The Pakistani Spectator

A Candid Blog


Author Archive

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 [...]



Religion’s Role in Politics

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

by Dan Tow
I expect lots of disagreement on this article – that’s OK – I just hope I give food for thought. As separate as religion and government are here in the US, by our constitution and by tradition, as far as I’m concerned they are still not separate enough. Even in the US, my [...]



Despair or Hope

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

by Dan Tow
 
…the only thing we have to fear is fear itself
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt
I read and appreciated the many thoughtful comments to my recent article below, and I hope TPS does not object to a general response on the main page. In some comments, I sensed an undercurrent of despair, with remarks along the [...]



Control of the Military, an American Perspective

By Dan Tow • Sep 22nd, 2007 • Category: Politics

by Dan Tow
I had an entirely different topic planned for my next political-theory blog, but recent events in Pakistan have inspired me to ask for enlightenment from the Pakistani readers of this blog. Even here in the US, in the US press, I’m hearing daily of the considerable controversy in Pakistan today regarding President Musharraf’s [...]



Democracy versus Government by an Elite

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

By Dan Tow
http://www.singingsql.com/With this article, I’m beginning a short series of blogs for the Pakistani Spectator on my own personal thoughts regarding political theory, formalizing and expanding on views expressed in my earlier political articles (1 and 2). As I write this, I’m very conscious of the fact that I’m speaking from one cultural perspective, [...]



Lessons from Children’s Literature – Too Tricky for World Political Figures?

By Dan Tow • Aug 25th, 2007 • Category: Politics

By Dan Tow
www.singingsql.com
Here in the US, like much of the English-speaking world, bookstores recently released the seventh and last book in the “Harry Potter” series, written for youngsters in grade school and up, but also popular with adults. For the uninitiated, this extraordinarily popular series follows the title character, an English boy, from shortly [...]



An American Perspective on the US Courts

By Dan Tow • Jul 22nd, 2007 • Category: Politics

By Daniel S. Tow
www.singingsql.com
On the notion that this might be of interest to an audience in Pakistan, I’m offering an American perspective on the US system of government, especially on the American system of courts, the Judiciary.
Most law in the US is enforced through state courts, which have judges put in place through sets of [...]



Mom’s Collection By Dan Tow (Part- I)

By Dan Tow • Jun 22nd, 2007 • Category: Interviews

This is a collection of the poems I, Dan Tow, wrote for my mother between my later teen years and Christmas, shortly before I turned 47. These were mostly given to Mom on her birthdays, for Christmas, and for Mother’s Days, and collected by her in an album she willed to me on her death [...]