Free SALIM MUST DIE by Mukul Deva Page A

today.’
    ‘The first I am hearing of it myself, Mr Rao.’ Anbu smiled, but it was easy to see he was pleased with Khare's extempore speech. ‘Strangely enough, the group he refers to as the Bystanders constitutes a very large part of humanity. If they were all to get together and take things in hand, they could easily whip the Idiots, Terrorists and Wimps and send them back into their kennels with their tails between their legs. Unfortunately, most of them are busy with their own petty rivalries and do not even realize the power they could yield if they joined hands. That is why they are either sitting on their hands or busy battling the Terrorists on their own.’
    ‘Precisely, sir.’ Khare re-entered the fray. ‘The Terrorists of course are the ones who suffer the least. They don't have a conscience to appease or any rules to play the game by. They simply blame the Idiots for creating the circumstances that forced them to become what they are. They blame them for every real and/or imaginary suffering they were or are undergoing and use this as an excuse for inflicting even more suffering on everyone including their sorry masochistic selves.’
    ‘I agree. That is how it all began and that is how it continues to be,’ Rao said. ‘Unfortunately, what is certain is that no matter who is at fault, all of us are going to suffer, given the way things are beginning to spiral out of control.’
    The four of them continued to talk as they drifted towards the buffet table. They had no idea how rapidly the situation was escalating with every passing day. Unseen and unheard by most people, the world was moving towards the edge of chaos.

A Bundle of Straws
    W ASHINGTON , D.C.
    WHERE THEY FOUND THE WISDOM THE PROPHET ALONE knows, but the so-called greatest democracy of the world gave a resounding thumbs-down to the Republicans. The imminent return of the Democrats to the White House was a sure harbinger of change. The new inmates of the White House, it was hoped, would review and change most of the decisions taken by the Republican administration.
    THERE WERE ONLY THREE PEOPLE PRESENT AT THE MEETING that took place on the night of 16 December. Two of them had travelled several miles for the meeting, but the third had to walk only a hundred-odd feet since he lived in the large white house surrounded by sprawling gardens and protected by huge windows shielded with bulletproof glass.
    The most remarkable thing about the small, rather dingy-looking room where the meeting took place was the fact that it was totally and positively free of electronic devices of all kinds, the ones that saw or listened and the ones that recorded. Though there was no formal advance agenda circulated for this meeting, the manner in which it was set up left no doubt in the minds of any of the three that the subjects under discussion would be extraordinary. No staff or security personnel was visible anywhere.
    ‘Everything seems to be spinning out of control,’ the big man began, lines of exasperation creasing his bovine features. ‘None of my predecessors has ever had such a high disapproval rating. Never !’ He spat out the last word vehemently, glaring at the other two as though they were responsible for the situation. He broke off the glare when he realized it wasn't bothering them very much. ‘It's not supposed to end like this.’
    ‘It certainly isn't,’ the second man agreed.
    ‘We were supposed to be the ones to change the map of the world,’ the woman said, her voice heavy with frustration. ‘We were supposed to make the world a safer place.’
    ‘Safer my arse! Who gives a crap?’ he retorted. ‘We were supposed to ensure we would be remembered as the people who had made the difference.’
    ‘Well, you can bet that we are going to be remembered, but maybe not in the way that we want to be.’ The woman's tone was nasty. It was obvious she did not like the man she was talking to, despite the fact that they both worked for the