Dimple - Obviously you and I approach the issue of the monarchy from two very different angles. To one of your points, I think we are ready for a republic. I don't know if you want to start a discussion here on the pros and cons of this but there have been plenty of other thread on this subject including some on which I have commented and most of arguments of both sides have been covered in those threads. As for ethnic aspirations, when will we be ready for it, if not now? Kathmandu's power elites have for too long marginalized those who do not look like them or talk like them or think like them. We are living in historic times and Nepal is undergoing a major restructuring of state of society. Giving room for ethnic ambitions does not necessarily mean losing your national identity - on the contrary, it means changing it, and beginning to think about nationalism in more inclusive way than what some of us are used to.