let me tell you a little story about my country. We are democratic people, or so we like to think. We also like to think we are an islamic republic - thus the name 'islamic republic of pakistan'.
The problem is we are confused. The people that fight for democracy, the PPP, the PML, the MMA, the PTI and the MQM are completely undemocratic in their own party functioning. They have the same party leaders for the past 20 years unless their leaders have been assasinated by their husbands (PPP) and dont believe in leaving their 'kursis'. We like the idea of democracy, however thats where it stops...
Its unfortunately something my country love to fantasize, but when it comes to walking the talk...nothing happens.
Let me tell you about the new democratic scheme of things nowadays. Our Minister, Mr. Khosa tried to get his brother in law to head the ICTRD FUND which has about 20 billion rupees in its kitty. When the board refused to shortlist the candidate on the basis of a fake degree, 6 borad members were fired. The board members include some of the leading professionals of pakistan which include the country manager of cisco, ex chairman of engro, and the head of multinet pakistan.
Our respected ministers next move was to try to fit his brother in law in the USF fund, which is again lead by one of pakistans most respected telecom professionals, Mr. Parvez Iftikhar, a man that has made the USF a beacon of learning for the rest of world on how to use funds to increase telecom penetration in low growth and emancipated areas.
Democracy has also brought destruction and corruption to our countrys financial sector. The head of NIIT, Mr. Tariq Iqbal Khan another very respected individual within financial circles, who turned around the company to make it the largest mutual funds company in the country was recently removed to make way for another corrupt crony supported by Mr. Democratically elected my foot ten percent zardari.
Our democratically elected government is going back on all the promises that they made and are redoing everything that they thought was wrong with the previous government. When the media tried to bring to light the fraud commmited by fake degree parlamentarians they tabled a resolution against the media. They delayed reappointment of the judges. The list of crap being dealt to the common man on the pretext of democracy is endless...
So for a moment in time I was going towards supporting democracy but things dont really seem to be helping our case. Sure we can say that we need to give it time to develop, but i can...but what about the man on the street who cant buy food for his family? If our elections were truly transparent enough, maybe we could have thrown out and called for change but we cant. Also if this government goes, will the sharifs come back and screw our resources further? And then back to PPP and then another round of pingpong?
Can someone please explain why i should love democracy, because i truly want to, but cannot figure out a reason why!!!
Sent from my Nokia phone
This is something I wrote in my last week at college, but forgot to upload...
As horrible as they sounded, the Smashing Pumpkins did eventually make some sense in their song of the same name in the movie Batman and Robin.
Thats how i feel about my time at IBA right now. Its a constant cycle, this thing that we so fondly call life and when one trial is over the next stage of life starts. You graduate, you get a job, get married, have kids, bring them up to be responsible adults and then they repeat the cycle.
The interesting thing though, is the thing that i discovered while thinking on these fatalistic lines today. Life is more than a rat race, and more than the drudgery that ive made it out to be. Sure its a cycle, but thats what disney was talking about in the lion king, when they referred to the circle of life werent they?
But its not all THAT bad...life is what we want it to be and i want mine to be more than something or someone that will easily be forgotten...
Sent from my Nokia phone
I know this is a controversial topic and i also know that people are scared to debate what has been taught to them as the final word and nothing beyond it.
However music has been a huge part of my life since i was a kid. More often than not it has taught me lessons that no book could ever teach me, and has unearthed passions that i never knew existed inside me. Certain songs and singers have a way of speaking to you like no other, and it is those moments that have given music a certain reverence in my life.
So when people say that music is not allowed in our religion, it hurts me to hear that. Ive thought about it over and over again, and ive reached a conclusion that all those people are wrong and ill tell you why.
Recently i was listening to coke studios version of Abida Parveens rendition of bulley shah and a weird thing happened after that. I cried, got up and went to say my prayers. If a song can make me say my prayers, im pretty sure that its allowed. Take another example. Go listen to josh grobans 'remember when it rained'...it makes me think of God because it was He that gave Josh the voice to sing that song....does that still fall in the 'haram' category?
God has given us instructions that we need to follow, but with our own intuition. Im pretty sure that some sort of music is haram...take for instance the latest rnb hip hop i want to do ure booty type of songs...thats sexual promiscuity right in your face...which is wrong...
Think about it and give me your view.
So heres a thing ive been noticing for a while...and no i dont want to be called a potty mouth after this post but you should know about this in any case... Because its kind of funny
people...or guys (ive only used male bathrooms so i really dont know what happens in female restrooms) tend to not look at each other when they meet in the bathroom. Even if u know the person, you immediately tend to look down and pretend like ure not there. Why? I mean its only natural and its nothing to be ashamed of.
As im sitting in my office restroom and typing this out im dead sure that as soon as i open the door and walk into the handwash area, ill see a guy and he'll look down
Yup...there it is again. But there are also people who try hiding this fact and after a very awkward silence, say 'aur boss, whats up'. Thats the stupidest line ive ever heard...i mean what is a person supposed to tell him...give him an update of my bowel movement?
