War into Pakistan

Even though Pakistan boasts a fast-growing middle class and many second- and even first world accoutrements, there are huge parts of the country where local chiefs run things, generally along medieval lines. The government in Islamabad gets to claim the area for the purposes of map-making, and that's about all; its armed forces enter the region, a mass of high mountains, deep valleys and caves, at their peril. It's a bad political situation that's largely the consequence of a bad geographical situation, especially in that the area borders southern and eastern Afghanistan.

This, naturally, is the part of Pakistan where the Taliban and al-Qaeda holed up when the United States and a NATO coalition kicked them out of Afghanistan in 2002. It's probably where Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri have been hunkered down since, launching attacks on American, other NATO forces and Afghan troops and probably planning terror atrocities in the United States and Europe and wherever else satanic forces are at large.

But now, with the weak democratically elected government that came into power in Pakistan earlier this year following the assassination of Benazir Bhutt in December, things are coming to a head. Pakistan's army and security services, which are strongly influenced by the Islamists, are more restive than they were before Pakistan's president, former army commander Pervez Musharraf, had his power dramatically reduced, and increasingly balk at deploying troops in the tribal regions, much less cooperating with American forces.

Last month, Pakistan's army accused U.S. forces of killing 11 Pakistani troops. The Pentagon released aerial footage showing that the Americans were under attack by small arms and rocket-propelled grenades from Pakistan. Afghan President Hamid Karzai, fed up by the attacks into his country from Pakistan, has threatened to send troops across the border.

The financially strapped government of Prime Minister Yousaf Raz a Gilani is trying to lower the heat along the border with Afghanistan by offering the latter economic development aid, but with the recent surge in fuel prices, that is unlikely to produce a quick turnaround. Indeed, a deteriorating economic situation will probably put Pakistan's fragile coalition under increasing strain, in which case it could return to military rule.

So the battle seems to ineluctably turn toward nuclear-armed Pakistan, or the part of it that Pakistan can't control.

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)

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Every Pakistani knows that

Every Pakistani knows that the international community is out to destabilize and dismember our country, By sheer conviction in our national cause alone we will thwart the international conspiracy against Pakistan! Pakistan is a nuclear weapons state, And the world will learn to respect Pakistan like it respects other nuclear armed nations Russia and China.

If the US, Nato et al ever violate the Pakistani border they will as our government has stated before be treated as invading forces and will be given a severe and harsh punishment for thier sins against the state of Pakistan. Pakistan has an unalienable right granted under the UN charted to self-defence. Pakistan will exercise its right internationally accepted right to self-defence to the fullest extent.

There are many Pakistanis

There are many Pakistanis that don't want to be involved in a war of any kind with any people. They only want to feed their families and have a roof over their heads.

The comment submitted previously by "A Pakistani" was not submitted by someone who represents their country or their faith in a good way. Pakistan has many things that make it great other than a nuclear bomb. If someone thinks that a bomb makes a nation great, they are sadly mistaken.

Think - friend, why would someone want to destabilize or dismember Pakistan? The only ones who seem to be trying this are Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari.
A strong, healthy and prosperous Pakistan is in the self interest of most countries around the world.

Mr. "A Pakistani" please keep your mouth closed and stop causing your own country's "beizidy" (shame) by speaking publicly!

When the Americans can't

When the Americans can't stop Mexicans crossing over to the US soil, do they ask the Mexican government to take actions, or do the Americans try to act responsibly on their side of the border instead?

In the absence of any proofs and most importantly when the Americans ignored all other options presented to them by the Taliban such as:

- to hand them over the proofs of Osama Bin Landin and his (presumably CIA-backed Al-Qaeda gang) in the 911 massacre

- to file a case in the international court of Justice

We the suffering millions of Pakistanis do not know what to do to make the western world, specially America, realize that fact the US and its allies are only making the neutral Pakistanis hate Americans due to their constant war mongering propaganda machines, their (and Nato's) constant bombardment of civilian populations, their constant involvement in Pakistan's inner matters such as politics, their constant and clear backing of illegal, corrupt, power-hungry, dictatorial Pakistani Army generals time and again.

If we knew we would have to see this day, we won't have helped American win against Russia in Afghanistan in the mid-80s and that too for a price termed as peanuts by a Pakistani ruler and a price we paid for (and we still are paying for) in our blood.

Forgive us, leave Pakistan and Pakistanis alone so that we can live our lives!

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