MetaFilter posts tagged with Pakistan

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vronsky — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 12:33:23 -0800

"forward, forward I say"

adamvasco — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 02:18:10 -0800

"Fog of War" cited by United States Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad. He was speaking to journalists to clarify reports concerning his unauthorised contacts with foreign government officials, among them Asif Ali Zardari; a then contender to succeed Pervez Musharraf as president of Pakistan. Earlier this year he was being touted as a possible successor to Hamid Karzai as President of Afghanistan as seen in these two articles. So who is Zalmay Khalilzad? Neo con and oil businessman. From Scourcewatch "Just as oil industry conflicts of interest have not been a concern for the Bush administration in its appointments, Khalilzad's historic support for the Taliban seems not to be either..." and "Even as the Clinton administration was beginning to recognize the repressive nature of the Taliban regime and its links to [Osama] bin Laden, Khalilzad called for U.S. engagement with the Taliban. 'The Taliban do not practice the anti-US style of fundamentalism practiced by Iran...' Some more profiles: - Wiki and rightweb and Democracy Now and Emperor's Clothes

Talibanistan

homunculus — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 22:45:22 -0800

Right at the Edge. "The Taliban and Al Qaeda have established a haven in Pakistan’s tribal areas along the Afghan border. This is where the war on terror wil be fought – and possibly lost."

Pakistans Phantom Border

homunculus — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 16:55:10 -0800

Pakistans Phantom Border. "Pakistan is often called the most dangerous country on earth. Increasingly, its people would agree. Despite nearly $6 billion in U.S. military aid for the border region since 9/11, the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and homegrown terrorist groups have eroded the border with Afghanistan, inflicting a steady toll of suicide bombings. Going where few Westerners dare—from Taliban strongholds to undercover-police headquarters—the author sees what’s tearing the country apart."

"How wonderfully Gothic!"

msalt — Fri, 23 May 2008 18:39:02 -0800

Heated controversy over cousin marriages in Britain. The Guardian argues it's fine, legal in the UK for centuries, done by Darwin, HG Wells and Queen Victoria; and a 2002 study (prev) found little increased risk. But in Bradford, England, where half of babies born are to ethnically Pakistani parents, cousin marriage is very common -- as high as 70% in that community. Bradford, with 1% of British population, has 70 youths with terminal disorders which lead to dementia-type illnesses – eight per cent of the UK total. Should the government ban cousin marriage? Encourage genetic testing? Or keep its mouth shut? The fact that consanguineous marriages are most common among Muslim Pakistani immigrants makes the discussion more contentious. The Environment Minister Woolas was rebuked in February for expressing concerns intemperately. According to a 2005 BBC investigation, British Pakistanis account for 3.4% of all births but have 30% of all British children with recessive disorders, and the Birmingham Primary Care Trust estimates that one in ten of all children born to first cousin marriages in Birmingham's large Pakistani community either dies in infancy or goes on to suffer serious disability as a result of recessive genetic disorders. The 2002 study may have underestimated risk by ignoring the compounding effect -- i.e. the risk for two cousins whose family hasn't previously mixed may be very different from that in an extended family (e.g. the Windsors) who mix repeatedly for generations. And professor Alan Bittles, a leading expert, notes that within some communities even non-cousin marriages carry higher risks of these rare genetic disorders because those involved are from the same "biraderi" or clan. Better data is on the way from the Born in Bradford study (wiki), now a year old. It's the largest children's health study in the world, aiming to track all babies born in the city from autumn 2006 to early 2008 (approx. 10,000 children) until age 16. They have found 150 different genetic disorders among those children, where 20-30 would be expected in a comparable city.

Bin Laden Determined To Strike In U.S. Part 2

homunculus — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 18:45:43 -0800

"The United States Lacks a Comprehensive Plan to Destroy the Terrorist Threat and Close the Safe Haven in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas" (PDF). A recent GAO report claims that the Bush administration has failed to prevent Al Qaeda's reemergence in Pakistan, and that we're basically right back where we started in 2001.

Alas! regardless of their doom, the little victims play!

KokuRyu — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 12:23:46 -0800

Limited nuclear war would damage ozone layer. Apart from the human devastation, a small-scale nuclear war between India and Pakistan would destroy much of the ozone layer, leaving the DNA of humans and other organisms at risk of damage from the Sun's rays, say researchers at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. Michael Mills at the LASP and his colleagues used computer models to study how 100 Hiroshima-sized bombs would affect the atmosphere. They say that their scenario – in which each country launches 50 devices of 15 kilotons – is realistic, given the countries' nuclear arsenals. "The figure of 100 Hiroshima-sized bombs compares pretty accurately to the approximately 110 warheads that both states reportedly possess between them," agrees Wyn Bowen, professor of non-proliferation and international security in the War Studies Group at King's College, UK. Here is an earlier 2006 report by Michael Mills about the devastating effect even a limited nuclear war would have on the ozone layer.

So, you thought Cricket was for sissies, aye?

hadjiboy — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 06:22:44 -0800

First, a bit of an introduction to the game of Cricket (youtube) for those of us who may not be familiar with the sport. Next, a few clips (1, 2, 3, 4) on how awesome the Gentleman's Game can be (and you thought we didn't do anything but roam around in our white pants and cotton shirts...). But, if that wasn't enough for you, then here's a taste of Twenty20 Cricket (the fast, fast paced version of the game), and the new DLF Indian (pdf) Premier League. (This is in addition to the One Day Matches, which were instituted to bring in a bit more excitement into the game during the 1970's, prior to which the match only consisted of Tests. However, some purists still maintain that the game would've been better served had it not been commercalized to the extent that it has, and still prefer the leisurely pace of the original format to its current incarnation.) A small History of Cricket here, along with a History of the US playing the sport too: yes, you yanks were Batsmen and Bowlers once upon a time as well. Although, there is hope that you might still try and break into the sport yet. Women too have shown that they are just as good with the bat and the ball as their male counterparts, and so have the visually challenged. See, this is a game that anyone can play, even kids who can't afford the equipment, and play a rudimentary form of the sport called Gilli Danda. Oh, and not to forget, there's someone else who tried his hand at Cricket too. Any guesses? And finally, a list of the DLF Indian Premier League Cricket Teams: The Kolkata Knight Riders | The Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) | The Delhi Daredevils | The Rajasthan Royals | The Bangalore Royal Challengers | The Chennai Super Kings | The Mumbai Indians | And the as yet to be named Mohali Cricket Team

Pakistan vs. YouTube, BGP loses

gen — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 11:41:22 -0800

YouTube Hijacking: A RIPE NCC RIS case study is the definitive look at how actions of Pakistan Telecom caused the global outage of YouTube Sunday the 24th of Feb. 2008. This incident has exposed weaknesses of the Border Gateway Protocol as is outlined by Danny McPherson from Arbor Networks as well as on the Renesys blog.

Glimpses of South Asia before 1947

UbuRoivas — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 04:38:05 -0800

Glimpses of South Asia before 1947 1,150 illustrated pages by the world's leading Ancient Indus Civilization scholars 774 photographs, postcards, lithographs, engravings, and archival film of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka before 1947