Benazir Bhutto assassinated

[Fireand'chutes77]

Early this morning, US time (I think), Pakistan's Benazir Bhutto was brutally assassinated at her first Prime Minister campaign rally. A gunman shot her in the chest and neck, then blew himself up, killing over 20 more people.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22406555/?gt1=10645

So much for a comeback. She'd been the most popular candidate, and if she'd lived until the vote, she probably would've won. She might've represented one of the best chances Pakistan had at cooperation and stability. Who the hell knows what will happen now....

Maybe it's because I've been watching the Bourne films for the past two nights, but I'm sensing foul play on the part of Musharraf... After all, if she'd won, he'd lose his power, and she'd been loudly protesting his actions when he put the nation under martial lockdown a few weeks ago.

[jeriddian]

I don't think Musharref would be that likely to do this. It's too obvious, for one thing. And even though it may remove Bhutto as a threat to his power, this isn't his style. He would have used the military and the legal system (under his control now) to take her down. He would have achieved the same result without the incredible backlash he's getting now. No, this is the result of an islamic extremist, probably because Bhutto represented as much, if not more, of a threat to them than Musharref.

Bhutto was a western educated woman (in Great Britain), and that is anathema to an Islamic extremist. She would be opposed to their political platform. It completely undermines their ideology that a woman should be in a position of command, and who would be a force for women's rights in a Muslim nation. This actually hurts Musharref in the long run, because now the power vacuum leaves only Shakir, the hard line Muslim extremist as the only possible viable opponent who could threaten Musharref's rule. The uproar, the chaos, and the violence only strenghten's the hard line right muslim extremists and makes them more powerful in their attempt to take out Musharref (whom they've tried to assassinate for some time also).

Their goal is to convert Pakistan into a hard line Muslim state like Iran, but even more extreme, and who would welcome Bin Laden into their open arms. What better way to kill two birds with one stone than to eliminate the abomination of a woman who defies Sharia law by being a Western educated leader and espousing women's rights in direct contradiction of (their interpretation of) the Quran, and then use it to destabilize their other main enemy's rule by either making him appear to be responsible for it, or blame him for not properly protecting her in the first place.

[Fireand'chutes77]

Good points.

It completely undermines their ideology that a woman should be in a position of command...

But she's been Prime Minister of Pakistan before - two terms between 1988 and 1996. Still, I don't think they had the same problem with the jihadists as they do now...

(And could it be any coincidence that Pakistan's capital is named "Islamabad"? [And, *sigh*, yes, I know it means "City of something-or-another" in Arabic.])

[lunchmeat]

This is the inevitable result of permitting a terrorist organisation a safe haven. It was only a matter of time before something like this happened, tring to develop an accomodation with Al Qada in the tribal territories merely gave them a base of operations rather than increasing safety for Pakistan. For something like this, you need Phil Sheridan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Sheridan, not Henry Kissinger. Before anyone starts jumping onto the thing with the Indians (yes, I said Indians, the term was good enough for my grandfather, who was full blood, I figure it's good enough for me), I might point out that I have a BIA roll number.....

[Fireand'chutes77]

A what number?

Wow, I wouldn't have mentally pictured you as part Native American.

[lunchmeat]

Bureau of Indian Affairs, a division of the Department of the Interior. The roll number means you are part of a recognised tribe. My immediate family didn't carry them until recently, when one of my cousins got interested in the idea, mostly with an eye towards college scholarships for his kids. My sister did the paperwork for me and got me enrolled as kind of a birthday present. For me it's more a neat thing to have than anything else, a contact with family history. So far nobody has called to send me any casino money, though .

Most people wouldn't, I have the facial features but am fairly light skinned and have blue/gray eyes, apparently the Scots/Irish part of the family is dominant there. My grandfather left the reservation to go chase Pancho Villa with Pershing and never went back. I'm not real familiar with the tribal culture and the only thing I know of the language is Wa'a****a, which is sort of a universal greeting/farewell, pretty much the same thing as Aloha, so I can't exactly carry on a conversation. Unfortunately I also got the Indian teeth, which are kind of soft and help keep my dentist in fishing boats, they have an unusual crown pattern that is associated with the first wave of migration back around 20,000 years ago. Even the family on the reservation were'nt exactly oppressed, my great grandfather was a succesful lawyer (every family has it's black sheep) and my great uncles and aunts tended to be either professional people, military or have large farms and ranches or other real estate holdings.

(I see the auto censor has struck again, subsitute s**t for the **** and you'll have the word)

PS: no, I don't do show and tell.....

[jeriddian]

This is the inevitable result of permitting a terrorist organisation a safe haven. It was only a matter of time before something like this happened, tring to develop an accomodation with Al Qada in the tribal territories merely gave them a base of operations rather than increasing safety for Pakistan. For something like this, you need Phil Sheridan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Sheridan, not Henry Kissinger. Before anyone starts jumping onto the thing with the Indians (yes, I said Indians, the term was good enough for my grandfather, who was full blood, I figure it's good enough for me), I might point out that I have a BIA roll number.....

Phil Sheridan is exactly what we need. We would have another march to the sea, only this time it'll be from Kabul to the Indian Ocean, following the same scorched earth policy. Then you'll clear the terrorists out. Tough, brutal, inhuman.......yes.........and unfortunately, probably about the only way you are going to succeed.

[Fireand'chutes77]

This is the inevitable result of permitting a terrorist organisation a safe haven. It was only a matter of time before something like this happened, tring to develop an accomodation with Al Qada in the tribal territories merely gave them a base of operations rather than increasing safety for Pakistan. For something like this, you need Phil Sheridan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Sheridan, not Henry Kissinger. Before anyone starts jumping onto the thing with the Indians (yes, I said Indians, the term was good enough for my grandfather, who was full blood, I figure it's good enough for me), I might point out that I have a BIA roll number.....

Phil Sheridan is exactly what we need. We would have another march to the sea, only this time it'll be from Kabul to the Indian Ocean, following the same scorched earth policy....

I think that was T. Sherman's deal, or did Sheridan do one too?

...following the same scorched earth policy....

And this time, they'll have air support.

[jeriddian]

This is the inevitable result of permitting a terrorist organisation a safe haven. It was only a matter of time before something like this happened, tring to develop an accomodation with Al Qada in the tribal territories merely gave them a base of operations rather than increasing safety for Pakistan. For something like this, you need Phil Sheridan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Sheridan, not Henry Kissinger. Before anyone starts jumping onto the thing with the Indians (yes, I said Indians, the term was good enough for my grandfather, who was full blood, I figure it's good enough for me), I might point out that I have a BIA roll number.....

Phil Sheridan is exactly what we need. We would have another march to the sea, only this time it'll be from Kabul to the Indian Ocean, following the same scorched earth policy....

I think that was T. Sherman's deal, or did Sheridan do one too?

Actually I meant Sherman. My brain is too fatigued right now after being on call all week. I read Sheridan, but thought Sherman.

[lunchmeat]

Actually Sheridan was involved in the Atlanta Campaign and may have given Sherman the idea during Sheridan's earlier Shenandoah Valley Campaign. Someone on the order of George S. Crook http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Crook would be pretty useful, as well, although Gen. Pertraeous, for all the baloney that Moveon and the like puts out, seems to be filling the role well.