When Bilawal cried…

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari during his visit to the recently attacked Civil Hospital in Quetta was overwhelmed with emotion

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari during his visit to the recently attacked (by heavily armed militants) Civil Hospital in Quetta, was overwhelmed with emotion. Wiping his tears, he recalled the death of his intrepid mother Benazir Bhutto (BB): “My family and the people of Balochistan share the same pain. I am no ordinary politician. I am the son of BB. I am a victim of this terrorism.”Within minutes, his seemingly heartfelt outpouring spawned ridicule, sniggering and brutality. Social media went berserk as critics and trolls had a field day ripping apart his supposedly well timed emotional manipulation to gain sympathy votes. Some implored him to donate a fraction of his kingly fortune to the cadets’ families, some bemoaned the deplorable state of Thar, some blasted the PPP for doing nothing significant for Sindh and some wondered why he hadn’t taken his mother’s death to the Supreme Court. Too much blah blah, too little action, was the feeling.

It is unfortunate that emotionalism has no place in the muck of politics. Emotional rhetoric invites anathemas. There is limited acceptance of political arguments made from emotional standpoints.

I saw a video of him crying and admit that I took home a soft, concerned and caring 20-something lad who was rightly missing his slain mother. I’d have broken down too had I been in his shoes. It’s perfectly normal to have a meltdown at the thought of a special someone. Why is it so hard for people to accept that emotions can be real and things can be taken at face value and perceived for what they are? To insinuate that he was shedding crocodile tears and milking his mother’s martyrdom for political gain, and to mouth absurd remarks such as “real men don’t cry”, is only reflective of how cynical, ruthless and myopic we have become. Slam him if you must for being English and inexperienced, but give him his due for being a boy with a heart.

Indians may not be familiar with Pakistani newsreaders but most Pakistanis are aware of prime time czar Arnab Goswami — the editor-in-chief of India’s leading English news channel, Times Now, and also the anchor of its flagship debate, News Hour, notorious for its ferocity and deafening decibel levels. The mini sensation of sorts recently quit Times Now and is believed to be in discussions with another media group to set up a new television and digital news venture. Whether an organisation is bigger than an individual or the other way round, it will become evident in the months to come. 

Tailpieces

1) The FBI’s announcement of reopening the probe into Hillary Clinton’s private email server has thrown a lifeline to Donald Trump in this guttural and divisive US Presidential Election. What a terrible choice the Americans must make — between a 70-year old braggart, bully, liar and possible Russian puppet, and a 68-year old tarnished, lack-lustre and corrupt woman who has achieved her elevated position for who she’s married. November 8 will mark the beginning of a terrible four years that are waiting to unfold before the Americans.

2) Strange things happen in this world — an 18-year old chaiwala becomes an overnight sensation for no credible reason. He is uneducated, has 17 siblings, and has been a victim of child labour for years. Yet, the women and media only seem besotted with his deep-blue eyes, cheek bones, intense gaze and moustache. They should google Pashtun men. There is no dearth of Arshad Khans in that part of the world. The hyperbolic reaction to the tea-seller smacks of overall disbelief that even the poor can be hot and that hotness is all about physicality.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 3^rd, 2016.

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