Black Hole of Ideology

Black Hole: (noun) a celestial object that has a gravitational field so strong that light cannot escape it and that is believed to be created especially in the collapse of a very massive star.

Man that was huge. For a few split seconds I forgot where I was living. I kept on thinking how is this place different from Baghdad or Kabul? And after a lot of brainstorming on my part, the answer came to me. There are no foreign insurgents here – only local ones. This blast was probably the largest one that has ever rocked Karachi (I am not sure about the ’65 war). I have not yet been able to witness the catastrophe and so it’s hard for me to believe that the whole CID building has been raised to ground.

I was shocked to hear that the blast occurred at the CID building, as its located in one of the heavily guarded areas of the city. Its located just a fraction of a mile away from the Shahrah-e-Faisal and Marriot road intersection. Its the same intersection where I have to be extra vigilant about my stash in the car as most of the times I end up being searched for weapons by one of the many police mobiles stationed along this road. Now I know how to get my stuff past this check post – I just have to load it in a truck, preferably along with a few hundred kilograms of C4 and drive it through these check posts. Trucks carrying explosives and weapons are the least threatening to them apparently.

The wonderful thing about Karachi is that it’s back on its toes moments after it has been thrown on its back. And while the lives of the families who suffered a loss in this incident can never be the same, it becomes the same for remaining 18 million people minus a thousand after a short while. We watch the latest news and call up family and friends to know if they are safe for a day after the blast, we chat about the fierceness of the blast for a few hours the next day and then we add it to the large pile of suicide attacks and terrorist activities that have been going on in the city and the country for the past few years. And after two days at most, we go about our lives as if nothing has happened and neither will it happen again- except that it will happen again.

And in attempts to take our minds off the incident, the government has decided to impose the RGST and flood surcharge tax. Most of this tax will be paid by the salaried individuals who don’t have a choice to pay ‘bhatta’ cum extortion money cum tax as if the floods were caused by them. Our politicians are getting smarter by the day; they have already guessed that we won’t be able repay the huge external debt that has burdened each and every Pakistani. How could we, when most part of that loan is sitting idle in the Swiss bank accounts.

Pakistan is moving rapidly on its way to become a black hole of financial aids and resources, intellectuals and scholars and ideology and dreams.

Black Hole: (noun) something that consumes a resource continually, an empty space

A Match to Remember…

What a match!! What an extra-ordinary performance by Abdur Razzaq. I am jubilated at this win. What a comeback! We are Pakistan and we are the winner!

Saturday Night Events

Saturday nights are one of the most awaited times of the week for me. Some people start brooding over Saturday night plans right from the very beginning of the week. It may help them to pull off the dull weekdays this way. All sorts of activities are happening all over the town on Saturday evenings and if you are inside that circle, you too may get a chance to be part of it. Unfortunately (or fortunately? I cannot tell), I am not part of any circle and cling to my old time friends for a fishing venture this time around. We met at a friends place at around midnight. There was buzz, booze and of course the obligatory hash.

For the record, hash is illegal in Pakistan, much in the same way that corruption is banned according to our constitution. Both are rampant. One is the cause and the other is the effect of it. But you can never blame the politicians and bureaucrats for being corrupt. They are just too pressed for money due to the rising inflation, credit crunch and slow economy. After all, they have got a lifestyle to maintain (and improve in most of the cases). As regards to the common man, he has always lived in tough situations and will find out a way to live in even tougher situations. You can never eradicate poverty, why bother putting in the efforts?

Karachi is different from other major cities of Pakistan in that it has got a sea attached to it. It not only boosts the economy of the country, as it is one of the major ports in the region, but also provides a recreational spot for the denizens of the city. We set off, in the small hours of the morning, from Kimari (the port) in a fishing boat and went 3-4 km deep into the sea. Owing to the threats and the worsened law and order situation in the country, a strict scrutiny of identification documents is performed by the coast guards just before you venture out into the deep seas.

The color of the water is blackish green. Although it never had a bluish tinge or was clear enough to see through to the bottom of it, it was not this black either. Now, it has a thin slick layer of crude oil floating on top of it. In July 2003, a Greek tanker Tasman Spirit went aground, cracked and broke apart near the Karachi port and spilled some 30,000 tons of oil into the sea. According to the laws governing the sea trade, ships older than 15 years cannot be considered seaworthy and hence cannot be contracted. But Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) contracted the Greek tanker which did not fulfill the requirements even at the time of the contract (details can be found here: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_16-8-2003_pg3_1). For quite some days, the coastal highway running along Sea View cannot be traversed due to overwhelming smell of hydrocarbons in the air. A lot of the residents in that area had to move temporarily just to avoid the health hazards attached to this incident. And even seven years after the incident the sea can still not be restored to its previous position. We owe a lot to corruption in Pakistan, not just hash.

Looking at the million colors in the sky just before the sun comes up is an experience in itself. And of course this experience is way better when you are on dope. And listening to Coming Back to Life. Suddenly the sea that set us apart from the shore also seemed to cut me off from all that was happening on the grounds; the target killings and the ethnic violence, the suicide attacks and the religious discriminations, flood relief activities and the corruption, the drone attacks and the Taliban. Suddenly it all seemed to be happening in another world.