I added this comment to the heated debate surrounding Ambassador Akbar Ahmed‘s article, 5 Things Americans Need to Know About Pakistan, in The Huffington Post:

THE POINT OF THE ARTICLE is to highlight some of the more positive things about Pakistan and Pakistanis which are often neglected in the U.S. and beyond. It appears that nearly half the people who commented below have utterly missed this point. The negativity here is due to people not knowing how to respond to a positive article about Pakistan. They’ve been so brainwashed by the Western media to see Pakistanis only through the prism of violence, terrorism, and corruption. It’s like a bomb has gone off in their brain when they see something positive written about Pakistan! Lastly, Ambassador Ahmed’s voice needs to be heard, not silenced. I question the motives of those who attack him for wanting to make Pakistan stronger and for hoping that the US and Pakistan can become stronger allies. Is it jealousy? Is it that they’re bogged down by blinders in their own brain?