Of pure, but not for poor! on June 7, 2020“Strong people don’t put others down. They lift them up.”-Darth Vader-Philanthropist. Legendary Greek philosopher, Aristotle, said that a man is a social animal by nature. He further explained that people who are unsocial naturally and not accidentally, are either too unimportant to be given any credence or more than human, meaning divine but the real […]
The rot within! on May 29, 2020“All you got to do is look around. This country’s getting worse and worse and more and more immoral, and we’re rotting from within”-Terry Bradshaw-American football quarterback. According to Benjamin Wittes, a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution, who works principally on matters concerning American Law and Security: “It is possible for […]
Etymological shenanigans on May 23, 2020“Nobody has monopoly over jahaalat-a highly educated person can be highly jaahil whereas a person who never attended any educational institution can be just the opposite”-Dr. Ikramul Haq Communication is an important matter for all living beings but humans stand out as they are blessed to be endowed with the gift of speech which definitely […]
Taxes, not charity! on May 15, 2020“We don’t do charity in Germany. We pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments’ responsibilities”-Henning When, a German stand-up comedian. Imagine a middle-class household of six, comprising parents, three grown-up healthy boys and the youngest, a physically incapacitated girl, requiring special attention. With the presence of such a person in the family, usually, one […]
Welcome to WWIII! on May 9, 2020“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones”-Albert Einstein One must admit that compared to Colin Powell, Albert Einstein was more optimistic as he had foreseen a scenario where the people of the world would be engaged in physical conflicts […]
Without being commanded? on May 4, 2020“I have gained from philosophy that I do without being commanded what others do only from fear of the laws” —Aristotle While driving in Lahore Pakistan, you stop at a red traffic light because that is the law but you notice that the motorcyclist next to you turns his head right and left probably looking […]
Through Iqbal’s eyes! on April 25, 2020Sialkot in the province of Punjab in Pakistan is an industrial city that is famous for manufacturing and exporting sports and surgical goods. According to ‘The Economist’ the city stands out for its entrepreneurial spirit and productive business climate which reflects in the fact that the city boasts of the country’s first privately owned public […]
Intentions vs. reality on April 20, 2020“Good intentions and grand theories do not make a good programme. Programmes work best when they’re based on a detailed understanding of the problem and how they are implemented on the ground” —Abhijeet Banerjee Every day we come across someone telling us that although behavior of such and such person is harsh or rude but […]
Corona-crisis: A wake-up call? on April 13, 2020“Death is the final wake-up call”—Douglas Horton Specialized training of income tax for probationary officers who qualified the Civil Services Competitive Examination of 1983, took place during 1985 and 1986. Yours faithfully was one of them. This is the era when the minimum amount of income of an individual subjected to income tax was only […]
A pragmatic use of a demographic analysis on April 7, 2020“If you’re a scientist, and you have to have an answer, even in the absence of data, you’re not going to be a good scientist.” Neil deGrasse Tyson (American astrophysicist) The most organised households first make a note of their members, their categories and needs after which income and expenditure are evaluated for balancing the […]