VIEW: Rationalising anti-American angst — II —Elf Habib

Our security perceptions and policies, despite the colossal sacrifices of our soldiers and resources, have not brought us relief, peace or stability but death, destruction, deprivation and disillusionment. Any advice to rationalise our security ambitions must be respected and valued

The anguish about American eyes focusing on Pakistan’s nukes is also embedded with a maudlin-like naivety. These arsenals may be considered mere pipsqueaks compared to the potential and stocks belonging to the advanced nuclear powers. They are flaunted as an exclusive pride of the Muslim world, implying that they are to be employed in some expected Armageddon against non-Muslims, betraying a monstrous mindset to provoke religious wars. Modern wars, as demonstrated by the disintegration of the Soviet Union by an economic meltdown, are to be waged not by weapons and missiles but by manoeuvring despondency and disillusionment through deprivation and resource depletion, foisted by superior economic and technical excellence and planning. In a dispassionate analysis, these arsenals are no more than a Kalashnikov stored in the hut of a beggar broken by hunger, thirst, disease and mounting debts. They have not saved Pakistan from the debacle at Kargil, standoff at Siachen or the post-Mumbai conundrum. Protecting them from the Taliban hordes has become an additional liability. Under these drastic circumstances, some lobbies in the US feel that Pakistan ought to decrease its defence budget, sparing more for food, fuel, health, education, employment and the correction of other social miseries. Asghar Khan persistently pressed for paring down defence expenditure while Qazi Hussain Ahmad, at least occasionally, also publicly pressed for it. In fact, many powerful anti- nuke and anti-armament global organisations have been similarly campaigning, even against the US. In view of these irrefutable realities, our ire against American concerns certainly has to be revisited.

Our commitment to resolving the Kashmir conundrum through dialogue and diplomacy, whilst still squandering our resources to match the might of a much larger power, is also quite baffling to saner global elements. This obsession cost us more than half of our country, has ruined the entire socio-economic fabric, irretrievably radicalised a significant part of our population, sparked fissiparous tendencies in the remaining truncated territory and, yet, we are nowhere nearer our espoused ideals. We are rather being accused of harbouring terrorist havens. Infiltrations from here, allegedly, are spreading not only to India, the US and Europe but also to our traditionally friendly neighbours like Afghanistan, Iran and China. Our security perceptions and policies, despite the colossal sacrifices of our soldiers and resources, have not brought us relief, peace or stability but death, destruction, deprivation and disillusionment. In this context, any advice to rationalise our security ambitions and targets must be respected and valued rather than being dreaded and denounced. Any good advice, according to most Muslim savants, must be heeded even if written on a wall and certainly must not be spurned if proffered by a friend.

Accusations about American lust for the resources of the Muslim world are similarly refuted by reality. The Muslims, besides the oil wealth in some countries, do not have any enviable magma of mineral and natural wealth. Their combined GDP is a mere fraction of the advanced world. Even with some resources on their soil, the technical and economic requisites to exploit them are abysmally lacking. Oil-rich states, for example, are desperately dependent on western oil conglomerates. Chinese and Russian technology is far less competitive and innovative.

The outrage against American interests, erupting at the slightest pretext in the scorching and plundering of McDonalds and KFC or boycotting their patent beverage brands, has also to be dispassionately understood. These ventures, involving mostly local entrepreneurs like the familiar call centres, in fact, constitute an integral part of the soft economic and skill transfer processes that have been considered as the most efficient and expedient means for income and resource generation in developing countries unable to undertake or sustain rapidly changing, fiercely competitive and research-intensive manufacturing sectors. These projects and services have evidently stimulated indigenous business skills, training, employment and expertise. Several local food chains and beverage brands based on emotive native and Islamic names like Mecca Cola and Mecca Fried Chicken have sprung up to mimic these services and facilities. American excellence has similarly fostered new concepts and techniques in security, screening, banking, finance, commerce, trade and industrial techniques and standards. The assistance imparted by the US through various scholarship and training schemes similarly has also been almost unparalleled.

American supremacy in economic, scientific, industrial and technological excellence, accomplished through extensive education and research, remains a role model for almost every citizen, state or group keen about emerging knowledge and creativity. Even sworn enemies like the Soviet Union used to mimic the Americans’ findings through stealthily acquired scientific publications.

The resplendent tradition of ardour, devotion and contribution created by American institutions and scholars to advance the frontier of discovery, particularly in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, literature and entertainment, massive production and distribution of facilities and services, the passion to explore the intricacies of nature and the universe and to ply them for wider comfort and care, constitutes a highly venerable and distinct stream of American society. The US, in fact, like any large and vibrant democratic society, is not just a single, stagnant monolithic entity but the spectrum of several streams of thought, trends and activities each surging for perfection through its own style and angle. There is the stream struggling for equality of races, of commendable constitutional developments, mind boggling foundations and charities, the like of Mayo, Bill Gates and Clinton crusading to combat poverty, ignorance, disease and pollution. The revenues of Mayo alone far exceed our federal budget. There, of course, have also been several darker sides, especially of state ventures of violence, interference, intrigues and oppression as witnessed in the treatment of indigenous Americans, Vietnam, Chile and Iran. Every nation has some dark, indefensible exploits and episodes. Yet they also evolve, amend and improve with time. The US has been striving for this with Obama, Biden, Pelosi and Clinton. Viewing this varied and vivid spectrum as some overpowering execrable monster met in violent movies, would be inherently unfair and unproductive. We must, like a mature, growing nation, learn to live with realities, endeavouring to emulate the attributes that turned the US into an unrivalled superpower and pursue a cool, reconciliatory dialogue on disconcerting and divisive irritants.

(Concluded)

The writer is an academic and freelance columnist. He can be reached at habibbpu@yahoo.com