State of Pakistan: What Can Pakistanis Do

There is a website by Pakistani Students to register protest online. It is a new concept but has been working very successfully in Europe, US and some other countries for the last few years.

So this is also something we can do, Please register your protest at (www.BoltaPakistan.com) and spread the word. If they can get some healthy number, it would also be another step in our struggle.

{"Where the common man is day by day becoming more hypocritical and bitter."}

Mahmood Sahib,
Painful but true - good article.

What do you expect when there are racist and bigoted Pakis like Hypo Chacha Al Butteesi wrapping themselves up in the Sitara-e-Halal?

Speaking of common man, there is no one more common than Hypo Chacha Al Butteesi.

Useless article and deviod of all intellect, I'm afraid (Chowk is seriously lowering its editorial stadandards).

let see..
You say : "I believe that most of our problems root from within us. "

None of us our saints , neither the westerner nor the pakistani, so there is no problem "rooted within us".

And if this were so, we would not have such a successful expat poulation. the problem is that we do not have a postivist environemnt of accountability in our country (especially after Musharraf's coup against the judiciary) . If we had insitution instilling accountability and consumer rights , we would be in a prosperous country and there would be no brain drain, as talent will match captial and all will be held accoutnable.

There are also many other flaws in your article but I do not know if I should dignify this piece by writing a detailed criticism.

Is Musharraf West's 'sonofabitch'?

Can Pakistanis call Musharraf "sonofabitch" -- if they want to migrate to 'England'?

WASHINGTON: The offending word is "sonofabitch."
Pakistan has expelled three British reporters after a UK daily twice referred the country's military dictator Pervez Musharraf as a "sonofabitch," sparking off a yet another fervent debate about language, stylebook and the limits of editorial expression.

The comment, deemed offensive by the Pakistani government, appeared in a November 9 editorial in the Daily Telegraph innocuously headlined "Bankrupt Relationship."

"In the old parlance, General Pervez Musharraf is "our sonofabitch," the paper wrote. "He has failed to stamp out extremist groups and close the madrassas that inspire them. He has allowed the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan to fall into the hands of assorted jihadis."

It then went on to add: "An alternative... seems neither imminent nor especially enticing. But that should not blind Britain and America to the fact that their "sonofabitch" in Pakistan is a spent force."

The "old parlance" the paper referred to appears to be an oft quoted remark attributed to various American leaders about their preference for some dictators -- "He's a bastard, but he's our bastard."

That quote has also been used by some columnists and bloggers to refer to the US' kidglove treatment of Musharraf compared to its hardline stand on leaders of Venezuela and Iran.

The quote is variously attributed to Presidents FDR, Truman, Nixon, and even strategic guru Henry Kissinger, and is believed to have originated in the context of US support to Nicaragua's Somoza line of dictatorship.

Some media stylebooks and manuals allow words such as bastard, but "sonofabitch" falls in the grey zone, partly because it is composite of words and does not even make the cut in some dictionaries.

The online Urban Dictionary lists four definitions for "sonofabitch" including one that reads: George W Bush, President of the USA.

In recent months, the media has struggled with words such as "F**K" and "S..T." Some American newspapers broke new ground by using the F-word when vice-president Cheney was heard telling a lawmaker to "go f*** yourself."

Pakistan though was in no doubt that "sonofabitch" breached the military regime's stylebook. "The language used for the President of Pakistan in your leading article ("Bankrupt relationship," November 9) is offensive and flouts the norms of decent journalism," Imran Gardezi, Minister Press, Pakistan High Commission, wrote to the paper. "For a newspaper of The Daily Telegraph's reputation to resort to such derogatory language is highly regrettable. This deserves an apology."

None was forthcoming."(AP)

Nawaz Sharif says in his book -- Musharraf called him a
"bastard" saying: -- "I have to sort out that (NS) bastard".

#5 - Queen's adopting Mushy?

Re. the article, quite a simplistic take on a very complex problem. How can someone in his/her right mind justify emergency rule and curb on media? Hello? are you for real. What’s a “code of conduct for media” nonsense all about? Did anyone try to re-print Danish cartoons again? The Media (Pakistani, and Islamic media in general) has been spewing hatred of Jews and whatnot, and now some stupid dictator has found a reason to ask media to sign a “code of conduct”? Son of a real bitch.

Very strange article.....

I am still not sure what the author is trying to say.....

You called it a rant, oh its definitely one!

Is there a thesis statement?

A main idea perhaps?

This article is seriously quite ADD...

Dear Shiraz, I have become a member of Chowk.com only a few days back and I have just submitted an article myself. I intend to submit another article tomorrow,if the editors publish it, then I think you may receive a real-life answer to the question you have raised - about the people who leave the country and seem to perhaps only criticize from a distance without having put in their bit as such. Exactly, what I had complained to a Pakistani/American investment banker based in NY years ago when I was trying to raise finances for a large project in Pakistan. He instead invested in India - and it took me years to understand why...
In any case, after India's success, the sixty years excuse is not quite palatable anymore. This happens to be a leap-frog era. And I think when one insists on putting in place foundations that are contrary to all principles of architecture then one cannot expect a high rise to stand... The problem are the people who would not allow institutions to develop...institutions which in turn keep personal adventurism under check... and keeping any hopes on Musharraf is wrong - nothing will come out of it, except losing another eight years when one would have to start afresh anyway...it is either now or another eight years later - but it will have to be done one day in any case...
Cheers... Amer Nazir

"ISLAMABAD: The government is considering promulgating an ordinance to reduce the Supreme Court’s (SC) strength, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Malik Qayyum said on Monday, adding that there was no ordinance on the cards to declare President General Pervez Musharraf as a qualified presidential candidate for the second term.

He told reporters outside the Supreme Court that the government wanted an "on-merit" decision on petitions challenging Gen Musharraf’s eligibility to run for a second presidential term."(AP)

What Musharraf sahib should do is to issue a PCO to castrate Aie Gee Quyum sahib of both his Lawyerhood and Judgehood -- because the judicio-legal Hoodlum is increasing becoming an unworthy embarrassment to both his Legal and Judicial parents.

shiraz mian,

"I ask, if the people of this country want the future to be different then they drop their hypocrisy and take on responsibility"

....... i have a better idea : why don't the people of this country drop their pants, bend over and take whatever comes like a man ....... stop whining and, as musharraf told mukhtaran bibi, "if rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it"

....... pakis are like whores - they keep on hoping that with the next john they will find true love .......

Keep thinking along these lines Shiraz.

A worthy effort.


Ras

Absolutely on the dot, Shiraz! I would subscribe to the idea that the 'expats' sitting pretty in their 'downtown' work spaces in various watering-holes of the 'civilised' urban areas of the 'yanqui' and 'cockney' lands, should stand and be counted in the homeland!
Are you listening, hamidm2? And do you utter the same stinking diatribe where you are currently holed-up in the 'gora'-land hole?!!

Dear Shiraz, do not be dissuaded by the negative talk from the Hamidm2, the talk that is most likely caused by the simple fact that you express yourself honestly in this piece and your idealism comes through loud and clear - which upsets him immensely as he gets to remember his own (long ago) days of youth!

Whats with the expatriate bashing?

You think we came abroad and starts picking dollars or pounds right off the money tree.

Its shameful that you belittle the sacrifices of expatriates living all over the world...

Just an example, why do you think Israel is so strong today? because of its large expatriate community in the US!

Dont the expatriates remit hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign exchange to Pakistan?

What kind of stupid idea is this that the cream of Pakistan has left Pakistan? Its like insulting the people who live there!

India has a huge expatriate community but why is India progressing in leaps and bounds? Why is India a democracy?
Why did India institute land reforms?

Re: # 10 Mr.H Why can you not let young man to be little romantic ? What he feels is not Lufangebazi but real pain.
Have good day.

I think masadi again banned ? YLH also banned or in jail as he gave harsh comments on BBC ?