Lazy Sunday and I didn’t want to spam the BP Whatsapp Group so here goes (I may update as the day goes on):
- Like Most Americans, I Was Raised to Be A White Man
- Raza Rumi’s new book uses Pakistan’s culture to reveal a diverse, layered, contested country
-
The Rise, Fall and Rise Again of Imran Khan, Pakistan’s Next Leader
-
How White Is London?! Interesting that Nas (I follow him on Facebook) is an Israel-Palestinians Harvard Grad and uses Brown to define himself. I once wrote in one of my first posts in BP that there has always been an other category in the American imagination that was occupied by the Native Americans (Black, White & Red). America has space for three colours..
I’m proud to say Pakistan probably has one of the best looking Leaders (on par with Croatia & Canada) in the world and it may have a female president. I’m extremely optics conscious.. Meet Pakistan’s playboy-turned-prime minister- I always admonish Pakistanis who let down the side by not being aesthetic enough that’s why I’m probably anti-Hijab, I don’t like badly worn Hijabis. I do think however that Indian women are obviously the best-looking in the world. I admonished my niece yesterday when she thought that on average white women were better looking than Asian women; psychological colonisation.
- PTI MNA-elect decides not to take salary, other allowances. I’m rapidly winning over to the PTI side since they present the right image of Pakistan, young electable and non-corrupt chaps. I’ll of course be condemned as someone who supports authoritarian candidates and that’s probably true.
- Pakistan needs to work on its danger image and with our kin-nations Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan form that erogenous-erotic zone of danger, heady sensuality and restrictions. One interesting thing in the West has been that with the increase in sexual liberalism there is a correspondent decline in eroticism and increase in weird fetishes and an ever increasingly Cornucopia of sexual orientations.
- Pakistan is a split border territory our kin nations are both Afghanistan and Iran and the Stans however we are of course also tied to our kin nations of SAARC. We aren’t one or the other exactly. Afghanistan is a SAARC nation in the same way as Burma; it doesn’t speak an Indo-Aryan or Dravidian or Munda language which is a central requirement.
- I think the greatest leader in South Asian history happens to be Indira Gandhi since she neutralised the greatest threat to India for generations to come. Even though I’m partial to Pakistan (how can I not be since I’m partially Paki). I’m quite convinced that one of the avatars of Indira is Vidhi, probably the other is Priyanka..
“Like most Americans, I was raised to be a white man: I read William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway. I read F. Scott Fitzgerald and Charles Bukowski.”
Most Americans never read anything by these authors, except for the Great Gatsby and a few stories by Hemingway, both of which they forget as soon as their high school class moves on to a different topic. I doubt I know a single person who even knows who Charles Bukowski is.
LOL, the first two links are things I posted on Facebook!
I thought the first article was very interesting, especially the part where she was told that the stories she was writing were not Indian enough and she should be more “Jhumpa Lahiri-ish”. She is right that no white man would ever be asked to reflect his background more in his fiction.
On the PTI: It’s a right-wing party. PML-N is center-right, but PTI is actually right-wing. Over the last five years, they were in coalition with Jamaat-e-Islami in KPK. I hope they become less right-wing, but I’m not holding my breath.
Oh sorry I should have credited u Kabir!
No issue, I’m glad you found them interesting 🙂
Find it interesting that the NYT piece on Imran Khan doesn’t have a single mention of India.
That “How White Is London?!” Facebook video was so obnoxious, particularly Nas’s comments underneath. He has a clear prejudice against white British people because of the British Empire, and wants them to become a minority in their country as a result of that, as some form of ‘punishment’. I bet he doesn’t have that attitude towards Turks and Arabs because of the Ottoman and Arab empires.
I think that’s a bit harsh Kourosh / however I didn’t read his comment..
The best cities are global melting pots; that’s why Dubai might just steal a march on the rest of the world.. it and it’s fellow sisters in the Persian Gulf (QATAR * Bahrain etc) can go in absorbing immigrations with the ethical/moral quandaries that Western democracies have..
Lots of immigrants want cash and a good time rather than the vote and political participation..
Is this an up-to-date picture, or from the 90s? why does he look like just woke up in the afternoon after an all night bender involving mixing liquors and powder?
Reminds me of graduate school days. God I miss them.
It’s from the 90s of course; Imran Khan is completely Shareef now..
Its only Pinki peerni now
He’s super Muslim now.
Does not mean he does not do benders now.
Super Muslims are often the best partieers, at least from my experience in grad school in 90s. They have the best pot.
Yes most of my Muslim friends take me for some super-devout Muslim since I’ve never drunk alcohol..
Bahais are the ultimate fanatics lol
“greatest leader in South Asian history happens to be Indira Gandhi since she neutralised the greatest threat to India for generations to come”
That’s an overstatement. IG allowed herself to be bullshitted by ZAB in Simla. She could have solved Pakistani interference in Kashmir right there. In fact, militarily if she had continued operations for another 3 weeks Pakistan would have collapsed as Pakistan had gas supplies for army and air force for only 3 weeks. Good daughter for her father
Do u have details on the negotiation?
Now we know why ISI was and is so keen on putting IK on the top.
Pakistan is becoming a bonded labour for China what with the CPEC and flooded with Chinese loans and now China wants it’s pound of flesh. To escape it – it was predicted – they want IMF to bail out Pakistan. Now the US is wisening up to Pakistani tactics, plunder Peter to pay Paul.
https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN1KK2G5?__twitter_impression=true
U.S.’ Pompeo warns against IMF bailout for Pakistan that aids China
Forgot to add the last line;
That’s where a handsome civilian PM with no past of personal corruption comes in – he can be a good front man for negotiations with IMF and Foreign powers.
‘Democracy’ in Pakistan is a charade – everyone knows
https://www.wsj.com/articles/pakistans-deep-state-seeks-a-new-patron-1532989532
By Walter Russell Mead
July 30, 2018 6:25 p.m. ET
Another meaningless Pakistani election has attracted another burst of world media attention
We hope it will be less of a charade as time goes on. This is only the second democratic transfer of power from a government that has completed its five-year term to another.
One thing that Pakistanis like me really admire about India is that the fact that democracy has remained a constant (barring Mrs. G’s “Emergency”). The fact that no one ethnic group dominates the Indian Army probably made the possibility of a coup much less likely.