Hegemony of the Ruling Elite in Pakistan

RULING ELITES:

The ruling elite in Pakistan is fragmented into special elite components. A case in point is communications mafia residing inside the Pakistan Telecommunications Corporation. Notable features of this group of corrupt engineers and administrators down to linemen is extreme inefficiency dishonesty and inability to move with the times. PTC is reputed to be far more corrupt than Wapda or the Railways. Its corruption is hidden by the fact that, being a monopoly, it generates large revenues for the State. Procurement seems to be the largest area of personal enrichment. Invariably substandard equipment and technology is bought. The advance of the internet is being resisted by PTC as new net based voice technologies will limit the monopoly. The military regime is simply incapable of going beyond issuing policy statements as long as the communications monopoly of PTC is brought down by legislative and constitutional change.

Jay -

I really don`t understand what India`s relationship with Israel has to do with this article. Are you trying to suggest that India is magnanimous, civilized, progressive and better-than-Pakistan by doing what Pakistan hasn`t done ? Or, are you trying to point out that Pakistan, the illegitimate creation of the tri-nitro-toluene theory, should do the same with India, give up its claim to Kashmir and kowtow to the poverty-stricken but nuclear-armed world-power-wannabe ?

What is really irritating is that Indians of a certain ilk bring out the worst in this secular, almost-heretic, but not yet-wajib-ul-qatl Pakistani. A few more encounters with holier-than-thou Indian ignoramuses and I will have to give up my decadent ways and head to Mansura or Raiwind to join the bearded Lashkars eager to march into Sirinagar .... you never know they might be on to something. If there is any truth to their version of what awaits the Shaheed - houris and vintage wines - it might be worth the gamble.

As much as Pakistanis may squabble amongst themselves, it takes one smart-ass Indian with his silly quips about TNT, to unite them. Most of us realize that inspite of all that is wrong with Pakistan, it still is better than living in the resurgent Hindu Empire. Astaghfirullah - now that just rolled off the tongue - a religious incantation only used to ward off the evil spirits residing on the wrong side of the border !

To break away from the tedium that this discussion has degenerated into, let me point out a story done by the NYT today on an entrepreneur in Bangalore, India. Here is the link:

http://www.nytimes.com/library/world/asia/121699india-capitalism.html

This guy may be unassuming but believe me, he`s truly superhuman to have achieved this much success against the establishment in India. I have done business there and let me tell you, by the time you accomplish a fraction of what he has done after overcoming all the obstacles put in front of you, either you have been corrupted, give up, come down from your starting ideals drastically or have your hair turn white. He, along with his colleagues has truly created the Microsoft of India with even the humble canteen worker now able to afford a house of his own from the company stock proceeds while the company maintains standards on par with the rest of the world.

Why am I posting this information here? Well, I firmly believe that the sub-continent has incredible innate talent and if the people are only given a chance they will find a way of bettering themselves despite the rotten people who govern them. Let`s wish ourselves a little luck.

Regards

tvarad: ``Well, I firmly believe that the sub-continent has incredible innate talent and if the people are only given a chance they will find a way of bettering themselves despite the rotten people who govern them. Let`s wish ourselves a little luck.``

I definitely agree. On a level playing field (like Silicon Valley), the people of South Asia have proven themselves to be more succesful than 90% of the other communities (paraphrasing Clinton).

I am in the process of hiring around ten software engineers, and more than likely 60% of them will be Indian. I think soon a concept of reverse discrimination will set into the engineering circles of Silicon Valley, i.e. people from India, China (and to a smaller scale Pakistan) will be assumed better engineers than the local Americans.

PEACE INITIATIVE.

At last india is normalising relations with israel, a country that has pioneered the way to contain jihadic forces and eventually to arrive at some semblence of peace. There are a lot to learn from the israelis, especially a heightened sense of security threat in every day life.

Jaswant to visit Israel for `normalisation` of relations

JYOTI MALHOTRA



NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 15: Barely three weeks into the new millennium, Jaswant Singh will break new ground as India`s first ever External Affairs Minister to visit Israel.

The path-breaking visit is really a culmination of a steadily growing bilateral relationship, albeit more often than not in the shadows, since former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao allowed the formal establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992.

The central message of Singh`s visit is the ``normalisation`` of ties between New Delhi and Jerusalem, which even after the end of the Cold War a decade ago, seemed sometimes hostage to a Cold War mentality.

Re: jay ``the fingers`` #23

I rest my case.

I can`t laugh and type at the same time.

Re: JR #24

Please read very carefully the first line of my last reply: ``Every once in a while, I come across an uneducated moron who makes personaly charged opinions like yours without any researched information to back it up.``

I will attempt to answer your apparent frustrations of attention disorder as best as I can.

Firstly, I`m haven`t drawn out my Islamic sword, as entertainingly outdated your metaphor is. I simply replied to a senseless message, using relevant facts, if only at all to correct the person. If this seems to fit the myopic image of jehad that propaganda has filtered into your head, then I hope you`re happy with it. I do not have a problem with any religion myself.

(``the basis of Pakistan`s origin is vested in the false notion that people of the same race cannot coexist if their religious orientations are different``)

The basis of Gandhi`s movement was non-violence. Do you think India has lived up to that with their upcoming nuclear arsenal? If our beliefs were false, then simply: we wouldn`t have survived this long. (``In six months, Pakistan will come crawling back on its knees to rejoin India`` - Nehru, 1947).

Besides which, it`s ironically hilarious that there you sit talking about the wrongs of religous intelorance, when you yourself are at it.

(``Only Islam has this nose-in-the-air exclusiveness about it.``)

Obviously a master of world history, you have never heard of the State of Israel. And I think it`s beginner geography class in the third grade where they teach you that not all of Africa is Islamic.

Needless to say, your description of Islamic history certainly reeks of ignorance, but as everybody has a right to their opinion, sadly you do as well. However, being a god-fearing aethiest myself, and in the spirit of respecting the various beliefs and faiths that millions of people out there hold dear for the countless reasons that they are aware of and I am not, I would say that no religion really preaches you to conduct evil. Quite the opposite. It`s that simple.

And in any case, to point out your exquisitely crafted prose, which only holds second to it your level of intelligence, aren`t lenses supposed to help you see better?

Maybe the self-styled elite isnt so elite after all. Scum can rise to the top as well as cream. And we have more than our share of scum rising to the top.

Jay # 19

I was only talking about setting the priorities right in my post ( #1) while you are unnecessarily going after religion. Please read my post carefully and see the difference.

Alireza and Sac:

It is not surprising that your memory and understanding of `Kargil` are quite limited and of course fettered by the domineering influences of your Islamic environs. Can you for a moment think that the basis of Pakistan`s origin is vested in the false notion that people of the same race cannot coexist if their religious orientations are different (TNT?). Only Islam has this nose-in-the-air exclusiveness about it. Everywhere, it is about self-claimed exclusive lands - just for Muslims. This is not self determination, it should be called ISLAMIC determination - Kashmir, Kosovo, Dagestan, the Entire Middle east, Africa, East Asia, South East Asia. The list goes on.

No Sirs, Kargil was about ISLAM!

When are you going to get educated enough to realize that all religions are equal in that they are man-made. No sirs, God did not dictate the poetic and voluminous Quoran to an illiterate in a cave 1400 years ago. All modern secular evidence point to the Koran being a collection of works from various periods, borrowing heavily from Jewish and Christian ideology. It was designed to take moral and spiritual control away from the common bedouin and place it squarely in the hands of the rulers and lawgivers. This is a simple truth that is readily accessible to anyone who can just put away those really thick lenses and look at it with the simple intelligence that God has given. Don`t worry Allah will not be offended. He will be happy that you are finally using your own intelligence and not being led by some one else.

I have assumed a lot of things about you. But, so have you about Jay when you drew out your Islamic swords to do battle.

Jay:

Sameer has presented his argument with finesse and polished it with a clever dose of sophistry and will thus be rebuffed later :-). I’d like to deal with you first.

1)``Give the poor white man a break, no one other than the TNT forced pakistan to spend 50% of budget on military``.

Read my earlier reply with regard to percentage numbers to realize the absurdity of this statement.

2)``none other than religion ensured the subjugation and illiteracy of woemen``.

Women’s lot in general all over the developed world(and Pakistan is no exception) is worse than their male counterparts. The contribution of religion to that end is a matter of conjecture. Monotheistic religions like Islam and christianity have not been fair in their edicts with regard to the sexes. An obvious example will be absence of women priests according to mainstream christian dogma. Just as it would be wrong to subscribe the ceremony of “suttee” to Hindusim alone, it would be wrong to blame religion for the relative plight of the female population in the developing world. And how would you explain the lower rates of literacy for women in the scandinivian world(arguably some of the most ``irreligous`` societies around)?

3) ``none other than islam ensured the astronomical birth rate``

Once again all monotheistic religions are against birth prevention measures. Granted the breeding practices of Muslims leave a lot to be desired, very few countries in the world have achieved stable population renewal rates. Countries like Japan and various European countries have populations that are declining. Even the US population growth would actually be in the red were it not for the massive immigration of the past few decades. Would you contribute the high population growth rate of India(more than 1.7% if I remember correctly) to Hinduism? Muslims are definitely not to be blamed for that since they are only 10% of the total population of India.

4)``none other than koran united the tribals of afghanistan with the pak army to create taliban``

Taliban are not a creation of the Pakistani army. They are probably the only stabilising force in a largely tribal and savage culture which has resisted any outside influence for centuries. Sometimes the Pakistani army is given too much credit. It is actually not a fanatic, maniacally well-disciplined fighting machine as it is sometimes portrayed to be. Most army officers are definitely not the cream of the crop and incapable of coming up with ``practical`` grand designs to rule the world using the koran or by any other means.

5)``none other than the grandois illusions led to economic sanctiona following the bomb``

Please read my earlier reply. Pakistan is and will continue to suffer from the economic fallout after exploding the bomb and may eventually disintegrate under the burden. Notwithstanding the so-called “doves” from both sides of the border, reality is that you cannot deal from a position of disparity. Any cursory reading of world politics and conflicts in the past will reveal that a balance of power is essential to maintain peace between two(or more) powers that don’t particularly like each other. The only recourse otherwise is for the ``weaker`` entity to agree(implicitly or explicitly) to become a satellite of the stronger entity(witness Burma and the Maldives!!). Please notice that I haven’t brought up the issue of whether India was right or wrong in exploding the bomb. My contention is simply that Pakistani actions were entirely justified to maintain the ``status-quo``.

6)``none other than islam created the jihadic forces and kargil``

Please read my assertions in 5 and 6.

7)``Pl give a break to the white man``

Put that question to a black man older than 40 or to somebody who crossed over to the opposing side during the partition or better yet read the letters written by the ``natives`` during the mutiny.

Regards

-sac

alireza,

You are unfortunately influenced by the style. I was only pointing in a direction, unfortunately you are looking at the fingers. My good friend look in the direction, dont look at the fingers.

Dont look at india, look into pakistan. The original article looked at the actions of the white man, you are looking at india. There is probably a third option. Or if you choose read the first post by Sameer, again look in the direction that is pointed out, dont look at the fingers.

Re: jay # 3

Every once in a while, I come across an uneducated moron who makes personaly charged opinions like yours without any researched information to back it up. In case you haven`t noticed, these discussion groups are meant to be informative and cultured, and not a dump site for any senseless internal waste that you might be harboring.

To counter your slings, do look up on the following:

• Very very recently, the defense spending churned out by the Indian government on buying latest military technology RELATIVE to the amount of aid supplied to Orrisa victims.

• How Hindusim played a part in the major international controversy folowed by even Amnesty behind the practise of Sati.

• India is facing a severe birth rate problem as well.

• The Koran can also be found in practically every other part of the world, including India. And if you knew anything about the Koran (even the number of ways to spell it), you`d know that what you are referring to are hardcore fundamentalists who manipulate Koranic teachings to serve their own purposes, a situation which can be found in all major and minor religions on this planet as we know it.

• Economic sanctions after the bomb were always expected. What you should be asking is, what forced the testing of the bomb itself? Come now, guess the country responsible for starting an arms race in the subcontinent...

• Kargil is not entirely an Islamic problem. It is a geopolitical issue that has been left unresolved thanks to our colonizers. The area where Islam DOES come into play is that that region is the only muslim-majority state in India and coincidentaly is striving for seperatism, and that speaks for itself and your comment on TNT.

Next time, please think a bit before writing.

Re: The Chowk Staff

Why is it that those who attack Islam, Pakistan and Jinnah on Chowk mercilessly and quite offensively get away with theirs posts (Jay, #3, for example), but a fitting reply (mine, to Jay`s, for example) is stopped from publishing on Chowk? I`d add that my reply was a lot less offensive than the Jay`s.

Why the double standard? Why is it tolerable for the Chowk Staff to publish posts offensive to Islam but not a fitting reply to those posts?

I`m dissapointed, not because you choose to put offensive posts, but because you choose not to put a fitting reply.

sac,

By a remarkable coincidence, the contents of my post are almost identical to that of Sameer JB, eventhough the style is very different. You may choose to refute the last para of Sameers post.

sac: 17: Nicely stated.