Generals: A case study (I)

To those Pakistanis who think they have been used.

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Impoverished Djiboutians See No Payoff for U.S. Presence
Surrounded by poverty, the U.S. military sticks to its secretive base in the Horn of Africa.
By Mark Fineman
Times Staff Writer

December 23 2002

DJIBOUTI -- Just beyond the barbed-wire berms and guard posts that mask the U.S. military`s secretive special-operations base, past a cratered road strewn with scrap heaps and human waste, Kadija Omar expects the Americans to deliver.

Like her desperate nation, the 40-year-old mother of six has been waiting for American jobs, food, money, schools, medicine and even a bit of U.S.-style democracy, said Omar, who earns $5 a month smuggling diesel fuel into neighboring Somalia.

But for the moment, she and her 2,000 neighbors in a parched squatters` patch of tin, plywood and sand in the shadow of the U.S. military`s Camp Lemonier would settle for a few engine parts to get the pump in their well up and running. It has been broken since August, leaving a vegetable crop to wither.

Villagers asked the American soldiers for help weeks ago, she said, when their Humvees rumbled through on a security patrol. But still, Omar said, sighing as she cradled a baby covered in flies, ``we are waiting.``

A full year after the Djiboutian government quietly gave the U.S. military free land, free rein and full secrecy for a forward base to hunt Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups in troubled East Africa, even senior officials grumble that they have gotten precious little in return. The U.S. must do more to contribute to this deeply impoverished Muslim nation, they and others said, or it will soon lose the hearts and minds of a country that is culturally, linguistically and socially almost identical to neighboring Somalia — the failed nation where U.S. soldiers were savagely beaten to death and dragged through the streets in a fierce battle that ended America`s last military venture in East Africa nearly a decade ago.

The U.S. military`s return to this turbulent region through a strategic beachhead in so needy a land says much about the often-conflicting priorities in America`s global war on terror. It is a portrait of what ensues when a superpower meets superpoverty in a quirky, little-known nation suddenly thrust onto center stage in a new kind of war.

``We are poor. We have nothing,`` said Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, minister of international cooperation. ``We readily enrolled in this global war on terror after 9/11, and we`ve given the Americans everything they have wanted. But for the time being, we haven`t seen anything from the United States in return.``

Several weeks ago, a visiting U.S. delegation added insult to injury, Youssouf said. The Agency for International Development offered his government just $4 million in development aid for this nation of 600,000 people. Three-fourths of it was earmarked for upgrading security at Djibouti`s international airport.

``I was so angry,`` Youssouf said. ``Don`t give us $3 million for security at our airport when we need schools, jobs, clinics, wells and roads. I told them: `We don`t want this money. Take it back to Washington.`

``We`re not begging for such money. But if you`re going to spend money here, spend it more effectively. We have basic needs.``

The scene from dawn until dusk at the corner of Athens and London streets in downtown Djibouti, the capital city, is testimony to the most basic need: Hundreds of young men waving resumes and trade certificates gather each workday at the Personnel Management Agency. The tiny storefront allots the precious few menial jobs the American base has on offer.

``America! America! We want a job,`` they chanted one day last week, crushing against the entrance. A manager later explained that thousands had applied for 250 day-labor jobs that the base had filled three weeks before. ``And still they come every day,`` he said.

Since independence from France in 1977, Djibouti has survived on foreign aid; its main domestic product is salt. Official corruption, which is as endemic here as cholera, has kept much of the aid from those who need it most.

Djibouti has the highest rate of malnutrition in all of Africa, a chronic condition that draws none of the emergency food given to its neighbors fighting famine. The U.S. gives Djibouti about 8,000 tons of food a year through the United Nations in an aid program that long predates the American military base.

Ninety-nine of every 1,000 Djiboutians die at birth, and the maternal death rate is triple that of Rwanda — the result of a bad diet, widespread maternal anemia and rampant female genital excision. About 60% of all Djiboutians are unemployed. Female rural illiteracy tops 85%. And the average Djiboutian lives just 51 years.

``The needs are enormous here,`` said Jorge Mejia, the resident representative of UNICEF. ``All the economic indicators are extremely low.``

A Skewed Economy

The prices of Djibouti`s consumer goods also top the list for Africa. Everything is imported and heavily taxed. The result is a skewed, split-screen national economy, where Cabinet ministers and a tiny elite of powerful businessmen dine on lobster and steak au poivre with European dignitaries on crisp linen in fine French restaurants, while most Djiboutians cook vegetables and pasta over open fires fed with scrap wood outside tin shacks. A block from the sweltering job seekers at the U.S.-base employment agency, foreigners and wealthy Djiboutians pay $3.50 an hour for Internet access at air-conditioned workstations in the Filga Foire Informatique, a cafe that even features private Web cameras.

So far, though, U.S. aid for Djibouti appears to be targeting America`s most basic needs. The airport-security funds that U.S. AID officials recently offered are for an international airport that abuts the new Camp Lemonier, which reportedly houses the most secretive Army, Navy and intelligence forces in the terror war.

The U.S. government has also committed an additional $2 million to renovate state-run Radio Djibouti, along with $100,000 in annual rent, in exchange for a strategic transmission station the U.S. is building for the Voice of America just outside the capital. The targeted audience: Yemen and the southern regions of Saudi Arabia — rich recruiting grounds for Al Qaeda and home to more than half the Sept. 11 hijackers.

America also is spending $500,000 to help finance next month`s Chamber of Deputies elections here, which diplomats say will be a lightning rod for Djibouti`s democratic aspirations — and for a possible anti-American backlash if the polls are seen as unfair.

Watershed Vote

It will be the first multiparty election in Djibouti`s quarter-century of independence, and U.S. officials are hoping it will usher in a stable era of democracy. After the French ended colonial rule, the country became a typical, one-party African autocracy. A new constitution ratified in 1992 — the year that also marked the beginning of Djibouti`s nine-year civil war — called for the multiparty system to begin now. An opposition, five-party coalition launched its first campaign last month.

``These elections are very, very important for the future of this country because we are in a situation that cannot continue,`` said Daher Ahmed Farah, a former political prisoner and newspaper editor who leads the opposition Party for Democratic Renewal.

``People are very, very angry. Until now, the anger is generalized. People want change, and we are determined not to allow the government to steal the election.``

Farah, who is known as Daf, for his initials, said he has warned Western diplomats: ``If you want this military platform to continue to be quiet, you have to help us make sure these elections are transparent. So if people are unhappy, anything can happen. An explosion is possible, just like the one that happened over there`` in Somalia.

Farah stressed that Djiboutians remain a peaceful and welcoming people, and most diplomats here played down the likelihood of an anti-American backlash. But they too cautioned that the potential for it is compounded by the lack of tangible U.S. assistance.

``The American troops live in a closed system,`` Farah added. ``We have no positive communication with them. They just stay in their base. Their only communication with the people is through their power, when they go to the countryside and fire their weapons during their exercises.

``They come, they do as they like, they disturb our peace, they give us no jobs and, finally, the impression is negative.``

President Ismail Omar Guelleh said in an interview Saturday that ``it is normal that we should get something`` in exchange for allowing the U.S. military to have a base in Djibouti. Negotiations for a formal base agreement that will fix those benefits are underway and will be signed in January, he said, but he ruled out any anti-American backlash by the Djiboutians if the U.S. falls short.

Guelleh, a former police intelligence officer, said his people were likely to be merely disappointed. ``We are a peaceful country.``

U.S. Marine Maj. Gen. John F. Sattler, commander of the region`s new military forces, said he would fight the shortcomings in American aid.

``Guilty as charged,`` he said on his command ship that arrived near Djibouti`s shores just a week ago. ``If we just build a camp, and we stay inside that camp, and we don`t bring folks in to work in the camp, and there`s no distribution of wealth outside by virtue of spending our money in the Djiboutian economy, I would feel the same way they did.``

Different Spending

A beer in town costs $6, a pizza $17 — prices that have helped keep the U.S. troops at Camp Lemonier off the streets and largely confined to a camp that brings in its own supplies and contributes almost nothing to the economy. That American dearth contrasts sharply with a French largess that has accompanied the thousands of soldiers and French Foreign Legion troops Paris has maintained here since independence.

The French forces are credited with preserving Djibouti as a nation. Without them, it probably would have been swallowed by neighboring Somalia or Ethiopia, which coveted its seaport. And unlike the Americans, the French have been ubiquitous, buying from local markets, using local services and renting local houses, until they opened a modern French compound that is a virtual city within the capital a few years ago.

According to one U.N. calculation, Djibouti`s annual per-capita income is $800 when the salaries of the 2,800 French troops stationed here are included. When they`re not, that figure is cut almost in half.

Even the German navy, which is part of the coalition task force patrolling the region for terrorists, has spent a fortune here. On average, a spokesman said, it has contributed $2 million a month to the local economy since its 800-strong force arrived in February.

Yet, only a fraction of that has trickled down to the impoverished grass roots.

Eight miles outside town, near the future site of the VOA transmitter, sits the squalid Pointe Kilometre 12 squatters` city. Among the few concrete foreign-aid projects that these 10,000 people have seen since they were scooped up by police in the capital and shipped out to a barren stretch of desert 20 years ago is a mosque built by Saudi Arabia.

The mosque is a rare solid structure in PK 12, as the locals call their village. It`s part of a Saudi project that has financed hundreds of new mosques throughout Djibouti, Pakistan, Yemen and other impoverished Muslim countries. The program is largely meant to export Saudi Arabia`s fundamentalist Wahabbite form of Islam — the religion shared by most of the Sept. 11 hijackers and Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

``We don`t care about this Wahabbism. We Djiboutians are far too moderate for all of that,`` explained Mohammed Nour, 30, who helped organize a village development committee in a squatter city that lacks electricity and running water but does feature a school built by the U.N.

``The U.N. also has given us some sewing machines and training, and that is a good start. But what we really need is sustained vocational training, a factory where we can produce something. Maybe even some old computers, and a generator to run them.

``We are happy to meet the Americans. We need the Americans. We have been trying to find them. But until now, they`re invisible.``

Minister Youssouf agreed. ``We`d like to keep the Americans in this country because we believe there is a great potential for us, and for them,`` he said. ``But if the Americans do not play this kind of game, or use this kind of strategy, it is they who will be the ultimate loser, not we.``

Having little or no experience with politics and civilian institutions Pakistanis in general tend to be wary or even dismissive of the abilities of a politician. That would be a serious mistake. Running a civil society and ultimately a democracy the best form of a state - requires compromise on a 1000 different matters - it requires being sensitive to public opinion and heeding it as the ultimate verdict - accepting that the people are sovereign and it is their verdict that is ultimately prevails. Politics is the art of the possible and involves balancing conflicting interests - the long term with the short term. It is a work of great skill and a fine art. Politicians are the vilest folk but the best to run a modern nation state. India has historically been a conglomeration of republics and quasi democracies. The monarch in traditional Indian folklore is responsible to the people-and the first act that a King was expected to do on coronation was to bow to his people. That fine tradition is what has helped India to become the world`s largest democracy ever over the last 50 years. The political process has been set in stone and has proven more than sufficient to guide this country on its way to the future. Consensual democracies produce sane decisions and wholesome results. We Indians find this entire debate about the `role of the Army` in Pakistan puerile. C`mon apart from protecting the borders what other role does an Army have? It is obvious isn`t it? When an Advani or Sonia or even a Lalloo or Jaya talk they do with the strength of a people`s mandate a people to whom they must return every now and then and renew their legitimacy. Not a man in uniform who has ovewrthrown a democratically elected leader. Pakistan unfortunately has never managed to create institutions from its earliest stages. Unless that happens political instability will dog Pakistan. There are many things Pakistan could learn from Inida. Instead of trying to play catch-up on IT etc., it could learn to emulate India`s institutions. For a start a fresh constitution could be drawn up with Indian help and advice and then the judiciary, police and civil services could follow. These are things that China, SKorea and Taiwan cannot teach! India is helping Afghanistan to get its act together - Pakistan could also benefit from the experiment.

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Ref: #17 by virtue
Farhan jee, may i remind you that having being brought up in army cantts and schooled in army public schools you have little choice but to be impressed by the ‘intelligence’ of your community. Of course, it would be too much to expect out of you to confess/admit that you have wasted you life among morons.
Moreover, which gauge have you used to measure the greatness of minds? Doesn’t it sound weird to you that first all the best minds you have met so far are the sons of military officers (thanks for informing us about the hereditary feature of the military sharpness) and then majority of them are now at the Military Academy? You mean, as the writer writes in the article that for generals wisdom starts at the gates of the PMA and ends at the GHQ? By the way, all of your extremely bright friends were over qualified for every other profession in the world?
Right, most, if not all, among the current political leadership are worst possible creatures, but question is as some one wrote here on the chowk: what is a bigger sin: to be a prostitute or to be a pimp?
Dear, Musharraf and his colleagues are prostituting pimps. Two in one.
These best minds are the one who are responsible for almost every single predicament being faced by the nation.

Homicide and Suicide
The difference between homicide and suicide? Homicide is a capital offence while suicide is normally not even a liable crime?
Our voting for corrupt, very corrupt politicians = suicide; what generals do is equal to murder. So, who should be hanged by neck till death?

romair ..........

...... during the kargil debacle a cousin of mine who was at that time a squardon leader was going on and on about how he had just flown back with the chief (mushy) from skardu and the chief had told him, ``this time we have the bloody indians by their gonads; the morale is high and, inshalah, we will show them dal kis bhao bigtey hai`` .............this rising star, who is soon being promoted to group captain, was gushing about the chief and how this time it was different, and how we were going to kick some behind, and how the chief had discussed the strategy with the airmen and cooks on the plane..........

.......... my father who had served with real soldiers like wavell and auchinleck, looked him in the eye and told hem, ``you are an idiot and if mushy is really telling a major (squardon leader) all this, then he is an idiot``........ he grinned sheepisly and stammered,``.... but, sir``....... my father sternly said, ``ziada batain mut karo, chup kar key chai piyo and stop this nonsense`` .............. after he left, my father turned to me and said, ``i am glad you didn`t stay in service as long as that idiot``............

......i just hope you know more about computers than you know about the air force ................

This might be of interest:
http://newsline.com.pk/newsbeatdec5.htm
Will the Real Imran Please Stand Up


By Amir Zia

Imran Khan`s vote for the MMA candidate for PM leaves his admirers wondering if he is actually a mullah at heart.




Back

Imran Khan`s choice of candidate for prime minister has left many of his ardent fans, especially women, dumbfounded. The cricketer-turned-politician voted for Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal`s nominee for premier, against the advise of many liberal and progressive members within his Tehrik-e-Insaaf (TI).

Imran used his solitary vote in parliament in Rehman`s favour, forwarding the argument that the MMA is the only political force that is independent and does not take dictation from abroad. He maintained that he found himself ideologically and politically close to the MMA, which denounces President Pervez Musharraf`s support to the international coalition in the war against terrorism, especially in neighbouring Afghanistan.

``Khan has more than a soft corner for the ousted Afghan Taliban,`` a senior leader of his party said on the condition of anonymity. ``He thinks that the orthodox religious militia did a great service to Afghanistan and Islam before they became a target of the Americans.``

Also, the MMA`s firm stand against Musharraf, especially his series of controversial constitutional amendments, won the heart of Pakistan`s former speedster, he added.

Imran`s protracted bitterness towards the Pakistan Peoples` Party and anger against the Pakistan Muslim League left him with no alternative other than the MMA, which secured 86 votes, including those of the Pakistan Muslim League (N).

Khan`s vote for the pro-Taliban cleric has added to the political confusion within his party, which performed poorly in the October 10 elections. ``It would have been understandable, had Imran voted for a candidate that was nominated jointly by the opposition,`` said a senior Tehrik-e-Insaaf leader. ``But by voting for the MMA, he most certainly has lost his standing among the liberal, democratic and progressive elements in society.``

In point number three it is mentioned that the salaries of everyone below the rank of colonel should be increased a few fold. I should point out here that a person of mediocre intelligence (as the army is not known for very selective recruting) entering the army after doing his or her Fsc earns more money per month than a person managing to get into the Civil Service after a great deal of competition. In addition many facilities are provided for for army personnel, such as lodging, bills, food, etc as well as many plots of land in posh Defence areas whereas the same is not granted to much more highly qualified (in comparison to the military) civil servants.

I am not against their pay increases, I just feel that priorities should be set straight.

Shankar #13: Before I reply to your post (which is actually quite accurate), have you ever wondered why I left the military? I am surprised you have never asked me that.......

``hardly anyone on Chowk proclaims ``expertise`` on the subject matter they are writing about, except YOU``

The reason it seems like I claim expertise on subject matter, is because I limit myself to commenting only on what I have experienced and studied. I was in the Pakistan military for ten/twelve years. Based on that I am bound to know more about it than 99% of the interactors on Chowk, who have never experienced it - even if I spent my ten years sleeping. I work in Computers, so I know more about that than probably 90% of the people on Chowk. I work daily with Indians and on weekends go to dinners with Pakistanis. So I probably know more about Indo-Pak social relations that 99.9999% of the people in India and Pakistan. I am a Kashmiri and follow all international sources on it, so I have more info there, than most. etc. etc.

It has nothing to do with me being a, ``know-it-all.`` I just limit my comments to certain areas that I know about. Have you ever seen me commenting on psychiatry, jazz, psychiatry, poetry, psychiatry, details of the Hindu religion, psychiatry, Indian history, and psychiatry. It is better to keep one`s mouth shut, on certain subjects, and have people think one is an idiot, than to open it and remove all doubt. Perhaps, a piece of advice for you :)

Pakistani Generals, as a whole, are an incompetent lot, in comparison to Generals of India, USA etc. I am not saying this due to their indulgence in politics. I actually support their current indulgence in politics (upto the three years that passed), because Pakistani politicians (at least the electable ones of the feudal variety) are an even more incompetent lot (not to mention feudal and massively corrupt).

Pakistani Generals are not good at their own job. And if one is not good at one`s own job (strategic military planning), then it is a bit hard to be good at someone`s else`s job. Oddly enough, Musharraf`s govt. has still succeeded in making far more economic progress in the past three years than any civilian govt. has done in the history of the country - at least according to all international financial bigwigs. Pakistan`s international credit ratings are higher than Turkey, and many other countries. And its stock market and other indicators, in comparison to where they were three years ago, are some of the fastest growing, if not the fastest, in the world (foreign exchange reserves have gone up nearly 10 fold in three years, stock market has gone up 150% in three years, etc. etc.).

So, if someone who is incompetent at his own job, can take over your job, and do a better job than you at your job, then just imagine how bad you are at your job. Which is where the politicians stand. So Pakistani Generals and politicians are both incompetent - the later being far far more so (believe me, I have met quite a bit of both).

Interestingly, the thinking of Pakistani Air Force and Navy Generals is completely different. PAF and Navy never participates in any Martial Law. And they rarely, if ever, make wrong strategic decisions. The PAF advised heavily against Kargil. I know the guy who was tasked to do the evaluation. He was the brightest rising Air Marshalls in the PAF and was asked to resign, after Kargil, due to his lack of commitment on Kargil.

However, any Army is more than its General(s). There are between 450,000 - 500,000 men and women in the Pakistani Army. Out of these there are 100 Maj. Gens. and 26 Lt. Gens. and 1 Full General. Generals constitute less than .001% of the whole force. Unfortunately, people who do not understand the internals of the military attempt to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

The solution to the Army`s indulgence in politics is not to completely wipe out the whole Army, as an institution - Advani will be sitting in the living rooms of the expatriates who want this, within no time (if any Pakistani or Indian doubts this, they should spend a few hours in the Pakistani radar stations next to the border). Or to take advantage of the fact, that due to legal restrictions on serving military men, they cannot reply to criticisms in public, (interestingly, you will rarely see any middle class or lower middle class person in Pakistan doing so, or any politician even - this is the domain of the expatriate.)

The solution is to modify the high command. After all, what exactly does a Captain or even Colonel have to do with Martial Law, or strategic planning? He is working 9-5 honestly, trying to earn a living and risking his life when asked to. I have presented the solutions for this many times. These are actual solutions, after seeing the problems first hand. Not emotional tirades of frustrated individuals, who want to get some cheap popularity:

1. Cut the whole General Staff to 1/3rd to 1/2 its current strength, i.e 40 Maj Gen and 10 or so Lt. Gen. This will solve most of the problems, right there and then, and will improve the lives of the junior Army men also.

2. Sell off all the military`s stakes in the civilian sector. Many of them are actually doing quite well on the stock market, but sell them anyways. Militaries should never have private sector stakes. If a soldier wants to try his hand in private enterprise, he should do what I did, i.e. leave.

3. Increase the salaries two to three fold of everyone at the rank of the Colonel and below to bring them at least close to those of civilians. Otherwise, all the capable men, with qualifications will leave the military (which is what is happening now).

4. Distribute the financial benefits equally at all ranks. Rather than keeping the lower ranks poor and the upper ranks hogging everything.

5. Educate the officers who are the rising stars, in civilian universities in diverse areas like business, etc., like the USA does. Don`t just train them in local or foreign miltiary staff colleges teaching military strategy etc. (even though Pakistani staff colleges are quite good, quite liberal and quite open intellectually).

So on and so forth. I think you get the picture.

The most important contribution would be if the politicians developed some credibility amongst the local population, so that everyone (expect well-fed expatriates) doesn`t celebrate everytime the Army takes over.

One could also hope that ambitious Generals in the Army should not take over politics at all. But there is only one check that can prevent that in any country (to paraphrase Margaret Thatcher - even a Major can remove a Prime Minister, if the people don`t support the Prime Minister): and that is the public coming out in support of the removed politician. If people like Imran Khan start becoming Prime Minister, I can guarantee there will be no Martial Law, even if the whole General Staff decides on a coup. But when people like BB and NS keep getting in to power, the people literally start praying for a Martial Law (seriously!).

A time comes for most officers in the military when they are declared incompentent in that which they are trained to do. They are hence forced to retire from the armed services, but yet often they are later on appointed in civilian posts. This can be seen by the fact that retired colonels, brigadiers and generals are serving in all the different ministries. How can it be that when one is declared incompetent to do a job in which one has been trained throughout life, and yet become ompetent to do something in which one has no idea.

Perhaps the Pakistani military officers are just too good for everything except that which they do.

I beleive that armed forces should play no role in the politics of the country. I also beleive that Musharaf is not fit to be the President of the country. He is trained to be a soldier and should stick to that. But my question to you is: If not Mushraf than who else? BB, the shareefs...the chauhdarys...or the mulllahs. Out of this lot I would pick Musharaf.

In this article the author has raised some interesting questions but I would not agree with the author`s views about the army men not being intelligent. Having being brought up in army cantts and schooled in army public schools I have observed that some of the best minds I have met have been the sons of army officers. Many of whom are the Military Academy at the present.

``we are talking about a group, who enthusiastically opted, were meticulously selected and then attentively nurtured primarily to kill and to be killed.``
The way I see it, these people have opted to save and defend at the sake of their own lives.

Regards,
Farhan

dear nasah:
I wish I had some instant answers to your very genuine queries.
You are not alone. There must be a lot many on both sides of the border who are perplexed by this riddle, and would love to know the underlying reasons for this disparity.
A comparative [and systemetic] study of the subject is long due. I will definitely keep your questions in mind, next time I try to scribe something in this regard.
best wishes

Abrar Akbar

Abrar,

Best minds of pakistan, take romair for example join the army. Even hamidm was one, and there is nothing wrong with it. As an islamic country, army has contributed significantly to pakistan. Jihadists from all over the world have come to pakistan, enroute o heaven. Indian troops have killed jihadists from more than ten countries in kashmir, whic is a significant contribution by the military rulers of pakistan towards their religion.
Pak army is like the latin army, ferocious towards its own citizens, papaer tiger to the outsiders. Pak army is the ruling class, they run the electricity company, they make corn flakes, what more do you want. Pakistan will divide itself into two armies, the bearded ones and the khaki ones. When the two merge, we have the kalifayet. What is wrong with all this, one needs targets for daisy cutters, is int it.

lemme ask abrar a question -- for his very thoughtful insightful article.

when i look at the indian army -- and at the pakistani army -- same original army -- same training -- same tradition of professionalism -- same corrupt politicians in both countries --

what went wrong with pakistani army -- how did it lose its professional virginity -- and got involved in another profession -- as pimps -- deep in political prostitution --

whereas it`s other half -- the indian army -- despite rampant political corruption -- has remained chaste??

does anyone think the indian army is less patriotic than its counterpart in Pakistan?

Romair,
#11

I love it when you stand on a pious pedestal & lament about the bigotry, prejudice & narrow-mindedness of mankind...&..er, Chowkkind..Your Holiness:)

Awright..awright..you made your point. BTW, hardly anyone on Chowk proclaims ``expertise`` on the subject matter they are writing about, except YOU...thats why we have affectionately appointed you our Field Marshall---the only one who can see the whole chessboard..the whole picture...& then pontificate with the air of someone who has BEEN THERE>>DONE THAT!:)

Your right...prejudice is based upon our ignorance about a group of people & we human beings tend to fill in the blanks in our knowledge with preconcieved notions which are WRONG...eg, blacks are criminals, men are superior to women, fat people have no will power...etc etc...

But we poor, ignorant, prejudiced arm chair expert-wannabe`s have opinions too, you know! And some of us come to Chowk to learn about people , cultures, country, religion we are ignorant about. Coming to Chowk these past few yrs has changed a lot of my bigotry & have seen, first hand, the crap that is spewed from ``our side``. My impressions of your country, culture & religion has changed...much towards the positive side..thank you-Chowk..

Now, having said that...may I give you my unexpert impression of this article, subject matter & your post?....

,the author has said, in a different way, what I`ve been saying about the Pak military, all along. Yeah..yeah...MANY MANY Paki soldier boys are decent, patriotic, honest & good at what they do...but as an institution, it has impeded Pakistan`s development. Pakistan is a country that has tremendous potential--but the military has put a kaibash on it..

As an institution the Pak military is an arrogant bully. It has taken the self-proclaimed role of being the ``savior`` of Pakistan! In its infinite wisdom, whenever the military thinks the country is going down the tubes, it intervenes ``with all humility`` & ``with Allah`s guidance`` to resuscitate it back to life.

I`ve said that Generals look at strategy one-dimensionally--how to win on a MILITARY battlefield. Thats why the Pakistani military has LOST every war with India. (C`mon...even you should admit that if the objectives of the war arent met, the war is LOST)!!

Lets take the CURRENT military...Mushy was the one in charge of Kargil. It was TOTAL disaster for Pakistan. Yeah..on the battlefield your soldiers did great things & many of them died, in vain. TYPICAL one-dimensional thinking!! It never occured to Mushy that India would launch a diplomatic offensive (however deceitful) & trounce Pakistan on the world diplomatic stage?! Jesus Christ! Even your all weather friend China scolded you!!

Right, wrong or indifferent Indians (prejudiced all) believe that it is Mushy who stabbed India in the back after the Lahore peace initiative. Then he comes to Agra & grandstands & leaves in a huff. That may have won him allocades back home, but it certainly re-inforced the dominant Indian view that peace while this guy in charge is impossible.

His Kashmir policy is in shambles. Even his freedom fighters are pissed at him. IOK Kashmiris are resigned, disillusioned & discouraged that Pakistan cannot come like the knight in shining armor & save them. More & more of them, I think , also feel , that if by some chance this knight in shining armor does save them--they might just jump from the frying pan into the fire.. Thats why they are now trying to take their own initiative & make a deal with India! Why else would so many Kashmiri muslims stand for the recent elections---DESPITE the separatists` warnings that they will be killed if they participate in this sham election? (some were even killed)?

The Afghan policy of ``strategic depth`` is a shambles. True, it was initiated by Zia...but dont you think Mushy & the current Corps Commanders were active participants of that policy?! Then he goes on National TV & announces a ``strategic U-turn`` C`maaaan thats tantamount to saying ``we f-cked up...its time to go back to the drawing board!``:)

Yeah yeah...no country can run on auto pilot...but if you guys dont have a better alternative than Mushy (who pulls the strings)..this humble unexpert guy thinks youre screwed...

Allah does smile on Pakistan, though. The country is blessed with ``geography``...From a global strategic viewpoint, big daddy USA cannot afford to have Pakistan go down the tubes. Despite the recent polls that showed only 10% of Pakistanis have a favorable opinion of the US, the latter will continue to pour billions of dollars into your economy. That combined with the steady aid from oil rich Gulf & an increasingly wealthy China, its economy will continue to puff along..I just hope that Mushy doesnt repeat the history of his predecessors & squander that aid.

I just read the two newly published books on Pakistan by Owen Bennett Jones & Mary Anne Weaver. Their assessment of Mushy is that (eventhough he denies it)--he`s doing exactly what his predecessors did.

The more things change, the more they remain the same...