post departure thoughts and comments I probably shouldnt make. (05/11/06)
I have done a great deal to ease the Pakistani/US relations. You are all welcome.
I met with the military, government officials, the common people, the common chicken, goat and donkey. Since I have not been allowed to drink but once since I landed here its safe to say that I have caused no harm to image of my country.
Now I sitting in my room at the Holiday Inn Islamabad watching Top Secret one of the single greatest comedies ever, this is my first time watching it with Urdu subtitles though. I am happy to note that the jokes seem to translate well. Of course they have edited out any joke or reference to anything sexual or deemed offensive. It’s surprising what has made the cut and what hasn’t.
Poop, apparently is funny worldwide. Good to know.
I am not looking forward to coming home, at least not as much as I thought I might. I am stoopid excited about sleeping in my own bed soon and wireless Internet, but this country is great. I have been invited to come back and stay with a few people and their families; I met a man tonight who is from Quetta, a border town near Iran. He promised to take me around Quetta and then into Iran. I met him in the truck on the way to Islamabad; he speaks very little English but wants very much for me to come back so he can show me his city. This is the first place I have been able to give directions and remember locations by referring to military weaponry. It seems like every major intersection has a jet, missile, tank, armored personnel carrier or cannon next to it. There by making it easier remember how to get anywhere via weaponry. Stay to the right after you pass the jet, turn right at the tank, hang a right at the missile then two streets up on your left is me. There, you know how to get to my guesthouse from Manshera.
My last night in Islamabad was a good one; it involved a feast, good conversation and Johnny Walker Blue Label Scotch. Yah see you want to keep reading now don’t you?
My cousin Josh has the freakishly good fortune to be getting married to a wonderful woman named Becky. It turns out that Becky’s parents are stationed in Islamabad for a while and Josh and Becky sent me her parents’ email telling me to drop them a line. While fighting the Internet demons of Pakistan dial up, I got an email out to them and went on my way. Islamabad can be a boring place if you don’t know where to go and I don’t know where to go, so I was tickled pink when Becky’s mom called me asking me if was busy and if I wanted to I could come over for a casual dinner party on Thursday night.
If you read the first paragraph of this then you know I was certainly not busy and the prospect of an actual dinner and drinks was kind of like pushing Christmas up a few months to a 10 year old. I was worried that my jeans and button up would reflect poorly on them and me to their company but I was assured that I would be fine and they would be delighted to have me.
Josh if you reading this, your too lucky man. Her parents are SO nice its great. I can say that the diplomatic enclave in Islamabad is about as secure as it can be, it was slightly less rigorous to get in there than the Whitehouse but it was impossible compared to every other area I had been to in Pakistan. The Guards here were not all smiles and nods. Hell I was actually going someplace people might want to go to. This was also a change.
Dave and Linda were unbelievable hosts to me, Dinner was stunning, Dave listened to me talk even though I caught myself excited to be talking to someone who is a native English speaker. Virginia had been out of town nearly a week at this point. I think I talked Daves ear off, but he did offer me Johnny Walker Blue, which means he didn’t hate me for it. Johnny Walker Blue Label, if you are not a drinker, is very expensive very nice scotch. I am not a scotch fan and I am now a Johnny Walker Blue fan.
Dave and Linda took in a stranger on the word of their future son in law and I can’t thank them enough.
Josh I think I behaved well enough that they might still let you marry Becky but if they changed their minds…. sorry man. I used the right fork and everything.
I made it in and out of Paris; I had a blast going to the Rodin museum, the Catacombs, walking along the river, visiting Montmartre and Sacre Couer, eating and free unfettered access to alcohol and coffee. The only drawback was that I was being whooped by a nasty cold that I brought with me from Pakistan. I convinced myself at moments that I had Bird Flu in order to gain sympathy from Manon, whom I was visiting but she never went for it and just kept making me drink tea and take vitamin C. Now I am back in NYC feeling ok and she is sick. Not very nice exchange huh? She puts me up, takes me around Paris, translates for me, makes me tea and I give her the bird flu. I am such a gentleman.
New York felt good to see from the air and better to be in once I was walking around but I will admit that would go back to Pakistan in a minute. I learned a tremendous amount (but not nearly enough) about Islamic culture, I met amazing people and I hope to stay in touch with them all. I cant for one minute deny how fantastic the people were there but I would be lying if I said that I think that country will heal well from this. I think that Pakistan’s importance in the larger playing fields of politics and world events will only grow more prominent. I can’t stress enough that this country is messed up with religious and political manipulation on all levels.
I haven’t forgotten for one minute that I am approaching this through a western / American set of eyes and values but I cant understand how anyone would argue that things need to and will change there.
Education is the most important thing that can shift the balance of this and any country. If the population is uneducated then they cannot effectively influence their own future.
Lord Brougham - Education makes a people easy to lead, but difficult to drive; easy to govern, but impossible to enslave.
With an overall literacy rate for the country ranging from 44 to 46 percent (women and girls between (12-26%) you can understand the scope of the problem.
Pakistan just increased its education spending up to 2.7% of its GDP while its defense spending has been listed at 25%. I was told by one news agency that approximately 20 million US was spent on education in Pakistan and over $200 million us was spent on the maintaining of nuclear weapons in Pakistan. Granted I have not been able to verify that number but it pans out close with the spending numbers I have found.
If you think that this is a horrifying to spend that much money (considering it’s nearing the brink of economic collapse) take a look at what the US will be spending on National Security $542 Billion in 2007, that’s a “B” folks compared to its $63.4 billion for the Department of Education.
But at least most of us can read, right?
I met with the military, government officials, the common people, the common chicken, goat and donkey. Since I have not been allowed to drink but once since I landed here its safe to say that I have caused no harm to image of my country.
Now I sitting in my room at the Holiday Inn Islamabad watching Top Secret one of the single greatest comedies ever, this is my first time watching it with Urdu subtitles though. I am happy to note that the jokes seem to translate well. Of course they have edited out any joke or reference to anything sexual or deemed offensive. It’s surprising what has made the cut and what hasn’t.
Poop, apparently is funny worldwide. Good to know.
I am not looking forward to coming home, at least not as much as I thought I might. I am stoopid excited about sleeping in my own bed soon and wireless Internet, but this country is great. I have been invited to come back and stay with a few people and their families; I met a man tonight who is from Quetta, a border town near Iran. He promised to take me around Quetta and then into Iran. I met him in the truck on the way to Islamabad; he speaks very little English but wants very much for me to come back so he can show me his city. This is the first place I have been able to give directions and remember locations by referring to military weaponry. It seems like every major intersection has a jet, missile, tank, armored personnel carrier or cannon next to it. There by making it easier remember how to get anywhere via weaponry. Stay to the right after you pass the jet, turn right at the tank, hang a right at the missile then two streets up on your left is me. There, you know how to get to my guesthouse from Manshera.
My last night in Islamabad was a good one; it involved a feast, good conversation and Johnny Walker Blue Label Scotch. Yah see you want to keep reading now don’t you?
My cousin Josh has the freakishly good fortune to be getting married to a wonderful woman named Becky. It turns out that Becky’s parents are stationed in Islamabad for a while and Josh and Becky sent me her parents’ email telling me to drop them a line. While fighting the Internet demons of Pakistan dial up, I got an email out to them and went on my way. Islamabad can be a boring place if you don’t know where to go and I don’t know where to go, so I was tickled pink when Becky’s mom called me asking me if was busy and if I wanted to I could come over for a casual dinner party on Thursday night.
If you read the first paragraph of this then you know I was certainly not busy and the prospect of an actual dinner and drinks was kind of like pushing Christmas up a few months to a 10 year old. I was worried that my jeans and button up would reflect poorly on them and me to their company but I was assured that I would be fine and they would be delighted to have me.
Josh if you reading this, your too lucky man. Her parents are SO nice its great. I can say that the diplomatic enclave in Islamabad is about as secure as it can be, it was slightly less rigorous to get in there than the Whitehouse but it was impossible compared to every other area I had been to in Pakistan. The Guards here were not all smiles and nods. Hell I was actually going someplace people might want to go to. This was also a change.
Dave and Linda were unbelievable hosts to me, Dinner was stunning, Dave listened to me talk even though I caught myself excited to be talking to someone who is a native English speaker. Virginia had been out of town nearly a week at this point. I think I talked Daves ear off, but he did offer me Johnny Walker Blue, which means he didn’t hate me for it. Johnny Walker Blue Label, if you are not a drinker, is very expensive very nice scotch. I am not a scotch fan and I am now a Johnny Walker Blue fan.
Dave and Linda took in a stranger on the word of their future son in law and I can’t thank them enough.
Josh I think I behaved well enough that they might still let you marry Becky but if they changed their minds…. sorry man. I used the right fork and everything.
I made it in and out of Paris; I had a blast going to the Rodin museum, the Catacombs, walking along the river, visiting Montmartre and Sacre Couer, eating and free unfettered access to alcohol and coffee. The only drawback was that I was being whooped by a nasty cold that I brought with me from Pakistan. I convinced myself at moments that I had Bird Flu in order to gain sympathy from Manon, whom I was visiting but she never went for it and just kept making me drink tea and take vitamin C. Now I am back in NYC feeling ok and she is sick. Not very nice exchange huh? She puts me up, takes me around Paris, translates for me, makes me tea and I give her the bird flu. I am such a gentleman.
New York felt good to see from the air and better to be in once I was walking around but I will admit that would go back to Pakistan in a minute. I learned a tremendous amount (but not nearly enough) about Islamic culture, I met amazing people and I hope to stay in touch with them all. I cant for one minute deny how fantastic the people were there but I would be lying if I said that I think that country will heal well from this. I think that Pakistan’s importance in the larger playing fields of politics and world events will only grow more prominent. I can’t stress enough that this country is messed up with religious and political manipulation on all levels.
I haven’t forgotten for one minute that I am approaching this through a western / American set of eyes and values but I cant understand how anyone would argue that things need to and will change there.
Education is the most important thing that can shift the balance of this and any country. If the population is uneducated then they cannot effectively influence their own future.
Lord Brougham - Education makes a people easy to lead, but difficult to drive; easy to govern, but impossible to enslave.
With an overall literacy rate for the country ranging from 44 to 46 percent (women and girls between (12-26%) you can understand the scope of the problem.
Pakistan just increased its education spending up to 2.7% of its GDP while its defense spending has been listed at 25%. I was told by one news agency that approximately 20 million US was spent on education in Pakistan and over $200 million us was spent on the maintaining of nuclear weapons in Pakistan. Granted I have not been able to verify that number but it pans out close with the spending numbers I have found.
If you think that this is a horrifying to spend that much money (considering it’s nearing the brink of economic collapse) take a look at what the US will be spending on National Security $542 Billion in 2007, that’s a “B” folks compared to its $63.4 billion for the Department of Education.
But at least most of us can read, right?
posted by davidlang at 12:17 AM
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