Monthly Archives: February 2010

Pakistan being arm twisted to give free hand to US

Pakistan has suffered enormous loss, both in innocent human lives as well as economic terms, due to US’s illegal and ill advised invasion of Afghanistan. So, while Pakistan’s military is overstretched and engaged in operations incurring financial and human costs, what does “ally?” US do?
Plays politics and arm twisting to get free hand for its contractors and diplomats to roam freely in Pakistan. The funds being withheld are not aid but money that belongs to Pakistan. Meanwhile, British embassy has mislaid hundreds of Pakistani passports. And yet the West sees fit to chide Pakistan to do more in terms of security. Links and quotes below.
Continue reading →

Mahathir Mohamad’s Blog

Mahathir Mohamad Malaysia’s former Prime Minister, a Muslim and an architect of Malaysia’s modernisation drive shares his thoughts on his blog.

Some of his posts include,
BLAIR THE LIAR

9/11 AND REACTIONS
(in which he makes the case for an open and honest inquiry into the event which has had such a big impact on developments across the globe)

SCIENCE AND ISLAM
(discusses the reasons behind decline of science in the Islamic world. A key point being the neglect of non-religious knowledge)

PopSci: Hummers & Drones

Found two items of interest at Popular Science,

The Hummer is Dead

Hummers may have toyed with adapting to leaner times as plug-in hybrids, but the end has finally come for the long-time sport-utility brand based on the military workhorse. A General Motors deal to sell off its brand to a Chinese manufacturer collapsed after the companies were still waiting on Chinese government approval, the New York Times reports.

This truly makes 2010 the end of an era for both the civilian and military versions of the Hummer. The U.S. Army announced earlier this month that it would no longer order Humvees, and would instead turn to the armored MRAPs that have proven more resistant to roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan. But the Army still plans to keep its existing Humvees in service, according to DOD Buzz.
…

The Present and Future of Unmanned Drone Aircraft: An Illustrated Field Guide

…44 countries fly UAVs, according to P.W. Singer, a fellow at the public-policy think tank the Brookings Institution and author of Wired for War. Last year, the U.S. Air Force trained more UAV pilots than fighter and bomber pilots combined. “Every so often in history, there’s a tech that comes along that rewrites the rules of the game,” Singer says. “I describe this as a revolution.”
…
You may not have actually seen one yet, but you will (unless, of course, it doesn’t want to be seen). To give you a leg up on identification, here’s your field guide
to the latest UAV discoveries, as well as an overview of the most prevalent systems in use today.
Gallery: The Complete UAV Field Guide

Mullah Baradar’s Arrest – Part 2

Previously I shared some thoughts about Mullah Baradar’s arrest and how there seem to be a lot more implications than meet the eye. See Thoughts on Mullah Baradar’s Arrest for Part 1.

As Operation Moshtarak continues and civilian casualties mount, US General Petraeus said that this was the first in a series of operations that would last for 12-18 months. This troop surge strategy seems to be taken from the Iraq war. The problem with this strategy is that it doesn’t work. Fallujah and Marjah, Iraq surge and Afghanistan surge, there are parallels between the two. Now, the Americans claim that the troop surge in Iraq has worked and Obama/Biden and Republicans are fighting over who should take credit
Continue reading →

Pakistan makes history – Winter Olympics

History being made as Pakistan will compete in the Winter Olympics for the first time.
24 year old Muhammad Abbas from Gilgit will participate in Men’s Giant Slalom (Alpine Skiing). Event scheduled for Feb 23, 2010.

Player profile from Vancouver Olympics Site. Click on Giant Slalom link to right of profile for event schedule.
Muhammad Abbas – Alpine Skiing Athletes : Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics

Facebook Pakistan @ Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics | Facebook
Includes videos. The 0:30 vid is when he carried Pakistan’s flag in opening ceremony. The 1:58 one is National Anthem at another ceremony.

DAWN.COM | Sport | Ski coach recalls Abbas’ uphill journey

What is Men’s Giant Slalom?
Wikipedia

Failures getting you down? Keep Trying!

Failing at school? Problems in life, business, career, education? Keep Failing? Feeling down? Thinking of quitting? A nice collection of “50 Famously Successful People Who Failed At First” by Onlinecollege.org

Brief stories of people like Walt Disney, Edison, Harry Truman, Charlie Chaplin, Stephen King, Michael Jordan …
Broken up into Business Gurus, Scientists and Thinkers, Inventors, Hollywood Types, Writers and Artists, Musicians, Athletes.

Failures, setbacks, rejections, putdowns … over and over … They kept trying, kept living, kept on going. So, chin up. Don’t lose hope. You lose, you win; you live, you die; you succeed, you fail; you fly, you fall — Such is Life.

Throwing in a couple of short vids regarding failure:)

So saddle up partner and keep on riding.

Indian Terrorism in Pakistan

Indian-made IEDs recovered in South Waziristan

ISLAMABAD: Security forces claim to have recovered Indian-made improvised explosive devices (IED) from South Waziristan on Friday.

The IEDs were recovered from a suspected militant base near the Razmak area of South Waziristan, where military forces are currently carrying out an offensive against militants.

Security officials recovered five sacks, each containing 20 kilograms of polypropylene with the text “Reliance Industries Ltd, Jamnagar, Gujrat, India” printed on them, DawnNews reported.

Officials said they plan on raising the issue with Indian diplomats in the upcoming talks between the two nations. —DawnNews