely fawn in amazement. Decide to take an interest in helping human beings you might not identify/associate with, welcome to the "The White-Savior Industrial Complex"[0]. [0]: http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the...
- jlgreco 13y ago
  If he bought a private island instead of doing the charity stuff, then I imagine people would be less vocal just because he would be in the news far less often. Were he to do both, I doubt people would be less vocal. I mean, the guy has got plenty of yachts right? I don't see why an island would be much different. Dean Kamen bought an island. Few know, even fewer care, and I would say that even fewer fawn in amazement. And he acts outlandish with it! People would care even less about more dull island owners.
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- adamdavis 13y ago
  Have you considered that perhaps he spent his career as ruthless business man as a means to an end? It's hard to make any serious change when you're at the bottom of the totem pole, or even halfway up for that matter.

aashaykumar92 13y ago

I'm seeing a lot of "What Mr. Gates is doing is great BUT [insert negatives]". Timing is everything. IMO, this is the perfect timing to start a mission such as the one Mr. Gates is. Why? Well having just been to India last year, my cousins were complaining about how India is filled with geniuses, yet very few who want to take risks (whether it be to help fix the poverty, the political system, or just start cool companies). A couple months after I got back from India (I live in the States), I was talking to my cousins and they were telling me how some cities in the south are really starting to embrace a tech culture and were trying to resemble that of Silicon Valley. And it's grown magnitudes since then; in fact, in recent months, there have been a lot of posts on HN about India's tech expansion. So Mr. Gates says it well: "To make real progress on the problems of the poorest, you need at least two ingredients: a deep understanding of the problems, and the technical ability to solve them." He probably is going there to better understand some of the problems that exist, but I bet he also understands there are a lot more people there that can help solve these problems. He's a pretty smart guy, I trust he'll actually do good on his visit and it will be constructive to India and its people.

dwc 13y ago
He is a pretty smart guy. He set aside some "feel good" philanthropy and seems to go straight to the heart of things. He's done a lot of good, beyond the money he brings to the table.
- jacquesm 13y ago
  He's done a lot of damage too, and every pc that I buy that has some useless piece of windows junk on it he does just a little more.
  - lifeisstillgood 13y ago
    Oh come on, Gates is the least damaging Robber Baron we have ever seen and is the one most likely to produce meaningful impact in the robber baron second philanthropic life. It's one thing wishing that history had thrown up dedicated public servants who also ran vast software empires, but we play the hand we have been dealt. If we lose net neutrality, privacy, if the Internet is used against us, not for us, it's our fault. We can ensure the train runs on the lines we want. Sorry not meaning to have a rant, just I think gates has stopped being part of the problem now - there will be another one along, probably worse, and we need to engage. Just frustrated. I respect your posts here normally.

senorcastro 13y ago

Because everyone loves butter chicken.

droopyEyelids 13y ago

I'd really like a picture of Bill G shaking hands with someone who is basically starving in India. It'd be a picture of the richest person in the world standing with the poorest person in the world, and it'd be a cool testament to the inherent complexity of life.

aditgupta 13y ago
I will certainly not call it "cool"
- droopyEyelids 13y ago
  It'd be far cooler than the conspiracy theories and assumption of malice that mediate poor and rich relations right now.

aresant 13y ago

India has some incredibly promising science in the pipeline that has the potential to change the world such as, for instance, a true male contraceptive: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/04/ff_vasectomy/ http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/04/ff_vasectomy/ I love that he highlights that he's going to "Discuss how Indian-made vaccines can save lives in other countries too. . ." Very cool - I hope that his mission helps bear light on the fact that these emerging world economic powers have much to contribute to the world besides the often reported technology-piracy.

thoughtcriminal 13y ago

Godspeed Bill!

vishnu_t 13y ago

India's problem is well - Indians. The country needs to be broken up into ethnic republics with people getting real control to take decisions for themselves. Today India is an unjust empire perpetrated from Delhi.

anuraj 13y ago

India would prosper if it is not governed like an empire from Delhi. Each ethnic state must form a republic with full autonomy and power should reach into the hands of citizenry.

androidb 13y ago

If you haven't already I urge you to watch the BBC Documentary on India: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpdoRUMeshw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpdoRUMeshw This is the first part, there are 2 more. It's an incredible journey that helps you understand better the problems they're facing.

jongraehl 13y ago

Ranbaxy is an anomaly, right? http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/business/global/ranbaxy-in-500-million-settlement-of-generic-drug-case.html http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/business/global/ranbaxy-in...

kumar_navneet 13y ago

To remove poverty providing good education is the best way which will lead to all other things like population control, erasing corruption etc.

jyothi 13y ago

Gates is finding a sample where (India) it is easy to implement solutions (knowledge of understanding, having a support system to solve the problems) and then take them to the larger audience. It is debatable if food & nutrition issue of India or Polio in India is comparable to problems in Mosambique or Brazil. It seems like the basic problems of food, shelter, hygiene, health and education are basic needs and can be solved in similar ways across the nations without having to depend on govt policies. I think this is a very sound approach. He should however pick a smaller geographical region than India.