Dear Pakistan, I still love you to the moon and back

[Muji.Iqbal]

With 800 million poor people in India there is never shortage of beggars. Sending a toy onto the moon is just a "feel good drug" for the masses and it hasn't and doesn't change the real ground realities.

I agree with you, sending a metal piece to the Moon means nothing if your country is not prosperous. India has the most poor in the world.

 

[nahtanbob]

This article is stupid. Pakistan has only 250 million people.

India is the world's largest populous country with 1.42 billion people.

With all those human resources, they are bound to achieve something. India is bound to have a larger economy. No duh.

India is a larger country than Pakistan with more land and resources, you idiot @nahtanbob

it is not my article @Muji.Iqbal

India's sanctions were lifted years sooner than Pakistan.

Pakistan suffered more loss than gain from the Afghan war. Floods added more to the damage.

And despite more economic aid and shorter sanctions, your Bharat has had more poverty than most African countries combined and you spend money on these stupid publicity stunts.

If you are telling me Pakistani leaders are a bunch of idiots who poke their nose into places where they do not belong you do not get any disagreement. Afghan wars are a good example.

As far as floods go India gets its share of floods and they have invested more money in flood control

I really like to know what sanctions were imposed on Pakistan


In any case India has not been to the IMF since 1990. Pakistani leaders have fun in their routine begging bowl trips to the IMF

 

[Muji.Iqbal]

it is not my article @Muji.Iqbal



If you are telling me Pakistani leaders are a bunch of idiots who poke their nose into places where they do not belong you do not get any disagreement. Afghan wars are a good example.

As far as floods go India gets its share of floods and they have invested more money in flood control

I really like to know what sanctions were imposed on Pakistan

Idiot, it does not matter if it is not your article.

The article is flawed because it is comparing a smaller country like Pakistan when India has more human and natural resources.

India has 1.42 billion people. Pakistan has just 250 million people. lol?

I mean how stupid can you get. India is bound to have a larger economy and talent pool and more educated people than Pakistan. You moron.

 

[K_Bin_W]

With 800 million poor people in India there is never shortage of beggars. Sending a toy onto the moon is just a "feel good drug" for the masses and it hasn't and doesn't change the real ground realities.

India is an anomaly - With massive poverty, they brag about moon shots with begged borrowed technology... Amazing.....

 

[Muji.Iqbal]

India is an anomaly - With massive poverty, they brag about moon shots with begged borrowed technology... Amazing.....

Exactly my point. The condition of their country is very bad yet they dream to be like China. lol.

 

[kingQamaR]

I bet all those little millions slum dogs living under cardboard in railway sidings will be looking up proudly at the moon tonight as their tummy's rumble with hunger.Obscene,

 

[ThunderCat]

If you are telling me Pakistani leaders are a bunch of idiots who poke their nose into places where they do not belong you do not get any disagreement. Afghan wars are a good example.

What do you mean "poke their nose into places they don't belong?" Who gave Afghans the right to meddle in Pakistan for over 30 years before Pakistan finally retaliated under Bhutto? That's what I call poking nose into other people's business.

Obviously you are not well read in history or anything for that matter. Not surprising for an ignorant egoistic Binglo-Pajeet like yourself.

From the article The Forgotten History of Afghanistan-Pakistan relations: https://www.yalejournal.org/publications/the-forgotten-history-of-afghanistan-pakistan-relations

Pakistan’s historical and contemporary support for jihadi groups has caused US policy prescriptions over the past decade to focus prominently on the need to change Pakistan’s strategic orientation. In this article, the authors explore one aspect of Pakistan’s strategic calculations that has received insufficient attention in public debate: the degree to which Afghanistan’s aggressions against Pakistan have helped to shape the latter’s support for religious militant groups.

Read it or ignore it.

 

[ThunderCat]

In any case India has not been to the IMF since 1990. Pakistani leaders have fun in their routine begging bowl trips to the IMF

LOL that's because Americans filled up their begging bowl while sanctioning Pakistan. Don't humiliate yourself with these stupid threads that you create for validation.

 

[ThunderCat]

No worries. Aid means unlike loan, no requirement of returning it. Eat and be happy.

I'm sure what the IMF gave Pakistan was a free hand out. No paybacks required. We are "grateful"

 

[HAIDER]

While I'm happy for India, I feel regret that we have been conditioned not to aspire for much, let alone for the moon.

---

Bisma Tirmizi

August 2023 is destined to host two full moons. The super moon will light up our planet on the August 31st, as it did at the beginning of the month. And as the world waits to welcome its second sighting of the complete lunar disc, India celebrates having seen it three times this month, a feat like none other.

Congratulations are definitely in order. Let me raise my glass of thandi lassi to our neighbours. Cheers to the people who are working hard and competing on the world stage, unlike some of us who can't seem to get out of the Toshakhana, the infighting, religious hierarchy, delusional and misguided superiority, tearing down minorities, burning churches, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.


Yes, India is certainly not rinsed in milk (or as is colloquially said, it is certainly not doodh ka dhula), but clearly its people have their priorities in perfect alignment under their tri-coloured flag. Yes, the devil is in the details, and one can talk about much wrong in the past and present, but that's everywhere and not our point of reference today. Their institutions, such as the governing body, soldiers, cricket, tech, film industry, democracy and much more, can hold their own. To draw a comparison Sarmad Khoosat's Zindigi Tamasha was canned in Pakistan due to pressure from entities that are to remain unnamed, but Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan was released to a full house despite the ridiculous uproar, calling for its nationwide ban, pre-release and after.

A country of almost 358 million in 1947, our neighbours, historically speaking, were always taught to be country proud. That was taught post-independence. Hence, ethnicities were never encouraged or referred to as Parsi, Muslim, Hindu, Punjabi, Sindhi, Pathan, Upite, Tamil; they only called themselves Indians.

In his book, titled The Discovery of India, Jawaharlal Nehru explained the very concept of “unity in diversity”. Divide and rule doesn't make successful nations. Our beloved Jinnah and Nehru won independence for their countries together, but tragically for us, the wonderful and patriotic Quaid died, and the vacuum was filled through quick changes by quasi-leaders planted by powers that be. Meanwhile, Nehru lived for another 16 years to sow the seeds of real democracy and success that India reaps today.

Nehru coined the term “temples of modern India” to describe scientific research institutes, steel plants, power plants and dams being launched in India after independence to jumpstart scientific and industrial progress. Education became the benchmark for equality. It wasn't that money made a great equalizer, but education did. Continuing those policies, Indira Gandhi abolished feudalism, an archaic system that does not work with modern governments and is diametrically opposed to progress for all. Imports were banned, Indians ate homemade chocolate, cheese and cola and drove a car that was locally.

Enter modern times and almost the turn of the century. Fifty years into independence, Vajpayee is in power, a different party but he keeps his eye on the ball of progress and education. That's how one gets to the moon and back. For nations to achieve great progress, the current generation has to stand on the shoulders of the bygone leaders who keep the country above parties, institutions and individuals.
According to Teenaz Javat, an Indian friend of mine who moved to Pakistan in the 90s after marrying a Pakistani, has experienced living in both countries:

Being a country-loving Pakistani is a responsibility that we, collectively or individually, cannot shirk. We need to be the voice that wants to yell from tall buildings at the top of our lungs, but somehow, we find ourselves as desperate and pathetic characters in the movie A Quiet Place. Quiet, scared, fearful, petrified! Our voice is lost in the comatose phase of “Shhh, koi soon lay ga (people will hear)”.
What's up, countrymen? Do you want to compete on the world stage, or do you want to keep being beaten down all the time?

As I sit and ponder the root cause of us being where we are today, only one thing explains it. We never gained independence from the colonists. They left a legacy behind of red coats, descendants of holier-than-thou religiosity, elitism and feudalism (dukedoms, earls, marquis, lords, ladies, and at the top of the food chain, a king who wants it all).

Like it was in the European Middle Ages, it is in the interest of our misguided legacy holders to keep the population uneducated and always desperate for the next meal. Their desperation ensures that they only focus on acquiring a resource that leads them to the next food source and water, let alone security, housing, education and a quest for a better life. And advancement, improvement, development, research, science, technology, energy, a network of business and telecommunication, roads, railways, travel and tourism are buzzwords left to appear in ministers' portfolios, only to be aspired for and never to be reached.
As a Pakistani, don't you sometimes want to win?

Don't you want to wake up in the morning and read a happy, positive headline that makes you proud? Where are those headlines? Where did they go?
They went to the A Quiet Place it seems.

As a kid growing up in Pakistan, during the early 80s, I remember going out after sunset on Independence Day to see the lit city of Karachi dressed like a beautiful bride: bright, beautiful, vibrant and full of promise.
Where did that promise go?

Today, I felt a pang, and while I'm happy for our neighbours, I did feel regret that we as a nation have been conditioned not to aspire for much, let alone for the moon.
What's left for me to say when Raees Farogh said it best in his sublime poetry:




WRITTEN BY:
Bisma Tirmizi
The author lives for the simple pleasures and her musings over a cup of tea almost always find a way to be the written word. She also writes for pakteahouse.net. Her book 'Feast With A Taste Of Amir Khusro', published by Rupa Publications, is available in stores now.

 

[ThunderCat]

Karen alert !!

I read the article. It seems like your typical Muhajir neo-liberal still butt-hurt about Punjabi technological superiority while sitting comfortably in Lahore or Islamabad/

 

[nahtanbob]

LOL that's because Americans filled up their begging bowl while sanctioning Pakistan. Don't humiliate yourself with these stupid threads that you create for validation.

Tell us exactly what sanctions were imposed on Pakistan that India was not subject to

I will give you a hint - not getting handouts from the American taxpayer is not a sanction

 

[karmaa]

This article is stupid. Pakistan has only 250 million people.

India is the world's largest populous country with 1.42 billion people.

With all those human resources, they are bound to achieve something. India is bound to have a larger economy. No duh.

India is a larger country than Pakistan with more land and resources, you idiot @nahtanbob

There are billions of muslims in this world , no muslim country sent a mission to moon . Half of them are rioting in Europe . Why?

I read the article. It seems like your typical Muhajir neo-liberal still butt-hurt about Punjabi technological superiority while sitting comfortably in Lahore or Islamabad/

Alert in America and greece because of Pakistani doctor sent to jail for terror plot and illegal pskistanis setting jungles on fire in greece.

 

[ThunderCat]

Tell us exactly what sanctions were imposed on Pakistan that India was not subject to

According to BBC's news report in 1999, America withdrew most sanctions on India in 1999. Not so for Pakistan. That did not happen until 2001. When that happened all remaining few sanctions on India were also withdrawn.

But as the Afghan war began to progress, the economic impact began to rise soon towards 2010. Wikipedia also confirms, although the source is vague.

 

[karmaa]

According to BBC's news report in 1999, America withdrew most sanctions on India in 1999. Not so for Pakistan. That did not happen until 2001. When that happened all remain few sanctions on India were also withdrawn.

But as the Afghan war began to progress, the economic pmact began to rise soon towards 2010. Wikipedia also confirms, although the source is vague.

What you did in Afghanistan , they remember it , they are now coming and attacking on your border posts. Things are going to be worse .