The Halal Debate: From Neutral To Kosher In 3 Seconds

Can a Muslim entertain meat in the Christian world ?. I have read the fatwas of the renowned muftis on this topic and frankly, they are not very convincing. Their desperate efforts to raise doubts, conjuring-up vague associations and rigging together unsubstantiated suppositions, leads me to believe that good intentions, over time, have ballooned into needlessly burdensome rituals.

I will present my case for it. It certainly isn't the last word on the subject. Let us lay out the facts first. Most scholars cite these two verses from the Quran. I will cite the relevant ayats.

In the chronological order of their revelation:

Surah Al An'am[6:121]:
"And do not eat of that upon which the name of Allah has not been mentioned, for indeed, it is grave disobedience".

Surah Al Ma'idah [5:5]:

"This day [all] good foods have been made lawful, and the food of those who were given the Scripture is lawful for you and your food is lawful for them. And [lawful in marriage are] chaste women from among the believers and chaste women from among those who were given the Scripture before you".

Then we have the oft-quoted hadith narrated by Hazrat Ayesha(RZT):

Some people said, "O Allah's Apostle! meat is brought to us by some people and we are not sure whether the name of Allah has been mentioned on it or not (at the time of slaughtering the animals)." Allah's Apostle said (to them), "Mention the name of Allah [Bismillah] and eat it."
[Sahi Bukhari #1935.]

There are three basic variables in the halal argument. (1) What meat is it ? (2) Who prepared it ? (3) How was it prepared ? (4) If you are unsure, what to do ?.

The sort and condition of permissable meats are clearly enunciated in Surah Al Ma'idah [5:3]. Any meat which falls into the permissable category, prepared by draining the blood by Ahl-e-Kitaab (People of the Books) is lawful for Muslims and vice versa. Unless, during preparations the Ahl-e-Kitab (or Muslim) was sitting in the back, going "Satan! Satan!" on each chicken, goat or cattle he was carving. That would of course, make it non-kosher. But what if this guy was listening to his iPod and thinking of his date that night, while slaughtering these animals ?.

That, would make it neutral meat, or fill-in-the-blanks meat.

What do you do with that meat on your table ?. It is the right meat, handled the right way, by the right guy, only it has yet to be labeled. This is probably the most common predicament, when sitting down to eat meat in the west. That's where we apply the lesson from the hadith above. You say "Bismillah" and that neutral meat becomes kosher meat. Ready to eat.

Of course, this does not absolve you of taking all precautions and avoiding eating in places where you are sure that they are cooking porky-the-pig, right besides the hamburger you ordered. Just like you don't go back to the KFC where the big black chick was digging boogers out of her nose at the fryer. It's just common sense and hygiene. Minimize risk as much you can. To your body and your soul.

And if you are one of the faithfuls who just cannot bring him/herself to enjoy meats outside of their zabeeha-ordained homes, then more power to you. I am just too weak for that kind of monastic discipline and self-denial, when clear and simple instructions (OK, rationalizations) are available.

And let's not forget the other ayats from Surah Al An'am [6:118-6:119]:

"So eat of that [meat] upon which the name of Allah has been mentioned, if you are believers in His verses. And why should you not eat of that upon which the name of Allah has been mentioned while He has explained in detail to you what He has forbidden you, excepting that to which you are compelled. And indeed do many lead [others] astray through their [own] inclinations without knowledge. Indeed, your Lord - He is most knowing of the transgressors".

You are not making me one of the transgressors.

Movie Review: "Bridesmaids" (2011) ... Wedding Triggers

Bridesmaids (2011) - Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Jill Clayburgh




I know this pain
Why do lock yourself up in these chains?
No one can change your life except for you
Don't ever let anyone step all over you
Just open your heart and your mind
Is it really fair to feel this way inside ?


Annie Walker (Kristen Wiig) A thirty-something gal is startled and forced to take stock of her life when her childhood best friend Lilian (Maya Rudolph) announces her engagement. Suddenly the dead-end job, mountain of debt, dysfunctional relationship and a ticking biological clock which she had all managed on her best friend's shoulder, would no longer be available to her. She was moving on, while Annie's teetering life was in free fall.


Some day somebody's gonna make you want to
Turn around and say goodbye
Until then baby are you going to let them
Hold you down and make you cry
Don't you know?
Don't you know things can change
Things'll go your way
If you hold on for one more day


And if things weren't hectic enough in her life, she is handed the responsibility to be the Maid of Honor. Now she has to throw the bridal shower, the bachelorette party and arrange a ton of other stuff which she has never done and is clearly out of her depth. But she soldiers on, as a faithful friend, doing the best she can. Kristen Wiig balances the angst, apprehension and mixed-feelings with great thespian discipline.

Unfortunately, the stunningly beautiful, polished and disarmingly evil Helen (Rose Byrne), one of the bridesmaids is jealous of Annie's important role in the wedding and she makes sure that Annie falls on her face at every opportunity. Through a series of hilarious misadventures, Helen succeeds in getting rid of Annie as the Maid of Honor.


You could sustain
Or are you comfortable with the pain?
You've got no one to blame for your unhappiness
You got yourself into your own mess
Lettin' your worries pass you by
Don't you think it's worth your time
To change your mind ?


Annie gets fired from her job, gets thrown out of her apartment, her car breaks down and If things weren't bad enough, her best friend is now also mad at her. While she is having a "pity party" for herself at home, another of the bridesmaids, Megan (Meliissa McCarthy) comes-a-knocking as "life" and literally slaps (and bites!) Annie out of despair and self-pity. "You are your worst problem and you are the solution", Megan tells Annie. She has to break away the self-destructive bonds, the self-constructed fears of an uncertain future and realize the purpose of her life. Start respecting herself and carve a future of her own choosing, instead of waiting for life to happen to her. It's a great message, packed cleverly in humor instead of a sermon, which ordinarily one would have tuned out.


I know that there is pain
But you hold on for one more day and
Break free from the chains
Don't you know things can change
Things'll go your way
If you hold on for one more day yeah
If you hold on


When Wilson Phillips released this song ("Hold On") in 1990, I didn't have the proper context to fully appreciate the poignancy of the lyrics. But when the real band shows up at the end of the movie to sing this song, all the bits and pieces of the movie fall into place and make sense. You suddenly have 5-6 quickfire epiphanies. "Oh! so that's what.. yeah OK, and that too, cool".

In this respect this movie cannot, in good taste, be equated with director Paul Feig's prior cheesy and juvenile ventures. This is a well-acted movie. Just watch Kristen Wiig's eyes in the movie. There is a whole layer of story that plays out there. She plays the part of the vulnerable single gal so well, that I had to stop the movie several times in between, because you feel overwhelmed about her situation.

This is also a witty and intelligent movie that doesn't feel obligated to spell out each sexual innuendo. There are references to just about every sexual act in there, but you'll never hear it alluded to, directly. Always couched in metaphors and euphemisms. Only the really dull will have problems figuring them out. I confess I didn't get one. "I am not going to get his Monkey Lamps". Anybody know what that is ?. Make me humble... if you can.

This is a movie that can be watched over and over again and will not get old, because of the 'real life' script, direction (love how Kristen Wiig sneaks out of bed in the morning to put on her makeup and then slides back in, posing and acting all innocent and demure for her dickhead boyfriend) and superb acting all around, that makes otherwise cheesy scenarios, into memorable laugh-fests.

The cast, made up mostly of veteran Saturday Night Live members, have made a real movie this time around, instead of a series of sketches under Lorne Michaels.If you want to have a good time, go see Bridesmaids. Here are some scenes that I didn't find online.





{This movie and review were made possible by @kaifoom who in her 'infinite wisdom' recommended it.}



Kristen Wiig

Rose Byrne

Movie Review: "Unknown (2011)" ... Grandpa In Trouble!

Unknown (2011) - Liam Nesson, Diane Kruger (5/10)





In real life we are often limited to sitting back and taking it. Even the rich and powerful have to sit in gridlock traffic and wait in queues. We can't go around crashing cars through malls, breaking down locked doors and punching any guy in the face who irritates us. That's what Hollywood action stars are for. They provide us the vicarious thrills that otherwise elude the common man. If we do it, we would likely be sitting in a wheelchair, talking through a computer with the side of our face.

So it is a great disappointment when you go into an action movie ---expecting a take charge kinda guy who subverts the evil designs of the villain and reigns supreme--- to be met with a perpetually haggard, over-the-hill, pitiful, lumbering giant who asks his leading lady to do the heavy lifting for him, "Please! help me!" cries Liam Neeson to Diane Kruger. Every time he struggles to move across the screen, you fear he will either dislocate a joint or break his damn hip.

Liam Neeson is involved in a traffic accident abroad (Berlin) and has selective amnesia. He develops gaps in his memory. So when he tries to reconnect with his wife, she feigns any knowledge of him and presents a duplicate husband, who shares his name. That rightly upsets him and he goes about to establish his identity.

And that's where the movie takes a nose dive.

Instead of taking hold of the reins and manipulating events, this guy is a like a castaway on a raft, in the middle of the ocean. Events happen to him. People throw him around. Even young girls slap this grandpa, and he takes it all, lumbering from one disgrace to another. If there was one word to describe him here, it would be "Wimp".



The lovely Diane Kruger is the real hero(ine) of this movie. She saves his ass, time and again, or else our hero would either be at the bottom of a river, or an OD statistic in a parking lot. Wish they had given her the top billing. After all, she did do all the heavy lifting, literally.

There was another Unknown (2006) starring Greg Kinnear that has far better plot, suspense and twists than this unfortunate offering. This movie will just irritate Liam Neeson fans, who have watched his earlier stuff like Taken (2008) and The A-Team (2010), where despite his advanced years (60), he doesn't look it. Here, he looks like a befuddled, senile grandpa, trying to put moves on a girl who's half his age and... twice as fast.

Maybe they should re-release it with the title, "Catch Me If You Can".

A 'Tail' Of 2 Multanis, 2000 Years Apart

I was taken aback when I heard it. It was a BBC special being shown on National Geographic. Some Brit reporter tracing the route of conquests of Alexander The Great through the Sub-Continent, which is now Pakistan and India.




When Alexander came upon the walled and fortified city of Multan (then the capitol of the Trigarta Kingdom), he ordered his army to scale the walls. But whoever tried, met with stiff resistance from the locals and perished.



So Alexander ordered a ladder to be put up against the wall and he climbed-up himself. As he reached the top and started fighting, a poison arrow struck him between the ribs and pierced his lung. He collapsed and fell back to the ground. There the Multanis pounded on his helmet, his breastplate till the mighty warrior was left cowering against the wall. That was the turning point of his campaign. His wound got infected. He went into shock and his army retreated through the white deserts of Balochistan (Makran today), where he is said to have lost the majority of his men to thirst and hunger.

BaRay beyabro ho kar teray kochay sey hum niklay

This is what the Multani ancestors of Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani did to the superpower of their time, armed with bows and arrows. And look at this Multani today. He probably needs a change of diaper, about now.



John Kerry came swinging down from WA, like Tarzan on a vine. In one blow, he kicked the joint resolution of the parliament onto the trash heap, which was trumpeted out at 2:00AM in the morning after a closed door session that continued for 11 hours straight. The collective will of the people, in the hands of cowards and opportunists, lays waste.



Not only that, Kerry ordered our nincompoop leadership (civilian+military) to hand over the tail section of the stealth chopper that hides the secrets of America's latest technology. This chopper stalled and fell into the Abbottabad compound and was supposedly blown-up by the Seal team. I guess they didn't do such a hot job, since they were in a hurry to get out.



And would you believe it, these bey-ghairat, boot-polishing chamcheys have acquiesced on bended knee ?. Yes, we are not going to study it and make sure we are not taken-in-by-stealth the second time around. No, we can't be bothered to safe-guard our national interests. Kerry will be taking it away with him, to turn around and send it back to attack us, another day. Pehlay aik chamaat, phir doosri chamaat. The cycle-of-capitulations continues.

Will PML-N make any hue and cry about this ?, of course not. All Pakistani leadership (minus Imran Khan) has stored their nest eggs in western capitols. They may be corrupt, spineless, shameless, incompetent, but not stupid enough to do that!.

Hum hain na, to rant and rail against the "Bahadur Shah Zafar"s of our time.

Here is the second leg of Alexander's retreat out of today's Pakistan. At least this is less embarrassing.

Movie Review: "The Mechanic (2011)"... Poetic Mayhem

The Mechanic (2011) - Jason Statham, Ben Foster, Donald Sutherland (8/10)

This movie is a remake of the 1972 classic starring Charles Bronson. While the main theme remains the same, the plot and nature of operations has been updated to reflect the human condition and technology of our times.





Jason Statham is a hired assassin, a mechanic who fixes problems and makes them go away (generally bad people who 'deserve' it). Don't mistake him for a mindless trigger man. When he gets an "assignment", he first takes time out to study it. He is part scientist, part magician. A master strategist and a cold operator. And in the end as it turns out, very much human, much to the detriment of his boss.

He kills people for money, which is a grave sin. And like all sinners he has found a way to somewhat rationalize that aspect of his life. His code of ethics however, are not immune to personal pride and guilt, which make him vulnerable and put him in jeopardy.

I like this movie because it's a in-your-face, no-nonsense action flick. It does not feel obligated to make frequent detours into "touchy-feely" and "get-in-touch-with-your-emotions" bit to appease the PC liberal police, who I suspect would love to see Superman in a tutu, Batman doing Yoga (Oh shit! that's already been done, damnit) and Wolverine sprawled out on a therapist's couch, working out his "daddy issues".

One can make a case that gratuitous violence, as depicted in this movie, desensitizes the audience against real-world violence. Yes, it does. But there is a redeeming quality to this movie. Simon West (who has directed Con Air, Lara Croft and The General's Daughter) has directed this movie like it was a ballet performance. It is violent, but beautiful. The rich colors, controlled movements, perfect timing, synchronized feats of murderous acrobatics and human beings in fine mental and physical form is almost poetic. Far from being sense-less, it rings out all the six senses.

And speaking of senses, what would be violence without sex appeal ?. Coming to the rescue are Mini Anden, a leggy Swede supermodel and Christa Campbell, for the junior partner-in-crime. Their roles may be small, but their parts are substantive. However, there is hardly any character to develop here.



There is a brief topless scene and backside nudity. Nothing major. This was exactly what I came looking for, got it, and enjoyed it. This movie does not make any excuses for what it is. I am not about to, either.

Faisal Raza Abidi (PPP) Goes Nuts On Ahmed Raza Kasuri

Sahibzada Ahmed Raza Khan Kasuri's father Nawab Mohammad Khan was murdered. His son fingered Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (ZAB), leader of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP). The case went up to the Supreme Court of Pakistan and by a verdict of 4-3 Bhutto was convicted and sentenced to death.

Now, 30 odd years later, when nothing is going PPP's way and it's Chairman stands to be indicted in several criminal cases, it has chosen to dig this case out of the ground and is trying to get an acquittal for ZAB from the Supreme Court.



To hash out the particulars of that murder trial, Fariha Idrees got the son of the victim and one of PPP's jiyalas, Faisal Raza Abidi, together on her show. As expected, the young Turk exploded all over the TV screen and blamed the murdered victim's son, for orchestrating the murder of his own father, among a stream of other foul and personal insults which ended in this threat of bodily injury, "Mein ney aik chamaat mara, bahar ja ke giro gay (With one hit of my fist, I can throw you out on the street)".

I wish at the end there, when Faisal Raza Abidi was threatening Ahmed Raza Kasuri (who is a long-time practicing barrister), he could have just smiled and replied, "So what are you gonna do ?, kill me too ?".

Faisal Qureshi & Wife, Mixing Facts & Opinions

What is wrong with this picture ?. Faisal Qureshi is the co-host of the show Karvan, on News One channel with his wife. They had four guests on this particular show. A reporter, a retired Brigadier, a Baloch leader and a PPP representative, N.D. Khan. The topic was Balochistan.



When Faisal Qureshi raised Bhutto's role in the dismemberment of Pakistan in 1971, N.D. Khan the PPP loyalist, of course jumped to defend him. What happened next, you can follow in the video. What Faisal is alleging, may have merit behind it. What N.D. Khan is demanding --that there be a separate panel, with independent guest of stature who should argue Bhutto's role in East Pakistan's secession-- also seems fair. So why does this exchange appear so unseemly ?.

Because N.D. Khan in his advanced age is right, however, he gets clobbered by a young husband-wife duo, who are better actors with larger lungs.

Faisal Qureshi & wife are the hosts, conducting the show. They can ask questions, "Sir! I have the right to ask questions [in a democracy]" as Faisal contends. But as N.D. Khan points out later, Faisal cannot become partisan and fling accusations. Especially, when he loses it and starts casting absolute allegations in the guise of facts. "This is my future which you have ruined!... you have categorically ruined the future of this country...".

These are not opinions. They are stated as facts. Categorical facts.

His wife (bless her heart), hammers the final nail into the coffin. She starts accusing N.D. Khan of not having a "democratic mindset!", since what Faisal just finished saying was "just an opinion!... everybody has an opinion!". When cornered at the end, for flinging accusations, Faisal again retreats behind the safety glass of democracy. "Democracy means I have the right to question!", finger digging into the table and looking around for approval.

Democracy, is not some chador you use to cover up personal bad behavior.

Yes, you can question. But that, is not what you did. You flung personal accusations. You badgered him, slammed your fist onto the glass table, pointed and wagged your finger into the face of an elderly gentleman. All the while wearing that smug, self-satisfied, oh-I-am-so-clever look. You were not only wrong in principle, but also in appearance, manner and tone. And what it did was, shift any sympathies from you, to your guest.

That's why there is only one Talat Hussain in Pakistan. A man who has the gift of weighing situations and intentions. Who can negotiate his way through dangerous waters, political static, baits and rhetoric to arrive at a thoughtful resolution. That not only requires brains (which Faisal has too), but an emotional IQ tuned at the highest frequency.

Faisal & Co. has a lot of work to do, starting with learning how to differentiate fact from opinions. Journalism 101.

Movie Review: "From Paris With Love"... No, Not Really.

From Paris With Love (2010) - John Travolta, Katia Smutniak 6/10

Hollywood has a very good track record for following the lead of the State Department when it comes to identifying bad guys to the world. During WW-II it was the Germans and Japanese. After the cold war they were all linked back to the Communist block. During the drug wars of Reagan and Bush, the bad guys were wearing South American faces. Initially, after 9/11 it was the Arabs who were holding Arnold's wife for ransom. Now, you frequently hear the word "Pakistanis" peppered in with Arabs.

So it was no surprise that Hollywood made a movie dedicated to the drug-running, bomb-making pimps and suicide bombers from Pakistan. Sadly, Pakistanis are not even given any character development. They are faceless, nameless, crazed villains who are massacred one after the other, in an assembly-line fashion. Like chickens at a poultry plant.

Enter, From Paris With Love.



John Travolta is playing the role of Raymond Davis. A special op soldier, who cleans the "trash". Kills at the drop of a hat. He has the license to kill, with the entire military might of the US behind him, including satellites orbiting in space that are mobilized into service with a click on his wristwatch.

An unfeeling, uncaring, arrogant murderer who flies in, kills dozens, and flies out. Just like our Raymond. As the voice on the phone says, he may be unorthodox, but "...he gets the job done".

France has the largest population of Muslims in Europe. Most of them are from Northern Africa. After 9/11 the right-wing racists in France have been trying their level best to paint Muslims in a corner. Piss them off, any way they can. In this movie, John Travolta is hunting Pakistanis from Karachi, in Paris. The Pakistanis are shown to be the masterminds behind every vice on the Parisian street. They are so cold-blooded and calculating that they press into service unfocused, young, beautiful, white, Parisian girls and compel them to don suicide jackets for their nefarious ends. Yeah, that's one thing Pakistani fobs are good at. Getting the babes. Right.

Pakistanis are getting help to run cocaine in Paris from their best friends, the Chinese. The Chinese oprerate from their chain of Egg Fu Yung restaurants where the mild-mannered Chinese waiters and chefs carry AK-47s. It doesn't matter that cocaine is strictly a South American drug and has no association with Asia, but since cocaine is the drug of choice for Americans, that's what the Pakistanis be smuggling from Pakistan. Why confuse yourself with facts when your purpose is to smear and malign.

The most egregious and odious aspect of this however, is the attempt to directly link Islam, the religion, with terrorism. In the Pakistani hideout in the red-light area, from where they run their prostitution business, cut drugs and assemble their bombs, the word "Allah" in large lettering in Arabic is painted all over the walls. In one instant, you associate every known vice in the west to the world of Islam, it's most sacred symbols and icons. This not-so-subtle, subliminal imagery is akin to placing crosses and icons of Christianity in the homes of Ted Bundy, Ted Kaczynski or Dr. Hannibal Lecter. This is playing dirty and if the shoe was on the other foot, the Christians would be howling their heads off --and for good reason.

Muslims ?. Oh we are sleeping. We can't be bothered. We have not prepared ourselves for this high-tech, take-no-prisoners, psy-op war. We don't even know what it means! how dangerous it is and how it will shape our future. We will just slurp this movie down and return to our blissfully ignorant slumber.

*YAWN*

The only good thing about this movie is Kasia Smutniak. The philandering suicide bomber.

Marvi Memom: Will The Real MQM Please Stand Up ?

When I saw the two main Chaudhrys of Punjab, flanking the tiny troll, Farooq Sattar behind a row of mics, in a photo-op designed to show solidarity with a promise of their full co-operation in their areas of influence in Punjab (for reciprocal help in Sindh), I thought the PML-Q had lost their minds, altogether.

Let's cut the BS. MQM is not a political party. As opined by many professionals who have had the unenviable task of managing Karachi, MQM is a mafia. From extortion rackets, hits, shakedowns to assassinations of high profile targets, this outfit does it all. Every member of this organization has to come up with a certain amount of fixed cash to fill up it's coffers. Most of it's high profile leadership have multiple murder cases pending on them.




So it was a breath of fresh air to see Marvi Memon, MNA of PML-Q, take on the MQM rep, Sheikh Salahuddin (MNA) on the Javed Chaudhry show Kal-Tak. Marvi did everything, except pull out his awful hair plugs from his head.

She had some help from the PML-N rep on the show, Engr. Khurram Dastagir, but as usual, she took over the show and set the agenda. She basically laid out the facts:

(1) MQM is not a new party with a clean slate. It is a party with a long checkered history of willing to shake hands with anybody in power, as long as they get their share. (2) Mohajirs were welcomed with open arms by Sindhis in 1947, but their attitude quickly earned them the ire of the locals.(3) MQM has worked to create and fuel ethnic divides, to perpetuate it's rule through the divide-n-rule recipe. (4) MQM has tried to isolate Karachi & Hyderabad from the rest of Sindh, denying local population their rights and opportunities, by design (5) MQM rules by threats, fear and violence to curb dissent and force it's agenda. (6) MQM is lead by a man who is a UK national, who has been living in self-exile for decades, exhorting his followers through long-distance telephonic addresses.

The MQM agent tried his best to dodge, fake and juke these charges, peddling the usual MQM manjan. But he was out-witted and intellectually over-powered by the two PML stalwarts, who gave him no quarter and exposed the lies and hypocrisy.

Punjabi voters, it is said, are forgiving and easily manipulated by slick shysters with forked tongues. Let's hope they still retain the power of sight. See what MQM has brought to the City of Lights in 26 continuous years of being in power: death, destruction, darkness and despair. Is that the kind of future they wish to impart to the future generations of Punjab ?. Like any epidemic, MQM should be quarantined in Karachi and straightened-out here.

Marvi, has set the record straight. Much appreciated.

Faisal Qureshi... Come On Down!*

At this time, "Bang-e-Dara", the program hosted by Faisal Qureshi, is just more of the same. Political conflict and controversy are tossed back and forth, disguised as current affairs and to what end ?. What possible good could come of it ?. We expect this fare from a hack, but not from a highly educated, erudite young man.

In my humble capacity as a viewer, I would like to suggest that Bang-e-Dara be the fountainhead of knowledge that informs and inspires the future generations of Pakistanis.

For instance, invite Dr. Samar Mubarikmand or Dr. Ata-ur-Rehman for in-depth discussions on the various (green) energy resources in Pakistan and how we can best tap them. Dr. Hoodbhoy for how best to institute educational reforms. Sen. Khwaja Asif on the pitfalls of the Rental Power 'Scheme'. There are plenty of experts who could discuss the engineering aspects of infrastructure programs which have become political footballs, like Kalabagh Dam. Similarly, we can discuss Health, Economics, Ecology, Consumer Affairs, etc armed with graphs, charts, maps and Power Point presentations.

These thorny issues and challenges should be explored with experts in the field, one-on-one, with conclusions based upon facts and merit of their arguments. Not political wrestlers who try to showcase the strength of their vocal chords and paucity of grey cells.

In short, you can continue to try and compete with the talking (shouting?) heads, or shift the paradigm of discourse to something meaningful. Something of real value and not just more fluff and static. And who best to do it, than a fellow who is comfortable with science and technology, is aware of his surroundings and has the gift of communication ?.

You are the right man, at the right time and in the right place to play your unique part. Question is, will you do it ?.

(*) "... Come On Down!", is a phrase made popular by Bob Barker

on his longest-running game show on CBS called "The Price Is Right".