The Pakistani Spectator

A Candid Blog

Author Archive

Capitalism without the Thorns

By Dan Tow • Jan 27th, 2008 • Category: Politics

In graduate school, I shared an apartment with a very interesting fellow who argued in favor of the American Libertarian party. The Libertarians, in America, are a minor party that gets something like 1% of the vote in most elections, so they wield very little influence, but they make some interesting arguments in favor of […]



The Power of Ideas

By Dan Tow • Jan 12th, 2008 • Category: Politics

It is an old truism that the pen is mightier than the sword, but what, exactly, lies behind the “power of the pen”? Ideas are the key, and they are as powerful as any force on Earth.
Consider how humans change the world. Using our own bodies and muscles, our power is no greater than any […]



Chicken Farm

By Dan Tow • Dec 30th, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow (with a nod to Mr. Orwell)
To my readers: I wrote the following before the tragic assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Apart from my deep sadness for all the people killed, I was terribly sorry that the assassination denied the people of Pakistan their full range of choices in the scheduled election. Assassination is […]



Engineering for Politics and Life, Part 2 of 2

By Dan Tow • Dec 20th, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
If you missed Part I of this, here’s a link. I covered the principles:
• Solve the problem within the current constraints of the actual world.
• Never give up on solving the problem, but remain very open-minded about what is the problem.
• You cannot choose reality – what is, is.Part II
A solution to the […]



Engineering for Politics and Life, Part 1 of 2

By Dan Tow • Dec 17th, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow

Every individual has his or her own perspective on the world, and we can often find major insights when we catch a glimpse of the world from another person’s perspective, and we consider what that adds to our own view. I have written my previous articles partly to share an American perspective on […]



American Control

By Dan Tow • Dec 2nd, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
I have noted a recurring theme to comments to my articles and others on this site. Comments often say something like “Oh, yes, that’s a fine idea, but in the end, we are powerless, because America is controlling the government of Pakistan, anyway – they are merely puppets.” In this article, I will […]



Effective, Nonviolent Expression of Solidarity

By Dan Tow • Nov 5th, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
As I have viewed recent events in Pakistan from the safety of my home in the US, I have been at a loss for what to say. My past articles have been kindly received by my generous Pakistani friends, but would I simply be wasting your time, to produce yet another article on […]



The Degree of the US Army’s Clout in American Politics

By Dan Tow • Oct 23rd, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
I got a hint that an American perspective on this topic might be of interest, here – it was not my own idea, for reasons that will likely become apparent as you read. First off, although the idea was expressed in the terms in the title, I’ll broaden the topic to the political […]



Habit’s Impact on Freedom

By Dan Tow • Oct 10th, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
Here in the US, we watch far more television than is good for us, and an awful lot of that involves a combination of fictional crime shows and news shows focused on crime. As a result, most Americans have an emotional sense that the danger of crime is greater than it really is. […]



Communism versus Capitalism

By Dan Tow • Oct 3rd, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
Money is like manure. It should be spread around.
- Thorton Wilder
How much difference does one thousand dollars add to the happiness of an already very rich man? How much difference can an extra thousand dollars make in the life of a very poor man? Communism has a certain seductive logic – seemingly, by […]