Haha- good one.
I do think @chak Bammu raises a good point though in an offhand kind of way. We live in a post truth world where no one really has a monopoly on truth anymore. Unrestricted freedom of press doesn’t help here either.
The press originally developed as a state tool for propaganda in Europe and to shape a national perspective on things. Monarchs in Europe used it to develop consensus amongst the classes below them. It is actually what created the nations in Europe. In US, press freedoms really meant a “noora khushti” of a sense that allow for manufacturing consent within certain limits (in mainstream media) read Chomsky on this.
In Pakistan, post Musharraf era though, we have multiple competing narratives that have totally different world views. With a lot of moneyed interests. And frankly, cognitive dissonance exists on both sides.
I would read a lot of what Chak Bammu posted with curiousity. It’s the other sides truth. Ofc, the most significant pre-poll rigging was Panama, and how does one defend PML-N there?
Ah, did not see this because my handle was mis-spelled.
Yes, the reason why I am so active is precisely that there are very few people here to provide a counter-point to all the pit-siyapa going on. If all these brave pro-PTI posters were ready to dish it out so gloriously, they ought to be ready to accept a bit of it too. Its only fair.
Reality is always more complicated than what a post can manage. I find myself in a position where I am
expected to defend PML-N. By God I am just a voter who has to assess the lesser of evils, & not someone associated with any political party. This is most unsavory of positions.
I do know what NS & Co were up to through the 90s. I actually disliked them. Only later when I saw them suffer through the Mushy martial law, did I start to notice that the worst of the PML had become PML-Q, the king's party. CoD, rapprochement with arch-rivals PPP, a greater concern with poorer sections of society, the team of capable lawmakers who could & did deliver results made me rethink my position. The turning point was August 2014 when I was forced to ditch PTI as a party of disruption & Establishment-backed politics. Just for sake of principles & love of country, I had to support NS's narrative. When I saw pre-poll rigging (I was very much plugged into news & analysis at that time) I started to have a soft corner for PML-N. More thoughtful & highly educated people around me started to voice their opposition towards politics of Establishment that was causing so much disruption in the country & economy (TLP, Faizabad, marches on Islamabad, & what-not). So, its been a journey.
I have zero personal interest in PML-N, but I have a lot at stake in Pakistan. So I do what I think needs to be done. If it is supporting PML-N during the time of its persecution, then so be it. If it means to stand against anti-army rhetoric, even conditionally, then so be it. It is shocking for me to see that even some moderators, in their PTI zeal are posting inappropriate thoughts & logic. I must pitch in to correct the balance somewhat. If I seem a bit off-balance, it is a reaction to the extreme opinions bein voiced here.
