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Cast your vote, or shut up! He started with complaints of frequent electricity breakdowns, the telephones and the railways systems, bad traffic and poor condition of roads and then he moved on to rising prices, unemployment, crime, and corruption in government offices....		Election excitement Elections are around the corner and parties are busy trying to muster support of the populace to score at the hustings. Dull and lacklustre the current situation might be, but interesting...
Laws of Nature The British Labour politician, Mr Tony Benn, recently framed a set of questions to be asked to those in power. Some of those questions are: What power have you got? Where did you get it from? In whose interest do you exercise it? To whom are you accountable? How do we get rid of you...		Confronting grievances The rather narrow, almost one-dimensional, definition of the terrorist threat favoured by the Bush administration has led to some other nations seizing upon the word “terrorism” to promote their own agendas....
Relatives of all kinds It takes at least two people to be related to each other. It is similar to a game where at least two persons are needed to play, except the games in...		A very familiar Chinese ambassador IT was an invitation, sent on a short notice, for lunch to meet the new Chinese ambassador. Those who were invited were anxious to meet the Chinese envoy as he is...
An ambitious cricket commentator I got a letter from the BBC, asking me whether I was available to do the commentary for Pakistan’s tour of England starting in the summer of 1962. Cricket commentators, as...		Common sense and politics Everyone knows the phrase “Jack of all trades and master of none” goes pretty well with most people in this country, specially when it comes to politics. People are often heard...
Lost words It seems like just yesterday when I lost all my words. Out of bed, in the morning, I wanted to squeak my usual lines, but I couldn’t. Being a skeptic, by...		Elections and the establishment The national political landscape alternated between hollow noises and deadly silence till about a week before the elections. The electorate can rethink in the homestretch to polls. Voters may come out...
Malaysia: a mini-Asia A bright and sunny morning greeted me as I arrived at the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. On entering the airport building, I got kind of lost as I couldn’t find...		Lost grandeur In the heart of Lahore’s old city, near Delhi Gate, stands Wazir Khan Mosque. It is surrounded by congested narrow streets, old buildings, shops, and the day-to-day hustle and bustle that...
US academia: grandly priggish and naďve Amazing it is for America to shield its citizens from the harsh realities knocking hard on the windows of the world! Sept 11 has failed to rip open their closed hearts...		A blueprint for success Exams have never been easier to take. It requires a steel-enforced soul and a razor-sharp brain to get through them. You may enjoin the company of those who topped internals, work in libraries with college assets...
Selling sweet dreams I ignore the honking taxi drivers looking for a fourth passenger to start their journey. On Wednesdays, I always walk home from work, although it is not a very convenient distance....		English as a world language “We seem to know a lot about the rise and fall of empires,” said my professor friend, “but what do you think about the rise and fall of civilizations? In his...
Well, who did win World War II? The most extreme event in my lifetime was World War II. As a small child, I was brought to the wireless to hear Mr Chamberlain make the announcement. The following year,...		Entry of British forces in Lahore Maharaja Ranjeet Singh ruled over Punjab between 1798 and 1839. Rising from the position of the ruler of the small fiefdom of Gujranwala, at the age of 19 he got control...
POINT OF VIEW: Zaheer Dehlavi rediscovered THE 19th century poet, Zaheer Dehlavi, was a phenomenon unto himself. He enjoys a distinctive position as against his distinguished contemporaries, but not on the basis of his poetry....		ICC flexes its techno muscles For many decades, the ICC (then defined as the Imperial Cricket Council) was viewed as an office occupied by morbid, aging officials, dressed in black and grey suits, who presided over...
Clear-headedness is what we need A NUMBER of changes have been effected in the Pakistan team and its management. Even more are in the offing as I write these lines. But I hardly find it worthwhile...		The time syndrome Midnight Oct 5, Pakistan will revert back to its original time, after having forwarded the clock by an hour for about four summer months — an experience that was both controversial...
Noisome noises Cities have characteristics like the people who dwell in them. Like people, no two cities are exactly alike, though they may be situated in the same time zone. A few decades...		NEWSMAKER FOR the security personnel at the Los Angeles airport in the US, it was a routine check. All passengers proceeding for the flight to New York have to go through tough security checks....