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Most of the comments on this blog post are just registering shock.  But one stood sadly out:

With conditions like these, I fear that Pakistan has no hope for progress in our life times.

I really wish I could disagree with that.

by the stormy present (stormypresent aaaaaaat gmail etc) on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 09:16:04 AM EST
Another comment on this post at Sepia Mutiny says:

i'm on vacation in india, just watching coverage on ndtv. asma jehangir just broke down and said "damn the army" -- mariana babar, editor of the news was just pointing out that the attack was near where her father, zulfikar bhutto was hanged, and where liaquat ali khan was assassinated.

if this swings things towards sharif, well.. that's awful. we live in interesting times, i suppose.

The boldface is mine.

Other posters noted (as is mentioned in the WaPo article) that there was also an attack on a Sharif rally.

The same commenter later said this:

one particular point babar just made was that -- the ppp party workers, a lot of them are in rawalpindi, and are very very die-hard, and that musharaff may not be able to handle their anger after her death. this seems to have shaken and shocked even non-supportive pakistanis.
by the stormy present (stormypresent aaaaaaat gmail etc) on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 09:29:31 AM EST
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CNN now has footage of angry mobs running through the streets of Rawalpindi.  Some are smashing cars.  Shopkeepers are closing up their shops and pulling the gates over the doors and windows.
by the stormy present (stormypresent aaaaaaat gmail etc) on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 09:32:36 AM EST
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Which is exactly why it is unlikely that Musharaff ordered this.  He seems to be savvy at managing angry pockets of his constituency.  The careful dance of allowing Bhutto back into country, negotiating terms/charges, etc, could have very easily gone awry.  If anything I think Pervez has been trying to avoid this very thing and was actually protecting Bhutto as much as he could.  The man doesn't rule with an iron fist, Pakistan is largely run locally as far as I can tell.
by paving on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 01:42:08 PM EST
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Still more reaction, this time from the FP Passport blog:

Needless to say, this shakes up the Pakistani political scene before the elections, which were supposed to be held January 8. Angry riots and a reimposition of martial law are probably a foregone conclusion. And for the United States, it probably means that U.S. policymakers now see President Pervez Musharraf as their only option.
by the stormy present (stormypresent aaaaaaat gmail etc) on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 10:09:35 AM EST
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Reuters.com

Reports said security was deteriorating in Karachi, where thousands poured on to the streets to protest. At least three banks, a government office and a post office were set on fire, a witness said.

Tires were set on fire on many roads, and shooting and stone-throwing was reported in many places. Most shops and markets in the city shut down.

At least 20 vehicles were torched in the central Sindh town of Hyderabad.



*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 12:56:40 PM EST
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I've never understood why people do that. In what way are local shopkeepers, banks and people with cars parked on the street responsible for X?

Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.
by Starvid on Fri Dec 28th, 2007 at 04:00:32 AM EST
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I'll offer another one. Instead of spending how many billions on fighting "islamists" in Afghanistan and Pakistan, wouldn't it be oh so much more constructive to invest that Western taxpayer's money in schools, hospitals and infrastructure? Any of our politicians proposing that?
by vladimir on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 12:29:10 PM EST
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Because weapons are so much more profitable. Plus, you fire a missile and have to buy a new one. So instability is profit.

Schools and Health centres only need renewing after you've bombed them. So, there's no campaign contributions to be gained from promoting education and welfare.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Thu Dec 27th, 2007 at 12:40:05 PM EST
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