The Significant Unit of War to Hasim Romair about Ras Siddiqui`s enthusiatic love for Bay-Zameer.

A loyalist would believe in her till his death no matter what evidence would one thrown upon him and that is called a hypocrisy! and Ras your are very good at it.

Last thing Pakistan need is the kinds of Bhutto Clans running the country. Atlast the Pakistani govt esp the Army is realizing now is that ``it`s the Economy Stupid!``

Cold war is over long ago and there is no free meal from US. This getting into the heads of the Army. What Pakistan need right now is political breathing space in order to take care of the frankenstien monster it had created and and given enough time sure it will.

And about the Kashmiri self determination and fighting for their rights is all hogwash. The only reason Pak Army is pursuing this old stale policy (so out of tuned) is to humiliate India and get the revenge for `71. The Army is burried in this sh!t so deep it cann`t get out without the face saving. India need to thread carefully here, it`s in India`s best Interest to see a prosperous Pakistan next door.

Khatam shudh

Running Naked All these nuclear holocaust scenarios, man! Pakistan or India doesn`t have balls to do the un-thinkable. These all are just bluffs, if you`re a desi you know how desi mind works. The best I can sum up is said in the reply # 2, it`s the EGO problem, period! How can someone justify a battle going on the top of the world for how many years. Coz, one can be chotey Baab Ka bachaa!

The Pak army is fighting a wrong war, the war should be fought on Education, Poverty and Economics but that is the difficult and hard to do. Musharaf should fight these war by first eliminating the Frankenstien that have been created by the Army otherwise all will be lost.

Anny#45

``…also explain to me why this video specifically was not mentioned any time before…i mean if they got something this big what with wothholding it all this time? ``

Well, to my understanding the delay might have something to do with damn arabic language, Bushes want to make sure they have the right translation. In these circumtances I would give more credence to American govt. than your opinion. Faking the tape would be more dangerous to Americans, whom have very low credibility in muslim societies specially in middle east.

now, comming this from saner person like you who is convinced about the conspiracy it`s hardened my belief that the problem of our Muslim ``Ummah`` is within not without. Sooner we learned that the more benificial to all of us. Responsibilty lie within us all muslims, it`s we who have to take the burden and fight this cancer.

Benazir Bhutto in Sacramento its a sad story for a country which can only produce these kind of leaders. with no shame left she is back yearning for the Chair again. What nauseating feeling...I`ve read the TFT editorial and just confused and sad what choice do the poor pakis have. Leave the scoundrel and not elect them and then face the bearded Jackals eating u.

What dilema we are facing. of 140 million, not a single person with atleast some good and honest leadership!

Why are we are blaming our stars! then

A Letter Home I dont know whats the all fuss about this letter, didnt he showed us our true desi nature what we really are, a bunch of hypocrites! Specially us Pakistani.

If we want to be a progressive society then we must see our true face, no matter how ugly it is. The poor teacher only have shown the obvious, we need to read between the lines.

The more I read the knee jerk reactions the more Jay`s comments look relevant. Go Figure!

Military Action Begins in Afghanistan I fully concur with this Indian American Muslim`s (Mustafa Saied) view, we the silent majority should step up and be counted. We should as an American citizen not allow this extremist view right in our neighborhood n cultural centers or mosques.

``...Muslims living in this country and enjoying its freedoms should stop tolerating hate-filled speeches against the West in its centers and houses of worship. Now is the time to discourage anti-social elements within the Islamic centers and mosques. IT IS NOT ENOUGH FOR PEOPLE TO SIMPLY SAY THAT THEY DO NOT AGREE WITH EXTREMIST RHETORIC (uppercaps are edited by me). Individuals have a responsibility to voice their concerns and put the pressure on the community to stop tolerating it.``

Following is the link

http://www.msnbc.com/news/635263.asp?0dm=V1ERO

Caught In Between Zahra

The clergy mind is not interested in material world, the world we normal human being live n breath in, but the day after. When the eye is on that eternal prize then ignorance become bliss, its that simple.

Aiesha, BTW what Gandhi has to do with our foriegn policy today why u brought this up. Its only make u more indian hater nothing better than those on the wrong side of the border...then u come back n complain abt Indian writting badly abt the land of the pure!!

How Would Gandhi Answer This Attack? Hamidm # 53

``...Langar Brigade `` man u shamelessly funny, your humorus post sees no bound...true very true after loosing the 3 wars with safron brgds it`s right word.

please ignore my previous reply where I asked the Top policy makers comments....right now the most importatn thing would be ``..go back to decide more important matters like who gets the new honda vti staff cars ...........``

How Would Gandhi Answer This Attack? A Request!

Any Pakistani top policy makers or Military top generals (or the likes of those who r in way or two in policy making) if they r reading the Chowk please respond and tell us what exactly the threat is. How true is the Fundamentalism is spread in the Army or in the policy makers.

I (we ?)want to know the first hand knowledge not the spin doctors(Umair, not refering to u) versions or news posts.

Please respond...I assume some of the inside the Islambad beltway read Chowk...

Crisis and Opportunity We should also look to the pertinent question...the $40 billion dollar question...

By wearing the fashionable patriotism with the head full of vengeance its very easy to distract from the path of Justice. Its the common man that suffers, whose war we are fighting...the few, the powerful, the corporate America...whose only interest is to their shareholders not to the planet where we all breath in. It will be me or my family next time but the hunt for Justice will be alluded to power drunk who r ready to shed blood. Being a Desi or a Pakistani I would be easily singlehandedly treated a traitor or unthankful but its this country where me n my children futures belong and we should not cowed down to find the truth in amidst of blind patriotism and vengeance. There`s clear writting on the wall, its the myopic policies.

...here is another perspective and I believe the right one.

Why I Won`t Rally Around the President

by Robert Jensen

We are told that in this time of crisis, all good Americans should rally around the president and the flag.

I will rally, but not around a leader calling for war or a symbol of nationalism.

It is easy to understand the emotion behind the chanting of ``USA, USA.`` But I will not chant.

In this time of crisis, I will rally around policies that seek peace and security, for all people everywhere. And instead of chanting, I will speak quietly about the grief we all feel, and loudly about the need to resist our leaders` plans for global war.

Decent people agree that in this time of crisis, we cannot let the lines of color and culture, of language and religion, divide us. But we need to go another step, to understand that the lines dividing people based on nations are just as dangerous. We must also agree not to give in to the urge to value the lives of innocent Americans over the lives of innocent people in other countries.

For the past few days -- in person and on the phone, through email and on the radio -- I have been called ``unpatriotic,`` condemned as a ``traitor`` and labeled ``anti-American`` because my writing has opposed the drive to war, the call for blood to avenge those who died in the terror attacks.

But I also have heard from many others who also are concerned that U.S. officials will take us into a war that will bring only more death, pain and grief, leaving us less secure. They want to speak out but fear being attacked for not being ``good Americans.``

This is a moment when we need the courage to say that being a good American does means supporting a war so violent and so indiscriminate that more innocent people will die.

That does not mean we renounce the ideals of freedom and justice so often associated with the United States; we should hold onto those ideals more fiercely than ever and put them into practice by resisting the rush to war.

We should honor the ideals of this country by saying, in as clear a voice as we can manage: Not in our name will the United States seek vengeance or go forward to kill.

It is important to read closely the joint resolution passed by Congress, which authorizes the president ``to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons, in order to prevent any future acts of international terrorism against the United States by such nations, organizations or persons.``

That is not a resolution based on a quest for justice. It is an open-ended invitation to attack anyone U.S. leaders decide to target. And those leaders -- Dick Cheney and Colin Powell among them -- are some of the same people who during the Gulf War unleashed attacks not only on military targets but on civilians and the entire civilian infrastructure of Iraq, killing hundreds of thousands of innocent people during and after the war.

This resolution, and the statements from the Bush administration about an ongoing global war, suggest that what is coming will be even more frightening.

When we speak out against war in public, we will find support, but we also should expect hostility. We should expect the question posed by one of the people who wrote to condemn me: ``Whose side are you on?``

The answers to that are simple:

I am on the side of the people -- no matter where they live -- who will suffer the violence, not the leaders -- no matter where they live -- who will plan it.

I am on the side of peace, not war.

I am on the side of justice, not vengeance.

And most important, I am on the side of hope, not despair.

We do not have the luxury of despair right now. There is too much at stake for too many people.



Robert Jensen is a professor of journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. He can be reached at rjensen@uts.cc.utexas.edu.

Breaking News: September 11, 2001 ...By reading different responses here either by zealot fanatics of Pakistan or ultra patriotic Indians, its seems to be very clear that either of these will chose the ``right`` stuff they like from the ongoing tragedy of their likening and will chose to malign the otherside for personal or egoistic gain.

like somwhere i read that once there was a smart kid holding a bird in his hand, met a wiseman. He asked the wiseman can you tell me whether the bird in my hand is alive or dead. Depending on the answer and to make the wiseman look fooled, he can either squeezed or release the neck of the bird to either let it live or die. The wiseman said ``its all in our hand son``

so its all in our hand what we like to choose...

Hoping for that day when RATIONALITY will become the religion.

Breaking News: September 11, 2001 I just coudnt resist...

On the Bombings

Noam Chomsky





The terrorist attacks were major atrocities. In scale they may not reach the level of many others, for example, Clinton`s bombing of the Sudan with no credible pretext, destroying half its pharmaceutical supplies and killing unknown numbers of people (no one knows, because the US blocked an inquiry at the UN and no one cares to pursue it). Not to speak of much worse cases, which easily come to mind. But that this was a horrendous crime is not in doubt. The primary victims, as usual, were working people: janitors, secretaries, firemen, etc. It is likely to prove to be a crushing blow to Palestinians and other poor and oppressed people. It is also likely to lead to harsh security controls, with many possible ramifications for undermining civil liberties and internal freedom.



The events reveal, dramatically, the foolishness of the project of ``missile defense.`` As has been obvious all along, and pointed out repeatedly by strategic analysts, if anyone wants to cause immense damage in the US, including weapons of mass destruction, they are highly unlikely to launch a missile attack, thus guaranteeing their immediate destruction. There are innumerable easier ways that are basically unstoppable. But today`s events will, very likely, be exploited to increase the pressure to develop these systems and put them into place. ``Defense`` is a thin cover for plans for militarization of space, and with good PR, even the flimsiest arguments will carry some weight among a frightened public.



In short, the crime is a gift to the hard jingoist right, those who hope to use force to control their domains. That is even putting aside the likely US actions, and what they will trigger -- possibly more attacks like this one, or worse. The prospects ahead are even more ominous than they appeared to be before the latest atrocities.



As to how to react, we have a choice. We can express justified horror; we can seek to understand what may have led to the crimes, which means making an effort to enter the minds of the likely perpetrators. If we choose the latter course, we can do no better, I think, than to listen to the words of Robert Fisk, whose direct knowledge and insight into affairs of the region is unmatched after many years of distinguished reporting. Describing ``The wickedness and awesome cruelty of a crushed and humiliated people,`` he writes that ``this is not the war of democracy versus terror that the world will be asked to believe in the coming days. It is also about American missiles smashing into Palestinian homes and US helicopters firing missiles into a Lebanese ambulance in 1996 and American shells crashing into a village called Qana and about a Lebanese militia ­ paid and uniformed by America`s Israeli ally ­ hacking and raping and murdering their way through refugee camps.`` And much more. Again, we have a choice: we may try to understand, or refuse to do so, contributing to the likelihood that much worse lies ahead.



Noam Chomsky

...in these hour of dread we need to be bold enough to ask the right queston..may saner mind prevail.

Breaking News: September 11, 2001 Romair (Umair) # 433

You have very intelligently and effectively said it what most pakis feels about it. Its the not that Musharaf want to help US but its the aftermath that he and other progressive pakistanis feels that once US get their objectives they will leaves us cold and alone to these barbaric vultures.

PM should be very carefull that whatever help he is going to give he have to wiegh the consequences and let American know what delima his country is facing. America should give more concrete and garranted resolute that they will be there for Pakistan in the need of their most vunerable hours.

Actually i heard the same sentiment from the a frequent arab middle eastern expert (i forgot his name )that the when the american job is done they left them alone with these fanatics...e.g. Iraq war when they didnt elimnate Saddam Hussian and didnt finish their job. The key thing here is to FINISH the JOB.

By capturing Bin Laden will not solve the problem and Americans now seems to realozed that. They got to finished the job and more importantly start searching the ROOT cuase of the problem.

I hope the saner mind will prevail.

God bless those innocent lives lost.

and God helps Pakistan fromm the regressive scrouge of Fundamentalism...

Every Nightmare has a Reason Hamid and his various post...

I fully support you my friend, the thoughts you express are bluntly accurate but the close minded Iqbal & Urdu poetry utterring nonsense Jahil cannt.

SOB is waiting for the Kingdom to come and u can read between the lines the exuberance in his posts...Shameful peace Oraganic matter called himself Human Being!!

Dont worry abt these maniacs they n their cousins (should i mention their names!)have nothing to lose or fear.

Let not be backed down by these shameful cowards.

May God help us!

Keep writing, please...

An Aside on Benazir good humorous piece, temporal. I read it before in Indian daily (the original article) and couldnt believe she has so much venum to spew. Here this not so great ex PM of pak is giving analysis of the Summit, what it tells, she need attention! didnt she.

She saying exactly what the Indian and International audience want to hear. Crying for sour grapes, didnt she has the time and chance in her tenure to do the MOST things.

Reading her articles makes one sick to his/her stomach. She is whining damsel, nothing much, complaining excessively like someone has took away her toys.

Aftee her two stints she still in the game tells about Pak political scenario. Why she is furiously fighting for it becuase she knows if given the chance she will be back again! the kind of constituency she commands, thanks to her fuedal ace cards, no matter how her tenures stinks.

Pak ppl are now tired of these so called Democrats who have nothing to offer. I would give Musharaf atleast benefit of doubt. The mess Pak is in required atleast 15 yrs of honest rule. Why we can invent something which WORK for this damned country. Look at China, why we have to resort to western democracy model, it has fail us in every attempt. Why we can have one which addresses the common need of Pakistani mass.

I want to say more but I`ll try later.

P.S. sorry temporal if u have to go through mental torture to comprehend my post (sp? & grammer) but I am an average Paki who has let down by each govt. Hope oneday may be oneday the sun will shine bright again and promises of progressive Muslim Pak will realizes, till then we shouldnt give up hope.

Desi Aristocrats #8 un sophisticated

Chill man!

drink beer...