Madonna was seen sporting dark sunglasses the other night. But what was unusual about it? As camera lights from the paparazzi flashed away, pictures exposed Madonna's black eyes. The chances she was involved in a heavy brawl are highly unlikely. So that really leaves one explanation for why she had the puffy dark circles under her eyes.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out Madonna doesn't magically stay wrinkle free while the faces in rest of the world crumple up to look like an old leather jacket. The Daily Mail speculates she had a facelift. Why are people so surprised and amazed when they hear about a star like Madonna getting a face lift? Let's be realistic. The woman turns 50 next year. No 50 year old has a perfect complexion without getting some work done.

Secondly, who cares? The media is already criticizing Madonna for going under the knife. The speculation is ridiculous. Plus, I think facelifts are fabulous. If one grows to hate their leathery complexion and wants to change it with a face lift, I'm all for it. It's unfortunate, but the world is judgmental and cruel. How many times have we seen tabloids poke fun of the dimples on Britney's derriere? If I were famous, I would feel the pressure. In fact, I'm NOT famous and I still feel the pressure to look good.

It's all about self esteem too. If a young, youthful face makes Madonna feel confident and secure with herself, then let the woman do want she wants. But she shouldn't deny getting plastic surgery, nor should all the other celebs. If they go under the knife and get a good nose job, they should flaunt it rather than blame it on a deviated septum. If we have the technology to look marvelous, we should take advantage, but not overdo it. For instance, no one needs countless procedures. A facelift at 50 is understandable. A nose job for a ridiculously large nose is justifiable, and a tummy tuck for someone who had kids and can't get rid of the extra pudge is okay too.

A story in The Guardian explains that these clown protesters were from Operation Save America/Operation Rescue. They wanted to interrupt the first ever Hindu prayer in the Senate. Harry Reid had invited Rajan Zed to do the traditional morning prayer in the Senate as a way of reaching out to other faiths. And these extremist Christians thought, "God forbid!"

The protesters' point was that Hinduism is not mono-theistic and that the Senate was putting other Gods before their God. Their point is both laughably bad and perfectly sensible at the same time.

What is entrepreneur Vinod Gupta thinking? First it is reported that the InfoUSA CEO has been funneling millions of dollars to Bill Cinton, supposedly for "consulting." Gupta paid the good ol' boy $.2.1 million, and has promised him an additional $1.2 million. Gupta has also been flying the Clintons around in his corporate jet.

Now we find out from Newsmax that Gupta has placed Paul Pelosi, son of Nancy Pelosi, on his payroll to the tune of $180,000 a year. What's strange about this is that--a) Pelosi is supposed to be a full-time employee but he already holds another job, as home loan office for Countrywide Loans in San Mateo, California, b) as a home mortgage loan officer, Pelosi would seem to have little knowledge or experience in the kid of database business that InfoUSA is, and c) Pelosi was hired as senior vice president on February 1, just a couple of weeks after Pelosi became speaker of the house.

As much as I like Sanjaya, I'm willing to entertain the possibility that he's survived to this point in the competition by fraudulent means. Among the theories being floated: secret Indian call centers with Sanjanistas feverishly dialing ... when they should be dealing with American credit card complaints.

Watch my investigation below.

I am bereft. I am in Columbia, SC's airport. (Consolation: Free internet access!) But I was unable to watch Idol last night. I've had to make do with YouTube clips. Is this how the kids watch Idol?

Thank goodness Sanjaya's performance of "Cheek to Cheek" was posted. Once again Sanjaya was shrewd - brilliant! - in selecting his song. "Heaven, I'm in Heaven," the song begins. We don't know if Sanjaya is a practicing Hindu. But it should be noted that heaven is not a focal point in Hinduism - just a temporary state known as swarga loka - in the reincarnation cycle. (Ooh, I do love the idea of a reincarnated Sanjaya coming back to perform in American Idol season 112 - getting sneered at by Simon's wickedly mean great-granddaughter. Of course by that point the show will be broadcast from Bangalore and the dark horse contestant will be an immigrant from Alabama.) In any case, Sanjaya's homage to "Heaven" was a calculated reassurance to Christian voters that he respects their theology.

On a less spiritual plane, it's worth remembering that the magnificent and notoriously grumpy Irving Berlin (composer of "Cheek to Cheek" for the 1935 movie musical "Top Hat") called Fred Astaire, who originally sang the song, his favorite singer. Astaire was not a singer. Like Sanjaya he had a thin, quavering voice. But he felt the lyrics. He had heart. And heart is Sanjaya's selling point.

(Photos: Fox/AP)

Since chess was invented in India, it's only fitting that the best chess player in the world be an Indian. And now he is: Vishwanathan Anand has risen to the top of the chess rankings and is now rated the world's top player.

For the past several decades, chess has been dominated by the Russians. Bobby Fisher briefly broke the Russian spell in the 1970s, but then Fisher vanished into obscurity, surfacing every few years to denounce the Jews or engage in other forms of crackpot behavior. Still, many of us who came of age in the Fisher era continue to revere the man. We continue to separate his chess from the crackpottery.

Except for Fisher, the Russian line of chess domination has been largely unbroken: Botvinnik, Petrossian, Tal, Spassky, Karpov, Kasparov, and most recently Kramnik. A few years ago Anand challenged Kasparov and lost. But he has stayed in the top ranks, and with his most recent victory at Linares he has now ascended to the top spot.

Now it's time for a Kramnik-Anand showdown. If Anand wins and confirms his chess supremacy, the Russians will have to be content with holding the world's leading position in vodka drinking.

Not Sanjaya. I've been amused at all the various conspiracy theories to explain this fellow's mysterious and enduring appeal. One of my favorites. "Indian call centers. Think about it."

But here in India I see that people don't care about Sanjaya. The hot issue is India's humiliating elimination from the World Cup. I'm talking about cricket, which is, after Hinduism, the biggest religion in India. India was considered one of the top teams in the world and it was ousted by countries that have hardly played cricket before. So the team has gone into hiding, because people are ready to throw rocks at them, and even players' look-alikes are reported by the Times of India to be in physical danger.

Pakistan is also out of the World Cup, and this is now a bigger issue in that country that General Musharraf's decision to fire the country's top high court judge. Possibly India and Pakistan can now play a high-stakes set of cricket matches against each other, with the disputed territory of Kashmir going to the winner of the series. Of course the members of the losing team would have to run for their lives, but they could be granted sanctuary by the winning country, and all would be well.

The Supreme Court in India has imposed a temporary halt on affirmative action seats reserved for so-called "backward classes" and that has set off a political firestorm.

As India produces a substantial share of the world's talent in high-tech, merit would seem to be the obvious and only way to choose the best and the brightest to attend India's prestigious Institutes of Technology and other elite institutions. But since India's independence in 1947, a provision was unwisely placed in the Constitution that allows preferential treatment for historically disadvantaged minorities--mainly India's lower castes as well as the tribes that have traditionally been on the outskirts of civilization.

Do you hear that creaking sound? I do. It's more like a low rumbling. It's the sound of an Empire collapsing.


60 years after Mohandas Gandhi's civil disobedience movement led to the end of British rule in India, the gentle Sanjaya is just as peacefully (if less than tunefully) bringing Viceroy Simon to heel.

American Idol is an institution built on an ideal: the most talented singer wins. In the end, all it has is its credibility. That's been crippled now, perhaps beyond all repair. And once the tipping point is reached (one week from now? Two?), HMS Idol will sink fast.

I've written extensively about the stunning parallels between Gandhi and Sanjaya. (Of course their hair is a contrast, though Sanjaya has at least one more week to debut a chrome dome. This I would not advise. Sanjaya's eyes are too closely set to pull off a bald look.)

Dinesh D'Souza makes several interesting assertions in his piece regarding American Idol and Indian-American voters. Now I'm going to rebut them all:

First of all, he feigns indignation at even addressing the topic. He cites his work in the Reagan White House as a reason why he shouldn't even be writing on the subject. May I remind him that Reagan might have played a role in ending the Cold War, but he also starred in Bedtime for Bonzo (totally underrated, by the way)? Ronald Reagan most certainly would have loved American Idol. The man watched Little House religiously.

Secondly I've heard others call Indian-Americans the "new Jews." I'm certainly not going to bandy about labels like those. But if I did, I'd call Persian-Americans the "new Jews." In fact a Persian Jewish American is about to become mayor of Beverly Hills! He'll be the highest-ranking Iranian-born elected official in America. (I just read this in USA Today while I was walking around Universal City-Walk.)

Thirdly Indian-Americans students' excellence in math and science are perfectly consistent with watching Idol: I'm really good at math and I like Idol.

Lastly I don't believe Dinesh doesn't watch American Idol:
- He knew about Brandon.
- He was on Paula Zahn last night at 8:00pm EST - and left just in time to make it home to watch Idol. (I have sources.)

I know I'm supposed to be indignant at Sanjaya Malakar's inclusion in Idol's top 12 - especially since Sundance Head is going home. But Sanjaya needs someone's support, and I'm lending mine. The judges have scoffed at his singing and mocked his "Paula hair." (For the record it's "Gina Gershon hair.") He's reacted with good cheer and humility, though I can tell he's suffering tremendous survivor's guilt.

Folks, Sanjaya knows he's not the best. He can't help it if America keeps voting for him. (His grace and self-awareness are a lesson to other contestants.) So stop trashing him!

That said, it is legitimate to ask why America is voting for him. Sanjaya is the first finalist of Indian descent, or "South Asian American". There are approximately 2.5 million Indian-Americans - less than 1% of the U.S. population - but rapidly growing in influence. They are also the richest ethnic group in America, with a median family income of $68,771 (2004). Is Sanjaya's ascendance a sign of Indian-Americans flexing their electoral muscle? Will they make Sanjaya Idol's "New Tiger"? This, of course, assumes a pattern of ethnic-identity voting.

- Read on, but first take my Sanjaya hair poll!