Re: The Warrior People - or the Merchants like us?
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Have values in Iraq and amongst the Pakhtuns changed, such that they reversed? The Iraqis who formerly valued prosperity are giving that up for warfare, and the Pakhtuns who formerly valued the glory of war are now focusing on prosperity.
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Isn't this an overstatement? How can you claim that instead of a few religiously motivated citizens, war is now valued by the entire Iraqi nation or that this attitude (suddenly) has become engrassed in culture at large? Anyhow you should note that Arabs had evolved the value of war as a part of the process of cultural development and Islam only channalised that (rather than suddenly created it). You should also note that in initial phase Islam had been mainly propagated by tribal societies (Arabs, Barbars, Turks, and Pashtuns), through conquers and wars, who, due to the very nature of their tough survival conditions, valued martial ability and hardiness more than merchantalism.
Your choice of words also doesn't seem correct. Prosperity is a "terminal" value---- and war and peace are "instrumental" values. On the whole, we choose war or peace (which are means) in order to be free and prosperous(which are ends)...Pashtuns have choosen peace because they are realizing that in the changed circumstances, skills and economic endeavor can gurantee their prosperity and share in resources better than war. Moreover, previously their share in resources depended on the cohesion and numeric strength of their tribes and hardiness, bravery, and fighting spirit of their tribal kin. Further, for most of the time Pashtuns have lived in a stateless society where your existence, prosperity, and freedom was threatened by two enemies i.e. a fellow human or nature i.e. why "capacity for war" and "hardiness" was highly emphasized in Pashtun Society as captured in the following Pashto sayings.
*Ya nar sha ya da nar naukar sha *(either be brave or become a slave of the brave)
chai nan spak shwai, saba ba wrak shai ( if you tolerated humuliation today, you will face extinction tommorrow...)...
It is also wrong to say that Pashtun values are being "reversed". Rather their values are undergoing a transformation. They still emphasize egalitarianism, liberty, individualism, competativeness, valour, hospitality, personal strength, balance of power (as for as distribution of resources and authority in society is concerned), assertiveness (rather than docility/submissiveness), etc. but are re-interpreting these values according to the social and material circumstances of today. They are undergoing the same process as Germans were passing through during the first half of 19th Century.
Moreover, Pashtun values realy are different from the values of the adjoining societies. The adjoining societies (e.g. Persian, Hindustani, Chinese, etc.) remained under long spans of the "authoritarianism" of empires and kingdoms, which subdued their free spirit, Pashtuns, on the other hand, lived in an environment of (comparative) freedom (at least in internal matters) and upheld their spirit for freedom (no direct rule or strings of control)...
Pashtuns developed an egilitarian tribal culture to perfection the social philosophy of which was ** "balance of power"** (don't let anyone to dominate or dictate to you and if someone/tribe is gaining power make alliances with other tribes to balance him/it...don't be controlled by others)...Pashtun Society never made a transition to feudal society (except for a brief period in Charssada, Sawabi, and upper Swat)...Interestingly, now it is making a straight transition from a tribal order with economy based on primitive agriculture, cattle-breeding, and martial service to modern urban society...If even transformed by modernism, Pashtuns will retain their spirit for liberty, individualism, equality, and egalitariansm.
Adjoining societies (Hindustani, Chinese, and Persian) evolved an authoritarian feudal social culture to perfection with an uneven distribution of power and with hierarchical social and political structures that extend beyond family (to local chief up to the sovereign and despot)...
As for War, Pashtuns have fought such devastating wars throughout centuries, especially during the 19th and 20th centuries against the mightiest powers that they are now tired. More wars would be self destructive. They should rather divert their energies and aggressiveness to industry and skill.