Thomas Carlyle wrote 'Sartor Resartus' in about 1831. It is a satire that forces the reader to confront the problem of where 'truth' is to be found. It postulates an imaginary "Philosophy of Clothes" and holds that meaning is to be derived from phenomena, continually shifting over history, as cultures reconstruct themselves in changing fashions, power-structures, and faith-systems...

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It is kind of reassuring to know that our government is not the only one capable of putting out diverging views on the same issue and thereby adding to the overall sense of confusion. While US Special Envoy on Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke rejected the peace deal being attempted in Swat and told President Zardari so over the telephone, the country's defence secretary, in Warsaw, told reporters on the same day that a Swat-style truce with the Taliban in Afghanistan could be acceptable. The mixed signals have brought a few sniggers in Washington and indeed in Islamabad as well...

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With India-Pakistan tensions still running high, China has stepped in to try and defuse a crisis that is rocking stability in Asia, and indeed across the world. The Chinese intervention is a reminder of just how acute anxiety is over the ferocious war of words between Islamabad and New Delhi that erupted a month ago, following the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. In Islamabad, the Chinese vice foreign minister met virtually every civilian and military leader of any note, including the president, the prime minister and the chief of army staff...

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