Re: NWFP to be renamed Pakhtoonkhwa: Zardari
part of democracy is to not assume your opinion matters more than others, and letting local concerns be addressed by local people.
your argument about the name change could just be made into "we shouldnt have democracy because parliament can pass a law saying all elephants should be shot, lets save the elephants by not having elections". People are rational, and very few democratic systems in the world have name changes every election cycle.
This is not to say that matters that may be interpreted as frivolous dont make their way to the ballots. But that is the nature of democracy.
Rahi baat dams ki, that is a fair point. This is where having an overriding federal government actually makes things worse, because it gives a perception to the smaller provinces that one province, which is perhaps over-represented in the federal govt, is getting favours.
Settle these issues like any two entities would. Pakistan has a water brokering commission, representing all four provinces. That is the place to resolve disputes. The federal govt should have a say in the matter, but only to the extent of facilitating the resolution of disputes, not dictating one way or the other.
You live in the US, where the federal govt is now very powerful, but has traditionally been less so compared to the states. I dont believe there is a tradition of frequent name changes by states.
It is a balance, but the more it favours the states, the less chance of an autocratic/despotic setup.