Doctor Doesn't Know Best
From the Blog Newsline: Doctor Doesn't Know Best - Is prescription drug abuse in Pakistan rising to dangerous levels? . Read Full Post
Demystifying foreign aid (Part II)
From the Blog Mosharraf Zaidi: Demystifying foreign aid (Part II) - http://thenews.com.pk/23-11-2010/Opinion/16717.htm Demystifying foreign aid (Part II) Tuesday, November 23, 2010 by Mosharraf Zaidi To have a serious conversation about foreign aid to Pakistan, one doesn't need to be a rocket scientist. However, a basic appreciation for the subtleties that distinguish different kinds of donors, different kinds of aid, and the different ways in which aid is spent is important. . Read Full Post
India is not a security threat, but thinking "India is a security threat" is a security threat
From the Blog Five Rupees: India is not a security threat, but thinking "India is a security threat" is a security threat - So there was a little pushback in the comments to my last post, and I just want to make a couple of points in response. Readers may recall that my premise was simple: Pakistan cannot militarily keep up with India because its economy is many times the size of Pakistan’s, and thus attempting to do so will only result in a diversion of resources that we can ill afford. A much more suitable long-term strategy would be to rely on Pakistan’s not-inconsiderable nuclear arsenal as a suitable (minimum) deterrent, and unilaterally exit an arms race with India. To demonstrate my point, I used this graph of India’s and Pakistan’s GDPs over time to show how impractical this arms race is from Pakistan’s point of view: Now, a couple of readers responded in the comments. Let me quote: The graph is very misleading because gdp increases at a compound rate and you are using a linear chart. India has a population 7 times more than pakistan and indian gdp is about 8 times more, big wow. Also pakistani poulation is younger and thus a lower percentage working population, and much higer inequility between rich and poor. Net reusult is that the common man is slightly better off in PAkistan then India. But India growth rate is very high last few years and if pakistan does not match it we will be left behind forever. And another: have to agree with anonymous 1:29am. pakistan gdp per capita is at $991 while india gdp per capita is $1017…so economy size is roughly the same btw the two countries when population is taken into account. (i don’t think this justifies the missile/flight system purchases, however) If one’s point is that, insofar as the metric of standard of living is concerned, India and Pakistan aren’t that far apart, then sure, I’ll buy that. For example, by the Human Development Index rankings , India is 119th in the world; Pakistan is 125th. And while these rankings should never be taken too seriously, the UN/IMF type rankings at least allow us to compare with broad strokes, which is all we’re really trying to do. But the problem is that I wasn’t really comparing standards of living per se, but the ability to partake in an arms race. By that ability, India beats Pakistan in a landslide. This is because when it comes to assessments of national power, it’s the aggregate that matters, not the per capita figures. The point about an arms race is that the parameters of competition are set by the stronger state. So if India buys 10 bombs, Pakistan will feel inadequate with nine or less. But the issue for the weaker state would be that those 10 bombs represent a much bigger chunk of the overall economic capabilities of the state than the 10 for the stronger state. Pakistan does not magically get to buy fewer weapons because of its smaller population; an arms race dictates that you keep up with the other’s arms, not your population. This is why, year after year, Pakistan has to devote a much larger percentage of its budget to defense and arms than India does and this is why, year after year, Pakistan devotes considerably less to education, health, and development than India does. I am sure you can see the problem here. If, year after year, Pakistan has to sprint to keep pace with an India that is just trotting (insofar as military expenditure is concerned), then that is obviously not a great outcome for 180 million Pakistanis who would be better served if that money were spent elsewhere. But such a development is out of the question until a much broader and radical — radical not in its actual content but in its novelty to GHQ types — set of options is considered by our military establishment. I’ll bet “unilateral exiting from the South Asian arms race and contentment with a nuclear deterrent” is not something Rawalpindi even thinks of as possible, but there’s really nothing wrong with it if you think about it for even a second. Another way to phrase this would be to say Pakistan’s national security hinges on us thinking of national security differently. Of course, for all sorts of reasons (group think, bureaucraticism, bounded rationality etc), closed institutions like our military brass are incapable of re-conceiving their set of options after ground-breaking events. Why organizations behave so strangely and so at-odds with their given mission is an interesting question , but we can leave it aside for now. But for me, it’s crazy that Pakistan is still stuck in a pre-1998 security paradigm with India. The dynamic has changed so why hasn’t the strategy? Obviously, we kinda/sorta know the answer to this — it is that Pakistan’s military establishment is as much about offense (especially in Afghanistan) as defense. But it would help immeasurably if they are explicit about this so that there can actually be a national debate. There are essentially two policy propositions here: the first is “If we don’t keep spending on toys, India will eat us up” and the second is “If we don’t keep spending on toys, we will have less influence in Afghanistan and fewer cards to play in Kashmir”. The problem is that we (the citizens) have been sold on the first while the second is the actual one operating, and that deliberate obfuscation drives seriously suboptimal outcomes when it comes to the average Pakistani’s security. … . Read Full Post
Uzair Jaswal – Tere Bin (Official Video)
From the Blog Koolmuzone: Uzair Jaswal – Tere Bin (Official Video) - Artist: Uzair Jaswal © Koolmuzone Related posts: Uzair Jaswal – Maa (Official Video) Special Mothers Day Song Artist: Uzair… Uzair Jaswal – Yaheen (Video) Artist: Uzair Jaswal Song: Yaheen Dir/Dp: Usman Malkani Post Productions:… Uzair Jaswal Selected at Audition of PSI (Pakistan Sangeet Icon) Uzair Jaswal, the new sensation has made it through the… . Read Full Post
Blamers and pushers group is active again
From the Blog Globenet - > Blamers and pushers group is active again raziq1.blogspot.com — A group of blamers and pushers has been active in Pakistan and rest of the world since last few decades, their mission is to curse and blame every one whom is doing something good for society. Favorite targets of the said group are mostly politicians and educated elite of Pakistan.... . Read Full Post
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