Interesting readings

A pioneering
conference of the academic community in the field of
international relations in India.

Pramit
Bhattacharya in Mint on the impact of transaction
charges on the currency futures/options markets.

In continuation
of my
blog post on Pakistan, India, MFN, read
Bibek
Debroy on the subject.

Watch
me talk
about risk aggregation in the Indian economy, presenting joint
work with Sucharita Mukherjee. This is from a
fascinating conference
organised by IFMR. From this same conference, also see
the most
excellent opening talk by Nachiket Mor.

The
ally from hell by Jeffrey Goldberg and Marc Ambinder in
the Atlantic magazine. Things aren't going well in
Pakistan. What can India do to
help? Mani
Shankar Aiyar says, and I fully agree: One, return to the
Musharraf/Manmohan Singh proposal to create a borderless Kashmir
- where the LOC is rendered irrelevant - as a precursor to a
borderless subcontinent. Two, agree to maintain uninterrupted
and uninterruptable dialogue, that will remain unbroken and
regular, irrespective of terrorist attacks or any other
calamity. Three, introduce a visa regime similar to Nepal and
remove all restrictions of pilgrimages. The fourth remedy is to
ensure a full and free media exchange, including and not limited
to movies, TV channels and newspapers. Five, an open investment
regime without any barriers to trade. Six and seven involve
standing together on the international stage to push for the
expansion of the UN Security Council and launch a joint
initiative for global nuclear disarmament.

David
E. Sanger in the New York Times about how things aren't
going well in Iran.

Adam
Satariano and Peter Burrows have a fascinating story about
how, in addition to innovation and design, Apple has a great third
weapon: Operations.

In continuation to my post
about Dennis
Ritchie and Steve Jobs,
read M. Douglas
McIlroy on Dennis Ritchie, written on 19 May 2011.

Paolo
Pesenti takes us back to 20 years ago, when Europe went
through another economic crisis. It is useful knowledge about
economic history, and it gives us some insights into the Eurozone
crisis of today.