On Zillae Huma Usman zahra J -- of course you should ``sick and tired`` of this -- btw as a Pakistani I am sick and tired of the continued incarceration of an overwhelmingly high proportion of African Americans in AMerica`s jails -- hope you will tell your govt to do something about this --

Encounter with a Fighter ballu khan is not an uncle tom he is more like a great-grand uncle tom

Mumbai Rocked by Seven Bomb Blasts For the RSS/VHP/Bajrang Dal members here on this board - it is infested with them

Youth arrested for Mumbai blast claim hoax

By Jawed Naqvi

NEW DELHI, July 19: India began a clampdown on selected internet websites and blogs on Wednesday amid fears of growing censorship following the devastating Mumbai blasts on July 11.

In separate developments, TV channels reported two arrests in connection with the blasts; their names suggested they were Hindus.

NDTV’s Hindi channel briefly reported in the afternoon the arrest of one Nitin Mohan at the Delhi airport, but then quickly went quiet about it.

Unconfirmed reports said the alleged arrest may have been related to blasts some years ago in another city.

Perhaps even stranger was the arrest of a youth in Bhopal who is said to have admitted to sending false emails to a newspaper and a TV channel in which he had cooked up the story of an unheard of group called Lashkar-i-Qahar which he claimed had owned up its role in the Mumbai blasts.

United News of India said Sumit Tamrakar, possibly a Maharashtrian by his name, was arrested in connection with the email.

Prima facie, it appeared that the youth had sent the email to create sensation. The tone of the report suggested it was a case of juvenile delinquency.

“Sumit, who studied up to class XII before leaving his studies three years back, does not have a past criminal record,” the report pleaded.

On July 15 the same email mischief, if that is what it merely was, had caused chaos. A top Hindi channel had gone to town on the basis of the email, linking the Lashkar-i-Qahar with Lashkar-i-Taiba.

According to the TV channel, the email message was received on Saturday claiming that the outfit was associated with the Lashkar-i-Taiba. According to the report, the Lashkar-i-Qahar said 16 people had triggered seven blasts in local trains.

“The organisation said it was making their involvement public since all the 16 people involved in the operation were now safe,” the news channel had said.

If this was nerve-wracking for investigators, the government appeared to have found a ready solution by seeking to deter the use of internet.

Mumbai Rocked by Seven Bomb Blasts quoting a website called worldthreats.com and aitimes has to be a sign of desperation queen

Mumbai Rocked by Seven Bomb Blasts Mumbai blasts and the peace process


The tragic bomb attacks on Mumbai on July 11, and to a lesser degree the targeted killings of tourists in Srinagar the same day, seem to have pushed the ongoing peace process between India and Pakistan dangerously close to the precipice. Indications from New Delhi following the attacks seem to indicate that the talks between the foreign secretaries of both countries scheduled for July 21, whose objective is to review the composite dialogue, may be postponed. Islamabad has already said that it is willing to go along with a postponement, if it comes, because of domestic complications in India arising out of the tragedy. Pakistan`s offer of help to India in its investigation of the attacks is a welcome step toward pre-empting any heightening of tensions but given the mood in Delhi it is unlikely to be really appreciated let alone taken up.

The fact of the matter is that certain sections of the Indian media and the security establishment seem bent on blaming Pakistan for what has happened. This is the sense one gets from the statements emanating from across the border. Take the case of the complete misreading of Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri`s remarks, made in an interview to Reuters in Washington, following the attacks. Mr Kasuri had called the attacks on Mumbai`s crowded commuter trains ``absolutely horrendous`` and said further: ``I think the Mumbai incident -- however tragic it may be and it is undoubtedly very tragic -- underlines the need for the two countries to work together to control this environment, but they can only do so if they resolve their dispute``. A meaning and interpretation for the worse were taken from these comments by the spokesman of India`s Ministry for External Affairs, who often speaks with more hawkishness than his superiors, who responded by saying: ``His [Mr Kasuri`s] remarks appear to suggest that Pakistan will cooperate with India against the scourge of terrorist violence only if the so-called disputes are resolved… We find it appalling that [Mr] Kasuri should seek to link this blatant and inhuman act of terrorism against men, women and children to the so-called lack of resolution of disputes between India and Pakistan.``

As far as the Indian media is concerned, the usual unnamed `official sources` got into action – this while the investigators were still going through the wreckage of the trains -- by laying the blame on to Pakistan. Fingers were pointed, citing these anonymous `official sources`, as Lashkar-e-Taiba (it and Hizbul Mujahideen have both denied any involvement and have also condemned the bombings). One official gave an explanation that the Lashkar was the only organisation capable of carrying out such an attack -- the logic seems strange given that the probe is still underway. The Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) has also been blamed but Indian authorities should know that this is a mostly home-grown organisation concentrated in Maharashtra, fuelled, some say, by the overtly anti-Muslim communal politics of that province. Even here, media reports suggest that the official view seems to link SIMI with the Lashkar, the latter apparently playing the role of guide and overseer.

In addition to this, inflammatory articles have appeared in mainstream Indian newspapers and on various websites, all pointing to Pakistan`s complicity in the attacks -- one even suggested that the ``second phase of Pakistan`s proxy war`` with India had begun. A lot of this balderdash is written by retired bureaucrats and military officials, and this happens, admittedly on this side of the border too. However, much of this seems to be shared by the government as well. In the space of three days, New Delhi has said that the existence of jihadi training camps in Pakistan meant that militants had bases in Pakistan and that this was a cause of major concern. But the LoC is now fenced with barbed wire (if not mined as well), and several hundred thousand Indian soldiers patrol it. Also, the Pakistan government has said repeatedly that it is not behind any cross-border movement and that militants from the Pakistani side are not crossing the LoC. This has been somewhat, albeit very reluctantly, admitted by Indian officials who have said several times that cross-border infiltration has come down considerably. Besides, India has several indigenous groups of its own as well, many of whom would have much to gain from communal fallout of the Mumbai attacks. And there are many groups and elements -- on both sides -- that are also opposed to the peace dialogue between India and Pakistan. Some of these elements may be found in the respective governments and security apparatuses (and some have a very strong base in Maharashtra), which is why the Indian government should be absolutely sure of the identity of the attackers before heaping blame on Pakistan.




Editorial, The News, July 15, 2006

Mumbai Rocked by Seven Bomb Blasts yasser -- chor do yaar -- no point arguing with such rightwing fanatics --who unfortunately dont see that they are mirror images of the extremists that they so hate

ballu (uncle tom) -- yes i suppose musharraf stage-managed the attacks on him as well -- two i might add

Mumbai Rocked by Seven Bomb Blasts
Editorial, The News, July 13, 2006

Terrible Tuesday



It was indeed a terrible Tuesday for India, especially for the residents of its most cosmopolitan city and commercial capital, Mumbai. Over 180 died in a series of bomb blasts that rocked the city`s crowded commuter trains during the evening rush hour. And further north in Srinagar, in Indian-administered Kashmir, eight tourists died and many were injured in a spate of five separate attacks by militants in the city`s main commercial area. Both attacks need to be condemned unequivocally in the strongest of terms because nothing can justify such gruesome and meaningless violence. Since, in the past, following terrorist attacks in India, Pakistan has often been promptly accused of involvement, it is good this time to see both President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz condemning what happened in Mumbai on Tuesday by calling it a ``despicable act of terrorism``. While there may well be some people in India -- and in its government and security establishment -- who may not take such statements at face value, the restraint so far shown by New Delhi is laudable.

The Indian Interior Secretary V K Duggal has been quoted as saying that the Srinagar attacks were aimed at derailing the peace process but that this was not likely to happen. On Wednesday, a day after the dastardly attacks, India`s Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma was quoted by the Times of India as saying that ``Pakistan should fully join the battle in isolating and eliminating terrorists``. He quite rightly said that the ``objective is to ensure that the region does not fall into eternal conflict due to terrorists` designs [sic]``. Asked whether he suspected that militants operating from Pakistan were behind Tuesday`s blasts, the minister said that first the identity of the terrorists had to be ascertained and then their source of funding. He added that there was ``a global network of militant organisations operating from Pakistani territory`` and that he would expect Islamabad ``to deliver`` when ``credible evidence`` is given to it. At least one mainstream Indian newspaper in an editorial already pointed the finger at Pakistan saying that it needed to be told to stop ``abetting terrorism``.

Regrettably, large sections of the Indian media tend to be more hawkish than South Block itself and are often quick to see Pakistan behind everything horrible that happens in India. This does not help, not least because an investigation into Mumbai`s blasts is currently underway, and especially when a peace dialogue is underway between the two countries. Also, it has been seen in the past that initial claims by local law-enforcement agencies, particularly the police, to link terrorist activity in India with Pakistan or militants based in Pakistan have turned out to be untrue. Also, the Lashkar-e-Taiba, which initially was quoted in the Indian media as being the main suspect in the eyes of the security services probing Tuesday`s blasts, has denied any role; it also called the attacks ``barbaric`` and ``outrageous``. Hizbul Mujahideen, also a suspect in many previous attacks in India, has done the same -- both outfits saying that their campaigns did not permit the killing of innocent people.

Some reports have suggested that the investigators are also exploring the possibility that Al Qaeda may be behind the blasts, because of similarities to the blasts in Madrid in March 2004, which killed over 200 people. Another suspect is a local banned organisation, the Students Islamic Movement of India, which is said to have a base in Maharashtra but which Indian security officials have tried to link with Al Qaeda. Whatever the results of the investigation may turn out to be, one hopes that both New Delhi and Islamabad and the people of both nations realise that those behind this carnage are the enemies of peace between the two countries. The only way that these terrorists can be truly defeated is by not falling into their trap and scaling back the ongoing –-- though somewhat stymied -- peace process.

Demolishing the Circles of Dominance sheesh -- im tired of websites plagiarizing articles -- this was published in The News and should have carried that as a footnote --

Islam and the Age of Globalization oh -- it seems that my earlier post has not been posted -- while i hadnt said that he had embezzled any money i did say basically what is contained in post 50 --

hp what urstruly is saying is nonsense -- doesnt matter who said -- shahid masood is a moron par excellence

Islam and the Age of Globalization im sorry if i offended you bina, but obviously one can never see those people objectively if they have grown with them -- in any case i stand by what i said -- he is not as great or scholarly or brilliant as this article makes him out to be

Rise of Rogue Radio this was first printed in The News and should have been attributed as such

Varanasi Explodes yasser -- mr harish iyer is low life of the highest (?? or should it be `lowest`) order -- actually his hatred is directed against anything pakistani or against anyone who disagrees with him -- since you are both you get everything combined -- i have seen harish iyer`s letters published in the friday times and even in Dawn in the past -- of course then this low life had to address people in a more civil manner than this -- because he knew that if he went around addressing them as `abey chutiyae` he would be blacklisted forever as a letter writer -- by the same token he loves and respects those who agree with him --

Varanasi Explodes ram beta (i take it you didnt like me calling you that but i think i`ll call you that anyway) since your chowk`s resident expert on the US media i would take with a pinch of salt anything you tell me about it -- in any case the talk shows have a huge following and their influence is far disproportionate to their numbers, esp compared to the mainstream print media which morons like you think is dominated by liberals --

since your a gung ho rightwinger yourself, you will think anything to the left of your political/ideological paki-hating/rss-loving philsophy is leftie but that doesnt make it leftwing - but in any case this discussion or debate is beyond you since you have switched from giving me any substantial arguments to namecalling and repeatedly insisting (as i have noticed you do with others) that you will win this argument -- btw what happened in your childhood ram beta -- were you a perpetual victim of bullies who made for an unbeable childhood and hence the repeated assertion that you will win all arguments because you want to prove everyone else wrong?

ram beta said: ``Idiots like you will always be unable to win any kind of debates with people like me. That`s just the way it is.`` -- delusions of grandeur ram beta -- ram beta no one wins an argument just because they say so beta --


ram beta i couldnt give a rat`s asss whether a moron like you were biased or not - but just thought of pointing that out to you since morons tend to disagree with people who show them the mirror -- again, as for you disliking or despising any other religion or faith, i couldnt give a fu k but you know in a debate you would be unable to plead a case because your presumptions are biased and prejudiced --


and ram beta like i said im not all that religious at all -- but i could easily point out the glaring consistencies in a religion like hinduism and its overt references to caste and historical subjugation of the shudras and role of women in hinduism (ram-sita, being a good sati savitri) but i won`t want to get into that debate because seeing your own double standards in this would be pretty much beyond a moron such as yourself -- in any case u needn`t sound so apologetic about despising islam ram beta

The Modernity Conspiracy now i know why chowk is where it is --

Varanasi Explodes ramanujan said: ``Fox news is the sole exception on TV. But AM/FM radio is definitely far more right-wing. And increasingly so, thank god. ``

haha -- abey your argument was that the US media is dominated by lefties -- and now your saying the opposite -- and in the process also betraying your own personal biases --

it is quite ironic that so many NRIs are pro republican and rightwing -- a case of being more white than white people i suppose, trying to fit in -- i suppose they are comfortable with that part of the republican party which is openly anti immigration and whose pronouncements often border on the racist --

ramanujan -- ``islam curse on humanity`` -- haha there ya go again -- im not exactly all that religious ramanujan but at least you make clear where you stand vis a vis islam -- its not the terrorists according to you who misuse islam but the religion itself which is a curse -- also beta i dont think its the americans who hate it as much as they are ignorant but rather you who seems to despise it quite a bit --

actually i leave it for others to decide who lost the argument here moron -- as for me being mediocre ramanujan, i actually studied in the US for five years -- one at an ivy league and the other which by most accounts is better than most ivy league univs -- so by your own moronic standards i shouldnt be all that mediocre -- hahaha -- moron kahin ka sala

ramanujan said: ``Re: #487

Unlike other people you are used to ``debating``, I will stay on target.

GO AHEAD. SUPPLY THE REFERENCES.
-- yes the `target` being making an ass of myself

haha

ram (may i call you that dear) beta, the only person who is making a complete fool of himself is you -- not only a liar but a severely prejudiced one as well -- plz note that in this whole debate no one made fun of hinduism or called it a curse on humanity -- now without indulging in polemics if you could please, try and argue using reason and logic, that is if you know what these two are

Another Life in Danger in Pakistan hmm -- i think you do not know what the editorial page of a newspaper is -- it has the editorials but also carries columns or opinion pieces -- thats the way most pakistani papers including dawn are structured -- the two columns on the extreme left carry the unsigned editorials -- written in theory by the editor but in practice by one of several editorial writers -- the format has been in place at least since the 12 years I have been working for Dawn -- you know mr behram you really must get hold of the facts first before you debate something -- first you said mr narejo didn`t exist, then when you found out that he did you invited him to austin, and now this .. tch tch

mr narejo -- the best thing would be for his family members to file a habeas corpus petition in the sindh high court --

and for the record mr cowasjee is a dawn columnist -- there is no such thing as a senior, or junior, columnist