Dear Friends,
 

This week was the last episode of my television show Sweccha on hmtv. In total, we have aired 13 episodes.
 

When India attained independence, our country had many liberal thinkers like Mahatma Gandhi and Balgangadhar Tilak. Unfortunately, under Nehru’s leadership, our country adopted socialism. After four decades of socialism, we were an economically failed nation. Things changed a little under the leadership of Late P.V. Narasimha Rao. Unfortunately, signs indicate that we are again going back to the failed policies of license raj and welfare raj.
 

I believe in a very simple principle. Our country should have a government that is as small as possible, and regulations that are as few as possible. This will lead to increasing individual freedom and economic prosperity. Towards that end, I used the show to make my case for a more free society.
 

Fight for liberty is a long drawn battle. Often, it is a lonely battle. Ours is a country addicted to government welfare and regulations. It therefore is not easy to make our people see the merits of individual freedom.
 

Here are links to the thirteen episodes of Sweccha with a brief description:
 

1)    Sweccha Sidhaantam rests on one fundamental tenet of non-violence! Other than for self-defense, one should not physically assault another individual. However, when under threat, state machinery can rarely protect an individual. In fact, there is a long historical record of state itself committing acts of violence on its subjects. Therefore, I advocated right to own guns in the first episode:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtjbGz6CwWk

 

2)    Government regulation on free trade impedes our economic progress. Our government constantly regulates imports, controls exports, and actively manipulates the currency. This causes a great deal of harm to our economy. This episode was about allowing foreign direct investment into our country:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7CKzgYVAFY

 

3)    In a free society there is minimal public property and maximum private property. In such a society people will not be burdened with limitations imposed by government on their fundamental rights. In this episode I defended Akbaruddin’s right to hate speech and showed how private property rights and freedom of speech are connected to each other:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFzHOcJKg9g

 

4)    Despite our ancient philosophies and belief in dharmic lifestyle, our country is one of the most corrupt in the world. It is my view that big government is the root cause of corruption in our country:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCB2RpJrWFs

 

5)    Millions in our country consume illegal alcohol every day. Our governments with taxation ranging from 300% to 400% made alcohol unaffordable to masses. This created a market for illicit liquor. Our governments’ twisted morality of looting the alcoholics to provide welfare schemes to the same alcoholics is a curse on our society:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDe9LSdAw5g

 

6)    Fluctuation in commodity prices is a natural market phenomenon. High commodity prices indicate scarcity and induce farmers to grow more of that particular commodity. However, our government constantly interferes with natural prices and in fact exacerbates scarcity. Here’s an episode on why government should not regulate high onion prices:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR8mBBl3NRI

 

7)    Our society has a bizarre notion that education should not be a for profit business. An industry that is most profitable indicates that people have a dire need of the services being provided. I other words, some say education sector and health sector are most profitable in India. It is an indication that our society badly needs those services. In any event, what is so holy about education that it should be free?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM0_tLs2VYY

 

8)    I should have full rights on my body. Whether I want to donate or sell an organ in my body should be my business. Any law restricting what I do with my body is denying me my natural right to my life. Our society’s twisted morality is resulting in hundreds of thousands of patients dying for lack of kidneys. Legalize kidney sales and save lives!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UV38sHXPO4

 

9)    After 60 years of independence, our railways are a wreck. Going to a train station is like walking into a living hell. Our government uses railways as a vote getting enterprise. Our railways are a great example of the consequences of government imposed monopolies. Privatize railways:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x49WBVfJIds

 

10)    Government imposed Maximum Retail Price laws in reality do not protect consumers. They make consumers reckless as they no longer have to shop around for a lower price. Even worse, these laws result in poor paying more and rich paying less for products:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MQLNURTv5c

 

11)    Andhra Pradesh is in dire straits in the electricity sector. Power industry for all practical purposes is another government imposed monopoly which is an utter failure. Competition via privatization is the only lasting solution to this problem:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-X4r7dexUA

 

12)    Indian government and the governments across the world are taking on debt that may never be paid back. Cyprus, Greece, Spain, and Italy are a few examples of this. However, the national debt menace is bound to spread to the rest of the world eventually:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0GxGRetq6U

 

13)    Final episode is about the Housing Ministry’s license raj and TRAI regulations on how many minutes of advertisements can be aired on television. This is a further indication that India has never really understood the damage caused by license raj. Those who do not learn from history are bound to repeat the same mistakes again:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVu8-HvJf4E

 

Regards,
Nalamotu Chakravarthy