Four Wheel Dreams Ibrahim,

Cars are a thing of beauty. The more beautiful they are, the better. Most of us spend our entire lives staring at posters of these beauties, hoping that fate might do us a good turn (stock exchange maybe?!) and bring the poster to life.But alas, fate is a bad, bad mistress!

Men do believe they are great drivers. And they are more than happy to point out, always, that all faults on the roads are committed by the fair sex. That is so annoying! yes, most women (sorry ladies!) are bad drivers but then, there are some Schumi's (Micheal Schumacher) among us too. And boy, can we drive!!

If you haven't been home lately, the pot holes are as bad as ever!

My mother, me and my daughter Re: # 9

Yes, I did participate. This entry is one of the 120 shortlisted. But it didn't make it to the final twenty (which frankly, comes as no surprise!).

I, Consumer The central point of this article is, as pointed out very correctly by malikjahanzeb, band karo yeh fahashi.

Ads are one of the most powerful tools of communication. My objection is at what these ads are communicating to the public. Why show something which the majority of people cannot relate to? The Olwell ad was what triggered me to write this piece. An ad that shows everything to a country where most of the people live below the poverty line and thus, cannot relate to it. Even those who can actually afford Olwell, the middle class of this country, lead lives that are very remote from what is depicted in the ad. And as far as those people are concerned who actually lie such a lifestyle, well they are a niche. And you don`t show your ad 24/7 on all channels if you are engaging in niche marketing.

There are many such ads, talkshawk being another one, that is revolting because it makes a mockery of consumer IQ. The sad part is that most of these people in MNCs are graduates of good universities and a vast majority belong to the middle class. Yet, when it comes to making ads, they either make something absolutely outrageous or copy from India.

Ofcourse, there is some brilliant work being done out there as well. MCB Visa, as mentioned in the article is one such example. The UBL Islamic Banking campaign is also an example of good marketing. The message of the ad is simple, everyone can use Islamic Banking and this is put forward in a brilliant tagline, ``Main bhi Ameen hoon``. And they don`t use any western models.

We need to ensure, somehow, that these marketers out there know that they can`t just keep on fooling us. Consumerism is creeping in our society and killing our values. It`s about time we raise our voice against it. Otherwise our future generations will never understand the true value of money. They don`t understand it even now, what with young business graduates flashing their credit cards everywhere and thinking they are the epitome of success.

The focus of this article was not Fair&Lovely.

Farheen Zehra

First, Honor Thyself It is true that women and more importantly (and sadly), their bodies and virginity is being used by men. These men use the excuses of honor and religion to justify their acts. Religion, I believe, has nothing to do with it because men belonging to any faith be they be in any part of the world indulge in this shameful act. Again, education helps but one is surprised to see how sometimes educated men in our society behave towards women.

The solution to this problem is in the hands women only. And Mukhataran Main has proved that.

Se Agapo Re: # 10

I`ll put up the second part of this on my ilog. The story does start taking shape from there. And it is in the second part that the revelation also comes from Mamajani!!

Farheen

Se Agapo
This isn`t the complete story.....it is the first part only. Not even the entire first part that is.
I have been working on this since some time and I wanted to get a lil feedback....considering how long it took to get here, I had forgotten all about it!

#1 swarrier: no, the revelation is not Elvis at all! The revelation would come later...if I send the later part for publication on chowk.

#3 Raw_Dust: the left part is the prpoer base with offices and all. The right part is where the residences and all are.

Farheen

The Ground Beneath Pakistan’s Feet Brilliant article!

The analysis of each channel is so true. In fact, Geo and ARY have sensationalized the entire catastrophe. There are news and then there are news with lots of chaat masala sprinkled on them. And that`s what Geo and ARY did.

The little I saw of these two TV channels just depressed me. Aaj stood out as they had talk shows in which people found out how they could make a difference. And Aaj was the only channel that gave coverage to the Herculean effort by Fakhr-e-Alam at the PAF Museum. And all during this time, Geo and ARY were telling the audience that they were the first channels to be at the site of destruction. Kudos!

(What was most amazing was the complete disappearing act of all these mullahs and Jihadi organizations. These individuals collect chanda all year long to help people and do Jihad and none of them came forward in any way to help the people affected by the quake. Ironic, ain’t it?! And someone should ask Junaid Jamshed if growing a beard and preaching on TV has made him a better human being. I think Fakhr-e-Alam has appeared as a great human being and that too without a beard or any incantations on television.)

A special mention must be made of the radio channels, especially City FM 89. Their shows were terrific in terms of the quality of their contents. Without dramatizing things, they were able to mobilize people and provide them with information on how they could make a difference.

All in all, the media did play an important role in projecting the earthquake. And of course, like everything else, our media has much to learn too.

Great job nfp! You have brought forward the media in its true light through your writing. But then, you have a habit of doing this almost every time you write!

The Hand of Dog A great read...maybe nawab is a reincarnation of Nostradamus...who knows?!

The Troubled History of Jews Nazar,

A very interesting read.

From what I know (and very little too) of history, Muslims brought on the problem of Jews and Israel upon themselves due to their own foolishness. When muslims ruled Spain, the Jews lived among them and were a rich people. For a certain war, Muslims needed money which they borrowed from the Jews and struck a deal with them. If the Muslims lost the war, they would have to pay back the Jews the amount with 100% interest (or land, I`m not sure). And that is what led to the rise of the Jewish community and was one of the reasons of the downfall of Muslim rule in Spain.

Please correct me if I`m wrong.

The Troubled History of Jews Nazar,

A very interesting read.

From what I know (and very little too) of history, Muslims brought on the problem of Jews and Israel upon themselves due to their own foolishness. When muslims ruled Spain, the Jews lived among them and were a rich people. For a certain war, Muslims needed money which they borrowed from the Jews and struck a deal with them. If the Muslims lost the war, they would have to pay back the Jews the amount with 100% interest (or land, I`m not sure). And that is what led to the rise of the Jewish community and was one of the reasons of the downfall of Muslim rule in Spain.

Please correct me if I`m wrong.

The Real Blasphemy Bina,

What are we talking about here? Van Gogh`s daring work? The criminal act of the Morrocan? Western intolerance? Islamic terrorists?

...It`s a vicious cycle. All these things are so interconnected. Van Gogh presented a very sensitive topic (treatment of women in Islam) in a manner that was not acceptable. The Moroccan Dutch shot him, thinking his passport to heaven got confirmed this way. The Dutch community reacted strongly and attacked Muslims. And all that is left is for Osama to come on air and declare war on nether lands.

The West was a tolerant society due to their belief in freedom-of speech, of belief, of spirit. We, on the other hand, were taught by Islam (the very reason we wage terrorist activities) to be tolerant of all and sundry no matter which cast, race or religion they belong to. But alas, what we are doing is the complete opposite. All in the name of a religion that teaches peace.

Romair, you made a good point about the old woman who used to throw garbage on the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) and it was our Prophet who went and took care of her when she fell sick.

Sometimes kind words, patience and tolerance can win people over.
But it seems that these virtues have vanished from the face of the earth.
The end is near.

Ranchor Line ka Firangi Most inspiring...a very subtle yet brilliant tribute to all those who were wrongly vicitimized during the `92 operation in Karachi...

Brand Worshipper I guess some explanation of this article is required.

Or maybe not.

This is just one of the ways I view brands. And this is not an outpour against brands or the entire concept of branding.

You have to decide how this article makes you think about brands.
(if it does, that is!).

Farheen Zehra

You Can’t Strip The Army I`ve been surrounded by men in uniform since I was a child. Be it that of army or navy, (father:army, uncles:navy) uniform was not something alien to me.

And uniform did not carry a very deep meaning for my innocent mind. I used to wear a uniform to school so the fact that my father donned one when he went to office was no surprise.

What we need to understand is that its not the uniform that is at fault, its the man wearing that uniform. There are all sorts of officers in the army, just like there are all sorts of people in this world. But an officer in uniform carries a huge responsibility as his actions are not just representative of his individual being but of an institution. And there have been some men in the past who have done deeds that have scarred the institution of the army.

I agree with Subroto, there is much more to men in uniform then what FV writes here. All men in the army should not be generalized for the actions of a few bad men. Men in uniform are husbands, fathers, sons and brothers of many women. And most of these women love their men for many reasons besides the uniform they wear.

My father is to retire this month. Infact, today is his last day in uniform. He has had a good career in the army and we are all very proud of him...and I don`t think I would view him any differently without his uniform.

Mute Goat Dilemma A very well-written piece Mehreen.
Women will have to stand up against all this crap. It is women only who can put these men to their senses and thus, staying mum should be the last thing to do. Making a hue and cry over an incident of any sort may seem embarrasing but its about time women do this so as to make these men realize that we`re not going to take any sort of shit from them.
So ladies, next time a guy does or says something to you, hit him with your bag if he`s in close proximity. And if he happens to be on a bike, pick a stone and hurl it at him. Let him rot in the hospital for years.
I just wish we could do this. When all these men will start dying left, right and center, the rest of the male population would get in their right senses too.

Gulp Fiction Hey atif2...chill man!
So what if Paracha is doing what you say he`s doing? Being a narcissi ain`t no crime. And yes, hats off to Paracha again for being the creative genius he is. And I am not just referring to the article here ;)