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Top 24 Architecture Design Firms in the Washington DC area
Since moving to the DC area it has been easy to feel lost in the neoclassical and federalist architecture that pervades the area. Many of the firms here still work within those vernaculars. Those who differ seem to err on the side of bland post modern boxes. I decided that there had to be firms in the area who had a more avant-garde/metropolitan sense in their design aesthetic and so I searched through the websites of over 400 firms listed in the Washington, DC / Northern Virginia (NOVA) / Maryland region.
I only looked at architecture firms whose only office is in the DC metro area, and selected those that I felt had a more contemporary/avant-garde design sensibility. I feel that I have achieved my goal of proving that there are small to medium firms in the DC metroplex that focus on creating buildings/spaces that further the architectural dialogue and do not just rehash old building styles for the sake of building.
The following firms are in no particular order.
While, in my opinion, the firms below are not in the same caliber of design as the previous list, they are worthy of Honorable Mention.
- Jon Hensley Architects
- Susan Woodward Notkins Architects, P.C.
- Martinez + Johnson Architecutre
- Rippeteau Architects
- OTJ Architects
- Ossolinski Architects PLLC
I welcome your opinions, please register and create a user name to leave your comments.
If you liked this article, please digg it.
10 Responses to "Top 24 Architecture Design Firms in the Washington DC area"
Nice post on firms – found you on a addictomatic search, although FOX should be #1!!!
What do you think of Devrouax and Purnell?
I hope this information will helps Realtor as well as buyers and sellers in any area throughout the USA.
Thanks for a good post
Excellent article i am sure that i will come back here soon
A 2yr old post of mine (http://ow.ly/2fonX) has over 1000 hits a month and is #3 on this google search http://ow.ly/2fooR , that CRAZY!


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The door is being left open for both of these possibilities, according to Anthony McCarron of The New York Daily News, who quotes New York Mets GM Sandy Alderson on the chances the teams top prospects have of making the Opening Day roster.
Alderson goes on to say that the odds are not equal, with Travis d'Arnaud having a better chance to break camp with the team than Zack Wheeler, and also says that d'Arnaud is not being handed the job, but will have to win it this spring.
It wouldn't shock me to see d'Arnaud make the Mets roster out of spring training, simply because it's always tempting to get caught up in new talent in the spring, the Mets have shown to be especially susceptible to this (the Jenrry Mejia fiasco from 2010), and d'Arnaud is flat out a better baseball player than John Buck.
But d'Arnaud should probably head to Triple-A. Thanks to injuries, he played just 67 games there last season. But he'll be 24 this spring and has over 2,000 minor league plate appearances. If he jumps straight to the majors, it won't kill him. And he is the Mets best option.
It would shock me, however, to see Wheeler make the Mets roster this spring. Wheeler has just six Triple-A starts to his credit and could use at least a half-season there to work on his off-speed pitches, most specifically his change-up. Additionally, the Mets have to be considering his service clock and would like to hold him off long enough to get an extra season of team control.
There's no doubt that he is among the Mets five best starting pitchers, but with the Mets desire to give Mejia one more chance to start, and Jeremy Hefner in the fold to keep the fifth spot warm for Wheeler if Mejia can't handle the task, there's little need to rush Wheeler.

subset: commoncrawl


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Fun with Fabric Dye
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How to Make a Triple Chunky Bracelet
By: Savannah Starr
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Love those big chunky bracelets on the pages of fashion magazines? Learn how to make a triple chunky bracelet from Savannah Star and recreate those high-price baubles on your own. DIY jewelry crafts can be inexpensive and sassy at the same time.
Start with a resin shape and, using Aleene's Tacky Glue, cover it in tissue paper. This is actually a cool technique called tissue collage and it's easy enough for beginning crafters. Use a 3-D lacquer to add shine and dimension to your jewelry - no one likes a plain and boring bracelet! If you can't find a resin shape you like, use cardboard instead and create your own pieces.
For a step-by-step tutorial of this project, check out Chunky Three Layer Bracelet.
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Ten hours to go!
Dear backers, we are almost there! We have less than a day left to finish our campaign!
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Backers: Can You Help Us Spread The Word?
Dear Backers,
Thanks to YOU, in the last couple of days we've had an increase in the number of pledges and also the amount of each pledge! Hooray! Just yesterday... Read more
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Backers, we have added a new goodie! For those of you who pledge at the $150 level, you get all you get in the description PLUS, instead of a flat,... Read more
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Hello backers! Several of you have asked if you could have your pre-ordered book signed by the author and the answer is yes!
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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - When people talk about "The Church" in Utah, they're not talking about the Roman Catholic Church.
Catholicism is America's largest denomination, but it's No. 2 in Utah and represents only about 9 percent of the state's residents, or roughly 200,000 people. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims 70 percent of Utah's residents - around 1.5 million people.
The sheer dominance of Mormonism in Utah - where it's not just a religion, but a culture - pushes Catholics together and has created a tightly knit minority.
"I'm amazed at the distances that people travel to attend Mass in rural areas," said Dee Rowland, the Salt Lake diocese's government liaison. "I'm overwhelmed by the sacrifices parents make financially and in transportation complications to send their children to Catholic schools."
Salt Lake Bishop George Niederauer, the church's top official in Utah, said that being immersed in the Mormon culture causes people to look closely at their own faith.
"I think the atmosphere here encourages people to take religion seriously," he said. "When people ask you what (Mormon) ward you belong to, that gets you thinking."
The Mormon influence in Utah, where the Winter Olympics will be held next month, runs deep. The state was founded by the faith's pioneers in 1847, who had fled from persecution in the East. Today, it is the home of the Mormon church's world headquarters.
Salt Lake City is a place where a resident can come home, switch on the Mormon church-owned NBC affiliate and see commercials for the Mormon church-owned Deseret Books, which has a branch conveniently located downtown in the Mormon church-owned ZCMI mall across the street from the Mormon church-owned newspaper, the Deseret News.
This also is a place where drinking a cup of coffee in the morning or having a beer after work makes a clear statement about religious affiliation. The Mormon church prohibits members in good standing from smoking or drinking alcohol and hot caffeinated beverages.
A poll conducted last fall for The Salt Lake Tribune, the state's largest newspaper, found that more than two-thirds of Utah's residents perceive a social, cultural or political divide between those who are Mormon and those who are not.
In short: The rift can be obvious and divisive, even as leaders of different faiths push for tolerance.
"There's a tremendous challenge to being in the majority or the minority graciously," Niederauer said. "We have to be careful about Mormon bashing. It can become a blood sport."
Mormon church President Gordon B. Hinckley has made it a priority to build better relations between Mormons and non-Mormons, said spokesman Dale Bills. It's a message that Hinckley himself has reiterated many times.
"We are greatly misunderstood, and I fear that much of it is of our own making. We can be more tolerant, more neighborly, more friendly, more of an example than we have been in the past," Hinckley said during the faith's semiannual General Conference in April 2000.
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Warren Mayor Doug Franklin and the family of a man gunned down Saturday at a local gas station called for an end to what's been described as escalating violence.
''We have to move in an opposite direction,'' Franklin said, asking for everyone in the city to try to help quell any rumors and talk of retaliation that followed two shooting deaths one week apart.
Taemarr Walker, 24, was shot to death Oct. 19 in a confrontation with a police officer near the intersection of Palmyra and Risher Road S.W. On Saturday, Richard Rollison IV, 24, was fatally wounded at the Sunoco Service Station on West Market Street. Walker's brother, Tashawn Walker, 26, has been arrested in connection with the shooting.
Article Video
Rollison's father, Richard III, asked for no retaliation in the wake of his son's death.
''I'm not mad today. I'm sad today because my son is gone. I can't get him back. If you want to make me feel better, stop all of this violence,'' he said, fighting back tears at the morning news conference at City Hall.
Rollison said 23 of his son's friends collected at his home at some point since the shooting and reportedly were talked out of considering any type of retaliatory efforts for the death of their friend. Rollison credited Vince Peterson, a probation officer and a pastor, with gathering the young men and counseling them about thoughts of any more violence.
Article Photos
Tribune Chronicle / Christopher Bobby
Warren Mayor Doug Franklin, at the podium, Richard Rollison III, left of the mayor, and Warren Safety-Service director Enzo Cantalamessa, far right, and other Rollinson family members conduct a news conference Wednesday at City Hall. Rollison is the father of shooting victim Richard Rollison IV.
Franklin assured reporters and other officials at the news conference that city police are working to make sure residents are safe in their homes and children are safe in the street. The mayor, for example, said that trick-or-treat is still planned for 5 to 7 p.m. today.
Peterson and Franklin blamed students and others with increasing tensions over the recent violence through irresponsible use of social media. The mayor urged the professional media to avoid carelessness.
Heightened security has been reported in local schools on the streets and even at some local bars.
Fact Box
Efforts to promote Warren continue
By RAYMOND L. SMITH
Tribune Chronicle
WARREN - Efforts to promote the city as a place to move new families and to open new businesses have taken a number of hits this year.
The year was only 2 hours, 10 minutes old when there were gunshots outside of the former Sunset Lounge, 480 E. Market St. S.E., and a city resident was fatally wounded.
In March, a series of raids organized by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies that netted hundreds of pounds of drugs, weapons and other tools used in criminal activities showed the city has been a destination for illegal drugs and gang violence.
In the last month, a city police officer killed a man believed to have been on his way to shoot up a local bar, and on Saturday, the dead man's brother stole a car and killed a young father who was at a West Market Street gas station, according to police reports.
Leaders of organizations attempting to promote the city for new residents and new businesses say these and other smaller events do not help, but neither have they curtailed their efforts.
"I think news of these events are detrimental to our efforts because there are some people who believe that this is only what Warren is,'' Dennis Blank said. ''But people who live here know that there is a lot more to Warren. These events do not define the city."
Blank said creating a broader, more complete view of life in the city is what has propelled him in recent years to promote a garden district that in which homes and properties are rehabbed, and gregg's gardens, where abandoned properties are used for wildflower gardens.
He also has an Internet site called WarrenExpress that highlight various issues in the the city.
"In other larger cities, like New York, people know there are so many other positive things happening that periodic spikes in crime does not define what people think of them," he said. "We don't have that luxury. We are working to highlight positives in the city."
Blank said that in the last two years, the efforts have been winning converts with other private citizens improving their properties and others working together to improve the 22-square-block downtown area known as the Garden District.
Melissa Holmes, interim director of Main Street Warren, said the organization's goal will be to fight the negative perception of downtown Warren.
"Obviously, we will be fighting the negative perceptions," Holmes said. "There was a young black man who was senselessly killed. It does us no good to point fingers. We have to work together to find solutions.
"We have to pull together and lift one another up," she said. "It has been a horrible couple of weeks. It has been very sad. We have to use it as an opportunity to look at ourselves."
Diane Sauer, owner of Diane Sauer Chevrolet and president of Trumbull 100, said members of the business community met with city administrators and the police department at the Sunrise Inn in November after an earlier shooting.
"They promised to dedicate as much police to the city as possible," Sauer said. "There are forces outside of the city moving into it. As business owners and community stakeholders, we are working together with the city and are providing support to the police."
Mayor Doug Franklin agrees that periodic crime spikes present a challenge in the city's effort to both retain citizens and businesses and to attract those considering moving into the community.
"There has been no developer that has told me they would not move into the city because of their perception about the level of crime occurring in the city," Franklin said.
"Although I believe there is a connection between safety and economic development. I know that communities that are perceived to be safer are more salable," he said.
Finding ways to reduce crime also is important to the administration's efforts to keep residents already established in city neighborhoods and attract new ones.
"My focus has been on long time residents who are anchored in our neighborhoods," he said. "We have to provide them with a sense of security. It is a daunting task. Many of them have raised their families in Warren and they deserve to feel safe in their homes."
Franklin said the city's efforts over the last three to four years to tear down abandoned properties has been part of that effort.
"We've torn down more than 400 properties in the last several years," Franklin described.
The mayor also noted that the raids on the massage parlors last year and the drug and gun raids that occurred earlier this year also are part of the city's pro-active effort make it a safer community.
"Our working with outside law enforcement agencies will continue," Franklin said. "In the one raid, we took a record amount of drugs off the street, confiscated numerous illegal weapons, and made 94 arrests."
The closing of the Sunset lounge, identified as a nuisance, is one example of the city's effort to make neighborhoods safer.
"It is now a church," he said.
Franklin said his administration has worked to hire and retain as many police officers as the city's budget will allow.
Franklin said the administration is working closer with community organizations, such as gregg's gardens, Trumbull Neighborhood Partnership and others in order to help those working day by day in the neighborhoods and solving problems.
"Clearly our work is not done," Franklin said. "We always have to be vigilant. We have to be as innovative as possible in making the community safe and attractive."
Dashboard camera recordings from one of the Warren police cruisers at the scene revealed that Richard C. Rollison IV identified Tashawn "Boo" Walker as the man who shot him in the parking lot of the Sunoco gas station just before 1 a.m.
The video, released by city police to the Tribune Chronicle Tuesday after a public records request, reveals the aftermath of the shooting, including conversations between a dying Rollison and city police.
Rollison replied "No" when a police officer asked if he was "having a beef with this guy?"
Tashawn Walker was eventually arrested in Texas and is on track to be extradited back to Ohio.
City police are working with Warren Township police to determine if there are connections with Rollison's shooting and an incident that occurred earlier Saturday morning at the J&L Lounge, 1957 Highland Ave., which is in Warren Township.
Tashawn Walker and Thomas Walker are alleged to have gone to the lounge to confront one or more persons attending a private party who they believed made comments about Taemarr's death. A fight in the lounge moved outside and shots were fired at the building.
Warren and the surrounding area were on "heightened alert" last week after Taemarr Walker's death. Officials at the Ohio State Highway Patrol's Warren Post in Southington confirmed that Warren police had asked OSHP to help saturate the area with police presence as a precaution.
State Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation agents are investigating the shooting by a police who confronted an armed Taemarr Walker after the car he was in went off the road.
Police can be heard on dash camera video, while at the scene of Taemarr Walker's death, discussing a report that he had been on his way to shoot up a local bar when the car went off the road.
Owners of that club, II Hype Lounge, said on Wednesday that city officials had suggested they close the bar last weekend as a precaution after the shooting of Taemarr Walker. The club was closed Friday and Saturday evenings.
However, the owners said the bar was operating as usual this week and is scheduled to be open its regular hours this weekend.


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We have problems with broadcast traffic on a very large flat network
with 9 NW6 servers.
Among other thins we need to reduce rip & sap broadcasts.
Can somone tell me the difference between implementing NLSP &
implementing SLP?
Do I need to do both, or just one?
How complicated will this be?


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Beginners: please read this post and this post before posting to the forum.
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
Is it just noise in the image that is giving me problems? (with one blob I'm registering hundreds)
Sounds like you aren't sorting your matrix properly . . .Just go through each pixel, run a binary threshold, then average the pixel locations above that threshold.(but of course, this assumes there is only one blob . . . for more blobs, its more complicated)


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BIRMINGHAM, Alabama-- Remember the game the Birmingham Barons started on April 28?
They'll finish it on Monday, Memorial Day.
The Birmingham Barons and Chattanooga Lookouts will resume their suspended game at Regions Field. The game, which started in Chattanooga, was stopped with the Barons leading 6-2 in the top of the seventh inning.
Since the score was tied entering the inning, the Lookouts must have an opportunity to match the score despite the game already being official.
The game will resume at 5:15 p.m. with the Barons batting in the seventh inning. Chattanooga will be considered the home team and all stats will be recorded for April 28.
Fans with tickets for the regularly scheduled 7:05 p.m. game between the Barons and Lookouts will be granted admission for the continuation of the game with gates opening at 4:30 p.m. Following the completion of the resumed game, the Barons and Lookouts will play a full nine-inning contest.


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Savor the springtime with a batch of fresh peas!
By mahir | March 22, 2011
Fresh peas are far from their canned cousins in flavor. The English variety come in pods that can to be shelled, but the work is worth it. These goodies are sweet and buttery, not to mention full of healthy nutrients.
When buying these guys fresh, don't necessarily go for the bigger pods or the darkest shade of green. Your ideal peas come freshly picked so that their sugars have not deteriorated into hard starches and the biggest pods won't contain the softest or the most tender peas.
How do you get these open anyways? Nature has given the peapod a little zipper! Tear off one of the ends and pull the stringy bit that seals one side of the pod. This configuration of pods and seeds technically make peas a fruit, but culinarily, they are considered a vegetable.
Peas can be served on their own, try them steamed with a dollop of butter and a bit of salt and pepper. Alternately, add these delicate explosions of flavor to a casserole or savory pastry, such as Shepard's Pie.
You can also try snow peas, which don't need to be shelled, in a stir fry or sugar snap peas, which are a great snack when eaten raw!


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UPDATE: O'Donnell says there is "no need for alarm" over fire.
Fire officials have confirmed a third-alarm fire at the International Matex Tank Terminal in Bayonne. Residents report thick black smoke in the area.
Although officials didn't immediately release any additional information, police scanner reports indicate two explosions at the 520-acre facility, which is located near Route 440 and 22rd Street.
The Bayonne Bridge and Route 440 near the plant has been shut down, according to the scanner reports.
Hazmat teams are on the scene.


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This West Coast masterpiece blends rugged sophistication with sleek modern lines, infusing a subtle Asian infuluence. Nestled on 3.2 acres of pristine woodlands, this secluded, gated estate sits high above a panorama of sparkling ocean and snow covered Olympic Mountains. Elegant koi ponds, fountains, and a towering stone entrance welcome you inside where massive post and beams frame the 20' vaulted Great Room. Offering an entertainment sized gourmet kitchen, a custom crafted salt-water hot tub that seats 16, a full-size professionally appointed gym, a state-of-the-art security system, three bedrooms, all with luxurious ensuites, a separate 3 car garage and workshop, plus a separate one bedroom guest apartment.
Copyright © 2011 EaglesPerch.com


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India's defiance
|by: Babar Sattar
While India announced the successful conduction of three nuclear tests in Pokhran on May 11, the nuclear issue once again sprung to the centre stage of international politics. While the detonation of the 'Smiling Buddha' in May 1974 exhibited India's nuclear weapon capability, Monday's fission, low yield and thermonuclear tests, and the other two that followed almost immediately, have gauged the yield of its nuclear contrivances. To sugarcoat the bitter pill India's Ambassador to the US dubbed the latest explosions as "technology demonstration". In terms of India's nuclear weapon capability this demonstration has added little to the world's knowledge. But as the act itself and the domestic response that it incited reflects dangerous intentions of a defacto nuclear weapon state, the entire episode carries grave consequences for regional and global political and security relations, as well as the Non-Proliferation regime.
In real terms the nuclear explosions reflect the India's prevailing mind-set in terms of nuclear policy, which finds few opponents in an otherwise disparate and conflict ridden country. India is now making no bones of its intent to move ahead from its existing ambiguous nuclear status to a state of overt nuclearisation. And in a region marred by mutual hostilities, operative mistrust, and a conventional and nuclear arms race between rival neighbours, India and Pakistan, the formers changing nuclear status is bound to provide fresh impetus to the latter's nuclear programme. Pakistan will not just view the nuclear course as a more tempting one, but probably as a strategic requirement to retain its nuclear parity with India, upon which is modelled its concept of nuclear deterrence as well as its overall security doctrine.
The customary and expected global reaction to India's tests has ranged from disappointment and dismay to shock and paranoia. The international community led by the developed west will continue to rebuke India for its defiance of the so-called international consensus against nuclear proliferation. And although India has not violated any international commitments, the western countries in all probability will impose economic and military sanctions to register their protest.
However, most Indians, or for that matter Pakistanis, do not expect these tests to consign India to a lonely limbo for long. For them the reaction that followed French and Chinese nuclear tests is a case in point. The world community has already demonstrated its ability to come to terms with the 'regrettable' steps undertaken by defiant nuclear states, after a brief period of hurling intense abuse at them. And the logic is simple: once a state ignores the horrendous consequences (sanctions) that might follow its overt nuclear moves, its better to court the new nuclear weapon state by awarding it membership of the exclusive nuclear club, rather than jeopardising world peace by letting it be at large. Instead stringent sanctions can be announced in advance to make a dreadful example of any other nuclear aspirant that might consider treading the forbidden path.
Defiance of the Non-Proliferation regime has been a consistent aspect of India's nuclear policy. It established its position vis-a-vis this regime by refusing to join the NPT in 1968. Her resolution to oppose this regime verbatim has only strengthened over time. By disputing the viability of Nuclear Weapon Free Zones as a measure enhancing peace and security, retaining its nuclear option by disapproving NPT's indefinite extension and blocking the CTBT, India had made its intentions unequivocal. While not acceding to the Non-Proliferation regime itself, India had developed a dichotomous policy of keeping its nuclear option open, while refraining from overt nuclearisation. By exercising its nuclear option India has cleared most of the ambiguity shrouding its intentions.
India has remained opposed to the discriminatory principle that legitimises the permanent division of a world of sovereign states into Nuclear Weapon States (NWS) and Non Nuclear Weapon States (NNWS). What India demanded was not only the prevention of further proliferation but also the reversal of proliferation that had already taken place. It alleged that the principle of mutual responsibilities and obligations between the NWS and the NNWS in the NPT was particularly mutilated. The procedure of negotiating the NPT was also dictatorial as the US and the USSR drafted the treaty almost exclusively, instead of all the negotiating parties.
Following are the some prominent factors that account for India's continuing dissidence vis-a-vis the Non-Proliferation regime:
-- Historical Factors: India's avowed commitment to disarmament has been used extensively to justify India's obduracy vis-a-vis the Non-Proliferation regime. The idealistic tradition firmly inculcated in the mass Indian psyche is traced back to India's "non-violent independence movement led by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi." Nehru pioneered proposals for comprehensive nuclear disarmament, test ban and fissile material cut off. Ever since India has led the chorus demanding worldwide nuclear disarmament.
While India joined the PTBT in 1963 it bitterly opposed the NPT of 1968, and continues to do so, due to its 'dejure discriminatory' character. The supporters of Non-proliferation regime are usually inclined towards demonizing India and dismissing its commitment to disarmament "as a cover for more sinister designs." However, Aabha Dixit dispels such suspicions and claims the "lofty principles" to have "important meaning for Indian leaders and the public." It is only after the latest explosions that one wonders why the importance of non-violence and global nonproliferation has suddenly diminished. India's defiance seems to have transformed into a rebellion inspired by the argument: if can't get them, join them (even if this requires gate-crashing).
-- National Security Concerns: India humiliating defeat in the Indo-China border war of 1962 resulted into the re-evaluation of India's security doctrine. India's security planners were still investigating different options to bolster-up India's security vis-a-vis China when the latter exploded its first nuclear device in 1964. This gave India the shudders and it became paranoid about its security. Much to India's disaffection, China was permitted entry into the exclusive nuclear club under the aegis of the NPT, which also barred further inclusion of any state. "Abolition of this division (between the nuclear 'haves' and 'have-nots') has remained the essence of India's arms control and non-proliferation diplomacy ever since."
The security threat to India, by the Chinese nuclear capability is played down in Pakistan. It is ironical that Pakistan's nuclear policy is also rationalised by a similar threat created by the ambitious Indian nuclear programme. Pakistan's nuclear programme is tailored by India's programme, which is in turn motivated by Chinese nuclear weapons. Now Pakistani programme re-emphasises the utility of the Indian nuclear option and thus the nuclear rat race goes on.
New Delhi's official policy, however, shies away from this reality and has expanded its list of potential nuclear adversaries which includes China, Pakistan, Belarus, Kazakhastan and Ukraine along with other global nuclear powers. Undermining the threat from Pakistani bomb and exaggeration of other global threats to India's national security reflects India's sagacious nuclear policy. It doesn't justify its weapons programme on the basis of a single factor, removal of which could dispute the rationale of this programme. India's nuclear programme has now attained a momentum of its own which can not just be explained in terms of national security requirements.
-- India and Big Power Status: Apart from their utility as deterrents, the political value of nuclear weapons make them very attractive for ambitious NNWSs. To them it seems "no coincidence that the five established nuclear powers in the world today are the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council." Indians largely believe in the ability of nuclear weapons to confer great power status and membership of the UN Security Council upon India despite its economic destitution. Acquisition of nuclear weapons seems the easiest way up the global hierarchy of power.
The analogy of China remains the inspiration of this thesis, "which was as underdeveloped as India" when it achieved great power status due to its nuclear weapons. China possesses the economic might to threaten US commercial interests. Its superior political status in the world is fortified by its strong relationship of economic interdependence with other global powers. This, however, becomes the flip side of the argument which remains ignored in India.
-- India's Public Opinion: In India strong public sentiments have been created over time in favour of the nuclear option by means of rhetorical speeches of policy makers and propaganda by state agencies. Today there exists a strong conformist consensus in India over the nuclear issue. The successful conduction of nuclear tests has generated euphoric sentiments in India, with all quarters jubilating over the latest "national victory".
The clamouring for great power status also associates national pride with the Indian bomb. India's defiant nuclear policy is respected by the public for being symbolic of India's independent foreign and defence policy. India's nuclear weapon capability and missile systems are indigenous scientific achievements which have "become symbols of national pride."
But this consensus supporting the exercise of nuclear option also circumscribes the ability of decision-makers to change the policy on the nuclear issue. Dissenting opinions do exist which argue that if India could live in a politically, economically and militarily unequal world, it could also cope with discrimination in the nuclear realm. However, in India this opinion is not only shoved aside without giving it a second thought, but also snubbed. The threat of being labelled a pariah state (or punishment by sanctions) is not likely to budge the public support for India's bomb.
Its nuclear explosions have exposed the failure of the 'carrot and stick' policy of global big-wigs to dissuade India from taking the nuclear route. India's nuclear weapons are here to stay. Use of coercive measures against India, which is already being opposed by prominent countries among the G-8, in its present xenophobic state of mind is likely to achieve little. Knowledge once learnt can not be unlearnt. And weapons that once see the light of the day can certainly not be expected to disappear. Irrespective of whatever Pakistani leaders desire at this difficult moment, the imposition of stringent sanctions against India will prove more hurtful for Pakistan's nuclear programme than for India's.
Courtesy THE NATION (16 MAY 1998)
Military psychosis in India By Gen Khalid Mahmud Arif (retd)
WITHIN weeks of assuming his official responsibilities Mr George Fernandes, the Defence Minister of India, has made his presence felt. He may keep hitting the media headlines so long as the BJP-led coalition remains in power and he retains his present cabinet post.
The patently frank statements made by Fernandes were music to the political hawks in India. The academics, the hard-line defence analysts, the political pundits, the nuclear gurus and the North-dominated establishment in New Delhi have long indulged in orchestrated hate-Pakistan and China-bashing acts for reasons of political expediency. The China card helps India in earning the sympathy of the Western countries who, for reasons of their own national interests, wish to contain China.
Fernandes fired his first salvo against Pakistan by claiming that India was "very strong and take on Pakistan." The militant Hindus in India might have admired the valour of their Christian minister. India can be given the credit for adopting a consistent approach towards the small neighbours on its periphery in general and Pakistan in particular. While some were bullied and punished, others keep facing its perpetual ire. India is so stuck with a Kashmir bone in its political throat that it can neither swallow it down nor throw it up. His trip to the Indian-held Kashmir took Fernandes to the Siachen Glacier region where he exercised his vocal cords to blame and browbeat Pakistan in fiery language. Significantly, the frequency and the intensity of unprovoked firing from across the Line of Control have increased since the visit. This factor is worth examining by the government.
George Fernandes had accused China for building a helipad on no-man's land adjoining Arunachal Pradesh. Vajpayee refuted this allegation. Days later, the minister was abrasively vocal in his explosive comment, "China is a potential threat number one." He argued that "the potential of China is greater than that of Pakistan, and any person who is concerned about India's security must agree with that fact." The minister accused China for training Myanmar's army and "setting up a massive electronic surveillance establishment" in Myanmar's Coco Islands. He also criticized China for upgrading airfields in Tibet from where supersonic fighters could strike India's borders. "Even the United Stated now recognizes," maintained the minister that, "China's ICBMs are against the US, Russia and even India."
The former Prime Minister I.K. Gujral advised the Defence Minister to be "more cautious in his statements." Natwar Singh called it "irresponsible and unfortunate." Mr Salman Khursheed said that the "anti-Chinese" rhetoric was "terribly irresponsible." What they did not criticize had greater relevance. It is the sovereign right of independent countries to establish bilateral and multilateral relations with other states in all fields. It was arrogant on his part to impinge on the sovereignty of China and Myanmar. Besides, the US and Russia do not need outside advice while making their policy statements.
China was visibly peeved with Fernandes' offending statement as it had gone an extra mile in the recent times in improving relations with India to settle their bilateral border dispute. Expressing its "utmost regret and resentment" China stated that it "does not pose any threat to neighbouring countries." A spokesman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry dismissed the accusations as "utterly fictitious and baseless and absolutely ridiculous and not worthy of refutation." The strong language used by China was noted by the diplomatic circles globally. A spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New Delhi played down the issue and said, "our long-term relations with China are too sensitive a subject to be damaged by any knee-jerk reaction."
Fernandes defended his statements by saying that he had "put the spotlight on the contentious issues with our neighbours with the purpose of making the Indian people conscious about them." He has a point and he has his supporters. For example, one retired admiral recently said in a television interview in India that Fernandes had done a great service to India by projecting his views in public. On the other hand the minister is not without critics. Strange is the comment of India's Army Chief General V.P. Malik who said that, "Mr Fernandes' statement does not matter." For a serving service chief to brush aside a political statement made by his own immediate superior, the Defence Minister, is a revealing development in India. It is no less significant that the General's view did not draw any adverse comments. Is the military emerging as a factor in India's politics?
An intriguing statement made by Mr N.N. Jha, the foreign policy adviser to India's ruling party, has created ripples of unease in Sri Lanka. Jha supported the pro-Tamil demand for the merger of the northern and the eastern provinces in the Island country. Sri Lanka's Sinhala-dominated National Joint Committee strongly criticized the merger proposal "first imposed on this country under duress by a bullying Rajiv Gandhi." This gives an indication that New Delhi may be looking for excuses to fish again in the troubled waters in Sri Lanka. Such a doubt is generated by the statement made by the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New Delhi that the ethnic conflict was being viewed with "friendly concern" by the government of India. A similar concern had earlier resulted in the notorious Indo-Sri Lanka Accord of 1987.
Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee maintains an ambivalent stance on Pakistan. On the one hand he said in Mumbai that the long-stalled bilateral talks with Pakistan "should confine to all the issues including trade." On the other, he stated in a television interview that "Pakistan will have to forget about Kashmir." Seen in this context the resumption of talks between India and Pakistan may create a false hope unless the rough edges are carefully smoothened. Much homework is required to be done between now and July when the two prime ministers are expected to meet.
South Asia is currently witnessing the homework of a different kind. Pakistan was forced to flight-test Ghauri missile because India had piled up a variety of missile systems on its borders - some Pakistan-specific. Ghauri demonstrated the indigenous capability of Pakistan and provided psychological and military security. While our scientists deserve praise for its production, their work remains incomplete. Pakistan needs more flight-tests and more missile systems to meet the minimum needs of its national security.
The instability in South Asia further increased when India claimed to have conducted three nuclear tests on May 11 close to the borders of Pakistan, followed by another two tests on May 13. The testing of the fission, low yield and thermonuclear devices has put New Delhi on the path of building nuclear-weapons with greater surety and technological confidence. India also test-fired a short-range missile Trishul (Trident) with a stated range of 50 kilometres. Did Fernandes highlight the China factor to prepare a justification for his country to conduct the nuclear tests needs to be examined?
The first three tests and the two subsequent ones were secretly conducted in quick succession to prevent the building up of external pressures and to collect the relevant data quickly. This was a clever move. So was the press note issued in which a window of opportunity was kept open on the question of CTBT etc. The immediate US reaction was visibly mild. A senior US official almost assured India that President Clinton's visit to this country won't be cancelled. This statement was perhaps issued with a purpose. Washington may be inclined to impose lukewarm sanctions on India which may temporarily but only partially hurt New Delhi. As against this, India has improved its bargaining position on the nuclear-related issues on a durable basis.
India's nuclear explosions pose a grave threat to the regional countries in general and Pakistan in particular as they impinge on its security. It needs to respond quickly to protect its national interests. While it cannot alter the regional balance of power, it may not hesitate to do what is possible. The gravity of the situation and the urgency created by India's nuclear tests gives Pakistan a one-time chance to demonstrate its nuclear capability here and now. Many a time tomorrow becomes too late.
Courtesy DAILY DAWN - 16 MAY 1998


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