Running Naked To Joeseph#48

The only comment I can make here is that there is no ``our`` or ``we`` that you speak of with regard to being Indian. Similarly these concepts are ill-used if best when it comes to national identity. For some reason our education has failed us enough to maintain the illusion that Pakistanis or Indians (i.e. passport holders) are in any way united with their (legally defined via citizenship) kind(s). I am no similar to my neighbor in Pakistan than I am with any Indian or any other Pakistani I know. We are competitors, nationally and individually and thus there is nothing that bonds Indians with Indians or Pakistanis with Pakistanis (or Muslims with other Muslims). We have become part of the system and thus national status or citizenship becomes ultimately useless in this case. Politicians continue these rivalrys to maintain their status quo and that is about it. Do you think Musharraf or Vajpayee give a damn about the starving beggar in Delhi or Karachi. Ofcourse not. Not anymore than you do. Ultimately we have to stop such associations based upon our coincidental births in certain nations. So enough of this ``we`` and ``us`` talk. You and I are the individualistic bigots that have ruined both of our countries. And frankly does one give a damn considering youre getting your paycheck once a month? Preferably in dollars.....

Running Naked I think things are way beyond the discourse of ``who`` the real lunatic is. I recall that in Karachi 20 dead per day due to MQM/SSP violence was the norm. There was even talk that mosque killings were carried out by the Indian secret service. Ultimately it fizzled out (except for the people that lost loved ones ofcourse) and nothing much came of it (except for the silly courts that were trying the pawns). Now you have a similar attack killing a peasly 13 people (peanuts I tell you in this day and age!) and Vajpayee/Advani/Jaswant trio is threatening war. Not just any war, NUCLEAR WAR. The absurdity of this move and all the troop build up is probably due to my disinterest in my-land-your-land politics. I do have to admit that the Indian trio is jumping the gun (literally!) and should calm down before something irreversable happens. I think ultimately both Indians and Pakistanis have been profoundly let down by their (so-called) leaders. On a more productive note, check out my photos at:

http://www.angelfire.com/il/sheher

All the best

Sheheryar

Muslims and The West After 11th September Bravo Parvez, a wonderfully written thought provoking article. Thanks for your contribution in this day and age of disillusionment.

Sheheryar

The Clash Of Un-Civilizations And Osama-ism Just a couple of unrelated questions:

1. There is this element of ``terrorism`` vs ``acts of war argument going down but I am confused. If Hiroshima and Nagasaki were terrorist acts, was West Pakistanis genocide of innocents in Bangladesh a terrorist act?

2. Why are we so tied to the Palestinean cause and not with those of people oppressed in Africa. Surely we are more than the religions we were born into? Is there any specific reason why being born a Muslim means support (to the degree of dying) for only Muslim related causes.

In that case we are no better.....

A Letter Home Speaking of the International School of Choueifat in Lahore and views of Americans that have taught there, the following interview may be of interest:

http://southasia.uchicago.edu/aut99a.htm

All the best

Sheheryar

PS. Check out my new gallery at:

http://www.angelfire.com/il/sheher

Refusing The Sitara-I-Imtiaz I have to say that Dr Hoodbhoy`s actions have touched upon a major problem with issues of achieving excellence in Pakistan. I found the problem of this feudalistic approach to giving someone acclaim to be so blatant there that I wanted to barf. Thus hats off to you for refusing to participate in the farce that the powers that be expouse. It really reflects something significant when the rich/powerful are so caught up with their positioning, that they fall for the illusion that money/power actually means they have enough substance to justify their positioning in society. A total misnomer. The powerful can sit in their living rooms and have their goons say ``yes sir, yes sir`` but its an insult to intelligence to join their bandwagon in agreeing to their handouts (literally even this so-called prestigeous award could be considered a generous handout). I tell you there is no hope for Pakistani (intellectual & scientific) progress until those currently in (political and economic) power continue to rule and make decisions. At least we have people like Parvez who have enough self-respect not to do the ``thankyou thankyou sir.``

Obsession with Borderline Issues I think the following poem is relevant here:

``Borderline.....

Seems like Im going to lose my mind

You just keep on pushing my love

Over the borderline.......``

All the best

Sheheryar

PS. Check out my new Karachi 2001 galleries at

http://www.angelfire.com/il/sheher

La Excepcion (The Exception) Re: FARANGI_KUS #165

Hey Kus

It sounds like you and your friends are very much alike! All of you have these wierd ``hobbies`` of commitment to certain nations/peoples! I think its good to have hobbies. By the way, speaking of hobbies, is Ethel good in bed? Please dont take offense since its my hobby to mouth off without it being taken personally.

Best regards

Sheheryar

PS. Also if you need a good travel agent let me know.

Connections For anyone who wants answers to questions regarding inherent differences in ideology between India and Pakistan should read Amitav Ghosh`s ``Shadowlines.`` It gives a glimpse at how absurd the divide actually is. Enough said. Great article Bina.

Best

Sheheryar

The Mandir Mirage It is really disillusioning to see the same Muslim vs Hindu discourse over and over again. I frankly feel that Pakistanis should not concern themselves with issues of Babri/Ayodhia since we have too much upon our Pakistani plate to be treading on foreign ground. I mean just think about the recent events: Musharraf has made a major deal with Nawaz to pardon him. This has nothing to do with courts, public opinion, just Musharraf and Nawaz. Unfortunately that is how things function in Pakistan. And we the population feel it is our duty as Muslims to speak for all others be they muslims in india, palestine etc. We need to do some soul searching and look within what is going on in Pakistan rather than harp on what ``other`` muslims are going through (as a scape goat). To be quite honest when I heard about the Musharraf/Sharif deal I really felt that there is no hope left for Pakistan. Ofcourse we dont support the BJPs activities towards Muslims and Christians but we could frankly learn something from India (to say the least). I long for the day that we could actually be more like India (in their pursuit of intellect, knowledge, and progress vs the sell-your-mother-for-a-lakh attitude that has so come to represent what Pakistan has become). Having said that check out my new photography site at

http://home.uchicago.edu/

Aap Amrika Main Hotay Hain?? (Do You Live In America) Actually I think there are two separate levels at which someone migrates. First is the highly educated people, like yourself, that generally do incredibly well (generally better than 99% of the indigenous population)and are much much better off financially than they would ever be back home. Remember that these are salaried people and regardless of what one makes here, you cannot compare the salaries of MBAs and MDs to back home. Even if you did a cost of living analysis, you would be better off here. Period. Socially ofcourse you will always be second or third class, and one has to bite the bullet and accept that. I think that is what I find affects the elite desis here tremendously. They go overboard to show their status, thus revealing the alienation of their life here.

Let me give you an example of the second category. I met a taxi driver from Karachi here in Chicago at Gharib Nawaz and I tell you I could not tell if he was better off here or back home. This is where we do need to keep finances at arms length when making an analysis. He was lonely. He said that he had been here for a year and for the first time that weekend he had actually cooked a meal at home. It was incredibly sad. Here you have the promise of what you dont have back home (security, law and order)but you dont have what you did have back home (a family, friends). I think these people though do not have the same recourse as the desi elites here. They dont have the resources to entertain themselves by buying that BMW or Armani suit. Rather the depression that their lonliness causes can lead to things like alcoholism etc. that it would indeed have been better for them to have stayed back in Pakistan with its limitations. I think migration is probably the most traumatic thing to undergo but being on the higher end of the education/income scale makes it easier (for some at least). I`ll stop blabbing now....

Neither Heaven Nor the World Under My Feet Funnily I just completed the book moth smoke and so the initial image that struck me was that of Mumtaz.

Being an ``involved`` father of two (highly energetic) boys I will say that kids do take there toll during the intial years. I look back that the last seven years of parenthood and there are admitedly both good and bad stuff that was a consequence of having kids. On the bad, I suffered professionally due to lack of sleep and bosses that just didnt understand my need for flexibility (ironically all of whom were single women). However recently I saw one of these ex-bosses. I tell lonliness is a terrible thing. It dries up the soul. Its these damn kids keeping us up at night and driving us totally up a wall that brings that element of ``life`` back into our existences. Take a good look at successful professionals that dont have to deal with the kid element in their lives. The freedom is very tempting but at the end of the day, the week, the year, they are alone, sitting at their computer, by the TV, the silence in their house deafning. Do I prefer my two year olds ear drum shattering shouts that pierce the depths of my brain like no other sound? Maybe. But having a moment of silence and peace is a good idea too.

Shut Up, He Explained Dear Mr Joss:

Bravo! I have been awaiting an article like yours that really puts things into perspective vis-a-vis the high tech hype. It is a hype and once the startups realize that cashflow only comes from overly optimistic investors, will we see some realism as far as the true ``value`` of the high tech industry. There are a couple of points that I would like to add:

1. The hype is compounded by high salaries for these geek types that can declare variables and create havoc in Java or C++. Glorified typists I call them since the end result of getting from point A to point B, however it is done, is still the same goal. We have made mathematics our god. What a pathetic view of such a rich society we live in. 15 year olds are now learning Java rather than reading the classics (which I must admit may be my bias but the results are a far more well rounded individual than a think glassed geek). The high salaries push more and more individuals into the field and nations view the IT revolution as progress. What utter crap! I once told a friend that if a company offered $80,000 for a person to stand in a shop window without moving, people would be breaking down the doors to get that job too. So pathetic are us humans.

2. The most important point is who really benefits. The rich and upper middle class dont need as much as the poor in our society/world. Thus the status quo has pretty much stayed the same except for a few middle classers moving up to upper middle. Yet they will never really be upper middle, just functionaries, data entry clerk types with a fatter paycheck.

Dont get me wrong, I think there have been great things about the IT era. However, it has not increased the true ``value`` or standard of living that we tout that it has. I actually used to enjoy going to a store, interacting with people one-on-one ten years ago. Now I log in and do a transaction through a secure server and never see or hear another human. Great goal in life people!

Why I’m proud to be a Pakistani Indeed a wonderful article. I will tell you of what happened to me a few years back in Karachi:

I dropped my wallet some place on Tariq Road. I finally gave up the search and cancelled my cards and assumed that was that. There were approximately Rs 10000 in the wallet since I had been out book shopping with my wife. A few days later I received a call from the Clifton telephone exchange that there was a taxi driver who had my wallet. Stunned by this I went there and met this fellow. Coincidences of coincidences, I had sat in his very taxi two years before (when I had been visiting) and when he saw my ID he recognized my face. All he found in the wallet for local identification was my Grindlays bank card with my account number. Not knowing how to read much, he went to the telephone exchange and had them call the bank. The bank inturn gave them my number and they called me. The telephone guys told me that he was determined to find me and return this to me. Upon his handing me the wallet he said ``Sahib, dhaik lai(n) sub kutch hai.`` Indeed all money and cards were there. Totally taken by this I handed him the money for his Inam. HE WOULD NOT ACCEPT IT! After much convincing that he had actually ``earned`` it he did. It did revive hope in my heart about Pakistan again.

The Flip Side of Democracy sac:

You are correct. The entire global politic is run by the top elites. There is no connection between the people and who rule. It is a matter of appeasement. Similar to giving a child some candy and then the injection. The interesting thing I have found where the US and Pakistan differ is that most Americans actually believe in the system and the ``democracy`` it displays. On the other hand in Pakistan, the poorest of the poor are AWARE of how the rulers/elites are screwing them.

Best regards (and check out my new site at

http://home.uchicago.edu/

Diary of a Moustache Almira:

FINALLY A GOOD ARTICLE! Congrats on producing some original thinking and a very amusing (yet true) piece. However, I will add that on the opposite side there are boys with breasts. Pity one cannot wax them off!

Again, really enjoyed it.