Why Only in Pakistan....?

[Jacob Martin]

Culture evolves just like language. We are very liberal with both.

I am not talking about superficial things like clothing or gadgets.

I am talking about the basic fabric of society. The core values. Those that survive epidemics, famine, war, industrialization and migration.

Yes, culture does evolve. At any given point in time, a society's culture will be a combination of individual beliefs, tribal instincts, religious values in varying proportions. I believe there is a feedback loop at play here - our culture shapes our condition, which in turn influences our culture.

And yes, Western standards of living are a superficial manifestation of the core fabric. One could say that they underlying fabric is two and a half millennia of rationalism, complemented by empericism giving rise to Enlightenment. A fundamental question is whether any society can succeed by merely borrowing the fruits of these accomplishments without taking the whole package. That is what we seem to be in the middle of. Our entire discourse is descriptive as opposed to normative. It's almost as if discussing modes of thought and cultural differences has become modern-day blasphemy.

Maybe the organic process will lead to a desirable eventual outcome. I personally believe that intervention may be required to at least articulate what we want from ourselves, otherwise the current confusion will continue.