I Write My Ideas

Travel: To Know Your Destiny

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 04 Sep 2016 08:56:00 +0000

I chased the football to last defender after being passed by Goal keeper. My pressing forced him to go hitting the ball out of play but it hit me, I controlled the ball, took few steps forward & looked Goal Keeper is running towards me, I took a step right and curled the ball into the nets. Goal! You will be thinking that this article will be about some football tactics but this was occasion when I finally did what I wanted to do in my mind. It was of moment of peace when I took the right decision rather than hitting ball straight into the keeper I used to do often.

The point is what how I did this when I was trying to do for quiet few months. What has changed between now and then? The answer is clarity and peace in the mind. I work in a public utility department and have to deal with daily public pressure and emergency tasks for past 2 years. I have adopted into the environment when you are in urgency mode all the time. You have to take decisions at the moments and response quick as you don’t to be reason for the late proceedings. In the run so, you become habituated to react quick and in hurry always. For being in the environment, you integrate the earnestness in your life, character and daily base proceedings. The things seem good from the outside; you being appreciated by seniors, you become a dependable person in the eyes of higher ranks and more trust is placed on your shoulders. They overlook the capabilities of the mental and physical aspects of your personality. As the world says in professional enviro, you will be judged on outcomes results but when you fail, you will be held responsible and punished. They don’t care about the timespan for how long you are into this stress, depression and breakout feelings. If you fail, it’s your failure on capabilities as well as character. Trust me; anything can come out of mouth when you are teased for the efficiency of your work. It doesn’t matter, once you lose it you are all done in the eyes of senior ranks. That’s the modern era fiasco of the employees all over the world.

Coming back to the goal, how I scored it. You know it but you didn’t know why I was so clear in my intentions. The reason behind is that I just had a wonderful trip to Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan. I read in some context that once you are away from your natural habitat for ten days, you actually retuned your mind, energy and life goals. There was so much to think, learn and enjoy that it changes the perspective of your life. You actually learn the importance of bond between you and fellow travel companions. It is matter of fact that there are often fights during the travelling though it didn’t happen in my case. The reasons being are you are vulnerable to my things from financial issue to privacy to demands of excitements. There will be companions who want to see it all and there is who want to just look and enjoy the present atmosphere. There will some always in hurry for more and there will some to enjoy what they got but keep in mind, there is no right or wrong. You have to deal with it and the best way is to talk and agree.

Finally, moments will come on the way when whole your life goes through eyes. Some moments will growl your past and some moment woof your wishes for the future. In between both, you will be considering and deciding your life forward. The time can’t be moved fast or slow but your decisions will determine the pace of your life whether you want to run for the things and achieve it soon or let the wishes come true with time, because only thing to achieve goals are hard work and eye to opportunities. That’s why they said keep it slow.

Child Abuse: See it, Hear it, Report it!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 12:46:00 +0000

Most of us started noticing the pages and links on our sponsored Facebook timeline sharing the stories of child molesting (mostly girls). I am well aware that this issue is like a tumor in our society and must be talked. There must be awareness programs regarding child molesting from ground level (mainly primary schools, meetings with parents and group discussion) to national campaign. These sponsored links are not spreading the alertness of the issue instead promoting the vulgarity, sex stories and endorsing the intimacy. There is never ever a strong message concerning stopping and fighting spirit by the victim. They are telling every single minor detail of the incident (or say they creating up the stories) and script the juicy lines so they could upsurge their page ratings or endorse the ads. I strongly condemned these pages and actions must be taken to stop and ban the pages and links. Questions will be raised what should be done instead.

There are NGOs and social awareness groups who are encouraging the clear messages and instructions for ending the child abuse. Sex Education must be compulsory in the secondary school, Parents Teacher meeting must be held in primary school educating to look over their children, analyzing their behavior, their sleep routine, their interest on television & teaching them that no one is allowed to touch their body and private parts without their permission and when anybody do so is a offender and they must tell their parents no matter what the other person say or threatened to. Their parents will be their ultimate shield. The problem in our culture and religious structure in Pakistan is such that this issue is still considered as taboo and people avoid discussing. This cultural and religious restriction has sparked the evil side in people of this region. There are several issues to be addressed like delaying marriage of adults just parent's don’t think he/she isn’t financially steady. The intimacies among our youth are high, and its fact that you just couldn't stop it by banning porn websites. The Prophet once said to us, 'O young people (يا معشر الشباب)! Whoever among you is able to marry, should marry, and whoever is not able to marry, is recommended to fast, as fasting diminishes his sexual power.

Beside these duties of parents and adults, the government should act upon on this matter. We appreciate the stand that government took against terrorist after the Peshawar Army School incident, same kind of response must be taken against these psychopathic criminals who are involved in child molesting and there are numerous stories regarding child molesting and rape print in our newspapers. The crime and punishment committed should not be hidden but presented as the symbol to fight against the child molesting and eradicate this tumor in our societies. We have seen headlines that people arrested for raping four year old child but never heard what punishment was given to him.

Rainbow Flag for Pakistan?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 03 Jul 2015 18:05:00 +0000

No other news has drastic impact to countries miles away from each other than the news of American Courts to legalize the same gender marriage. It was the historic moment for United States of America but on other hand it’s complete opposite to nature law. As a Muslim and part of an Islamic state it will be always difficult to accept the law but it's not our right to object the law of the other state and a civilization who rules aren't subjected to religious certainties. May be for atheists it's very easy to accept to change of nature law. Being a liberal, I would have accepted this but even liberalism has its limit and that's when religion comes in. To me, religion isn't just about prayers and hoping to get place in heaven after life. It's about restrictive the human beings from becoming evil spirit and oppose the nature. Nature always takes its revenge in form of climactic change, natural disasters or any form. Nature is supreme authority, legalizing gay marriages will definitely affect the human race medically, mentally and governance wise and time will tell its effect on American Evolution in future. Yet being right or wrong about the issue, I couldn't deny the struggle for this movement. They have achieved something of phenomenon in present society. Keeping aside their natural desires, it's a movement showed to the world that humans are so influential beyond government restrictions, law and enforcement that if there is true wish to accomplish something they will acquire it. If marginally few numbers of people could achieve this accomplishment that are neglected by society and seen differently then why there is no rise and protest in Pakistan for numerous reasons from load shedding to terrorism, Minority genocide to sectarianism genocide (Shia & Ahmadis), Woman Rights to child labor, educational issue to health issues, and many more. If LGBT movement can raise rainbow flag in America then there should be a distinct flag in each and every street of Pakistan to stand against the discrimination of human rights from day Pakistan came into existence.

Assignment 0: Motion Planning Experiments

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 04 Mar 2015 12:29:00 +0000

Question No. 1:

Write an algorithm for ‘Person 1, looking at Person 2 with eyes closed, directs Person 2 through obstacle

Solution:

We are assuming Right Priority. Furthermore, constructing a function for person 1 walking towards goal through obstacles and after that person 2 follows person 1 upon call.

Algorithm:

Person 1 walks through Obstacles

Person 1 looking to goal

[

Move forward

%% Obstacle detected

Stop;

Rotate 90 degrees right

Follow obstacle

Direct towards goal

%% Obstacle detected

Stop

Rotate 90 degrees right

Follow obstacle

Direct towards goal

Reach goal

]

End

Person 1 call person 2

[

Person 1 walks through obstacles

]

End

Question 2:

Write an algorithm for person 1 looking an object, guides person 2 whose eyes are closed to grab an obstacle

Solution:

Algorithm:

Person 1 calls person 2

[

Move forward

%% Obstacle detected

Stop

Rotate 90 degrees right

Follow obstacle

Directs towards goal/Object

Pick up the object

]

End

Question 3:

Donot Venture Forth If You're Going To Judge.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 22 Dec 2014 08:21:00 +0000

There is not enough gas coming in and consequently, I was forced to fry my egg in the microwave. And that too quite successfully, I may add, except that it tasted like a boiled one. Dado is flying in this Saturday and I'll have to move upstairs in this cold. Yesterday, I mustered up all my will power and finally decided to bathe, thanked God that Nani has solar geysers in our house but guess what? The water was not warm enough, to which Mom said; "Haan tou sooraj kon sa araha hai?" Point to be noted before I feel any inclination to take a shower.

And all my classmates here insist that they love winters, and that too in quite a boasting manner.

Considering how hot the summers are in Faisalabad and that there is no electricity and that one has to take three showers a day even though she wants to conserve water and is hydrophobic, I kind of agree with them. But that won't stop my fingers turned into like carrot sticks while I type, now will it?

And it's going to be 2015 soon and I was thinking that everyone should make their (hahaa) new year resolution, not because it will inspire you to be a better person in the upcoming year but because it will save you from the boredom monster that has been attacking me since the past two days. I've turned into such a stalker and triumph came on the discovery of a senior's blog back when he was fifteen years old. Such a kewl blog, I may add. Let's break dance, mate. Also I've assumed my role of Solution Aunty again, playing the mediator. A batch mate keeps on messaging me on Facebook yesterday about how it is her birthday tomorrow and that how nice it would be if she get a birthday surprise from us. The last year at school and giving birthday surprises to everyone and all that stuff. We've been planning so many birthdays that it's not much of a surprise anymore.

After eating parathas for almost two weeks while Ammi went to Karachi without taking me and Nani force feeding me saag and the paratha, I think I've finally made peace with them. I want to learn how to swear in Punjabi. Or maybe, not. My egg language would suffice.
All the tickets for Anwar Maqsood Ka Dharna have been sold out except for 29 December and Ammi still hasn't agreed to take me to Lahore. Sed story, bro. She should pity me and consider the fact that I missed Karachi Literature Festival and Faisalabad Literature Festival (because a friend kept on insisting it was only for the faculty members). A shame, I know.
Anyways till I have nothing left to blab about, I'm out. Anyways I can always my Twitter timeline if something new comes up, which I doubt ever will.
Allah Hafiz

The Beauty In Life.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 05 Aug 2014 13:35:00 +0000

"The advantage of being freak is that it makes you strong. But the question is, how strong do you want her to be?"
Can we just pause for a moment and appreciate how great House is? And that man is just too awesome.

So I'd been planning to change the readers of the blog for good.

But I assure you, you will be changed for better if not best. I aim to shift your paradigm and to broaden your spectrum (I hope nobody's a Tahir Shah fan out there) and perspective. Hopefully I'll change your outlook at simple things and you won't take simple things in your life for granted. You'll cherish each and every moment. People should learn to appreciate small moments of joy. You should register small moments of happiness and peace because as they say, "Kia pata kal kia hojai." (For all those who don't understand Urdu, well now's a good time to learn because you aren't getting any translation)
So coming back to changing you ungrateful bunch of humans. You may wonder that what magic I possess to perform such a difficult task.
Well we'll start with a really simple and a basic thing and later we'll work up to the next level and so on.
The above statement clearly shows that I'll be one hell of a teacher.
So how many of you eat eggs?
Ok, forget that, how many of you take eggs for granted or worse think that eggs are disgusting?

Well then don't expect me to be okay with it because you're all idiots.
Do you know that a normal person consumes around 173 eggs a year?
Concentrate on the word normal.

Have you ever appreciated eggs knowing the fact that you can't really bake a cake without breaking a few eggs?

And how about this?

But maybe it is too gross for you, no?

Without eggs you can't savour the bite of the cheesy slice of pizza because I think (and I'm usually right) eggs are used in pizza dough, so no pizzas for you anymore, pansy cake.

Stick to kaddu ka salan, next time you want to eat something.

And added to that, you can't enjoy the peanut butter sandwich, Nutella sandwich or any other kind of sandwich because yes, you guessed it right. Eggs are used in bread.

Haha and I just discovered that you can't have that cool scoop of icecream. No little insolent brat, no more ice cream for you.

Suffer in silence.

Enough with the Googling, I don't expect you to grab the reality this fast but I'm hoping you won't disregard eggmazing things.
Added to the foodie business, eggs serve another great purpose and no I'm not referring to beauty tips. I have no plan to teach you about how to make your skin slippery like an egg white.
Instead I'm here to present you and introduce you with my egg-celent approach to cursing without seeming to be abusive. Next time you want to shout and curse anyone, you can call them a various number of things instead of that boring eff word.
Here you go, and make sure to keep your lolling tongue inside.
Aloo Anday Piyaaz
Koftay Anday
Ublay hoay Anday.

You can come up with some of your own. Stop counting on me for everything.
And stop being such an egg.

The Unconscious Belief

noreply@blogger.com (Azfar Imtiaz) — Fri, 18 Jul 2014 06:41:00 +0000

If I were to tell you my inspiration for this article, you might be a bit surprised. The other day at my office, the people started up a random discussion, which basically went along the lines of, "If you knew that you're going to die in a few hours and that you're going to hell for certain, would you kill everyone you hate?"

Most people said yes. Some people asked how much time they exactly had, as so to decide whether they could kill slowly and painfully or not. Some started wondering what would happen if they met the very person(s) they killed in hell later. But you get the general response.

I had my diplomatic answer of "I'd rather use the time to tell my loved ones that I love them" ready, but as it turns out, nobody really cares about interns.

Anyway, this question led my mind to wander along a trail weaved with reminiscence and deep thought. I remembered certain occasions where some particular friends had proclaimed things like, “Yaar hum to pakkay dozakhi hain”, and, “We're already going to hell anyway, so might as well”. If they are so sure of their state-of-affairs in the afterlife, will they start killing everyone they hate a few hours from their death?

Somehow, I think that even if they had some way of extracting knowledge about the time of their deaths, some certain people I could name but won't would still be safe.

The obvious question at this point is, how come? If a person truly believes that he will go to hell regardless of whatever he does, I'm sure he would cease to care about a lot of things. But while you may come across many people who have a firm belief that hell is indeed the only place for them in the afterlife, they still abstain from utter indifference. The reason being, they don't really believe that will end up in hell. And why? Because,

He is the Most Merciful, and the Most Beneficent.

I personally believe that such apparently hopeless people; or any of us, for that matter; don't truly believe that they will end up in hell, despite of all the sins they may have committed and may continue to do so. It is a fact we just cannot come to terms with, because there is still that small smidgen of hope, based on the infinite mercy of Allah, that we shall be forgiven on the Day of Judgment; that things will somehow work out, and that we can escape the unimaginable horror that awaits the non-believers. Allah is the All Powerful and the All Merciful; in Him we trust.

However, there could be a negative aspect to this too. If this really is the reason and this unrealized-to-most belief really does exist, some people might take this a tad too far, and continue to commit all sorts of wrongs and sins regardless, and simply shrug it off saying, 'Allah maaf karnay wala hai yaar'. I have seen this happen many times and while it's good to have this firm a belief in His mercy, you surely aren't earning yourself any favors by continuing to commit these wrongdoings, whatever they may be. Allah may be prepared to overlook these acts, but why not try giving Him a reason to do so? And what better time for a change of habit(s) than the holy month of Ramazan?

Of course, this all may be baloney and may not make a lot of sense, if any at all since it is currently 5 in the morning and I wrote this simply because I felt like writing and nothing else came to mind, but as long as it may serve a good purpose, what's the harm?

Shit Got Real.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 12 Jul 2014 10:42:00 +0000

So basically, I have no idea how to impress the readers of this blog with my first ever legend-wait-for-it-dary post. And therefore, dear amigos I have decided to do what I do best, which is basically four things.
Blab
Sleep
Blab
And blab some more.
Wow. This is as eggmazing as it can get. I doubt anyone can do all the four things as well as I can.
On a serious note, without much further ado, I am not going to blab about some useless shit here. Instead I'm going to give you some tips or life saving advice for the moments when you're forced to think that shit just got real! There are moments when you find yourself lost, wandering trying hard to make way around the mess and think for the zenith time that why in the hell did I want to grow up. Because apparently you prefer those keechar walay pizzas and not the smart gadgets you have stocked up on. There are moments when you get nostalgic and think about all those moments when you actually didn't know the meaning of shit. Well not to worry because I'm going to save you from such moments.

You know what's really shitty. Summer, heat, sweat trickling down nastily your back and no fan to propel that hot air in your face. Because of loadshedding and no electricity for almost twelve hours, and to put that tasteless cherry on top of the burnt cake, you live in Punjab. Wow. Well to deal with that shit, all you got to do is ask your wife, mother, daughter or sister to make you a cup of tea (because you're a lazy sloth and a male chauvinist) and then go upstairs or out in the verandah and start dancing. It is preferable if you do lungi dance.

There are times when you just can't bear your slippers getting stolen while you're being a good son and praying in mosque on Friday and secretly wish that you were a girl. Well thanks to me your problem is solved. Just don't eat anything for the next two whole days and on the morning of the third day, kaboom, you're a changed ~~man~~ woman. And the best part is you can always change back once you're tired of the male dominated society around you. All you have to do is eat the crunchy wafer-ish chocolate which is basically manufactured to shame real chocolates.

These are enough for now. Go watch football.
And since I can't think of anything good to blab about, I should consider sleeping.
Bye.

A poem for us all

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 13 Jun 2014 10:55:00 +0000

A little poem I wrote for myself and you people, the readers. You know what they say, first post best post. lol. I'll just let the words I wrote do the rest. Here you go.

Why is it that you do what you do?

Why do you conduct research conductive?

Would you still do it if you knew?

Tis to one's self and soul: destructive.

　

Do not douse in the dark,

For black is not a colour.

Black is the colours' absence;

No absence could be more duller.

　

Life is a gift far too precious to be;

Wasted on marijuana and coke.

If you crave, have a cup of tea

But please don't drink or smoke.

　

Hear the rain drops pitter patter,

For them there will be no tommorow,

Don't fall from grace and shatter

Life is not all grief and sorrow

　

Amidst the clouds, see the silver lining,

Alas! All storms come to an end.

Then you will see the sun shining.

It's what's broken that must mend.

A Life Secret Hidden in a Hiking Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 04 May 2014 10:09:00 +0000

Well no students will leave a chance to miss out a hiking trip to Monal arranged by University, when they know that there will be no issue of attendance for leaving the most hated lab. I never went on to complete the hiking trip to Monal but I always believed that I’m a sportsman so I had many alternate solutions for that. Indeed it was like sunshine in the dark opportunity, how could I miss it? As most of my classmates commonly thought, I went for the trip. It was the first time I got an opportunity to sit in a University bus. We reached the starting point in no time and it was time to begin our knee crunching journey. Most of us chose the toughest route to reach Monal, trail 3. As our journey began, many of us were enthusiastic and took off aggressively. Moving up faster and sometimes running when finding a slanted plain surface. There were still many students strolling near the start point but as time passed, the distance between me and then started to increase and there were fewer people remaining around me whom I knew. Then I found two of my colleagues Ubaid and a girl name Maheen. They were just behind me and completing their journey like the destination is in their hands. Ignoring the fact that friends could help to complete your journey happily and passing time with them is fun. They were my classmate but we didn’t get enough opportunities to talk or share ideas. It’s always good to know that familiar faces are around you. But then it struck my mind that it represents a disrespectful attitude towards my classmates that I’m not stopping when they are just few feet away from me. With a hint of reluctance, I took a deep breath while stopping and joined them. As we started moving together I came to know that Maheen’s father used to come to hiking and it took him 2.5 hours to complete the full trail and we had just been moving for 45 minutes. I thought to change my mindset and focus that I can still make it in time. The journey in itself is exploring the natural of beauty of the Margalla Hills and I thoroughly enjoyed the silence, bird squiring, greenery and also the company of people whom first I thought would be a distraction. It all happened because we were determined to reach the destination. It reminded me of the famous quote “safar jitna b lamba ho saathi ache hone chaiye” but it makes true sense when you know your friend is also willing to reach the destination. Time passed quite well and they even stopped by a thorn got pinched in my shoe and they helped me to take that out. We saw few people crossing us so I was expecting that we will be on top in 15 minutes but we were falling behind. It seemed so unlikely when I was moving up. I was moving like a king on a horse not knowing my army had marched forward already. Its human nature to absorb joyful moments but we realize later the difficult tasks that follow.

Like hiking trip to un-measured destination, our approach to our dreams is like same. We know our destination but we don’t know how much time it will take and how much difficult it will be, how many ups and downs there will be, how many times your mind will distract you from reaching to your goal and how many times u will be pinched by thorn (people who will you pull back and discourage you) but you still need to keep on moving. Dreams become reality when you know in your heart and sure of your capabilities and again repeating the quote “safar jitna b lamba ho saathi ache hone chaiye” make sense because a true friends /family/life partner will help you to achieve your goals when they have faith in you, but if they don’t help you instead pull you back, don’t stop for them , keep advancing and there will be new people arriving in your life and eventually you will get along with them ,they will help you to reach to your destination when you reach there don’t be upset seeing many people already there , because before the begin of journey, nobody expected themselves to be there ,congratulate yourself for making to the final point because you earned it, than the story of true successful person is written !! Try to think of life with another perspective because every dream deserves to become a reality.

Big The Size , More The Issues!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 30 Nov 2013 09:15:00 +0000

Ever since a child, I would tinker with Styrofoam to make model planes. Once the design issues were kinked out, I would try to expand its size. But every time I would expand the size, something or the other would fall apart or malfunction. Back then it confused me as to why a working design would pose a challenge at expansion. Growing up, I noticed these phenomenon’s in many different fields where a perfectly well functioning design or an idea would not work at a different scale, just like my plane design. Let me explain.

Economics: We have been told that Communism does not work. Soviet Union & North Korea bear witness to this fact in history. And we are told that Capitalism works. Many countries adopting free-market policies have prospered (compared to the Communist nations). In a Free-market economy, money is the means of signal for supply and demand. Communist Economies requires Central Planning. What I find interesting is structure of a family. A family runs on communist principles. You do not charge your kids for food. Everyone works according to his ability and need. This model may even work in large families. But as the size of the model expands, communism falls apart. Whereas if Capitalism were applied to a family unit, it would destroy the social fabric and the human element from relationships.

Knowledge: Pick any major event in history – Roman Empire, WW1, WW2, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The more you read into its details, the opinionated the information gets with conflicting point of views. Plus, when we try to granulize details, we tend to lose sight of the bigger picture. This is very common in the field of Economics. We tend to mix things between correlation and causation, or the arrow of causation. The marginal utility of more details goes from beneficial to harmful. It is important to always keep the larger picture in sight. More information does not mean more wisdom.

Religion: Religion creates a baseline for morality. Practicing an old religion keeps us in touch with our history, regardless we understand it or not. But implementation of religion in its strictest sense twists matters in reality. Let’s take Pakistan for example. My parents tell me that Pakistan was one of the most prosperous nations in the region in the 60s & 70s. It was a very friendly and safe place. I see my parents wedding pictures and I do not see anyone looking too religious. Today, taking a random sample from Pakistan would show more people practicing religion. Yet, the moral sense didn’t improve proportionally. In fact, it’s common that neighbors no longer interact as much as they did 40 years ago. So what went wrong? I feel Law of Proportionality comes in handy explaining that we may have overextended a working principle. Or maybe it’s the ‘Institutionalization of religion’. Who knows! And that’s the thing with Complex social systems – they aren’t linear. In Complex systems causation is noise. Correlations & long term trends are the real signal carrier.

Science: Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein explained the world of natural laws of gravitation via mathematical equations. Their discovered laws hold well with celestial bodies. But these very laws fall apart when applied to Quantum Mechanics, where there is no such thing as certainty and everything is probabilistic. The Law of Proportionality prevails even in the purest form of natural science. I am not arguing against the size as the factor in complex system but the layers of complexity. The more complexity is layered into a system, the higher its risks of failure. And there is nothing more complex than a human conscious. We can predict the durability of machines, we can calculate the half-life of radioactive materials, energy levels and even molecular processes but we cannot calculate rational or irrational responses of a conscious being. This very element of consciousness restricts us from ‘calculating’ future economic conditions via fancy models. It’s not just that we cannot calculate conscious irrationality but interpretation of data adds our own conscious abstraction to our conclusion.

A day on the streets

noreply@blogger.com (Azfar Imtiaz) — Sun, 28 Jul 2013 18:35:00 +0000

As had been customary for pretty much the entire summer, 11-year old Amir woke up at around seven in the morning drenched in sweat. The fan had been still for almost three consecutive days now; a silent reminder of the bliss it had been that Amir had never bothered to acknowledge when electricity would visit their home a few hours a day. His mother was stretched out next to him; asleep; the fanning mat still clutched in her hand. She had fanned him to sleep, Amir knew, and had finally given in to exhaustion and dropped off herself. Her sleep wouldn’t last long, Amir knew. The heat would see to that.

Soon he was out on the streets, in the scorching heat with the stack of newspapers balanced under his arm. He didn’t have to try hard to appear in a pitiful state as he shuffled from car to car, waving the newspapers in the car windows; his grubbed and torn-at-places attire, matted hair and dirty face saw to that. Whether a disgraceful appearance helped him in selling more newspapers or not was a debate he had forgone a long time ago. There was just no satisfying people, he knew. If he made himself look abject, people might take pity on him, but would mostly just turn away in disgust. If he made himself look presentable, there would be no end to the ‘such a fine young lad you are, and look at you. Begging here on the streets (even though that wasn’t exactly what he would call selling newspapers), why don’t you go out and get a real job?’ stereotypes.

In his scrimpy trade, Amir had come across a lot of different types of people. There were the big, rich businessmen who would ride up in their big black cars, seated in the backseat clad in grand suits. Such people hardly ever bothered to even look up at him. There was the harried father rushing his kids to school, always in bad mood. Often he would vent out his anger on Amir. There were youngsters, whos’ arrival would always be heralded by loud music blaring from the car speakers. Whenever he approached them, they would engage in a loud and raucous discussion, and pretend not to hear him. There were taxi drivers; always mopping their sweating foreheads; and most of them hardly had enough for their own selves, yet would at times try to shell out whatever they could for him. Very few were the relaxed people, who would smile whenever he came up and pay him, and sometimes they would even refuse the newspaper he offered them, telling him to just keep the money.

Rejection was an integral part of Amir’s ‘trade’. He had learned long ago not to let it get him down. And so he had stopped seething at people who would roll up their windows when they spotted him, or the disdainful looks he received, or the snide comments about how he was a perfectly healthy young boy who should do something more worthwhile than selling newspapers. He had even stopped being frustrated at the selfishness of the people; after all, if a person could afford a big car, an expensive mobile phone, maintain a family, why could he not shell out a mere 10 rupees to him, a person in dire need? It was something that used to bother him a lot once; when every window rolled up in his face, or every annoyed expression on a potential customer’s face when he ambled along would be an affront to him, and he would turn away with a sickening feeling in his stomach, his heart aching. It wasn’t just the fact that they were forcing him to move on empty-handed, but also the contempt with which they regarded him. He may not be educated, or have a proper job, or own a car, but he was still human. He too had feelings! But as the days rolled by without anything changing, he learned not to let it get him down. Sometimes he told himself to be strong; at other times, he would compare himself with shopkeepers. He told himself that while he may not have a proper shop, he had the freedom of being able to interact with his customers openly and freely, and he did not have to worry about competition either. Of course, he did not get the respect that shopkeepers get in his case, but after all, you have to give something to lose something. Sometimes he would realize how ridiculous he was being, but he forced himself to believe that, for he needed a way to uphold his pride. He had some of it, if not a lot, and like every other person, he needed to maintain it. To keep himself going.

But despite whatever he kept telling himself, the fact remained that rejection wasn’t just in his ‘trade’; it was in Amir’s whole life. He had been rejected a father who could financially support his family. He had been denied a country which could, or maybe chose to, help people like him all over the country. He had been denied the basic necessities of life such as water and electricity. He had been denied an education. In short, he had been denied a proper life.

He had even been denied a healthy mother. She was sick most of the time; sprawled on the bed, her skin burning to the touch. Fear and worry for her made Amir forget all about his misfortunes though. Amir didn’t know exactly what she was suffering from, but he was aware that they never had enough money to get her treated properly. Amir had even started to save up the small amount he used to shell aside from his income every day for sweets and chocolates, in the hope that one day he could gather enough to get his mother treated. He loved her so very much; the pure love born of innocence that exists between a mother and child; and he didn’t know what he would do without her.

And that, in fact, was his true driving force; not him telling himself to be strong, neither the need to uphold his pride; it was fear for his mother. It was what kept him doggedly padding through the roads, stopping at car after car, waving his newspapers in the windows, steeling his nerves at every rejection, and moving on. That, and of course his self-assurance that this was still better than being stuck at a shop, being forced to sit the hours away. It was something Amir knew, deep down, yet he refused to acknowledge it, and kept telling himself it wasn’t true. Because it would always lead him to thoughts of what would transpire if something were to happen to his biggest source of inspiration; if she was around no more; what would he do then?

And then he would shake his head; telling himself that he was being foolish, for nothing was going to happen to his mother, and that he would soon have enough money to get her properly treated; and then he would move on to wave his stack of newspapers in the next car’s window.

Accord

noreply@blogger.com (Hassan Altaf) — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 10:51:00 +0000

''Give up!'', says the mind,
and now the heart agrees.
What of this agony? This malice?
That no one ever sees!
What of this peace, i havent known?
Unknown to me, like the floatin trees;
Of Babylon!
Which way do they sway, when a certain cold breeze,
Hits their upside down copses;whither do the leaves
Fall? Down or up, towards the sky?
If so, then why?
Or, are there Djins, and Ghosts and ghouls?
And terrifying ghost-houses with forlorn souls.
Pity! For the haunted, who no one consoles.
Furthermore, on the contrary if we are to think.
Do djins and Ghouls dwell in barren lands,
Stories being stories,
Tales to overwhelm?
And so do they think of us humans
.............as we of them?
And are they afraid of the horror i.e ''Man''
And is honesty really the policy best?
Coz men have failed while being so!,
Or were they; simply put; or else,
They surely would have forseen so!
Hypocrisy; it shines when put to test.
Man notes and progresses,
forgetting the rest!
Seemingly tis a powerhouse of unflinching zest!
But it does make life look like a sorry jest!
Tis new yet the biggest mystery of them all!
Does the heart have any role in feelings.
Does it transcend and mould and bend;
The way we make our dealings?
Or is it a mere organ, devoid of sentiments;
Like the hectic learned man,
Who never diverts an inch or so ever,
From the purposed plan.
If so then Lo!
Tis only brain,
And heart muscle and vein.
The idioms and phrases of yore,
Are apt to go down the drain.
So much hassle bout the heart of before,
All in vain!
Hail the mightiest of organs; the real vital one
The mighty electrical brain,
And yet, i am unsure
and so there is room for contrabands,
And thus ardently the question stands,
Because to this there is more,
And im fiendishly unsure,
And this my brain with my heart grieves,
How can the brain and the heart,
So peacefuly be at ease?

Can't come up with a title... NOT ready for publishing!

noreply@blogger.com (Azfar Imtiaz) — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 16:01:00 +0000

If you were one of the unfortunate victims of the deranged and vicious attack on the Christian community in Lahore a couple of months back, chances are that you are one of those really few people in Pakistan who still hasn’t applied the forgive and forget, or rather forget, policy related to the whole event. You were there; you know the whole story. No one else knows the cold, piercing fear that impaled your heart the night the police and then a mob gathered at the house of the accused. How you and your whole community were forced to flee, fearing the worst. The worst, which you’d been imagining too demented to actually happen. And then the sense of unreality that gripped you as you stared in horror at the ashes of what had once been something that belonged to you; at the charred roads and black smoke that encompassed what had once been your home; and the only thought running through your mind was:

You: What did I ever do to deserve this?

And then along comes one of the many people responsible for the burnings; the man of the hour, here to rescue you from the plight of your endless/conclusion-less pondering.

Deranged maniacs: You committed blasphemy. You insulted our Prophet (S.A.W).

You: But… I did not do anything.

Deranged maniac: Well, one of you did. You all had to be taught a lesson.

You: But the man who committed the actual blasphemy got arrested! Isn’t that lesson enough?

Deranged maniac: Pah! You’d like to think so, wouldn’t you? But it’s not as simple as that. In matters as serious as this, a stronger statement is always needed.

You: So basically, if one of us committed a blasphemous act, you deemed it fit to burn down the entire Christian community? Punish all for the crime of one? Just to send a ‘statement’?

Deranged maniac: Blasphemy is a very serious crime in our religion, boy. It must be dealt with a punishment as severe as the crime itself.

You: I don’t really get how the severity of one man committing blasphemy and that of burning down an entire community match up…

Deranged maniac: Spare me the clever talk, boy. You tell me this: what is your problem with our religion? We’re willing to live in peace with you Christians, but you’re not making that entirely possible, are you?

You: Oh, oh, so you’re calling punishing all of us brutally for one person’s crime ‘living in peace’?

Deranged maniac: Why are you portraying it like that? We’re the actual victims here!

You: You’re the victims here? HOW?

Deranged maniac: You heard me. We’re the actual victims here, just as we always are. Victims of your propagandas, always targeting our religion. This was merely a way to defend ourselves.

You: You burn down the entire Christian community to defend yourself?

Deranged maniac: That was the only way. For a strong statement was needed to keep you people in check, since you obviously can’t do that yourself. I repeat: blasphemy is a VERY serious crime in our religion.

You: Are you implying that we should keep a check on EVERYONE here and stop them from committing a crime; else it’s hell for all of us? That’s impossible.

Deranged maniac: (shrugs) Then deal with the consequences. Remember: as you sow, so shall you reap.

You: So you’re actually defending the mindless atrocity of your actions.

Deranged maniac: I stand by what happened. You deserved it.

You: Deserve – what, HOW? Okay, let me explain the situation to you in very simple words. Suppose a person committed a robbery. The punishment for that in Islam is that the hand of the one responsible gets cut off, right?

Deranged maniac: (nods vigorously) Yes.

You: Okay. So if a person steals, do you cut his hand off, or do you go and cut off the hands of his entire family as well?

Deranged maniac: Only the person who stole would be punished. Why his family? Islam is a very fair and just religion.

You: Exactly. So isn’t ours the same case? If a person commits blasphemy – what’s the penalty for blasphemy in Islam again?

Deranged maniac: (sourly) Death.

You: Exactly. So if a person commits blasphemy, would you not have him sentenced to death? Why burn all of our belongings and possessions down as well?

Deranged maniac: (growing frustrated) These two are completely different things!

You: HOW, pray tell? Or are you implying that blasphemy is a special case in Islam where you are allowed to take the law into your own hands and inflict whatever punishment you deem fit on the criminal?

Deranged maniac: Of course not. Islam is just.

You: Is it really? Your actions certainly suggest otherwise. Or maybe that’s because there IS no penalty for blasphemy in Islam, and you don’t know what to do about it!

Deranged maniac: (growing increasingly frustrated) There is. Stop insulting our religion.

You: I’m not insulting anything; I’m only pointing out what seems evident. Is it the fact that there is a penalty for blasphemy in Islam; you just don’t know what it is and thus decided to act of your own accord?

Deranged maniac: (suppressed anger) Are you implying that we are ignorant of the ways of our religion? Because if that’s the case –

You: Well, it’s either that, for I refuse to believe that considering how ‘perfect’ and ‘just’ Islam is, as you keep reiterating, it would allow something as senseless and unjust as this.

Deranged maniac: (seething) Do not doubt Islam, it is the fittest religion!

You: Then why are you continuously giving me reasons to doubt that?

Deranged maniac: I don’t know what you’re talking about.

You: I’ll TELL you what I’m talking about. I’ll tell you what really happened. The penalty for blasphemy in Islam is death; death for the criminal. But that isn’t enough for you people, is it? You always talk of Islam being the perfect religion – and maybe it is! Yet you don’t consider it perfect according to your intemperate views, and thus are redefining Islam, molding it according to your perspectives, and yet using it to defend your actions! You are using your religion, your beloved and PERFECT Islam, as an excuse for oppression. And that, my -

Deranged maniac: (takes out a gun and shoots you).

Steps Towards Democracy

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 17:16:00 +0000

A political person is appointed by the peoples and is responsible for hatching the development issues to the higher level of administration and improvises the innovative policies to improve the governance. This is one of the most respectable occupation and the elected person is considered prosperous national servant. One of the most interesting enigmas is the process by which such 'servants' are selected. This process is referred to as the democratic where the community is given the option to mark on his favorite person's electoral symbol. The outcome of this exercise is a best servant that receives high number of votes. The process consist of following three phases, phase-1: Pre-Poll, phase-2: During-Poll and phase-3: After-poll.

In this article the objective is to provide the hypothetical analysis about each phase under the prospective of a common Pakistani.

Phase-1: Pre-Poll

The pre-poll is the phase where the political entity reforms its social contacts by attending the funeral, marriage ceremonies; go for prayers and dinners parties etc. The member explains his party manifesto and highlight the burning issues and vouch that his party is the final choice to pull out the nation from the current mayhem. At this stage, the best exercise is to erode the corruption and incompetence of incumbent govern authorities by providing the references to the various cases and intend that their party manifesto is the only hope to prevent the Pakistan for additional disaster. The member describes his fidelity and explains that how his party has suffered and faced different democratic peril and how opposition has curbed various ongoing projects. Similarly, the opposition has the same sentiments of how the government has blocked the national interest projects by bolstering the administrative discretion The member cronies prepare various types of slogans that revel the ineffectiveness of opposite counterpart. In short the members try to hide their incompetence by putting all garbage of corruptions and vitiated governance on the previous govern authorities and on the opposition.

Phase-2: During-Poll

The Phase 2 is short and interesting as the voter receives the higher level of importance and protocol from the member cronies. For instance, the use of vehicles, vans, cars, rickshaws and mini buses are common to take the voters in the polling stations.

Phase-3: After-Poll

The phase 3 is the actual epoch in the life of both voters and the winning member (servant). After the result announcement, the voters go the political offices to greet the winning member, enjoy a cup of tea there and come back home. The disarming journey of voter demise and servant ride starts as lot of issues upraised for him.

For instance the winning member feels that the party manifesto that brought him into this winning position is not in the wider interest of nation. He feels that, despite the corruptions (that he had proved during the election campaign) the other party is not bad as much. He deems that he can develop and serve his constituency better by joining the counterpart regime. Such ideological rejuvenation forces him to leave his incumbent association. So, do we need to obliterate such culprit system that is based on the personal goals? The answer is no, because the democratic system works like this. The ominous speculation is that the same members are going to rule the system for the next five years or more. Let it happen and allow our leader to check the temperament of the peoples. Let the peoples bear the smashes of politician cronies on them. Let them observe how our political leaders fight each other and how they sit together. Let them witness various corruptions and one day these frustrated peoples will come out. The day will be the 'day of judgment' and will be a staggering day for the political elite. The peoples will have their own court and the decisions will be made on immediate basis.

Election 2013: Political Parties Approach

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 16:47:00 +0000

Latest polls show that Nawaz League's nexus with Punjab-based anti-Shi'a terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has not hurt its popularity in Punjab during the last several months.

PML (N) Popularity:

In fact, it appears that PML(N) has successfully exploited Sunni majority's bigotry against the Shi'a in Pakistan, particularly in its home base in Punjab. Sharif brothers' PML (N) is now the most popular party in Punjab with 59% approval and nationally with 41% approval rating in Pakistan, according to the latest Gallup Pakistan poll. Pakistan People's Party (PPP) is second nationally with 17% and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) third with 14% approval.

Exploiting Hate:

To put PML(N)'s popularity in perspective, let's look at the history of how politicians have exploited such feelings of hatred against minorities. Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany by riding a wave of resentment against European Jews. In India, Narendra Modi solidified his popularity in Gujarat by approving of Muslim massacre in 2002. Ten years later, Modi continues to be the most popular chief minister in India. While India's ruling Congress party governs only 8 states, BJP's anti-Muslim rhetoric continues to help it retain power in ten of India's 28 states. Most Israelis continue to vote for politicians who maintain brutal military occupation of Palestine.

Militancy in Pakistan:

In Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto caved in to pressure from right-wing religious parties and passed a law declaring Ahmedis non-Muslim. This self-serving act did not save Bhutto. Anti-Bhutto riots gave Gen Ziaul Haq the opportunity to remove Bhutto from power. After grabbing power, Zia collaborated with the religious right to take advantage of average Pakistani's religiosity to consolidate his own power. Zia exploited the strong anti-communist sentiments after the Soviet invasion of neighboring Afghanistan. He collaborated with the United States and Saudi Arabia to give birth to religious militancy in Pakistan, eventually leading to the creation of Al Qaeda and the Taliban who, along with their allies and affiliates such as LeJ, continue to carry out terrorist attacks in Pakistan and elsewhere. Nawaz Sharif, too, is a creation of the Zia era.

Civil Society's Role:

Most politicians in democracies are followers, not leaders. They respond to sentiments of their constituents, even hate-filled and violent sentiments. Most of Pakistan's politicians and political parties have their militant wings or alliances with various militant groups who carry out attacks against those who disagree. Such venal politicians are part of the problem, not part of the solution to rising violence in Pakistan.

Given the venality of the politicians, the only possible solution to this problem is to build public opinion against violence in all its forms. Once the people decide to reject bigotry and violence, the politicians will follow.

Who has the power to shape public opinion in democracies? It's the civil society consisting of the mass media, non-governmental organizations, religious scholars and other powerful public advocacy groups.

Why Should Civil Society Care?

It's in civil society's best interest to create an enabling environment for peaceful coexistence for freedom, music, arts, literature, culture and economy to flourish. Such freedom is necessary to promote creativity and ensure prosperity of the society as a whole.

Why Should Mass Media Care?

The media are owned by corporations who should care because a safe and secure Pakistan is the best way to increase their profitability. These media magnates should have a clear editorial policy to discourage incitement to violence. They should tell their anchors to stop spinning conspiracy theories designed to distract the attention of people from Pakistan's real threats which are mostly internal. They should encourage the people to take personal responsibility for their actions.

Why Should Politicians Care?

The politicians should care because they have to govern after winning elections. Here, they can learn from Indian BJP leader Narendra Modi. Modi is still a bigot but he knows that he can not afford to alienate the whole world, particularly businessmen and investors who need security and stability to invest in Gujarat. Modi has used his anti-Muslim rhetoric to get votes but he has not allowed mass killings of Muslims after 2002. The lack of violence and continuing stability have attracted massive investments which have made Gujarat's economy among the fastest growing in the world.

Summary:

It's in the best long-term self-interest of Pakistani politicians and civil society to work to reduce militancy and promote peace and tolerance in the country. This will help bring stability and economic opportunity to Pakistan's current and future generations.

Blunders & Pakistan

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 17:14:00 +0000

To recall the past, the history of Pakistan is full of an endless streak of debacles from the very inception. The fragile democratic system, erroneous policies and lack of vision has averted this nation into a direction-less horde. I am writing about the top 10 blunders which had a drastic impact on Pakistan's history.

From the outset, Pakistan was confronted with challenges of national security, economic well-being and mushrooming influence of the Soviet Union over Afghanistan and Iran. The first Prime Minister of Pakistan, Liaqat Ali Khan, was compelled to cement pro-American ties. It was argued by the strategists that America could provide the economic, military and technical support to a thriving country like Pakistan. As a consequence, Pakistan went into America's camp, whereas, India remained the part of the non-aligned movement.

Ghulam Muhammad's dismissal of the constituent assembly was the first onslaught on democracy. Speaker Tamizuddin filed a petition in Sindh high court. The high court overturned the decision but the Federal court under Justice Muhammad Munir upheld the dismissal. This judgement was passed under the law of necessity and mutilated the face and jeopardized the process of democracy. This verdict justified the next four martial laws and 'guaranteed' a somber future of Pakistan. This law has been obliterated by the current judiciary.

One unit scheme was introduced by Muhammad Ali Bogra and Ayub Khan carried on with its implementation and included it in the interim 1962 constitution. The seeds of discontent among East Pakistanis were sowed.

Separation of East Pakistan left the entire nation traumatized. Bhutto refused to accept Mujeeb's mandate in East Pakistan. The sentiments of national unity had disintegrated. East Pakistanis were among the front line ranks to achieve independence for Pakistan. Rather than alleviating the grievances of East Pakistanis, a relentless military operation was conducted to counter insurgency which further deepened the cracks in the federation and antagonized the Eastern wing. A failure to reach political settlement resulted in Indian military intervention. Pakistan's military was left unfettered to deal with the matter and carried out endless atrocities against East Pakistanis which proved to be the final nail in the coffin.

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was imprisoned and later sentenced to death. Military establishment and the flawed judicial system were embroiled in this catastrophe. This changed the dimension of politics in Pakistan, bringing inherent politics and politics of 'martyrdom' at front and burying the ideological politics.

Zia-ul-Haq's martial law was another ferocious strike on democracy. He concocted the policy of Islamization to win the support of Mujahideens and the Western forces against Communist Russia. He fought a proxy war against Russia in avarice of financial and military aid. Pakistan intruded in Afghanistan, leaving it dismantled and brought the evils of sectarianism, drug mafia and violence in our own country. Pakistan's policy on war on terror destabilized Afghanistan once and for all and we are paying it off.

Kargil war was Pakistan Army's adventurism which resulted in a defeat. This created a rift between Nawaz Sharif and Pervez Musharraf which ultimately ended up in the enforcement of martial law. Pakistan sought America's help in de-escalating the conflict. Kargil war was an utter disgrace for Pakistan in the world arena. Indo-Pak relations were once again strained and went to its lowest ebb.

Decisions taken by Musharraf after 9/11 backfired. America asked Pakistan to request Mullah Umer to withdraw his support over Osama Bin Laden. Allegedly, former DG ISI, General Mahmood asked Mullah Umer not to hand over Bin Laden and advised the Americans to negotiate with the Taliban leadership. As a repercussion, military intervention became inevitable. Pakistan's military once again became the mercenaries. In the light of this so-called 'war on terror', 35000 Pakistanis have been killed, resulted in an economic meltdown and the entire social fabric uprooted.

Musharraf lashed out at the judiciary and sacked the Chief Justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. He derailed the process of independent and fair judicial system. Meanwhile, National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) was passed and political concessions were granted. A strong lawyer's movement struggling for the restoration of judiciary caused Musharraf's doom.

Out of the blue, Asif Ali Zardari occupied the presidency. Zardari was reluctant in restoring the judiciary. Another movement launched and presided over by Nawaz Sharif reinstated the judiciary. PML-N and PPP deviated from the charter of democracy, depriving the country from political stability, economic revival, peace and prosperity. Zardari wanted immunity over his corruption cases. Government's refusal to implement court orders has disturbed the state's institutional harmony. Zardari gave protection to orphan political parties under the umbrella of 'reconciliation' to stretch his regime. The office of the president demands a neutral personality representing the federation of Pakistan. We are living this blunder and the aftermaths will become vivid after the current tenure.

And the country continues to bleed. A functioning democracy, across the board accountability, revamping the state institutions and paradigm shift from the national security state to a welfare state are the solutions to the woes of Pakistan. We all hope and pray for the best of our beloved motherland.

Of Gotham City, and Pakistan

noreply@blogger.com (Azfar Imtiaz) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:41:00 +0000

I was watching the movie Batman Begins a few days ago, and one of the things in it that really perked my interest was the state-of-affairs of Gotham City. It was a city shown in shambles; a place where corruption had infiltrated the very infrastructure of the city. A city overrun by criminals, and no system of law and order. 'Create enough hunger, and the society can be easily bought'. Even the people unwilling to resort to criminal acts were forced to do so just to survive. And the good people, who yearn for justice in the society, their hands are tied because they are encircled by corrupt people everywhere and there is no one to support them.

Why did it perk my interest? Well, because of the fact that the state-of-affairs in Pakistan these days are really not that different from Gotham City. The same corruption, criminal activities being carried out in the open accompanied with an absence of justice, the poor getting poorer and the rich getting richer and so on.

Of course, while drawing an analogy between reality and fiction, some things just do not add up. The most obvious one in this case would be: where is our Batman?

'Where' might not be a suitable question to ask at the moment. A more pressing question would be, what does the 'Batman' in this context even refer to? To answer this question, I would ask you to recall the Batman movies (the Christopher Nolan trilogy in particular). The people believe in Batman. They have stored all their hopes in this one masked man, that as long as he is around, Gotham is safe and they can safely hope for a better future. In short, Batman is a symbol of hope for the people of Gotham City.

Coming back to the Batman of Pakistan, I think the above paragraph answers our question. We do not need a masked man running around under the cover of darkness beating up criminals to a pulp, for that would not solve our problems; we need a symbol of hope.

And thus crops up another question: do we even have one?

From a certain perspective, a lot of people would answer that question with a positive response. Hope is a must; its necessary if we are to get through these tough times. Usually these are the ever-optimistic people who are always saying things like "we'll get through this, "one must always stay positive", "do not lose hope people", "sab theek ho jaye ga" etc.

For such people, I have a question: what exactly are you instilling your belief(s) in that gives you such hope? Or what are you advising us to believe in and gain hope from? The people of Gotham City had Batman; who or what do we have?

People will react to that question in different manners. Some people will attribute their hopes to the government and the many political parties engaged in a never-ending warfare to wrest the throne from one another's hands and trying to bring it into their hands. They may store their hopes in the current government, PTI leader Imran Khan, or the relatively new guy, Tahir-ul-Qadri or some other person/party; that is their business. Some people see hope in the Army. Others have given up on the government and all political parties and have instead resorted to putting their faith into the public uniting, or the youth of the nation or as such. Some people have given up on the country altogether and are concentrating on getting out of Pakistan, ready to resort to any way possible. And then there are the dejected pessimists who have given up hope altogether and continue about their ways, oblivious of the matters going on in their country, convinced that all is lost now.

My point is that whatever your symbol of hope, your Batman, it has to be a legitimate one. For the present state-of-affairs of our country have worsened far beyond the point of merely sitting around and hoping for a miracle. And here arises the complex problem, the reason why our nation is not progressing at all, and everytime we seem to be the brink of a revolution, it all crumbles back down; it is our inability to cope with difference of opinion.

We all have our different Batmans, and that should be fine, but it is not. The concept of 'I have my opinion, you have yours, lets leave it at that' simply does not exist in our people. No, we HAVE to make the others see reason, we HAVE to force our opinions down their throats and remain on their case until they see the error of their thoughts and the wisdom in ours. And these arguments are not carried out in a peaceful and proper manner, as they should, but rather heatedly with abuses spewing from both sides, and a sense of righteousness and extreme loyalty to the side we support accompanying the involved parties. These arguments may be carried out on some social network; where all it takes for things to turn ugly is some agressive loud-mouth to make a rash statement, and then all that follows is merely a matter of feeding the fire; or in person; where fists can take over words in a matter of seconds. Take the latter scenario to a higher level, and you have people being kidnapped or gunned down for merely disagreeing with someone. He/she may have been disrespectful in doing so, but that does not give you the right to resort to violence, does it? It shouldn't, but it does.

And this is precisely the thing standing in the way of 'the people uniting'. According to our ideology, people cannot have different Batmans and the idea of one Batman reigning supreme over all others is simply unacceptable, and must be protested against ferociously. Our country is caught up in a circular loop, a paradigm. And sadly, this lack of difference of opinion does not exist simply where Batmans are concerned, but other matters as well (consider the Shia killings for example; not considering them Muslims and thus terminating their right to live? Bravo!).

And as long as this paradigm remains, so shall I being one of those dejected pessimists who sees hope only in getting out of this country and settling somewhere else. For how can we hope for any progress under such circumstances?

To sum it all up: We as a nation have become so diverse in our opinions, goals, hopes and pretty much everything else. Add to that our absolute lack of tolerance for the existence of difference of opinion and we have the current situation: where the word 'nation' can no longer be used to describe us. We are a myriad of sects, tribes, peoples living in an enclosed boundary set by the British Empire right before they left. We live in Pakistan but we are not Pakistanis...

In Accompany With Fundamentalist, Religious, Realistic People !!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 18:45:00 +0000

Alright, I've been thinking about this for a while...how to approach the subject.

Before I do, let me throw a few things at you, so you know where I'm coming from:

· I'm not an atheist but believe on realistic approach towards the issue , but you knew that right? I don't like being linked with atheists because saying you're an atheist creates all sorts of connotations, the most obvious being "You're stupid for believing in god". But, many people admit that mainstream atheism (or at least the perception of it) is that it's combative and evangelical.

· Science and reason is a starting point, and a means. It is not the endpoint, or an end in itself. So I tend not to get hung up on it, or get in arguments with people over science vs. religion. Particularly if the spiritual/atheistic person isn't intelligent enough to understand the argument. Fundamentalism, either scientific or religious, is a problem. The left has the same problem, identifying anyone on the right as stupid, uncaring, and wrong-headed.

Confirmation bias and systems-thinking orientation, I have 'rational/scientific' friends. I have conspiratorial friends. I have political, postmodern, and spiritual friends. All these friends look at the world though a set of lenses (their system of understanding), however I don't really have any friends who are able to employ more than one of these systems.

Funny thing is that all these people are convinced that they're right, and that their way of understanding the world is the one true way.

Problem is the world is full of people, with all these different knowledge systems. And those systems guide their behavior. If you want to understand why someone does something, you need to understand their motivation, and how they look at the world. Unfortunately, not many people are doing this. And for those who CAN do this, seldom have they weighed the pros and cons of the other knowledge system. They’ve only looked at it from their own knowledge system, to find the holes to attack, so they can feel confident and secure in their belief that their own knowledge system is the best knowledge system.

I choose Pakistan over Gaza

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 07:04:00 +0000

Message From Gaza To Pakistan

www.awaztoday.com/News-Talk-Shows/29720/Message-From-Gaza-For-Pakistani-government.aspx

Recently, I watched this video and made me ponder whether to worry about recent bombings and killings of Muslims in my country Pakistan or to concern about Gaza situation. In recent times I have observed a new kind of mindless debate and accusation growing in the social media where many have accused the media of not giving enough space or preferential treatment to Gaza or the atrocities that are being committed there by the Israeli forces. Since the day Israeli forces have started this operation in Gaza, this story has mostly been part of the headlines and the bulletins on many channels. I know that after reading this blog I will be accused by many of simply defending massacre of my fellow Muslim brothers.

Gaza being a city with a Muslim population has an automatic affiliation with the people of Pakistan but when so much is happening in my own country and when so many are suffering due to terrorism, poverty, corruption and illiteracy; I am sorry but I will first definitely feel the pain for my own people. It is a natural phenomenon that when a bomb blast takes place, a family member will always try to locate one of his own and then look at others who have suffered even though both are victims of the same incident. Gaza has seen bloodshed which is not just painful and depressing but it has also been an agonizing journey for many who live there who have to suffer this after every few months or years but is the case for Karachi, Peshawar or Quetta any different? People in Gaza at least even know who the aggressor is but my people don’t even have an idea who is killing them. For the last decade or so my country still suffers from this question if people who are killing us are Muslims or not? Terrorists who are killing me or you are foreign funded or locally funded? Do we need to talk to these terrorists or do we need to start an operation? Was Malala a pawn in the great game to start an operation against these terrorists or was she targeted just because she wanted to give the strongest reply to these terrorists through education? Where people of Gaza know who to retaliate against; my country fights for its survival with its body bleeding and the eyes still searching for the person asking who did this to me? For me my country and my people will always take preference because my fight continues with the mind and not a physically present entity.

I suggest you should keep an eye on Al-Jazeera and Arabic channels and newspapers also and see if bomb blasts and terrorists ‘activities that take place in my cities are preferred over the killings in Gaza? I am sure it won’t because people of that particular area/region are more affiliated with Gaza.

Ego: I Define As War Between Religion And Humanity

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 08:04:00 +0000

Did you ever wonder: what is wrong with us? I mean. . . as a species. As much as we love, and give, and aspire, we also lie, hate, and kill. These are pretty basic questions. What would it take to better ourselves morally, in ways that really matter?

Spirituality is transformation. If we could understand and apply this principle, our lives would change dramatically. Transformation is how grapes become wine. Transformation is how wheat becomes bread. But what is the nature of this transformation for human beings? How does a schmuck become a saint, or at least a decent human being?

Most of us are stuck most of the time. Most of us fear real change because our egos are in control. The ego is a defence mechanism, but not necessarily a healthy or very effective one. The ego that is overbearing, self-centred, and manipulative, is actually full of self-doubt, insecurity, and fear.

Spirituality sees the ego as an instrument. It's not who we are but how we express what we are. The ego is like the saxophone of the soul. Play it well or not, it's out there on stage doing its thing.The wise harness their egos to their hearts. The lower self bows to the higher self. To use the language of religion, the ego can become "a servant of God."

But maybe we need a new language to express primordial truths. Many people seem not to find the old language of religion very convincing. It has bad associations. Religion, in many people's minds today, is associated with close-mindedness, intolerance, and even violence. But if you look at the record, religion is not primarily to blame. A closer look reveals that human egos are responsible for all this madness.

Take religion completely out of the picture and set about reforming the world, and, so far, what we have seen is Stalin or Mao. Modern secular ideological movements are actually responsible for much greater and more indiscriminate violence than any religion ever has been. Maybe that's because they mobilized greater powers than religion was able to do in the modern age. The case still stands.

This innate capacity is not so far-fetched and unverifiable as it at first sounds. The key to this spiritual sense, this perception of value, is described by the word "sacred." We don't need an explicit theology to let the sacred into our lives. Almost any human being can acknowledge that there is something sacred in the birth of a child, in nature, in an individual human life, in free will. This sense of the sacred, however, has become quite scarce in contemporary life and that may be one of our biggest problems.

Most people have this capacity for empathy and relationship. Because this capacity is innate, believers have no monopoly on it and even atheists are not without it. It is in our nature as human beings. But are we too busy to allow this sense of the sacred into our consciousness? Is it that our consciousness is too filled with the trivialities and banalities of modern life? Worse yet, are we filled with fear or hatred for "the other."

Spirituality, simply seen, is allowing ourselves to be transformed by all the challenges, sufferings, and joys of life. It is in the nature of our lives as human beings to emerge from states of limited consciousness into states of greater maturity and wisdom. We can change from being people obsessed with threats from a perceived "other," who need to parade with placards of hate, who even rationalize violence in a vain attempt to solve our problems and achieve our ends. What is needed today can better be achieved by cooperation, compassion, generosity, forgiveness, and love.

Beyond all the labels we apply to ourselves (Democrat, Republican, Christian, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist, secular, atheist, or none of the above), we cannot afford to let the false self run our lives, or forget that all of humanity is one, and that some things are truly sacred.

REALISM – WHAT IS IT EXACTLY?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 13:16:00 +0000

Well, it was weekend and it was best time for all of us to study new philosophies. Well, searching through Wikipedia about political philosophies, there was a eye catching word called Realism! To sum it up, A Realism is a political philosophy based on various premises. The first is that a world should be seen in terms of relative power. The theory applies both domestically and internationally, focusing on the individual and the state respectively. Realism asserts that all states and individuals are to work for their own self-interest, and that since there is a scarcity of resources in the world, there will be conflict. This leads to the premise that the basic state of affairs in the world is anarchic. War is inherent in the nature of a nation-state, according to Thomas Hobbes.

The world is a battle-zone, with each party acting to protect itself, increase its power base, etc. Along with this is an idea that connects to the notion of relative power: one can only increase one’s power by decreasing that of another. Morality is virtually non-existent (according to the realist doctrine). ‘Right’ or ‘good’ is defined by self-interest. If a certain action will give you a ‘leg up’, so to speak, then it is justified, and not only can you carry it out, but you should.

Some call realism a closed theory, saying that it can refute any action of apparent selflessness simply by saying that there must have been some ulterior motive behind the deed. To confirm this requires an in-depth knowledge of the functioning of the state, its officials, their intentions, etc.

Famous realists you may have heard of: Thucydides, Machiavelli, Hobbes, St. Thomas Aquinas, Rousseau, Woodrow Wilson

Din e Elahi: Mass Peace Program

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 10:14:00 +0000

Jalal-ud-Din Akbar (1556-1605), the son of Humayun had three main phases in his life. One was firm belief in religion holding the founding tenets of Islam. The second started when he opened the doors of religious natter and dialogues in which he invited the religious scholars of different sects of Islam in the “Ibadat Khana” (the place of worship) but soon he was disillusioned with the attitudes of the Maulvies and scholars who started losing their tempers and even abused one another on petty issues.

Therefore the subsequent phase resulted in the promulgation of a new religion, din-e-Elahi. He accumulated the best practices of Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism and Jainism and propounded the new religion in 1581.

There are ten virtues which the Din-e-Elahi professes.

(1) liberal-mindedness and generosity

(2) forgiveness of evil-doers and repulsion of anger with mildness

(3) abstinence from worldly desires

(4) non-attachment to the materialistic world

(5) careful weighing of pros and cons of actions to be taken

(6) performance of noble deeds with courage

(7) softness of voice and gentle speech

(8) good behaviour to others

(9) absolutely no connection with bad characters and evil-doers

(10) total dedication to God

Din-e-Elahi was more an ethical cult than a religion as it did not present any common prayers or system as all these eclectic religions offered. It was based on ethical values considering and propagating slander, lust, and pride as deadly sins whereas piety, kindness, mercy as the commonalities of the diverse religions and were appreciated. Slaughter of cow was prohibited to accommodate Hinduism and celibacy was venerated. The religion had no script or written documentations. Din-e-Elahi could triumph over only 19 adherents consisting mostly of Muslims. Hindus and other religions did not embrace it though they appreciated the religious move of Akbar.

Din-e- Elahi met with fierce criticism by the believers of Islam as he denied the foundations of religion by appreciating celibacy and the prohibition of cow. The Hindus also could not accept it as a religion. Din-e-Elahi was intended to create harmony and integrity among the different religions though it could not bring the desired fruits.I think interpretation of religious teachings according to the wishes and agenda of rulers is not a new phenomenon. This is almost as old as the religion itself. Many scholars refused to act as Qazi under Muslim rulers, just because they were afraid of to act according to ruler's wish and not according to God's law.

Do me a favour answering one question, what is most important? Fighting on basis of religion for years or accepting each other perspective and living together with peace!

What if Din-e-Elahi succeeded and there would be a no separation of South Asia? What would be the present scenario then?

Our Brain Make us Fool!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 08:49:00 +0000

Our brains love playing tricks on us, and the results can be detrimental. Because of how we remember certain events, even a good experience can be recalled as an awful one because of one little problem. For example, a customer could have a great experience with a product or service, but only have bad memories when thinking about it later. Here’s how. Let’s say you are on vacation and have dinner at the best restaurant recommended to you. Perfect table. Food is exquisitely prepared. The experience is fantastic. However, when clearing the table the waiter spills coffee into your lap. Odds are that the coffee spill will degrade your memory of the food and wine, no matter how exceptional you otherwise would have remembered them. And if the hot coffee burned a leg or damaged an expensive dress or suit, the wonderful dining experience may not be remembered at all.

Basically, when something bad happens it overwrites the good portions of your memory. As we learn from bad ways , your brain likes to focus on the negative stuff. To counteract this, the best thing you can do is remind yourself of the good parts of the experience as soon as possible. Think about everything good that happened instead of the one bad moment. Perhaps the bad moment is enough to deter you, but if not you can use it as an opportunity to remind your brain to store a positive memory instead of a negative one.

Jinnah's Pakistan, anyone?

noreply@blogger.com (Azfar Imtiaz) — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:53:00 +0000

If you are a Muslim, and a Pakistani for that matter, then chances are that all that has enveloped you for the past week – and still is – is news and discussion of the anti-Islam film desecrating the Holy Prophet (PBUH). The video has spread like fire and enraged Muslims all over the world, and rightly so. And thus, whether you are at school/office, or hanging out with friends, or logged on to Facebook, this is all people are chattering about.

The purpose of this article, however, is not to discuss the film and start ranting about how the innocence of the Muslims was taken advantage of by the evils of the world, or how Muslims were, as always seems to be the case whenever something remotely bad happens, targeted by a Jewish conspiracy.

And then YouTube got banned in Pakistan. The timing of this particular event was highly annoying for me, for I had been working on a coding assignment that night and had to make a graph on Excel comparing the efficiency of different codes. Having studied the workings of Excel over two years ago, I had forgotten the bit about how to make graphs, and I thought to myself: No problem! I’ll just watch a tutorial on YouTube to see how it’s done. Which seemed to be the cue for the people over at the PTA responsible for banning access to the site, and thus I could not, for once, use YouTube for a purpose other than procrastinating.

The purpose of this article, however, is not to sympathize with my misfortune, or question the validity of the decision of banning YouTube.

Friday, 21^st September 2012; a date that will remain lodged in the minds of all Pakistanis for a long time, unwilling as though they may be to the intrusion of this day into their memory cells. The day was Yaum-e-Ishq-e-Rasool, a public holiday declared by the government to carry out a peaceful protest against the anti-Islam film.

Yaum-e-Ishq-e-Rasool? I think this day can be renamed better as, Yaum-e-paish-e-Jahiliat.

The protest involved people, most of them students, taking to the streets in a frenzied state after the Jumma prayers, and leaving destruction in their wake. Numerous cinemas (five alone in Karachi) and petrol pumps were set ablaze. Policemen tried their best to stop the mob, exhibiting use of tear gas and even live ammunition, but the tidal wave of the protestants fueled by a terrible anger was too much for them to handle, and many of them were injured and even killed in the process. Cars were smashed to pieces, and then set ablaze. People, barricades and buildings alike were showered with stones. Containers were overturned. Shops were looted. All in the name of the man who preached peace and forgiveness above all!

The purpose of this article, however, is not to exhibit shock over the madness of our countrymen, and start stating how the protest should really have taken place.

Because the protest that should have happened, did in fact, happen, and THAT is the purpose of this article.

As they say, the night is darkest before dawn. As a dejected me logged on to Facebook later in the night, I came across something which gave me hope. It was an event named ‘Project Clean Up for Peace’, and its basic aim was to gather people from all around Pakistan and get out on the streets, and use whatever resources available to clean up the mess that was created by the infuriated mob on Friday. The event caught popularity like fire to dry wood, and in less than three hours, about 1500 people had marked themselves as ‘going’, and this number continued to rise. It was certainly very pleasing to see the youth of the nation stepping up and accepting their responsibilities as dutiful citizens of the state; quite a contradiction to the typical ‘our youth is dead’ stereotypes.

I did not attend the event myself (I never was that big a patriot), but a couple of my friends did, and I also came across a lot of clips and videos. What I saw warmed my heart. Here were tens of hundreds of people, mostly youngsters, in different cities of Pakistan working in coordination with each other, PEACEFULLY. They were using brooms to clean roads and streets. They were brushing aside rubble and pieces of broken glass, and then putting them into shopping bags. They were repainting the barricades and building walls. They were repairing the check posts. They were distributing water and boxes of juice amongst the policemen. They were… redefining Pakistan.

Yes, indeed! With this simple and humble act, the youth of Pakistan managed to project a positive and totally different image of Pakistan to the world. The Pakistan which did not protest by rampaging and burning, but one which gave an actual purpose to the protest by displaying and promoting peace. The one which showed up with posters of not “Down with USA!” and “Kill enemies of Islam”, but rather ones saying “Respect all religions equally”, “Peace please?” and “Islam is a peaceful religion”. The one which did not vent out its anger and disappointment over the film senselessly, but one which used it to fuel the purposeful effort of cleaning up the devastation caused by a few illiterate individuals. Pakistan is not all about bombs, terrorism and poverty; it is also peace, love and harmony. These people managed to demonstrate just that.

The widely popular phrase “Jinnah’s Pakistan” doesn’t seem so alien now, does it?