The “But” Syndrome
The 27th of May bombing in Lahore, which has taken a minimum of 23 lives and wounded over 300 people can only be seen as a retaliatory strike by the Taliban who are finally at the receiving end from the Pakistan Army. The highly effective Army operation in Swat and Malakand Division now has the...
RESPONDING TO THE PEOPLE
For the past ten years the people of Pakistan have been ruled and not been led by public servants. We have seen billions of rupees in public money spent on ridiculous image building exercises which were actually image building exercises for a few individuals rather than the State. In addition, decisions were taken by one...
THE STATE & FORCED PHILANTHROPHY
In 1980, Dictator Zia-ul-Haque passed the Zakat and Ashar Ordinance of 1980 which mandates that 2.5 percent of all declared income shall be taxed by the State and placed into the Bait-ul-Maal. This made Pakistan the second Muslim country in the world after Saudi Arabia where Zakat is mandatory; the difference being that in Saudi...
THE STATE & FORCED PHILANTHROPHY
In 1980, Dictator Zia-ul-Haque passed the Zakat and Ashar Ordinance of 1980 which mandates that 2.5 percent of all declared income shall be taxed by the State and placed into the Bait-ul-Maal. This made Pakistan the second Muslim country in the world after Saudi Arabia where Zakat is mandatory; the difference being that in Saudi...
THE QUALITY OF MEN
Superior leaders get things done with very little motion. They impart instruction not through many words, but through a few deeds. They keep informed about everything but interfere hardly at all. They are catalysts, and though things would not get done as well if they were not there, when they succeed they take no credit....
STRAY DOGS & PEACOCKS
Last week two stray dogs managed to get inside the peacock enclosure at the heavily fortified Lahore Zoo, and managed to kill 28 peacocks. This happened in the early morning when the watchman had gone to say his prayers at the nearby mosque. Predictably the poor watchman was immediately suspended as a scapegoat was needed...
SHOOTING BLANKS
General Pervaiz Musharraf is currently on his longest foreign tour which will last three weeks and he’ll be shuttling around the continental United States after his Cuban jaunt with his modest entourage. When asked if he felt safe being out of the country for so long, the General with all his bravado replied in the...
THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN SHEETS
And they say Walmart has the best prices in the world because of their huge purchasing power and superior supply chain network! I am now officially disputing Walmart’s claim to having the best prices, because the best discounts can only be had if you’re serving on the Pakistani Cabinet. According to the Cabinet Division recipients...
THE BIG STEAL
I am and have been a huge proponent of privatization as I believe private enterprise can run any business better and more efficiently than Government; besides the main purpose of Governments is governance and not private enterprise. Having said that I think it is also important to recognize that the public assets which are being...
THE BOOMERANG EFFECT
I can just see it. George Bush sitting with U.S. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice and some State Department bigwigs, with his usual vacuous look, and asking, “I thought they wanted democracy in the Middle East – how the hell did Hamas win the elections?” And here lies the American dilemma. On one hand they...
THE IDIOTS AMONGST
From a very young age I would hear my father and various uncles commenting about the lack of iodine which caused bouts of idiotic behavior in large swathes of the population. At that age I would wonder what the correlation between iodine and stupidity was – nothing that the Encyclopedia Britannica couldn’t explain to me. ...
THE POWER OF THE JUDICIARY
Lewis “Scooter” Libby Jr was indicted on October 28th on a total of five counts. One count of obstruction of justice, two counts of perjury, and two counts of making false statements. For those of our readers who don’t know Mr. Libby, he served as Chief of Staff and advisor for national security to US...
