Re: # 1

Agree with the doctor. Some of the stuff is pure garbage.

Read a similar story in Reader`s Digest long time ago. There the wifey had a habit of storing cartons and boxes and their garage was filled with such stuff and as mentioned by you she had adopted these habits from her mother a.k.a. MIL for the husband. However, the reason MIL had such habits was she grew up during Great Depression when they were forced to save whatever they can and make full use of anything. Maybe your MIL had undergone a similar harrowing experience when she was growing up.

Light hearted piece but a tad too long.

What Next After Karachi’s Carnage? I didn`t know that Professor Hoodbhoy would stoop so low to put forward his agenda.

He could have titled the article differently mentioning Burqa Brigade, Talibanization etc. When the president of the country and his coterie consider themselves above law, kill their own citizens and expect to get away, people on the ground learn from it. They also try to push the envelope how far they can go. So we have MQM (government and also known as Musharraf Qaumi Movement) taking law in its hand, President doing the same by dismissing the judge, mullahs doing the same by implementing what they think is right.

The PG Hamid Talat Khan Show The hockey team got thrown out of Azlan Shah tournament by newbies South Korea. The grapevine has it they were spending too much time practising and no time at all praying.

Militant Liberalism After using all the sexual terms that writer seemed to know in the first paragraph, he went all over the place raping sociology, psychology, philosophy as he does not seem to put down and research his thoughts well. Then mr. naqshbandi jumps in with his own axe to grind for the sufi order. He seems like a son of some naqshbandia order wherein with the prevalence of sufiism he expects to be crowned a `gaddi nasheen`. Nowhere is theocracy more rampant than in the current followers of sufi order.

For its 60 years of independence, the country has been ruled by one liberal after another, educated at KGS, Aitchison, Oxford, Sandhurst etc and we blame the mullahs for our ills. Why not blame the army or liberal rulers for getting us into this mess.

Guddi Having read better stuff by the author, I believe she could do much better than this -> giving a new background to the age old moral story of we should be thankful for what we have.

The PG Hamid Talat Khan Show Re: # 21

But its like flogging a dead horse. He already made a similar point in his earlier post, and everybody else is already saying the same thing on TV, Radio and Newspapers so just to use the `facade` (it does not qualify as a `device`) of a talk show nfp drives home the same point which is being discussed on every other forum.

So a dead horse (inzi, tableeghi) and interview device (flogging) which he also used in his earlier post does not point towards creativity or fresh perspective. Its like just another vent for letting his air out.

The PG Hamid Talat Khan Show Re: # 7

We lost to a better team since Ireland won over Bangladesh in the end.

Sham democracy, sham judiciary, sham freedom of expression. The country has been performing so poorly for so long because a democratic system has not been allowed to develop by the army which has ruled the state for more years than either Mullah or politicians. And these talibans, kargil misadventures or others of 1965, 1971 etc were all creation of the army. Had it not been his desperation to gain legitimacy for his rule, Mush would have continued to support the very same terrorists.

But then this article is not about Mush. Its about cricket. You did not ask why Dr. Nasim is chairman of cricket board. His only qualification is that he described Musharraf as `Pariah`. Earlier we had Tauqir Zia whose only accomplishment was gifting valuable national stadium land to Army to build their housing society where they will auction off property in crores.

Sooner or later Musharraf will have to go. Name one institution that is in a better shape since Mush came from KESC, WAPDA, PIA etc. Its only his presence thats keeping the country afloat and it will fall to new depths once he leaves which is something to worry about.

The PG Hamid Talat Khan Show Well it turns out that Aunty Shamim was really running a brothel. From news item

http://www.dailyindia.com/show/137135.php/Brothel-owners-book-may-ruin-marital-lives-of-many-a-Pak-parliamentarian!

The book, to be published by the Oxford University Press, is written by Aunty Shamim, the brothel owner who claims to possess the richest clientele list of this sort in Pakistan. Her clientele includes majority of MNAs, besides senior Army officers and judges.

The news of Shamim publishing such a book has given driven down the spine of many such MNAs who fear that their names would be surely included in the book. The gravity of the situation could be gauged from the fact that the MNAs who sit on Treasury benches recently discussed the issue with none other Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz.

The PG Hamid Talat Khan Show There was a time when I used to look forward to NFP`s articles. Though he was a staunch critic at that time, yet his criticism was constructive in the sense that he pointed out the weaknesses.

It seems now that he has allied himself with Musharraf and is on a jihad against the Mullahs which may result in some good had it not been a rant.

It was obvious from day one that Pakistan team was not going to perform well in World Cup with wagers on whether they will exit in super 8 or semi finals. The only shock was that they exited earlier in the first round. What about India? They were supposed to bring the world cup if we follow the media frenzy. they met the same fate. Was it because they were praying to their Gods all the time. Or is it that we perform poorly in hockey because our hockey players are praying or wear knee length shorts because anything less would be unislamic. Why could not we rule squash after Jahangir and Jansher. Its because, the present lot prays five times a day and keeps a beard which sometimes hold the rebounding wall resulting in point awarded to the opponent.

Frankly speaking, your rant is no different than Jimran Khan

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid Despite his good writing, what I find lacking in Mohsin Hamid`s writing is the viewpoint of middle class or the masses. Putting it other way his writings represents the certain upper class which was educated at these `elite` schools.

Good writeup though.

India and the Cricket World Cup I read two computer screens (or two pages) of your long winding article and then realized that it was a very very very long article. Then I came down to the comments to see whether I can get the crux of the discussion. They were as clueless as I am.

I dont have a comment but an advice: Next time, write shorter articles.

I wonder after how many weeks this was published or did chowk editors even went through it.

The Invisible Men I hope that it was a light hearted attempt at explaining your desire to leave the west.

You remind me a lot of People in Pakistan (known in Karachi as `Pull kay uss paar rehnay walay`) who think that they were not meant to be born in Pakistan. I heard a long discussion on the radio when I was driving to the office between Karachi Grammar School students and students from rest of A level schools. According to the poor chaps of St. Paul, Avicenna etc. The latter were complaining that the former consider themselves as higher beings and the rest of the crowd as lesser mortals. For my part, I was oblivious to these undercurrents having studied in St. Yellow (Peela School _ public school for th un-initiated).

I think what bothered you abroad was that from a pedestal of higher being, you became an ordinary mortal in that city and you just can`t bear being treated at an equal level. It had nothing to do with morality, religiousity, secularity or any other aspect of western culture. The only thing that bothered you was that from always being a somebody you became a nobody.

Talibanization of Pakistan You assume that Musharraf was in principle against Mullahs. Funny thing is, Musharraf got his legitimacy from Mullahs. Its not without reason that MMA is known as Military Mullah Alliance.

The only reason he took a U turn on Taliban issue was he needed legitimacy from US for his rule and that U turn made that possible for him. We can all remember how Musharraf literally begged Bill Clinton to make a stopover at Pakistan and then BIll Clinton gave a speech to be televised directly on democracy to the nation.

Musharraf will never curtail the Mullahs. He needs them to lend legitimacy to his rule.

Our Tolerance of Comical Illusions Saima,

These projects show that foreign investment is coming into Pakistan. These and the privatization proceeds are the only claims of FDI in the country.

I would suggest you visit the blogs such as metrobog Karachi or Pakistaniat.com. There you will see that anyone raising a voice against such projects is considered a fool and against the development of the country or against army or MQM.

Its a good thing that elevated expressway of sharae faisal is being opposed. If you see the government documents they have justified it with no adverse impact on the environment despite the fact that thousand of trees will be cut, pollution levels will increase 100 fold, they will have to enroach upon various properties.

But if the army and MQM has its will in Pakistan, nothing can stop us from doing anything in the greater good of the nation.

Violation of Civilians by the Army in Pakistan I am sorry to hear about your ordeal but currently Musharraf needs our all out support in this tough time in this time of crisis. Anything against the army will be construed against musharraf which is against the greater good of nation and may lead to you being branded as a traitor.

I think you should leave the country, become an expatriate like us and sing the praise of current government because its promoting a positive image of the country with a few exceptions like you.

Girls Gone Wild Not to make this a political issue but I believe there is a conspiracy in there somewhere by the government. It appears that the timing is perfect to show to US that Mush is the last wall stopping the flood of obscurantist talibanization into otherwise enlighetened Pakistanis.

How is it that the government has no qualms bombing its own population in Baluchistan and Waziristan in the name of writ of government and then allows danda weilding women to carry out illegal activities in the capital next to the head quarter of army general who does not get tired of beating peaceful protestors be it journalists, lawyers or family member of abducted persons but could not recover an illegally occuppied library.