The Nation : Editorial News

A corrupt system

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

THE Finance Ministry has proposed an �Austerity Plan� which now does not seem likely to be approved by the cabinet. That will be unfortunate given the economic plight the country is in, and given how the poor man is having to shoulder the main burden in terms of rising utility prices, gas shortages, sugar scarcity and so on. The rulers and bureaucrats by and large do not feel these problems because these goods are �on the house� for them, in a manner of speaking. No wonder decisions

Helping out victims

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

TERRORISM has hit us like anything and has disrupted life for all and sundry. Unfortunately, the attacks are becoming a daily occurrence killing and injuring countless Pakistanis. But the government�s response to providing sustenance to their dependents is a big question mark. So far hundreds of innocent lives have been lost and thousands have been wounded. The death toll of the attacks just from the past five days stands at 60. Every time some attack occurs, there is much talk about

A lost war

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300

THE 64 percent of the British population that holds, according to a recent BBC survey, that the war in Afghanistan is unwinnable seems to be wiser than the leaders, who despite eight years� of deadly and fruitless fighting, balk at the idea of the withdrawal of troops from the country. As the Afghan resistance becomes more fierce and a higher number of British casualties are reported, the percentage of those who are losing heart keep rising; only last July 58 percent of the people