Pakistan has world's largest WiMAX network - Will America catch up?", wondersTMCnet
December 14th, 2008
Doesn't that headline just put a smile on your face? You're not the only one. It's great to see that the significant human effort augmented by billions of dollars invested in Pakistan's IT infrastructure and skill-development are bearing tangible fruit. There are several areas where Pakistan is leading the pack already, and others where it is threatening to.
Pakistan is the most connected country in South Asia, with the highest teledensity
Pakistan's communications costs are lower than any other country in the region
Pakistan has one of the highest rates of cellular connectivity growth in the world (According to PTA 2007's report the rate of growth in Pakistan's mobile sector is fourth highest in the world)
And I tire listing all of these out… there are so many more. The point is that the Pakistani IT industry is rapidly developing and this is most definitely an area where significant progress is being made, ****ing all the torpedoes and naysayers. Pretty exciting on its own, right? But progress in IT doesn't just mean progress in IT. It means a vibrant economy, better healthcare through Telemedicine, increased efficiency in government through record automation (e.g. land records project), a more effective defence, increased outreach for higher education and much more.
Technology is a transformational vehicle for our society. And we're just now starting to see the impact. Many times, progress in specific areas will appear slow, but in part that is explained by the exponential curves normally associated with technology adoption. When you start small, high growth rates aren't 'visible on the ground' for the first few months or years because the overall numbers remain small. But this changes when you hit the knee of the curve, at which point things are fundamentally transformed and are altered for ever.
In Pakistan, these transformations have occurred in many areas already, and will continue to occur in numerous others. Frankly, I just consider myself lucky to be around to watch the awesome progress unfold!
Wow Pakistan is really beautiful, and its a big Power. But why don't Pakistan use a part of this power (nukes) to serve the islamic Ummah. Pakistan can put pressure on israel and on the US and has enough military force to have a strong position. It can also make economic and politic pressure on the west to leave the muslim world.
But I think the Pakistani government is not representing their muslim people, like all our governments. But the only difference is that the Pakistani governments is strong and has no excuse to serve the US.
"O you who believe! Fear ALLAH as He should be feared" [aal 'Imraan, 102]
i think pakistani has big hidden mineral resources, more talent than any nation in the world, but all these are wasting due to lack of leadership, Proper and management in Pakistan.
I've always known Pakistan has a lot to offer the World, but as usual the backward thinking and the not so common sense is the only thing which is stopping them from fulfilling their potential. Pakistan is a shambles right now its such a waste
islamirama: nice post, mashAllah. Surely, we got the brains. Just have to capitalize on them to become the smartest nation in the world We can start by filtering out the the pseudo-Muslim rulers and their ilk. Taliban can help us in doing that. Then we can utilize visionaries and thinkers (Muslims) who can create a roadmap for becoming a shining torch of Islamic civilization. As it stands, about 80% Pakistanis are Sunnis and 15% seem to be Shiites, the rest 5% are Hindus, Christians, Sikhs etc. The 80% sadly includes all the deviant sects such as barelvi and what not. I guess we can address sectarian issues later on. But it seems sects wont agree upon a single Islamic leader ....
my personal issue is with the rise in number of Pakistani atheists. Not many people have acknowledged this and studied this phenomenon. As I said, there was a time when I would meet any pakistani and assume hes a Muslim. I'd start talking in common language and culture i.e. Islam. But recently ... I have been proven wrong when I came across ex-Muslims ....
Last edited by CosmicPathos; 06-02-2010 at 03:25 AM.
Help me to escape from this existence
I yearn for an answer... can you help me?
I'm drowning in a sea of abused visions and shattered dreams
In somnolent illusion... I'm paralyzed
theres one thousand times more Pakistani huffaz than Pakistani atheists. Pakistanis are good at hifz, I know that much. It seems like all huffaz (at least in America) are desi.
theres one thousand times more Pakistani huffaz than Pakistani atheists. Pakistanis are good at hifz, I know that much. It seems like all huffaz (at least in America) are desi.
There are secular peoples in pakistan but this atheism is not yet introduced. i have never met or listen about any atheist in pakistan. may be there are but they will be very small in numbers.
For Hufaz, there is much trend of hifz in pakistan due to tabligh work, Alkhamdullilah, My Father, Me & my Two Brothers are Hafiz e Quran.
yea atheists are in small numbers but they are there. All the friends of my cousin whom I met in Lahore last year were atheists. I was probably the only "believer" in the company for 5-6 days. I have vowed to never meet them again as I found them to be irrational.
Help me to escape from this existence
I yearn for an answer... can you help me?
I'm drowning in a sea of abused visions and shattered dreams
In somnolent illusion... I'm paralyzed
far more than any other country pakistan has exceptional people, who are intelligent and sincere.
but the corruption makes it hard for them to make a difference.
due to the government many people simply arent interested in politics, cause they fight to keep their heads above water financially. and education is lacking.
Pakistanis among the most philanthropic people in the U.S.
by Hussain, S. Amjad
A CIVIL society depends on the generosity of its citizens for the support and strengthening of its basic fabric. Charitable giving adds to the beauty and durability of the warp and weft of this fabric.
Americans, considered the world's most generous people, give away $240 billion a year to charitable causes and a full 75 percent comes not from big corporations or foundations but from individual donors. About 86 percent of American households share their blessings.
America is not a monolith but a sum total of its numerous ethnic groups. Among this mosaic is a relatively small group, 500,000 by some conservative estimates, who lead the pack in charitable giving. They are the Pakistani-Americans.
There is a general assumption that immigrants in general and recent arrivals in particular tend not to give as much or as often as the established ethnic groups. This assumption also considers Pakistanis as more clannish, more inward-looking and thus not inclined to share their money with others in the society.
Not true, says professor Adil Najam, director of the Pardee Center for the Study of Long Range Future at Boston University. Mr. Najam shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former Vice President Al Gore and the scientists who served on Mr. Gore's International Climate Council.
Recently Mr. Najam discussed the findings of an extensive survey of Pakistani expatriates in the United States that was published in his 2006 book, Portrait of a Giving Community: Philanthropy by the Pakistani-American Diaspora (Published by Global Equity Institute of the Asia Center at Harvard University).
Taking the colors and hues from the pallet of his methodical and extensive research, Mr. Najam paints a flattering picture of Pakistanis in America.
There are approximately 500,000 people of Pakistani origin in America who give away $250 million in cash and kind every year. In addition, they contribute more than 43 million hours to volunteer work which, when translated in monetary terms, come to $750 million, making the total giving an impressive $1 billion.
Forty percent of this giving goes to charities in Pakistan and an additional 20 percent to Pakistani causes in this country. Forty percent is donated to causes that have no connection with Pakistan.
In the post 9/11 climate, support of causes in Pakistan has declined because of fear of sending money abroad and a relative lack of clarity about restrictions on foreign remittances.
The most striking finding, however, was that Pakistani-Americans give 3.5 percent of their estimated household income to charity, whereas the national average in America is 3.1 percent. And yet, the researchers found, Pakistani-Americans suffer from what Mr. Najam calls a misplaced sense of philanthropic inferiority.
Somehow, Pakistanis believe that they do not give as much as some other ethnic communities in America. They also think that people living in Pakistan give proportionally more to charities than they do.
The study also found some interesting idiosyncrasies. Most Pakistani giving, for example, has a faith-based motivation. Pakistanis also tend to give to individuals in need rather than to charitable organizations. This, in part, is the result their general distrust of charitable organizations, here in the U.S. but particularly in Pakistan.
Though they do appreciate and trust faith-based charitable organizations, Pakistanis still prefer to give to individuals rather than to organizations. They just have no confidence in the Pakistani government and the myriad nongovernmental organizations to use their donated money wisely and prudently.
It is a shame that because of historic distrust of the government and other organizations, Pakistani-Americans are not helping institution-building in their native land. Giving to individuals and families in need is commendable and gratifying in the short term. One can see the results immediately and in real time. But the future direction of a country or people is set not by feeding a hungry person but by building and nurturing institutions.
I met Mr. Najam last week in Detroit, where he spoke at a fund-raiser for the Human Development Foundation. The foundation, based in Chicago, works in Pakistan to ameliorate poverty by improving literacy, providing micro-credit and vocational training for women, and other activities in rural and so-called backward areas of the country. In one evening the group, true to Mr. Najam's research, raised $250,000.
Philanthropy is an attitude that is not dependent on the amount of wealth one has. People give because they want to spread the blessings around for the greater good of the society and humanity. Pakistani-Americans, to their credit, are trend setters in this arena.
Pakistan is a great nation with all the resources available within the country, with proper leadership and gov't it can easily become a super power that no one can dare touch.
Last edited by islamirama; 06-03-2010 at 01:14 AM.
This story is dedicated to all those Pakistanis who believe we have a savior in Mr. Nawaz Sharif. Mr. Nawaz Sharif’s midweek trip to the hilly Murree resort didn’t end well. On his way back, his motorcade was stuck in a traffic jam. Instead of waiting for the cars to move like all Pakistanis do, Mr. Sharif had a solution. His brother is the chief executive of the province where Murree is located. So he simply called the Chief Secretary of the Punjab province.
Resolving traffic congestions is not in the job of this bureaucrat, the Chief Secretary. But since he works for a government run by a family-run political party, the poor civil servant has to lick boots to promote his career. So he wasted no time in dispatching government employees to end the traffic jam and rescue a restless Mr. Nawaz Sharif.
Story doesn’t end here.
Some thirty police officers were ’suspended’ from duty the next day because they failed to make Mr. Sharif’s picnic a smooth drive [What were they supposed to do? Reinvent a lousy traffic system?]
This feudalistic, paternal attitude by Mr. Sharif is nothing new to the elite, superrich class of Pakistani politicians. Ordinary middle class Pakistanis are virtually banned entry to these feudal-owned political parties.
This is why Mr. Sharif will never understand why what he did is wrong.
Beautiful. I didn't know any of that about Pakistan--it was quite shocking actually. It is sad to see the people suffer while the politicians party. Seriously, they're in an SUV limo too, perhaps the trashiest vehicle invented besides the hummer.
Pakistan Enhances Second Strike Nuclear Capability
May 31, 2009
WASHINGTON: Pakistan has addressed issues of survivability in a possible nuclear conflict through second strike capability, says a US congressional report.
The first part of the report, published on Friday, deals with Islamabad’s efforts to develop new weapons, while the second part studies its strategy for surviving a nuclear war.
According to the report, Pakistan has built hard and deeply buried storage and launch facilities to retain a second strike capability in a nuclear war. It also has built road-mobile missiles, air defences around strategic sites, and concealment measures.
The report prepared by the Congressional Research Service recalls that as the United States prepared to launch an attack on the Afghan Taliban after September 11, 2001, former military dictator Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf ordered that Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal be redeployed to ‘at least six secret new locations.’ This action came at a time of uncertainly about the future of the region, including the direction of US-Pakistan relations. Islamabad’s leadership was uncertain whether the US would decide to conduct military strikes against Pakistan’s nuclear assets if Islamabad did not assist the United States against the Taliban. Indeed, Musharraf cited protection of Pakistan’s nuclear and missile assets as one of the reasons for Islamabad’s dramatic policy shift.
The CRS points out that these events, in combination with the 1999 Kargil crisis, the 2002 conflict with India at the Line of Control, and revelations about the A.Q. Khan proliferation network, inspired a variety of reforms to secure the nuclear complex. Risk of nuclear war in South Asia ran high in the 1999 Kargil crisis, when the Pakistani military is believed to have begun preparing nuclear-tipped missiles.
The report, however, notes that even at the high alert levels of 2001 and 2002, there were no reports of Pakistan mating the warheads with delivery systems.
The CRS refers to a Nov 5, 2007 statement by former prime minister Benazir Bhutto who said that while Musharraf claimed he had firm control of the nuclear arsenal, she was afraid this control could weaken due to instability in the country.
The report then quotes Michael Krepon of the Henry L. Stimson Centre, Washington, as arguing that ‘a prolonged period of turbulence and infighting among the country’s president, prime minister, and army chief’ could jeopardise the army’s unity of command, which ‘is essential for nuclear security.’ During that period between late 2007 and early 2008, US military officials also expressed concern about the security of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Mohamed ElBaradei also said he feared that a radical regime could take power in Pakistan, and thereby acquire nuclear weapons. Experts also worried that while nuclear weapons were currently under firm control, with warheads disassembled, technology could be sold off by insiders during a worsened crisis.
Since then, however, US intelligence officials have expressed greater confidence regarding the security of Islamabad’s nuclear weapons.
The Pakistani military’s control of the country’s nuclear weapons is ‘a good thing because that’s an institution in Pakistan that has, in fact, withstood many of the political changes over the years,’ says Donald Kerr, Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence.
Washington has ‘no reason at this point to have any concern with regard to the security’ of Islamabad’s nuclear arsenal, argues a Pentagon spokesperson.
Woah! Now wasn’t that a treat?! Brother islamirama, mashAllah great share! Jazakamullahu Khair.
@ Candle:
Yeah I too didn't know any of this before.
But you know one thing, the thread has basically pointed out good points about Pakistan. That is not all “about Pakistan”. Yes, Pakistan has got great potential but that doesn’t seem to be utilized in the right direction…
format_quote Originally Posted by marwen
But why don't Pakistan use a part of this power (nukes) to serve the islamic Ummah.
The same question I ask all the time.
format_quote Originally Posted by marwen
Pakistan can put pressure on israel and on the US and has enough military force to have a strong position. It can also make economic and politic pressure on the west to leave the muslim world.
But I think the Pakistani government is not representing their muslim people, like all our governments. But the only difference is that the Pakistani governments is strong and has no excuse to serve the US.
Brother, Pakistan is a SLAVE of US. Yes it doesn’t have and shouldn’t have any excuse to serve it but it still do. Innocent people are constantly dying in drone attacks in Balochistan but Pakistan won’t do a thing about it!
And if talking about the general population; I see no difference between an ordinary namesake Muslim and a Hindu. Both are living the same lifestyle.
And about “putting pressure on Israel”, do you know that Pakistan not even sent a penny for the aid of people in Gaza on freedom flotilla?! The political and religious groups here which so much talk about the rights of Palestinians; not even one of these hypocrites went there with the aid ships!
The thing which always overwhelms me with grief is that Pakistan was founded for a purpose. But it forgot it completely.
“Pakistan ka matlab kiya? LA ILLAHA ILLALLAH” …what a beautiful slogan it was, never to be repeated again…I guess.
And I can write like 2 or 3 pages about what Pakistan really is but that would only make people hopeless and maybe that it would come across as “unacceptable” to some people.
So the final words are
“Pakistan needs a leadership but only and only a true ISLAMIC LEADERSHIP!
Many of you have given your solutions here and so I give mine too.
Pakistan NEEDS one Dr.Zakir Naik!
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We can start by filtering out the the pseudo-Muslim rulers and their ilk. Taliban can help us in doing that. Then we can utilize visionaries and thinkers (Muslims) who can create a roadmap for becoming a shining torch of Islamic civilization. As it stands, about 80% Pakistanis are Sunnis and 15% seem to be Shiites, the rest 5% are Hindus, Christians, Sikhs etc. The 80% sadly includes all the deviant sects such as barelvi and what not. I guess we can address sectarian issues later on. But it seems sects wont agree upon a single Islamic leader ....
re: About Pakistan--FLOOD RELIEF NEEDED, NOW
Brother islamirama, mashAllah great share! Jazakamullahu Khair.
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