Weekly Notes 31/2025

by Thejesh GN · August 1, 2025

This is the fourth week (WN28/2025) of school for Uma. She enjoys going. Since midweek, I’ve been asked to wait outside as she’s very comfortable with her directress, or guide. Even during playschool, she was always happy to attend. So in that sense, it’s always been easy. But compared to playschool, The Earth School follows a planned, more gradual induction—even if the kids seem comfortable. As per my observation, a lot of focus is on consistency, trust building, and communication, which does take time with toddlers.

I watched Ronth (2025, Malayalam), directed by Shahi Kabir, who also wrote Nayattu (2021, Malayalam), a film I liked. I liked Ronth too. Both are cop films, but not the typical action-hero kind—they focus on ordinary officers facing real-world challenges. Shahi Kabir seems to have a knack for writing or directing good cop movies (that I like).
Updated the Major Stampedes in India table with recent events. There seems to be no end to them once you start tracking them.
I read a whole book after a long time in one go; I know it’s a small book, over 70 pages long. However, it was challenging because finding time and maintaining focus were difficult. It’s an engaging and thought-provoking book by Kuvempu, called ‘ನಿರಂಕುಶಮತಿಗಳಾಗಿ‘. It’s a collection of four speeches by Kuvempu. It was published in 1954 and targeted students at the time. Kuvempu is asking them to be unrestrained, to act freely, to question everything (especially religious beliefs) without holding back. I read a short story by William Faulkner called Barn Burning. It’s a story of a father and son. I have bookmarked Snopes Trilogy for future reading. There is also a Kannada translation of Barn Burning – ಉರಿಸಿಂಗ on ಕೊನರು.
If you have some time, here is a piece on BuzzWomen on Stanford Social Innovation Review by a friend. BuzzWomen.org, is a nonprofit in India that trains women in financial literacy. This article discusses how they asked their economically vulnerable women, whom they had previously trained, to donate ₹1/day to support their peers’ financial training. Despite doubts, their Shakti Fund raised ₹18 lakhs in 2024, helping women lead and sustain local change. It proves again that you don’t have to have a lot to donate or bring change.
CopyParty looks very interesting, primarily to serve the media on the go. I have been experimenting with it by sharing things on the LAN. It appears to have numerous features that I could utilize in interesting ways (Unlimited Book)—for example, a local but public open media server at an event, during a workshop, or in a park.
When we were kids, ಮಂಜುನಾಥನ ಆಣೆ (Man̄junāthana āṇe) meant more than a mother’s promise. Even adults—like my parents—wouldn’t dare tell an innocent lie after swearing in the name of Manjunatha of Dharmasthala. It’s painful to hear about the rape and deaths of young women in and around Dharmasthala. And now, the mass burial accusations are heartbreaking. I hope true believers of Manjunatha would force the truth to come out, and at least some of the victims would get justice, instead of supporting gag orders.
My introduction to Nazi violence was through The Diary of Anne Frank. I think I was in high school then, around the same age as her. It left a lasting impression on me. Now, almost every other day, I think of Anne Franks in Gaza.
There has been a discussion about digital sovereignty following Microsoft’s shutdown of digital services to an Indian company due to US sanctions. Most people think moving to an Indian or European company is a good idea. Let me tell you there is no good solution in this global world. Just like the US, Europe might start disliking your country anytime. Historically, Europe has been the worst player (think about WW1, WW2, Nazis, etc.) politically. So for a non-European country, it’s not a safe bet. Let’s say you move to India, then instead of global colonizers, you are now at the mercy of local landlords, in a way much worse. They can shut you down or censor you for any number of reasons. The legal system in India is not fast enough to get your business online in time. India is also the leader in Internet shutdowns, which raises questions about reliability. So it has to be a multi-country hosted, multi-provider, distributed, P2P system ¹. Will that work? I don’t know.
My shoulder and neck are doing well. I’ve had over 20 pain-free days, which is good. But I’m continuing physiotherapy for the foreseeable future.