Happiness

Happiness ? We all have our own definitions and are pursuing it. But what really is happiness, is it really all that unique or is there a universality in what makes us happy?

Does my XBOX360 make me happy or the fact that me and beloved have a great time playing together. I just bought the iPOD Touch after much internal deliberation and now I m typing this entry on it. Is the material thing that makes me happy or the fact that I can blog again while sitting in my car(forget the cat stereo, it is Jinxed). Some may argue that it is the material things that are making me happy. My response is simple, please don’t confuse the ends and means. I need tools because of time constraints put on me by my work and personal life, my aim is simply to enjoy music and express myself.

Life and happiness in life is about choices and we can only make right choices if we know what we are choosing from and what are real objectives.

Self Belief

Self belief in my opinion is the key to success. It is not the only requirement but definitely a major one.

What is self belief? In my opinion it is a state of mind where you arrive after a fair amount of introspection. I hope I am not sounding like those self help gurus trying to sell you books and classes.

We all need to look inside every now and then to take a stock of who we are or what we have become and trust me every time you do it you are in for a surprise. It gives you an idea of how far you have come in your journey. How the balance of your strengths and weaknesses have changed. The improvements are more marked for those that are struggling in life.

So my friends, take a deep breath – sit down and relax and let the journey begin!

Daylight savings time in Pakistan

The nation is still wondering whether we will have DST this year or not. The case for DST is extremely strong due to the positive economic, social and health reasons.

All the idiots and the bigger idiots (Mullahs) who oppose DST, to hell with you all.

The biggest advantage of DST is that we end up saving a lot of electricity and money for the country. People get to have another hour of daylight to enjoy outings after work. It is less depressing and most importantly, I get to play golf in the evening.

I strongly urge the government to start DST from April 2009. Please let the sanity prevail!

I am Back!!!

After a very long absence from my blogging, I am back.

I would not dwell on why I was away. Things are getting interesting again in our beloved country. The long march, resignation of Information Minister at a critical juncture, Maulana Fazlur Rehman trying to play match maker. The list is long and undistinguished. I don’t feel like talking about any of these things.

So what will I focus on this blog, photography and my new found passion of golf.

Stay tuned

Welcome 2009

I haven’t written a post in a very long while. Its just been so busy and hectic. While at the same time the whole country is extremely depressed. But now I am back. I have found a new passion on top of photography, Golf. So you will start seeing some posts on that.

My photography has been on a bit of halt for a while too. I only did a few portraits at a friend’s Valima but I am travelling again and hopefully will snap a lot and post it.

Cheers and welcome to ‘09

May this year be better for you, me and everyone.

Open question to Nawaz Sharif

Nawaz Sharif has never condemned a suicide blast in Pakistan, so my question to you Mr. Sharif is “Would you condemn this one or not?”

If the answer is not, then it will only confirm our suspicions about yourself as a stooge of the right wing reactionary forces being exported from the Wahabi Kingdom. Our distrust was strengthened when you said “Pakistan second”.  It is very secondary to you, why wouldn’t it be? You have your nice apartments in Park Lane, London. You can commit high treason in this country and go live in a Palace in Saudia Arabia.

You are a convicted traitor. You were willing to kill scores of innocent people to stop the COAS from landing in the country. You wanted to be amir-ul-momineen rather than a servant to the people of this country. You are still a TRAITOR in my books and I am sure my fellow citizens will agree.

Islamabad bomb blast, Time to show resolve

As the aftermath of Islamabad bomb blast reveals the ugly results and we are overwhelmed by the extent of loss of life, we need to stand united as a Nation and show our resolve that we will not back down. We need to take the fight to the militants and make them feel the pain. There can be no negotiation and no mercy for these brutal and heartless killers.

There should be unequivocal condemnation from all quarters, including the religious parties and PML-N. This senseless violence should hopefully open the eyes of our masses that true followers of Islam can never take innocent lives like this. We need to be wary of these peddlers of religious extremism and kick them out.

It was only yesterday, I was talking to an older colleague who spent a substantial amount of time out of the country. He was sharing how the Imam-e-Masjid used to be someone from the neighbourhood and was known to all. On his return he noticed that all the Imams, khateebs, muezzin’s etc. are from a certain province known for religious extremism and producing jihadi’s and suicide bombers. This is true for almost all the Mosques of Karachi.

All of this can be traced to the religious extremism exported from Saudia Arabia. Some reports indicate that $19bn were spent by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the last decade or so for the export of this cause. Their twisted version of Islam, that considers anyone not agreeing with them a heretic and punishable by death, is the reason that Muslims of the world are suffering. This provides the West a justification for bombing and invading Muslim countries.

Some will argue that it was West’s intention all along to subjugate Islam, but the justification for doing so has been provided by these reactionaries. Saudia Arabia is a client state of US of A. I doubt that Al’ Sauds will be doing this without their master’s consent. They were initially recruited by the Brits, which supported them along with Abdul Wahab to hurt the Ottoman empire from within and create a new Kingdom. This nexus continues till date. The Wahabi influence has been the most divisive force in Islam and it makes sense for the US and Britain to continue supporting it. Without this reactionary force, Islam would still be considered a peaceful religion and they would have no justification in invading our lands and killing our people.

The end of Alliance, judges issue, economy, suicide bombing

So Mr. baldy is left high and dry by PPP after getting rid of the President. ANP, JUI and MQM are supporting PPP. ANP and PPP are natural allies, both are liberal left wing. On the other hand MQM has made a pragmatic decision since they have to co-exist in Sindh with PPP. JUI is the biggest (bay painda) lota party you can imagine so they will always be with on the winning side.

Judges wont be restored, well they could be if they accept the -1 (minus one) formula. Mr. Chaudhry has made himself controversial by campaigning politically and making controversial statements. I don’t think he is impartial enough to be the Chief Justice anymore. Minus one is a good formula, and a lot of good decent judges must not suffer.

The government needs to wake up to the ground realities. The economy is floundering, the Currency is Tanking, and the fundos are out of control. I am happy to see government using a firm hand but this needs to continue till the writ of the government is firmly established and the tribal areas are fully integrated into the country and we have eliminated the terrorist/taliban threat.

The economy and currency will rebound as soon as we have political stability. There are rumors about replacing the SBP governor, which should not be an issue if the replacement is competent. Though in my opinion she is doing a decent job.

Last but not least, it has been announced that Co-Chairperson will be the candidate for the position of the President. Is it Check Mate for Baldy……we shall see

Adios Mr. President – The end of an era

Its sad to watch a good man succumb to the pressure and bow out of public life. Musharraf, as a president was more dignified then any of the jokers rulers I have seen in 33 years of my life. It wouldn’t be so sad if we had hope that the person filling his shoes would be even half as good.

I have to agree that he lost the plot in 2007 and things just suddenly went downhill, but it wasn’t his doing entirely. The defiance of Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and the lawyer movement was funded prompted by external forces. It will be interesting to see how our “democratic” government will handle a Judiciary trying to run the country and Executive through Suo Moto Actions and court rulings i.e. if the judges are ever restored.

If people believe the lawyers will stay out of courts and not represent cases then they don’t understand the basic economics. They have kitchens to run and mouths to feed.

Nawaz Sharif funded supported the lawyer’s movement and was most vocal and put the coalition at risk to push the judges case. This is not for his love of an independent judiciary. He in my living memory was the first sitting PM, probably anywhere in the world, to order a physical assault on the Supreme Court of Pakistan – caught live on camera.

The guy has no ethics and shame. He lied through his teeth about the deal to stay out of the country for 10 years. First there was no deal, then it was only five years and now the media has amnesia. I do distinctly remember Hariri’s son and a Saudi prince coming to Pakistan to corroborate the facts about the deal. Shame on you.

Nawaz Sharif aka Baldy also vowed to take revenge for Lal Masjid. WTF. A bunch of thugs who used religion to exploit innocent Men, men and children and tried to impose their narrow ultra conservative and misleading version of Islam. I am scared of Nawaz Sharif coming to power. He is a petty vindictive man who is a politician and a rich man because of Zia ul Haq. A dictator who single handedly destroyed the fabric of this country and brought the triple scourges of Islamisation, drug and gun culture in Pakistan. The Taliban and the Talibanisation is his legacy.

There was a huge debate about Musharraf and what a bad dictator he was. People had all sort of nasty things to say about him in press, on blogs and on TV. I agree that it was time for him to go. We are a nation which has never been kind to its benefactors. Most of all we have so conveniently taken Jinnah and his views out of the equation. I believe Musharraf was the most sincere leader after Jinnah and only when we have him no more, we will miss him and remember his contributions. I sincerely hope that the Local Government System is maintained and our media learns to be responsible to justify the independence granted to them during Musharraf era. The accountability through local representation and media’s watch dog status could be the lasting legacy of our former president towards the road to true democracy.

Thank you Mr. President, it was a pleasure having you. I agree with your statement wholeheartedly that you represented the true Pakistan. You are the only national leader that I can envision having an evening cup of tea with at my place.There is still hope for this country only if we keep on moving in the direction set by you. You were eloquent and spoke from your heart and we will cherish you as a true patriot.

Must read Photography books

While I was in South Africa, my Amazon order of 5 awesome photography books arrived. I just couldn’t wait to get back home and check them out (Yeah right!!!). The books are even better then the reviews and will hopefully go a long way in improving my photography.

Science and Magic: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting

Unarguably the best book on fundamentals of lighting. This is the MUST read book for anyone understanding the Whys of lighting. I have seen a lot of material which tells you What and How but this book open ups your mind and gets you thinking about the What and How yourself. I have read most of it once but this requires a serious re-reading and following on the exercises.

Learning to See Creatively: Design, Color & Composition in Photography by Bryan Peterson

My weakest link is the composition as pointed out repeatedly by my dear wife time and time again. I intend to really take notes and try to do the exercises to really improve my composition, right after I get the lighting right. I really like Bryan Petersons writing style and he gives very basic and relevant information. His other book Understanding Exposure is a must read as well. I am not writing about it again since I had covered in an earlier post.

So my dear budding Photographers, please dish out the dough and get these books and increase you skill. I had ordered a few other books as well, but I will hold comment till I actually read them.

Cheers

The Sad State of Affairs

Our country and specially the economy are going to the dogs. There are enemies at the gate or inside the gate in the form of Talibans and our politicians. There is still no government to speak of in the center. The local government system is being undermined, which I believe is the best thing that has happened to our system of governance in Pakistan’s history.

Is there still hope for us. I see intelligent and sensible people talking about a revolution with Taliban taking over Pakistan. Why would any sensible person want that? It will be the death knell for the country and its economy.

I believe that the things are really bad politically. The situation is worsened by energy and food price inflation. The wages are obviously not keeping pace with this kind of inflationary pressures. Real incomes are falling, credit is not only becoming dearer but also rarer.

What is the ordinary man to do in such a situation? I have said many times that there we have failed to become a unified nation. Religion is and cannot be basis for nationhood (two nation theory went out of the window in 1971), ethnically Pakistan is quite diverse. The only way for us to be a nation is on the basis of economic opportunity or gain. It is said that if a person has no economic stake or gain from the system then he has no nationalistic feelings. The common man stands at that point, there is social and economic injustice, we still haven’t seen broad based economic growth and the distribution of wealth becomes more inequitable by the day. And the question remains.

I don’t have all the answers, thi

More Travel Pictures

Travel Photography

Well I have been traveling lately, hence the lack of posts. I thought I will share some of the pictures I enjoyed taking.

The Judiciary Crisis – The case for and against restoration

I feel that Pakistan now has a government crisis that needs to be resolved. It doesn’t appear to have a government in place. The country is literally on auto-pilot and heading for a crash. The stock market has already crashed.

As far as judiciary issue is concerned, I am all for restoring all but the political ones. Judges needs to be above partisanship but they have become party in the whole crisis. Those who maintained their defiance without political activities should not only be honorably restored but also elevated. Those who have become political players are too indebted to one side to maintain their independence.

It is also quite evident that the only province interested in this issue is Punjab and Nawaz League by means of being an ethnic party is leading the charge. It is quite reliably said that Baldy has been financing the lawyers movement even before the elections to keep them going and please all those who think that the lawyers are doing it out of the goodness of their heart and a just cause need to wake up and smell the coffee.

Nawaz Sharif is a true believer but not in the independence of judiciary. He believes that Iftikhar Chaudhry is the only man right now who can put Musharraf out of his office. Being a petty vindictive person, he just wants to get rid of the person who got rid of him. He is a lying scumbag who was caught lying to the whole nation, the whole world that he did not have any agreement to stay out of Pakistan and when it was proven he said the agreement was only for five years.

I believe we have bigger challenges right now that we need to focus on. Judiciary should be restored but selectively. The worse that can happen to Pakistan at this juncture is a Nawaz League government. I hope that day never comes.

The end of alliance – what next

Well I couldn’t resist saying “told you so”, especially when I have been saying it since even before election results came out. This was an unnatural alliance to begin with but that it wouldn’t even last a quarter was quite amusing.

The choice between Zardari and Nawaz reminds me of a very interesting saying that nadaan dost say dana dushman behter. Both of them are crooks but at least Zardari looks like an intelligent man and what can I really say about baldy. I heard that once a senior bureaucrat came with urgent matters of state but baldy refused to talk to the gentleman till he got done with the Haleem at tea and insisted that he joined him for some haleem.

Well being fond of food doesn’t make you stupid but if you are this stupid and fond of food, it makes it easier to poke fun at you.

So coming back to the ground realities, who gives a rat’s a$$ about the judges and their restoration. It was Ok for them to take oath under PCO in 1999 but suddenly its so wrong in 2007? Our judiciary is the second most corrupt institution in the country. Lets face it, Nawaz only wants it back to get back at Musharraf. The man is so shameless it is not even funny. Why doesn’t he want Naseem Hassan Shah back then (I hope I am quoting the right CJ). When the CJ wanted him to come to the court Nawaz sent his goons to physically assault the justices and supreme court building.

We don’t have to go back much in history to see what a lier this man is. Case in point being the so called “agreement”. First there was no agreement, then when a signed copy of the agreement was presented to the world the man did another somersault. We should send him to Beijing Olympics, with his acrobatic skills he is sure to sweet the gymnastics Gold for this country. Then we can all agree that he has finally done something for Pakistan.

Long live Pakistan!!! and God Save Pakistan from this corrupt fool