Lahore celebrates Pakistan's T20 World Cup crown - Image Source: BBC News

So far, 4 people have died and 8 have been injured. Do check up on your loved ones and Stay safe.

By official orders, army has been called in 30 while rangers in 11 districts of the Punjab province giving a clear sign that the Government seriously does not want things to proceed so easily. Security forces have also started search operations for prominent leaders to put them behind bars or under house arrest while the PML(N) leadership is asking the civil administration to not obey the ‘illegitimate’ orders.

Interior Minister, Rehman Malik, has on the other hand warned of dire consequences to law-breakers and anyone causing social unrest or igniting a security situation in the capital. For security reasons, he has also proposed the organizers of the Long March to chose a venue other than the sensitive Constitution Avenue. Lawyers rejected the government’s concern by guaranteeing that there will not be any law and order violation and crowds will be behaving according to a pre-defined code of march.

Both fronts are determined to their respective ambitions causing anxiety and fear of mass political or security instability in an already weakened nation. And unfortunately, our leaders have yet to realize how bad the situation for Pakistan has really become.

1. Energy Crisis (Peak Oil Prices – Power Shortages of up to 14 – 16 hours a day)
2. Shortage of Fertilizer (Leading to food shortages)

This is a story of how Cubans, who were an educated nation of doctor and engineers, stood up against all odds and survived gracefully. people believed that sharing what little they DID have (food, land, resources) with each other was more important and for the greater good than hoarding it for themselves. Also the government was very encouraging, and allowed all unused urban land to be turned into incredibly productive gardens.

Click on the image to see the video

With shortage of fertilizers and power cuts, We are also as vulnerable to a sudden collapse of our current agricultural systems. Watch this one for some inspiration on how to get our Pakistan out of the current Mess!

Also, in last couple of weeks, I have fallen in love with  TED.com again. There are some really inspirational videos over there. have a nice day!

by Jasmin Mirza. Book Review here

My first reaction was shock. yes, shock is the word that almost defines what i felt for days after reading those books. During my 8 years in corporate sector, I had an opportunity to live and work with people from different parts of the world. I attended training and seminars on issue of workplace diversity and gender issues. Even then this was too big a cultural shock for me to absorb.

Can people living in the same city  be so different and isolated in their values? Can all of this still be happening in modern times? Questions, questions and more questions I was left with. The adventure boy inside me wanted me to check out the Mohalla first hand. And I did. not once but three times but in none of those trips, I was able to verify the detailed descriptions of the sub-culture as defined in the books.

First trip was during day time and second one was in Moharram, so the bazaar was not open and all i saw was just the shops and ordinary people. I was impressed with the architecture of inner city though.  In the last trip, I got a glimpse of reality. It was at perfect time. 1 A.M. and I saw the same visuals as described in the books and as you will see in the documentary below. Since, I went alone, I did not dare to enter any of the so called “Office”.  Only few friends know what happened that night.

This documentary came as a surprise. It verified the contents of the books above and contains real truth about the people who frequent these tawaifs. the interview of the police office in charge is really interesting. This documentary was originally made for TV One but they did not dare to air it. so some one published it on internet. It is a real eye opener. It shows a face of our society, no one even wants mention. Download and save this as PTA might ban these URLs too. as it contains some politically radioactive content. Here is the excerpt from the blog where I originally found the links to these Youtube.com videos.

These book can be bought from here or here, both books were published by Oxford University Press and thus they should be available at FerozSons on The MALL.

A banned documentary which never came on TV. A must watch for every Pakistani and take a positive message and try to understand the true story of these Tawaifes. We call our society an Islamic society do we deserve for it? May Allah show us a rite path. Amin.

1. Watch Here
2. Watch Here
3. Watch Here
4. Watch Here
5. Watch Here
6. Watch Here

Note: Please don’t forget to give your valuable comments.

Usman Nasir’s Blog Page: Kahani Tawaif Ki Zubani – Hira Mandi

Sitting here, fogged down and cold, it becomes easy.
But it should not be.
It becomes easy to just let it slide. Wear the ’so what?’ cap and change the channel.

But not this time.

We are not talking about an open gutter somewhere in the streets of Lahore, we are not talking about the lack of drinking water three blocks down, we are not talking about my and my loved one’s deplorable indifference towards all that is important.

We are talking about the lives of millions. We are talking about war.

During the last three days or so, the situation between Pakistan and India has nothing but worsened. The critic – cynical nonetheless – in me reminds me that Pakistan, with her Zardaris, Gillanis and other cronies has actually played their part well. Too well for comfort, but a well-played innings so far. Consider this:

• India gets her major city Mumbai taken hostage by a handful of terrorists. Why were they there? Terror in the name of what? We are not told clearly.
• Then India, as the three day saga is unfolding, goes ahead and blames the Pakistani government. Note, there is a difference between blaming someone ‘from’ Pakistan and blaming the Pakistani establishment in itself. India, it seemed, blamed both.
• Eventually, India names Jamat-ud-Dawa as the main culprit organization that trained and brainwashed the Mumbai attackers. The UN – based on proof – declares the JuD a terrorist outfit. The JuD is closed down by Pakistan, not because India said so, but because UN says so. Pakistan plays the UN card well, reminding the world that Pakistan listens to world elders (Kashmir being the first point in this case). Pakistan asks for the same proof that India has given to UN. None is presented.
• The Interpol representative rocks up, tells the world that no proof by India was given. Pakistan plays the ‘jaws dropped’ look well, revealing the other two parties as being rash and silly, namely India and the UN. (I on a personal note, has given proof that the Mumbai attackers were really from Malta).
• The intelligence outfit of Pakistan is tried in the world media. To no avail. Where as only a slight glance over the RAW of India reveals some glaringly obvious involvements in more incidents than one.

Now, what is all of this?
Pakistan has played the calm, mature ‘uncle’ part well. As in most families, this uncle can be seen as the coward, the one without the ‘heart’ to fight for its right, only later to realize that the uncle was being the most far-sighted. Of course, this uncle can be called the ‘mamoo’ if it turns out that the resolve and calmness was based on cowardice instead of cold logic.
Nonetheless, India knows well enough that the nuclear bombs are not for display only, and much more potently, Muslims would love nothing more than a state-declared Jihad. The centuries old “We hold death more dear than you hold dear your life” line holds true today as far as any Muslim is concerned.
Jihad is struggle, and in the case of war, it becomes an armed struggle. Armed Jihad is valid, as far as pristine Islam is concerned, in self-defense and has to be on a state level. Pakistan has very clearly, very calmly placed herself in a defensive role. And try as some may to portray it differently, Pakistan is still a state. A Muslim state that the world can see has been pushed into a corner by India.
If war does break out, regardless of the result, the world will bear witness to the above perspective being the truth.

McCain conceded defeat and Obama delivered his acceptance speech. Whole world watched as the man spoke to a crowd of one million. It was almost mass hysteria, a very emotionally charged scene, people crying, having trouble finishing their sentences. It was indeed a moment that America should be proud about. It is something they can cherish.

Where else  can an immigrant family can rise to such riches… A true personification of “American Dream”. As I watched the speach, I was trying to find similarities and differences between Pakistan and America.

The way Obama Interacted with the crowed reminded me of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. Only one leader in know history of pakistan had such a charisma… Also I do see some sparks of such charisma in Lawyers Moment.

““If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer,”” Obama said.

Los Angles Times Reports

“Barack Obama, the son of a father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, was elected the nation’s 44th president Tuesday, breaking the ultimate racial barrier to become the first African American to claim the country’s highest office.

A nation founded by slave owners and seared by civil war and generations of racial strife delivered a smashing electoral college victory to the 47-year-old first-term senator from Illinois, who forged a broad, multiracial, multiethnic coalition. His victory was a leap in the march toward equality: When Obama was born, people with his skin color could not even vote in parts of America, and many were killed for trying.”

What This will mean for Pakistan

Obama winning election is not seen as good omen for Pakistan.  India being a bigger and better democracy, Democrats Govt. tend to have more inclination toward india.

It also means and end of what is called an American love affair with Pakistan. American Dollars that poured over the countries elite will stop. Pakistan might face sanctions of economic nature.

Theater of “War or Terror” will most likely to be shifted from Iraq and Afghanistan to Our North Western Province and some parts of Baluchistan.

Zardari might get a call from Obama in middle of night informing that US will pursue terrorists in setteled areas of Pakistan.

The Gujranwala Connection

Obama’s mother is reported to have lived in Pakistan for 5 years in Gujranwala.  Little is know about how Obama Spent his 3 weeks in pakistan when he visited her mother here.. May be he came to lahore too..

More here

“A U.S. official who participated in drafting the top secret National Intelligence Estimate said it portrays the situation in Pakistan as “very bad.” Another official called the draft “very bleak,” and said it describes Pakistan as being “on the edge.” The first official summarized the estimate’s conclusions about the state of Pakistan as: “no money, no energy, no government.”

I am in bahawalpur at the moment, Power only comes for half hour after every 4 hours. Its torture…

Still, Dil yeh kehta hay “We will survive this” but “Dil to pagal hay”

Our country really has a great threshold for pain. We should be proud of that. No, really we should. Not physical pain, but extreme mental torture to our collective intelligence (remember, we are vegetables). The dollar is at its highest ever to the rupee. Zardari, now a teenager without the pimples, thinks that India was never a threat. The biggest money-makers for us, the farmers, are the lowest in the food chain. We essentially now do not have a food chain as such. Inflation has put balloons to shame and our government is perhaps making the animal kingdom proud.

Did you know that the farmer was to be paid Rs 950 per maund for his wheat crop? This was rightly hailed as a sensible decision to first, produce surplus wheat and secondly, to inject billions to the rural economy. A great sign, some would think. No, not really. I have been a farmer for the last three years. The input costs in the form of fertilizers and diesel has grown not linearly, but exponentially. The seemingly large increase from the Rs 650 to Rs 950 per maund does not bring the percentages at par. No one seemed to care about that, of course. We were, being lettuces and onions, overjoyed at the increase in support price. No one cared that the international rate is somewhere at Rs 1200, no one cared that the smuggling will not be stopped, no one cared. Lettuces and pea-pods are not supposed to think about things like that. So, the animals that rule the plant kingdom, hit us with an absurdly crude weapon; they increased the fertilizer prices from Rs 3,100 to Rs 5,500. So, you get 350 per maund increase in wheat price. National average of wheat production is dismal 20 something maund per acre. Let us make that 29 mnd/acre. With 350/mnd increase, the farmer stood a chance of making an extra 350*29= Rs 10,150 per acre from his anticipated wheat crop. The vegetables rejoiced at this higher mathematics. The animals, cool as a cucumber (ha!), saw the anticipated surplus, so they increased the input fertilizer prices. Who cares about the sky-high diesel rate? And water, who needs water for crops? Let our friendly India have some, they are hardly a threat of course. What, you have electricity to take water from wells? Double the electricity rate so your threshold for mental torture stays exercised. ‘Give me some of that 10 thousand now, why don’t you. Although you will be making that in April next year, why don’t you just give some of that cash to me now?’

And as farmers go, they will complain, they will complain some more. You and I will not hear about it, but they will complain. It will not fall on deaf ears, only trained ones. Lahore will have its food on the table. It will a little less, but who cares. Who notices? How many of us know how much lentils cost? Heck, how many know the difference between masur and channa?

Remember, farmers are more than 70 percent of Pakistan. Out of the other 30 percent, a whopping 90 percent or so have their income directly tied to this wonderful sector. Who in his right mind say that Pakistan’s economy is dependent on Agriculture, on wheat, milk and rice? Pakistan is a country of vegetables.

Take the power back, why don’t you.

Strumming some Strings

The duo from Strings put on a fantastic show at the Lahore Gymkhana last Saturday!

We , as in the concert goers, had to be real patient throughout the night. Reason being that the band, in keeping with rock-star tradition came on stage about 2 hours after the slated time. Uncle, the violinist who looked like one, kept us from falling asleep. Yes, that is all that can be said in the positive about that act. Next up were Nexus, a local punjabi-pop band that I have heard frequent local universities and colleges. Lets just say they are better as a cover band and they did a commendable job pumping up the crowd; their original song was a unenthusiastic bhangra song praising rotund eyes (ankhian gol gol …). 

 After what seemed like ages the band members themselves graced the stage, as they say, the rest was history!

Here is a (super-duper short) teaser from the concert itself… Enjoy!

11 Second Teaser