On failure: reply to Bilal Lakhani
On Failure! Bilal Lakhani wrote a poignant and painful piece on how we failed our forefathers. tribune.com.pk/story/647371/we-have-failed-our-forefathers/ His questioning has been visited by abuse and derision. He has been accused of being unpatriotic, pessimistic and even worse un-Pakistani. I share the pain of youth crying out for answers. Pakistani youth like youth everywhere wants to achieve, compete, and prove themselves worthy of being global citizens. Unfortunately, they find that channels, forums and institutions to foster their ambitions missing. Bilal is correct, raising questions asking for a debate is not condemning Pakistan. The strength of advanced societies is their ability to foster debate even on uncomfortable issues. The long and emotional debate on civil rights did much to mend the race problem in the US. Critics from within like Noam Chomsky, Bertrand Russell, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Emile Zola have evolved society in...