the fall of bhutto
by Mark Hunter Mulvey
Published: January 3, 2008
Beginning early next year, U.S. Special Forces are expected to vastly expand their presence in Pakistan, as part of an effort to train and support indigenous counter-insurgency forces and clandestine counterterrorism units, according to defense officials involved with the planning. - washingtonpost.com article by William M. Arkin, Wednesday December 26th, 2007
U.S. officials said they were leery of intervening in another nation’s internal affairs, and didn’t want to give Bhutto Washington’s imprimatur. - Time.com article by Mark Thompson and Brian Bennett, detailing the assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on Thursday December 27th, 2007
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Terrorism loves a clear sky. It was 9/11 weather to be sure and, like clockwork, the fire sprang forth and a pillar of democracy dropped back into the sunroof of a slowly moving white sport utility vehicle.
The killer unleashed a bullet on the former Prime Minister, and followed it up with an explosion that rocked the onlookers in Rawalpindi. 22 dead in the crowd, bringing the grand total to 23. And if Jim Carrey has taught me anything, it is to fear the ubiquity of the number 23. So what is there to fear? Assassination plots and mini torpedoes? Stray flak and large crowds?
Actually, large crowds might not be a bad idea. You would do well to fear large crowds.
And so we are faced with another successful assassination. A democratic proponent has been slain in Pakistan. Why was she slain? Well, we don’t even know who did the slaying. She opposed Islamic extremists with an indignant fervor, so it would be a decent start to begin looking for the perp in those circles. U.S. foreign policy also shows that any nearby country with similar customs and a mustachioed dictator will also make a fine suspect. But without knowing with certainty who did it, there’s no way to know why they did it. The ‘why’ is more important than the ‘who,’ of course. ‘Why’ cuts to the heart of the cause and the solution. ‘Who’ is just easier to see.
But ‘who’ may very well be in hiding now. President George W. Bush even spoke out against Bhutto’s murder by pronouncing heroically and defiantly, “Those who committed this crime must be brought to justice.”
Golly! American Justice is on the way. Served warm with a side of democracy and a cold glass of Don’t Talk Back to wash down the world-powery goodness.
Several post-assassination articles make clear that Pakistan is likely the first stop on the Freight Train to Blame. Many al-Qaedans indeed live there, in what have been described as “lawless mountainous pockets in the northwest.” This much isn’t up for debate, not like the confusing bulls eye in Iraq following the American Incident in 2001. You can be sure some sandy fellow drafts his fantasy team with other al-Qaedans in a desolate outpost on the outskirts of Mirpur.
Let’s not forget that Pakistan is the only Islamic state with a nuclear arsenal, with Musharraf’s “iron grip” on the country tempered only by American expectations of a democratic Pakistani election in ‘08. Bhutto was the personification of America’s hope in this regard, and so, this assassination “is a blow for democracy in Pakistan and seems likely to cement the military’s grip on power for the near future.”
Boiling all of this down and filling in the blanks looks like this: America likes democracy. Bhutto likes democracy. Musharraf says he likes democracy but keep his fingers crossed behind his back just in case. Islamic extremists and terrorists of all shapes and sizes HATE democracy. On December 27th, Bhutto decided to wave hello to throngs of fans in an al-Qaeda-soaked populace by poking her head out of a car window.
We still don’t know the ‘who’ or the ‘why.’ But once again we’re stuck looking at the fiery result of democratic flag-waving facing off against… something else. Maybe terrorists, but maybe territorialists- believers of the mind-your-own-business creed, with guns and explosives instead of “do not disturb” signs. Perhaps America was just this kind of believer when metal birds brought down those skyscraping flag-wavers. In which case the ‘who’ and the ‘why’ are both closer to our hearts than we care to admit.
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