September is considered the month of change. It is when people get down to serious work after bidding adieu to summer. What stares us in the face, apart from our own problems of flood aftermath and the mosquito war, is the sound of the full might of the lone superpower in the world getting ready to teach us a lesson. The threats and warnings are all out in the open and not even couched in any diplomatic parlance. Across-the-board, the American decision makers have decided to toe only one line and that line is not the one sung so gustily by Altaf Bhai the other day, which goes, 'pardey mai rehney do, parda na uthao. The bone of contention is the Haqqani network. The reasons of our being right in the crossfire of this unending struggle for power in the region are our track record. We are paying the price for the ambitious (meddlesome) strategies of the past military leaders. The consequences have just got bigger and bigger with time and the country a virtual hotbed of entangled problems. Pakistans toll is far higher than the USA for this unending war on terror. Just last week, so many innocent lives were cruelly snuffed out in Karachi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. We dont stop mourning one incident when another one takes our attention. Every incident further flares the fires of hatred and intolerance, and deepens divides. America wants us to go after the Haqqani network, while the Army Chief has responded that any decision to launch an operation in North Waziristan will be Pakistans decision and taken in the light of what is best for us and that America cannot dictate action. Indeed, he echoes the voice of the nation. We know that it is not in our interest to provide safe havens anymore to any network at all and we need to dispel the impression that we will side or hide anybody who is plotting on our soil. This reputation for doublespeak, which refuses to come unstuck, has to be encountered effectively by the ISPR. We have to get out of all the wars within wars being fought around us. Because while America is only in this region for some time, we plan to stay here indefinitely. On the other hand, if America does what it threatens to do, which is to carry out unilateral action inside Pakistan for the benefit of its home electorate, it may just be the medicine required by us. It will, for starters, unite the country and people will come together on a single platform. Perhaps, it is just the shock treatment we need. Our armed forces and their capabilities too cannot be dismissed like some other countries where America has gone. We may be annihilated, but not without causing serious unravelling and damage to our opponents. The consequences of such an eventuality can be quite unpredictable. I would like to share some verses with my American friends. I am sure someone in their cultural departments will be able to translate effectively for them. It is a poem by Majrooh Sultanpuri and can be used as a response for the bombardment of threats from our ally America: Hum ko junoon kya sikhlaatey ho, Hum hain pareshan tum sai ziyada, Chaak kiye hain hum nai azizo, Chaar gareban tum sai ziyada, Chaak-e-jigar mautahje rafu hai, Aaj tau daaman sirf lahu hai, Ik mausam tha, hum ko raha hai, Shauq-e-baharan tum sai ziyada, Aehd-e-wafa yaron sai nibahain, Naz-e-harifan hans kai uthain, Jab hamain armaan tum sai siva tha, Ab hain pasheman tum sai ziyada, Jao tum apnay baam ki khaatir, Saari lavvain shamon ki katar lo, Zakhm kai mehro mah salamat, Jashn-e-chirraghan tum sai ziyada. Postscript: I would also like to comment on the morning segments of the bulk of our TV channels. I wonder what the idea behind these shows is. Is it education or information or infotainment? And who is it for? The housewives who stay at home, while the rest of the family is away at work or at school? If one actually assessed them, it would appear that they target the rich, idle and unintelligent female segment, despite the fact that their percentage is almost negligible in the scheme of things. The hosts, barring an odd exception, try to outdo one another in their attire and makeup and are frivolous to the extreme. Not one sensible or intelligent sentence escapes from their mouths in all the three hours that they host the show. The last two weeks they have been doing pretend weddings on channel after channel complete with songs and dances, and most expensive clothes and props, making a mockery out of our requirement for simplicity in our given circumstances particularly. These shows have done nothing, but add to the feeling of deprivation for those who cannot afford the lavishness of such weddings and to the problems of parents, who would like to give their girls dream weddings, but cannot afford to. The morning show hosts badly need to do a reality check The writer is a public relations and event management professional based in Islamabad. Email: tallatazim@yahoo.com