The trouble with cultural algebra

As a child of the '80s, I can't remember living in political turmoil long enough to skip my favorite episode of "Saved by the Bell." \nIn an attempt to connect to a seemingly alien political system, I decided to do something. \nI sought earth-shattering political movements -- not out of an innate sense of rebellion, but rather an innocent desire to better the world.\nDespite the ease of confronting Goliath-size battles, the minor, daily struggles of my life remained. \nLuckily, for the future of democracy, I found my raison d'être in Pakistan. \nIn a world of uncertainty, I have always secretly craved concrete conclusions. But after a summer spent in the motherland, I'm beginning to question if such a reality exists. Perhaps in our quest for clarity, we've prematurely refuted the possibility of living in an ambiguous world. \nIt seems we willingly recognize cultural beauty differences and cherish relativity even in science. But we squawk at using that standard of judgment in other aspects of our lives. \nAfter three weeks in the summer sun, I returned from Pakistan with the same shade of brown skin. My lack of a tan surprised many friends. But because the Eastern ideal of beauty is a fair-skinned, semi-plump girl, I refused to become any darker than my natural skin color. In a world of relative beauty, I convinced myself my sunscreen addiction was not conformity, but rather a survival skill. I didn't want to become the victim of gossip among relatives. \nAround the world, we carry varying ideals of beauty, almost always revolving around the central idea of chasing what we lack. \nWhile Americans flock to the light, ironically, Pakistanis shy away from it. In the Indian sub-continent, facial bleaching creams act as a substitute for tanning products. \nCultural differences make it impossible to imagine an international standard of beauty. Diverse concepts of beauty thrive in a politically correct society. But diverse ideologies don't.\nAs an American, I'm programmed to think Osama bin Laden is a bad man. But educated elite in Pakistan legitimately argued the FBI's most-wanted man is not much worse than President Bush. \nSome might say relativity is nothing more than a product of political correctness and not necessary when judging criminals. I agreed with them until three weeks ago.\nThe Associated Press reported that Pakistan's cosmopolitan city Lahore had fallen victim to recent fundamentalist pressures. Taliban supporters had thrown paint on billboards with pictures of women. \nThinking the city where half of my relatives live had turned into a fundamentalist feeding ground, embarrassment overtook me.\nA cousin in Pakistan explained it best. \n"You think we're backward," he said. \nAnd maybe I did, from an American perspective.\nFacing pressure from the East and the West, the Pakistani public is annoyed with Taliban supporters but equally irritated with its president/dictator's willingness to accept President Bush's demands. \nPerhaps traces of fundamentalism had swept the country and sprinkled a few black dots of paint on billboards, but some pictures remained untouched.\nThe AP also reported a Pakistani college's decision to ban "Gulliver's Travels" and "The Rape of the Lock." \nBut a few blocks away, copies of Vogue and Marie Claire line the shelves of a Pakistani bookshop.\nLike a kaleidoscope, every time you turn it, the picture changes. \nWe live in a world of extremes without moral absolutisms. We know this. Yet we don't acknowledge it. Sometimes, we secretly desire the world to fit into an algebraic formula.\nBut a trip to the motherland, even with all its "backward" inconveniences, brings life into an unalgebraic perspective.