Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy, and the West

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1. I thought it was a story of her life and some history of Pakistan. WRONG.
   Rating: 1 / 5

2. She claims Castro’s revolution was in 1957 it was really in 1959. She talks of Libya being a constitutional monarchy from 1959-69. She’s right about teh end date but Libya’s King Idris (whom Gadhafi overthrew in ’69) was head of Libya before 1959! She admits the Shah’s rule had some justice and I praise her for admitting that the US reinserted the Shah in 1953 rather than inserting him (as many authors wrongly do to make the Shah seem even less legit). But she is afr too easy on Khomeini’s rule as he was much more deadly than the Shah ever was!
   Rating: 2 / 5

3. Have only finished the first two chapters so far. Easy enough to read. There could be more chapter breaks. Exciting. Thoughts seem a little scattered, probably due to the passion it has obviously been written with. Lots of history helps to understand Muslim perspective. Religious. Can’t say that I think Ms Bhutto has a firm understanding about Christianity or Judaism, but that’s acceptable.

   It has helped me to sort through my feelings about the Islamic religion that have developed through media exposure and little study or communication with followers of the faith. Always good to get information about a religion from a member of the faith. Also good to get information about the government from someone on the inside.

   The book has done for me what it sets out to do, and that is RECONCILE me to see the religion of Islam as another religion of the world, and no longer one that seems to spawn bad things.

   I think anyone trying to make a decision about who to vote for in the US Presidential election and the Pakistani elections should take what this book says into consideration.

   Rating: 4 / 5

4. Absolute Total Garbage. I was sent this book from a former foreign office colleague and he added a quick witted remark about how these “ruling families” take the populous as completely dumb and out of touch. The book is written in a post script voice.

   You will feel as though you are listening to some uninformed news reporter on CNN or any other NNs of the world. One thing that stands out is her complete misrepresentation about the Liberation war of Bangladesh.

   She does not mention that the Pakistani army killed three million Bangladeshies in nine short months. She does not even spell the name of the Capital Dhaka correctly. Perhaps she needed to have this book edited by someone half as credible as a 5th grader to have not made such a mistake. She goes on not mentioning her father’s role in prolonging the deaths when Mr. Bhutto (the father) went to the UN to ask that India not come to the rescue of the million of Bengals the Pakistani army was killing.

   Her logic about clash of civilization is half baked. She does not really make a point as to what her views are in a concise manner. She tries to give her family, specially her father a nice face to history. But she neglects to point out that while her family was sitting at the ivory tower, there were millions killed in the name of “Pakistan”. She does not reconcile how the cult of Jinnah and their philosophy is a complete sham and how it is responsible for the death of millions of people even before the war of 1971. Through Jinnah’s work we now have two distinctly undemocratic countries in South Asia. Ms. Bhutto does not reconcile why and how Jinnah ruined the 1947 liberation movement and created this whole debacle only for personal ego and greed. She does not mention how Jinnah collaborated with the British to divide India for his personal gain and egotistical monomaniacal personality. Civilizations collide when we have leaders such as Jinnah who are easily purchased by the western influences.

   This book is factually incorrect and full of inaccuracies that you can’t really overlook. If you want to give a charity to the Bhutto family by buying this book then go ahead. But, don’t blame anyone when you feel that your intellect is being abjectly disrespected when you do start reading.

   This book should have been titled “IT’S NOT OUR FAULT” versus reconciliation. It blames everyone else and that’s that. Very very intellectually dishonest and perhaps dishonest altogether.
   Rating: 1 / 5

5. As an Indian I am eager to have relationship between India and Pakistan improve. I was shocked when I heard of Benazir Bhutto’s assassination. I was hoping her return to Pakistan would bring back democracy and pave the way for improving the relations.

   After reading the book however, I feel it would not have made much difference. The book is very disappointing. In my opinion, after the internal threats the biggest problem Pakistan faces is India. The book is mostly written for the Westerners. The first 50 pages of the book are on Koran and a rehash of what moderates have been saying about Koran since 9/11. She takes great pains to indicate that Islam respects people of the Book, meaning Jews and Christians. What about the Hindus and Buddhists? She makes it point to say the much criticized sura where Allah instructs to kill your enemies wherever you find them, is meant to against idol worshipers, ie Hindus and Buddhists.

   Then there is a synopsis of Islamic history and brief history of Pakistan as she sees it. She shows no vision for Pakistan per se and has no ideas about how to improve relationship with India. She writes the reason Pakistan became a failed state is because its founder Jinnah died a few months after independence, whereas the Father Indian independence Nehru, (I did not know Pakistanis think Nehru is the father of Independence, we believe it was Gandhi) lived for many years to stabilize the country.
   
   The book shows a lack of vision. It is just a rehash what has already been written many times. Not worth reading.
   Rating: 1 / 5

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