Prime Minister Imran Khan’s emphatic speech on Wednesday was a statement meant to exude political strength and militaristic confidence. Nothing else, nothing more. Whether it was due to the pioneering clarion call to opposition members to join ranks or his substantive punches, even the hawkish of kaptaan’s adversaries did not dare disrupt him. The heart-winning delivery of his Islamic welfare vision, the clear-cut taking up of cudgels against Washington’s demand of “do more,” and more prodigiously, the eerie calm that prevailed across the house: it was a beautiful sight of unity and concord. Something that had taken a hike for a condescending tirade in the past several days. Yet, nothing seems more pertinent than Mr Khan’s no-questions-asked stance on getting his hands dirty in Afghanistan. After all, as the khaki troops hasten to leave Afghan hills, what could be more crucial than to figure out where Pakistan’s square peg would fit in the redefined round hole? It should be our foremost cause to not let Pakistan’s immense sacrifices of the last 20 years go to waste. Plainly put, it was no small feat for a feeble economy to bear losses to the tune of $150 billion. The round-the-clock harassment Pakistan has had to face from the White House over the years was downright insulting. Constantly blowing the trumpet of its $20 billion aid, the Orwellian Big Brother conveniently overlooked the overwhelming displacement of one million people in North Waziristan and more than 70,000 Pakistanis killed as collateral damage in its War on Terror. What to say of the war-hardened Afghan terrorists busy hatching anti-Pakistan conspiracies from their strongholds! Pakistan’s security concerns could not be more genuine. This region is clearly heading for the dark era of the 1990s when US blunders in the Cold War paved the way for mujahideen to play snakes and ladders with Kabul’s hot seat. But the Commander-in-Chief is fully aware of the impending doom. With security warnings from his generals and observations about active militants by monitoring bodies, doesn’t Mr Biden know what Frankenstein’s monster he is unleashing upon the neighbourhood? For certain, it is much, much easier to play aloof to the horrors of the Iraq war, Benghazi’s chaotic civil unrest and the helplessness of millions of Syrian refugees. Why acknowledge America’s grave–better, criminal–screw-ups when he can continue to ignore the massive repercussions of Palestinians at the hands of blue-eyed Israelis? Vietnam. North Korea. The blood-stained list continues! Anyone who believes Mr Khan’s well-built case would be heard by the US hawks is living in a fool’s paradise. However, letting the world in on our sufferings and shattering the violent stereotype brilliantly weaved to alienate us is just as important. As far as Pakistaniat goes, you won a million hearts, Prime Minister. Of course, the coming days will ascertain whether what went down in parliament was the rant of an angry man or a deep-rooted policy! With all eyes on you, it would be simply foolish to not act upon your thunder. But a quick glance at our dark and dreary history cautions us to pull our punches. Decades ago, a leader just as determined as you had set out to tell a superpower how strong his country was. He was blatantly warned, “We would make a horrible example of you.” Yet, he persisted. The world knows him as Ratodero’s Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto! *