COMMENT: Withdrawing from the web? —Zaair Hussain So long as we continue to wear our emotions on our sleeves, we remain in a state of wretched vulnerability: a word hurled like a stone across oceans can shatter our normalcy and switch off the entire nation like a light going out in the glittering globe Online censorship is a zombie issue, a shambling and soulless monstrosity sustained indefinitely by dark energies when, by any rational trajectory, it should have long succumbed to the cold embrace of eternity. I find myself reluctantly grappling with an issue I thought inconsequential in the harsh … Continue reading Withdrawing from reality?

VIEW: Patriarchy the hijacker —Dr Mahjabeen Islam Testosterone-infused patriarchs have knowingly and unconsciously vilified Islam and misinterpreted it to satisfy their virginity-obsessed lusts. Either we accept promiscuity in our wives, daughters and daughters-in-law or work toward the simple standard of gender equity, spiritual and physical modesty Patriarchy is the worst hijacker of Islam, right up there with terrorism. And to think that a simple partition in a woman’s anatomy could be the real or imagined basis for horrific acts of violence is difficult to accept. The Muslim male’s obsession with virginity, and by extrapolation chastity, plays out in conflict at … Continue reading Patriarchy the hijacker of Islam

Punjab govt’s inaction against militants irks GHQ By Baqir Sajjad Syed dawn.com At least 37 people were killed in an attack on Data Darbar shrine, Lahore. — AFP Provinces Shahbaz for foolproof security at shrines, worship places Shahbaz for foolproof security at shrines, worship places ISLAMABAD: While public attention has been focused on the political barbs flying between Islamabad and Lahore, behind the scenes the Pakistan Muslim League-N has earned itself a new and very powerful adversary thanks to its inaction against the ‘Punjabi Taliban’ — the Pakistan Army. It is now evident that the Punjab government led by the … Continue reading Punjab inaction against mullahs irks Army

Let’s negotiate by Nadeem F. Paracha Due to the demands of a majority of Pakistanis and leaders like Shahbaz Sharif, Imran Khan, Munawar Hussain and other such groovy people, the Pakistan government has signed a peace agreement with the Taliban in Waziristan and South Punjab. The peace deal comes after several rounds of negotiations and many glasses of orange juice. The major points of the agreement are as follows: – Strict and puritanical LBW Laws would be imposed in the Swat and Waziristan cricket league. – The government and the Taliban will exchange prisoners and gifts – the government will … Continue reading Let’s negotiate with the Mullahs

VIEW: China’s growing role in South Asia —Abhishek Parajuli China moved as early as the 1960s to clear border disputes with Nepal, often to Nepal’s advantage. The goodwill this earned is clear from the fact that in 2008 Nepal sought Chinese help in settling its disputes with India In February 2010, Vikas Bajaj wrote in the New York Times that China’s expanding sphere of influence could “eventually” undermine India’s pre-eminence in South Asia. I disagree. It already has. India’s ‘soft power’ is much touted. It is supposedly a counter-weight to Chinese influence. While such talk is comforting to Sinophobes, to … Continue reading China’s and South Asia

COMMENT: Terrorism and SAARC —Dr Rashid Ahmad Khan Terrorism has been identified as the most serious challenge facing the countries of South Asia and its elimination is now top priority, but SAARC still lacks a common counter-terrorism strategy Pakistan was host to the SAARC interior ministers’ conference in Islamabad last week. The conference is one of the regional mechanisms established by SAARC to fight against terrorism in South Asia through the cooperative efforts of its member countries. The hallmark of the conference was the presence of Indian Home Minister P Chidambaram, who was the first senior Indian union minister to … Continue reading Terrorism and SAARC

VIEW: Our state of crisis: some reflections —Naqib Hamid Declaring terrorist outfits as being “outside the fold of Islam” is simply a display of the same psyche as militant religious networks, which take the liberty to decide who is (or is not) a Muslim What happened in Lahore on July 1, 2010 at the sufi shrine of Hazrat Ali bin Usman al Hajvery, popularly known as Data Ganj Bakhsh, is a strong reminder of the state of internal conflict within Islam in our society. It is a crisis of identity, values and worldview. Let me make it clear that by … Continue reading Islam in Pakistan and being grown up about it

Ridiculous America by: William Rivers Pitt, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed (Image: Jared Rodriguez / t r u t h o u t; Adapted: rbanks, Elisabeth Moore, roserevolution) I worked five shifts at the bar between Saturday and Saturday this week, and saw some things that really got me thinking about the nature of this nation. I knew this already, but my week on the sidewalk really brought it home: this is a truly ridiculous country, in every positive and negative sense of the word. The week began with a swarm of union delegates arriving … Continue reading Happy Birthday USA

by: John Pilger, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed (Image: Lance Page / t r u t h o u t; Adapted: hans van den berg, ario_) Washington – The TV anchorwoman was conducting a split screen interview with a journalist who had volunteered to be a witness at the execution of a man on death row in Utah for 25 years. “He had a choice,” said the journalist, “lethal injection or firing squad.” “Wow!” said the anchorwoman. Cue a blizzard of commercials for fast food, teeth whitener, stomach stapling, the new Cadillac. This was followed … Continue reading The Charge of the Media Brigade

Robert Wright: The Myth of Modern Jihad loonwatch.com An excellent article, and a must read. The Myth of Modern Jihad by Robert Wright It would be an understatement to say that Faisal Shahzad, the would-be Times Square bomber, pleaded guilty last week. “I’m going to plead guilty a hundred times over,” Shahzad told the judge. Why so emphatic? Because Shahzad is proud of himself. “I consider myself a Mujahid, a Muslim soldier,” he said. This got some fist pumps in right-wing circles, because it seemed to confirm that America faces all-out jihad, and must marshal an accordingly fierce response. On … Continue reading The Myth of Modern Jihad