Pakistan is believed to have passed India in the arms race with a nuclear stockpile of over 100 deployed weapons according to a report in The Washington Post today. No doubt this recognition of our nuclear might will result in the predictable chest puffing pride among our more martially-minded bretheren. But do we really benefit [...]
The Raymond Davis case continues to dominate headlines and news discussions. What began as a terrible tragedy has turned into a ball of confusion thanks to a media that values headlines more than justice. But media conspiracy theories aside, the greater question that should be asked is what the term ‘justice’ actually means in our [...]
American Raymond Davis in chains being led by police. The case of the American Raymond Allen Davis who is accused of shooting two men in Lahore should not be used to advance a political agenda and should not be exploited by the media hoping to boost ratings by enflaming the nationalist sentiments of the people. [...]
THE culture warriors, of the kinder variety, have struck back. Anchors sacked, mullahs barracked by entertainers, the fight is on, at least on television. Enjoy it while it lasts. It won’t last very long. That’s because the cast of characters involved is a bunch of jokers, puppets on strings, twirling and twisting in fervent obeisance [...]
How valuable is one’s wealth if it is buried underground and one has no way of getting it out? And what would one say to somebody who came along and volunteered to extract this wealth, providing all of the technical expertise and putting up the entire investment costs, and letting you keep half of the [...]
I was struck last night when I checked Dawn‘s website for any updates on yesterday’s bombings and saw the following headlines next to each other: ‘Suicide bombs in two Pakistan cities kill 12′ and ‘Pakistan warns against India nuclear support’. It was like seeing it there in black and white the two national priorities, one [...]
I was eating with some friends when the discussion of politics came up as it always does. The conversation started when I was telling a story about the latest conspiracy theory I’d heard. We were having a laugh about it when someone asked who I heard it from and it turned out we unknowingly had [...]
Oh, my, that label again: ‘Liberal extremist.’ What on earth does it mean? Absolutely nothing. Great wordplay and deliciously idiosyncratic, but that’s about it. However, since the popular electronic media in Pakistan is usually about a rather nihilistic strain of whatever it considers to be news and analysis, this topsy-turvy label has become the catch-all [...]
Everyone has their own opinion about what is needed for economic growth: RGST, eliminate loadshedding, more FDI, and of course the old favourite, end corruption. But what is too often missing from the discussion is the one essential element that must exist before we will see economic growth: peace. China suffers from massive corruption, yet [...]
Judging by the media coverage lately, the most serious threat to Pakistan and Islam is a reality TV show in India. While this seems to have raised the blood pressure of much of the nation’s intelligentsia, it should be relieved that if Pakistan’s greatest threat is an Indian reality TV show, we must be doing [...]