Australianism

John Arlott via Wisden Cricinfo:

“Australianism means single-minded determination to win – to win within the laws but, if necessary, to the last limit within them. It means where the ‘impossible’ is within the realm of what the human body can do, there are Australians who believe that they can do it – and who have succeeded often enough to make us wonder if anything is impossible to them. It means they have never lost a match – particularly a Test match – until the last run is scored or their last wicket down.”

That’s why I admire Australia. There’s a reason they’re one of the most successful teams in the world over the past 100 years. They’ve always been counted amongst the very best, and both Steve Waugh’s and Don Bradman’s Invincibles compare to any great outfit in any sport across the world. The result of an excellent domestic policy that provides both the facilities and opportunities for talent to develop, a history of great leaders, and – most crucially – a national culture that values discipline, effort, grit, and winning.

That is Australianism – exemplified by David Boon’s classic battle against India and dehydration in Madras, which helped Australia believe in itself after years in the doldrums, and Steve Waugh’s over-my-dead-body innings that marked a turning point in world cricket and officially established Australian dominance.

Dean Jones talks about some of the reasons Australia was so successful in the second part of the interview I linked to above, and the significance of their victories over India and Pakistan in 1987 – interesting stuff.

It’s a brilliant study in self-development because it primes one to never give up. It’s a lesson many people have yet to learn – but I am confident that more people would achieve their potential and be successful if they imbibed some of that spirit and chose not to lose hope and stop fighting.

Still Unsure – And Paying For It In Blood

DAWN has just posted the results of a survey on the stance of Pakistanis regarding the operation in South Waziristan.

To quote:

“According to a Gilani Research Foundation poll conducted by Gallup Pakistan, an affiliate of Gallup International, 51 per cent of people support the government offensive.‘There is cautious support in Pakistani public opinion for the military action currently underway in South Waziristan,’ the research group said.

Thirteen per cent of more than 2,700 people surveyed across the country opposed the military action while 36 per cent said they were unsure. While a majority supported the action, only 25 per cent of respondents said the Islamists were responsible for the offensive with 35 per cent blaming the United States and 31 per cent the government.”

What continues to frustrate me is the sheer, over-my-dead-body, refusal of all these people to admit that militancy is a Pakistani problem, that there are real soldiers fighting for their life near Sararogha, that the extremists who have been targeting and slaughtering Pakistani civilians by the dozen are also Pakistanis.

51%.

That’s nothing!

As Murtaza Razvi has been repeating in his blog for DAWN, we need to own the war.

We. The citizens. Stop waiting for the government or even the biggest political party in the country. Our government and media clearly have other priorities. Kamran Khan’s show last night started off with the NRO, for example.

So the people have to step up to the plate.

I am angry because I have to continually argue against jackasses who believe that launching a missile strike on Israel will help solve Pakistan’s problems.

I am angry because many of the people who I have to argue with are educated, privileged, rich urbanites.

Why does a third of our population still believe that we are not to blame for the current scenario?!

Why is a third of our population still ‘unsure’ about the need to fight and win this war?!

Are you waiting for a family member to be killed before you support drastic action?

Wake up.

14 Dead, And It’s Not the Taliban This Time

As if we didn’t have enough tragedy and grief in Pakistan already. This is the change that needs to take place in Pakistan – more civic sense, more responsibility!

The driver ignores the traffic signal and 14 are dead.

Where’s the driver? Why is he not behind bars?

And the killer is that he may be the sole provider for a family of 9 dependents.

Jackass.

It is often said that God helps those who help themselves.

An interesting counterpart to that is:

God help those who do not help themselves. (Wilson Mizner)

Hillary’s Peace Drive

That’s what it is. And I believe it does represent how America now recognizes Pakistan’s importance.

Yes, one might say that it’s just a bunch of diplomatic hogwash, we’ve been betrayed before, etc.

But I feel Mrs. Clinton’s stated aims are relatively meaningful and genuine.

The NYTimes has a great editorial on how it’s different this time.

 

The NYT Pushes for Activism

This could easily have been written with Pakistan in mind.

 

The nation’s political leaders and their corporate puppet masters have fouled this nation up to a fare-thee-well. We will not be pulled from the morass without a big effort from an active citizenry, and that means a citizenry fired with a sense of mission and the belief that their actions, in concert with others, can make a profound difference.

It can start with just a few small steps. Mrs. Parks helped transform a nation by refusing to budge from her seat. Maybe you want to speak up publicly about an important issue, or host a house party, or perhaps arrange a meeting of soon-to-be dismissed employees, or parents at a troubled school.It’s a risk, sure. But the need is great, and that’s how you change the world.

via Op-Ed Columnist – Changing the World – NYTimes.com.

Bridging the Gap – Colin Powell

Colin Powell has some wonderful thoughts about how to choose your friends:

The less you associate with some people, the more your life will improve. Any time you tolerate mediocrity in others, it increases your mediocrity. An important attribute in successful people is their impatience with negative thinking and negative acting people. As you grow, your associates will change. Some of your friends will not want you to go on. They will want you to stay where they are. Friends that don’t help you climb will want you to crawl. Your friends will stretch your vision or choke your dream. Those that don’t increase you will eventually decrease you.

Consider this:

Never receive counsel from unproductive people. Never discuss your problems with someone incapable of contributing to the solution, because those who never succeed themselves are always first to tell you how. Not everyone has a right to speak into your life. You are certain to get the worst of the bargain when you exchange ideas with the wrong person. Don’t follow anyone who’s not going anywhere.

With some people you spend an evening: with others you invest it. Be careful where you stop to inquire for directions along the road of life. Wise is the person who fortifies his life with the right friendships. If you run with wolves, you will learn how to howl. But, if you associate with eagles, you will learn how to soar to great heights.

"A mirror reflects a man’s face, but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses."

The simple but true fact of life is that you become like those with whom you closely associate – for the good and the bad.

Note: Be not mistaken. This is applicable to family as well as friends. Yes…do love, appreciate and be thankful for your family, for they will always be your family no matter what. Just know that they are human first and though they are family to you, they may be a friend to someone else and will fit somewhere in the criteria above.

"In Prosperity Our Friends Know Us. In Adversity We Know Our friends."

"Never make someone a priority when you are only an option for them."

"If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude."

Merit in Pakistan

Kamran Abbasi explains, ever so eloquently, why honest success is so elusive in Pakistan.

I once heard a parable of why ability is rarely a criterion for
progress in Pakistan, why merit counts for nothing. It is not the whole explanation, of course, but an important part of it.

Imagine a ladder reaching up to the heavens, with all the millions of people of Pakistan condemned to an eternity of clambering to the top, an exhausting desperate existence. The first person to reach the summit will liberate his people from this ladder-climbing hell but will also become king and master of his nation.

In the heavenly ladders of other nations, people reach the top to
bring succour to their fellows. They achieve this through co-operation and a realisation that the best of them should reach the summit for the common good. There are some false starts, and some progress to their goal faster than others, but they move towards liberation from their plight.

On the Pakistani ladder, people climb forever, a purgatory of
perpetual struggle without reward. Pakistanis of all hues and tongues rush to the top, trampling over their weaker countrymen, pushing many off the ladder to their deaths a thousand miles below. Some are pure geniuses, racing up the ladder with skill and artistry unseen on any other heavenly ladder. But each time a Pakistani nears the top, a hundred, nay a thousand bitter hands reach upwards, making a superhuman effort to grab their fellow, drag him back, and plunge him into the darkness below.

Nobody reaches the top. Nobody succeeds. Nobody brings solace to a troubled people.

This then is the state of Pakistan, the mindset of Mr Jamshed Dasti, a supposedly honourable parliamentarian. It is the mindset that pervades too much of Pakistani society and cricket.

Why let a good man succeed when you can’t succeed yourself?”

Of course, this parable is far from being the full explanation. But much of it rings true. Although I don’t agree with the assumption that the first to reach the top of the ladder will become the king of the nation. Nor do I FULLY agree with the contention that in other nations, people give way to rising stars out of an acceptance that their success lies in the success of others. To an extent it’s true.

But another important factor in the institutionalization of meritocracy is – the presence of strong institutions. For example, in an organization where promotions are decided by a committee of diverse stakeholders in the success of that organization, more often than not merit will carry the day. Where the benefit of a small group or single entity holds precedence, merit may not be so important. The strength of an institution, thus, is an important factor in dissuading corruption – unfortunately this implies a vicious cycle where weak institution –> corruption –> weaker institution –> more corruption.

The pity, I think, lies in this:

Generally, Pakistanis are not too concerned about others as long as they are failing. My boss is exploiting my willingness to work hard by putting me through 80 hour weeks. Who cares? I’m a blind old woman crossing the street with my grocery…no one has the time to guide me. I’m at the police station trying to get some information about my car that was stolen at gunpoint two weeks ago. I could not be more unimportant.

But rise, and see the thousand hands that clutch at you and bring you back down to earth. It seems to be a strange sadistic pleasure at times, born of suffering and a deep sense of injustice. At other times it is perhaps simply a case of someone trying to maximize personal growth by hanging onto the coat tails of someone successful…and sometimes it is sheer selfishness – jo mujhe nahin mila, woh tumhe kaise milne doon?

Thinking about this reminded me of this famous scene from A Beautiful Mind, where John Nash proposes a win-win situation for all by acting for the self AND the collective:

Unfortunately, the solution proposed in the movie is slightly incorrect because Russell Crowe is not John Nash himself and only John Nash can explain his theory. No, I’m kidding. The solution is wrong because the Hollywood version doesn’t, unfortunately, have a Nash equilibrium after all.

In any case the implications of game theory are very interesting for this topic…there are many situations in which being selfless (versus being selfish) pays off – such as the classic prisoner’s dilemma. Personally, game theory is largely too complicated and technical for me..

Any opinions on this out there?

The Builders – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

A beautiful and inspirational poem. Read, reread, reflect, revel.

All are architects of Fate,
Working in these walls of Time;
Some with massive deeds and great,
Some with ornaments of rhyme.

Nothing useless is, or low;
Each thing in its place is best;
And what seems but idle show
Strengthens and supports the rest.

For the structure that we raise,
Time is with materials filled;
Our to-days and yesterdays
Are the blocks with which we build.

Truly shape and fashion these;
Leave no yawning gaps between;
Think not, because no man sees,
Such things will remain unseen.

In the elder days of Art,
Builders wrought with greatest care
Each minute and unseen part;
For the Gods see everywhere.

Let us do our work as well,
Both the unseen and the seen;
Make the house, where Gods may dwell,
Beautiful, entire, and clean.

Else our lives are incomplete,
Standing in these walls of Time,
Broken stairways, where the feet
Stumble as they seek to climb.

Build to-day, then, strong and sure,
With a firm and ample base;
And ascending and secure
Shall to-morrow find its place.

Thus alone can we attain
To those turrets, where the eye
Sees the world as one vast plain,
And one boundless reach of sky.

Credit to Hammad Jamil for sharing this.

Thoughts on the Hostage Situation

Just my two cents.

I was surprised by the fact that the militants were able to get inside and get hostages, because I thought the establishment would have been better prepared for something like this. Some reports indicated that GHQ was a likely target. No matter what Kaira says, this was clearly a security lapse, and Pakistan can’t afford more of those. Thank God the casualties were limited.

I was glad that the bloodshed had lessened and that things had quieted down a little, but the past week has been a harsh reminder that we’re not through yet with the Taliban. The South Waziristan operation is pretty vital. I’m no analyst but I feel that though the militants are still pretty strong, they’re nowhere near as strong as they were before. For one, as a US analyst pointed out, this is evidence that the militants don’t enjoy the same level of support in the ISI that they used to. So this might well be desperation (the official government line). Obviously this is related to the upcoming operation in South Waziristan…and if so, the case for it being desperation is stronger. The best chance of TTP’s survival was gritting it out in the next operation, but with renewed civilian support for the army (and correspondingly, less civilian support for the militants), this seems like a show of bravado. Not that they won’t stick to their guerilla roots and grit it out – but it’ll be harder now.
That’s my major reading from this – more people than ever before are publicly coming out against the militants, as well as supporting the army offensive (as Ahsan correctly points out). That is positive on several fronts, I think. Raises the army’s morale and sends out the message to the world that the Pakistani PEOPLE do NOT support the Taliban.

For example, compare Hillary Clinton’s statements from April and October.

April 23:

“I don’t hear that kind of outrage and concern coming from enough people that would reverberate back within the highest echelons of the civilian and military leadership of Pakistan.”

October 10:

“..this shows the continuing threats to the Pakistani government and the very important steps that the civilian leadership, along with the military, are taking to root out the extremists and prevent violence and direct assaults on the sovereignty of the state.”

I see a lot more confidence in Pakistan. Yes, I know she’s a politician and that her statements are carefully designed to elicit certain responses. But I also know that the ground situation in Pakistan has changed considerably from April to October (or at least seems to have changed), and the world has noticed that.

What troubles me the most is not the security lapse (although of course it can never happen again!) – it is the lack of government response. Where are the condemnations from the President and Prime Minister? The only responses I’ve been able to find from Zardari and Gilani so far are congratulations to the commandos and ’satisfaction’. Positive remarks, yes. But there should be more than just remarks. They should have used this opportunity to send a strong statement to all the stakeholders – Pakistanis, the world, militants, and more.

Touching indeed.

I haven’t blogged in ages, partly because I was busy with my second big move in four years, and partly because I couldn’t push myself to write. There’s a few unfinished drafts..but I’ve either lost interest in those topics, or they are obsolete (like my analysis of Pakistan’s performance in Sri Lanka).

Strange, indeed, that a romantic comedy should inspire a blog post.

Then again, that seems to be the recurring theme around this movie.

Strange.

I could have watched this movie a month ago, but chose not to because it didn’t seem interesting in the least. I guess we’ve all seen too many romantic comedies. Then I happened upon a review of this while surfing the web, and…because my movie options are limited for now, decided to download it.

To my surprise the torrent was downloaded within a few hours. Even then, I opted for something different – Earth, based on Bapsi Sidhwa’s Ice Candy Man, which I recently read (a must-read for anyone interested in the Partition and with memories of Lahore). As Fate would have it, the file was damaged and I couldn’t watch anything beyond the first ten minutes.

And so I clicked on Management.

It wasn’t exactly engrossing, but it kind of held the attention initially, because of the curiosity that the director successfully created. Initially, at least. 40 minutes into this flick and I was wondering why I was wasting my time. It wasn’t really a comedy, I wasn’t laughing too much. There was a creepily obsessive lover (Steve Zahn) and a nice but cold (and old!) Jennifer Aniston. No chance of anything happening.

And yet, the point at which she FINALLY tells him to leave, for good, was…somehow..poignant. It was the moment in which the world (in the movie, at least) flipped.

Despite the general blandness that had preceded so far, and despite every sign that this was to be expected…the breakup just didn’t seem..appropriate. There was no obvious reason why this scene should have been touching.

But it was.

So were the family interactions and the awkward pauses. This movie was full of awkward pauses…they fit, perfectly. I can’t explain how. I could certainly relate to the awkward pauses. I think everyone can. They mean a great deal and are perhaps…the most important times of inaction we experience.

I wouldn’t like to ruin any more of the movie. Steve Zahn is not an actor I’ve ever heard of. However, I’ll probably pay more attention whenever I see his name in a movie. The ‘pull’ in this movie came from Jennifer Aniston. But this guy pulled off a wonderfully nuanced performance that completely sucked you in and gave this movie the touch of something more.

More than meets the eye, Management.

If ever a movie has grown on me, this was it.

The music was nice too.

Well I don’t know what I’m looking for
But I know that I just want to look some more
And I won’t be satisfied
Till there’s nothing left that I haven’t tried
For some people it’s an easy choice
But for me there’s a devil in an angel’s voice
Well I don’t know what I’m looking for
But I know that I just want to look some more…

If you’re in the mood for something heartwarming and light..go on, this probably won’t be the worst 96 minutes of your life.