A Nobel Peace Prize for the POTUS (Donald J. Trump)
POTUS (Donald J Trump) to win the Nobel Peace Prize next year provided Hamas-Israel agreements hold.
Khalil…
The same ethos
Truth as an exclusive privilege
No debate or exchange of ideas is possible with those who consider truth as their exclusive privilege.
Khalil…
Too much mess. All in all, it is too much mess.
Too much mess. All in all, it is too much mess.
Yes, the government has created too much mess. It has become a total administrative state, especially in the province of Punjab, and every government, be it federal or provincial or AJK’s or GB’s, has mismanaged everything to the hilt.
Yes, all the governments need to be cut down to a smaller size to indispensably allow the society to move forward and achieve progress and prosperity on its own. And the governments’ writ must be confined to their protective function only.
17-9-25…
Let us disapprove of all photo ops
It always happens that the essence of the work is lost, and the outward form survives. Not only does this outward form survive, but it also loses all its semblance and transforms into mere optics. For instance, politics has become but a second name for the optics now.
Likewise, in the work of “flood relief,” be it being done by private actors or by the government functionaries, photo ops (photo opportunities) have attained supremacy over the essence of helping others.
In the wake of this, it behooves that all such photo ops be completely shunned.
Along with being shunned, people should disapprove of them and those who indulge in photo ops while helping others.
No photo ops while helping others.
Help others without photo ops.
No photo ops.
Help others by being anonymous.
9-9-2025…
Philosophical beings and psychological beings
Most Pakistanis are psychological creatures.
Only a minority elevate themselves to a philosophical level, and a lot of them now and then relapse again into their psychological niche.
So we have very few philosophical beings in our midst. The majority of political beings are also psychological beings.
And it is for the same reason that our society does not evolve intellectually.
7 September, 2025…
Applied political philosophy: minimizing the scope of the political domain
My priorities are very much clear, clear like crystals.
If it is a contest between an individual and society, I am with the individual.
If it is a contest between an individual and the state, I am for the individual.
If it is a contest between state and society, I am on the side of the society.…
Applied political philosophy: the behavior of politicians
To keep on imploring a government to do this and to do that is just useless.
Absolutely useless.
I mean when it is done by an intellectual, a journalist, a columnist, an analyst, a civil society organization, an alliance of CSOs, an NGO, an alliance of NGOs, talk show hosts, a think tank, a political group, etc.
Simply because all the politicians, whoever they are and wherever they are, do what they want to do. And they do what keeps them surviving in power in shorter terms. They have no long-term view of their survival. That’s why their politics is confined to the day-to-day political survival of theirs.
So, when is it useful? How can it be useful?
It is useful only when a political group or a political party with wider support and following implores a government to do something. It has weight, since behind it speak the people, …
!یہی تو بحران ہے۔ یہی لوگ تو بحران ہیں
آج 7 اگست (2025) ہے۔ صبح اُٹھ کر ناشتہ کرتے ہوئے، لیپ ٹاپ کھولا اور فیس بُک ’’میموریز‘‘ (یاد داشتوں) پر نظر ڈالی تو درجن بھر سے بھی زیادہ پوسٹیں سامنے آنا شروع ہو گئیں۔ یاد آیا اس دن یعنی 7 اگست 2022 کو ایک رو میں بہت کچھ لکھتا چلا گیا۔ اس رو کی تہہ میں غصہ، بے بسی، اور حیرانی کارفرما تھے۔ ابھی آگے ان کی وضاحت بھی ہو جاتی ہے۔
اصل میں کئی برسوں سے لاوا پک رہا تھا۔ اور گو کہ میں اول روز ہی سے اس ’’عمران خان پراجیکٹ‘‘ کی ممکنہ تباہ کاریوں پر لکھتا اور بولتا چلا آ رہا ہوں، یعنی 30 اکتوبر 2011 سے، جب لاہور میں عمران خان کا جلسہ ہوا۔ مگر مجھ ناچیز کی بات یونانی اساطیر کی اس دیوی (کیسینڈرا) کی طرح ثابت ہوئی، جو مستقبل میں کیا ہونے والا ہے اس کے بارے میں درست پیشین گوئی کا ملکہ …
جمالیات برتر اخلاقیات ہے
اخلاقیات، جمالیات کا جزوِ خاص ہے۔
جبکہ جمالیات، اخلاقیات کا جزوِ عام ہے۔
یعنی جمالات برتر اخلاقیات ہوئی۔
16 جولائی، 2023…
What the hell is wrong with politicians in Pakistan? A tweet (X)-exchange between Ahmed Jamal Pirzada and Khalil Ahmad
Ahmed Jamal Pirzada is a lecturer in economics at Bristol University, UK, and interested in macroeconomics.
In February-March 2022, we had a polite tweet exchange (now X exchange), so rare on the Twitter-space, triggered by his appreciation of Hammad Azhar, Minister of Energy in the incumbent (de facto) government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. HA is the son of Mian Muhammad Azhar, former Governor of Punjab, and belongs to an Ashrafiya business family of Lahore.
AJP: Hammad has been one of the few sane voices who is willing to push for what is right: trade with India, deregulating the sugar sector, improving the efficacy of export subsidies, pushing for IGCEP, and now this. None of this gets you brownie points with the status quo but must be done. [Feb 19]
Tweets by Hammad Azhar:
WACOG bill has been passed today by senate as well. It is a historic and long pending reform …
My rules for posting in various WhatsApp groups
I’m a member of only 3 groups, and by choice. I had to leave a number of others for different reasons.
I post things with the following purposes in mind. It’s not an exhaustive list. Sometimes one does it for no obvious reason.
– for the sake of information
– having bearing on a certain current issue
– having good or bad arguments for this or that policy
– having policy implications
– having light humor
– my own writing, or a video, or bits of thoughts for the sake of information only or relating to a current internal and/or national debate
– commenting on posts only of my interest
– don’t mind what others post (won’t’ like to be a Procrustes).
– indulge in a discussion when the point being debated or made is of my interest and I have an argument to put forward.
– try never to …
Who should rule Pakistan?
In my opinion, the following is the case.
This country was achieved by the politicians by waging a peaceful political and democratic struggle.
And it was meant, constitutionally, to be run by politicians.
Though the original constituent assembly was dissolved. And whatever constitutions were agreed upon or promulgated or enforced or dissolved or revoked halfway, they all unequivocally meant this country to be run by politicians duly elected and enjoying the mandate given to them by the people.
Thus, whenever any martial law was imposed, the constitution was suspended, unconstitutionally amended, revoked, or abrogated with impunity; all the burden of such acts lay on the shoulders of the politicians, and in case they were those politicians whom people had elected, their crime stood multiplied. And as far as those politicians are concerned, who coalesced with the martial law authorities or became complicit with the security establishment, they became their abettors.…
The debacle of East Pakistan—Who is the real culprit? ZAB or General Yahya?
Re East Pakistan into Bangladesh… the role of Zulikar Ali Bhutto and/or General Yahya… who’s the real culprit?
In principle, it’s the politicians who are to exercise the mandate given to them. And be they military or any other departments or agencies, they are in fact merely employees. So the responsibility rests with the politicians. And here in this case, the sole responsibility rests with ZAB.
In case he sided with the Awami League (of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman) and supported and honored its mandate, regardless of the facts of whether Bangladesh had come into being or not, there would be no blaming of ZAB.
March 24, 2025…
The Women’s Movement in Pakistan has crossed a milestone
On this Women’s Day (8 March 2025), have a look at the newspapers; most of the politicians and public personalities are trying to highlight the good role they played in favor of this movement.
That’s the power of the women’s movement in Pakistan. First they opposed it. Then they opted to remain silent. Then they joined the chorus. And now they are supporting it, and most of all, now they are counting their contributions to it. That translates into the fact that they are on the defensive now.
The Women’s Movement in Pakistan has crossed a milestone. Bravo! Congrats to all!
Two other movements, the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) and the Rule of Law Movement (Lawyers’ Movement), have yet to make their mark. The PTM is destined to cross a milestone soon, but the Lawyers’ Movement has yet to show a semblance of maturity.
Years ago, I noted that these …
Aslam Effendi – An Unsung Free Marketeer from Pakistan
Note: This article was written in early 2011 as a short introduction to the life and work of Aslam Effendi and was included in the book, Hard Facts of History, by Aslam Effendi that was published in February 2011 by the Alternate Solutions Institute.
It was back in March 2002 that I came to know about Aslam Effendi sahib. Vincent H. Miller (died 2008) of the International Society for Individual Liberty (now Liberty International), USA, made a revelation that there was a free marketeer in Pakistan, and he lived in Islamabad. He introduced me to him. I wrote him, and he was happy to know that there were a few other free marketeers in Pakistan also.
In June next, I went to Islamabad to see him. He was very old, but vibrant with the Spirit of Liberty. We had hours and hours of discussion about his work, Libertarianism, Anarchism, Anarcho-Capitalism, …
Creative Destruction: The Way Forward for the Economy of Pakistan
No documentation.
No income tax.
Only consumption tax in one digit at the POS.
50% cut in the size of the government.
50% cut in the spending by the government.
Let everyone import.
Let everyone export.
No licensing. Only registration.
Minimum tax/duty.…
اقتدار کی جنگ اور ہم شہری
ایک طرف دو قوتیں: عدلیہ اور عمرانیہ
دوسری طرف دو قوتیں: قائمیہ اور سیاسیہ
ان میں سے ایک راستہ ممکنہ طور پر آئینی حکمرانی کی طرف جا سکتا ہے۔
جبکہ دوسرا راستہ آئین کی لازمی تنسیخ اور فسطائیت کی طرف جاتا ہے۔
اقتدار کی اس اعصاب شکن جنگ کا اہم ترین پہلو یہ ہے کہ اس میں ہم شہریوں کے کسی کردار کی کوئی ضرورت نہیں۔
15 اکتوبر 2024…
ایک بڑا خلطِ مبحث: عمران خان کو سیاست میں ہرائیں
پاکستان کے دانشور اور تجزیہ نگار ایک سے بڑا ایک خلطِ مبحث پیدا کرتے رہتے ہیں۔ اور پھر خود ہی بڑے ناز سے بتاتے ہیں کہ بس یہی آخری صداقت ہے۔
ان کا یہ عمل ایک مغالطے کو تخلیق کرنے اور پھر اسے ایک سچائی کے طور پر پیش کرنے سے مماثل ہے۔
جبکہ ان کے پاس دلائل کم ہی ہوتے ہیں۔ نہ ہی یہ دلائل لانے کو ضروری سمجھتے ہیں۔
بہرحال، موجودہ مغالطہ جس سے بحث مقصود ہے، یہ ہے کہ عمران خان کو سیاست میں شکست دیں۔ اسے سیاسی طور پر ہرائیں۔ یعنی وہ کہنا یہ چاہتے ہیں کہ عمران خان (یا تحریکِ انصاف کہہ لیجیے۔ میری رائے میں عمران خان ہی تحریکِ انصاف ہے۔) کو منصفانہ اور شفاف انتخابات میں ہرائیں۔
میرا استدلال اسی مغالطے کو جھٹلانے اور اس کی تردید پر متوجہ ہے۔
پہلے تو یہ کہ عمران خان سیاست دان نہیں، نہ ہی پاکستان تحریکِ …
The unraveling of IK Fascism in Pakistan
Here are two books and a movie to understand the nature of fascism and the unravelling of IK fascism in Pakistan.
1. Political Ponerology: A Science on the Nature of Evil Adjusted for Political Purposes, by Andrzej Lobaczewski
2. The Mass Psychology of Fascism, by Wilhelm Reich
3. Movie: A Special Day, by Ettore Scola (1977)
23 September 2024…