In Life, the Universe and Everything, Douglas Adams tells us the story of the residents of the planet Krikket—Krikketers. The Krikketers had never imagined that a Universe could exist outside their little planet. Due to a certain chain of events, however, when they did discover than many worlds lay outside of their little planet, they were shocked. So they resolved to do the only thing possible to get things to fit their world view: they would destroy the rest of the Universe.
Although I doubt it, Douglas Adams could very well have been writing of the terrorists who have been quite a nuisance for the world of late. Unable to accept a world that doesn’t fit in with their view of what it should be like, they’ve calmly decided to annihilate. And of course, in what completes my analogy, these terrorists types are the prime suspects in the attack on the Lankan cricketers that took place in Lahore.
Incidentally and interestingly, most Indians reacted to this attack with a mixture of outrage and, also, a rather overwhelming feeling of schadenfreude. Newspapers pontificated about Pakistan’s imminent demise, the Congress compared the country to Somalia and users on Rediff (always a reliable barometer of public mood) praised the BCCI for pulling India out of the tour.
It could always be argued, however, that all this is very much par for the course. In a Blue Star-esque twist, Pakistan’s heartland is now under attack from the same forces which it supported to try and push its agenda in India as well as Afghanistan. A little bit of glee with Pakistan in such hot water is but natural. Boys, after all, will be boys.
However, most Indians don’t realise that bad as Pakistan is to have as a neighbour, the take-over of the country by these Jihadi jokers spells even more bad news as far as India is concerned. At the end of the day, there can be only thing worse than having Pakistan as a neighbour—and that’s having no state as a neighbour on our west.
Of course, in a heartwarming show of solidarity with the Indians, quite a few Pakistanis have also behaved quite daftly. Everyone from RAW to Mossad as well as the odd actual terrorist was blamed. As late as Friday, Pakistan’s Interior Minter went on record saying that the “foreign hand” cannot be ruled.
Taken at face value, that’s perfectly all right. I mean, let’s face it, neither you nor I will ever know the whole truth behind this attack or any of the other stuff that keeps on happening which involve the powers that be. So let me take this opportunity to offer a bit of unsolicited advice to the Pakistanis. In this situation, they should do what every God-fearing, honest man would do when he doesn’t know the truth—invent his own.
As it is a couple of months back everybody in Pakistan was going on about how terrorism is a problem that affects Pakistan more than any other country in the world. Terrorism might be just a problem for everyone else, went the argument, but its an existential threat for Pakistan. However, quite a few Pakistanis, it seems, weren’t convinced. The happenings in the county’s north where girl’s schools were destroyed, indestructible radio stations set up and people killed for not hiking up their shalwars still left some people with a reasonable amount of doubt as to just what these bearded chaps were up to.
So as I see it, this this very unfortunate attack gives Pakistan an opportunity to once and for all paint these terrorists as the Calibans of out times—savage monsters who will stop at nothing to people the planet with little Calibans. And what better way to convince the people of Pakistan of their true intentions that by showing them how these brutes would even attack a team of friendly and harmless cricketers thereby bringing international cricket in Pakistan to a standstill.
You never know, this attack might just be what the doctor ordered for Pakistan. All Pakistan has to do now is to blame the right people.
Photo: Playing Cricket
We need to differentiate between Pakistan as a nation and Pakistan as a state.
A lot of Pakistani administrators pushing their own agenda have done things which have been harmful to India. However, the people of Pakistan do not want trouble.
The sane millions in Pakistan do not want any truck with the Taliban or the militants. Nor have any sensible or intelligent people blamed India for the Lahore attack.
This is the right time for a meeting of minds between the respective governments so that united action can betaken against the terrorists
“However, most Indians don’t realise that bad as Pakistan is to have as a neighbour, the take-over of the country by these Jihadi jokers spells even more bad news as far as India is concerned. At the end of the day, there can be only thing worse than having Pakistan as a neighbour—and that’s having no state as a neighbour on our west.”
—Some twisted logic this is, as if Pakistan is already not under the rule of a bunch of jokers, a splintered west with a baluchistan, sindh , sekaria, wazirstan & that leaves us with a weak punjabi pakistan as the enemy state- & above all those who are within & nurturing sinister designs will die a natural death – disintegration of the western zone although with short-term hiccups will be favourable to India in the long-term, you only got to get the 100 odd feudal lords going at each others throat or a small mutiny in the Pak Army would suffice for this result.
“All Pakistan has to do now is to blame the right people.”
—Themselves.
I agree with aam insaan. India will always be the target of islamic extremists in pakistan either in the form of its state institutions or in terms of the jihadi forces. How India survives this latest spate of attacks and those in the future will be dependent of her counter-terrorism strategy and might. We should teach terrorists a lesson and whenever someone like Kasab is caught alive an example should be made out of him. Its stop to stop acting nice and make people fear us. As far as the state of pakistan, I dont care what happens there as the danger to india form that side will continue as long there is an anti-Hindu attitude instilled among the people through their schools textbooks.
IndianMuslims.in has found another good writer. I enjoyed the post, despite disagreements with some of its premises.
Hi,
Whatelse can pakistani’s think. Just to blame india. Unfortunate is that country which was born out of hatred and has gone on self destruction on hatred.
Many have expressed concerns about the destruction of pakistan and raise of talibans. anyhow india has been living with the cross border terrorism. Further talibalization will isolate pakistan and expose it thoroughly, which is good for india. Further india cannot worry for the bundle of fundamentalist doing something in their house till it does not come into our area. But i think we do have something called border and force in border.
What depresses me is the ‘We are not Pakistan mentality?’ My sister asked me as to how the Pakistan must be living after the Lahore attacks. The charity for me starts at home. The fact is we too, live by the standard which the Pakistnis live. Till the time you do not have any near/dear one on the list of victims, we are cozy in our cars and houses. We cannot wish away our western neighbour because as Afghanistan cannnot be detached from Pakistan, so is Pakistan. Surely, there are people who’ll blame the God of Muslims for not making the earth flat
!! This very contention of their’s spill the fact that all agree to the creation of universe by Allah. Cant we live in peace after accepting this fact?
M Naqqaad
—The question of comparing our thinking with that of ‘pakistani mentality’ doesn’t arises – Indian thinking is on a diff. plain & level altogether. Lahore attacks is away of life in pakistan, pakistani society is comfy with it, that’s their standard living but the mumbai attack & the regular blasts caused by pakistan are not the standards with which we wish to live, nor do we deserve to sacrifice anymore our near & dear ones for a bunch of lunatics from pakistan or abetted by them. Nothing binds us with pakistan, so why talk of any attachment to it? why must we care for an enemy?
Sympathizing with the enemy is the same as sleeping with the enemy.
Aam Insaan,
Yes, there’s a good chance that a splintered Pakistan would be good for India. But what guarantee is there that Pakistan will splinter? What if the Radio Mullahs actually capture power centrally? What if the mullahs capture power even in a splintered Pakistan? In a splintered Pakistan who gets to keep the nukes?
Let’s see:
1)As of now, with nuclear weapons and all, no sane Pakistani govt. would ever think of waging war on India. This is not 1965. An all-out war would hugely harm India, setting it back by decades and would all but decimate Pakistan.
2)Therefore, at best what Pakistan can do is support terrorism—and as is being shown with severe repressions to itself.
Now, as bad as no. 2 is for India, it’s not a patch on option number no. 1.
If the Fazlullahs take over, we can very well drop the ‘sane’ part. If people who think that capital punishment should be meted out for how you trim your beard control Pak’s nuclear arsenal then I, as an Indian, would not be too happy.
With the ‘100 odd feudal lords going at each others throat’ who will guarantee that a 101st doesn’t launch a nuclear warhead at Bombay? I hope you realise the consequences of even a freak thing like that for India.
Your what-ifs are quite tickety-boo when it comes to conventional weapons, but when the matter comes to a game-changer like nuclear weapons, I think India would very much prefer its ‘enemy’ to be evil rather than insane.
Cheers,
Shoaib
Pakistani army and the Americans know exactly the status of Pakistani nukes.
These nukes ending up in the hands of Taliban/Terrorists/ISI is more than a concern for India but it’s the worst nightmare for US.
The truth could be that after 911 the first demand made of Pakistan was to surrender their control of the nukes to US to secure it from falling into the hands of Pakistani sponsored Taliban with the help of elements in untrustworthy ISI/army who nurtured and supported them.
By not making it public Pakistanis were allowed to maintain a facade of deterrence in the form of empty rhetoric and threats of nuclear war against India in return.
Among Indian analysts this seems to be the widely held view.
I first heard it when Bharat Verma let it slip during his debate with Hamid Zaid.
There were also hints of US control of Pakistani nuclear assets in US media editorials after the Mumbai attacks along with a tacit approval if India takes any measures to deal with the cesspool called Pakistan and not the usual hue and cry about the nuclear flash point in south asia.
Aam Insaan,
Sadly the quality or character in your name is absent. For people going by your mentality, sleeping with enemy’s enemy is friendship. We had a lot of it due to our hypenated thought process. The day one fellow told us that India is not Pakistan, we get to know today that the Home Ministry is unable to provide security guarantee for IPL. It is not that we are not capable of but some self styled expert external agency which must be charging hefty fee which is given undue weightage to make such a deicision. We still have a chance in another country Iran. Now a nuclear armed rogue contry is very acceptible to us not a nuclear power generting Iran. Would you please clarify, where our priorities ly. To many the enemy’s enemy is friend but why at first place we make enemy out of a person?
Shoaib
—-Pakistan’s been a fragmented society since it’s inception- the sectarian feuds – the high-handedness of the dominant punjabi’s – the second class citizen treatment to the migrated Indian Muslims, termed mohajir – the cleansing of Baluchistans leadership by the Punjabi army & robbing it of it’s natural wealth & subsequently leasing it to the Chinese, who are actually India’s main enemy, Pakistan is just of nuisance value etc.
The inherent diverse culture of the sub-continent is on the wane & is being replaced by mistrust of the punjabi’s & divisive politics, the present stand-off between Zardari & Shareif would split wide open the Pakistani society on linguistic & regionalism grounds.
Pakistan is a splintered zone that’s held together by the iron-fisted army, which is the 101st. feudal lord alongwith the other 100. Pakistan is ruled by an oligarchy.
The Fazlullahs are an illusion, created for mass consumption by the western powers as were Saddam’s WMD, to loot Iraq’s vast oil reserves & here America wants to strategically control Afghanistan, The gateway to Asia, permanently. Pak Army obliges them for sheer economic reasons, they also serve other petty purposes such as political assassinations, terrorize civilians, & whenever required act as ‘non-state’ actors inside Pakistan & in foreign lands. Bin Laden is a hoax. If & only If, the day Pakistani Army decides to eliminate them, within a span of 90 days they’ll be wiped out without a trace.
Similarly, the nuke threat is a west-created fear psychosis, to con their own people & justify their so called ‘war on terror’, as if they’re showering flowers on innocent tribals over here & we people still suffering from the whiteman’s syndrome, as usual, tag along.
China is the real master of Pakistan- the Americans are eyewash. They are the one’s who control the nuke button, the Pak Army is just it’s custodian & a first-grade professional one. With the Gwadar port in Baluchistan, china completes it’s encirclement of India & negates India’s Naval advantage over china. If even Baluchistan is separated, & made an independent state like Bangladesh, then we again gain back lost ground & we also owe it to the Baluchi’s since the frontier Gandhi didn’t want to join Pakistan & wanted to remain with India, but was refused by Gandhi.
The most weirdest of argument that I occasionally come across is this Nuke business, what-if Pakistan nukes Bombay? As if India will respond with flower bouquets. The rules of war have changed, they’re now fought on the sly – guerilla & economic warfares, the days of open warfare are gone. Anyways, as it is, the present humanity on planet earth is a sick humanity.
An enemy is an enemy – good-evil-sane-insane, doesn’t count, all that counts is it’s disintegration & defeat- hook or by crook.
M Naqqaad
— Sorry Boss, no niceties from me – who said life is fair? An Aam Insaan lives commonsensically & is least bothered of building a hypocritical image for public consumption unlike self-styled intellectuals.
In International relations there are no friends or enemies, there are only interests & each country works in it’s own national interest. Iran is a friendly nation, but it is not in our nation’s interest to have one more nuclear nation in our neighbourhood, what if in future the present regime is replaced with a hostile regime? Atleast India has stated this concern openly & Iran has also gracefully accepted it in an understanding & matured manner.
The IPL is an international event & if the government is not 100% sure of security rather than just trying an one-upmanship with Pakistan it should either delay, rehabilitate or shelve the tournament this year- a little bit of criticism or ridicule is far more acceptable than risking lives & spl. Of guest sport persons.
“Indian Muslims are capable of solving their problems… We don’t need your advice.. Don’t try to alienate Indian Muslims by your
remarks, here or in Pakistan.”
Finally MADANI said what everyone couldn’t!
Pakistan is a gone case! I have ZERO sympathy for this nation! Red Mosque incident was just the beginning!
They can’t even take care of their own but Mush comes and preaches us!
As Farid Zakaria said, RADICAL ISLAM is here to stay for good! you like it OR not we are going to have more surprises in India! It is up to us to use our thought process rather than blindly believing in religious preachings!
As a muslim nation, Pakistan has failed miserably BUT loves to blame INDIA!
# Aam Insaan & Soham,
This could only be claimed by somebody Indian and Muslim. Time will tell us how much we can lead our neighbours but the air is out of the sail of IPL. If one claims the trait of Allah, that is bound to cost one dearly for ‘takabbur’ is only for Allah and not for humans, and one of you claim to be ‘insaan’ which means human. The problem with us Indians, especially non-religious Muslims and non-Muslims, is that we do not think independently or originally and many a time change posture ala Musharraf. This forced mentality retards one’s overall merit. Many a time I come across example where we compete with the failed state of Pakistan despite having the results in front of us which is astonishing. The day we clinch the big ticket F-18 or F16 deal with them, Pakistan would suddenly be peaceful. Already, we have unpaid celebrity Indians, trying to sell the Amrican planes as if the French, Swede and Russian planes are not airworthy!! Here again we are not going for merit. To err is human but …..
M Naqqaad
—I’m curious, what makes you say that i’ve indulged in takabbur? why do we need to ‘lead’ any of our neighbours? it’s none of our business.will i no longer be ‘insaan’ if i stop ‘claiming’ to be one? who decides? i disagree that the ‘specially non-religious Muslims and non-Muslims,’ as you’ve categorized, possess the cunningness of a la Mushy, Indian arms expenditure are done with a focus on the threat from China, Pakistan is inconsequential, if it wants to be peaceful then let it self-introspect rather then depending on external sources.
Thanks Naqqaad for your comments.
Quoting religious text and classifying others as “non-independent thinkers” or “non-religious muslims” “non-muslims” doesn’t make you an independent thinker! Come out with your own thinking and chide us!
For your kind information, India has more independent thinking than you can perceive! Thanks to this so-called ‘non-religious’ muslims and ‘non-muslims’ or ‘non-fanatics’ who are simply called INDIANS! It is a blessing in disguise that majority janta of our country don’t have ‘independent’ people like you (sucking up to pro-pakistani thinking) or people with pro-hindu thinking (idiot advani and BJP cohorts and the goons they support and fund are one example), ..else India would have been like Pakistan! In fact, there is a good percentage of Indian muslims who are aware now and sick of Pakistan because of their so-called “friendly” trespassing into India in the name of brotherhood and misguiding innocent muslims! Of course, you might not fit in this quota because just like Pakistan govt., you are in a denial mode of Pak’s love for us!
Look what is happening in Pakistan, it has gone from sad to pathetic state! That is the beauty of Pakistan! In terms of astonishing results, yep! I have seen an astonishing incident in Pakistan yesterday, a suicide bomber exploding….! It is deteriorating day-by-day! Pak is a ‘muslim’ majority country right! So what have they done to their own in the last 60 years? and why do you see so many poor muslims there…..[e.g., Kasab et al.] and why are they churning out more terrorists than their neighbor?? Let me not even go into the pathetic state of minorities in paksitan?? How come Pakistan govt. is not helping their own but they have all the money to help Taliban and Kashmir militants? Look what is Taliban doing to them now? Jaisi Karni Waisi Barni! And why is ISI/lashkar feeding these guys?? Furthermore, how come Paksitan is labeled as a haven for terrorism and not India?
Additionally, It’s the independent thinking of INDIANS [irrespective of their religion affinity] that has brought India this far, and NOT due to pro-paskitani supporters who are “independent think-tanks and NON-‘non-religious muslims’ like you” or pro-Advani supporters WHO are more dangerous to India’s growth than a non-religious freak!! If you want the proof, look no further than the romance between Pakistan Govt. and SWAT!
Interesting! Isn’t It? India is going towards cloning and beyond ..where as Pakistan is going towards cave-ages! Talk about your independent thinking nation and Competing!!!
BTW, Thanks for bringing this “Competing with Pak!” Are you kidding me? Look what Lashkar has been saying to this misguided youth [e.g., Kasab]..’Zaki chacha would say: Work with me. You will bring a good name to your family. You will get money. It is Allah’s work……… You are Muslims. You have to get rid of poverty. Look at India. They have raced ahead of us……… You have to wage jihad against India’.”
Hmm..now I wonder, who is competing with whom and for what??
Yeah! you are correct, India CANNOT compete with Pak in terms of terrorism schools and infrastructure for radical islam!!….and am sure Pak will come out with more astonishing results both in their country and in India because they have nothing else to do than poking India?
Also, what ‘independent thinking’ are you talking about? Do you have independent thinking? Well, let me guess!! In this great platform of discussion, you make fun of user-ids [insaan.., etc.]! That’s all you got brother!!! You must be running out of “independent thinking” that you stoop to taking cheap shots at others’ user ids??..and this tells a lot about your independent thinking!
Once gain, thanks to the “independent” thinking INDIANS that include “sane-religious” and “semi-religious” people who are striving to eliminate differences among us [this website is a perfect example of the passion towards India’s growth] and warn us again and again to watch fanatics like you [pro-pakistani] or pro-BJP goons (bajrang or sena or sangh parivar)!
Last but not least, I don’t care about IPL! I am more worried and have immense concern for fellow Indians who are at risk from pro-religious fanatics [that includes hindu, muslim and others you adore] than worrying about if a game is going to be played or not! Modi and BCCI are the Nazis of this cricket and I hope some cricketing nation or board stands up to them and teach them a lesson!
there is no doubt that Pak as a nation is on the downhill. The extremism and terrorism used against India and Afghanistan is about to consume Pak itself. India can do little about it. All India can do is prune up its security and defence and try to prevent events like 26/11.
Soham
I agree with your views. India is above muslim and hindus and it is for the development of its citizens. That is the reason that you could have multiple type of people who have come up their life from all community.
I would say, it is insult to compare india with pakistan, a state found by religious fundamentalism and which has taken its own self destruction with its own action. And still have the audacity to blame others.
aam insaan & soham,
I have been telling that all the people who think the way I stated, are not independent thinkers. soham is so ‘bounced’ by words which he is not able to digest because he thinks they are religious. What I concede is that both of you are competing with Pakistan for self destruction. You think that nothing can go wrong for India but I being more patriot is of the opinion that this very line of thought is faulty. Already, the results are infront of us. The US of A has demanded us to reduce the troops on western borders while the fact is that we have the nominal peace-time deployment only. Next they may ask to commit troops in Afghanistan or Iraq (so that they die after the US have left), instead of reducing on the border. This is the trap I could pick up while many people sitting on ‘think tanks’ are not able to. I’ll continue boasting my patriotism because it is not a thing to be worn along with any religion. There is no comparision with Pakistan but it does not mean that we are immune from the ills of a nation. If you still persist, let the sand inundate…
M Naqqaad
“What I concede is that both of you are competing with Pakistan for self destruction.”
—No. Our proposition is the destruction & eradication of the enemy state of Pakistan, demographically, economically & socially, in the same proxy war manner which they have initiated & hurt us with some success.
For your other contentions – It seems you are blissfully unaware of the damage & proxy war already declared by Pakistan on India, we’ve been incompetent in our response, our inherent tolerance & virtues, have been misinterpreted by Pakistani’s as incompetence & powerlessness & puffed up with their haughtiness they have been impudently remorselessly attacking India with their so-called covert acts. But with the Mumbai carnage they have wounded the tiger & mauled to death they shall be.
As it is we are paying a heavy price for their proxy war in the form of communal distrust & with the blood of innocents, what more to happen must we hold our fire for?
The US&A is not the reason for India not building it’s troops on the western borders, but since by doing so, we would have played into the hands of the Pak Armies designs for which they carried out the Mumbai attacks, that it also worked in the NATO interest is a different subject matter, but not binding to India. Further, after the emotionally stupid reaction by Advani after 2001 parliament attack, India has changed its war strategies for Pakistan in which heavy deployment in any particular sector is shelved. The ‘think-tank’ of India falls in no traps, they’ve learnt their lessons in ‘62 & ’65 & not to forget ’71 & Kargil.
Although your unsubstantiated assumption of our army being sent to Iraq is mumbo jumbo – What’s wrong in sending our army to Afghanistan to fight alongside the brave Pashtun’s against the common enemy? It makes a lot of sense to me by encircling the enemy from all sides & then – let the sand inundate!