WHY FAISAL SHAHZAD BOMBED TIMES SQUARE
by Pervez Hoodbhoy
The man who tried to set off a car bomb in
Why is this unsurprising? Answer: because when you hold a burning match to a
gasoline tank, the laws of chemistry demand combustion. As anti-American
lava spews uninterrupted from the fiery volcanoes of
television channels and newspapers, a collective psychosis grips the
country's youth. Murderous intent follows with the conviction that the
is responsible for all ills, both in
Faisal Shahzad, with designer sunglasses and an MBA
degree from the
formative years in
the shadow of Zia-ul-Haq's hate-based education
curriculum. The son of a
retired Air Vice-Marshal, life was easy as was getting
subsequently. But at some point the toxic schooling and media tutoring must
have kicked in. There was guilt as he saw pictures of
and related them to
perhaps the local mosque, steered him towards the idea of an Islamic
caliphate. This solution to the world's problems would require, of course,
the
Ideas considered extreme a decade ago are now mainstream.
A private survey
carried out by a European embassy based in
Pakistanis polled speak well of
the
as
proportion to aid received. Say one good word about the US, and you are
automatically labeled as its agent. From what popular TV anchors had to say
about it, Kerry-Lugar's $7.5 billion may well have been money that the
wants to steal from
unpopular. In pursuit of its self-interest, wealth and security, the
waged illegal wars, bribed, bullied and overthrown
governments, supported
tyrants and military governments, and undermined movements for progressive
change. But paradoxically the
countries which have born the direct brunt of American attacks -
Drone strikes are a common but false explanation. Foreign minister Shah
Mahmood Qureshi implicitly
justifies the
but this does not bear up. Drone attacks have killed some innocents, but
they have devastated militant operations in
less collateral damage than Pakistani artillery or airpower. On the other
hand, the cities of
and
developed deep visceral feelings like those in
Finding truer reasons requires deeper digging. In part,
the resentment and self-loathing of a client state for its paymaster.
US-Pakistan relations are frankly transactional today, but the master-client
relationship is old. Indeed,
So, in the 1960's,
military pacts, and was proud to be called "
Pakistan Army became the most powerful, well-equipped and well-organized
institution in the country. This also put
The Soviet invasion of
profits, deepened the dependence. Paid by the
jihadist apparatus,
blowback.
matter that
call upon its army to protect the population from throat-slitting,
hand-chopping, girl-whipping fanatics.
Passing the buck is equally fundamental to
is in human nature to blame others for one's own failures.
teetered between being a failed state and a failing state. The rich won't
pay taxes? Little electricity? Sewage-contaminated
drinking water?
elsewhere too. For example, one recently saw the amazing spectacle of Hamid
Karzai threatening to join the Taliban and lashing
out against Americans
because they (probably correctly) suggested he committed electoral fraud.
Tragically for
Islamic militants. They vigorously promote the notion of an Islam-West war
when, in fact, they actually wage armed struggle to remake society. They
will keep fighting this war even if
into space. Created by poverty, a war-culture, and the macabre manipulations
of
society. This means eliminating music, art, entertainment, and all
manifestations of modernity. Side goals include chasing away the few
surviving native Christians, Sikhs, and Hindus.
At a time when the country needs clarity of thought to successfully fight
extremism, simple bipolar explanations are inadequate. The moralistic
question "Is America good or bad?" is futile. There is little doubt
that the
problem, and maintains the world's largest military machine. We also know
that it will make a deal with the Taliban if perceived to be in
self-interest, and it will do so even if that means abandoning the
Yet, it would be wrong to scorn the humanitarian impulse behind
assistance in times of desperation. Shall we simply write off massive
assistance to
tsunami affected countries in 2004 and to
no more selfish or altruistic than any other country of the world.
And it treats its Muslim citizens infinitely better than we treat
non-Muslims in
Instead of pronouncing moral judgments on everything and anything, we
Pakistanis need to reaffirm what is truly important for our people: peace,
economic justice, good governance, rule of law, accountability of rulers,
women's rights, and rationality in human affairs.
resisted, but only when it seeks to drag
More frenzied anti-Americanism will only produce more Faisal Shahzads.
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The author teaches at