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Posts tagged with: Zaid Hamid

Sick and Tired

Over the past week Pakistan has read many different news items. From the passing of the 18th amendment to the bomb blast at the US Consulate, much is happening. Some may say the stories are for the betterment of our country while others may disagree. In my mind the successful visit of the Foreign Minister and his entourage to the United States gave Pakistan some much needed positive press. However, the current witch-hunt carried out by the Chief Justice and the ugly battle over the reopening of Zardari’s corruption cases has embarrassed many of those who fought for the independence of the judiciary.

Now do not get me wrong, as much as I enjoyed protesting on the streets of Lahore for the reinstatement of the nation’s top judge, I can’t fathom Mr. Iftikhar’s current agenda of picking and choosing his enemies. When will we be able to see actual results from the “democratically” elected officials and the “independent” judiciary we as a nation have struggled to achieve for 62 years? When will stop pointing fingers and vilifying those whom we disagree with? Or have we gotten used to being stuck in this whirlpool of revengeful politics. Honestly, we Pakistanis have gotten sick and tired of the lies and broken promises.
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Let History be our Mentor

Does Adolf Hitler ring a bell? Historian and analysts attribute his rise and fame to the geopolitical situation facing Germany. Hitler found Germany in a social and political mess, infighting for power and control of parliament was the only goal of each faction, with the military holding the system together. The economy was in shambles and people found it extremely difficult to make their ends meet, life was very harsh for them. On the global front communism was gaining currency and posed a severe threat to the German elite, the rich exorbitant and industrialists. Hitler exploited these long term factors through propaganda, the terror of his storm-troopers, and the brilliance of his speeches.

Invoking a sense of nationalism, providing economical solutions and offering a common enemy and scapegoat for the situation (Jews) Hitler instantly found mass appeal for his fascist agenda. The vicious little man with a program of hatred became an overnight hero. His rhetoric transformed Germany from a failed state to a super power but for what? The country went to war killed in millions and eventually was shared as a trophy by the allied armies. The visionary of great Germany ended up enslaving and separating its people, as the country was divided into East and West Germany. Adolf Hitler wrote the worst chapter of human history.
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Blind Faith or Emotional Pull?

Recent debates, especially on facebook, regarding Zaid Hamid and his relations with a convicted blasphemer who died in jail almost a decade ago have certainly caught the Pakistani youth by surprise. They find themselves locked in an argument which is taking a heavy toll on their intellect and energies. On one side there are people who look upto traditional religious scholars with a good number of years and experience in the matters of religion while the other segment is quite wary of these sources and choose to follow their “Sir” Zaid Hamid.

A closer look into the matter reveals that our youth can easily be generalized as passionate, emotional, irrational, impulsive, aggressive, vulnerable, know-it-all, mind guarded and above all frustrated. The description is equally valid for all the participants irrespective of their point of view. Ironic it may be both the parties well and truly are the future of Pakistan. These youngsters are enrolled in medical, engineering and management universities.
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Farhat Taj analyzes Zaid Hamid in strategic depth

Dr. Farhat Taj wrote a column in Daily Times critically analyzing the Zaid Hamid phenomenon, to say for instance “Zaid Hamid is his use of a particularly narrow interpretation of Islam that proposes a belligerent agenda for the Pakistan Army and drawing on controversial Islamic literature. Thus the authenticity of the hadiths — sayings of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) — on Ghazwa-e-Hind that he often refers to in terms of the ultimate defeat of the Indians at the hands of the Pakistan Army is highly questionable.” — “Judging by the obscurantist message that he communicates, Zaid Hamid does not seem to be a new invention of the establishment” A must read column can be read at the Daily Times website, or you may want to read more about Zaid Hamid’s here and here on this blog


Talibanization: National Achievement Awards

In due recognition of our government and military’s efficiency in reducing the spread of Talibanization over the years, it is recommended that land be allotted to each official in scenic locations in Swat, Bajaur and Waziristan. Please note that this is a partial list only – the contributions are endless and further nominations are welcome.

Each official can be given land commensurate with their contribution to providing citizens with liberty, education, health care and security.

A special allocation for former General Musharraf equal to 50 times the size of his Chak Shahzad farm house is proposed. This should provide ample space for him to fulfill his dream of ideal education for lesser privileged by opening a “model madrassah” as he always wished. Actually, like most people, we too are not sure if he’s already achieved his dream, but, to give him benefit of doubt, we’ll still offer this choice land to him. And we assure him, he’ll not be asked to sell vegetables like he was by the CJ in Islamabad. Matta is a nice place, we hear.
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Pakistani Bloggers and Zardari: A Suggestion for Both!

Guest Blog by Silence fromIslamabad Observer Blog

Bloggers are also socio-political commentators; any change in the social and political landscape of a society will mean a shift in blogger’s orientation. Unlike mainstream media men, bloggers are considered to be voice of ‘people’ as they themselves belong to various political and social backgrounds and reflect what a man in street is thinking about socio-political environment of a society.

PAKISTANI BLOGGERS contributed a lot in terms of awareness and physical participation against former Dictator Pervez Musharraf, when he sacked the Chief Justice of Pakistan and later imposed a ‘Mini Martial Law’ to sack impartial judges.

Before general election in Pakistan, there were reservations about NRO and so called ‘deal’s’ rumors between Musharraf and exiled political leadership, but as a whole PAKISTANI BLOGGERS were for democracy. They had a huge impact to mobilize the young voters that they swayed the final majority against a ‘Dictator’. Participation of youth in rallies of Chief Justice and Benazir Bhutto is the evidence of impact of still ‘incubating blogging’ in Pakistan. They were blogging for change.

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