Real power in the modern world is determined by a nation's economic capabilities, not just the nuclear warheads it stores.
If wars were won by superior technology alone, the United States would not have been vanquished in Vietnam or waylaid in Afghanistan.
While ideological blinkers blind one to change that one does not wish to see, statistics and opinion surveys, too, have their limitations in a complex polity like India.
I do believe it is true that the people of India regard the prime minister as the most important political leader.
The Indian voter will not shy away from sacrificing in the national interest. If the voter is convinced that high oil prices are a national challenge and that the government is doing its best to deal with the challenge, the voter would be willing to bear the burden.
When national policy becomes hostage to regional interests, the federal government becomes paralysed and would be unable to act in the larger national interest.
