Articles and letters may be edited for the purposes of clarity and space. They are published in good faith with a view to enlightening all the stakeholders. However, the contents of these writings may not necessarily match the views of the newspaper.
Traffic woes
Unfortunately, there has been an increase in the number of road accidents in Turbat, due to serious violations of traffic rules.
Traffic rules are vital to follow because they save us from accidents but apparently they don’t exist in Turbat where no one wears a helmet or fastens their seatbelt.
Furthermore, traffic police clearly ignore such traffic rules violations and fail to perform its duty.
Children as small as 9 years are seen riding their bikes throughout the city. They are not aware of the traffic rules and often cause accidents.
The traffic police and parents of such children should be educated and held accountable whereas children below the age of 18 should not be allowed driving or riding around in the city. I request to authorities to look into this matter.
HAMMAL NASEER
Turbat, Balochistan
No
emergency exit
People work in factories to earn a little amount of money to make both ends meet. On Friday 16 September, people died after a fire broke out at a factory in Karachi.
Surprisingly, the factory built on 200 square yards had only one exit, due to which could not exit on time and suffocated to death.
Sindh government need to take immediate action against factory owners and take care of families of deceased persons.
MEHRULLAH AKHTAR
Via email
Conflicting legacies of
US media
The overarching success of western democracies is commonly attributed to triumph of freedom of press.
The United States, in particular, has in its’ constitution enshrined the right to Freedom of Speech, which has protected journalists from government censorship throughout American history.
A good example of this can be drawn from 1972 Watergate scandal, which was unearthed by Bob Woodward, and Carl Bernstein, both of whom worked as young Journalists for the Washington Post.
The exposé revealed the US President’s involvement in breaking into Democratic National Committee and his illegal efforts to cover-up the whole thing.
The scandal stirred uproar in the country and eventually forced Richard Nixon to resign.
This led many people to hold the view that press freedom is inevitable in a democracy and that dysfunctional media is solely a product of authoritarian states.
However, after 9/11 attacks, the Bush administration invaded Iraq, which stood unopposed by all major news outlets including the reputable New York Times.
Not only was the media unopposed to the idea of invading Iraq, but also it also unquestionably endorsed all sorts of propaganda against Iraq including Saddam Hussein of possessing weapons of mass destruction and the false claim that he was in close contact with Al Qaeda operatives.
There was no evidence to back up any of these claims, and it was later revealed that neither was Saddam Hussein in possession of weapons of mass destruction nor was he in contact with Al Qaeda.
However, the fabricated reports propagated by the western media were enough to create fear and hysteria among the American people, which was then used to justify the invasion of Iraq, a war that left the whole country devastated.
Similarly, President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw US troops by August 31 was met with skepticism and condemnation across the corporate media.
Fox news blasted Biden and questioned his leadership capabilities despite the fact that it was his predecessor, Donald Trump, who had negotiated the peace deal with the Taliban in the first place.
One would hope that the pro democrat outlets such as CNN and MSNBC would endorse Biden’s decision to leave Afghanistan, however they seemed to have expressed an equal amount of skepticism.
Even though the corporate US Media is heavily polarized and politicized, it’s hard to draw any significant distinction when it comes to issues dealing with foreign policy and continuing US wars.
This assertion can be judged from the fact that some of the most prominent national security analysts working for Fox news, CNN and MSNBC happen to be former Pentagon officials who are allowed to preach pro war narrative and “why we should stay in Afghanistan” talking points relentlessly and unquestionably.
The US media has largely abandoned its role of fact-checking journalism, and has instead allowed itself to be used as weapon by political, economic and cultural elites.
SADIA SUŠIÆ
Islamabad
Coming from rich families?
Why does the NCB (Narcotics Control Bureau) only arrest people coming from rich and wealthy families who consume drugs? Why don’t they arrest the beggars and the street urchins who sit in the corners of streets who inhale marijuana and other kinds of deadly drug wrapped in silver foils and put inside cigarettes?
What enmity does the NCB have with these star kids? Is it because their parents have the money to bribe the police and the judiciary so that can get their cut?
JUBEL D’CRUZ
Mumbai, India
Gwadar
needs water
Gwadar is coastal city in South-western Balochistan with a population of over 90,000.
Though this city is beneficial for Pakistan due to its economic and tourist potential yet citizens are deprived of basic necessity of water. With the construction of port in 2002, water consumption has doubled.
Moreover, though Gwadar lies at the Coast of Arabian Sea, water crisis is an old problem that has worsened this year, resulting in public protests.
The government can simply provide Gwadar with required water by desalinating seawater.
Furthermore, instead of paying tanker companies (costing Rs 17,000 per tanker) to pump water from Meerani dam, the government can make an efficient pipeline system to connect water directly to the city.
I urge authorities to find a sustainable solution to acute water scarcity in Gwadar.
MARIA NASEEM
Via email
