. . . . . Hypocrisy Thy Name is . . . . . منافقت . . . . .

Important Announcement

2006-12-24T12:24:00.000+05:00

Due to off and on blockade of Blogspot most of the readers in Pakistan are experiencing difficulty in opening blogs on Blogspot domain and some even can’t open.

To facilitate readers, this blog has been shifted to a new domain. To read either click on the following link or write it in browser and open.
http://iabhopal.wordpress.com/

Also, my Urdu blog "What Am I" has been shifted to

http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com/

The new blogs have much more interesting reading for you.

Now an American Teacher

2006-12-21T09:09:00.000+05:00

Over a month back, a Canadian lady came over to Pakistan and traveled straight to Waziristan where she got married to a local man. She had said that she liked the family system of Pakistan and that people in Pakistan were caring and peace-loving.

Last week Duanna Marie Pettit, an American school teacher, wed Amir, a Pakistani computer graphic designer, in Mughalpura (suburb of Lahore) in a traditional function. She says “It is really impressive to note that the family system is very much intact here in Pakistan. People within family are close to one another. They do care for one another. It is something which we lack in the States.”

Amir said, “I had never thought of marrying Pettit when I began chatting with her on the net four years back. When chatting turned into a love affair after exchange of photos and gifts, we decided to tie the knot.”

Their marriage was held in a traditional local style which had everything from Mehndi to Walima, with over 100 relatives and friends of the groom attending all functions.

Of the Pakistani marriage function, Pettit said it was really a great fun. “I wore the traditional bridal dress. I really liked it,” she said, adding with a smile that the dress was a bit heavy to carry with. “I will really miss the colours, the drum beats and cheers, smiles and everything I got in the function.”

Pettit said she had studied Islam a lot after meeting Amir. “Islam has wonderful teachings, especially with regard to raising children and dealing with other family members.”

She said, “ I was a bit apprehensive and nervous before traveling to Pakistan because I had no idea as to what would be happening around but, once I landed here, my apprehensions faded quickly. Pakistanis are really very loving and very caring.”

Pettit maintained that she had just got another home, Pakistan. “I will rather say it is my first home now because I am married here.”

Don't just say it is " IMPOSSIBLE"

2006-12-17T11:32:00.000+05:00

Ice Cream that puzzled General motors!!!!
A complaint was received by the Pontiac Division of General Motors:

”This is the second time I have written to you, and I don't blame you for not answering me, because I sounded crazy. Our family has Ice-Cream for dessert after dinner each night. Every night, after we've eaten, the whole family votes on which kind of ice cream we should have and I drive down to the store to get it. I recently purchased a new Pontiac and since then my trips to the store have created a problem.....Every time I buy vanilla ice-cream, when I start back from the store my car won't start. If I get any other kind of ice cream, the car starts just fine. I want you to know I'm serious about this question, no matter how silly it sounds. What is there about a Pontiac that makes it not start when I get vanilla ice cream, and easy to start whenever I get any other kind?”

The Pontiac President was understandably skeptical about the letter, but sent an Engineer to check it out. The engineer was surprised to be greeted by a well educated man in a fine neighborhood.

He had arranged to meet the man just after dinner time, so the two hopped into the car and drove to the ice cream store. It was vanilla ice cream that night and, sure enough, after they came back to the car, it wouldn't start.

The Engineer returned for three more nights. The first night, they got chocolate. The car started. The second night, he got strawberry. The car started. The third night he ordered vanilla. The car failed to start.

Now the engineer, being a logical man, refused to believe that this man's car was allergic to vanilla ice cream. He arranged, therefore, to continue his visits for as long as it took to solve the problem. And toward this end he began to take notes: He jotted down all sorts of data: time of day, type of gas used, time to drive back and forth, etc.

Ultimately, he had a clue: the man took less time to buy vanilla than any other flavor. Why? The answer was in the layout of the store. Vanilla, being the most popular flavor, was in a separate case at the front of the store for quick pickup. All the other flavors were kept in the back of the store at a different counter where it took considerably longer to check out the flavor.

Now, the question for the Engineer was why the car wouldn't start when it took less time.
Eureka - Time was now the problem - not the vanilla ice cream!!!! The engineer quickly came up with the answer: "vapor lock".It was happening every night; but the extra time taken to get the other flavors allowed the engine to cool down sufficiently to start. When the man got vanilla, the engine was still too hot for the vapor lock to dissipate.

Even crazy looking problems are sometimes real and all problems seem to be simple only when we find the solution, with cool thinking.

Don't just say it is " IMPOSSIBLE" without putting a sincere effort....
Observe the word "IMPOSSIBLE" carefully... .
Looking closer you will see it is, "POSSIBLE"...
What really matters is your attitude and your perception.

Necessity is Mother of Invention

2006-12-13T06:58:00.000+05:00

Isn't necessity the mother of invention?
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://pkblogs.com/iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Funny, isn’t it ?

2006-12-09T08:41:00.000+05:00

Every body is more worried about what others think of him / her
than what he / she should actually be.

All want to be great provided
they don’t have to do good to others.

We believe what the newspapers say,
but question the truth that God says.
.
May Allah guide us to the right path. Aameen.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Happy Birthday to Zakaria

2006-12-07T07:50:00.000+05:00

May Allah
Bless Zakaria
with
Success,
Prosperity
and
Everlasting Happiness,
Aameen

Best kind of friend

2006-12-05T08:40:00.000+05:00

The best kind of a friend is

the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with,

never say a word, and then

walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you have ever had.
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Hypocrisy in Singapore

2006-12-01T06:30:00.000+05:00

Muslim Girls are banned from wearing headscarves in Singapore Schools because their right to wear a scarf is not protected by the law.

Right of Sikh boys to wear a turban is protected by British law which is still in force.

Why are Muslim Girls banned from wearing headscarves in Singapore Schools and Sikhs allowed to wear Turbans?

Why is it that when she covers her hair it is seen as oppression and when he covers his it is seen as religion?

An example of democracy, manners and love for human rights of some of the educated and developed people of the Western World.

WHAT ELSE IS KNOWN AS HYPOCRISY ?

Courtesy: Hijab Hypocrisy

Learn to Love

2006-11-27T06:30:00.000+05:00

If you want to start love successfully

you must learn

manners

and . . . . . to be patient

*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://pkblogs.com/iftikharajmal - - میں کیا ہوں

Religious Hypocrisy

2006-11-23T07:20:00.000+05:00

Buddhist Nuns veil themselves. No one calls it sexist. It is seen as their devotion to God.

Christian Nuns veil themselves. No one calls it sexist. It is seen as their devotion to God.

When Muslim Girls and Women veil themselves, why is it seen as Rebellion, Oppression, Treason, Extremism, Ignorance, Sexism and everything but Devotion to God!

Muslims are the only ones required to cover so they will be the only ones forbidden!

Courtesy: Hijab Hypocrisy

Hypocrisy of the Torch Bearers of Humanity

2006-11-19T07:05:00.000+05:00

This is a painting of the Virgin Mary by Catholics. Notice that she is not wearing a mini-skirt. This is how they see her. But they see Muslim Women with contempt if they choose to dress like her.

Widows often veil themselves. This is seen as admirable. It shows their devotion to their dead husbands. When a Muslim woman practices her devotion to the Almighty (who never dies) by veiling herself, it is seen as despicable.

Amish Christian ladies cover their hair and body properly. They are seen as devout. Although people might disagree with their way of life they are respected. The fact that they cover their hair does not make them a target of feminists as they do it because of their devotion to God.

Religious Jewish women cover their hair with a headscarf or a wig. There are no plans in any country to ban or restrict their right to do so. Their religion orders them to do it and they are allowed to do it to please their Creator unhindered.

Why are Muslim women seen as oppressed? Is there any difference between the cloth that covers their heads and what covers so many others?
Why are girls not allowed to cover hair in France for religious reasons but are allowed for Fashion?
How will a school tell if a girl is covering for religion.

Courtesy: Hijab Hypocrisy

Hypocrisy in France and Germany

2006-11-15T11:54:00.000+05:00

A Nun covers her hair. The Bible orders it at Corinthians, Chap 11 verses 3-10. She is allowed to teach in German Schools

A Muslim lady covers her hair. The Quran orders it at 7:26, 24:31, 33:59. She is banned from teaching in German Schools.

Religious! Allowed! A Bride wears a Veil she is seen as dignified. She is allowed to get married in French registry offices.

Oppressed! Banned! A Muslim Girl wears a Veil. She is labeled Oppressed. She is banned from getting married in French registry offices.

Courtesy: Hijab Hypocrisy

Fantastic Hotels

2006-11-11T08:28:00.000+05:00

Double Faced-ness of the West

2006-11-07T06:47:00.000+05:00

The Western world keeps on shouting loud that they are for freedom of speech. Was this not said by all the Western governments when blasphemous cartoons were published by newspapers in their countries?

Recently, France has passed a law under which saying that Turks did not commit massacre of 1.5 million Armenians during 1915 – 1917 AD, is a punishable crime. Forgetting what are the facts (which may be otherwise), is this law not banning freedom of speech and for a matter which has no written records?

Not agreeing that Adolph Hitler committed holocaust by killing 6 million Jews in gas chambers is already a punishable crime for which some persons had been punished and are behind the bars.

Perusal of past history reveals that they have always been bent upon discovering fault in their opponents, especially, Muslims. When somebody speaks in favour of the atrocities and mass murders committed by the West, it is democracy and freedom of speech otherwise it is a crime.

Would it not have been appropriate for Paris to examine its own horrible atrocities perpetrated upon the Algerian Muslims during their war of liberation from French rule in the 1950s? Similarly, the genocide of the Bosnian and Kosovar Muslims by the Serbs in the 1990s is yet another subject needing a sympathetic consideration by the international community.Stalin regime in the Soviet Union during early 1930s had murdered 7 million Ukrainians and sent 2 million to concentration camps which swell to 5.5 million by the end of World War II.

What about genocide of 2 million Soviet Muslims, including Bashkirs, Chechens, Crimeans, Ingush, Kazakhs, Tajiks and Tatars. In addition to these, was the killing of 2 million ethnic Germans, mainly consisting of women and children as well as the violent expulsion of 15 million more Germans molesting 2 million girls and women.
Why American forces killed one million Vietnamese from 1965 to 1973?

Moscow’s occupation of Afghanistan in 1979 caused death and injuries to two million Afghans and drove 5 million into Pakistan and Iran.

What about dropping nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by USA mass killing of over 200,000 Japanese civilians, and destroying and occupying Iraq Afghanistan killing hundreds of thousands civilians.

What Israel has been doing in the Middle East (with support from USA) and India in Jammu Kashmir for the last six decades and their military men raping women not sparing minor girls of 10 years and old women of 70 years?
Was it all democracy and act of human love? Could there be worst Hypocrisy than this?

Progress ? ? ?

2006-11-03T07:20:00.000+05:00

While searching for something on the web, I came across Transparency International’s recent report which was published on August 11, 2006. It has some interesting data to ponder.

Increase in Corruption During various Governments

Benazir . . . . . . . . . . 1988 – 1990 = 8 %
Nawaz Sharif . . . . . 1990 – 1993 = 10 %
Benazir . . . . . . . . . . 1993 – 1996 = 48 %
Nawaz Sharif . . . . . 1996 – 1999 = 34 %
Pervez Musharraf . .1999 – 2002 = 32.69 %
Pervez Musharraf 2002 – 2006 = 67.31 %

Present Mutual Corruption Rating of Provinces

Punjab . . . . . . = 42.7 %
Sindh . . . . . . . = 28.7 %
Balochistan . = 15.1 %
NWFP . . . . . .= 13.5 %

Order of Corruption in 2002 and 2006
Most corrupt at top and least corrupt at bottom
It will be seen that Judiciary and Land department have excelled in corruption.

Year 2002 . . . . Year 2006

Police . . . . . . . . Police
Power . . . . . . . . Power
Taxation . . . . . . Judiciary
Judiciary . . . . . Land
Custom . . . . . . . Taxation
Health . . . . . . . . Custom
Land . . . . . . . . . Health
Education . . . . . Education
Railway . . . . . . . Railway
Bank . . . . . . . . . Bank

Present Mutual Corruption Rating of Institutions
Not-at-all-corrupt gets zero. Score 4 means extremely corrupt.

Institution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Score

Political Parties . . . . . . . . . 3.0 = 75.0 %
Parliament/Legislature . . 2.7 = 67.5 %
Police . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6 = 65.0 %
Legal System/Judiciary . 2.5 = 62.5 %
Business/Private Sector . . 2.4 = 60.0 %
Tax Revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4 = 60.0 %
Customs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 = 57.5 %
Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 = 55.0 %
Medical Services . . . . . . . . 2.2 = 55.0 %
Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.0 = 50.0 %
Education System . . . . . . . 2.0 = 50.0 %
Military . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.9 = 47.5 %
Registry & Permit Services 1.9 = 47.5 %
N G Os . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.8 = 45.0 %
Religious bodies . . . . . . . 1.6 = 40.0 %

Is this called Democracy and Equality?

2006-10-30T07:36:00.000+05:00

USA, UK, Russia, France, China had hundreds to thousands of Weapons of Mass Destruction (Nuclear devices). Israel also had over hundred such WMDs unannounced though.

When India tested her Nuclear Device objections were raised by the Western powers but there was not much of fuss. Finding threat of WMDs at door and then blatant warnings by Indian leaders including that by India’s Prime Minister, Pakistan decided test Nuclear device. Pakistan informed the big powers and neighbouring countries about the test to be performed. Hell broke and threats and warnings started pouring in from USA and UK as if all the earlier WMDs of seven countries together were roses and if Pakistan tested the device, perhaps, skies will collapse. After the test, stringent embargos were slapped on Pakistan.

Now North Korea, being under threat of the Western powers, has tested a nuclear device and skies appear to be falling again. All sorts of embargos have been slapped on North Korea through UNO.

No body ever asked Israel why she had about 200 of Nuclear WMDs without ever announcing even the capability to produce one.

No body questions who has used Nuclear devices so far (at Hiroshima and Nagasaki)? No body asks who used dilapidated Uranium in Afghanistan and Iraq. That all, perhaps, was showers of roses.

N-Powers’ Arsenal:

U. S. A. : More than 5,000 strategic warheads, more than 1,000 operational tactical weapons meant for the battlefield and less powerful than the strategic arms and approximately 3,000 reserve and tactical warheads.

Russia: Nearly 5,000 strategic warheads, and approximately 3,500 operational tactical warheads. In addition, it has more than 11,000 strategic and tactical warheads in storage.

France: Approximately 350 strategic warheads.

China: As many as 250 strategic warheads and 150 tactical warheads.

U.K. : About 200 strategic warheads.

Israel: Refuses to confirm it is a nuclear weapons state but is generally assumed to have up to 200 nuclear warheads.

India: Between 45 and 95 nuclear warheads.

Pakistan: Between 30 and 50 nuclear warheads.

North Korea: Believed to have enough fissile material for about a half-dozen weapons, but estimates vary widely and are unverifiable.

Life Cycle of Woman

2006-10-26T09:43:00.000+05:00

The movie clip shows life cycle of women

Men! Please, don’t envy. Men also have a life cycle:

Born – Ate – Slept – Ate – Slept - - - - - Died

PS: Do not think the other way. I am a man

Will New be Visible Today

2006-10-23T16:00:00.000+05:00

Why moon sight is important?

Make the decision yourself after seeing the images.
.

Image at the top represents the astronomical position as on October 23. It is claimed that 1% of moon is visible
.
.

Image in the middle represents the astronomical position as on October 24. It is claimed that 4% of moon is visible.

Image at the bottom represents the astronomical position as on October 25. It is claimed that 9% of moon is visible

Greetings

2006-10-22T09:53:00.000+05:00

On the auspicious day of Eid ul Fitr, heart-felt sincere fecilitations from me and my family to all Muslims, especially of Pakistan origin. May Allah grant your fasts and prayers and bless you with everlasting good health, happiness and prosperity. Amen.

Please do not forget the people affected by devastating earth quack of October 08, 2005. They need you sypthy as well as material help

The Truth – Musharraf Vs Nawaz

2006-10-18T08:25:00.000+05:00

More to Clinton-Nawaz rendezvous than known
By Nayyar Zaidi
WASHINGTON: “(President Bill) Clinton asked (Prime Minister Mian Nawaz) Sharif if he knew how advanced the threat of nuclear war really was. Did Sharif know his military was preparing their nuclear tipped missiles?”

This is an account of the July 4, 1999, meeting between Clinton and Sharif at the White House by Bruce Riedel, then a Clinton adviser, who was the note-taker during the exclusive Clinton-Sharif meeting.

In an October 13 interview on an Urdu TV channel, Gen Pervez Musharraf claimed that his version of Kargil is “the truth and the whole truth”.

Riedel has written an account of that historic meeting titled “American Diplomacy and the 1999 Kargil Summit at Blair House”, published by the Center for the Advanced Study of India, University of Pennsylvania.

“Sharif then asked that the meeting continue just with the two leaders. Everyone left the room except Sharif, Clinton and myself,” Riedel says. “The President insisted he wanted a record of the event. Sharif asked again to be left alone, Clinton refused.”

This categorically contradicts General Musharraf’s claim: “I can also say with authority that in 1999 our nuclear capability was not yet operational.” On page 97 of his book “In the Line of Fire”, Gen Musharraf says this while rebutting what he called the “fourth myth”, i.e. “we came to the brink of nuclear war”.

It is highly unlikely that the president of the United States was bluffing on the real probability of nuclear war.

Actually, in terms of a potential nuclear clash, Clinton compared the Kargil situation to the 1962 Cuban missile crisis where the Americans and the Soviets were on the brink of a nuclear war.

Gen Musharraf claims (page 96) that on July 2, 1999, he personally briefed the Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC) and “actually laid out the entire military picture. I covered all possible hypotheses of enemy actions in the air, the sea, and on land”. He claims to have said in the DCC meeting “that the Indian forces despite their massive strength would never be able to dislodge the freedom fighters and NLI (Northern Light Infantry) from their ingress and positions held by them”.

The head of US Central Command, General Anthony Zinni, arrived in Islamabad on June 24, 1999. The same day Associated Press quoted Indian military officials saying, “In Kashmir today, Indian jets fired laser-guided bombs at Islamic guerrilla strongholds, preparing to capture strategic peak, Tiger Hill....At dawn, Indian jet fighters carried out four bombing runs....All four strikes were successful....Ground troops had ringed the peak and were preparing to evict 30-40 guerrillas from the stronghold above India’s National Highway 1. In two weeks of battles, India has cleared two other peaks.”

Indians did not have “laser-guided bombs”, also called “smart bombs”. They had asked the United States to provide laser-guided bombs. Earlier, and for the record, the US had declined. But obviously, Indians did use laser-guided bombs which had turned the tide of the war by June 24, 1999, when Zinni landed in Islamabad with a tough message from Clinton. Laser-guided bombs could smash high-altitude positions with accuracy.

By mid-June Indians were boasting of the acquisition of $50,000 a piece bomb to strike those positions, according to a source. Interestingly, Indians did not deploy troops along the international border sitting quietly as if they knew the eventual outcome would be in their favour.

In his October 13, 2006, TV interview, Gen Musharraf reportedly said: “I call Raja Zafarul Haq a liar if he doesn’t speak the truth now” because, according to Musharraf, Haq had attended the July 2 meeting. But Haq doesn’t have to speak because, according to Riedel, Sharif had called Clinton on July 2, 1999, apparently after the DCC meeting, and “appealed for American intervention immediately to stop the fighting....” Riedel says Sharif told Clinton he could come on July 4, leaving Islamabad on July 3. The president reshuffled his schedule to accommodate Sharif.

Musharraf told the Urdu news channel that after the July 2, 1999, DCC meeting, he went to Murree where “I received Sharif’s call in Murree at around 9pm and he asked me to reach Chaklala airport immediately. When I got to the airport, I saw Nawaz Sharif ready to fly to the US.” Musharraf claimed that Sharif went to the US and “solely decided on Kashmir”.

The visit to Washington had been in the works since Zinni’s visit between June 24 and 26. Ironically, a major Karachi English daily’s report, which covered Gen Musharraf’s speech to the media on June 26, 1999, read, “COAS: Nawaz and Clinton may meet soon over Kashmir”. It went on to say: “Talks are under way to prepare [a] meeting between Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and US President Bill Clinton on the Kashmir crisis, Pakistan Chief of Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf said today....The general declined to say when the meeting was likely to take place” but he added, “I hope soon.”

The statement went on to say that “Musharraf said the US and Pakistani sides had explained their points of view during the recent meetings. They wanted to find a solution agreeable to Pakistan, India and the United States, to cool down the current tensions and move towards a settlement of the five-decade-long dispute over Kashmir, he (Musharraf) said.” If he knew a meeting was in the works, why was he surprised to see him leaving for Washington?

Interestingly, Musharraf’s book makes no mention of Gen Zinni’s mission on Kargil or any other visit to Pakistan. Zinni is missing from the index.

Even with his hands completely tied during the Washington summit and the so-called Washington declaration being dictated to him, Sharif was able to include an amendment which said: “The President would take personal interest to encourage an expeditious resumption and intensification of bilateral efforts (i.e. Lahore) once the sanctity of the LOC had been fully restored”. Clinton accepted the amendment.

After the withdrawal from Kargil, President Clinton, says Riedel, “privately invited Sharif to send a senior trusted official to Washington to begin a discreet discussion on how to follow up on his ‘personal commitment’ to the Lahore process”.

According to Riedel, it soon became apparent, however, that “all was not well in Islamabad....We concluded the Pakistani internal situation was not ripe for Sharif to take action.” Finally, when Sharif came in late September 1999, says Riedel, “he all but said that they knew a military coup was coming. On October 12, 1999 it came....”

Riedel says President Clinton instructed to “do all we could to convince the new Pakistani leadership not to execute Sharif....President urged Musharraf to let Sharif free. With our encouragement the Saudis pressed hard for Sharif’s freedom.”

Kargil could not have been planned if then chief of army staff, Gen Jehangir Karamat, retired on time, i.e. January 10, 1999, because it would have been too late to plan and take positions by February. But Gen Karamat, by sheer coincidence, found a way to get out of the way in October 1998. After his retirement, Gen Karamat became the first chief of army staff to head for employment in the United States, taking up his first assignment at the Brookings Institution.

Who gained the most from the Kargil adventure? Unmistakably, the United States. “Doors opened to Americans in New Delhi that had been shut for years. The Indian elite, including the military, and the Indian pubic began to shed long held negative perceptions of the US,” says Riedel. That seems closer to“the truth and the whole truth”.

Quotes . . . Quotable ???

2006-10-14T12:08:00.000+05:00

President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf during his tour of America noted about his Afghan counterpart: “This is most terrible and I don’t like one bit of it that we should be on such a course where he is bad-mouthing Pakistan and I’m attacking him. This is a sign of defeat and weakness and is setback for the whole coalition for whatever we are doing in that region.”

At another point he stated: “I really got tired of going everywhere and giving all these hundred interviews but this is what I tried to achieve: If I can change the mind of this President Karzai, then we will go together to fight the enemy and fight the problem. Now we are fighting ourselves.”

On hostile media and unfounded allegations: “My natural instinct is to fight back. Agar koi mujahee aik sunae tu mein unhein pundra suna doon ga.”

His reaction to a BBC interview was: “He (interviewer) had the audacity to ask me that ISI should be dismantled and I said what the hell are you talking and let him have it then with equal anger. I was very aggressive and told him that you expect us to tell you to dismantle your MI6 for not doing well.”

On outdated list of Taliban handed over to him by the Afghan intelligence chief: “I told him is this your intelligence that you waited for the presidential visit to hand it over…in fact I was very rude to him.”

On development projects: “Ladies and gentlemen, we have also built a coastal highway and you can drive on it as fast as your car drives.”

On his strengths, President Musharraf said: “I have a few strengths and one is that I am a Sayed. I have been inside Khana Kaaba seven times and I am the only leader who went to the roof of Khana Kaaba. I’ve been to Madina six times.”

Referring to the Hudood ordinance and Women’s Protection Bill, President Musharraf pointed to two Pakistani women journalists present at the press conference in New York on September 27 and stated: “There are these two ladies sitting here and we must do something for them and I’m with them on this issue. And I don’t care whatever destabilisation takes place. It will be done, this must be done. This has to be done and we have to pass a bill.”

The most embarrassing moment experienced was when some 1,000 Pakistani-Americans assembled at a glitzy New York hotel to watch the much-publicised CBS interview on the eve of President Musharraf’s book launch. The occasion was sheer embarrassment for the Pakistanis. Musharraf was introduced as the president of a country where the “Pakistani evil of A.Q. Khan lives” and Pakistan was described as the ‘most dangerous’ country.

The president arrived at the function after the interview had been aired and perhaps to make up for the super let-down spoke extempore for more than two hours non-stop, testing the endurance of the guests and scores of US secret service personnel looking after his security. Realising that he had set a record, the president in the end quipped: “I think I have never spoken so much but I thought I would test myself after the open-heart surgery.”

OVERCONFIDENCE: On domestic front, president’s loud and clear message throughout the visit was: all is under control. Rubbishing rumours of a military coup in Pakistan, he categorically stated: “The army follows me, the army likes me. I’m relaxed as the army and military is with me. So how can anything happen there? Nothing will happen there ever.”

At another point, he asserted: “Pakistan army never gets defeated and what we do is from a position of strength.”

Public Welfare Projects

2006-10-10T11:13:00.000+05:00

People as well as the money lending / donor organizations often wonder why fruit of public projects does not become apparent. The sketches below describe the process of implementation of public welfare projects.

*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

The disastrous Jolt of Last October 8

2006-10-08T07:54:00.000+05:00

One year back, Free part of Jammu Kashmir and Northern provinces of Pakistan were severely jolted but Free part of Jammu Kashmir and Northern areas of Pakistan had become valley of death. Nearly all buildings had come down. It was 7.6 magnitude earthquake that wreaked havoc.

Last year, it was death and destruction but this time it may be disease and hunger. With humanitarian corps pulled out long ago and generous Pakistanis only very little in sight, the challenge is still right here haunting the 3.5 million people.Today, the survivors stand alone amid the debris of their homes and desires.

A year after the earthquake, the reconstruction could hardly kick off. The most vulnerable tucked on the mountain slopes of Neelum, Leepa, Kaghan, Naran, Bisham, Allai valleys and other remain under-served. The payment of so called 'compensation' installments remains more controversial than the very amount of money being offered to reconstruct the homes and start lives afresh.

The earthquake zone ranging from the outskirts of Abbottabad to the shaken peaks of Allai, Neelum and Leepa mountains, scores of survivors are awaiting the first installment of the government-announced compensation while the Erra bureaucracy claims to have so far disbursed Rs25 billion among the victims as compensation.

Ironically, however, last year it was a, but this year it could be a harsh winter that threatens the ill-equipped, under-nourished and homeless 3.5 million survivors.
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Self-respect is priceless

2006-10-05T07:18:00.000+05:00

Here are three letters published in Dawn

From Karachi by HUMA
President Pervez Musharraf’s book In the Line of Fire is no doubt written in a very readable style though its contents are highly controversial. But what simply cannot be forgiven, considering the fact that a publisher of repute has published it, are the many errors in the dates of important events. Here is a list of some of the errors I detected:

Iskander Mirza’s coup: Oct 8, 1958 (it was Oct 7) – p. 156
Ayub Khan’s coup: Oct 28, 1958 (it was Oct 27, 1958) – p. 156
Year of Benazir Bhutto’s second dismissal: 1997 (it was November 1996) – p.162
Census in Pakistan: 1997 (it was 1998) – p.169

Any good editor familiar with Pakistan’s history could have corrected these dates immediately.

From Karachi by Akber
With reference to Ms Huma's letter (Sept 27) pointing out the errors in dates in President Musharraf's book In the Line of Fire, I may add one more. On page 16, the author writes, "Lord Louis Mountbatten, the last viceroy, persuaded London that Britain could not hold on till then (June 1948) and had the date moved forward to August 1947. This was announced in April 1947." That is wrong. It was the June 3 plan (1947) that announced that India would be partitioned and the British would withdraw from the subcontinent.

President Musharraf is also reported to have defended in New York his move to write his memoir while in office. He says this is not unprecedented and cites the example of Nelson Mandela. The president would be well advised to revise his history. The Long Walk to Freedom was written earlier and published in mid 1994. South Africa's first all-race elections were held in April 1994.Mandela was inaugurated as the president of South Africa on May 10, 1994. That is the cut-off point for the book. He didn't write any book while in office.

From London (UK) by an Indian, Vipul Thakore
Officials were aghast and journalists were incredulous when Gen Musharraf turned a White House press conference into a book promotion, helped in some measure by President Bush who was only too happy to have his ally duck the question pertaining to the reported threat by Mr Armitage to bomb Pakistan into the Stone Age.

For President Musharraf some extra book royalty dollars are more important than the ‘izzat’ of the proud people of Pakistan, as he ridiculed his own country publicly. The latest revelation smacks of cowardice and submission.

No Indian leader would like to do or dare to do such a thing, as sovereign people of India would just get rid of him or her. They taught Indira Gandhi a lesson for declaring even a brief spell of emergency. The people of Pakistan, while individually brave and with care for honour, are impotent in front of the guns of their own army.

India’s main political parties have unanimously criticised President Gen Pervez Musharraf’s version of the Kargil conflict as detailed in his autobiography as more lies from Musharraf. President Musharraf’s attempt to undermine the Indian army to save his personal reputation from self-inflicted damage will come back to haunt him and Pakistan. In this he has performed another disservice for Pakistan.
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Islam was not spread with Sword – Says a Jew Scholar

2006-10-01T15:39:00.000+05:00

Excerpts from an article of Uri Avnery who once was a member of the Knesset and Irgun, and was Jew commando fighter in the 1948 war with Arabs

The struggle between the Emperors and the Popes played a central role in European history and divided the peoples. Some Emperors dismissed or expelled a Pope, some Popes dismissed or excommunicated an Emperor. But there were times when Emperors and Popes lived in peace with each other. We are witnessing such a period today. Between the present Pope, Benedict XVI, and the present Emperor, George Bush II, there exists a wonderful harmony. Last week's speech by the Pope, which aroused a world-wide storm, went well with Bush's crusade against "Islamofascism," in the context of the "Clash of Civilizations."

In order to prove the lack of reason in Islam, the Pope asserts that the prophet Muhammad ordered his followers to spread their religion by the sword.

Jesus said: "You will recognize them by their fruits." The treatment of other religions by Islam must be judged by a simple test: How did the Muslim rulers behave for more than a thousand years, when they had the power to "spread the faith by the sword"? Well, they just did not.

For many centuries, the Muslims ruled Greece. Did the Greeks become Muslims? Did anyone even try to Islamize them? On the contrary, Christian Greeks held the highest positions in the Ottoman administration. The Bulgarians, Serbs, Romanians, Hungarians and other European nations lived at one time or another under Ottoman rule and clung to their Christian faith. Nobody compelled them to become Muslims and all of them remained devoutly Christian.

In 1099, the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem and massacred its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants indiscriminately. At that time, 400 years into the occupation of Palestine by the Muslims, Christians were still the majority in the country. Throughout this long period, no effort was made to impose Islam on them. Only after the expulsion of the Crusaders from the country, did the majority of the inhabitants start to adopt the Arabic language and the Muslim faith--and they were the forefathers of most of today's Palestinians.

There is no evidence whatsoever of any attempt to impose Islam on the Jews. As is well known, under Muslim rule the Jews of Spain enjoyed a bloom the like of which the Jews did not enjoy anywhere else until almost our time. In Muslim Spain, Jews were ministers, poets, scientists. In Muslim Toledo, Christian, Jewish and Muslim scholars worked together and translated the ancient Greek philosophical and scientific texts. That was, indeed, the Golden Age. How would this have been possible, had the Prophet decreed the "spreading of the faith by the sword"?

When the Catholics re-conquered Spain from the Muslims, they instituted a reign of religious terror. The Jews and the Muslims were presented with a cruel choice: to become Christians, to be massacred or to leave. And where did the hundreds of thousand of Jews, who refused to abandon their faith, escape? Almost all of them were received with open arms in the Muslim countries. The Sephardi ("Spanish") Jews settled all over the Muslim world, from Morocco in the west to Iraq in the east, from Bulgaria (then part of the Ottoman Empire ) in the north to Sudan in the south. Nowhere were they persecuted.

WHY? Because Islam expressly prohibited any persecution of the "peoples of the book." In Islamic society, a special place was reserved for Jews and Christians. They did not enjoy completely equal rights, but almost.

Every honest Jew who knows the history of his people cannot but feel a deep sense of gratitude to Islam, which has protected the Jews for 50 generations, while the Christian world persecuted the Jews and tried many times "by the sword" to get them to abandon their faith.

Uri Avnery is an Israeli journalist and left wing peace activist. He was a member of the Knesset from 1965 to 1973 and 1979 to 1981. As a youth, he was a member of the Revisionist Zionist paramilitary group, Irgun. In the 1948 Arab–Israel War he was a fighter in the Samson’s Foxes jeep unit and also wrote its anthem.
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Why Engineers & Scientist Remain Poor

2006-09-27T11:00:00.000+05:00

Engineers and scientists can never earn as much salary as business executives and salespeople who are much less educated. This can be supported by a mathematical equation:

Postulate 1: Knowledge is Power.
Postulate 2: Time is Money.

As every engineer knows:

Work
-------- = Power
Time

Since Knowledge = Power, and Time = Money

Work
-------- = Knowledge
Money

or

Work
--------------- = Money
Knowledge

Thus, regardless of the amount of Work done, as knowledge increases, money decreases and, if Knowledge decreases, Money increases.

Conclusion: The Less you Know, the More you get Money
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Ramadhan Mubarak

2006-09-24T06:54:00.000+05:00

.
May the Holy month of the Revelation of Qur’aan
.
Usher upon You Peace Happiness and Prosperity
.
Ramadhan Mubarak

Wretched American Military and Dumb Pakistan Army Officers

2006-09-23T06:27:00.000+05:00

Here are excerpts from “The ordeal of Mullah Zaeef” by Ayaz Amir, published in Dawn of September 22, 006. Complete article can be read by clicking on the title above or writing the following URL in your browser http://www.dawn.com/weekly/ayaz/20060922.htm

WE know, to our lasting shame, how our overlords, dazzled by American power, and afraid of God knows what, handed over the ex-Taliban ambassador, Mullah Abdus Salam Zaeef, to the Americans in January 2002 — in violation of every last comma of international law.

But until now we have not been privy to the details: how exactly did the handing-over take place? Now to satisfy our curiosity, and perhaps outrage our feelings, comes Mullah Zaeef’s own account, published in Pashto and parts of which have been translated into Urdu by the Express newspaper.

To say that the account is eye-opening would be an understatement. It is harrowing and mind-blowing. Can anyone bend so low as our government did? And can behaviour be as wretched as that displayed by American military personnel into whose custody Zaeef was given?

On the morning of January 2, 2002, three officials of a secret agency arrived at Zaeef’s house in Islamabad with this message: “Your Excellency, you are no more excellency.” One of them said, no one can resist American power, or words to that effect. “America wants to question you. We are going to hand you over to the Americans so that their purpose is served and Pakistan is saved from a big danger.”

Zaeef could have been forgiven for feeling stunned. From the “guardians of Islam” this was the last thing that he expected, that for the sake of a few “coins” (his words) he would be delivered as a “gift” to the Americans.

Under heavy escort he was taken to Peshawar, kept there for a few days and then pushed into his nightmare. Blindfolded and handcuffed, he was driven to a place where a helicopter was waiting, its engines running. Someone said, “Khuda hafiz” (God preserve you).

There were some people speaking in English. “Suddenly I was pounced upon and flung on the ground, kicked and pummelled from all sides. So sudden was the attack that I was dumbfounded... My blindfold slipping, I saw a line of Pakistani soldiers to one side and some vehicles including one with a flag...My clothes were stripped from my body and I was naked but ‘my former friends’ kept watching the spectacle. The locks on their lips I can never forget... The (Pakistani) officers present there could at least have said he is our guest, in our presence don’t treat him like this. Even in my grave I will not be able to forget that scene.”

These are the standard-bearers of human rights and freedom from whom we are supposed to take lessons in democracy. Why does the Bush administration and its acolytes in Britain so loath President Ahmedinejad of Iran and President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela? Because they look America in the eye and are not afraid of speaking the truth.

The US covered itself in a garb of hurt innocence when the Sep 11, 2001, attacks took place. But using those attacks as a pretext, it has done so much harm around the world, especially in the Middle East and our region, that its hands are covered in blood.

Indeed, if we are at all interested in sustainable development, we’ll have to think of something better and less destructive than unbridled capitalism. And something less arrogant than the new imperialism to which our region is being exposed.

And who was the senior officer, with a flag on his jeep? My course-mate Ehsan — 41st PMA — was then heading ISI, the organization in overall command of such sensitive matters.
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Bite your tongue

2006-09-19T06:59:00.000+05:00

Everything we say and do in life has consequences. Just like throwing a stone into a pond sends ripples across the water. We are free to say and do as we choose but the consequences of our words and actions are our responsibility. How many times have hasty words been spoken making a wedge between once loving friends or spouses?

Sometimes we think something bad about a person and in anger or when emotions are high, we make those thoughts vocal. If we could have waited a little, these negative thoughts may well have been replaced with more kindly ones. To speak or act while in a state of anger is really a mistake. It is a good idea to bite your tongue and wait until the next day. If the same level of emotions is present, then speak out, but most chances are you will have forgotten why you were angry.

[The good deed and the evil deed cannot be equal. Repel (the evil) with one which is better (that is, Allah directed the believers to be patient at the time of anger, and to excuse those who treat them badly), then verily he, between whom and you there was enmity, (will become) as though he was a close friend.] [Sura 41Fussilat, Verse 34]

Contributed by: Velma Cook
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

A Chase

2006-09-15T15:10:00.000+05:00

Can you imagine this happening on the interstate?

Are you scared?
It could be you if you dare it!
But it is simple
Fill light gas in missile shaped balloons Tie balloons to car with different lengths of strings Drive on an interstate like a bat out of shades And
Watch people freak out!!!!
*

Courtesy: Ms Leslie of Ferntucky

Mr Jinnah and Pakistanis

2006-09-11T09:46:00.000+05:00

On September 11, 1948, the Founder of Pakistan, Mr Muhammad Ali Jinnah, known as Great Leader (Quaid-e-Azam) by Muslims of subcontinent Indo-Pakistan, passed away from this mortal world. The right way to remember him on this day, apart from reciting Qur’aan and offering prayers for him which nearly all the People of Pakistan do, is to follow wise advices given by him from time to time. For the last few years it is being propagated by a few people who, trying to behave modern, consider Qur’aan to be a book for ancient times, that Mr Jinnah wanted to make Pakistan a secular state and not an Islamic state. The present administration of Pakistan also, to please their masters, is trying to make education secular while they are practically doing nothing for the welfare of Pakistan nation.

Below is an excerpt from the speech delivered by Mr Jinnah on November 27, 1947 at the forum of All Pakistan Educational Conference.

Under foreign rule for over a century, in the very nature of things, I regret, sufficient attention has not been paid to the education of our people, and if we are to make any real, speedy and substantial progress, we must earnestly tackle this question and bring our educational policy and program on the lines suited to the genius of our people, consonant with our history and culture, and having regard to the modern conditions and vast developments that have taken place all over the world.

“Education does not merely mean academic education, and even that appears to be of a very poor type. What we have to do is to mobilize our people and build up the character of our future generations. There is immediate and urgent need for training our people in the scientific and technical education in order to build up future economic life, and we should see that our people undertake scientific commerce, trade and particularly, well-planned industries. Also I must emphasize that greater attention should be paid to technical and vocational education.

In short, we have to build up the character of our future generations which means highest sense of honor, integrity, selfless service to the nation, and sense of responsibility, and we have to see that they are fully qualified or equipped to play their part in the various branches of economic life in a manner which will do honor to Pakistan.”
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

My Blog in Urdu can be visited at any of the following websites
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.wordpress.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Second Anniversary

2006-09-10T05:58:00.000+05:00

When I started my this Blog on September 10, 2004, I was skeptical of its surviving even for some months. In spite of entries being of serious and dry nature, al-hamdu lillah, today, with the grace of Allah Subhanohu wa ta’ala, it has completed two years.

In February, 2006, Government functionaries blocked the domain of Blogspot in stead of blocking the individual Blog that had committed blasphemy. Though I was able to operate my Blog through proxy but it entailed loss of time and inconvenience. This forced many bloggers in Pakistan to change domains for the sake of readers in Pakitan but I kept my Blogspot Blog in tact and duplicated it on Wordpress.

There were 11,727 visits and the 15,732 page views of this Blog in two years. The number of visits and page views during the second year were 8,543 and 10,977 respectively, that is an average of over 23 visits and 30 page views per day. This does not include spam visits / comments.

I must be failing in my duty if I do not place on record my profound thanks to the worthy visitors of my Blog. It was their interest and guidance that encouraged me to carry on and make this Blog a success. May Allah bless all of you with everlasting good health and prosperity. Aameen.

Countries and Towns of the visitors of this Blog

Pakistan Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi and other places
Algeria Alger
Bahrain Manama
Egypt Cairo, Qutur, Al Gharbiyah and other places
Iran Chahar Mahall, va Bakhtiari, Tehran, Sina, Bushehr
Iraq Baghdad
Lebanon Beirut
Libya Tripoli
Malaysia Kampong Seri Medan, Wilayah Persekutuan, Petaling, Jaya and other places
Morocco Rabat
Oman Muscat
Qatar Doha
Saudi Arabia Riyadh and other places
U A E Dubai
Yemen Sana, Hadramawt
Australia Oxford Park, Queensland, Dobroyd Point, Terrey Hills, New South Wales
Botswana Gaborone, South-East
Canada Hamilton Ontario, Montral Quebec Calgary, Alberta
Denmark Stavtrup, Arhus
Germany Wiesbaden, Hessen, Schwbisch Hall, Baden-Wurttemberg, Dibbesdorf, Niedersachsen, Potsdam, Brandenburg Reinbek, Schleswig-Holstein, Bornheim, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Braunschweig, Niedersachsen
India Bangalore, Karnataka Pande, Maharashtra, Delhi, Kulurkudru, Karnataka, Bangalore, Bombay, Delhi Ambarpet, Andhra Pradesh and other places
Israel Al Musrarah, Yerushalayim
Italy Tavagnacco, Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Netherlands Heino, Overijssel Nieuwkoop, Zuid-Holland
Norway Oslo
Philippines Bel-Air Two, Rizal
Singapore Singapore Dakar

South Africa Johannesburg, Gauteng
Spain Granada and Rota, Andalucia Madrid
Sweden Gothenburg, Vastra Gotaland
Switzerland Wald, Glarus
Thailand Bangkok, Krung Thep
U K Lincoln, Lincolnshire, Shepherds Bush, Newham, Winchester, Hampshire, Roehampton, Bromley, Egham, Slough, Huddersfield, Kirklees.
U S A Los Gatos, El Dorado Hills, Los Angeles, Sunnyvale, Santa Ana (California), Kent, Dayton, Wisconsin, Dallas, Killeen, Denton, Arlington, College Station, Austin, Houston, Flower Mound (Texas), Phoenix, (Arizona), Omaha (Nebraska), Nashville (Tennessee), Chicago (Illinois), Louisville (Kentucky), Royal Oak (Michigan), Atlanta, Athens (Georgia), Las Vegas, Reno (Nevada), Fall Creek (Milwaukee), Brookfield (Wisconsin), Kent, Columbus (Ohio), Denver, Colorado (New York), Brookfield (Connecticut), Arlington, Falls Church (Virginia), Tampa (Florida), Seattle (Washington)

And some unidentified countries
*
This Blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com
You can visit my Blog in Urdu by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Two Best Friends

2006-09-07T00:14:00.000+05:00

During journey through the desert two friends had an argument and one slapped the other. The one hurt wrote in the sand:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE

Later they reached an oasis and decided to take bath. One who had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started drowning but the other saved him. Then he wrote on a stone:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE.

The friend who had slapped and saved him asked, "After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on a stone, why?"

The other replied, "When someone hurts us we should write it in sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Change of Blog Title

2006-09-06T11:07:00.000+05:00

For the past about one year, I have been receiving suggestion that title of Blog “Hypocrisy Thy Name”, except for the initial few months’ posts, is not consonant with majority of the later posts and should be changed.

Agreeing with the opinion of the worthy readers, I decided to change the title on the occasion of second anniversary of this Blog which falls on 10th September, 2006.

The new title is:

Reality Is Often Bitter – حقائق عموماً تلخ ہوتے ہيں

However, the URL will remain unchanged as:
http://hypocrisythyname.blogspot.com

*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

The Pet

2006-09-04T08:32:00.000+05:00

If a pet is over-fed, it becomes stronger than it’s master.

Isn’t it true for Israel and USA?

*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Balochistan and Bush's Geater M E Projct

2006-08-31T07:36:00.000+05:00

President of USA, George W Bush, mentioned “Greater Middle East Project” more than once but did not give it’s details. An article written by Ralph Peters was published in US “Armed Forces Journal” in June this year which, when became talk of the town all over Middle East, was swept aside by saying that it was view of an individual but the question is that why this idea was at all floated and then publishes in the “Armed Forces Journal”?

These days it is a strategy to float an idea to get feed-back and observe the general reaction for better preparedness for executing the plan. Also after hearing the same idea for some time people in general become less reactive to the idea thus easing the task of the executor.

This article has dealt with in depth what is the “Greater Middle East Project” and also drawn the future map of “Greater Middle East”. After reading the article it strikes one’s mind that Army operation in Balochistan could be a link of the said project because the operation could initiate revolt and which could make ground for foreign involvement. Now one can say that occupying Afghanistan and Iraq and threatening Iran of an armed attack could also be linked with the said project. How cleverly Bush administration is getting it’s plan implemented through it’s so-called friends, the unthinking Muslim Rulers.

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have been declared to be unnatural states in the said plan. According to the said plan, new states of Free Shia Arab, Free Balochistan and Free Kurditan will be created by cutting other Muslim states main losers in the game will be Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The new Saudi Arabia will comprise of only Riyadh and some surrounding area which will be one of the tribal based many states created by taking away most of Saudi Arabia and a part of United Arab Emirates. Hijaz will be made an international sacred state. Pakistan will comprise of only Punjab and Karachi. Balochistan, tribal areas of Sind and Bloch area of Iran will make the so-called Free Balochistan. North Western Frontier Province of Pakistan will be added to Afghanistan.

According to the said plan Iraq will be divided in two parts. The area belonging to Sunnis and Kurd area of Turkey will be form the so-called Free Kurdistan. The remaining Iraq, Shia area of Saudi Arabia and Western shore of Iran will be made in to the so-called Shia Arab which state will be opposing Iran.

In accordance with the said plan, shape of Kuwait, Dubai, Qatar, Oman and Israel will be protected and all the Muslims countries from the East of Egypt to the West of India and from Southern border of Europe to Northern border of Oman will change shape. Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Jordon, Lebanon, and Yemen will gain while Saudi Arab, Pakistan, Iraq, Turkey, Palestine, Abu Dhabi and Syria will be the losers.

Present shapes of countries

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Proposed Plan

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

President's Chair

2006-08-27T07:36:00.000+05:00

Dictator sticks to his rule as if he had been clamped with the country's ruler's chair and, if he tries to move away, he will get trapped.

Isn’t it true for our country ?
*
*
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Good Governance

2006-08-23T07:34:00.000+05:00

On August 17, 2006, information was placed before the Senate by Minister of State for Economic Affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar, in response to two different questions of ruling Pakistan Muslim League Senator from Sindh, Nisar Memon. He had asked for retail prices of items of everyday use during the past 10 years

According to the minister, beef was available for Rs53.59 per kg in the year 1999 which was now being sold at Rs108.78 per kg. (The fact is that beef was available for Rs 60 per kg in 1999 while now it is Rs 150 per kg)The minister told the house that mutton was available for Rs101.55 per kg in 1999 which was now being sold for Rs204.03 per kg. (The fact is that in 1999 Mutton was Rs 100 per kg and now it is Rs 250 to 260 per kg)

She said Dal Mash was available for Rs32.02 per kg in 1999 whereas it was Rs 69.37 per kg on June 30 this year. Fact is that Dal Mash was available at Rs 32 per kg in 1999 while since May, 2006 it is being sold at Rs 80 to 90 per kg.

Ms Hina Rabbani Khar said that the price of milk was Rs16.72 per liter in 1999 and it had now increased to Rs 24.33 per kg while the fact is that in 1999 it was Rs 16 per liter and now it is minimum Rs 28, though milk mixed with water is available at lower price.

The minister did not mention Petrol (Gasoline / Motor Spirit) the price of which was Rs 22.60 per liter on October 12, 1999 when elected government was removed by military might and, having been increased by leaps and bounds, is about Rs 58 per liter for the past some months, that is more than two and a half times.

Peculiarity of minister’s statement is that she has given prices to two places of decimal while prices of the said items had never been in decimal over the past at least 20 years.

The above is a proof how ignorant our present government functionaries are about affairs of our country.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

At ATM

2006-08-19T06:17:00.000+05:00

I have received this through e-mail from London (UK), so it is not for Pakistan.

How a BOY withdraws cash from ATM
1. Park the car
2. Go to ATM Machine
3. Insert card
4. Enter PIN
5. Take money out
6. Take ATM Card out
7. Drive away

How a GIRL withdraws cash from ATM
1. Park the car
2. Check makeup
3. Turn off engine
4. Check makeup
5. Go to ATM
6. Hunt for ATM card in the purse
7. Insert card
8. Hit Cancel
9. Hunt in purse for chit with PIN written on it
10. Insert card
11. Enter PIN
12. Take cash
13. Go to car
14. Check makeup
15. Start car
16. Stop car
17. Run back to ATM
18. Take ATM card
19. Back to car
20. Check makeup
21. Start car
22. Check makeup
23. Drive for 1/2 mile
24. Release handbrake
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

UK made arrests on Washington pressure

2006-08-15T06:32:00.000+05:00

UK made arrests on Washington pressure:
Plane attack was not imminent: Official

NBC News reported that US and British authorities had a significant disagreement over when to move in on the suspects in the alleged plot to bring down trans-Atlantic airliners bound for the United States.

A British official said the uk police were planning to continue to run surveillance for at least another week to try to obtain more evidence, while American officials pressured them to arrest the suspects sooner.

In contrast to previous reports, the official suggested an attack was not imminent, saying the suspects had not yet purchased any airline tickets. In fact, some did not even have passports.

The source did say, however, that police believe one UK-based suspect was ready to conduct a ‘dry run’. British authorities had wanted to let him go forward with part of the plan, but the Americans balked.

An aide to President George Bush denied the account.”There was unprecedented cooperation and coordination between the US, the UK and Pakistani officials throughout the case,” said Frances Townsend, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, “and we worked together to protect our citizens from harm while ensuring that we gathered as much info as possible to bring the plotters to justice. There was no disagreement between US and UK officials.

”The British official said the Americans also argued over the timing of the arrest of suspected ringleader Rashid Rauf in Pakistan, warning that if he was not taken into custody immediately, the US would ‘render’ him or pressure the Pakistani government to arrest him.

British security was concerned that Mr Rauf be taken into custody “in circumstances where there was due process,” according to the official, “so that he could be tried in British courts”. “Ultimately”, the official says, “Mr Rauf was arrested over the objections of the British”.

The official said that some suspects were known to the security services even before the London subway bombings last year.

Monitoring of Mr Rauf, in particular, apparently played a critical role, revealing that the plotters had tested the explosive liquid mixture they planned to use at a location outside Britain.

NBC News had previously reported that the explosive mixture was tested in Pakistan.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Perseverance Day

2006-08-14T07:27:00.000+05:00

يومِ استقلال مبارک

پاکستان پائيندہ باد

Quaid-i-Azam had declared 14 August as

Perseverance Day - - - يومِ استقلال

For the last 55 years our country is being ruled by bureaucrats, whether in uniform or without uniform and we are their subjects directed by them to obey. Was struggle for Pakistan made to this end? We claim to respect Founder of Pakistan, Mr Muhammad Ali Jinnah but it is limited only to hanging his portraits in offices. A marathon portrait of him has been erected by the side of Islamabad Highway at a cost of millions of Rupees to make a show-off. Did Mr Muhammad Ali Jinnah advised us of such things? Here is an excerpt from his address of 25th March, 1948 at Chitagang (East Pakistan) to the gazetted officers of Pakistan

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I want you to realize fully the deep implications of the revolutionary change that has taken place. Whatever community, caste or creed you belong to you are now the servants of Pakistan. Servants can only do their duties and discharge their responsibilities by serving. Those days have gone when the country was ruled by the bureaucracy. It is people's Government, responsible to the people more or less on democratic lines and parliamentary practices. Under these fundamental changes I would put before you two or three points for your consideration:

You have to do your duty as servants; you are not concerned with this political or that political party; that is not your business. It is a business of politicians to fight out their case under the present constitution or the future constitution that may be ultimately framed. You, therefore, have nothing to do with this party or that party. You are civil servants. Whichever gets the majority will form the Government and your duty is to serve that Government for the time being as servants not as politicians. How will you do that? The Government in power for the time being must also realize and understand their responsibilities that you are not to be used for this party or that. I know we are saddled with old legacy, old mentality, old psychology and it haunts our footsteps, but it is up to you now to act as true servants of the people even at the risk of any Minister or Ministry trying to interfere with you in the discharge of your duties as civil servants. I hope it will not be so but even if some of you have to suffer as a victim. I hope it will not happen --I expect you to do so readily. We shall of course see that there is security for you and safeguards to you. If we find that is in anyway prejudicial to your interest we shall find ways and means of giving you that security. Of course you must be loyal to the Government that is in power.

The second point is that of your conduct and dealings with the people in various Departments, in which you may be: wipe off that past reputation; you are not rulers. You do not belong to the ruling class; you belong to the servants. Make the people feel that you are their servants and friends, maintain the highest standard of honor, integrity, justice and fair-play. If you do that, people will have confidence and trust in you and will look upon you as friends and well wishers. I do not want to condemn everything of the past, there were men who did their duties according to their lights in the service in which they were placed. As administrator they did do justice in many cases but they did not feel that justice was done to them because there was an order of superiority and they were held at a distance and they did not feel the warmth but they felt a freezing atmosphere when they had to do anything with the officials. Now that freezing atmosphere must go and you must do your best with all courtesy and kindness and try to understand the people. May be sometimes you will find that it is trying and provoking when a man goes on talking and repeating a thing over and over again, but have patience and show patience and make them feel that justice has been done to them.

Next thing that I would like to impress upon you is this: I keep or getting representations and memorials containing grievances of the people of all sorts of things. May be there is no justification, may be there is no foundation for that, may be that they are under wrong impression and may be they are misled but in all such cases I have followed one practice for many years which is this: Whether I agree with anyone or not, whether I think that he has any imaginary grievances whether I think that he does not understand but I always show patience. If you will also do the same in your dealings with an individual or any association or any organization you will ultimately stand to gain. Let not people leave you with this bearing that you hate, that you are offensive, that you have insulted or that you are rude to them. Not one per cent who comes in contact with you should be left in that state of mind. You may not be able to agree with him but do not let him go with this feeling that you are offensive or that you are discourteous. If you will follow that rule believe me you will win the respect of the people.”
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Happy Birthday

2006-08-12T08:28:00.000+05:00

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday to Very Dear Michelle

Here’s wishing your special day

Showers loads of Love and Joy on you

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday to Very Dear Michelle
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

An Earnest Prayer

2006-08-07T05:25:00.000+05:00

My Lord !

Grant me the Serenity to accept the things that I can not change

Grant me Courage to change the things that I can

And Grant me the Wisdom to know the difference
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Continuing Quiz of July 26

2006-08-03T06:28:00.000+05:00

You didn’t know well the answers to quiz of July 26.
Never mind. Try this one:

List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.
Name half a dozen heroes whose stories have inspired you.

Easier, wasn't it? Now, the lesson:

The point is that none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. Those listed in the last post were not second-rate achievers; they were the best in their fields. But, applause dies, awards tarnish, achievements are forgotten, certificates and accolades are buried with their owners.

The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones who truly care.

Why not be one of those people?
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Look out !!!

2006-07-30T06:44:00.000+05:00

Always be carefule before taking a step

You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Who makes a difference in your life

2006-07-26T06:02:00.000+05:00

Please give yourself a few moments to take the following quiz:

Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
Name the last five winners of the Miss America contest.
Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.

How did you do?
See the correct answer on 03-08-2006.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Effects of War On Terror on Pakistan as a Nation

2006-07-22T07:22:00.000+05:00

Almost 5 years after 9/11, the scars of the American-led war on terror are fast becoming visible in Pakistan. Backlash from Pakistan’s over-generous support to the US has radicalised society and placed the nation on an uncharted political course.

Contrary to western reports, most militants are not madrassah students. Unfortunately, the western media has as usual resorted to stereotyping nations and individuals, giving rise to the misleading belief that every act of terror is masterminded by a Taliban or mullah. But the reality is quite different.

In late 2005, the interior ministry compiled an investigative report on the identity of suicide bombers in Pakistan. The report reveals that 9/11 produced 22 suicide bombers. Of these, only 3 were madrassah students.

The pre-9/11 era spanning more than 50 years in Pakistan saw hardly any suicide bombers.

Hundreds of suspected militants have been detained without any charge. Their families have not been informed about their whereabouts. Many Pakistanis were handed over to the US clandestinely on unproven charges of connections with Al Qaeda and the Taliban. This has generated a wave of public sympathy for them.

The media provides youngsters with graphic text, videos and images of US carpet bombings and air raids in Afghanistan and Iraq. They see the devastation and humiliation wreaked on ordinary Muslims including those who have suffered physical and mental agony at the hands of US forces in Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison and Guantanamo Bay. These images are not easily forgotten and remain etched on the minds of hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world silently watching the rape of Muslim nations by the world’s lone superpower.

Another part of the problem is the frequent compromises the government makes with regard to Pakistan’s sovereignty. There have been incidents of direct commando operations by the FBI that has whisked away citizens in league with Pakistani security agencies. Similarly, repeated incursions of US forces in the bordering northwestern region with Afghanistan have incensed tribesmen who see the Pakistan army as an extension of US forces on the other side of the border.

Lack of democracy, institutional instability and the resultant breach of sovereignty have compounded the problem. The government lacks a political and democratic face to effectively achieve its long-term vital geo-strategic interest.

These are excerpts from an article by Mr Javed Rana “Effects of 9/11 on Pakistan” published in Dawn on July 17, 2006
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Games I played as a boy

2006-07-18T07:39:00.000+05:00

In my childhood and boyhood I was rarely interested the game boys in the street used to play. Except for Gilli Danda which I played several times when I was 13 to 14 years old, I flew kite only once when I was about 9 years old and I never played marbles / glass balls or the like. Apart from Athletics, Hockey and Badminton, my games were drawing sceneries with black or coloured pencils. Drawing flowers, creepers and other coloured patterns for doing needle-work / thread-work on cloth, especially, bed sheets.

After appearing in the F. Sc (Intermediate) examination, I worked on making mathematical riddles. Couple of days back, I was searching for a humorous poem that I wrote during 1986 when I was attending a course on Operations Research and Quantitative Techniques. I was unable to locate that but in stead I found a paper with some of the above mentioned riddles designed by me. Here are 3 of them.

7 X 7 + 5 = 54
77 X 7 + 5 = 544
777 X 7 + 5 = 5444
7777 X 7 + 5 = 54444
77777 X 7 + 5 = 544444
777777 X 7 + 5 = 5444444
7777777 X 7 + 5 = 54444444
77777777 X 7 + 5 = 544444444
777777777 X 7 + 5 = 5444444444
7777777777 X 7 + 5 = 54444444444

These are ten. More can be written the same way.

For a less literate person

To find 89 X 67 = ?

Write the two numbers in a line but fairly apart.

Divide 89 by 2 and write the result under 89 ignoring fraction of 1. Then divide the result by 2 and proceed in the same way till the result is 1

Multiply 67 by 2 and write the result under 67. Then multiply the result by 2 and repeat the procedure as many times as was done for 89.

Cross the results of multiplication which are in line with even numbers of results of division of 89. Add the remaining numbers in the multiplication column. 89 X 67 comes to 5963

89 . . . . . 67 . . . . . . . 67
44 . . . . .134 ?
22 . . . . .268 ?
11 . . . . .536 . . . . . . .536
. 5 . . . .1072 . . . . . .1072
. 2 . . . .2144 ?
. 1 . . . .4288 . . . . . .4288
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .--------
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5963

Counting in 4 fours

You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser

What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Americans! Do You Know ?

2006-07-14T06:53:00.000+05:00

THE "TAPS"

Day is done ... Gone the sun.
From the lakes ...From the hills ... From the sky
All is well Safely rest ... God is nigh.

Fading light ... Dims the sight
And a star .. Gems the sky Gleaming bright
From afar ... Drawing nigh … Falls the night.

Thanks and praise ... For our days
Neath the sun ... Neath the stars... Neath the sky.
As we go .. This we know ... God is nigh.

In 1862 during the Civil War, when Union Army Captain Robert Ellicombe was with his men near Harrison's Landing in Virginia. The Confederate Army was on the other side of the narrow strip of land. During the night, Captain Ellicombe heard the moans of a soldier who lay wounded on the field. Not knowing if it was a Union or Confederate soldier, the Captain decided to bring the stricken man back for medical attention.

Crawling on his stomach through the gunfire, the Captain reached the stricken soldier and began pulling him toward his encampment, he discovered it was a Confederate soldier but the soldier was dead. The Captain lit a lantern and was to know that it was his own son who had been studying music in the South when the war broke out. Without telling his father, the boy enlisted in the Confederate Army.

The following morning, despite his son’s enemy status, Captain Robert Ellicombe asked permission of his superiors for a group of Army band members to play a funeral dirge at the funeral. The request was turned down since the soldier was a Confederate but, out of respect for the father, they allowed him only one musician.

The Captain chose a bugler and asked him to play the musical notes he had found on a piece of paper in the pocket of the dead youth's uniform. This is now known as "TAPS" used at military funerals. The words of it have been written in the beginning.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Where to make an effort

2006-07-11T05:17:00.000+05:00

A giant ship engine failed. The ship's owners tried one expert after another, but none of them could figure how to fix the engine. Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was a youngster. He arrived with a large bag of tools and immediately went to work. As he inspected the engine top to bottom, two of the ship's owners were watching him.

After looking things over, the old man gently tapped something with a small hammer.
Instantly, the engine lurched into life. So, the engine was fixed.

A week later, the owners received a bill from the old man for $ 10,000"What?!" the owners exclaimed. "He hardly did anything!"So they wrote the old man a note saying, "Please send us an itemized bill."

The man sent a bill that read:
Tapping with a hammer ......................... $ 2.00
Knowing where to tap ............................. $ 9,998.00

Effort is important, but knowing where to make an effort in your life makes all the difference!
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

The Four R to Remember

2006-07-08T21:13:00.000+05:00

* Respect for self
* Respect for others
* Responsibility for all your actions.
* Remembering that silence is, sometimes, the best answer.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Life's Blessings

2006-07-04T05:56:00.000+05:00

I cried because I had no shoes till I saw a man with no feet.

I was very critical of food which I had of large variety and in abundance till I saw children picking food pieces from garbage bin and eating.

Life is full of blessings.
Sometimes we are just too blind to see them.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

You Never Know ! ! !

2006-07-01T05:07:00.000+05:00

Over 40 years back in America, in the rain one night, at 11:30 PM, an older black woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in the conflict-filled 1960's. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxi cab. She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him.

After a week a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached which read: "Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away. God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others." Sincerely, Mrs ۔ ۔ ۔ ۔
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

So Blessed

2006-06-27T07:50:00.000+05:00

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness,
you are more blessed than the million who will not survive the week.

If you have food in your refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof over your head & a place to sleep,
you are richer than 75% of this world.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Married Amusement

2006-06-23T05:30:00.000+05:00

Some sentences picked from here and there.
*
A house wife ran after the garbage truck, yelling, “Am I too late for the garbage?” - - - “No,” they said, “jump in!”
*
Every man should get married some time; after all, happiness is not the only thing in life!!!
*
Don’t marry for money; you can borrow it cheaper.
*
I don’t worry about terrorism. I was married for three years.
*
The last fight was my fault. My wife asked, “What’s on the TV?” I said, “Dust!”
*
Just think, if it weren’t for marriage, men would go through life thinking they had no faults at all.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Is 4 = 60 ?

2006-06-21T05:11:00.000+05:00

How a son or a daughter thinks of his / her father at different ages:

At 4 years: My father is great.

At 6 Years: My father knows everybody.

At 10: My father is good but is short tempered

At 12: My father was very nice to me when I was young.

At 14: My father is getting fastidious.

At 16: My father is not in line with the current times.

At 18: My father is becoming increasingly cranky.

At 20: Oh! Its becoming difficult to tolerate father. Wonder how Mother puts up with him.

At 25: Father is objecting to everything.

At 30: It's becoming difficult to manage my son. I was so scared of my father when I was young.

At 40: My father brought me up with so much discipline. Even I should do the same.

At 45: I am baffled as to how my father brought us up.

At 50: My father faced so many hardships to bring us up. I am unable to manage a single son.

At 55: My father was so far sighted and planned so many things for us. He is one of his kind and
unique.

At 60: My father is (or was) great.

Thus, it took 56 years to complete the cycle and come back to the 1st stage.
Realise the true value of your parents before it is too late.

You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser

What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Answers to the Quiz

2006-06-15T04:55:00.000+05:00

Here are answers to An Easy Quiz of June 07, 2006. See how you faired.
1. 116
2. Ecuador
3. Sheep and horses
4. November
5. Squirrel fur
6. Dogs
7. Albert
8. Crimson
9. New Zealand
10. Orange
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Which Path ?

2006-06-11T05:17:00.000+05:00

It is better:

Not to go where the path may lead to, but make a path

Yes, go where there is no path and leave a trail
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

A Quiz

2006-06-07T05:07:00.000+05:00

Here is a very easy quiz. You can write your answers in the comments box or e-mail me at ajmal_bhopal@hotmail.com by 14-06-2006. No need to copy the questions. Write only serial numbers of questions with your answers.

1. How long did the hundred year war lost?
2. Which country makes Panama hats?
3. From which animal do we get catgut?
4. In which month Russia celebrates October Revolution?
5. What is a camel-hair brush made of?
6. What the Canary Islands in the Pacific are named after?
7. What was King George VI’s first name?
8. What colour is a purple finch?
9. Where are Chinese Goose Berries from?
10. What is the colour of a Black Box?
*
You can visit my Urdu blog by clicking on the following URL or writing it in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

The Change I Seek ?

2006-06-03T07:15:00.000+05:00

In the Chinese folklore, there is a story of an ambitious young man who, on his twentieth birthday, became consumed with the desire to change the world. He spent the next 20 years trying to do that but couldn’t.

At age 40, he settled for trying to change China. He spent the next 20 years trying to do that but couldn’t.

At age 60, he settled for trying to change his village. For the next 20 years he strived to do that but failed.

At age 80, he decided to focus on changing his family. He spent the next 20 years trying to do that but couldn’t.

At age 100, he decided to focus on changing himself. But the next day, he died.

The lesson

If you want to change the world, you better start with yourself.

So the question to ask ourselves is:

In what ways can I become the change I seek to see happening around me?
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Good Use of Cellphone

2006-05-31T05:49:00.000+05:00

*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Ahead of 5 Million People

2006-05-27T11:48:00.000+05:00

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture or the pains of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people around the world.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser

What Am I ? - - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - - میں کیا ہوں

Death in German custody

2006-05-21T05:20:00.000+05:00

There are sensible and learned people in Pakistan and in Islamabad too but unfortunately not in the government. Here is a letter written to Editor Dawn by AMIR MOHAMMAD KHAN of Islamabad (published on May 19, 2006) which describes the action which should have taken by the government of Pakistan and can be taken even now.

THE death of Amir Cheema in the German police custody has generated serious legal and moral questions. It is extremely important for Germany to initiate discussion with family members of the deceased through the government of Pakistan and try to allay their misperceptions and misgivings.

It is equally important for Pakistan to come clean on the issue and clarify whether consular access to Mr Cheema was denied. Pakistan must raise this issue with the German government in the light of Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, to which both Pakistan and Germany are parties.

The Convention rests on centuries of accumulated experience. Pakistan in this case must seek redress in two categories of rights: for violations of rights owed to it, and also in the exercise of diplomatic protection in the light of the breach of duties owed to its national. Pakistan can ask courts to adjudge and declare that:

1. Germany, in arresting and interrogating Amir Cheema, violated its international legal obligations to Pakistan, in its own right and in the exercise of its right of diplomatic protection of its national, as provided by Articles 5 and 36 of the Vienna Convention; Article 5 (e) of the Vienna Convention includes protecting the interests of a sending state?s nationals and providing consular assistance to nationals of the state as among the consular functions protected by the Convention. Article 36 implements certain provisions of Article 5 (e) in the case of detained nationals.

2. Germany has acted in violation of obligations owed to Pakistan under Article 36, sub-paragraph 1 (b), of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. The authorities in Germany detained a Pakistani citizen without advising him of his right to consular assistance or notifying Pakistan consular officers of his detention.

3. Germany is under an international legal obligation not to apply the doctrine of ?procedural default?, or any other doctrine of its internal law, so as to preclude the exercise of the rights accorded under Article 36 of the Vienna Convention.

4. Germany is under an international legal obligation to carry out in conformity with the foregoing international legal obligations any future detention of or criminal proceedings against any other Pakistani national in its territory, and that, pursuant to the foregoing international legal obligations, the German government must accept that:

(a) Any criminal liability imposed on Amir Cheema and the treatment meted to him was in violation of international legal obligations and is void, and should be recognized as void by the legal authorities of Germany;

(b) Germany must accept full responsibility and compensate the deceased family.?

(c) The German government should provide Pakistan a guarantee of the non-repetition of such illegal acts.

Why is the world silent?

2006-05-17T05:56:00.000+05:00

Written by: Dr Ghada Karmi, a research fellow at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, Exeter University (UK), and a former consultant to the Palestinian Authority.
Dawn/The Guardian News Service

Israel is 58 years old today. Israelis have already celebrated with barbecues and parties. And so they should, for they’ve pulled off an amazing stunt: the creation of a state for one people on the land of another — and at their massive expense — without incurring effective sanction. Some of those not celebrating, the Arab citizens of Israel, were also there, demonstrating to remind the world that Israel displaced 250,000 to take their land without compensation. Millions more Palestinians will demonstrate in the refugee camps of Gaza, the West Bank and neighbouring Arab states against their expulsion by Israel.

The world, however, is not listening, any more than it did in 1948, when most of Palestine’s inhabitants were expelled to make way for Jewish immigrants. My family was among those displaced and, though a child, I vividly remember the panic and misery of that flight from our home in Jerusalem on an April morning in 1948, with the scent of spring in the air. Palestine by then had become a raging battleground as Jews fought to seize our land in the wake of the 1947 UN partition resolution.

My parents decided to evacuate us temporarily. “We will return,” they insisted. “The world will not let such injustice happen!” They were wrong: the world let it happen and we never returned. Little comfort in knowing that we were among many others, that we did not end up in tents, that conflicts do such things. Our lives, our history and our future had been traduced. In those early days, I would wonder with anguish how the Jewish incomers who took over our house could sleep at night, seeing our belongings, family photos, children’s toys.

Subsequently, Israelis made much of the danger they faced from five Arab armies in the 1948-49 war, but in reality their forces were greater than all their opponents’ combined, and the latter ill equipped and poorly trained. Growing up in Britain, I got no sympathy but rather kept being told about the need to give Jews a state they could feel safe in. But at whose expense was this generosity? We Palestinians had no hand in the Holocaust, nor in persecuting Jews. But we were transformed from a peaceable agrarian people into a nation of beggars under occupation, refugees, exiles and second-class citizens of Israel.

Worse still, we are now labelled terrorists, suicide bombers or extremists. Our crime? We were in the wrong place at the wrong time. And for that we have been repeatedly punished, most recently for electing the ‘wrong’ government, headed by a party the West, not Palestinians, labels as terrorist.

I went to ‘Palestine’ last month to see what 58 years of Israel had done. It was also springtime, but this was a shadow of the land I had known. I found a pathetically fragmented society, clinging to a fading dream of statehood against the odds. Israel’s policies have broken up the Palestinian territories into ghettoes behind barriers and checkpoints. Gaza, supposedly liberated, is a big prison where, according to the World Bank, 75 per cent are below the poverty line and a quarter of children are malnourished. Since January, Israel has kept the cargo crossings into Gaza closed most of the time. Flour ran out last month, and now medicines. The UN has warned of a humanitarian disaster. Now Israel is threatening to cut off fuel because of outstanding Palestinian debts, normally paid from Palestinian tax receipts, which Israel has illegally held back since January. The barrier wall, sealing off whole towns and villages, makes normal life impossible.

The new, democratically elected Palestinian government is paralysed because of Israeli and western sanctions. International aid to the Palestinians, $1 billion annually, has been stopped; $70 million donated by Arab states is blocked because banks, fearing international sanctions, refuse to transfer the funds. Money has run out for 150,000 public workers and their approximately one million dependants. I found deserted supermarkets and shopkeepers in despair. Armed men roam the streets full of anger at their loss of livelihood. Meanwhile, Israel’s assault on the Palestinians continues. Last week the army killed nine and wounded 24. It mounted 38 incursions into Palestinian towns and arrested 61 people, including 11 children.

The Quartet powers have agreed a three-month emergency aid package. Because of the freeze on relations with Hamas, the aid will bypass the government, though how essential services can be run without a central administration is hard to imagine. Arab foreign ministers have warned of a breakdown in law and order if the Palestinian Authority collapses, but to no avail. The world’s silence in the face of this cruelty is astonishing. There is no international outcry against a policy whose transparent objective is to goad the Palestinians into overthrowing the government they elected in favour of one more pliant to Israel’s designs.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s plan is to draw Israel’s border ‘unilaterally’, annexing the large West Bank settlement blocs and keeping Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley. The roads connecting it to Israel will bisect Palestinian territory.

What remains, 58 per cent at most, together with the Gaza prison, will form the ‘Palestinian state’. Olmert will be in Washington soon, no doubt seeking a rubber stamp. The idea is presumably that the Palestinians — dispersed and powerless — will then no longer be in Israel’s way. Anyone who believes this, as the West’s unthinking support for Israel seems to suggest, knows nothing about history or the will of peoples to resist injustice. The Palestinians are no exception.

Administration, Politics & Religion

2006-05-13T05:31:00.000+05:00

In the present-day world, influenced by the anti-theological propaganda of the non-believers, some people are calling “Religion must be separated from politics / administration (government)”.

While this slogan has deep and well-meaning roots, I will only briefly deal with its premise. It is said that the reason why the Western world developed is that they were wise to have eliminated religion from politics and business 500 years back. Without going in to the fact to what extent they had disfigured their religion before throwing it out as a whole, let us examine what good has mankind achieved during these 500 years and what resulted in industrialization.

The first and second world wars were fought during these 500 years.

Nuclear bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki not only killing but destroying hundreds of thousands of innocent human beings including young and aged men and women, boys, girls and infants.

Slavery and colonization are also features of these 500 years. The American and Europeans captured African young men and women by deceit and sold them as cattle in the market.

Thousands of innocent citizens were killed in Vietnam by America.

The industrial revolution was achieved by looting and suppressing the weak nations sometimes disguising as friends. Who doesn’t know what East India Company did in India?

Thousands of defenseless Palestinian refugees were butchered in Lebanon by Israel, the state which is fully supported by the so-called human loving Western world.

Palestinians are being killed in their own homeland for the last nearly 6 decades by Israel’s armed forces again supported by the Western world.

Thousands of Afghans were killed and burnt alive by carpet-bombing and dropping Daisy Cutters by America and her allies.

Iraq devastated by killing hundreds of thousands of human beings by America and her allies maiming additional thousands and the killing spree still continues.

Even progress in the field of medicine was mainly used for commercial purposes and was also used as a cool weapon against enemy. Was it not the Western World who developed Heroin, Anthrax, fatal & nerve racking gases and the like?

Research in traditional curing methods, which had long research effort spread over thousands of years starting from times unknown and had rich knowledge-base, was purposely discouraged by multinational firms of the so-called Free Western World.The reality is that decline of Muslims set in when they assumed kingdoms separatin religion from state and, later, from business, thus discarding the ways prescribed by The Creator. They ignored message of Qur’aan: “O Allah! Owner of Sovereignty! Thou givest sovereignty unto whom Thou wilt, and Thou withdrawest sovereignty from whom Thou wilt. Thou exaltest whom Thou wilt, and Thou abasest whom Thou wilt. In Thy hand is the good. Lo! Thou art Able to do all things”.( Sura 3 Al-e-Imran, Verse 26),.

When religion is separated from other aspects of life, the result is that a person obeys God only once in a year, in a week or, may be, even five times a day only for few minutes and there-after remains under no obligation to do so whether in the home, in school, at work, in the street or in the battlefield. The result is evident.

According to the poet-philosopher Dr Muhammad Iqbal:

جُدا ہو ديں سياست سے تو رہ جاتی ہے چنگيزی
“Jooda ho Deen siasat say to reh jati hai changaizi”,
meaning if religion is separated from politics, then what remains is brutality.
*
You can visit my other blog by clicking here or writing the following URL in your browser
What Am I ? - http://iftikharajmal.blogspot.com - میں کیا ہوں

Are You Good at Computer ?

2006-05-09T07:01:00.000+05:00

اگر آپ بلاگسپاٹ نہ کھول سکتے ہوں تو میرے بلاگ مندرجہ ذیل یو آر ایلز [URLs] سے براہِ راست کھُل جائيں گے
۔
ميں کيا ہوں ۔ What Am I ?

http://www.pkblogs.iftikharajmal.blogspot.com

Hypocrisy Thy Name ۔ يہ منافقت نہيں ہے کيا ؟

http://www.pkblogs.hypocrisythyname.blogspot.com

Failed States – Performance Base 2005

2006-05-05T07:29:00.000+05:00

“The Fund for Peace”, a renowned establishment, having over 4 decades experience of collecting data, sifting and deducing useful information, has published it’s second report on working of all the countries on the globe. Tens of thousands of articles from global and regional sources were collected by them from May to December 2005 using Thomson Dialog. Utilizing CAST software to do initial analysis of these voluminous documents and with a review by experts, they compiled the scores. It awards marks on the following 12 negative operators calling them “Index”. Score & rank of Pakistan in each index is given alongside.
.
1 - Mounting Demographic Pressures - 9.3 Rank 5
2 - Massive Movement of Refugees and IDPs – 9.3 Rank 4
3 - Legacy of Vengeance - Seeking Group Grievance – 8.6 Rank 14
4 - Chronic and Sustained Human Flight – 8.1 Rank 12
5 - Uneven Economic Development along Group Lines – 8.9 Rank 11
6 - Sharp and/or Severe Economic Decline – 7.0 Rank 24
7 - Criminalization or Delegitimization of the State – 8.5 Rank
8 - Progressive Deterioration of Public Services – 7.5 Rank 21
9 - Widespread Violation of Human Rights – 8.5 Rank 13
10 - Security Apparatus as "State within a State" – 9.1 Rank 11
11 - Rise of Factionalized Elites – 9.1 Rank 9
۔12 - Intervention of Other States or External Actors – 9.2 Rank 9
.
Each index is allotted 10 marks. Countries are listed in descending order of the total marks obtained by them. Thus, the country getting maximum marks or appearing at the top is the worst in functioning and the most failed state. Countries getting less than 90 marks out of total 120 are not listed as “Failed State”. Below is a summary of only the 28 countries declared “failed states”. For details and complete list, please click on the title.

Rank Country Score
1 Sudan 112.3
2 Democratic Rep of Congo 110.1
3 Cote d’Ivoire 109.2
4 Iraq 109.0
5 Zimbabwe 106.9
6 Chad 105.9
7 Somalia 105.9
8 Haiti 104.6
9 PAKISTAN 103.1
10 Afghanistan 99.8
11 Guinea 99.0
12 Liberia 99.0
13 Central African Republic 97.5
14 North Korea 97.3
15 Burundi 96.7
16 Yemen 96.6
17 Sierra Leone 96.6
18 Burma / Mayanmar 96.5
19 Bangladesh 96.3
20 Nepal 95.4
21 Uganda 94.5
22 Nigeria 94.4
23 Uzbekistan 94.4
24 Rwanda 92.9
25 Sri Lanka 92.4
26 Ethiopia 91.9
27 Colombia 91.8
28 Kyrgyzstan 90.3
.
First report was published in the beginning of 2005 which was based on performance during May to December, 2004. In this report 33 countries were declared as “Failed States”. Pakistan had a narrow escape being 34th securing 89.8 marks. Detailed Marks Sheet is given below:
.
Index 1 - 5, Index 2 - 5, Index 3 - 6.9 , Index 4 - 8, Index 5 - 9 , Index 6 - 3.3 , Index 7 - 9.8 , Index 8 - 7.5 , Index 9 - 8.1 , Index 10 - 9, Index 11 - 9.3 , Index 12 - 8.5

*
اگر آپ بلاگسپاٹ نہ کھول سکتے ہوں تو میرے بلاگ مندرجہ ذیل یو آر ایلز [URLs
] سے براہِ راست کھُل جائيں گے
۔
What Am I ? - - ميں کيا ہوں ؟

http://www.pkblogs.iftikharajmal.blogspot.com

Hypocrisy Thy Name - - یہ منافقت نہیں ہے کیا ؟

http://www.pkblogs.hypocrisythyname.blogspot.com

Decision Making

2006-05-01T07:28:00.000+05:00

A group of children were playing on two railway tracks, one still in use while the other disused. Only one child played on the disused track, the rest on the operational track. The train came, and you were just beside the track interchange. You could make the train change its course to the disused track and saved most of the kids.

However, that would also mean the lone child playing on the disused track would be sacrificed. Or would you rather let the train go its way?

Let's take a pause to think what kind of decision we could make................

Analyze the situation………….

Think and reflect…….

Decided your answer !!!!

Now … go ahead

Most people might choose to divert the course of the train, and sacrifice only one child to save most of the children at the expense of only one child was rational decision, most people would make morally and emotionally. But, have you ever thought that the child choosing to play on the disused track had in fact made the right decision to play at a safe place? Nevertheless, he had to be sacrificed because of his ignorant friends who chose to play where the danger was.

This kind of dilemma happens around us everyday. In the office, community, in politics and especially in a democratic society, the minority is often sacrificed for the interest of the majority, no matter how foolish or ignorant the majority are, and how farsighted and knowledgeable the minority are.

The child who chose not to play with the rest on the operational track was sidelined. And in the case he was sacrificed, no one would shed a tear for him.

To make the proper decision is not try to change the course of the train because the kids playing on the operational track should have known very well that track was still in use, and that they should have run away if they heard the train's sirens. However, if the train was diverted, that lone child would definitely die because he never thought the train could come over to that track! Moreover, that track was not in use probably because it was not safe. If the train was diverted to that track, we could put the lives of all passengers on board at stake! And in your attempt to save a few kids by sacrificing one child, you might end up sacrificing hundreds of people to save these few kids.

While we are all aware that life is full of tough decisions that need to be made, we may not realize that hasty may not always be the right one.

Remember that what’s right isn’t always popular … and what’s popular isn’t always right.

Everybody makes mistakes; that's why they put erasers on pencils.
*
This blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

Tip for Future

2006-04-27T06:18:00.000+05:00

The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past.

One can not go on well in life until he / she lets go of his / her past failures and heartaches.

But do not forget to deduce a lesson from your past.
*
This blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com

Help the Sweet Little Girl

2006-04-26T07:42:00.000+05:00

She is a 3 years old girl found in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 2 month ago. Seems she got lost and no body there has so far reported her missing. Due to her age they are unable to get any information of her family. The sad story is that sometimes she puts mobile phone on her ear and keep crying and calling Baba Baba (Dad...Dad)

I have received this message from a friend and placing it on my blog with the hope that any single contact may play important role in the girl's destiny... As the range of this list varies across different countries (yours may as well) someone may happen to recognize the girl or may have heard about missing child...

CONTACT: The child is now with Jamaiat Al-Nahdah (Al Nahdah Charity) in Riyadh. Their contact details as follows:
Public Relation, Media Division
Phone # 01 465 0029.
Come on lovers of human values. Publish this on your blogs and also circulate it through e-mail to your acquaintances.

Many thanks to all who will make a try.

Islam is Islam

2006-04-23T10:24:00.000+05:00

Islam is Islam and there is nothing like moderate Islam, enlightened Islam, true Islam or real Islam. These terms appear to have been coined by people to justify their point of view which, generally, is not within the fold of Islam.

A common practice of the so-called developed people (Europe & America) is to dub practices of general people as Islam and then malign it. Unfortunately Muslims, who look towards the Western people for everything, fall prey to this propaganda. There is nothing more misleading than judging Islam from culture or traditions in a Muslim country or from general practices of people who are known as Muslim.

Culture is not permanent or durable. It keeps on changing with time. During my life time, cultures of Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Rawalpindi have changed to a great extent. The culture of Duesseldorf (Germay) that I witnessed during 1966-67 was not there when I visited during 1978. Similarly, I found considerable difference in culture in Britain in 1978 than what I had witnessed when I had visited during 1967. By now it may have further changed.

Then there are traditions, some good and some bad. It is another thing that those following such traditions do bring up Islam, in addition to culture, to justify their actions. Karo Kari, Maani, Wunni, Swara, so-called honour-killing and the like are dictatorial tribal traditions and have nothing to do with Islam, rather, such practices are unequivocally abhorred in Islam.

Our people have started behaving like a pendulum. They go either to one extreme or the other while Qur’aan teaches us “Siratul Woosta” (median way). No where in Islamic Shria, culture has been dubbed as bad, only bad things are bad.

To summarise:

Law, of a country, is what the competent authority of that country promulgates, and it is, also, written in the law books that ignorance of law is no excuse. Thus, law is not what people practice.

There is no justification of treating Islam in a different way while Islam is also a law promulgated by the Creator of Universe. Thus, Islam is what Qur’aan says and Hadith explains and not what people practice.

May allah guide us to the right path. Aameen.

Hard-working Employee

2006-04-19T06:08:00.000+05:00

*
This blog can also be visited at http://iabhopal.wordpress.com/

From America With Love

2006-04-15T05:52:00.000+05:00

George Bush visited the Queen of England, and asked her, "Your Majesty, you've been a ruling monarch almost all my life, and I'm impressed. Do you mind if I ask you a question?
How do you run such an efficient government? Are there any tips you can give me?"

"Well," said the Queen, "the most important thing is to surround yourself with intelligent people."

Bush frowned, "But how do I know the people around me are really intelligent?"

The Queen took a sip of tea, then replied, "Oh, that's easy. You just ask them to answer an intelligence riddle. I'll show you." She then pushed a button on her intercom. "Please send The Prime Minister in here, would you?"

Tony Blair walked into the room. "Your Majesty . . . ."

The Queen smiled and said, "Answer me this, please, Tony. Your mother and father have a child. It is not your brother and it is not your sister. Who is it?"

Without pausing for a moment, Blair answered, "That would be me!"

"Yes! Very good!," said the Queen.

Back at the White House, Bush called Vice President Dick Cheney to the Oval Office.
"Dick, answer this for me. Your mother and your father have a child. It's not your brother and it's not your sister. Who is it?"

"I'm not sure," replied the Vice President. "Let me get back to you on that one."

Dick Cheney went to his advisers and asked every one of them, but none could give him an answer. With that he went to the Men's room. Recognizing Colin Powell's shoes in the next stall, Cheney shouted, "Colin! Can you answer this for me? Your mother and father have a child and it's not your brother or your sister. Who is it?"

Powell yelled back, "That's easy. It's me!"

Dick Cheney smiled. "Thanks!"

Cheney went back to the Oval Office and asked to speak with Bush. "George, I did some research and I have the answer to that riddle. It's Colin Powell."

Bush got up from his desk, stomped over to Cheney, and angrily yelled into his face,
"No, you idiot! It's Tony Blair!"

*
For Viewers in Pakistan
If you are unable to open my blogs directly, please click on the following or copy in to your browser.
For this blog http://www.pkblogs.com/hypocrisythyname
For my Urdu blog http://www.pkblogs.com/iftikharajmal

Do not frown

2006-04-11T05:41:00.000+05:00

For Viewers in Pakistan
If you are unable to open my blogs directly, please click on the following or copy it in to your browser.
For this blog http://www.pkblogs.com/hypocrisythyname
For my Urdu blog http://www.pkblogs.com/iftikharajmal

Immediate Attention and Action by Bloggers Needed

2006-04-08T18:26:00.000+05:00

On written applications submitted to PTA by some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and bloggers (including me), PTA has agreed to hold a meeting shortly. In this meeting the complainants will present the case of unblocking Blogspot and similar domains.

To make the case of ISPs and Bloggers strong, support from all the Pakistani bloggers is immediately needed in the form of submitting their individual complaints to PTA. The way to submit an effective complaint is given below. Please submit your complaint immediately.

Procedure: Go to the following website and left-click on Feedback.
http://www.pta.gov.pk/index.php?cur_t=vtext

A form will open. Fill in the form telling them that by blocking twelve domains in stead of twelve concerned websites, PTA has blocked thousands of innocent websites.
Do not write Blog because they do not understand what is a Blog.

Wrongly Addressed ! ! !

2006-04-07T05:41:00.000+05:00

A man checked into a hotel at some far away village in Nairobi. Finding computer in his room, he decided to send an e-mail to his wife. Accidentally, he typed a wrong e-mail address and sent it without noticing.

Meanwhile, in Houston, a woman had just returned from her husband's funeral. The widow checked her e-mail expecting condolence messages from relatives and friends. After reading the first message, she fainted. The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor and saw the computer screen which read:

To: My Loving Wife
Subject: I've Reached
Date: 16 March 2006

I know you are surprised to hear from me. They have computers here, and we are allowed to send e-mails to loved ones. I have just reached and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow.

Looking forward to seeing you TOMORROW!

Yours loving Hubby

Way to Learn

2006-04-03T07:12:00.000+05:00

Learn from the mistakes of others

You will not live long enough to make them all by yourself

Even if you live very long to make them all

No time will be left to make use of what you learn

My BODY is MY Own Business

2006-03-30T08:51:00.000+05:00

I OFTEN wonder whether people see me as a radical, fundamentalist Muslim terrorist packing an AK-47 assault rifle inside my jean jacket. Or may be they see me as the poster girl for oppressed womanhood everywhere. I'm not sure which it is.

I get the whole gamut of strange looks, stares, and covert glances. You see, I wear the hijab,
a scarf that covers my head, neck, and throat. I do this because I am a Muslim woman who believes her body is her own private concern.

Young Muslim women are reclaiming the hijab, reinterpreting it in light of its original purpose
to give back to women ultimate control of their own bodies.

The Qur'aan teaches us that men and women are equal, that individuals should not be judged according to gender, beauty, wealth, or privilege. The only thing that makes one person better than another is her or his character.

Nonetheless, people have a difficult time relating to me. After all, I'm young, Canadian born and raised, university educated why would I do this to myself, they ask.

Strangers speak to me in loud, slow English and often appear to be playing charades. They politely inquire how I like living in Canada and whether or not the cold bothers me. If I'm in
the right mood, it can be very amusing.

But, why would I, a woman with all the advantages of a North American upbringing, suddenly, at 21, want to cover myself so that with the hijab and the other clothes I choose to wear, only my face and hands show?

WOMEN are taught from early childhood that their worth is proportional to their attractiveness. We feel compelled to pursue abstract notions of beauty, half realizing that such a pursuit is futile.

When women reject this form of oppression, they face ridicule and contempt. Whether it's women who refuse to wear makeup or to shave their legs, or to expose their bodies, society, both men and women, have trouble dealing with them.

In the Western world, the hijab has come to symbolize either forced silence or radical, unconscionable militancy. Actually, it's neither. It is simply a woman's assertion that judgment of her physical person is to play no role whatsoever in social interaction.

Wearing the hijab has given me freedom from constant attention to my physical self. Because my appearance is not subjected to public scrutiny, my beauty, or perhaps lack of it, has been removed from the realm of what can legitimately be discussed.

No one knows whether my hair looks as if I just stepped out of a salon, whether or not I can pinch an inch, or even if I have unsightly stretch marks. And because no one knows, no one cares.

Feeling that one has to meet the impossible male standards of beauty is tiring and often humiliating. I should know, I spent my entire teenage years trying to do it. It was a borderline bulimic and spent a lot of money I didn't have on potions and lotions in hopes of becoming the next Cindy Crawford.

The definition of beauty is ever-changing; waifish is good, waifish is bad, athletic is good -- sorry, athletic is bad. Narrow hips? Great. Narrow hips? Too bad.

Women are not going to achieve equality with the right to bear their breasts in public, as
some people would like to have you believe. That would only make us party to our own objectification. True equality will be had only when women don't need to display themselves
to get attention and won't need to defend their decision to keep their bodies to themselves.

(Naheed Mustafa’s article was published in “The Globe and Mail” on June 29, 1993 under “Facts and Arguments” Page A26. She had graduated from the University of Toronto in 1992 with an honours degree in political and history and then she was studying journalism at Ryerson Polytechnic University)

Want to be Happier ?

2006-03-26T09:03:00.000+05:00

To become happier, we either need to:

(a) Change the world,
or (b) Change our thinking.

It is easier to change our Thinking!

IN A NUTSHELL

It is not the problem that is the issue,
but rather it is your attitude attending to the problem that is the problem.
It's not what happens to you that determines your happiness.
It's how you think about what happens to you!

Strategy ? ? ?

2006-03-22T08:53:00.000+05:00

Better strategy is:

Demand less, and instead, have preferences!

For things that are beyond your control, tell yourself:
"I would prefer this, but if that happens, it’s OK too!"

This is really a change in mindset.
It is a shift in attitude, and it gives you more peace of mind.

You prefer that people are polite ...
but when they are rude, it doesn't ruin your day.
You prefer sunshine ...
but if it rains, it is ok too!

Should ? ? ?

2006-03-18T09:49:00.000+05:00

Let's say you expect that:

* Friends SHOULD return favours.
* People SHOULD appreciate you.
* Planes SHOULD arrive on time.
* Everyone SHOULD be honest.
* Your spouse or best friend SHOULD remember your birthday.

These expectations may sound reasonable.
But often, these things won't happen!

So you end up frustrated and disappointed.

Things are beyond control ?

2006-03-14T09:20:00.000+05:00

When things are beyond your control, to avoid misery in your life:

* You must not decide how you think the world should be.
* You must not make rules for how everyone should behave.

Because when the world doesn't obey your rules, you get angry ! And that is what miserable people do.

Understanding the "Law of the Seed"

2006-03-10T09:27:00.000+05:00

I f we understand the “Law of Seed”,
* we don't get so disappointed.
* We stop feeling like victims.
* We learn how to deal with things that happen to us.

Laws of nature are not things to take personally.
We just need to understand them - and work with them.

Successful people fail more often. But they plant more seeds.

The Law of the Seed

2006-03-06T11:22:00.000+05:00

Take a look at an apple tree. There might be five hundred apples on the tree and each apple has ten seeds. That's a lot of seeds!

We might ask, "Why would you need so many seeds to grow just a few more apple trees?"

Nature has something to teach us here.

It is telling us: “Not all seeds grow. In life, most seeds never grow”.
So if you really want to make something happen, you had better try more than once."

This might mean that you will: attend twenty interviews to get one job. interview forty people to find one good employee.
talk to fifty people to sell one house, one car, a business idea, etc.
meet a hundred acquaintances just to find one special friend.

Blasphemous websites be blocked, orders SC

2006-03-03T14:42:00.000+05:00

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the government to block internet sites displaying sacrilegious cartoons and called explanation from authorities concerned as to why these sites had not been blocked earlier.

A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Faqir Mohammad Khokhar and Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan was hearing a petition of Dr Mohammad Imran Uppal. It issued notices to Attorney General Makhdoom Ali Khan, Chairmen of the Pakistan Electronic Media and Regulatory Authority (Pemra) and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for March 13.

The federal government, Ministry of Telecommunication, Pemra, PTA, Yahoo Incorporation USA and I & I Co, the host of blasphemous site, have been cited as respondents in the petition. Two petitions were filed against availability of blasphemous cartoons on websites; one by Dr Imran Uppal through his counsel Qamar Afzal, seeking complete blockage of sites showing blasphemous depictions and the other by Maulvi Iqbal Haider seeking registration of cases under blasphemy.

Makhdoom Ali Khan was also asked by the court to explore legal ways to block objectionable material on websites. "We will not accept any excuse or any technical objection on this issue as it concerns sentiments of entire Muslim Ummah," CJ observed adding, "all concerned authorities would have to appear in the court on next hearing with report of concrete measures for implementation of court's order."

Advocate Qamar Afzal argued that the authorities concerned should have blocked these sites immediately and any delay on their part led to violation of blasphemy law. Advocate Ibrahim Satti, counsel for petitioner Iqbal Haider, accused the government of criminal negligence by not registering criminal cases against those responsible for availability of blasphemous material on websites. He submitted that Pakistan was signatory of extradition treaty with many countries and responsible persons in other countries could be booked under existing national and international laws.

After preliminary hearing the court issued notices to all the respondents for March 13. Dr Uppal in his petition had prayed the court to strictly restrain the respondent internet service providers from publishing, transmitting and advertising any blasphemous material to Internet and their subscribers in Pakistan.

I should be thankful

2006-03-02T10:43:00.000+05:00

I should be thankful for;

* I can move about freely and express my beliefs, there are those who live in constant fear.

* I wake up in the morning and take a deep breath of fresh air, there are those who never got that far.

* My heart can be broken; there are those who are so hardened they cannot be touched.

* For the opportunity to help others, there are those who have not been so blessed.

Freedom of Expression – London Mayor gets punished for calling a news reporter “concentration camp guard”

2006-02-26T10:51:00.000+05:00

LONDON, Feb 24: London Mayor Ken Livingstone was suspended from office for four weeks on Friday for bringing his office into disrepute by comparing a Jewish reporter to a Nazi concentration camp guard. The suspension is effective March 1.

“His treatment of the journalist was unnecessarily insensitive and offensive,” said David Laverick, chairman of the Adjudication Panel for England, the disciplinary panel which ruled on the case. Mr Laverick said the panel was concerned that Ken Livingstone refused to apologise. “The mayor does seem to have failed, from the outset of this case, to have appreciated that his conduct was unacceptable, was a breach of the code (the Greater London Authority code of conduct) and did damage to the reputation of his office,” Mr Laverick said.

“This decision strikes at the heart of democracy,” the mayor said. “Elected politicians should only be able to be removed by the voters or for breaking the law.

”Since Mr Livingstone lost the case, he must pay his own costs, estimated at more than 80,000 pounds. “The whole point being made was a dislike for Associated Newspapers and their history of supporting policies, which are inconsistent with the policies of the mayor,” lawyer Tony Child argued earlier this week. “There’s a right to be offensive and to express in hyperbolic terms opposition to Associated Newspapers and their policies,” Mr Child added. —AP

You can read one news report by clicking on the title and the second by clicking here.

Why I am Happy

2006-02-24T10:05:00.000+05:00

I am happy that;

* I can walk; there are those who have never taken their first step

* I can see the beauty all round, there are those whose world is always dark.

* I can hear music being played, there are those who have spent entire life in silence

* I can work, there are those who have to depend on others for even their basic needs.

* I have been loved, there are those for whom no one has ever cared.

Lesson for Life

2006-02-20T19:15:00.000+05:00

Open your arms to change, but do not let go of your values.

Live a good, honourable life, so that when you get older and think back, you will be able to enjoy it a second time.

When you lose, do not lose the lesson.

NOTE:- I was out of Islamabad from February 12 early morning to Februray 20 afternoon to attend several family functions in Sialkot , Gujranwala and Lahore, as such, could not make a post as per my schedule on Fabruary 16.

All that glitters is not gold

2006-02-12T06:01:00.000+05:00

Publication and republication of the blasphemous sketches of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) in many European countries has been dubbed as freedom of expression by the Western peoples. Somehow this freedom only applies when Muslims are the target.

Here are few examples of recent past revealing that the assertion of the Western peoples about freedom of expression is incorrect and baseless. 1. Some months back, David John Cawdell Irving, a researcher of history, was arrested and is under trial for delivering a hate speech in which he is said to have denied the holocaust. He had also been declared an anti-semitic and racist. He is forbidden to enter Australia, Canada, Germany, Austria and some other European countries because denying the holocaust is an unpardonable crime.

2. Over a year ago, during Mr Tony Blair’s election campaign, Labour Party had published an advertisement that showed the then leader of the opposition, Mr John Howard, a Jew, as a pig with wings having Mr Howard’s head. The British Jews reacted angrily and demanded apology from those responsible. Mr Tony Blair had immediately done the needful.3. Again over one year back, the mayor of London had likened the Jew reporter of a British newspaper who had been pestering him, to a “concentration camp guard.” This caused uproar in the Jew community and it wanted him to retract his words. The British premier had also joined them by asking the mayor to apologize.
4. A couple of years back, the then prime minister of Malaysia, Dr Mahathir Mohammad, had caused a storm in the West by criticizing the Jews, although his words were true and he had also praised the Jews for their many positive accomplishments.

5. There was an outrage in the US and Europe when the Iranian president recently suggested that the Holocaust did not actually occur and that Israel should be shifted to Europe or Alaska, etc.
6. T V Al Jazeera office in Afghanistan had been “mistakenly” attacked by American forces and its reporter injured around 2001 after coverage had been given by the news channel to the Taliban and Osama bin Laden, in addition to presenting the western viewpoint.

7. Similarly, Al Jazeera office in Iraq was bombed by American forces killing one staffer because they used to give some news of the other side also.

8. Recently, there has been a news leak that Mr George W Bush and Mr Tony Blair had discussed the possibility of bombing the Qatar-based channel’s headquarters as a punishment for exercising it’s freedom of expression.

What is important ?

2006-02-08T08:50:00.000+05:00

What is important is not

* what you possess, but rather what you give.

* how many friends you have, but rather how many to whom you are a friend.

* what kind of car you drive, but rather how many people you give a lift.

* that you live in a great neighbourhood, but rather how you treat your neighbour

* the size of your house, but rather the number of people you welcome into your home.

* your social status, but whether you live your life with class.

Best Wish for a Dear One

2006-02-04T08:40:00.000+05:00

May you have

* enough hope to make you happy,
* enough happiness to make you sweet,
* enough trials to make you strong,
* enough courage to face the world,
* enough resources & strength to serve the humanity.

I Have No Time

2006-01-31T09:02:00.000+05:00

I knelt to pray but not for long
I had too much to do
I had to hurry and get to work
for bills would soon be due
So I knelt and said a hurried prayer
and jumped up off my knees

No time to give to souls in need
my soul could rest at ease
All day long I had no time to spread a word of cheer
No time to speak of God to friends
They would laugh at me I had fear
No time, no time, too much to do
That was my constant cry
My duty was now done
But at last the time, the time to die

I went before the Lord
I came I stood with downcast eyes
For in his hands God held a book
It was the book of life
God looked into his book and said
"Your name I cannot find”
I once was going to write it down
but never found the time"

Dreams

2006-01-27T10:33:00.000+05:00

There are moments in life when you miss someone(s) so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them for real !

Michelle, my very dear nice little grand-daughter, we miss you so much ! ! !
Millions of kisses and hugs from your Dada and Dadi ! ! !

So I got it !

2006-01-25T12:50:00.000+05:00

I missed my post of January 21.

I had been on the bed with some bad viral infection from January 18 to 24, high fever, cold and severe cough.

Not yet fully recovered yet but not in bad shape either.

The Lesson if We Learn

2006-01-17T07:35:00.000+05:00

And they call some of these people "retarded"...

Some years back, at the Seattle Special Olympics, 9 contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100-yard dash. At the gun, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with a relish to run the race to the finish and win.

One little boy stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over and began to cry. The other 8 heard the boy cry. They slowed down and looked back. Then they all turned around and went back, every one of them.

One girl with Down's Syndrome bent down, kissed him and said: "This will make it better." Then all 9 linked arms and walked together to the finish line.

Everyone in the stadium stood, and the cheering went on for several minutes. Because what matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. It is helping others win, even if it means slowing down and changing our course.

He left us stunned

2006-01-13T12:46:00.000+05:00

Chaudhry Muhammad Asum, father of my elder daughter-in-law, passed away around 5:30 pm on January 11, 2006 at his home in Wah Cantt, Pakistan. May his soul rest in peace.

He was a self-made man who always did all his work. The day of his death, being Eid ul Adhha, he slaughtered, skinned two goats himself. After preparing meat of one, he had just started chopping meat of the second goat when he had heart attack and breathed his last within few minutes.

He was a kind father and grandfather. He is survived by his wife, a daughter, two sons and four grandchildren. He was born in Gurdaspur, India and migrated to Pakistan in 1947 at the age of 11 years with his one elder brother, one younger sister and two maternal uncles after having lost (killed by Hindu & Sikh militants) all his paternal and maternal relations including his parents and leaving all their property in India.

As luck would have it, the two uncles also died by the time Chaudhry Muhammad Asum passed F. Sc. (first 12 years of education). So, he was forced to seek employment at a very low level. He joined Shipyard at Karachi as an apprentice foundry man. With his self-study and hard work he came to be know as an expert in the knowledge of foundry practice. Several Renowned Industrialists of Pakistan engaged him as consultant for setting up large-size foundries.

Chaudhry Muhammad Asum was a peace loving person who enjoyed seeing others happy much more than getting something for himself. He drew his satisfaction from serving others and never demanded anything. During my over 13 years’ close acquaintance with him, In spite of my efforts, I was never able to know what he wished. He always said to me, “What you will do is my wish.”

May his soul rest in abundant peace in heavens and may God grant enough strength to His wife, sister, daughter (Ambrin Zakaria) and two sons (who are younger to Ambrin)

A Successful Life

2006-01-13T11:04:00.000+05:00

Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

Do not let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

When you realize you have made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

Allaho Akbar

2006-01-11T09:11:00.000+05:00

Allaho Akbar Allaho Akbar la ilaha il-Allah wa Allaho Akbar Allaho Akbar wa lillahil hamd
Allaho Akbar Allaho Akbar la ilaha il-Allah wa Allaho Akbar Allaho Akbar wa lillahil hamd
Allaho Akbar Allaho Akbar la ilaha il-Allah wa Allaho Akbar Allaho Akbar wa lillahil hamd
Allaho Akbar kabira wal hamdulillahi kathira wa subhan Allaho bukratan wa aseela

Remember Earth Quake Victims on Eid Day

2006-01-10T09:31:00.000+05:00

While celebrating Eid-ul-Adhha, let us NOT forget our brethren rendered homeless and penniless by the great earth quake of October 08, 2005.

Join them in our feast and company.