A revolution worth fighting for!

What truly holds a society back? Is it poverty, illiteracy, corruption or bad governance? While these are serious issues, they are often symptoms, not the root causes. Underneath them lies a deeper malaise — certain ways of thinking and behaving that, once normalised, corrode the moral, intellectual and institutional fabric of a society. In Pakistan, some of the most damaging patterns are not economic or political but psychological and cultural.

Among the most harmful is the persistent tendency to resort to force as default solution to every problem. Whether in homes, schools, offices or the corridors of power, the instinct to dominate has become deeply entrenched. Dialogue is dismissed as weakness and listening is seen as surrender. But what force achieves in the short term — silence, compliance or order— it undermines in the long term: trust, legitimacy and consent. A state that governs through coercion rather than consensus eventually loses moral authority.

Equally corrosive is the refusal to accept criticism. In Pakistan, disagreement is often treated as disloyalty and critique as insult. This mindset is pervasive — from political parties and state institutions to religious authorities and even families. It chokes dialogue and breeds an environment where sycophancy thrives and truth dies. Constructive criticism is not the enemy of progress; it is its engine. Without it, there can be no course correction, no learning, and no evolution.

A third failing, closely related, is intellectual arrogance - the assumption that one's view is the only valid one, that one's beliefs, ideologies or interpretations are above question. This is not just an individual flaw but a societal illness. It has created a rigid culture where critical thinking is discouraged, where diversity of thought is labelled as deviation, and where dissent is often punished rather than engaged. No person, no institution, no ideology has a monopoly on truth. Civilisations that flourish are those that remain intellectually open, that question themselves, and that allow space for competing ideas to coexist.

Another habit that causes long-term damage is emotional decision-making. As a nation, we often swing between extremes: between despair and euphoria, between blind faith and total disillusionment. Public policy is too often reactive rather than reflective. Major decisions - political, economic, and even judicial — are sometimes made in haste, under pressure, or in response to popular sentiment. We need a culture of calm deliberation, not constant drama. Passion without wisdom can be destructive.

Perhaps the most fatal flaw of all is the abandonment of self-accountability. As individuals, we are quick to blame others - politicians, foreign powers, past leaders — for our collective failures. As institutions, there is little appetite for introspection or reform. Each sector considers itself beyond reproach. Yet, without honest self-assessment, growth is impossible. Institutions that do not scrutinise themselves rot from within. Societies that refuse to admit mistakes repeat them. Self-accountability is not just a moral virtue; it is a strategic necessity.

These five habits — the misuse of power, intolerance of criticism, intellectual arrogance, emotional reactivity, and lack of accountability — are not written into our destiny. They are learned patterns, and therefore, they can be unlearned. But doing so requires a cultural shift. It requires that we value humility over hubris, dialogue over dominance, reflection over reaction. It requires us to move beyond blame and towards reform.

Pakistan's future will not be secured by infrastructure projects or international alliances alone. It will depend on the quality of our thinking, the maturity of our leadership, and the ethical backbone of our institutions. If we are to rise, we must begin by cultivating habits of mind and heart that build rather than break — that invite light, not just heat.

A society can survive poverty and even political chaos, but not the collapse of reason, responsibility and humility. The real work of nation-building begins inside us — in how we think, how we listen, how we decide, and how we hold ourselves to account. That is the only revolution worth fighting for.