December 27, 2007

• This is extremely troubling. It can only push Pakistan deeper into chaos and instability. Some reports are saying she wasn't harmed by the bombing, but was killed by gun shots as she tried to leave the scene in her car.
• Gah. What a nightmare.
• I'll save my criticisms of Bhutto for another time and place. Let's just say that I don't see her as noble and uncorrupted as some do. That said, her assassination is just one example of the larger problem in the region -- the use of violence and coercion to usurp the political process. I hope that Pakistanis can find their way past this to democracy -- although it's difficult to imagine how that outcome can happen now.
• Reuters and AP are saying that she was shot in the neck and chest, and then the explosion occurred, but those reports seem to be relying on what Bhutto's security advisor is saying. It's hard to imagine how this could happen -- not that an attempt would be made, as it was fairly obvious that that it would be tried again -- but that her own security would be unprepared for it. But, we're still early on, and we don't know the details. (If we ever will.)
• Bet you any money she was done in by her own guards or people close to her, if anything in these reports is accurate.
• Given that it happened in Rawalpindi, as secure a city as there is in Pakistan, it's not an unreasonable assumption.
• Whatever it is, I feel more sorry for the ordinary people who are going to bear the brunt of the ensuing events.
• Nothing good will come from this.
• No! =( .
• I'll save my criticisms of Bhutto for another time and place. Let's just say that I don't see her as noble and uncorrupted as some do. I don't think there's any need for you to hold back on that point. The lady wasn't a haloed saint by any stretch of the imagination, and I don't see anyone holding a candlelight vigil in here. But her assassination likely just stirred up a big bubbly pot of diarrhea.
• I don't think there's any need for you to hold back on that point. The woman died today, and I'm not about to speak ill of the dead. Another time, perhaps, more removed from the immediacy of the moment of her being murdered.
• Ah, that's bullshit. Say whatever you like. There's no cosmic rule against speaking ill of the dead, especially if the speech is true, and the dead person was a politician.
• No.
• She was a person, and she was loved, no matter what I think of her politically, and I'm not about to shit on people who mourn her.
• You're a class act, Cap'n.
• On the staircase of the Oxford Union building, there are photos of past Union officers, including Bhutto. By which I know that when Benazir Bhutto was a student, she was a babe. Farewell to one of world politics's most colourful figures.
• Awful news. This has the potential to be disastrous, for Pakistan, which we must now fervently hope doesn't implode into civil war, and for the wider region. Nightmare. .
• Speculation on possible suspects
• You're a class act, Cap'n. Not particularly. To quote Faisal in Lawrence of Arabia: "With Major Lawrence, mercy is a passion. With me, it is merely good manners. You may judge which motive is the more reliable."
• U.S. Officials See Waste in Billions Sent to Pakistan
• Bet you any money she was done in by her own guards or people close to her, if anything in these reports is accurate. Very well. I bet you all of Capt. Renault's money that it was not done by one of her guards or people close to her.
• this is really terrible
• Bhutto death: How it happened.
• this can't possibly make things better. ugh, this part of the world really needs a break.
• Civil war in Pakistan would probably be a net positive for the world, except for, you know, the nukes... And speaking ill of the dead is one of the most important things we can do (almost as important as speaking ill of the living).
• Site of attack a signpost to Pakistan's troubles.
• In October e-mail, Bhutto said she would hold Musharraf 'responsible' for her death
• With Bhutto gone, does Bush have a Plan B? Bush's failed policies in Pakistan, a nuclear power that al-Qaida still uses to plot against the West, threatens U.S. security more than Iraq ever did.
• Bush doesn't even have a Plan A.
• "Daughter of the West" by Tariq Ali. A fairly comprehensive explanation of the state of affairs within Pakistan, as of November 30th last (LRB).
• “Al Qaeda Did It” — Might Be A Bit Premature
• From a comment over on the Blue, a linky link which supposedly shows her injuries. (Perhaps too graphic for some.) Whatever it is, the security response seems to have been rather amateurish and confused. By lack of training, or by deliberate design, we'll never know. Too many suspects, too many motives.
• Unfortunately, the one thing we can count on in all this shit is she won't be the only one to die.
• Is anyone else saddened by all the "what will this mean for the U.S. presidential elections" talk going around the blogosphere? And double style points to Capt. Renault for denying his being classy by using a classy Lawrence of Arabia quote. Tres chic!
• Stay classy, Cap'n! ;) The linky link is dead, though. (That suggests an inappropriate jest, which I will not sink to, because I, too, strive to be classy. Also because I'm not feelin' it.) My own response was to be upset, but not surprised. When she returned to the country a few months ago, my first thought was, "So... how long until the assassination?" :( it just seemed like something that would probably happen. but it still made me pretty sad when it did. I'm sick of the U.S. presidential elections already, and they aren't for another 10 months. Ugh.
• A coworker of mine used to live about a block away from where the assassination took place. Also, his brother-in-law runs a clinic right near there, and was stuck in his office all night because of rioting. He's ok though. Small world, eh? I have no useful comments to make.
• A CLOSE aide to Benazir Bhutto says she saw a bullet wound in the Pakistani opposition leader's head when she bathed her body after her assassination.
• A CLOSE aide to Benazir Bhutto says she saw a bullet wound in the Pakistani opposition leader's head when she bathed her body after her assassination.
• WTF?
• The hatch-theory doesn't seem all that plausible to me. The hatch was supposedly blown down by the force of the bomb blast. The shooting happened before the bomb. Security would have crammed her back in as soon as the shots rang out. Of course, it all depends on the time difference between the shots and the bomb, but how long would it take for Bhutto to drop to her knees to get back inside the car? (And as an aside, who wants an armoured car with a sunroof? And why would security allow her to stand up out of the car in an unsecured area to wave to supporters, rather than just waving through the window? Risk management is the name of the game...) It seems much more probably that she was shot, as at that point, security would have been caught unawares (in the sense that there is no specific threat for them to respond to). For her to be killed as a matter of accident in the response to the shooting/bombing seems far less likely, as everyone is acting according to the established protocol, which has been well-considered in advance. It remains possible, of course, for everything to have gone down according to the official story, but less likely. Whatever it is, I've seen tighter security at Bjorn Again concerts. For her protection to be that piss-poor from start to finish, to keep that chain of accidents going, makes me doubt there was any accident to it at all.
• The Musharraf Problem
• How Benazir Bhutto died.
• Bhutto's son to succeed her as party leader, nevermind the fact that he's too young to hold office or that he's still an undergrad or that he hardly speaks Urdu.
• More on the boy.
• More Video
• The Benazir Bhutto dossier: ‘secret service was diverting US aid for fighting militants to rig the elections’
• Comedy gold.
• My heart bleeds for Pakistan. It deserves better than this grotesque feudal charade
• Uh, Oh: U.S. Special Forces May Head to Pakistan
• Sibel Edmonds: Pentagon Official Helped Turks Sell Nuclear Secrets to Pakistanis
• SURPRISE SURPRISE SURPRISE!
• Musharraf's Party Roundly Defeated; Fundamentalist Coalition Collapses in NWFP; PPP Likely to Form Next Governmen
• Seeeellllfpooost: my continuing coverage of the Pakistani elections
• As always, thanks for sharing, Danger.
• That's a startling mental image.
• Blistering UN Report Blames Musharraf Government for Not Protecting Bhutto