The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #45 Posted by harish_hyd on July 10, 2009 8:55:12 am
{"Salim yaar, just because the Paki army created the Taliban does not mean that it shouldn't fight them now. Right now, it isn't even worthwhile to question the army's motives. It is important to fight and eliminate the Taliban because otherwise, the Pakistan as it exists now will be gone forever."}

Dear Harry,
Please don't misunderstand me. I am all for letting, even helping, the firefighters put out the fire - even if they are the arsonists. Once the fire is extinguished, I do ask for some accountability regarding why these public servants started a fire that they had to put out.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #43 Posted by dost_mittar on July 10, 2009 8:54:00 am
{"Salim:
You are wrong in combining JI with Al Qaida and BJP with Bajrang Dal. JI and BJP are communal parties but do not advocate violence to achieve their agendas while Al Qaida and Bajrang Dal do use violence as a weapon."}

DM Sahib,
Right or wrong, I am convinced that the less violent ones are the political facade for the more violent ones. The BJP after all orchestrated the violent destruction of the Babri Masjid that led to the slaughter of thousands of Indian citizens. JI is always there to encourage and finance the more radical elements that include the Tally Ban and possibly Al Kayda. I think it's just a matter of degrees and scope - domestic violence is not any nobler than violence in foreign countries.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #41 Posted by malikrashid on July 10, 2009 8:42:48 am
{"Pakistan army cannot be redeemed but it would be useful to cut the size, power and share of the army to a bare minimum as Pakistan has A-bomb as a deterrent. Pakistan army should be no larger in size than the Canadian army. ...
Well written. Impressive vocabulary."}

Rashid Sahib,
I appreciate your comments and thank you for the encouragement. For starters, allow me to suggest that the Pak Army be based in Labrador. :)
I totally agree with you about the need to curtail its numbers - thanks to the nukes. A. Q. Khan Zindabad.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense 39 Posted by dost_mittar on July 10, 2009 6:52:02 am
{"Salim:
Entertaining and well written as is expected from you. Now, can we expect another article from you criticizing those who have created those other 'monsters' - JeM and LeT who have been classified as terrorists by the UN but are still, in effect, protected by the state? Or are you going to wait until they too start bombing Lahore and Islamabad?"}

DM Sahib,
Thank you for reading and your kind comments and feedback. My opinion regarding the JeM/LeT/SeS/JI/JUI/JUP/Tally Ban/Al Kaida is well-established. I lump them all together just as I consolidate the BJP/VHP/RSS/JS/BD/SP/SS goons as one menace and a single plague which afflicts its host nation.
Any group that resorts to violence and uses hatred as a medium needs to be more than condemned - let's ban such groups and make their leaders accountable for the great harm they cause.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #22 Beej Bhayya,
Very careless and cavalier of you to poke fun at the Turks. How quickly you forget Mahmud, Mohammad, and Zahiruddin. Even now a thousand miles of Iran and Pakistan may not be a wide enough buffer for your protection. :)

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense {"#32 Posted by laddu on July 9, 2009 6:02:13 pm
Salim,

The day Pakistani Awaam can initiate a court martial of those who have plotted and conducted coups .. I would accept that Pakistanis have been able to properly channelize themselves.

Unfortunately, I only see them on the road to self destruction at the moment."}

Laddu Maharaj,
May you live long enough to see that blessed day. Of course there is no need to court martial the Indian military for their humanitarian efforts in East Pakistan, Kashmir, and Hyderabad, Punjab, and controlling the wanton slaughter of innocent Sikhs in Delhi.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #31 Posted by hamidm2 on July 9, 2009 4:56:17 pm
{"salim mian,
shabash naujawan!
......... but being of the turkish persuasion i am sure you understand why we have the army that we eserve .........."}

Hamidumdum Sahib,
A compliment from you is almost as significant as getting kissed by Altaf Bhai. LOL
Yes, I can understand the Pak Army being an anchor on Pakistan's progress, but seriously, sir, the Turkish armed forces at least have some redeeming value - Cyprus, the War against the Greeks in the '20s, and the defeat of the Kurdish terrorists. A major difference is that the Turkish Army consists primarily of conscripted young men. Thank God for the Turkish military or we would all be assuming the Greek position.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #30 anil, {"You owe it to your generation and your kids generation to find more alternatives than the three you have mentioned. First thing is to cut strands with each of the three thinking, to be free to choose, and be free to see and create new alternatives."}

Anil Sahib,
I agree with both your sentiment and your advice. Many nations and people have their own Waterloos. India flirted with religious extremism - even blessing the hate-mongers with a clear democratic election victory. Germans too had their love affair with Nazis, as the Russians benefited and lost thanks to the world domination nightmare of the Commies. Iran is playing with Ayatollah Martial Law, while the US has overdozed on playing the international cop for its friends and supporters So, Pakistanis have to shrug off the seduction of religious extremism, reinforced by militarism, and blamed on foreign interests whenever the answers get tough and personal. Thanks

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #29 Posted by Afat on July 9, 2009 1:22:05 am
{"Errr.....
The figure I heard , though not substantiated by anyone so far was 16 Billion not 10 Billion ."}

Aafat,
A billion here and a billion there and pretty soon it all adds up to real money (Thanks, Sen. Dirksen) Yes we need a system of accountability that is totally credible and reliable.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #26 kuppuswamy {"Oh yeah, the emperor himself admitting he`s naked!"}

Kuppu,
He is not an emperor and the only two people to see him sans kachcha are BB and Sarah as in ex-Gov. Palin. :)

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #14 Posted by Mazhar.Fakir on July 7, 2009 10:05:52 pm
Dear Readers,
{"Thank you for your kind comments and taking the time to read this article. What an irony! On the same day that Chowk Editors published Salim's article on FP, Chowk Staff chose to ban him for speaking his mind on UP. Salim merely said that the name of his establishment was THE PEELED LEMON. Now, what is so improper or profane or even abusive about that?

Salim will be back as soon as his incarceration has concluded. Please contiue to interact with each other and Salim thanks you for your understanding, patience, and support."}

Mazhar Sahib,
Thank you for holding down the fort. I want to express my appreciation for your support during my incarceration.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #13 Posted by saeedshiekh on July 7, 2009 8:43:33 pm
{"I must appreciate someone taking the stance and placing forth the true crisis. an audit has to take place. different governments have poured millions of dollars in for different aspects and there is no idea where the dollars went. all i know is that when we accumulate the total given, many beautiful cities could have come into existance. i still live on the same dirty roads and unclean environment. i never saw the dollars. then who did ? "}

Saeed Sahib,
Exactly! Our leaders have dragged our nation's name through the mud, they have dragged our bodies through pools of blood, and our hopes through the gutters of despair - all the while begging and getting billions in aid. If the Swiss, UAE, Soodi banks are the resting places of this aid, then we have a right to know where the money went.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #12 Posted by BJ2 on July 7, 2009 8:23:49 pm
{"Salim miaN, ... everything you say of the khakis may indeed be true. But as usual, you avoid the difficult questions."}

Beej Bhayya, I may have avoided the difficult questions - that's why we have you on Chowk. So now let me try and answer your difficult questions:

{"(1) Who does the Pakistani awaam rile up against more -- the khakis or the phantom enemy "kafirs" identified as Indians?"}
The Pakistani Awam needs to be vigilant against all enemies - domestic and foreign. India has the stigma of Bangladesh, the Army has given us over 30 years of despotic dictatorships, and the Moolas have failed us divinely.

{"(2) What is the population ratio of khaki to civilians? Are the khakis holding a gun to the head of so many civilians? Then what is there to indicate that average abdul does not like the khakis to run the show just like they have been running for the last six decades? What are Pakistanis -- dead? I mean, even the Iranians have the guts to show up in the streets against their oppressors -- but not the Pakistanis."}

Once again, you are being insidious in projecting an Indian agenda against both Pakistan and its people. The Pak Army comes from its people and is not a separate oppressing entity - unlike the Indian occupiers in East Pakistan or Kashmir. All we need to do is to restore the credibility of our institutions by imposing the principle of accountability on our leaders.

{"(3) How many Pakistani civilians have the guts to condemn the terrorist attacks done again and again -- over the last 20 years -- in India by the ISI trained and ISI-funded goons in Pakistan?! How many?! Why should ANYBODY shed a single tear for this gutless group of hypocritical cowards?!! "}

Calm down, Beej Bhayya, before you explode as you try to create a revolution in Pakistan. You can call Pakistanis cowards, fools, imbeciles, or anything else you like. The last thing they need to do is to trust people who have oppressed them before. Please stop trying to throw gasoline on the fire - on second thought please be more vocal. Only Indians can unite Pakistan - and they seem to do it so well.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #11 Posted by RiazHaq on July 7, 2009 6:32:26 pm
{"Salim, ... Don't we all, as humans, frequently engage in denial for our own mental health and self-preservation? "}

Riaz Sahib,
I wish it were that simple and we could blame the whole mess and cycle of violence on denial, coping, and survival. Unfortunately, it's more basic and more complex than all that - greed, corruption, exploitation, and selfishness.

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #10 Posted by laddu on July 7, 2009 4:40:48 pm
{"It is time Musharaff and his army Generals are put behind bars for their corrupt mis deeds."}

Laddu,
We need to follow the proper judicial process. First we try them and then we hang them. :)

The Landlords of Defence To Pakistan\'s Defense #9 Posted by blumfeld on July 7, 2009 3:19:04 pm
{"Re: # 7
jang its a work of art meant to please ur senses,its not intended to torture ur intellect."}

Bloomy,
Some people are born Sardars - Jang earned his pug the hard way. :)