Piece of What?

Tidbit;

Thanks for that. Kamila Shamshie is making a name for herself as a journalist in the British press as a commentator on Pakistani/Indian/Islamic issues. But she has this new novel out called ``Kartography`` which she tail-ends her articles with a mention of.

-h-

hello everyone - Maniza Naqvi - has anyone read her? She is the one who wrtoe Traffic which was made into a British TV movie precursor to the rehashed American one. I read another one of hers which was allright but to each his/her own.

``fawad;

Yeah I have read ``Moth Smoke``. I really liked it alot. I also realised that it is the only Pakistani book/novel I have read in my life.

What is Kamila Shamshie like? Is she a good writer? Is it worth reading one of her books?

-h-``

Harpeet:

KAmila Shamsie is a bohat hi fazool author...if yer thinking of reading `Salt and Saffron` forget it!!...full-time family saga with no real purposes...some places i thought she was a bit too inspired by Salman Rushdie`s `Midnight Children` (or Children of Midnight...cant remember the exact name...)

waisay `Moth Smoke` is one of my favs too...=o)

tc,

Samina

fawad;

Yeah I have read ``Moth Smoke``. I really liked it alot. I also realised that it is the only Pakistani book/novel I have read in my life.

What is Kamila Shamshie like? Is she a good writer? Is it worth reading one of her books?

-h-

Dost Mittar,

I was not aware of the Woolf/Blooms` personal lives.

The Woolf/Blooms also created their own printing press, a revolutionary idea at the time.

It might be edifying for you to read some of Woolf`s work. Orlando is a good read-an excellent argument that gender is constructed through action and not biology.

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Romair,

Regarding Daily Times-PPP connection, is The Friday Times published by this Salman Taseer as well?

TFT seemed to be bullish about BB and it will be quite disappointing to know that there was such a blatant conflict of interest.

My dear prince -- welcome to the Tower of the Babel/Babble called Chowk -- you surely have an interesting and a very fair way of comparing ideologies.

You write:

``The leftists and peacniks are good at noisily (sometimes violently) highlighting the obviuos problems and their solution usually involves a `lecture circuit`. (off-course, the rightist`s solutions usually involves killing somebody). In my opinion, both are dangerous and I don`t want to chose between them.``

U r EXACTLY right -- the lunatic leftists and the peaceniks who go on the rampage of ``lecture circuits`` are -- ``equally dangerous`` -- as the rightist who KILL -- EVEN innocent human beings --(humans who are not innocent certainly deserve to die).

you are RIGHT to avoid -- a lecture circuit noisy leftist who kills our ear drums -- and a cold blooded rightist who kills men women and children -- they `all look the same`-- and it is impossible for any discerning person to distinguish between the two.

dost-mittar #70: ``Ban such enemies of democracy!``

Sarcasm requires a certain amount of talent, which everyone does not possess. I would suggest you not give up your day job.

The past three years have seen more newspapers and more open television current affairs programs flourish in Pakistan, than I have seen in my whole life. I never thought I would see the day when opposition politicians would be able to come on PTV and openly criticize sitting govts. Specially since these same opposition politicians never allowed this when they were ruling Pakistan. The journalists themselves have stated that the Pakistan press is more free than it has ever been. Please see Madeeha Gohar`s interview on BBC. I also think that the Pakistan English press is quite a bit more balanced, and far more critical of its own govt., than the Indian English press. Just my opinion.

At the same time, I think any newspaper which is owned by a political party, or a prominent candidate of a political party, will be biased. And I think it is unethical for journalists to push the agenda of a particular party, while simultaneously trying to portray themselves as being impartial, by working for such newspapers. The journalists` views are bound to become biased, which actually leads to a more strangled press, than a free press. This is just my personal opinion.

This does not mean the newspaper should be banned. It just means that one should take the views of the journalists writing for such newspapers, with a grain of salt. As opposed to the views of people like Ayaz Amir, who have kept their political careers completely separated from their journalist careers.

I think this will reduce Sethi`s credibility. And other newspapers will start taking pot shots at him, as the spokesperson of PPP:

``Salman Taseer`s politics in doldrums

By Our Staff Reporter

LAHORE-Fear of being knocked down for lacking qualification required to contest parliamentary poll restrained Salman Taseer from filing his nomination papers for a National Assembly seat.

Salman was PPP Parliamentarians` candidate for NA-122 who decided against filing papers at the last moment after being told that under University Grants Commission rules his degree in chartered accountancy does not hold equivalence with graduation......

Perhaps to avoid the hat trick of defeats Salman chose to stay out of electoral politics in 1997. But according to his close friends it was only because he was too pre-occupied with his business project in the UAE from where he later returned to buy PACE.

Last year this heavily insured store was gutted in mysterious circumstances.

Now that Salman has just got into a publication business he was reportedly advised by his partner not to contest from the PPP platform to avoid the newspaper from being labelled a party paper. ``Partner, I agree; but I have no choice as Benazir wanted me to contest the election at every cost,`` he is quoted as having replied.`` (Nation, Pakistan http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/today/national/lhr2.htm)

The above maybe false, and Salman Taseer maybe the greatest guy in the world. But I think his political affiliations will always put a question mark over the credibility of his newspaper.

romair - u r right about salman taseer -- well the one main reason why najam sethi would have agreed to have salman taseer as publisher would be because it costs a lot of money to take out a daily newspaper -- and in any case its not as if najam sethi and jugnoo mohsin never had their own political agendas -- after all mr sethi served in a caretaker regime as accountability adviser when meraj khalid was caretaker prime minister

princejoy: you should change your nick to princebitter ! hahah -- pothik -- the dawn headline ``a roy criticizes indian govt`` was that because that`s what she did in her speech -- its called spot reporting....

prince_joy #57, `` I love to watch the interesting interactions between indians and pakistanis here without too much name calling and abuse. ``

you ain`t seen nothing yet.

semipreciousme #68: Daily Times is available at www.dailytimes.com.pk

``Chowk`s Inspector General, this TAhmed guy who irons his socks, will officially welcome you and monitor your behavior on Chowk.``

TAhmed however is politeness personified even when he ticks you off unlike .........

re: romair # 64

...interesting point...since i don`t get the dalilytimes, i really can`t say...but as is with newspapers everywhere, the views of the publisher/s usually get more of an airing...

semipreciousme : ``…he’s just the editor…the publisher’s salman taseer…"

This is interesting. Salman Taseer is a PPPliya. He is going to be a PPP(P) candidate from Lahore this time around.

Do you think this makes The Daily Times a PPP newspaper? At the very least, one would have to agree, that the newspaper would have some bias, if not a strong one, towards the party which its owner represents. I always wondered why the Daily Times lacks in open criticism of feudals and the PPP. Infact, even Sethi, in his editorials, has started requesting the govt. to go easy on Benazir etc.

Major newspapers, being owned directly by politicians who are candidates of any particularly party, is something I cannot support. It makes them uncredible. I am surprised Sethi agreed to such an idea. It reduces Sethi`s credibility.

Ayaz Amir did not write any articles when he was an MPA from PML. He gave up his Assembly seat, and only then returned to Dawn, to write articles.

What do you think?