This is a presentation of my letters as published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post in the past seven years (2011-2004).

1. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
INTROSPECTIVE
DISTINCTIVE
EXISTENTIAL
ANALYTICAL
STIMULATING
Scribo Ergo Sum… While keeping my day job, I
indulge my passion for writing by responding to
leading newspaper editorials on foreign
affairs, economic policies, business issues, social
topics, politics, etc. This is a presentation of my
letters as published in The New York Times, The
Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post in
the past seven years (2011 -2004).
Jack Nargundkar

2. Foreign Affairs
1. Libya (New York Times)
2. Bin Laden (Washington Post)
3. Arab Spring (Wall Street Journal)
4. Obama in India (New York Times)
5. Afghanistan (Wall Street Journal)
6. Iran (Washington Post)
7. UN Security Council (International
Herald Tribune)
8. China (International Herald
Tribune)
9. Middle East (Wall Street Journal)
10. Afghanistan & Iraq (Washington
Post)
11. Russia & Georgia (New York Times)
12. India (New York Times)
13. Pakistan (Wall Street Journal)
14. Iraq (New York Times)
15. Iraq (Wall Street Journal)
16. Core Values(Wall Street Journal)
17. Hearts & Minds (New York Times)
18. India Nuclear Deal (New York
Times)
19. Medals of Freedom (New York
Times)

3. In defense of President
Obama’s “leading from
behind” foreign policy
strategy during the much-
heralded “Arab spring.”
New York Times – 8/24/11

4. Kudos to President Obama
for making a gutsy call on
Osama Bin Laden!
Washington Post – 5/2/11

5. My take on the Arab spring –
as a 21st century version of
yesteryear’s domino theory –
freedom brought about by a
tech revolution!
Wall Street Journal – 3/30/11

6. Requesting President Obama
to play up American values as
he embarked on a trip to my
native land.
New York Times – 11/5/10

7. When the drumbeat for
pulling out of Afghanistan
was rising, I cautioned of
the serious implications to
world peace if Afghanistan
were abandoned yet again!
Wall Street Journal – 7/8/10

8. My call for a need to “walk the
talk,” when it came to dealing with
Iran, seems even more relevant
given subsequent developments.
Washington Post – 6/15/10

9. In order for the United Nations
to remain viable in the 21st
century, I proposed a change in
its post-WWII makeup.
International Herald Tribune –
5/23/10

10. My call for a paradigm
shift in US foreign
policy, particularly with
the BRIC nations.
International Herald
Tribune – 2/7/10

11. This 2-year old letter turned out
to be quite prescient given the
fall of various dictators during
this year’s Arab spring.
Wall Street Journal - 11/21/09

12. President Obama has pretty
much kept his word by
refocusing on Afghanistan
and ending the war in Iraq.
Washington Post – 8/26/09

13. Some words of caution
regarding NATO’s outlook
after Russia invaded Georgia.
New York Times – 8/24/08

14. To reflect the new realities in
Asia, I called for a military
relationship with India and an
expansion of the UN Security
Council.
New York Times – 4/14/08

15. My suspicions regarding General
Musharraf were substantiated by
subsequent events.
Wall Street Journal – 10/15/07

16. In the midst of the surge in
Iraq, President Bush seemed to
be channeling Harry Truman.
New York Times – 7/27/07

17. Simple math seemed to
indicate that the Johns Hopkins
estimate on civilian deaths in
Iraq was highly suspect.
Wall Street Journal – 10/24/06

18. My call for consistency in the
application of our core values
with regards to US foreign policy.
Wall Street Journal – 10/6/06

19. I suggested that we cannot
win the battle for hearts and
minds while concurrently
engaged in a war on terror.
New York Times – 9/4/06

20. A prescient call to counter
China’s growing influence by
pursuing a more strategic
relationship with India.
New York Times – 3/8/06

21. It was my contention that
President Bush prematurely
awarded Medals of Freedom
to these three individuals.
New York Times – 12/16/04

22. Economic Policies &
Business Issues
1. Market Valuation of post-WWII
presidencies (Wall Street Journal)
2. Indian vs. Chinese entrepreneurs
(Wall Street Journal)
3. Efficient Markets Hypothesis (Wall
Street Journal)
4. SEC role post-financial crisis(Wall
Street Journal)

23. President Nixon’s economic
policies might have sowed
chaos in the 1970s, but my
market valuation of post-
WWII presidencies produced
some surprising results!
Wall Street Journal – 8/19/11

24. In the big Asian face-off, I
postulated that India has an
entrepreneurial edge over
China in the long run.
Wall Street Journal – 8/19/10

25. An MBA’s defense of the
efficient markets hypothesis !
Wall Street Journal – 3/17/10

26. Recommendations to the SEC
at the height of the financial
meltdown.
Wall Street Journal – 9/27/08

27. Social Topics & Politics
1. Obama birth certificate (New York
Times)
2. Healthcare (Washington Post)
3. BP oil spill (New York Times)
4. Limbaugh influence (New York Times)
5. Arranged marriages (Wall Street
Journal)
6. Tiger Woods apology (New York
Times)
7. Scott Brown’s senate victory (Wall
Street Journal)
8. TSA role post-underwear bomber
(Washington Post)
9. Obama Nobel Peace Prize (New York
Timesl)
10. Obama inauguration (New York
Times)
11. Hillary-Bill presidency (Washington
Post)
12. Justice Thomas (New York Times)
13. Stem cell veto (New York Times)
14. Libby pardon (New York Times)
15. Taxi driver analogy (New York Times)
16. Bush NAACP address (Washington
Post)
17. Surveillance leaks (New York Times)
18. Intelligence failure (Washington Post)
19. Terri Schiavo lessons (New York
Times)

28. After President Obama
released his birth certificate, I
suggested that Donald Trump
keep his end of the deal.
New York Times – 4/29/11

29. A plea for a congressional
compromise on healthcare reform.
Washington Post – 1/24/11

30. Despite “environmental”
pressures, I believed that the BP
oil spill offered a “learning
moment” for President Obama.
New York Times – 6/15/10

31. My take on why Rush
Limbaugh is not as influential
as some people think he is.
New York Times – 5/22/10

32. Introducing the subcontinent’s
concept of an “arranged love
marriage” to the land of the
free and the home of the brave!
Wall Street Journal – 5/4/10

33. Looks like I might have over-
stated Tiger Woods’ PR
performance – the jury is
still out on his public
rehabilitation.
New York Times – 2/20/10

34. President Obama has not been
adept at working with a divided
Congress like Reagan and Clinton
managed to do.
Wall Street Journal - 1/22/10

35. My beef about how TSA is
reactive and not proactive.
Washington Post – 12/31/09

36. Some felt that this award was
premature, but one can argue
that President Obama has since
contributed to world peace by
getting rid of terrorists and
dictators, albeit, largely by non-
diplomatic means!
New York Times - 10/10/09

37. I offered some words of
encouragement on the day of
President Obama’s inaugural.
New York Times – 1/20/09

38. Notwithstanding President
Obama’s foreign policy successes,
the “Hill-Bill” tag team in the White
House might have succeeded with
economic policy as well?
Washington Post – 11/6/07

39. Justice Thomas still seemed
bitter after all these years.
New York Times – 10/3/07

40. An eternal dilemma, how can
one be simultaneously pro-
life and pro-death penalty?
New York Times – 6/22/07

41. President Bush was caught
between a rock and a hard
place on the Libby pardon.
New York Times – 3/8/07

42. My “Taxi Driver” take on
the breakdown of real
communications.
New York Times – 11/3/06

43. President Bush finally addressed
the NAACP but did not appeal to
their higher expectations.
Washington Post – 7/29/06

44. I suggested that the Bush
Justice Department was
playing politics with
surveillance leaks.
New York Times – 1/8/06

45. My concern about major back-to-
back intelligence failures on 9/11
and WMD with no consequences.
Washington Post – 4/11/05

46. This letter made it to WSJ’s
“Best of the Web” page and
caused some consternation for
its editor.
New York Times – 4/1/05

47. Writers’ Food for Thought…
Writing, to me, is simply thinking Writing books is the closest men ever
through my fingers ̶ Isaac Asimov come to childbearing ̶ Norman Mailer
The pen is the tongue of the mind ̶ Writing is the supreme solace ̶ W.
Miguel de Cervantes Somerset Maugham
For me, writing is a concentrated form of Writing is its own reward ̶ Henry Miller
thinking ̶ Don DeLillo The author must keep his mouth shut
The reason one writes isn't the fact he when his work starts to speak ̶
wants to say something. He writes Friederich Nietzsche
because he has something to say ̶ F. Writing is the most fun you can have by
Scott Fitzgerald yourself ̶ Terry Pratchett
No tears in the writer, no tears in the Writing is the best way to talk without
reader ̶ Robert Frost being interrupted ̶ Jules Renard
The most valuable of all talents is that of Suit the action to the word, the word to
never using two words when one will do the action ̶ William Shakespeare
̶ Thomas Jefferson