John Gardner [John.Gardner@emerson.com] sent this after

reading eNews on his Blackberry while in a big traffic-jam

in Mumbai, India:

 

  "Having been coming to India since 1983 - I find the changes

  amazing in so many ways! Roads and Infra Structure become the

  hurdles to future success!

 

  "The spirit and capabilities of Wonderful India are very

  tough to ever beat. Emerson has a lot of presence here,

  Emerson overall and Emerson Process Mgmt.

 

  "My early trips to India were in fact as a Dir. of Technology

  global for a Division to allow local mfg of world class

  products. Over the years I have returned many times in many

  different roles. I continue to be amazed by India, the people

  and the progress (except, of course, the roads).

 

  "I love the can-do attitude and the will to improve and break

  thru old perceived barriers. I have many good friends and some

  huge memories burned in my mind from these trips over the years!

  What a great set of experiences and people I have had and met!

 

  "I hope that I continue to return to this Wonderful and Amazing

  India many, many more times in my life."

 

Merle Borg [merleborg@cox.net] on the Pinto prognostications,

and a particularly insightful eFeedback by Rick Lamb:

 

  "Well said. Both you and Rick Lamb called it right I think.

  It took mutual assured destruction to finally end wars between

  major nations because we realized that no one wins a nuclear

  exchange. We are now beginning to realize that with trade and

  travel, terrorism gives everyone an air force and makes the

  exploitation of minor nations an un-winnable proposition.

  What would have taken us another 50 years of Mid East meddling

  to understand, has been shortened considerably by our inept

  and murderous invasions of two tiny, powerless, and fiercely

  independent countries. The end of the Colonial era is finally

  at hand.

 

  "Times are changing and there isn't much that we will do about it.

  We are the only remaining superpower, but we really no longer run

  the show. What the neocons envisioned as the American century,

  instead will quickly see the end of American dominance. Global

  warming may in fact soften this end. What would have been a death

  fight over the remaining oil, may instead become a joint effort

  to develop sustainable energy and preserve what we can of this

  planet. Cooperation may well take the place of competition."

 

Mathieu van den Bergh [mathieu-van-den-bergh@cox.net]

agrees that the world will indeed be a better place tomorrow:

 

  "As someone said on TV last night, as we get older we talk about

  the good old times, and how things were better then. The reality

  is very different.

 

  "For some reason, most people just seem to overlook that our

  children are better off then we were. They travel the world,

  meet others, and are far more informed about other cultures and

  their sensitivities than we were at that age. Young generations

  around the world are just as dynamic and full of optimism about

  their future as we were (and some of us still are). I see it

  wherever I go, even in good old (tired) Europe and tenuous Japan;

  and you saw it in India. My brother just called today that we

  have another engineer in the family (his son got his bachelors

  degree - unthinkable for him 40 years ago).

 

  "The older generations seem to concentrate so much on gloom and

  doom. It's just their perception though, not reality by any means.

 

  "I hope we will live long enough to see all the good things that

  will happen, with perhaps even some form of democracy in the

  Middle East. I'm sure we will find solutions for the big hurdles

  that await us, be it social problems, the future of energy, or

  any obstacle that the future holds, even global warming (if that

  really continues to happen - which I'm not so sure of).

 

  "Let's work on making it the next 10 years...."