Monday, November 5, 2007   I have been trying to write a "smart"
post on Pakistan, but it keeps falling apart. Basically, "what a
fucking mess" is not a profound insight. The best insight I've
come to is the old axiom "there are no national allies, only
national interests".  General Musharraf is engaging in a power
consolidation. He's suspended the courts, arrested the
opposition, and is now dealing with rioting lawyers. It has
nothing to do with terrorism, as Musharraf has basically taken
the appeasement route with the islamist factions, ceding a fair
amount of autonomy to the tribal regions in the northeast.
Shrub and Condi are calling for a return to "democracy" and
elections. But you can tell that they really don't want it.
Musharraf has been our guy, and they don't want to risk the
possibility that Pakistan would end up with a leader less
friendly to America.  And there are the nukes.  For real
analysis, I suggest Barnett Rubin at Informed Comment: Global
Affairs  Added: Shrub adds his own brand of ...