Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf lashed out at the West, calling us intellectually arrogant and saying "we believe in constitution, we know how to run government, we are not such clueless people who do not know how to run a country, we have our own brains." Well, the last is certainly true, but I have yet to see any evidence of the first three. Dictators show no respect for constitutions, and I've seen no evidence that he respect anything of the sort. And just because you know how to rule with an iron fist, that does not mean you know how to govern. Governing and ruling are two different things. And I would say that anyone who presides over a country where assassination is the rule, where most of the people are oppressed -- at least, where there isn't complete anarchy -- and where they are constantly battling people trying to overthrow the government while fearing military overthrow of whatever government may be in place at any given time doesn't know a damn thing about how to run a country. I do agree that the people of Pakistan have their own brains -- and as soon as there is a real government in place that actually respects the rule of law and which defends the rights and freedoms of its people, that brain power will be released and Pakistan will be an economic and cultural powerhouse. But so long as Pakistan is ruled by petty dictators like Musharraf, it won't be, and those brains will continue to be wasted.
Of course, that's just the fact-based opinion of a arrogant Western intellectual.
4 comments:
To all the Western Intellectuals out there!
I am a Pakistani and like Musharraf I would also like to remind you to mind Your Own Business. Seriously, what do you think you are??? Supreme beings of some sort. You have absolutely no knowledge of Pakistan’s history, no understanding of how Musharraf came into power, no idea of how many modern/educated Pakistanis support this guy (hint: majority) and above all “No Fundamental understanding of Democracy”.
Its not a hollywood movie that you just freaking get in and in an hour everything is fixed up. Hmm…lets see…what happened in Iraq: 5 years and counting…ouch!
Musharraf is a very smart individual, he has done way more to free pakistani people & its media then anyother democratic government in the history of the country. He has made countless other reforms that no other “democratic” government failed to do. And that Benazir Bhutto that the west really cares about so much, she campaigned about women rights and got elected twice…only to suck the life out of our economy and did nothing in regards to women let alone individual/media rights. Also do some googling for “Mr. 10 percent” and “benazir corruption”.
To the enlightened South philly poster….that was a rare case in a very suburban town….just like there was last year about the guy who was running his own religion and marrying underage girls to mature men…where was it…oh my that US! Well genius, isolated incidences happen everywhere blaming 160million people for the action of few shows your intellectual capability.
I 100% support Musharraf and why don’t you guys take a break from fixing the world. Better of, finish the ongoing projects i.e. Iraq, Afghanistan etc. that you already have up your sleeves.
I am an American who has been to Pakistan many times.
Sane Pakistani,
all I can do is applaud. I agree with you 100%. I have been to Pakistan 9 times for business over the last 4 years. I go because everyone else in my company is afraid to go because of the BS they see on TV. The last time I forced another co worker to come with me. He has vowed to compete with me the next time my company needs to send someone to Pakistan. It's amazing how much of the news in the US is BS and how much is real. Its funny how many European tourists you see wandering the streets of Pakistan, but then again they still have a decent education system and not propgandist news services.
People forget to realize that you are one of the newest countries in the world, If you look at the timelines you have progressed further faster since your birth then the US has. I applaud you and your fellow country men and women.
It is not the intellectuals that you have to tell it is the uneducated in this country who make up a majority and that majority is only getting bigger. It is sad.
Good to hear about your experience in Pakistan!
About the intellectual remark...it was more along sarcastic lines for people who post anti-musharraf remarks without realizing ground realities. I understand that everyone in West doesn't think like that but the truth is that majority do, because of the media.
Just look at the title of headline on CNN. "Musharraf to West: We have our own brains", Musharraf didn't actually said that to the western people, he said it in a response to the western media who have portraying him negatively for a while now.
You haven't read a single line on this blog where I supported Bhutto. But replacing a corrupt democratically-elected leader with a corrupt dictator is not progress. I have no doubt that Musharraf is indeed a smart individual. Big deal. Intelligence does not necessarily make you a good leader. I wouldn't be surprised if the average IQ's of all the world's dictators showed them to be much smarter than the average population. Intelligence doesn't make for a good leader.
You also have not read me arguing for the U.S. doing anything about the government in Pakistan, other than to withdraw our support for it. The U.S. has gotten into the problems it has because we propped up dictators in the past. Dictatorship helps no one -- particularly the people of the country where the dictator rules.
But then, some people just like being told what to do. But just because you want to have your life ran by others, that doesn't mean it's best for either you or anyone else in the country.
I am, by the way, minding my own business. It's everyone's business to encourage good government in every country around the world. Everyone affects everyone else in the world, so what happens in the world IS my business.
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