On the Picket Line in Islamabad

Some of us boycott KFC/PH here in the US due to the food.

Now this article is certainly food for thought .....

Bun Kebab anyone?

Pakistani cuisine is the best so no great loss to avpid these outlets.


Ras

Ref PaagalInsaan #12

[Kindly join us in the noble Islamic cause of protest against American products. Here is the time-table:

9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Hunger Strike
1:00 PM to 2:30 PM Lunch Break
2:30 PM to 4:00 PM Hunger Strike]

Don`t tell me you are reading Tamil newspapers. This is precisely the schedule followed by Sangilikkaruppans when they decide to protest something or other through a hunger-strike. It gets better when it is a relay hunger-strike where one person hands over the position of the hunger-striker to the next after three hours!

aroma of different foods make my mouth to salivate.

aroma of different foods make my mouth to salivate.

Your midset is the reason why conditions are so miserable in Pakistan, why Pakistanis are scrambling to go to other countries whenever they can. It is the reason Pakistan has been reduced from an economically progressive country into one of the most backward nations of the world, and slipped last year even behind India in per capita income. Let me explain why:

a. Interference with the market: Who appointed you to decide what kind of food places should be permitted in Pakistan? Your mindset is no different from that of Bhutto who singlehandedly derailed Pakistan from being among the most progressive nations of the third world into the most backward - the entrepreneurs (large ones, as well as small ones owning one lakh rupee units) were taken out and they left the country for other places where their talents were more appreciated. You are doing the same thing.

b. Ignorance: These fast food places are owned by pakistani entrepreneurs, employ local youth and cater to the local population (contrary to your assertion - even if they catered to foreigners, that would be a contribution to badly needed jobs for the youth in Pakistan.). They provide a standard of cleanliness that is badly needed in Pakistan - the only properly maintained public toilets I have seen anywhere in Pakistan have been at McDonalds. Even military messes, airports and suchlikes dont come close, and about your dhabbas the less said the better.
The main affect you are having is to take these jobs away and to discourage the owners from investing in Pakistan. You think you are making even dent in the US economy with this? You obviously are ignorant of what the US economy is all about. Close down all the fast food restaurants in Pakistan, and it will still have essentially zero impact on the US economy. That economy is based on sound economic principles, on concepts of property rights, governance, and encouragement of free enterprise, and is far more resilient and extensive than you obviously know.

c. Hatred for the US: This brings me to my next point. You say your goal is to damage the US economy. I wont ask why since i know the mentality of people like you quite well - westerners may wonder why, but as a pakistani I know people like you. If today the US consulate were to tell you and your fellow boycotters to stand on one foot for a day and then come back the next day with some hope of getting a visa, you would forget your high and mighty talk and fall over one another to get in line to stand on one foot. (Once you have your visa, of course, you will be back to normal and blowing hot air about US foreign policy and what not). You will no doubt deny this, but it is a fact that even the worst US haters - the maulvis - send their children to the US (not to madrsassahs, not to Jeddah) for education.

My only regret is that individuals like you are not required to live in the shi!t that you have made in Pakistan. You create the mess, then run off to the US or UK at the first opportunity, leaving unemployed youth and future generations of Pakistanis to suffer the consequences of your actions.

Thank you Jamil. To compliment and complement your article, here is a REPORT FROM SOUTH DELHI, where also reside fine food like Karim Nemat Keda (all your MPs were eating there a few days ago, after which they started talking about peace etcetc.)

a) We understand cars with arrow number plates, we also understand Section 144, but what does a green number plate signify? (We have white for private, yellow for public, black/yellow for self-drive rental, blue for diplomats and red for temporary. Also plenty without number plates.)

b) We cannot understand why KFC has not shut down and vanished. Here in Delhi they tried 99 rupees eat as much as you can, and when even that did not work, they had to shut down.

c) Pizza King now sells tandoori and veg flavours. Most Pizza King outlets have a desi fast food on either side as well as a cart opposite.

d) The burger subway syndrome has moved into health food and baked samosas. Sure, there were lines outside McDonalds here too, but not anymore. The prices are also in direct competition now with the thelaa vala.

Which begs the question:- are we actually causing ``them`` more damage by consuming more of their stuff since it seems they are on a losing wicket anyway?

here is the part related to the dicussion, but since this is so
interesting, I coudnt help pasting the whole.

====================================================================
As the rift between Europe and America deepens, there are signs that
the world could be entering a new era of economic boycotts. CNN
reported that Americans are emptying French wine into gutters,
chanting, ``We don`t want your stinking wine.`` We`ve heard about the
re-baptism of French fries. Freedom fries they`re called now. There`s
news trickling in about Americans boycotting German goods. The thing
is that if the fallout of the war takes this turn, it is the US who
will suffer the most. Its homeland may be defended by border patrols
and nuclear weapons, but its economy is strung out across the globe.
Its economic outposts are exposed and vulnerable to attack in every
direction. Already the internet is buzzing with elaborate lists of
American and British government products and companies that should be
boycotted. Apart from the usual targets, Coke, Pepsi and McDonald`s -
government agencies such as USAID, the British department for
international development, British and Am....

It`s become clear that the war against terror is not really about
terror, and the war on Iraq not only about oil. It`s about a
superpower`s self-destructive impulse towards supremacy,
stranglehold, global hegemony. The argument is being made that the
people of Argentina and Iraq have both been decimated by the same
process. Only the weapons used against them differ: In one case it`s
an IMF chequebook. In the other, cruise missiles

I like the local delicacies more than any things else……….Mc donalds, KFC, Subway are not doing as good nowadays as they were in the honeymoon prd….initially ppl rushed to these outlets coz of the hype created by them….soon it fade out due to price/taste

PaagalInsaan: last I went, a plate of Sabri nihari cost 18 rupees, maghaz nihari 30 something, I believe.

Ras #18, does your bun kabab have:-

(a) sweet ``fruit`` bun with a bit of glazed stuff on top?
(b) onion rings?
(c) green chutney? Pumpkin ketchup?
(d) double fried egg inside?
(e) the kabab sticking out from either side?
(f) butter inside?
(g) wrapping paper from a newspaper?
(h) credit facilities?

+++

Yum!!

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I am with the author on this one but for different reasons. Fast food places are major culprits in producing obese people specially obese women. Considering how much I hate those, I applaud Jamil Omar sahib`s wonderful campaign. I`ll be happy to contribute my halal dollars towards this worthwhile cause provided ultimately the boycott is extended to ice-cream and falooda parlours, nihari shops as well as other obese generating enterprises.

later
-sac

veeresh

I am pretty sure that Ras`s bun doesn`t have any of these characteristics. But whom am I to judge. Beauty is in the eye of beholder. hamidm and ali1 are exprets in these matters, buns that is. where are they?

We have been discussing two points:

i- Boycotting the chains
ii- Which food is better?

As we all know, nothing can beat a nutritious home cooked meal. However, we have limited the conversation to commercially available food.

As for the Wesern style fast food, the only one I personally like is SUBWAY. That is if you exercise your judgement and load it up with the greens and not just the `proteins`.

As for boycotting the Western chains, it is right that they are owned by the local businesses and local economy gets hurt (despite sending out royalties to the chain`s HQ).

However, the most important thing is to raise awareness amonst the masses. I am sure that we can all sit all day long and shoot some breeze and perhaps some really smart and hillarious comments. But should that be our objective? I will let you decide that.

:-)

#22 by veeresh on May 15, 2003 6:50am PT

Just for record sake, Coca cola which came back to India about a decade ago (when it came people talked about deep pockets) well coca cola has till date not earned a naya paisa in profit. last year it had accumulated losses of 400 crores. It had to revive the Indian brands of thums up to gain market share over pepsi. apparently the brands purchased from Ramesh Chauan when they came to India are the the ones which save coca cola from time to time vis a vis pepsi
Indians are drinking them into bankruptcy! same is the case of pepsi.

Kellogs which came to India with the promise of changing the breakfast habits of Indians(this was actually claimed by the Indian lady VP of Kellogs)is in losses. The VP has long resigned in after taking very fat salaries. Indians are no where close to eating ``Healthy Cereal`` for breakfast enmasse or for that matter even O.1 percent of the population does not eat breakfast Cereal. Coke now keeps making noises about the Chai being its main competitor I hope they dont make a fool of themselves by saying that they could over take it. or even make a minimal dent in tea drinking.
Various socites have provided roadblocks on the various accpeted myths of corporate america. Japan in manufacturing. Germany/Italy in luxury cars, Tiwan now china in costeffective manufacutring. India in Software and the death of American brands and american cultural invasion. we are still awaiting a socitey which will stand up to America in the accepted western clothing pakistan is a leading contender.

#16 by nazarhayatkhan on May 14, 2003 11:30pm PT

i guess US citizesns did not get your message while dealing with cuba.