For The Greater Good

Pakistan is a country which has rampant inflation, an energy crises incomprehensible in the 21st century, terrorism that looms paramount in everyone’s mind and a law and order situation which borders on anarchy. However the one thing this country is not is boring. When 2 Pakistanis meet we don’t have to look blankly at each other and make chit chat about the weather, our politicians and the establishment ensure that we have a constant supply of hot topics to discuss. We are perhaps the only country where the current affairs talk shows are considered high entertainment and the drama of the constantly breaking news puts any soap opera to shame. The challenge for journalists all over the world is to find a good story, the challenge for the Pakistani journalist is which one to pick.

Our government may not be able to govern or give its citizens the basic needs of life but it is fulfilling a much higher purpose - it is making its citizens the most resilient, the most optimistic nation on this planet. No matter what comes our way we simply shrug it off and look ahead towards an unclear future. Shame on us for complaining incessantly about their shortcomings, the truth is that their wisdom is beyond our comprehension.

The establishment rather unfairly gets blamed for all evil that befalls this nation. But actually they are misunderstood and they suffer in silence all the abuses which we hurl at them. Their convoluted policies, clandestine meetings, secret supports and U-turns keep all of us guessing which great conspiracy is being hatched, we wonder what will be the possible fallouts of a meeting, or we simply try to interpret the mixed signals coming from different quarters. All this is an exercise to sharpen our minds and develop our powers of deductive reasoning. Another noble objective.

Politicians whether in the government or the opposition play an extremely important role in our lives. A rally here, a protest there, an unbridled verbal torrent, a carefully crafted rhetorical statement, press conferences, telephonic speeches, out of control performances on talk shows, offensive statements, defensive statements – are all part of a hidden agenda. The purpose is to keep our minds occupied so that we don’t start thinking of the real problems of our lives and get depressed. It is therapy on a grand scale.

So you see our anger is misguided, our government, establishment, politicians are only thinking of our greater good. Someone once said that the only difference between a grave and a rut is it’s depth and by making sure that monotony does not come near Pakistani’s they ensure that this nation is alive – albeit kicking.