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Genesis of poverty POVERTY is relative to richness. It is one of the foremost social problems facing Pakistan and other countries. John L. Gillin asserted that poverty may be regarded as “that condition in which a person, either because of inadequate income...		A political primer OUR politicians accuse the military of not letting them implement democracy in the country. The military, in turn, holds political incompetence and corruption as the reason behind lack of good governance. Guess who is the sole sufferer in this squabble....
Why referendum, sir! WE, the youngsters of the Namurad Mansion on the famous Goongi Gali, met in the stinking basement of the dilapidated building. We are great admirers of General Pervez Musharraf. Our fathers were great admirers of General Ziaul Haq, the pious. Our grandfathers were admirers of General Ayub Khan, who in order to establish...		When the British MPs came to look around THERE was a flurry of activities when a group of members of the British Parliament, who are friends of Pakistan and supporters of the right of self-determination for the Kashmiris, arrived...
A bit of semantic quackery YEATS had written of the Easter Uprising in Ireland in 1916 that all had changed, changed utterly and that a terrible beauty had been born. What would we say of October...		One more silent death THE last time she was heard talking, it was to her mother. She was pleading not to let her go back to her husband’s house, not that he was particularly inclined to take her back. However, her own mother was not the least bit interested in letting her stay. Thus, this was the last she ever spoke anything as she then started her journey into the benign...
Categorizing love LOVE, when it is pure with beautiful emotions overflowing from the hearts of two people is a bond of divine strength. Everyone falls in love. Sometimes with many things and people in one’s lifetime and many a times with only one person. When referring to love, it is commonly taken to be that which exists between two people....		Is social conscience dead? ONE reads of deaths in traffic accidents in the Press or learns of them through other means with a measure of sadness at the misfortune of unknown people. The impact is...
The valley of kings VALLEY of Swat, also popularly known as Switzerland of Pakistan, is indeed a jewel on the surface of the earth, running along the shiny River Swat which serpents over a hilly course of more then 100km. The valley has a number...		Dung cake: the poor man’s gold IT is rightly said that all that glitters is neither gold nor all that looks waste is useless. A thing of beauty may be a joy forever but practically of no or least avail to human beings. And things that appear repulsive maybe of immense value to us....
Corporations rule US, who rules Pakistan? PUNNED here as the ‘Perveztion of democracy’, Americans have little patience to limn Pervez Musharraf’s Referendum or its outcome. Instead, their whipping boy, these days is Arafat abroad, and Enron at...		Married to the pen HALLELUJAH! Yes, yes, yes, the thing is gone. Whew, I was worried there for a moment. See, here I am loving my pen, able to breath again in a world that has been restored to its original glory. With the critter called the ‘writer’ finally free, I can live again. Go ahead, scoff at my dilemma. Accuse me of being melodramatic....
Another identity crisis GIVEN that there are few mental asylums in the country and even those can barely accommodate their existing inmates, it is a good thing that not many of us pay taxes...		When Glubb Pasha got only half the money JOBLESS and penniless after being sacked by King Hussein, Sir John Bagot Glubb was waiting to go on his first American lecture tour when a communication from the organizing agency perplexed him. It said that, on arrival at the New York airport...
The melting pot AMERICANS are fortunate not to have a history of their own. No ancient and mediaeval periods, no monarchs and no feudal warlords. Once Oscar Wilde gibed at Americans by saying that the youth of America is the oldest tradition. What for Oscar Wilde was a point to jeer at, is point of pride for Americans....		Aryanization of India RULING classes and power seeking groups have always used history for their political interest. This subsequently leads distortion, omission, and misinterpretation of history. On one hand, disputes, discussions and debates make...
Troubled Indian Muslims I COULD hardly imagine that the massacre of Muslims in Gujarat would provide me with a pretext to write about Wali Dakhani, who is regarded as the father of Urdu poetry and who, according to one version, was buried in Ahmadabad. The grave commonly known...		Cricket controversies THE Sri Lankan Cricket Board has always reacted aggressively to any criticism of the bowling action of their spin king Muttiah Muralitharan (also affectionately known as Murli). Their reaction was no...
Giving due credit where it is due THE recently concluded Test series between England and New Zealand was a good promotion for Test cricket. While Australia definitely is in a league of its own, England and New Zealand...		Badminton in a dilapidated state AFTER the provincial badminton activities ground to a halt in Sindh, a chain of emergency meetings, summoned by the provincial governor, have been taking place. After last year’s national championship in April the officials concerned have gone into deep slumber causing anxiety and shock amongst players....
Daunting tasks ahead WHEN I saw my name as part of the recently reshuffled Selection Committee announced by Pakistan Hockey Federation, I had a feeling of deja vu, ‘been there, done that’ kind of...		Just tax it WORKING as an employee — and footing the monthly electricity, gas, telephone, general household and miscellaneous expenditure bills — most of the salaried are living just about within the means. And here comes the new tax laws which makes it a curse...
Creative we are not WHAT is the question? What are the alternatives? What is the best solution? These are the three questions that our learned 76-year-old professor of Management at Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, always asked...		Putting things straight OMAR Kureishi’s reminiscence being published in his weekly column Home to Pakistan in your magazine are really informative and interesting. As an experienced media man and writer, he has been portraying...
MOSAIC: The efficacy of acupuncture QUITE a few people in Britain are turning to ear acupuncture to relieve stress and increase energy levels. Cherie Blair is just one of them. Ear acupuncture is a refinement of...		Newsmaker THESE are bad times for the US energy giant Enron. However, compared to what trouble its accountant and auditor Arthur Andersen is in, it’s merely an itch on the wrist. Last week, Arthur Andersen LLP, the US arm of Andersen Worldwide, one of the five biggest...