A mysterious Cabal and everything is cloak and dagger

Words I learned watching Quantum of Solace and chasing that word trail. 

Junta: not to be confused by apna janta public janardan sab janta hai . This is a military council which rules a nation and has typically come to power using force as compared to democratic means. To think of it this should be fairly well known word for Indian literates , very next door in Myanmar once Burma A military council rules the nation. In our news services they are more often than not referred as the junta.

trivia: The last of the Mughals , Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled to Rangoon ,

“The military has dominated government since General Ne Win led a coup in 1962 that toppled the civilian government of U Nu. Burma remains under the tight control of the military-led State Peace and Development Council. ” wiki

Cabal :a secret political clique or faction : a cabal of dissidents. Typically a CABAL plans and it plots and indulges in Conspiracy.

Notice the multiple usages of the word Plot as a noun and as a verb. These difference and specific usage in a given context are often check in exams so it is worth one’s while to chase the many meanings of a word that may exist. A good web dictionary should suffice.  Also notice that these multiple meanings exist more in common everyday words rather than Big Fancy words.

plot (noun):
1 a plan made in secret by a group of people to do something illegal or harmful : [with infinitive ] there’s a plot to overthrow the government.
2 the main events of a play, novel, movie, or similar work, devised and presented by the writer as an interrelated sequence.
3 a small piece of ground marked out for a purpose such as building or gardening : a vegetable plot.
4 a graph showing the relation between two variables.
• a diagram, chart, or map.

Plot verb

1 secretly make plans to carry out (an illegal or harmful action) : the two men are serving sentences for plotting a bomb campaign | [ intrans. ] Erica has been plotting against me all along.
2 devise the sequence of events in (a play, novel, movie, or similar work).
3 mark (a route or position) on a chart : he started to plot lines of ancient sites.
• mark out or allocate (points) on a graph.
• make (a curve) by marking out a number of such points.
• illustrate by use of a graph : it is possible to plot fairly closely the rate at which recruitment of girls increased.

Machinate : engage in plots and intrigues; scheme.

intrigue (verb)
1   arouse the curiosity or interest of; fascinate : I was intrigued by your question | [as adj. ] ( intriguing) the food is an intriguing combination of German and French.
2   make secret plans to do something illicit or detrimental to someone : the delegates were intriguing for their own gains.
(noun )
1 the secret planning of something illicit or detrimental to someone : the cabinet was a nest of intrigue | the intrigues of local government officials.
• a secret love affair.
2 a mysterious or fascinating quality : within the region’s borders is a wealth of interest and intrigue.

Mac Says

If you come up with a secret plan to do something, especially with evil or mischievous intent, it’s called a plot (: a plot to seize control of the company).
If you get other people or groups involved in your plot, it’s called a conspiracy (: a conspiracy to overthrow the government).
Cabal usually applies to a small group of political conspirators (: a cabal of right-wing extremists), while machination (usually plural) suggests deceit and cunning in devising a plot intended to harm someone (: the machinations of the would-be assassins).
An intrigue involves more complicated scheming or maneuvering than a plot and often employs underhanded methods in an attempt to gain one’s own ends (: she had a passion for intrigue, particularly where romance was involved).

A little less sinister than both Junta and Cabal is their usage are the following couple of words.

Coterie:a small group of people with shared interests or tastes, esp. one that is exclusive of other people : a coterie of friends and advisers.

Clique:a small group of people, with shared interests or other features in common, who spend time together and do not readily allow others to join them. almost no one from her clique showed up at the reunion.

notice the sense of exclusion in both the words and thus the slight negative shade on the word, however actual meaning positive or negative would depend on the context.

the more harmless versions of these ideas are

Fraternity/Sorority: Brotherhood/sisterhood.

And our Special word for the day is

Caucus

1 a meeting of the members of a legislative body who are members of a particular political party, to select candidates or decide policy.
• the members of such a body.
2 a group of people with shared concerns within a political party or larger organization.
• a meeting of such a group.

To Read more about American Politics and Caucus click here (Wiki)

Again the the Word Caucus has been part of the Indian Media and it’s a subject which was closely followed by the indian news agencies. So not so uncommon either. American Politics is quite an interesting subject and increasingly a more relevant one for informed citizens. Especially the Westernised elite of our soicety. Who are as much American in their clothing, fooding , shelter styles, tastes in fashion  , definition of cool etc.

and not to forget the Hebrew

Kabbalah : the ancient Jewish tradition of mystical interpretation of the Bible, first transmitted orally and using esoteric methods (including ciphers). It reached the height of its influence in the later Middle Ages and remains significant in Hasidism.

ORIGIN from medieval Latin cabala, cabbala, from Rabbinical Hebrew qabbālāh ‘tradition,’ from qibbēl ‘receive, accept.’

A Rabbi is Jewish priest

Piece of the puzzle: Moses Split the sea to take his people to Israel and and journey was called Exodus. Exodus is also a book by Leon Uri which is about the movement of jews from all over the world to Israel their promised land.

Pyramids were build by enslaved Jews. Black People were enslaved by white people and Bhihari dumkas migrated to the islands and blended in with the culture and provided the game of cricket with the batsmen with the Calypso flair and Indian Wrists for spin as well as flicks. .

I don’t even want to Start on Dictators , Tyrants  and Despots and other unsavory nefarious characters.

Phrases:

To lose the plot : lose one’s ability to understand or cope with what is happening : many people believe that he is feeling the strain or has lost the plot.

The plot thickens used when a situation is becoming more and more complicated and puzzling.

if you reach here: then please leave comment tell us something , shorter posts , longer posts, your ideas , your word trails .