And Now, The Charter of Demands—The Comedy Continues!

Following is the e-mail received about the author, Mr Ahmed Quraishi.

Ahmed Quraishi's ''enlightening' ' articles have been doing the rounds on the net of late. One can only describe him as Pakistan's very own Bill O' Reilly (with just as much credibility! ). And like O' Reilly, his most used weapon of choice is the tag of 'traitor' and 'unpatriotic' for anyone who criticizes the government (or perhaps just el presidente, the now retired generalisimo) , be they politicians, journalists, lawyers, academics, human rights activists, former army officers et al. It seems Mr. Quraishi gets his inspiration (along with his fake American accent) from Fox News.

Even a cursory look at his website might help one understand Mr. Quraishi's "unbiased, journalistic, analytical, and professional " approach to issues he so passionately addresses in his articles. Mr. Quraishi's website is studded with countless gems that reflect the luminosity of his brilliance, breadth of vision, and intellectual maturity.

For instance, in the 'biography' section of ahmedquraishi. com, (also known as the ''tooting one's own horn' section) we are informed that "Starting in the year 2003, Mr. Quraishi has lent his expertise to FurmaanRealpolitik www.furmaanrealpoli tik.com.pk), a political consulting firm originally based in Dubai."

A look at the website of furmaanrealpolitik. com.pk . (who came up with this subtle name, one wonders?) helps answer questions people might entertain regarding Mr. Quraishi's credibilty, motives and unique understanding of national and international affairs.

The 'services' offered by furmaanrealpolitik include "Intelligence, Research & Analysis;" "Surveillance & Confidential Investigations; " "Mobilization & Campaign Development; " and (my personal favourite) "Immaculate Deception Creations Tailored to Your Senses."
This 'service' is not only my favourite for the brilliant title it boasts but also for its content:

'Immaculate Deception Creations Tailored to Your Senses'? Immaculate Deception... Are we talking about peddling untruths in order to deceive? Oh dear! So how do Mr. Quraishi and the boys at furmaanrealpolitik serve their clients? The website says: "Anyone can do TV. But we go a step further -- we create...Our production can be tailored to business, political and military requirements. "

So whether it is Benazir Bhutto or Nawaz Sharif or Pervez Musharaf or the ISI or Coca Cola or Tapal Danedar Chai, the ''passionate' ' team at furmaanrealpolitik will sell its services to the highest bidder and come up with ''immaculately deceptive'' techniques ''tailored'' to their respective ''senses'' (and by senses I am guessing Mr. Quraishi is not talking about a sense of decency here!).

Is Mr. Quraishi telling us that as part of a political consulting/lobbying firm that proudly lists on its website its expertise in conjuring up lies and deceptions, that he actually makes his living by peddling lies and untruths? Or as he calls them "immaculate deceptions?"

As an analyst and a journalist, what does this say about his work, his credibility?

Are we to understand that every word Mr.Quraishi pens is written on the behest of a client? Could it be that Mr. Quraishi's 'insightful and unique take on national and international affairs is as faux as his American accent and can vary depending on who bids the highest for his immaculately deceptive words?

In case Mr. Quraishi has misunderstood the meaning of the word deception and used it by mistake (and with the same casual attitude and effort with which he throws conspiracy theories and allegations about in his articles), let me offer the servies of my humble thesauraus. Alternatives for the word deception are listed as: dishonesty, trickery, fraud, con, sham, trick, ruse, cheating... etc.

Forget about out the rest of the world, I wonder how seriously his own son, little Al Waleed, would take daddy dearest the next time he is instructed not to lie and to always tell the truth!

#109 Eklavya Sahib,
I do have a point of view and it's not necessarily based on a Muslim perspective, but rather on a humanitarian Hindustani agenda. I like the earlier Mughals for the same reason I admire the Nehrus for the same reason that I don't support Jinnah Sahib. I love Hindustan without the caste system, without the cruelty and irrationality of Sharia Law, without the inequities of our class system and how we treat our own poor people and how we kiss the ass of those who debauched our people, barred us from our own cities and parks, and made sure they were served their scotch, pork, beef, and ham in the proper manner by worshipping swarthy servants. ...and some people still see India vs Pakistan, Muslim vs Hindu, Delhi vs. Islamabad. :(

lol, you are you, salim bhai. There are many Hindus in name (communists) who don't consider Shiva ji a hero.

For Hindus and Muslims as large groups, though, there are deep divisions in their views of important individuals in history, and for clear reasons.

Elavya #104 {"I suggest Hindus should stop being victimized by Nehru of yesterday and yoginder sikands of today. Expecting that Akbar and Dara Shikoh would become the heroes of Muslims is just foolish, no matter what chacha nehru taught you. By the same token, Shivaji and Prithvi Raj Chauhan would always be heroes to non-communist Hindus. There is no common ground here, and there isn't a need for one either."}

Eklavya Sahib,
But I consider Akbar and Prithviraj Chauhan (obviously, duh!) as heroes. Of course, I have different opinion for both Dara Shikoh and Shivaji. :)

Why would two perfectly reasonable and decent chowkies - stukes and salim bhai - disagree?

Bhai log, liberal intolerance lies behind flaunting people like Akbar and Dara Shikoh as "great Muslims" of India.

Akbar was a follower of Din-e-elahi. What has din-e-elahi to do with Islam? The great sufi Ahmed Sirhindi (may he rest in peace) had to literally fight to bring Islam back to its glorious role and rule in India.

Dara-Shikoh was an upnishad-reading, christian-cross loving fool who himself wrote that he was not a Muslim (and not a Christian, not a Jew). His great and pious brother Aurangzeb, and not he, rightly had the support great sufi Sultan Bahu (May he rest in peace).
------------------

I suggest Hindus should stop being victimized by Nehru of yesterday and yoginder sikands of today. Expecting that Akbar and Dara Shikoh would become the heroes of Muslims is just foolish, no matter what chacha nehru taught you. By the same token, Shivaji and Prithvi Raj Chauhan would always be heroes to non-communist Hindus. There is no common ground here, and there isn't a need for one either.

If we just accept things as they really are, instead of just fantasizing about them, much disagreement would just melt away.

Stuka
#105 {"Salim Chauhan's entire arguement is bogus. We Hindus admire Akbar; though he was responsible for the maximum expansion of the Mughal empire to the detriment of Hindu Rajput princes. Aurangzeb and Ghori came later..and they were bloodthirsty monsters..."}

Stuka Sahib,
You can interpret history, and as many RSS/BJP/VHP/JS/BD/SS right-wing Hindus have tried to do, you can even re-write history, but you cannot cause someone to be born hundreds of years after they have died.

Yes, Aurangzeb came much after his famous great grandfather Akbar. Unfortunately Ghori was from the 12th/13th century while Akbar was from the 16th century. Now, if you can be mistaken about when they were around, perhaps you are mistaken about them being bloodthirsty.

Alexander Pope once said:

A little Learning is a dang'rous Thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian Spring.

But then, I am talking about the person who saw Singapore when he was in Lahore. :)

Maybe blacks should also admire Jefferson as a "person of his times" even though he was a slave owner?? Salim Chauhan's entire arguement is bogus. We Hindus admire Akbar; though he was responsible for the maximum expansion of the Mughal empire to the detriment of Hindu Rajput princes. Aurangzeb and Ghori came later..and they were bloodthirsty monsters. It is a Muslim choice to celebrate Aurangzeb or Dara Shikoh; Akbar or or Ghori. Every time period has its heroes and villains..if the Muslims of today choose to celebrate the villains of the Hindus as their heroes, it is their problem and not ours. Pakistan is free to determin its own national narrative. The people of Pakistan are truly conquered in mind and sPirit when they consider the killers of LOCAL Muslims to be heroes. The people of India are ot conquered to the extent that we will accept and celebrate a blood soaked alien narrative.

Pardesi and salim bhai

We should not even chase this mirage. It is absurd to expect that Hindu masses will not be proud of Prithvi Raj Chauhan, or that any non-trivial numbers of lovers of Islam will actually stop being proud of and thankful to Ghori. As individuals we can make any statement we want, but that's where it ends.

#102 Pardesi {"We Sikhs have suffered at the hands of "Modi of New Delhi" in 1984 ...Regarding other "gentlemen" ..they should not be admired/worshiped blindly and destructive weapons should not be named after them... This is what really makes indian nationalists go crazy.

American, Indian, Pakistanis must expose any fault lines in their own heroes (e.g., Jefferson, Gandhi, Jinnah respectively) so that future generations can get balanced view of their founding fathers and hopefully be better humans than these gentlemen."}

Pardesi Payee,
I agree with you - especially the reference to the "Modis" of Delhi in 1984. It was horrible and really damaged Gandhiji's India's image world-wide even more than the 2002 Gujarat massacre. The main reason is that in 2002, the West almost "welcomed" killing of Muslims anywhere in large numbers.
If we stopped having destructive weapons, there would be no need to name them after frightening "gentlemen." I wonder how berzerk Pakis go after learning that Indian missiles are named after my relative, Prithviraj Chauhan?

I agree that we all need to genuinely and sincerly examine the qualities and shortcoming of our heroes so that we can learn to be like them or unlike them based on our honest evaluations.

#100/101 Salim Bhai,

I agree with you on Modi. We Sikhs have suffered at the hands of "Modi of New Delhi" in 1984 and therefore we know the pain too well.

Regarding other "gentlemen", what they did to India perhaps can be rationalized as norms of the times. However, this day and age they should not be admired/worshiped blindly and destructive weapons should not be named after them, if we all want to co-exist together. This is what really makes indian nationalists go crazy.

American, Indian, Pakistanis must expose any fault lines in their own heroes (e.g., Jefferson, Gandhi, Jinnah respectively) so that future generations can get balanced view of their founding fathers and hopefully be better humans than these gentlemen.

Regards.

Pardesi Sahib,
In the spirit of being "kind" to people from earlier generations, please ask the RSS/BJP/VHP/BD/JS/SS mantra choir to be "kind" to bin Qasim, Ghaznavi, Ghori, Khilji, Tughlak, Babur, and Aurangzeb. These "gentlemen" behaved according to the mores of their times. We can't have it both ways - accept Jefferson's racist faults because it was a time of slavery and blame Muslim conquerors for looting, pillaging, conquering, and bloodshed judging from Gandhiji's non-violent standards with perfect 20/20 hindsight.

Pardesi Sahib,
Thank you for correcting me. Yes I did mean what you stated. Now, as for comparing personalities separated by centuries or judging people from previous generations, I fully agree with you. I was NOT the one who started to compare Mushy to Jefferson. At least, you must agree, that we can compare the "cruel" dictator Mushy to the "benign" democratically-elected Modi.

following is from indiatimes, which is quoting economist.com:

"Meanwhile, an Economist.com report said that Shaukat Aziz could be a good choice for the post.

“The 58-year old joined Citibank in 1969, and worked in various parts of its global empire, including Britain, Greece and Malaysia, before eventually becoming global head of Citi’s private bank. So he knows the firm week, and certainly has good international experience,” the report noted. It further noted that Aziz might be tempted to find an exit from Pakistan politics, given its current state of emergency. After Aziz resigned as prime minister last month, Pakistani daily The News reported he was looking forward to return to his previous organisation Citigroup."

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/International_Business/Pandit_Aziz_in_race_f or_Citis_job/articleshow/2590471.cms

#94 Salim_Chauhan [ .. I submit that Mushy is a lot better than either Modi or Mushy - despit what Chacha may assert.]

I think you meant Mushy is better than Modi or Jefferson.

Look, I am not here to defend "Chacha" since he is more than capable of fighting for his convictions :).

However, comparing Mushy to Jefferson is ridiculous. People have to be judged by the prevailing social norms and customs. You would agree that it is absurd to accuse your prophet of marrying a child in 7th century since we can not comprehend the realities and circumstances of the times in those far away lands.

By the same token, accusations about "all men" vs "all white AND black men" and abusing slaves have to be seen in 18th century context. I think his efforts even to give all whites equal rights were noble (as was the french revolution) and started the ball rolling resulting in what we have today - an attempt to give equal rights to ALL people irrespective of their color or national origin. No society is perfect but some are making an attempt to move towards it.

It's in this context that people call him one of the founding fathers. Please be kind to him :).

People trying to comment on subprime should first learn the accrual basis of accounting.

Citi and others are only writing back the unrealized incomes from capital what they've booked (and distributed) as profit since years.

One shouldn't comment upon about what one knows nothing about.

But it also shows the accuracy of the idiom that when rickshaw drivers and green grocers start to talk about stock-markets, it is time to cash-in.

#95 HP [First, let me just enjoy this about Shortcut Aziz ‘rumor has it that he maybe the next ceo of Citibank.’]

You are right. Never heard his name mentioned in the local media.

Vikram Pandit is rumored to be close to getting the nod early next week. This is not bad after Citi paid close to $800 Million to buy his hedge fund.

First, let me just enjoy this about Shortcut Aziz ‘rumor has it that he maybe the next ceo of Citibank.’ I say heheheh to that!

People just don’t understand American institutions and an institution like the Citibank. Citibank is the largest money center bank in US and no way pygmies like Shortcut aziz could ever get closer to the ceo position. I mean if you wanna write a joke make it look like a joke.

About the great (another hehehe moment here) analysis by #93 here. This person is so subjective. The Abu Dhabi deal was pulled by the Citibank to get some cash infusion but if someone were to look at the deal carefully, Abu Dhabi’s 7.5 billions are probably financed by some other bank that’s why it carries 11% ….ooops rate of interest.

Citibank’s exposure to the sub prime is way more than $7 billion. And soon we will see Citibank pulling some more deals outside of the US financial system. Still there is no way Citibank is going down nor are $7.5 billion enough to save it.

SR {"Musharraf pushed his way to power through the barrel of a gun, and seeks to cling to power for as long as he can by weakening virtually every pillar of nationhood (rule of law, freedom of the press, human rights). Jefferson was an elected President, and during his stay did the opposite."}

AND

Hypo Chacha Al Butteesi {"The above alone should be enough to show how it is totally meaningless to compare Mush to Jefferson - or indeed to any elected leader of any democratic nation!!"}

Gentlemen,
First of all, let me inform you that Narinder Alexander Modi is the elected CM of Gujarat, an important state of a democratic nation. Now, can you compare Mushy to Modi?

Now, as for Mr. Jefferson, yes he was elected to the high office of President of the United States. But, the author of the Declaration of Independence and the words "All men are created equal..." never included blacks as part of "all men." He banged his slave girl, actually his half-sister in law (an illegitimate off-spring of his father-in-law and his wife's half-sister, who happened to be half black. He abused this very young girl and never married her - producing many many bastards from this abusive master/slave relationship. He never freed her or all of his "red-haired" slave children, most of whom were sold off to settle his debts at his death. I submit that Mushy is a lot better than either Modi or Mushy - despit what Chacha may assert.

Re: # 92 [ "...abu dhabi govt... bought 6% of citibank, which lost half (?) its market cap, due to the mortgage crisis....prince walid - the guy who fired the recent citi ceo - owns another roughly 4%..." ]

These Arabs may think of themselves as astute, but they are the patsies in this deal. As for Shaukat Aziz, it will soon be very clear who does he really pimp for? The Arabs or the bankers.

Abu Dhabi Investment Authority bought US$ 7.5 Billion worth of shares in Citigroup. This is, of course, a paltry amount of money to "invest" in the biggest - and one of the most shaky - of the US money center banks. That didn't stop the Dow making up almost all the ground it had lost on the previous day and the US Dollar rebounding.

Several aspects of this deal were not mentioned in the financial headlines which led to the abrupt US market turnaround. One was the fact - as reported by the state-run "WAM" news agency in Abu Dhabi - that on the previous day, Citigroup interim Chairman (and ex US Treasury Secretary) Robert Rubin had met with Abu Dhabi officials to discuss: "world stock markets and their impact on the performance of banks." Second, the government-controlled Abu Dhabi "sovereign wealth fund" had actually bought US$ 7.5 Billion of convertible shares. Another was Mr Rubin's pledge, given after taking over from Charles Prince who recently "resigned" as Citigroup's CEO, that the bank would preserve the dividend and weather THIS YEAR'S mortgage market decline.

What Abu Dhabi has bought is US$ 7.5 Billion worth of convertible shares which can be swapped for as many as 235.6 million ordinary shares at prices ranging from $31.83 and $37.27 between March 15, 2010 and September 15, 2011. In the meantime, these convertible shares pay an interest rate of ELEVEN PERCENT, almost double the rate Citigroup offers its bond buyers. This is a junk bond yield.

For its 11 percent, Citigroup gets an amount of "liquidity" which will just cover the reported US$ 7 Billion write-off in mortgage related securities it took in the third quarter. Alternatively, it would allow Mr Rubin to avoid cutting the present dividend paid by Citicorp - for less than nine months.

It appears from this deal that everybody is hoping to dupe everyone else. And yes, Shortcut Aziz may be able to pull the wool over all of their eyes and get the job. choorouN ko moore

After all, being the chief architect of Munharraf's miracle economy, Shortcut Aziz can boast "poverty reduction" by juggling around with statistics and definitions. Such shifts in the yardsticks adopted have distorted results beyond belief. For instance, a new methodology led the government to change the poverty line figure in 2001. Thus an income of Rs878 per month per capita was taken as the poverty line. This amount is at complete odds with the facts on the ground.

As for the Munharraf himself, he's gone. Don't be surprised if he restores the courts as a parting kick. My Tiberius-Caligula theory (post #82) is looking more and more plausible.

...SR

...interesting events....

1. shaukut aziz does not participate in elections...he is musharraf's main man....musharraf could, easily, have gotten him a ticket....why isn't he going into elections....

rumor has it that he maybe the next ceo of citibank..i am in abu dhabi these days, and the abu dhabi govt. (the richest govt. in the world, per capita) has just bought 6% of citibank, which lost half (?) its market cap, due to the mortgage crisis....prince walid - the guy who fired the recent citi ceo (prince fires prince) - owns another roughly 4%.....

...apparently, shaukut aziz and an indian guy are the top two candidates.....so quitting the prime minister to become the ceo of the largest bank in the world....not bad!!

2. musharraf is not moving out of his army house, into the presidency.....why?....military generals are always more loyal to the military than they are to pakistan...this is a fact.....hence, they rarely, if ever, break military traditions (while they regularly break pakistani traditions).....hence musharraf not moving out is a major break of military traditions......a civilian never lives in a military house......specially the coas house.......

so what is going on?

3. nawaz sharif has decided not to compete in the elections......i assume he will hand over the leadership to his brother....if so, then it is not a move of morality, put a political maneouvre......in any case, big move......

4. saudi ambassador met the chief justice?........why?...the voice of the govt. - the daily times (whose owner is in musharraf's interim govt.) - is saying that the supreme court may be restored, but without the cj as the cj.........

interesting times......

if ppp and pml(n) can agree to some sort of charter for the coming elections, musharraf is through.......totally through.....if he can keep them apart, he may have a life......

#81 Urstruly:
5th time.
Ayub khan
Yahya Khan
Zia-ul-Haq
Musharraf
and 5th time

SR: I think Urstruly has blown your point straight out of the water.

Please dont try to strengthen weak arguments by dressing them up in the uniform of your world-famous wit. That trick only works for so long, as Mr. Musharraf has learnt to his dismay. :-)

Re: # 88

At least none of the Washingtons, the Adams, the Jeffersons and the Madisons killed 2000 school children in a day - perhaps it would be a convincing argument for a martian but it apparently it is not for some pakistanis.

Re: # 86 [ "...Musharraf pushed his way to power through the barrel of a gun, ... Jefferson was an elected President..." ]

You are right, of course. And no one in his right mind will put Munharraf anywhere near the same league as Massa Tom. Having agreed as much, however, consider the ironic parallels. (I realise that the similarity is superficial, not fundamental.)

The barrel of a gun...

Next time a Martian comes to Earth and asks why it was more noble for the Washingtons, the Adams, the Jeffersons and the Madisons to have "earned" their political ascent through the barrel of a gun by removing the chamchas of a distant King Emperor George, it will take a long winded explaination to show him the subtlties of differences between the various kinds (good vs. bad) use of the gun.

"Elected" president...

The Devil might also come down to cloud the issue and remind our Martian that Massa Tom was "elected" by a parliament (Congress) and not by the people directly.

"But," our enlightened Martian might argue back, "the Congress was directly voted in by the people."

To this the Devil would say that the Congress which elected Jefferson (by ONE vote on the third round of ballot, after being in a tie twice) was itself only picked by white men, who owned landed property. Women and the unwashed masses, even the educated ones, didn't have any say in the matter.

Munharraf the Devil might argue, was also "elected" by a parliament that conceivably not very different in its "true representation" of the masses as was the Congress of 1800.

...SR

Re: # 81

But the problem is, we have no country, no nation, in real sense, but only army and the mullah, aka, 'PCO+Fatwa', to keep the fraud system intact.

SR: Musharraf pushed his way to power through the barrel of a gun, and seeks to cling to power for as long as he can by weakening virtually every pillar of nationhood (rule of law, freedom of the press, human rights). Jefferson was an elected President, and during his stay did the opposite.

The above alone should be enough to show how it is totally meaningless to compare Mush to Jefferson - or indeed to any elected leader of any democratic nation!!

Re: # 83 8unjra [ "...TJ wrote the declaration of independence..." ]

Thanks for the factual error correction. The point was rhetorical, however, and doesn't alter the main thought.

Re: #83,

You have to give credit to #82 SR, that he at least tried to made Mush hero. HE also made an effort that he is blaming Mush, but also making him hero, who will make sure that elections are not rigged. I bet he never been to a polling station. He is forgetting about Nazims and Naib-Nazims at grass root level (as Mush puts it) and what they can and will do.

No matter what anybody portrays and no matter if IK is the only person not going for polls. This election will legitimize everything and try to kill the movement which started on 9th of March.

Last but not the least, don't compare Pakistan judiciary with US.

#82 Posted by SR on December 6, 2007 10:39:22 am



The Third president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, who was himself (yani K, baqallum-khud) the author of the Bill of Rights,


where do you pakis get your history from?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Bill_of_Rights

TJ wrote the declaration of independence.

seriously... where do you pull this stuff out of? the nuggets section of the friday times?

Re: # 51 T. Ahmed ["... an independant judiciary.

The current crisis, ... has already done .. good ... the importance of an independant judiciary..."]

Exactly my sentiments also ... BUT ... (there is always a but ...) we are guilty of a bit of idealism here. Nothing wrong with idealism, I've been mostly an idealist much of my life, as I am sure, have you. But (and this is the but referred to above) reality is often uglier than ideals.

The presence of an "independent judiciary" is much more a myth than a reality at any time anywhere throughout pre-WW history. Until the post-WW2 era there have been incidents of independent judges here and there who have challanged the vital interests of the political establishment and yet lived to tell the tale. For example, Muslim Spain had a reputation of having mostly honest and independent judges. Sir Thomas Moore's story has been well dramatised by Shakespeare, and that is another example of an honest and independent law man. There are other examples, but one has to look for them. The norm, however, is Justice Doggar, not Iftikhar Chaudhry or Bhagwandas.

This is a Jeffersonian concept. The "independent" judiciary.

In the presidential form of constitutional government there are three co-equal branches of government. That is the so-called balance of power. Both the legislature and the executive are elected independently. Judiciary is independent once the two other branches picks the judges in co-operation with one another.

In the parliamentary form, on the other hand, the three branches are not co-equal... Sovreignity (since the 1600s)is vested with the parliament. Even in English constitutional tradition, for four hundred years now, the Sovreign, who used to be The King by grace of God and by divine right, is "King-in-Parliament" ... The executive as well as the judiciary are born of the parliament.

In the Soviet system it was The Party that was sovreign. In Iran it is the council of ayatullahs in Qum that has the ultimate veto.

We can not be too unrealistic on this abstract question of an idenpendent judiciary. The ultimate law is always the law of might. The difference usually is only in the clothes you put on it: whether it is concentrated kind of "naked might" or whether it's diluted down and dressed up in some expensive garb.

Munharraf is not so inventive that you can credit him with doing something unique or original to the judiciary just so he could protect his personal political interest. This is an old trick with a long history. Let's take a not-so-random example.

The Third president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, who was himself (yani K, baqallum-khud) the author of the Bill of Rights, was the first one in the US history to manipulate the Supreme Court to suit his personal political ends. He moved the Supreme Court to Richmond, Virginia, for the treason trial of his archrival, Aaron Burr. This move of the trial venue was supposed to change the courts composition because some judges could not have made the journey from Washington, or so the thinking went. Jefferson had already suspended the habeus corpus petition from the recently passed Bill of Rights after having ordered the army, as its commander-in-chief, to arrest Aaron Burr as an "enemy of the state."

How has Munharraf done any different? (Well, okay, the degree to which he went was a bit extreme.)

If I can accept the Great Jefferson, or Massa Tom as his slaves would call him, to be a real democrat at heart, why can't my grandchildren some day look back at Munharraf and call him the architect of Pakistan's democracy?

After all, it was almost exactly eight centuries ago that
an embattled and exhausted King John, who was beseiged by a combative nobility, signed the Magna Catra with a reluctant pen. The river of history cuts through unexpected channels.

It seems almost inevitable that the naPak Rupee will devalue faster than most fiat currencies, even faster than the swooning US Dollar. The naPak government is going broke subsidising the price of petroleum. It is still Rs. 53 per liter while crude oil has doubled in price. The negative balance of payments has expanded from a well under US$ 2 Billion to over ten times that in four short years. This is simply an unsustainable position.

Munharraf, the rumor goes, is all set to resign and leave for Turkey by end January at the earliest (August - latest), that is, if election results are not to his liking -- which I suspect they will not be. The house he'd once bought in an Istanbul bedroom community is being refurbrished. He's decided NOT to move to the presidential palace and shall remain in the Army House, presumably as Kiyani's guest. This seems a highly unlikely decision by someone who is just beginning a five year long presidential term. Unless, of course, he is planning an early exit.

He seems to be a sour loser and is doing what Emperor Tiberius did to Rome as his parting gift. Tiberius left the throne to the insane Caligula on the theory that things will get so bad after him that people will forget the Reign of Terror under him. He believed that Romans will look back and sing his praises with nostalgia. Tiberius blamed it all on Sajanus, his prefect. Munharraf might blame it on Shortcut Aziz, or maybe, Tariq Aziz. You've got to give it to Pervaiz Munharraf, he's got a bigger ego than a drunkard juvinile. It almost matches that of the legendry Zulfi Bhutto.

The petroleum subsidy will HAVE TO BE LIFTED by the next government, and that will result in an economic shock. The inflationary damn that will burst next year will make Pakistanis scream bloody murder and whoever is in government will get the blame.

American pressure, the rumour continues, is on the establishment to get BB the vote, but Munharraf, who has finally fallen out with America deep inside (Negroponte supposed encouraged Kiyani to take over), has played a trick. Unlike the previous election, the presiding officer at each and every polling station will certify the official count (which is held in the presence of the candidates' representatives) and make it public before sending it on to the election commission. If this order is carried out properly, this will turn out to be an election in which it shall become most difficult to alter the vote count and change results during the middle of the night like it was done in the 2002 elections.

It is ironic that Yahya Khan, the drunkard womanizer, held an honest election and led to the breakup of the country. Similarly, Munharraf the drunkard womanizer, will hold the second most honest poll count that could result in the further destruction of the country. Both generals share even more in common. They each being stubbornly self-righteous and blind to the ground reality of the country, yet power hungry to the point of voilating all known legal and constitutional princples and ethics. Both caused unimaginable harm to the state in their wrong-headedness. Both made uncountable enemies, but none of their enemies ever accused them of any major financial corruption. This is more than can be said of Ayub, Bhutto, Zia, BB, Nawaz Sharif and even creapers and crawlers like Kazi, Fazlu or the Pir of London.

...SR

Re: # 80

This is the worst of the solutions and it will legitimize an illegal occupation of country by napak fouj the second time. This will finally seal our fate with a Husni Mubarak an egypt style dictatorship. Look, Michivilli advised those to go all the way if they decide to rise up against the prince, any half-assed effort would mean that prince would strike back with full force and fury. Soowar moulvi like fazla has no point. He is only trying his best to preserve this schizofrenic status quo which has ailed us for the past 60 years. God only gives a chance to a nation only once and that is it. Any election without an independent election commission, without the supervision ofa judiciary as it was on November 9 would be treason and unforgivable by our generations to come.

#79 Posted by tahmed32,

Thanks for the excerpts. But who's going to make musharraf read this?

Problem is, CJ cannot be restored. If he is, that means exile in the minimum and the hangman's noose in the worst for musharraf.

Will the military command allow that?

So, as I said before, Fazlur Rahman does have a point. Get in the parliament and block a 2/3rd majority for BB & Co. which will validate the action of Nov 3rd through an 18th amendment., and worry about the rest later. Otherwise, martial-law will never go.

zeemax: if it appears i twisted facts, then rest assured that was not intentional and may reveal my ignorance on the Sajjad-Nawaz saga more than anything else. It would be a pleasure in fact to be able to point to a politician in Pakistan who has consistently demonstrated commitment to democratic values and human rights in Pakistan. I really dont think that has been always true for NS in the past - but more importantly, I dont think that is relevant today.

What is relevant today is that NS is calling for restoration of the CJ, which in turn means restoration of the rule of law. And as such, I am 100% behind NS on this issue. And I think BB needs to stop waffling, and maulvi fazloo needs to get a conscience for once in his life, and stop trying to please musharraf who seems incapable of seeing beyond his own bloated ego and with no concern for the fate of the nation.

Here is an article published today you might find useful to read, which also emphasizes the importance of making sure that this "rush to (fake) elections" by musharraf does not turn this freedom movement into a "Prague spring" (where the democracy movement was killed by the soviet dictators and the country had to wait another 20 years before it was freed).

Pakistan's Prague Spring Might Remain Just a Memory
Pakistan seems to be hurtling toward a hasty and flawed election on January 8th 2008, one called after the November 3rd 2007 second coup by President Pervez Musharraf that allowed him to dispense with the meddling Supreme Court, the hobbling Constitution of Pakistan, irritating broadcast media, and activist members of the legal profession that had led the opposition to his rule in Pakistan's Prague Spring of last March. ...Their earlier protests in March against the removal of the Chief Justice ushered in Pakistan's Prague Spring, a flash of the democratic impulse, eventually crushed by the power of the state. ...Today a compliant and stacked Supreme Court in Pakistan has sanctioned General Musharraf's self-confessed extra-constitutional moves under the Doctrine of Necessity that provided absolution for earlier autocratic regimes. Opponents of the regime, including the President of the Supreme Court Bar association, Aitzaz Ahsan, are under detention without charges. They may only be released if pressure from abroad mounts on the regime. Declarations of the imminent danger from internal and external enemies of the state are being used again to define a Pakistani-style "democracy". In Pakistan's first military dictatorship of the late1950s and 1960s, this was defined as democracy that was attuned to the "genius" of the people, or rather their lack of it.

Pakistan may be in danger. But that danger really resides in the failure of the State to trust its own people by allowing them to vent their feelings in public, associate in groups, speak freely, and exercise their right to choose their leaders without fraud or hindrance....
Now a foreshortened and politically-engineered election campaign will act as a fig leaf to show to the Western World, allowing the West to declare victory on the road to democracy and move on. The ones who will suffer most from this suffocating governmental control are the moderates who are not as well organized as the Islamic parties. That is the paradox behind the West's tacit support of the current situation in Pakistan. It militates against the very forces of moderation that might keep Pakistan from the hands of the extremists.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shuja-nawaz/pakistans-prague-spring-_b_755 44.h tml

no discussion on this as my views are different. I would rather be an idealist and be excluded than worship puppets and their madaries.

ok u know more

ijaz_gul,

Ok, so the issue of Sajjad Ali Shah's removal is settled. Let's move on.

Imran Khan and J. Salik are not politicians at all. These are wild eyed idealists. And that doesn't go very far.

NS on the other hand, is a politician. I do not believe he showed any cards prematurely, but he did make an ill-advised (or perhaps not advised at all as per Shahbaz Sharif) blunder in removing musharraf in mid-flight and appointing someone who had no roots in the corps commanders. That was his downfall.

I believe this time around he has his finger correctly on the nation's pulse, and the benefit of introspection in 8 years of exile.

In post 73 pakistan, I have just seen two consistent politicians if you call them so. Salik and Imran. Rest... less aid the better.
I once wrote that NS would hold the cards. He has shown his hand prematurely.

... btw, the Quetta Bench was a 'full' bench. I.e. all the SC justices constituted it. Sajjad Ali Shah in the meantime was all alone in Islamabad Supreme Court building and reversing a constitutional provision, article 58-2(b), ... just like that .... he was that delusional.

suo moto urged by u know whom. Then they stutterd thinking that NS could still be maipulated..

#71 Posted by ijaz_gul,

Well I guess you have lots of 'information'.

For instance, would you like to reveal who was on the bench alongwith Sajjad Ali Shah when he reinstated article 58-2 (b)? Was Jahangiri there? Or even, who was the petitioner? Was there one?

Thanks :)

According to my information, the esablishment (GIK+ Agencies+Army) rigged elections and created 2/3rd majority fo NS so that they (establishment)have a clear run for 5 years with a well groomed PM controlled by them. In the backdrop was the intention to have an assembly complete five years without creating any crisis with the President and not having to rely on the politics of forging alliances that limit freedom.

Despite knowing that he owed his majority to the establishment, NS switched gears and began acting as the all powerful.

In the Sajjad Ali Shah episode, President Leghari wanted to give full support to the CJ because he felt that NS was moving towards an oligarcy. Finally the Army gave no support to the duo and both had to leave.

Yes CJ was removed by the Quetta Bench. It is well known that an ex justice Tarrar had moved around with loads of brief cases to Quetta.

As for Sajjad Ali Shah, he operated through a bench. Jehangiri was one of his judges.

Wajih, being the CJ of Sindh, took a professioal stance.

#46 Posted by SaimaShah on December 5, 2007 9:41:44 am


Why? Once again the answer lies in multinational corporations who support and supply to the Pakistan Army.


The MNCs gave you money to dance in the streets when a democratically elected government, however bad, was overthrown?

Did you have to wear their t-shirt.."Coke coup support party!! refreshing change in government"?

#56 Posted by tahmed32,

tahmed32 Saheb, you again twisted my post. Do you do it on purpose? When did I say NS removed Sajjad Ali Shah? I was arguing exactly the opposite that NS did NOT remove Sajjad Ali Shah, through manipulation of judges or any other means. It was the Quetta Bench of SC headed by Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui which removed Sajjad Ali Shah.

The back ground is that Sajjad Ali Shah had been placed as CJ by BB superseding a number of senior justices, since he was her man, and the rest of the judges resented that. This situation was further aggravated when Sajjad Ali Shah had taken to issuing verdicts all by himself, behind locked doors, without forming any benches to hear cases. The classic instance was when the Quetta bench was meeting to discuss his removal, Sajjad Ali Shah reversed the constitutional amendment regarding 58-2 (b) and reinstated the president's (Laghari) powers to dismiss parliament all by himself in a suo-moto action, so that NS could be removed if he himself was removed. Of-course Saeeduzzaman declared that action as malafide and void. Sajjad Ali Shah was involved with palace intrigues upto his neck.

Saeeduzzaman didn't grow grew wiser over the years to understand the importance of the rule of law. He understood all along during Sajjad Ali Shah's time that the SC was being involved in palace intrigues, and he wasn't willing to become part of it, nor did any of the Quetta bench. This is why he didn't take musharraf's oath.

Now please do not twist anything here. I think it is clear.

This article supports a view which is held largely by gov or is cronies. its hard for a pakistani on the receving end of the current equation, to call "dismissal of judges who support constitution" as having a system.

There is a battle of the Gov. A battle of PM ship, which is for the politicians. And another battle of the People of Pakistan - where they are trying to free political prisoners like aitzaz, restoration of judges, constitution, freedoms, human rights, and above all respect for the Pakistanis.

Real leaders will fight the war for the people's rights. Free and fair elections will automatically follow.

Mushy says that we cannot follow western notions of democracy in Pakistan because the people here are different. When he says that, pakstanis are a breed of apes or something, that he has somehow been able to controle.

#61, hamidumdum Sahib,
I can't repeat your french, because of an agreement with Chowk Staff about posting even reference material containing vulgarity.

Anyway, now that you are speaking French, can we assume that Urstruly made it to Wayne County?

#61 hamidm: You know you have a problem when..even masadi starts thinking you are having a nervous breakdown!!

So, it is now time to switch off the computer, lie down, take a deep breath and start imagine you are lying on a beach..no Chief Justice there talking about the Constitution (the nerve of that civilian!!)...now exhale and think..no bad journalists there asking for Geo to be allowed back (the rapscallions!!) ..now inhale..

See, ou are feeling better already.

Re: # 54 ursTruly,
You make a good point.

Re: # 53 Zeemax,
Justice(r) Wajihuddin also did not take oath under PCO-1. Did he also owe favors to NS?

The charge of SC storming during the NS administration is true; whether he, or Shahbaz, instigated it is the main question.
AFAIK, NS has since apologized for his govt's error in this matter. That needs to be taken into consideration.

I wonder why the political parties whose rationale for their existence ostensibly is based on democracy and rule of law via election are boycotting their sin qua non and that too under a civilian president. In doing so are they not negating their very existence and inviting a new 'Wardy' to take over again. They should better take part in the elections and reject the results thereof if they find them to be rigged. They should not in any case consider the election to be their monopoly especially when the majority never voted for them.

hamid is going through a nervous breakdown. Please ignore his rants...

pardon my french, but, "fuck you guys!"

.......... hosni mubarak zindabad ! ............ finally ... finally, we have a system of government in this god forsaken country of ours ............

......... president musharraf zindabad !

saima shah writes "For one reason on another (I won't go into conspiracy theories and American ties) the Army has had the greatest resources of Pakistan and the only consistent institution to emerge from the chaos of Pakistan. Why? Once again the answer lies in multinational corporations who support and supply to the Pakistan Army. The Army is nothing if not aligned with neoliberal Capitalist agendas."

Very easy and cheap to say "conspiracy theory" to the involvement of the US elite in dominating the Pakistan Army which in turn dominates Pakistan. How can you divorce the "neo-liberal capitalist agenda" from "American involvement", when it is the US elite that set this agenda. Regarding the maturity of the politicians in Pakistan operating within the bounds of the Pak Army, this point has been made by me multiple times on this site for months and years....nothing new there...

Hamidumdum Sahib,
This is exactly why I think that we should have drafted Lalloo Prasad when he visited Pakistan. Now, that he is a successful minshter of Choo Choos and probably unavailable, we better hold on to to the next best thing we got - Mushy the defrocked civilian president.

hamidm: you forgot that mush. he is right there with NS in that exclusive club of two - i.e. government heads who attacked the Supreme Court and the Pakistan Constitution in their hunger for power.

also remember that regardless of his own destructive actions, NS is today correct in calling for reinstatement of the CJ. and Musharraf is dead wrong.

I was merely trying to keep Zeemax straight on this so he does not make the same mistake Quraishi and co are doing today - misrepresenting facts for the benefit of NS they way Quraishi and co. misrepresent facts for th benefit of Mush.

Regardless of who is in power - the mullahs are not taking over Pakistan. They are merely convenient fools for dictators, and become non-entities when there are free and fair elections and a responsible government comes to power.

Re: # 56

tahmed,

... thanks for reminding me that nawaz sharif comes from the same rotten stock as all our other politicians - i was almost about to make the mistake of voting for him .... what was i thinking !

....... if i remember correctly, he is the same man who tried to implement barbaric bedouin laws and made an attempt to annoint himself as ameer-ul-momineen in the tradition of the abominable four ....... la'holay walaquwat !

...... anyway, are you and imran khan still boycotting the elections ? ....... i know we don't have too many choices and all of them are pretty bad, but if we don't, the havayoon might turn our lovely homeland into the state of mecca or something equally horrible .....

..... let's vote for the king's party ......... long live the king!

zeemax #53 Why did NS remove CJ Sajjad in the first place? To the best of my understanding it was basically for the same reason musharraf removed current Chief Justice - i.e. his attempts to extend his executive powers by weakening the check that an independant Judiciary proves.

As for saeeduzzaman - perhaps he grew wiser over the years and understood the importance of the rule of law. who knows and who cares. what i care about is your answer to the above question, and i am all ears to being educated.

#54 Posted by Urstruly,

Thanks for pointing this out.

Re: # 48

The term "civil society" is a very loaded term and reeks of contempt and maliciousness. No doubt it has been invented by the military establishment since they cannot say the term "bloody civilians" at our face anymore because now it has consequences. If you look at the news reports and how a submissive media uses this term to refer to a suited-booted middle class who is out there just because the fermentation in their stomachs compels them to (that's their perspective). An ordinary Pakistani, one in beard or in shalwar still remains at the level of dangars and khotas. Why the fukk can't even the urdu media not use the word "awam" to refer to the people protesting. It is because the terms like "civil society" effectively creates an illusion of aparthied between khotas, dangars, those bloody belching civilians. We must be cautious of this psychological warfare which this progeny of dajjal is so good at.

#52 Posted by tahmed32,

The problem with you, as with most others, is that they take an event in isolation and believe it.

Listen, who did Nawaz Sharif in your view attack? Justice Sajjad Ali Shah.

And who did Nawaz Sharif put in his place (after the Quetta bench ruling)? Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui as Chief Justice.

Now, when Musharraf's coup came, who refused to take oath under PCO-1? Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui.

So it appears if Nawaz Sharif had attacked the SC, and given money to Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui (who headed the special Quetta bench to remove Sajjad Ali Shah) in a brief-case through President Tarar, Saeeduzzaman would have taken oath under musharraf, or don't you think?

I understand you're not a details man. But one shouldn't be that thick headed as to make deductions from adding two plus two.

#50 zeemax: cool down and write properly if you want to discuss something. and dont expect me to waste time in your questioning what i have seen for myself - pictures of ghoondas storming the supreme court at the height of the confrontation between NS and the SC under Chief Justice Sajjad. Nawaz Sharif's men vilified that Chief Justice just as Musharraf's men are vilifying the current Chief Justice (the real one, who is under house arrest).

econfused #42 Like you, I too am arguing for an independant judiciary.

The current crisis, despite the great costs and tremendous sacrifices by brave individuals for the cause of freedom, has already done a good deal for Pakistan - our politicians and our young people are learning the importance of an independant judiciary; the outside world is learning that Pakistan is not overflowing with half-brained gun-toting religious fanatics but has instead a large and dynamic middle class that is second to none in the world in terms of understanding the importance of standing up for the principles of human rights and the rule of law. And mush is separated from his uniform.

#49 Posted by tahmed32,

Well .. blah blah ... but you didn't answer on whether the supreme court storming charge is true or not.

zeemax #43 No need to get defensive about NS. We should not trust any individual to make him unaccountable - even if it is Mother Teresa herself. And the Rule of Law and the Supremacy of the Constitution is the only way to ensure that. That is all that the brave judges of Pakistan who were pushed away by Musharraf have ben saying, and that is the single most important thing necessary if we wish to see Pakistan prosper rather than remain in the mess that Musharraf has put it in.

#45 Posted by Urstruly

...the daughters and wife of the testicles like Khurshid Kasoori were shown protesting against the "Emergency+".

I saw that and had to see it a few times to believe it. Kasuri's wife is the founder and owner of the entire Foundation House School System.

It appears critical mass has appeared, but civil society ... I don't know .... whether they'll get their nose bloodied like the Minallah woman did.

Saima Shah: You make some very good points. wrt to your question: "So, my question is not if the politicians are loyal to the State of Pakistan or competent (we know that they are immature and incompetent) but if the Army is loyal to the State of Pakistan", I think Musharraf gave his answer on the day he had he retired with his usual pomp and show - his entire speech was geared to telling the army that it owed allegiance to indivduals, rather than to the nation!!

This article seems to reflect the perspective of the military establishment--in a nutshell these guys can't run the country, that is why we are here coz they just can't conduct themselves with any extent of responsibility or maturity. This is a valid criticism, but let's look at why that is so.

The political maturity of Pakistani politicians is low because they have never been really allowed to run the country and that started back in the 1960s. For one reason on another (I won't go into conspiracy theories and American ties) the Army has had the greatest resources of Pakistan and the only consistent institution to emerge from the chaos of Pakistan. Why? Once again the answer lies in multinational corporations who support and supply to the Pakistan Army. The Army is nothing if not aligned with neoliberal Capitalist agendas.

If we diss the politicians, let us ask how many times the Army has allowed Pakistani civil society to run the government. We have heard often about why the Army is a third political force in the play and will always have a strong power base. The Army needs weak, corrupt politicians more than the weak politicians need the Army. This is after all the only justification for being around. Once the politicians started getting better and better with their arguments and started to get the ear of the common man, the Army was extremely threatened. It had to quickly shut down the bad politicians to save the semi-quiet civil society for fear of loss of power. Fear of a loss of free hand the Economy, a limitless budget, a status of being above the law and the curbing of territorial expansion and continued control of Pakistan's assets have led to the current Emergency.

So, my question is not if the politicians are loyal to the State of Pakistan or competent (we know that they are immature and incompetent) but if the Army is loyal to the State of Pakistan rather than the weapons manufacturers and the Empire who seeks to strengthen its control of the region's land and resources. Yes, the Army is somewhat more competent at handling Pakistan, but the question is to what end??

So Mr Quraishi, it ain't that easy to get out throwing the blame on the politicians. Turkish people have difficulty with rapid Indian style English and the fact that your precious Army hates to share power with the politicians is more than likely what Mr Gul took back--ironically the same situation is prevalent in Turkey with far more thought control. Despite Turkey's whole hearted submission to the white man's ways, Turkey is NOT part of the European Union. Shouldn't that make you wonder?

Also, businessmen are not the reason why Pakistan exists. They are only the taxpayers. Pakistan exists to provide justice, resources and opportunities for its people. If the businesses like peace above all, a sanitary peace without freedom is never likely to create a modern state. Instead, the Army will only get immature politicians who keep banging on its door for power sharing rather than working at what politicians are supposed to do, building consensus for the mutually decided goals of the citizens of a modern state.

Re: # 43
"But never mind, all I know is that it is easy to achieve progress when one has external support and dollars flowing in as now"

Not anymore. Anyone who will help perpetuate this status quo in one pretext or the other will get their testicles choppeds off (Bezamir no exception). I think the national sentiment against the currupt, pro-western, oppressive ruling elite and their strong arm, NaPak fouj has reached the critical mass. Any little or insignificant event might trigger the inevitability that has been pending for 60 years. In todays newspaper, the daughters and wife of the testicles like Khurshid Kasoori were shown protesting against the "Emergency+". This is the ultimate act of desperation on part of this corrupt elite to hijack what rightfully belongs to the people of Pakistan - the struggle for freedom.

(someone else's money with no strings).

#41 Posted by tahmed32,

Well ... I guess the accusation of a Supreme Court assault will hound NS whether it's true or not.

You may have noticed (if you didn't please look it up) that there were three charges against his nomination. First related to the hijacking case, second about some bank default, and third about supreme court assault. The first two were upheld by the election commission while the third was thrown out. NS has been cleared many times over in that accusation, even by dishonest courts.

But never mind, all I know is that it is easy to achieve progress when one has external support and dollars flowing in as now. Thing is if you achieve it when there're none. And you achieve development with someone else's money.

NS achieved that.

tahmed32 #41

You keep forgetting what a handpicked SC can does, BB should remember the verdict about her father. I know its bit scary to have independent mind judges, but it can turn this nation around.

BB don't want these or any independent minded judges, and it tells me that NS might have learned the lesson, while BB hasn't.

zeemax #33 Musharraf and Nawaz Sharif have earned their place in history by undertaking physical assaults on the Supreme Court. The former has been more successful than the latter, but those are details. BB, whatever else her shortcomings, does not belong to this distinguished club.

They say a fool does the same thing that a wise man does - but only after much later and after a lot of damage has been done. Nawaz Sharif is a perfect example - when in power he was stupid enough to try and destroy the very basis for his power, namely the constitution and the rule of law. Anyway - if a fool does the right thing in due course, as Nawaz Sharif is now doing in calling for the restoration of the judiciary, then that is fine. Let us just hope he and Benazir are a bit wiser now after seeing what a bit of thinking would have told them - if you ignore the law, then you are asking for the law of the jungle. Where the man with the most guns becomes your ruler.

Re: #38, #39
Nops, it will be Burma/Myanmar.

Re: # 38
"it was bad enough when the usa was lecturing pakistan......now even turkey has started......what's next.....maldives?.....or will it be zimbabwe....."

Neither. It would be Sudan.

it was bad enough when the usa was lecturing pakistan......now even turkey has started......what's next.....maldives?.....or will it be zimbabwe.....

can someone imagine the prime minister of pakistan going to to turkey and lecturing their politicians on what they should do!

Re # 36. Truly Sahib, this cow is so much smarter than the cow I read about. The guy who wrote this piece deserves more than just a DC job, he deserves to be the CM of Punjab. If his cow is so talented, only Allah knows of his own potential.

Re: # 34

That is a good description of this ass kisser, but the followi ng takes the cake.

This is a true essay written by a CSS candidate at the CSS Exam held in year 2002-2003 in Islamabad. The candidate has written an essay on Cow:

((for those who don't know what CSS exam is, the guys who pass these exams become federal scrataries, commissioners and ambassadors after taking these exams)

'COW'

He is the cow. 'The cow is a successful animal. Also he is 4 footed. And because he is female, he gives milks, [but will do so when he is got child.]. He is same like-God, sacred to Hindus and useful to man. But he has got four legs together. Two are forward and two are afterwards. His whole body can be utilized for use. More so the milk. Milk comes from 4 taps attached to his basement. [horses don't have any such attachment]

What can it do? Various ghee, butter, cream, curd, why and the condensed milk and so forth. Also he is useful to cobbler, water mans and mankind generally. His motion is slow only because he is of lazy species. Also his other motion. {gober} is much useful to trees, plants as well as for making flat cakes [like Pizza], in hand, and drying in the sun.

Cow is the only animal that extricates his feeding after eating. Then afterwards he chews with his teeth that are situated in the inside of the mouth. He is incessantly in the meadows in the grass. His only attacking and defending organ is the horns, specially so when he is got child. This is done by knowing his head whereby he causes the weapons to be paralleled to the ground of the earth and instantly proceed with great velocity forwards. He has got tails also, situated in the backyard, but not like similar animals. It has hairs on the other end of the other side. This is done to frighten away the flies which alight on his cohesive body here upon he gives hit with it. The palms of his feet are soft unto the touch. So the grasses head is not crushed. At night time have poses by looking down on the ground and he shouts. His eyes and nose are like his other relatives.
This is the cow.

Rumour is that the guy cleared the CSS & is now DC somewhere in Punjab !!!

Finally my opinion on this lame ass article. This is one of the worst articles I have seen on chowk. But what do you know this guy can definitely represent Pakistan in Olympics for ass kissing. Thats the only team which Mush can send out anyways.

This article reminds me of the 2nd grade essay of “My Cow” -My cow has 4 legs. My cow has 4 tits. My cow eats chara. My cow has urine place slapped on her back. My cow has one tail.

I honestly have a hard time believing that this guy has his own TV show. If he does, thank Allah for the remote.

#32 Posted by econfused,

BB of-course has no interest in an independemt judiciary. After all, if there is one then one of the first things to go would be the NRO and her cases will be revived.

Fazlur Rahman, I suspect, has a valid point in not insisting on reinstatement of Judiciary because he knows it to be an impracticable demand. Too many personalities and egos are riding on it. Therefore he first wants to ensure BB and Co. does not get an outright 2/3rd victory, and worry about the judiciary later.

As for NS, his stand is obviously the most in tune with the public sentiment, but he may be forced to contest regardless due to the factors stated in my previous post. In that event, I have no doubt that all the PML factions including PML (Q) will merge to contest.

Leaguers are experienced politicians. They will not allow an open field to either of BB+MQM+Q.

Regards.

Re: #31

Well excluding one man parties, I don't disagree with that they have potential to become great leaders" only reasonable stance is from NS. Which is to restore judiciary. Now on the other hand, I can safely bet that B and Fazlu Deisel has no intenion of bringing back the independent minded judges. PPP wants independent minded Judiciary of her own linking. So with PPP, PMLQ, MQM Mafia, Fazlu going for electo, we can tell today how 18th amendment is gong to look like.

Now the question is what PMLN will gain if it does decide to go for election. My answer is nothing except few seats here and there, giving PPP a simple majority, as PMLQ will loose seats in Punjab if PMLN is in election.

So in either case, PML(N) has nothing to loose if it goes for election or against election. PMLN will win the hearts and mind of people, if it does boycott elections as we already know next election will be within one to two years, under Kayani, as we know how great politicians are in PMLQ and PPP.

For the record, I am not a voter for either PPP, BB or MQM Mafia, I do like the stance taken by NS so far. I am entitled to change my views about NS if he goes for election.

It is a bit unfair to ascribe selfish (?) motives to the difficult decision of whether to boycott. It is a genuine problem that musharraf's deviousness has plunged the politicians in, with extremely tight electoral deadlines, pushing them to jump headlong into taking one position or the other.

The main worry of the opposition parties (other than PPP who're still in the deal) who want to participate is over the possible 2/3rd majority to the King's party empowering it to amend the constitution. For the secular ones, it is that musharraf's actions will get legal cover and the constitution even more muddled than it already is. For the religious parties, it is that they see PPP in league with musharraf planning to expunge the Islamic clauses from the constitution - particularly those relating to the Qadianis.

The opposition parties will need to ensure they can run a successful street movement if they boycott. If they decide that may not be likely, then they will participate and they shouldn't be blamed for it.

#26 Posted by masadi,

who was also described as a son of a bitch by the Daily Telegraph....

... also as a 'thief who broke a priceless vase and then returned it in pieces' by TIME Magazine.

Guys, my hunch is that this is going to be dicey. The political parties are not making it any easier by procrastinating on the decision to particpate (or not) in the election. This decision has huge ramifications and the longer they postpone it, the worst it is going to be for the nation (such as it is).

For the record, my preference is that they participate, and then collaborate with each other in the next parliament to undo the damage done to the constitution and to the institutions. I prefer this because I have a strong feeling that some parties are very half-hearted about the boycott. Even with PML-N, the party workers want NS to contest.

Boycott by some will be suicidal for them; and boycott by all, as impossible as it seems, will inevitably mean street agitation. Things have the potential to become very ugly indeed.

There is more than one way to skin the cat. Without compromising on the need for independence of judiciary and freedom of the media, it would be wise to take the non-violent course. Violence and the resulting chaos will be playing directly into the hands of the enemies of Pakistan.

Musharraf’s official name

LAHORE: The Cabinet Division has issued a directive saying that the official name of the President of Pakistan is “President Pervez Musharraf” and he should be written