I Quit Facebook

Sorry Mr Zuckerberg but I have quit Facebook.

My exit from your monumentalactic social network will no doubt have no affect on your user count but I have quit Facebook after using it since what only seems now as the middle ages.

In fact back in the day, Facebook was so exclusive that I needed my @bham.ac.uk address to register unlike now where anyone and everyone can join - whether that's good or bad is a different story and one I'm not going to get drawn into (maybe some other time). When I started off, I found a few people from uni, I friend requested them, then some added me and before I knew I had a few hundred 'friends' in my very own online social network circle; 'friends' (or acquaintances at the very best) that I could rely on to like or comment on my posts, check-ins or private photos.

Facebook at the time seemed like it was a working product that did something when you clicked as opposed to the good old Orkut, which was riddled with problems and had users ostensibly only from Brazil & Pakistan, although in the interest of a balanced blog (I know!), I should state that both issues are mutually exclusive.

Coming back to the topic here, I decided that over the past few years, I have shared or un-shared (if there is such a thing) a great deal of my private life on the website. I know some would argue that you can or should exercise discretion to avoid private photos or posts but then some people feel obliged to share every daily detail of their life by checking in.

What I am saying is do I really want to know that a distant acquaintance is having fun out on the beach while I am stuck at work with non stop rain making it a mission to even stroll to the nearby Tesco's, or if the guy you really hated at school has bought the one car that you really liked and you want to punch him in the face but you can't. Hey, I am just putting it all out there and maybe that is the kind of people I was friends with on Facebook - sad but true.

Ok, here I am not suggesting this is Facebook's problem. What is, however, Facebook's problem is greed. In the words of the great Gordon Gekko, 'Greed, for a lack of a better word, is good.' With non-existent tangible assets, how on Earth did Facebook expect a valuation of over $100bn. Maybe it took Gekko's quote and its understanding of greed to the next level but it should be noted that although social networking is not new, there is no denying that Facebook has done to social networking what iPod did to the mp3 players, it has made an industry around its product. All said, the magnificent market forces have been in play to reflect the true value of this social networking giant and bringing its value down to a more 'reasonable' figure, which I think is still quite high.

Having quit Facebook, my life is no better or no worse. In absence of a better way to put this, I do not get updates from people I could care less about and quitting has not stopped me from being in touch with my closest friends and family (although I feel Apple deserves some credit here).

My blog today is a reflection on my ideas towards Facebook right now. I might go back to it, I might not. Staying in touch for some people is a necessity, through Facebook in absence of another. This is not a campaign and you should have your own reasons to leave or continue with.

As always, discretion advised...

The Four Caliphs

A long overdue blog and I was thinking of the kind of leaders we have today governing us and what they stand for, their vision and more importantly their wisdom. When Muhammad (pbuh) died in 632, Muslims faced a problem on how they should be governed and how leaders should be appointed. At the time, there were conflicting stories on what the Prophet (pbuh) had said, with disagreements and tensions following suit with the appointment of the first leader acting in place of the Messenger (pbuh), a Khalifatur-Rasul.

To understand a bit more, lets look at a brief history of what this 'leader of Muslims' thing is all about. Caliph or Khalifa can be translated as the successor or the vicegerent but is a term seldom used for anything else than the leader of all of the Muslims. Through history, we have seen parallel Caliphs, but none had as much symbolic power and influence as the one that followed the line of Caliphs from Abu Bakr, the Rashiduns, which was the first. The four broadly classified periods of Khilafat are:

1. The Rashiduns (632-661)
2. The Ummawiyys (661-750)
3. The Abbasids (750-1258)
4. The period after 1258 (1258-1924)

After 1258 and until 1924 there have been several Caliphs, but all of these only had limited influence, they represented no continuation of the Caliphs of Baghdad and in more than one case, these caliph hoods were skewed more so politically than religious. The Muslim world never really agreed upon uniting behind anyone of these. Anyway lets have a look at the Rashidun Caliphate:

Abu Bakr (570-634)
Abu Bakr was a devout follower of the teachings of Muhammad (pbuh) and the first caliph of Islam. Some Islamic traditions describe him as the first male to embrace Islam after Muhammad (pbuh) and he was the first Caliph after Muhammad for a short span of two years before his death in 634. He accompanied the Prophet (pbuh) on his migration in 622 from Mecca to Yathrib (later known as Medina).

Umar ibnu I-Khattab (580-644)
Umar was tall and strong and a very strict and firm administrator. He chose to be identified as the Ameer-ul-Muminin instead of Khilafatur Rasul and always behaved and acted as the "first servant of the people." His reign has numerous examples of justice, fairness and his humbleness and to this day a wide range of modern day leaders quote and follow his example.

Usman ibn Affan (573-656)
Usman was a very generous and an honest person. As a Caliph, he paid scrupulous regard to Muhammad's (phuh) Sunnah, initiated steps to remain informed of the situation within his rule and listened to people's complaints after Friday prayers. He made extensions to the Prophet's (pbuh) mosque in Medina and ordered to construct guesthouses, inns, border outposts etc. besides arranging for supply of drinking water for travellers on the likes of modern day motorway services. His other major service to Islam is the transcription and circulation of the Holy Quran.

Ali ibn Abi Talib (600-661)
Ali to this day is respected for his strength, belief, honest and devotion to Islam. The mystics of Sufism see Ali as the founding father of their movement, after Muhammad, and tend to trace their initiatic chains of spiritual authority back to him. He became the fourth Caliph in 656 and all Muslims who trace decent from Muhammad do so through his daughter Fatima and her husband Ali. After Ali's death by assassination in 661, Muawiya made himself Caliph and moved the Islamic capital to Syria, founding the Ummawiyys dynasty of caliphs.


It's high time that the so called Muslim leaders of today learn something from these great individuals of the past and follow on their footsteps to create somewhat of a modern welfare state with justice, fairness and rights.

BIBLIOGRAPHY 
Shah, Tanveer. Madinaht-ul-Ilm. Karachi: Fatmi Publishers, 1997.
Madelung, Wilfred. The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. New York; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997.
Khan, Saad. "Four Caliphs." Islamiat Assignment, The City School, Karachi, PAK. Oct 2000. 
Encarta Encyclopedia, 1998. "Abu Bakr"
Encarta Encyclopedia, 1998. "Ali ibn Abi Talib"
www.geocities.com. Barakson, "Caliphs in the Islamic History," 1999.
www.wsu.com. Washinton State University, "Caliphs," 2000.

Driving in Karachi

I started driving on the roads of Karachi. My first ride in my dad's 1985 Toyota Starlet was merely a few kilometers long but I knew that very instant that my joy for driving was to grow in the years to come.

Actually, this is was not exactly when I first drove. I was driving even before I was deemed fully competent to hold the wheel, when I was a little kid with legs barely long enough to reach anywhere in the foot cavity. I was driving sitting on my father's lap controlling the wheel, or so I thought. In my mind, the only things that actually mattered when you drive were the accelerometer and the wheel, I mean who would want to brake anyway, especially when you are 8.

I think one of the reasons he wanted me to be able to drive was so he could keep my away from anything with 2 wheels and an ignition. I remember the motorcycle my dad owned (a brand new Honda CG-125) was sold before his little boy would exhibit the signs that he is ready to grab the handle and go whizzing on the extremely notorious Karachi roads.

Boys will be boys and I believe my dad pulled a wise decision on me allowing me to drive keeping me away from other potentially bad stuff. This in fact brings me to an interesting issue of law enforcement. You see there is no law enforcement on Karachi roads and if you think there is, you my dear, are sadly mistaken unless of course you are referring to the white clan otherwise known as the Traffic Police.

The anonymous wise man once said, "When rape is inevitable, lie back and enjoy." It is this state of trance that I see motorists in Karachi surrender to day in day out. I can bet majority of the drivers are not aware of the Highway Code, which incorporates the official practices, signs etc of driving in Pakistan. As long as you can operate your feet and hands to move the car, you are fit to drive as driving is considered more of a right than a privilege.

Perhaps having lived in London for the last 5 years, I have had a chance to reflect upon the various offences we knowingly or unknowingly commit everyday in Karachi:

• Seat Belt Pretty much self-explanatory. People don't feel comfortable wearing seat belts (I honestly don't get this one!).
  
• Horn Again, way too much use of horns on our roads. It adds to the noise pollution, of which we have too much already.
  
• Jaywalking You can easily spot people crossing major through ways during peak periods despite availability of foot bridges with on-ramps.
  
• Lane Discipline I have to say until recently the government was to blame for this one. Without proper lane markings it is not right to expect swift traffic but needless to say, Mustafa Kamal has done a great job of ensuring new roads are built to a standard.
  
• Right of Way The car from the right always has a right of way unless instructed otherwise.
  
• Roundabout Discipline Roundabouts are great for controlling traffic junctions. However, we must learn to give the right of way to the car from the right on approach and indicate left before the last exist to advise our intention. Although the government strategy of replacing them with traffic signals seems to be working a bit. At least for now!
  

In my personal opinion, the government has already built a whole range of new and exciting roads in our city, however, the emphasis should now start to divert to effective traffic management through modern techniques including driver training and stricter licensing procedures.

Only in Ramadan this year, we had 76 road accident deaths in the metropolis and it would be unwise to think an overnight change can happen even if all the corrective policies are implemented. But I am confident that an overhaul of the system, including the police, and widespread campaigns to increase awareness amongst people should bear its fruit on the roads of Karachi, where I still very much like to drive.