Nothing's changed. We've just donned a different stereotype.

This entry is in response to a blog entry at knicq.blogspot.com questioning "Do you accept this Pakistan?" that complains how certain vices and former cultural taboos have become commonplace in our society, perhaps in our attempt to mimic the apparently successful west.


The truth is, these concepts that we purport as western vices are actually universal. These vices are as old as time and stem from the single vice called "indulgence", over indulgence to be exact. The only difference is that the Americans and most western countries, being capitalists, have sensationalized it, promoted it and used it to become rich. What is obesity if not an over indulgence in food? And have the food giants not benefited from this indulgence? America is addicted to drugs... maybe not the illegal kind because that would benefit the poppy growers in Afghanistan, but the legal ones made by pharmaceuticals... so much so that you're considered strange if you're not taking any medication on a daily basis. It's almost cool to be seeing a shrink or to be taking drugs due to stress, anxiety, depression or any form of mental health issues. America is getting rich off of indulgence. Cafes, restaurant, bars and nightclubs all make money from a public that indulges in rampant dating, one-night stands and commitment phobia. Credit card companies and banks get rich off of interest earned on huge debts accrued by over indulgent Americans who try to keep up with the Jones', chasing after the American dream. Capitalism loses sight of moral, spiritual, professional or cultural boundaries for money. America's success may be capitalism, but capitalism's success is an over indulgent society.

However, as I was saying earlier, indulgence is not a western conception. In fact, if we look hard we will realize indulgence to be quite rampant in our cultures, even if not in the same context. What is religious fanaticism if not over indulgence in one's pride over one's comprehension of religion? Look around and tell me if you don't see families who indulge excessively in cultural clichés and customs or their own ideology of what life should be, such as an insistence on an arranged marriage even if the person chosen by their son or daughter is otherwise a fitting choice, or an adamant refusal to wed their children in a family that doesn't belong to their "zaat" or genealogy. And our indulgence in excess at weddings and birthdays and dinners is no secret either. Then, why are we so surprised? Is it the drinking that surprises us because it's unislamic? Well, when were excessively lavish weddings Islamic? When were half of those customs we perform Islamic?

This indulgence in drinking and other vices you mention has always been a part of our culture, mostly because we come from a land where most followed a religion that does not prohibit them or consider them vices. Our religious beliefs forced us to turn away from such indulgence, but where religion is weak, these vices will rise. Ultimately, we are country ruled by culture, in spite of our name as the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. If there is any resemblance in our practice to the teachings of our religion it is purely because religion was able to seep its way into what was mainly Hindu culture and Islamic practices became a part of cultural tradition. We follow it because people before us followed it. That is the definition of tradition, and tradition is what forms cultural heritage. Our cultural bindings are strong but our religious bindings are weak. The thing about culture is, it WILL progress, for good or bad. It will absorb and mold itself . Being blind followers of culture, it was inevitable that we eventually morphed into the over indulgent excess-loving community we have become, sharing a striking resemblance to the stereotypes that reside in western movies, TV programming, novels and books that have infiltrated our cultural boundaries.

These "stereotypes" of success are not consciously adopted as a means to be western or under the misconception of progress. We are simply fascinated by the images we see and wish to mimic them. Maybe we are fascinated because what we see appears better, but mostly it is just a child-like appeal for something new and different, removed from any logic or reason. It is a natural process, an imminent process. Culture is not selective in what it will absorb from the outside, and so, being a country driven by culture, we had no choice.

Of course, were we driven by religious values, was our faith as strong as we purport it to be as we chant that we are citizens of an Islamic Republic, things could have been very different. Even though we may not have been able to prevent such elements from creeping into our culture, we would have been able to make that choice of whether we'll follow culture or if culture will follow us.. The fanatics would urge to ban any input from the west that would propagate such vices, but true strength is in being able to face what surrounds us, but being selective in what we assimilate. Such strength could have led us to a more progressive culture as opposed to one that merely mimics the resulting stereotypes of western civilization.

Essentially we are where we were. We were always excessively indulgent. We've just donned a different mask.