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Pakistani columnist punctures lie that economic growth can stop terrorism

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Pakistani columnist punctures lie that economic growth can stop terrorism Empty Pakistani columnist punctures lie that economic growth can stop terrorism

Post by Ben Reilly Sat Dec 21, 2013 6:16 pm

In a candid, mostly off-the-cuff, hour-long speech at a Pakistan embassy event in Washington this October, Sharif mentioned his two-word counter-terrorism strategy: economic growth. Growth — done the grand old-fashioned way, with investments in industry, technology and infrastructure — is Sharif's magic bullet.
I did my doctorate in Economics, so I realise the value of economic growth, but also know its limits.

Motorways and metro buses, bullet trains and investment zones, laptops and tablets are all very well (though some are more useful than others), but they will not make militancy disappear.

The prime minister is assuming that poverty is the root cause of terrorism.

That is, being poor and destitute makes people resort to terrorism.

So, his thinking goes something like this (I presume): our government will focus on growth. Growth will, in turn, reduce poverty (which, by the way, is not always true).

Fewer poor people will mean fewer terrorists and less terrorism. Problem solved. Right? Wrong.

It should not be news to you, Prime Minister, that terrorism in Pakistan has very little to do with economic circumstances. In fact, this is true the world over and a wealth of empirical research shows that terrorists are not especially economically deprived and neither are those who support or sympathise with terrorists.

The simple-minded thinking for Pakistan's case is that the poorest of the poor send their kids to madrassas, where they are brainwashed and then these poor, brainwashed kids go on to become terrorists. There is some truth there.

But the root of the problem is not these poor children — it is the radical ideas they are taught.

Militancy in Pakistan is essentially a war of ideas and narratives, and it is completely naive to think that you can 'buy' your way out of it through growth.

What needs tackling is the radical narrative.

http://www.timesofoman.com/Columns/Article-1546.aspx

Elsewhere in her column she points to instances such as the many Muslim communities across Pakistan that have recently joined with their Christian neighbors to form human walls around Christian churches:

Pakistani columnist punctures lie that economic growth can stop terrorism 614333-ShafiqMalikStanthonychurch-1381068132-630-640x480

... as an example of countering the narrative of radicalism.
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Post by Guest Sat Dec 21, 2013 6:36 pm

But of course muslims never do things like that do they, the picture must be doctored - I'm just waiting for someone to say that! Goes on all the time, but the bigots won't have it.

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Pakistani columnist punctures lie that economic growth can stop terrorism Empty Re: Pakistani columnist punctures lie that economic growth can stop terrorism

Post by Ben Reilly Sun Dec 22, 2013 1:58 am

I think there is some inkling of truth in the notion that economic improvement can reduce fundamentalist or radical leanings. As Obama observed on the campaign trail in 2008:

"You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration, and the Bush administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not.

And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

But I think the mistake might be in confusing a deeply devout nation like Pakistan with a less-deeply devout nation like the U.S. I think when fundamentalism has become part and parcel of your self image, it's going to take more than a decent job to shake you of those beliefs.
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Post by Original Quill Sun Dec 22, 2013 6:20 am

Hmmm...perceptive and thought-provoking comments, Ben.

But I do think that the issue is more than economics.  As history evolved from Christ to the present, Western peoples developed a sense of humanism.  It began with Christian charity, and although Christianity has been far from charitable over the centuries, humanism gained a foothold and has flourished.

This has never happened among Muslim peoples.  Without humanism, Muslims think it is perfectly natural to stone 13-year old girls for losing their virginity, or shooting a young girl on a school bus for wanting an education, or punishing an infidel by cutting off his hands. They live in a ruthless belief/value system.

God bless them, they are a magnificent people...but without humanism, they have a cultural flaw here in the environs of the 21st-century.

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Post by Ben Reilly Sun Dec 22, 2013 6:38 am

Still, people built those schools, people protest those stonings. I don't know which way the struggle will tilt, but at least there's a struggle. And those women of RAWA are braver than I think I could ever be.
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Post by Original Quill Sun Dec 22, 2013 7:49 am

Yes, it's great acts of heroism. But is it winning?

I see Iran, as a symbol of that anti-humanism ideology. I see Egypt, at least with the Brotherhood, heading that way. Al Qaeda, the Taliban, Everywhere I look, I see Muslims turning away from humanism and toward the harsh, inhumane beliefs of their religion.

Somewhere, there must be a reckoning.

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Post by veya_victaous Sun Dec 22, 2013 9:49 am

Saladin and Richard The Lionheart

The retaking of Jerusalem by Saladin, gave Richard the Lionheart a reason to start a new crusade. Richard the Lionheart arrived in the Holy Land in 1191 and defeated Saladin in the opening skirmishes. However, Richard was unable to retake Jerusalem and eventually returned to Europe without succeeding. Richard never met Saladin, though, through dealing with Saladin's brother, Richard came to respect and admire Saladin. He recognised his honour, courage and chivalry. Saladin also was generous in his respect of Richard the Lionheart.

You see that Quill your argument is bullshit if you knew even 19th century history you would know that the ottomans we quite civilised plus much of the middle east far earlier than that.

2 events caused he middle east we have today first was the sacking of Bagdad by the Mongols
Which destroy the huge agricultural infrastructure that had been original built by the Babylonians (circa 1000BC) it was maintained and expanded by all the following rulers and was the 'bread basket' of the  Middle East.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Baghdad_(1258)
Then the division of the ottoman empire by the westerns powers post WW1 destroyed the any social cohesion in the area. We still see today the results of the Kurdish province being divided into 3 and added to the neighbouring regions (Turkey, Iraq and Iran)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolution_of_the_Ottoman_Empire

Remember Christ was a Middle Eastern Man  Exclamation  Europe didn't even start to become Christian till the 3rd century AD (feeding to lions before that remember  Rolling Eyes  ), and the last Crusade against Pagans in Europe didn't finish til 1410 AD
http://history.skyforger.lv/2011/crusades-against-pagan-northern-europe/

So Unless Christians somehow developed 'Humanity' While Murdering those that didn't believe in their invisible sky giant..... You sir a full of Crap  :::grouch:: :::grouch:: :::grouch:: :::grouch::
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