PTCL Strike - MAXCOM Sellout - Problems Galore!!

It was by chance that I discovered that one of the largest service providers (because it has a monopoly) had actually decided to go on strike leaving all it's customers (basically all of Pakistan) in limbo. It all started when my telephone line went dead killing my internet connection with MAXCOM. When I tried to call MAXCOM to lodge a complaint, it was quite swiftly done so and similarly PTCL complaint numbers also attended my call quite efficiently. It was the next day that revelations of the strike appeared.
The next day when I discovered that no progress had been made in regards to repairing my internet or telephone line, I began calling PTCL and MAXCOM complaint numbers again only to find that both numbers had a recording which stated "All representatives are busy at the moment...". After waiting for over 15 minutes hoping that the representatives can attend my call, I gave up and called one of the MAXCOM technical employee directly. When I asked him about the delay in complaint handling, he narrated the following:

PTCL took over MAXCOM approx a month and half ago and recently PTCL announced that they will be going on strike due to insufficient salary increase. They had come over to MAXCOM's office and forced them to also shut down the office. Hence, all complaints will only be handled after they reopen.

What is surprising is how this has not been highlighted in the news, nor has our justice bench been able to intervene to amend this critical issue pertaining to the only service provider of telephone service. It seems wrong that the complaint numbers are playing recordings that deceive the customer into thinking that all representatives are busy when actually they are not busy attending customer complaints but rather attending rally's and sit-ins.
I am afraid that the good service provided by MAXCOM will now suffer and sadly one of the best DSL internet providers will begin to lose customers just because of an association with PTCL. I myself have begun to look around for alternatives because at the end of the day, us customers demand service.

I wonder, would PTCL or MAXCOM wait for an extended period of time before I pay my bills?? After all, I was on strike and did not get paid this month......so would they be as forgiving as they expect their customers to be??

References:

PTCL Workers Website
PTCL Strike - Interview Video

"No. 1 Nation in Sexy Web Searches? Call it Pornistan" - Call it irresponsible reporting!!

It seems the ratings of Fox News have been dropping for them to start publishing articles to discredit entire countries without any concrete evidence. Why else would they want to hand over a topic for investigating and published to an intern still wet behind the ears in the industry?
This piece of trash writing first came across when a post was displayed on my Facebook feed by a friend. This lead me to a page on Facebook that showcased a strong answer to such distasteful writing. Please find below the entire response as it was published:

‘Pornistan?’ only if you believe one foxy intern from the United States of erotica

By S Kamal

A couple of weeks ago, Fox News published an article on their ‘World’ section titled ‘No 1 Nation in Sexy Web Searches? Call it Pornistan’. The article has subsequently been the source of much discussion online, and has been published and circulated to a fairly wide audience. While the point of the article was unclear, the article called Pakistan the ‘world’s leader in online searches for pornographic material’ and stated that “Google ranks Pakistan No 1 in the world in searches for pornographic terms.”

My reaction to reading the article, particularly some of the lewd terms for which Pakistan ranked #1 in, was bewilderment. Perhaps this was why Pakistan’s economy is in such poor shape? It appeared that that everyone was seeking the wrong type of stimulus.

That is, until I started checking a few facts. Reader comments on the article on the Fox News website were promptly disabled, so I couldn’t voice my thoughts there. Finally, I contacted the author of the article – who, as I discovered, was an intern at Fox with quite a vivid imagination.

Some facts: None of the rankings in the article were published by Google. Rather, every single absurd term reported in the article (‘donkey sex’, ‘horse sex’, etc.) was manually typed into two Google tools called ‘Google Insights’ and ‘Google Trends’ that gives statistics for where in the world certain searches originate. In other words, every single term reported in the article was a term that the Fox News intern who wrote the piece CHOSE to search for.

Now, if I were writing an article on the irony of a government that is passing laws against online blasphemy while its citizens engage in watching porn online (presumably the point of the story – although this hardly seems like a dramatic, newsworthy phenomenon), searching for ‘donkey sex’ would certainly not pop into my mind first. So, I posed this question to the author on her blog, for which her response was: “I did not think up the searches on my own. They were brought to my attention from an outside individual. I am going to respectfully end my engagement in the discussion.” Ah. So her “source,” if you can call it that, is an “outside individual.” Must be quite the colourful character.

The method used to produce these results is obviously flawed. Interestingly (but not surprisingly), minor variations of the search terms on Google Insights yield dramatically different results. So I did a 15 minute exercise on Google Insights. First I looked at slight modifications of the terms in the article, to see how countries rank. As an example, let’s take ‘Donkey sex’, where Pakistan ranked #1, and change the search term to ‘Sex with Donkey’. The US ranked #1 for ‘Sex with Donkey’ for 2006, 2007 and 2010, and #2 in 2008 and 2009, while Pakistan does not appear in the top five countries for this search term in any of these years. Now, if one were to ascribe scientific certainty to such a finding, as the author has done, one could argue that ‘Donkey sex’ (where Pakistan ranks #1) could refer to a search for donkeys reproducing with each other, while ‘Sex with Donkey’ (where the US ranks #1), is, well, less ambiguous.

In this case, it seems that the Islamic Republic of Pornistan has a lot of catching up to do with the United States of Erotica.

Along similar lines, the US has also been ranked #1 or #2, for the period 2004 through 2010, for the following terms that are slight modifications of terms in the original article: ‘Sex with school child’, ‘sex with farm animals’ and ‘sex with camel’. Pakistan was not ranked in the top ten countries for any of these search terms.

To further demonstrate the ridiculousness of this methodology, I’ve documented some results from my own “research”. Let’s just say that an outside source tipped me off that Americans fantasize about having sex with their vegetables. So, I put this to the test. The results, according to Google: The US has ranked #1 for 2004 to 2010 in searches for the following terms: ‘tomato sex’, ‘corn sex’, ‘cabbage sex’, ‘spinach sex’, ‘celery sex’, ‘sex with vegetable’, and even ‘chicken sex’ and ‘tractor sex’. The US also ranks highly in several other searches, “not suitable to publish here.” Surely, these results have deep philosophical implications on the psyche of the average American?

And the gem? The author claims in her blog that: “I contacted the appropriate [embassy] officials and attempted to contact multiple individuals in Pakistan.” Ah. So no one at the embassy responded to her interview request. Yes, we should certainly take our Embassy chaps to task for not paying due attention to this groundbreaking scientific research; and wasting their time instead on trifling issues such as the war on terror, strategic dialogue with India, internal political strife, Pak-US relations, etc. As another commentator pointed out on the author’s blog, a more reliable source for information on Internet use in Pakistan may have been to contact the Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan. The author may have found them through a simple Google search – if she wasn’t too busy Googling her sex search data.

I could say that this is journalism at its worse. But, to be frank, this is not journalism. This is a dishonest and irresponsible story, written in very poor taste.

As a respectable news source, Fox News needs to publish a retraction of this story, or at the very least, some clarifications on the intent of this article and the methodology employed. I believe this is in order, lest the general public conclude that they are in the business of cheaply seeking attention through controversy.
The author can be reached at sxkamal@gmail.com

Source : Daily Times

I must give credit to Mr Kamal for taking this issue seriously and actually providing quite a satisfactory response to the inaccurate article published by Fox. The article published by Fox can be found here :

Fox News Article

In addition to Mr Kamal's findings, I quickly visited some statistics websites and realized another reason why Fox's article is absurd.

How can the intern be correct when :

Pakistan Population : 177,276,594Internet users: 18,500,00
Hence internet penetration: 10.4%

United States Population : 310,232,863
Internet users: 239,232,863
Hence internet penetration: 77.3%

Source - Internetworldstats

How can a country, that has a meager 18.5 million internet users manage to beat all the rest of the countries including CHINA on pornographic searches? How can we beat them on any search??

An american just proved once again how dumb they can really be!! By the way, isn't prostitution legal in some parts of America? Doesn't America have a thriving pornographic industry? Or how about the fact that which country has the highest number of cases of child abuse? or how about the divorce rate? or better yet, the average age of an american when he or she first has sex? 

Why can't people simply understand this simple fact:

People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

Coke Studio

At the risk of sounding like an attempt to advertise for Coke or do a bit of PR for their massive success of Coke Studio, I must give due credit where it is deserved. In 2008 when it was first being launched with season one, a great deal of skepticism was shown by a majority of my friends including myself.

Our first thoughts were that of a typical Pakistani; the real movie won’t be anything as good as the trailer. Basically we did not think that Pakistan has the sufficient talent to pull something as grand as bringing multiple musicians and musical styles and merge them to create a masterpiece. But that is exactly what Coke managed to do, create a masterpiece show which highlighted some of the best music that has ever come out of this country. What’s more amazing is that they managed to do a better job with season two which was aired in 2009. And finally they have made this a hat trick by launching season three.

Coke Studio embodies a musical fusion of exciting elements and diverse influences, ranging from traditional eastern, modern western and regionally inspired music. Bringing alive the magic of live recordings and performances, Coke Studio prides itself on providing a musical platform which bridges barriers, celebrates diversity, encourages unity and instills a sense of Pakistani pride. Coke Studio is an inspired step by Coca-Cola for having created a platform where renowned as well as upcoming and less mainstream musicians from various genres can collaborate musically.

I must tip my hat to the directors, producers, musicians, Coke and their agencies and every person who made this program into a tradition which every Pakistani is proud of.

Official Coke Studio Site

Coke Studio on Facebook

Coke Studio on Youtube

Entrepreneurship at its best

It was a casual conversation with a friend that led us into the topic of virtual stores as a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs. It seems Pakistan is at the verge of beginning to properly exploit the great World Wide Web. We have begun to realize the potential of virtual shopping/stores. It allows men and especially women to convert their hobby or skills into a business venture that knows no borders. We have now begun to offer a various range of services to expatriates and immigrants in various countries around the world and have made it so much easier for them to enjoy locally designed clothes, local food and even services such as documentation.

This friend that I mentioned earlier informed me of his new venture into a similar field. Here is an excerpt from our chat on his brilliant business idea:
 
TAKEONECLUB is an alluring platform for all Fashions designers, beauticians, models and HS crowd, offering them a spectacular opportunity to play their roles in the world of ‘style’.
The talent of our country has now no more to worry about being underrepresented due to lack of appropriate media coverage. At TAKEONECLUB, our primary focus is to manage your social media needs, promote potential models, talented clothing designers, makeup artists, hairstylists and many more, who in any capacity, have already or want to, contribute devotedly to the fashion industry.

An entire group of these enthusiast professionals, with establishment of TAKEONECLUB, will be at ease in interacting with their counterparts all over the world .This is just a beginning from our side to build the largest virtual fashion network of Pakistan.

So if you are a beautician, model or a fashion designer and you aspire to take part in the growth of the fashion industry you certainly need to join the group : TAKEONECLUB

You call that dinner??

It seems the new fad is to open a restaurant and overcharge the customers for smaller than usual helpings which are as bland as eating paper.
Every couple of weeks later we hear that a new restaurant has opened up in Karachi and how the theme and atmosphere is "to die for!!”. Did everyone get to know that 'The Diner' opened up at Shahbaz Commercial DHA?? Has anyone been there?? Quite sophisticated...no?? But the helpings are pathetic and a total overkill on trying to provide the natural flavors!! I was still hungry after I walked out of the restaurant having ordered a pepper steak!!
Now if I was to order a pepper steak from Maxim's or even Arizona Grill, or Gun Smoke I would not mind paying the hefty price tag that comes with it because those steaks are delicious and filling. But if a waiter brings me a 2 bite steak and charges me Rs 500 for it, that’s just insane!
What’s wrong with people?? Is making a fashion statement and being part of the 'IN' crowd matter so much that we throw away money on tid bits?

Where have I experienced this, you might ask? Well, as I mentioned earlier The Diner but the others I had the misfortune of trying were Sawadika, Fuchsia, Butler's Chocolate Cafe and N'eco's Natural Store and Cafe. The last one really was the extreme....I ordered a beef steak sandwich for 350 and got two small bread pieces with table spoon size beef bites, some lettuce on them and a side bowl of some form of boiled pulses. And worst of all was that it was tasteless. I think they took the natural thing too far.
Basically, I feel that restaurants need to bring a balance in providing good food (taste, quality and justified helpings), theme and comfortable sitting and of course price. Some restaurants that I find to be exceptional in providing these characteristics are Chairman Mao (Best home delivery), Cafe Zouk, Kahva (Amazing food), Koel Cafe, Studio Cafe, Expresso, Cafe Flo, Chatkharay, BBQ Tonight, Lal Qila, Village, Arizona Grill, Copper Kettle, Gun Smoke and Baan Thai (Amazing food).

I must have missed out on a lot of places to eat, so how about you providing your quick reviews of places to go or not go.

Burning the Country Down

I was going though the newspaper today and I came across this picture of a group of people chanting slogans and burning tyres as part of anti-KESC protests being held in Karachi's Pak Colony. I couldn't help but notice how majority of the people were smiling and enjoying themselves be a part of this barbaric and self-inflicting act.

Why don't people understand that burning tyres, closing shops, holding strikes etc all hurt the country and the population itself. Besides the loss in business hours, asset destruction and lower investments, these images of destruction are carried across the electronic media and showcased as the average citizens of our beloved country. So when I next have a meeting with a buyer/supplier from the west, I first have to explain that we all arent barbaric and I won't end up buring tyres or throwing rocks at his building incase a deal goes sour. In short, we are horrible marketeers of our own country and people. It is a shame since we all know that our region houses the smartest people in the world. Then how come we aren't smart enough to figure out that our "demonstrations" are ill-percieved by the rest of the world??

Energize

So yesterday the orders came out that the government would be taking drastic measures to reduce the loadshedding in various parts of the country. These measures were

- Close commercial centers by 8PM
- Govt officials below grade 20 will not be allowed to use air-conditioners in the office
- Billboard lights to be reduced
- Saturday and Sunday to be official government holidays

So I was thinking....what more proof do we need that our government officials are actually illiterate and constantly high? How can they make such ludicris statements?

Lets examine the first measure:

Close commercial centers by 8PM....yeah right! Do they realize that in our country, where tourism is obviously non-existent, most of the shopping by the local population is done after 7 PM. This is not usually by choice but by the nature of the working hours that the men of the households have to endure everyday. The usual scenario would be that once the husband arrives from office he takes his family out shopping. Now lets discuss this impact on the hard working shop owners. How will the shop owners, especially those who have rented expensive shops in large commercial centers, be able to earn and pay their rent when the husbands with their credit cards are not going to be able to come and spend?? The traders have just announced that this decision is unacceptable and the traders will be going on a 48-hour shutter down strike.This certainly was not thought out.

-Source : Dawn News

We are assuming that the government offices and officials would be willing to work in the heat which is quite fantastic...much like shrek, or alice in wonderland. I wonder will the Nadra offices, license offices, tax offices, passport offices etc turn their air-conditioners off? I THINK NOT!!

Billboard lights to be reduced....good step....but now our roads will be in total darkness, since the billboards were what used to light up the road for the traffic in the first place...besides, how will companies react to this since they have paid advertisers in advance for the billboard space.

Saturday and Sunday to be official government holidays. Thats just great...so now if I need to get any work done, pay my taxes or asset transfer I need to take a leave from office. Oh....how about I come to office in the morning...sign-in and then leave for my personal work....and then come back later in the evening to sign-out?? Thank you government for forcing me to be un-ethical.

So like I was saying....what are these people smoking??

Oh and the best statement was that the government is going to inject 116 Billion Rupees into the energy sector of Pakistan to reduce the circular debt by June this year. How in blazing are we going to do that when the budget deficit is already off the mark by a huge amount and we cannot subsidize since IMF will not allow us to do so?

As you can tell by my writing style...I am quite angry with how the government is handling our energy needs. We need some direction, we need some educated decisions...we need a revolution!

BBA, Hobbies and Friends

Everone seems to have some defining moment in their life when they realize that they are capable of something much more. That moment enables them to strive for perfection, creativity and an overall sense of responsibility dawns upon them to be the trend setters. Such a moment came in my life while I was a student in one of the best universities in Pakistan; SZABIST. This moment not only changed my life, but had a deep impact in 5 of my very close friends.
It was during an introductory course of marketing when me and five other guys came together as a group and made history happen. We were given the task to launch a brand new product and since all us friends loved to play video games, we decided to launch GTA: Karachi. I cannot explain the level of synergy we displayed in executing our project. We used each other's strengths to achieve what no other group had done so in the history of SZABIST. What did we do, you might ask?

1) Shot a complete introductory video of 5 mins which included authentic police chase scenes, arrested, in-game graphical amendments to read "GTA: Karachi"
2) Booked the multimedia room and invited the dean, and administration
3) Dressed up with leather jackets and chains
4) Took permission and brought a smoke machine so that it can be used to introduce the group at the start of the presentation
5) and finally, we launched RIDGE STUDIOS

Ridge studios was a brain child of all 6 of us. It stood for Receptive, Innovative, Distinctive Graphical Entertainment. We were a group that wanted to give ourselves a brand name. This brand name was to represent us as exceptionally talented directors, editors, animators, presenters and writers. We stood by each other during every challenge.
It was after this presentation that RIDGE Studios became a group of people who were known for being highly creative and highly loyal to the group. Every presentation made by any or all of the 6 friends was branded as RIDGE Studios. Please check the links below to view some of the videos made by us :

RIDGE STUDIOS INTRO
CTRACK
FAIR AND LOVELY
MENTOS
PEPSI
RED BULL
BLOOPERS

Looking back at our time spent together, I feel that this initiative made us the confident individuals we are today. I urge all my readers to be inspired by this and leap forward. Studies can be fun, if you make them into a hobby and enjoy it with friends. I wish Basit, Faizan, Hamza, Quresh and Zahid the best of luck and hope we remain the friends we were when we launched GTA: Karachi.

Do we even have roads?

There are quite a few theories behind what would qualify a city to be called a metropolitan city but it is safe to say that Karachi passes through flying colors to be given the prestigious right of being in this ever expanding list. According to a table I found on Wikipedia, Karachi is ranked the 20th most populated city in the world having a population density of 10,727 (people/km2). Even if these figures are not accurate, this shows that Karachi is no small city by any definition. Then why does our infrastructure foster riots, dissatisfaction, insecurity and a general feeling of dread?

METROPOLITAN CITY RANKINGS

One cannot deny the fact that our latest city nazim made dramatic improvements within our beloved city, most notably in our transportation system. But shouldn't have all these upgrades and new roads been a constant endeavor of our government? Many people may argue that we are on the right track but then answer me this, why now and what will ensure that we do not lose our track again?

Roads, traffic, water, electricity, security, cooking gas, sewerage...name one utility in Karachi that is not suffering. Why? Simply because we choose to keep sleeping till it became an absolute necessary...the government woke up when it realized that there was no gas in their mansions to heat their teas, or water to take their baths (I predict it's a monthly activity).

No area, no income class, no education class is safe from the horrors of Karachi. The prestigious DHA can be better called Destructive Housing Authority with roads being dug up because they have nothing better to do. Malir has water shortages and Gulistan-E-Johar has no electricity.

Though our generation has very little hand in the predicament we are in, this attitude will keep us from progressing. So how about we try saving some electricity by not turning on excessive lights or fans, how about using water wisely and lets try to dispose our waste properly rather than dropping it in an open sewage.

I sincerely believe that we are a very hardworking and intelligent nation that can achieve anything that we set our minds too. I just hope we open our eyes before it is too late.

Local or Import?

Just the other day I was involved in a detailed discussion on how expensive cars have become in Pakistan and surprisingly the majority of complaints were coming from automobile manufacturers and assemblers present in Pakistan. The likes of Honda, Toyota and Suzuki keep increasing prices as rapidly without any check on quality or if those price increases have been justified. The automobile lobby seems to have no sense of checks and balances as we recently saw another price increase for all three automobile assemblers by approx Rs 10,000 - Rs 25,000.

Please take a look at the price list (Courtesy Pakwheels.com): New Car Prices in Pakistan

It has come to the point where purchasing an import becomes more feasible than investing money in a locally assembled car. What has become more embarrassing is that these car assemblers have had plenty of time to become self-sufficient in developing manufacturing and assembling capabilities. Let's take India or Malaysia for example. Both these countries are now manufacturing and assembling automobiles which has greatly helped the economy as well as boosted employment opportunities.

So when is the government going to take some measures against this lobby of automobile manufacturers? When will the public realize that they are being blackmailed and held hostage by these companies? I just cannot find it justifiable to pay over 18 Lakh Rupees for a Civic VTi Oriel Prosmatec Transmission.

Shoaib and Sania

It has been quite some time since my last post on my forum, but the latest escapades being televised, showcased and mocked by our critics has forced me to come out of hibernation and vent my frustration. Today I read an article written in the sports section of The News by another blogger which roused my anger towards critical writing such as hers. I could have accepted her 'opinion' if it was only restricted to her blog, but by publishing it in a national newspaper, both the newspaper and the writer should be held responsible for being non-judgemental.

I would like to quote the blogger when she wrote the following :

"The big question on everyone’s mind is this: Shoaib Malik may have finally gotten his dream of marrying an Indian girl (he is allegedly already married to the Hyderabad-based Ayesha Siddiqui) but what’s in this deal for Sania? Either the 24 year old knows that her tennis career is already close to being over (she has been ranked at 92 this year) or love truly is blind! There could be no other explanation for her to risk her career, popularity and nationality for one Shoaib Malik. If it were Imran Khan we would completely understand but this is Malik, who faces a one year ban from the Pakistan Cricket Board."

-Source : Somethinghaute

I hope my readers can understand the point I am trying to make here. How can this blogger write such an insulting article and then agree to publish it for the nation to read and formalize opinions in line with her opinion?? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...is it not?? Or is this blogger a model herself?? I think not!!

But lets not target just this critic. I would now like to turn your attention to the harressing news reporters and news packages being aired regarding this union between two sport celebrities.
Various channels quite blatantly showcase this marriage with cheap music in order to mock one of the most happiest moments in Shoaib's life.

How many times has he won matches for us?? How many times has he faced ricicule due to the lack of performance on the field?

Yes, he is facing a one year ban, and yes, he has admitted that he 'knew' an Ayesha Siddiqui. So what? Havent we all been at fault at some time or the other?? Would Hamid Mir and Kamran Khan appreciate it if their private lifes are turned upside down the way Shoaib and Sania's life is being scrutinized at the moment?

This video just shows how low we have sunk and how we excel is showcasing ourselves as uneducated and destructive people to the world.

GEO VIDEO SHOWCASING UNETHICAL NEWS CONTENT

I would just like to close by pointing out that this union should be encouraged and supported since this brings two countries closer at a crucial time in history. This is another excuse for both India and Pakistan to join hands and throw a wedding of not two people but two countries.

I am a Pakistani Minister and I have a Land Cruiser

So on the 13th of June, 2009...I was traveling down one of the most prestigious but most congested areas of Karachi, Zamzama when in front of my car was a huge Toyota Land Cruiser trying to double park. As you can see see in the picture taken by yours truly, The licence plate clearly spelled out MINISTER. What did I see wrong in this picture??

1) Why and how is a government official driving around in an imported Land Cruiser??

2) Why is he/she allowed to have a vanity plate that highlights that they are a Minister more visibly than the number on the plates themselves??

When I saw the SUV in front of me, instantly these questions popped into my mind and I wondered who is to judge them? Should us, the people have the right to stop the Minister...ask for his/her name and designation and lodge a formal complaint?? But the question is lodge a formal complaint to whom??
All these are questions that I am looking answers for.....

Once again, this forum is just a platform for the youth, for the generation that has some major problems with the way things have been working...

Any comments?

What Kind of Car is Best For Pakistan??

I am basically writing to find out about your opinion on which car is the best car for Pakistan in terms of

1) Driving
2) Racing
3) Safety
4) Cost efficient
5) Luxury

Please feel free to contribute with your highlights on your favorite car/cars.

My all time favorite was the Honda Civic 1995 (Cat Eyes) in silver. It was the first car that actually implemented the vtec technology of Honda and showcased a push button air-conditioning panel!!! It was the perfect car for a trip to the grocery and then a quick race back home. And best of all, it was the most easy modifiable car in Pakistan.

Now my favorite is Vitz 2005. Driving a pleasure, racing very responsive, dual airbags, 12 km/liter with A.C, and fully automatic.

Awaiting your comments!!!

Swat

Talibanization, is it good or is it bad? The entire term is being coined as a means of extremism and torture in the name of Islam. This is what really gets me down. Our generation lives by the rule of 'live, and let live' and 'to each its own'. Why do we need some weird people from the mountains coming and explaining, rather forcing us to understand their philosophy.
We need to fight this terror, fight for our way of life...and fight for Pakistan.