State of Pakistan: What Can Pakistanis Do

and Hamidm is right!

Why should Pakistanis get anything different when they keep doing the same things and expecting different results?

Did not the stellar reigns of Bibi and Shariff teach them a lesson? that Pakistanis are equally divided in their support for these two illustrious leaders!

Hamidm has a point! Think about it!

When Pakistani judiciary cant even do something so basic as repealing the hudood ordinance, then what makes you think that they should even ask for having the rule of the law...

Didnt Pakistanis repeal the eight amendment?

We insist on taking one step forward and 9 steps backwards..

a shame!

Re: # 14 Very unfair commentry. This country is not democracy for so many reasons but real culprit is indian attitude and last war situation for 60 years. Can you name any country in world which is fighting big nabour for 60 years? nil
We had major wars and always firing bombs on border. And India and A'stan providing military training and money for terroridt specialy in B.Stan specializing in blowing up of rail and electric lines and specially strategic assets of gas pipe lines nearly 2 to 3 attacks per day. This is going by foreign interests. There is no country which is attacked from both sides and war leads to army rule loss democracy.
All our money is wasted on protecting against brutal and shameless enemy so not much left for industry and education etc. Also we have to go through trauma of east pakistan. loss of Nizam state and Junagarh and kashmie valley. Do you know any country which has democracy which has suffered so much. No country.
Why all people go on blaming each other most politicians are ok but situation is not normal due to indian hegemony and constant putting tension and country has to be on war footing. Which country on war footing is democracy. None.
Please blame our neighbour for making democracy impossible. I do not think democracy is any thing better than army rule. Indian democracy has more poverty than Pakistan army state. Hope international community understands this, but pakistanis need to put forward ythis point. Till kashmir probem is solved aggreable to pakaistan democracy is not possible. good day.

Ahmedmadani sahib,

(This country is not democracy for so many reasons but real culprit is indian attitude)

More specifically it is the influence of the "Hindu racist, casteist, fascist, misogynist, bigoted freak"

Regards

Re: # 17 I second your thinking. Insanity is doing thing same way and expecting different results. May be intelluctuals should other different mode than democracy or army rule. Also if army rule not worked democrasy did not work this mule of democracy+ army will not work. Time has come to give also chance to RELIGIOUS minded regime, where things are stark, simple , narrow and straight forward based on more higher principles.

Re: # 18

I can see why you would construe my comments as unfair but here are a few questions?

Why is it that Pakistanis blame all their ills on India?

Why is it during democratic rule of Nawaz Sharif that we almost started a war with India...remember Kargil? And why is it that during President Musharraf's reign, our relations with India have never been better?

Did not Pakistani regimes support terrorists or as we like to call them "Mujahideen" in Indian occupied Kashmir?

Did not Pakistanis recieve support from the Saudis to build thousands of Madrassas to spread their vile fundamentalist version of Islam.

Is it India's fault that we have unfair laws such as the Hudood Ordinance?

Is it India's fault that Pakistan has been hijacked by the religious right who did not even want Pakistan to be created, and now turned it into a painfully disfigured caricature of Jinnah's vision?

When will we Pakistanis wake up and take responsibility for our status in the world today?

Re: # 19 Do not please may crude remarks about YLH. IF you care out democracy you should pay your respects. He gave straigh criticism of army rule. Can you do that criticism on BBC aginst indian govt being against poor, hungry, backward, dalits, tamils, opporeesed women and ppor student and low or no caste( muslims+christian+ buddha+ Sikh etc all others). Thanks.I am sure Indians will be more than happy if YLH is arrested. Mean kamine indians not all but some kamine

Musharraf is a sonofabitch.

I think this explains it much better than all this self-flagellation on shortcomings in the national character.

Ahmedmadani sahib,

(Do not please may crude remarks about YLH.)

When did I say that YLH was a "Hindu racist, casteist, fascist, misogynist, bigoted freak"???

(Can you do that criticism on BBC aginst indian govt being against poor, hungry, backward, dalits, tamils, opporeesed women and ppor student and low or no caste)

Dunno whether BBC would want a ugly looking kala Bangali guy like me on TV.

(I am sure Indians will be more than happy if YLH is arrested.)

Not me. He is a good friend of mine.

(Mean kamine indians not all but some kamine )

Actually all are.

Regards

There are no variations of the basic gripe or grouse or cribbing or diatribe or balderdash or humbug or ........!!
Can someone talk the cause and walk the remedy?
From what I can discern in the multitude of cursing or polemic in the many write-ups on this forum [chowk.com], there seems to be a total lack of clarity on WHAT is wrong and WHAT needs to be done: how about starting from the premise that we require a total re-evaluation of the concept that 'parliamentary democracy' is what the doctor ordered for Pakistan? How about giving a shot at understanding what Jinnah wanted for Pakistan?
Can we suggest Chowk Editors to invite comments / views from: Janab Sharif al Mujahid , Dr. Parvez Hoodbhoy, Janab Qazi Faez al Issa, Prof Anwar Syed [his write-up, "Dealing with an emergency", DAWN, 11th November 2007, is a sort of sequel to a long list of revealing/suggestive political frame-work for Pakistan], and many other apolitical commentators

Pakistanis should ask for more Islamic identity by strict implementation of Shariat so that they can become purer.

They must show to the world that they are the light of the ummah. They are going to become the next muslim world power and lead the war against the kafirs and idolators!!

#25 Why dont you practice what you preach and talk about the cause?

and dont look around to "what jinnah would say" and what hoodbhoy and co. would say - God gave you a brain and eyes and ears like it gave jinnah and hoodbhoy and every other individual who walked the earth. And God made your brain and eyes and ears of the same grade as he made for everyone else. So use them!!

Salaam to everyone.

Thank you for first of all, commenting on my effort. I am still new at writing, so therefore I take all criticism positively, even if it wasn't given in that same light by some.

I am not going to start replying to everyone who has been consistently interacting on this article.

I would however like to make one thing clear. This article is not an 'attack' on overseas settled Pakistanis. Not by a long shot. If that's the feeling people get, then I apologize. The point I tried to make was simply towards one step or solution to benefit the country.

@ tahmed32. True, I should practice what I preach. And true, God gave everyone eyes, ears and brains. But unfortunately, not everyone, given their circumstances or situations is in a position to use the gray matter to it's full capacity or potential or towards a direction more than 'making ends meet'. Survival is the first instinct. If you are comfortable on that, then you think beyond. I firmly believe in that.

No.27 tahmed32: I AM using my God-gifted faculties! Please see/read my article, 'Religiosity, National Ethos.....' in which you have also commented [6th November 2007]. Thank you.

Don’t worry folks! Pakistan will survive this one too as it has survived the previous regimes. Like Mr. Shiraz Mahmood has put it, we are still a young country and we have to go through our trials and tribulations our own way. Some take a shorter path; others prefer to take longer paths with some circles too. Looks like we, the Pakistanis seem to prefer the latter. As far as the question, what we Pakistanis can do? Educate ourselves and especially our young ones is the only answer. Education, that builds character, sense of value, and most important of all, aspire to become a good human being. Education, that teaches us to ‘Think’. Then can we expect, that we desire from our leadership. On the contrary, we will continue to spiral towards moral bankruptcy. No amount of such lamenting and bemoaning will suffice the need of the time.

We have to remember one thing. Leaders of a nation rise from within the nation and are not imported. If we find fault with our leaders, it is us who are to be blamed. Such are the times when we can truly gauge our merits.

salaam janeman,

Pakistan deserves to be under the rule of mullahs.

It has been preparing it's citizens for this day since 1947.

It has been pining for khalifas and Shariah since ages.

Let them have their Taliban and Hasbas.

Only then can we call it a "PAK-istan" !!!

पाकिस्तान बनेगा इस्लामिस्तान

Nobody can stop the Islamists -

All munafiqoons get ready to embrace the purity of sunnat- those who would wear angrezi dress would be flogged.