Benezir Bhutto Has Been Killed

[Jacqui]

MSN and others are reporting that Pakistani opposition leader Benezir Bhutto has been killed by a suicide bomber. She was perhaps the best hope of keeping Pakistan from all-out war and bringing stability to that part of the world.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/0..._assassination

[Diane]

What a terrible thing...I believe that she was on the way to some sort of peace. We need to pray for them.

Diane

[Grubendol]

I've sort of peripherally followed Bhutto's career for about 8 years now. Very sad. Especially since she was representing a democratic alternative to the military regime of Pakistan.

[Jacqui]

I've been reading that oil prices are going crazy after news of her death was received. Gas here is up 12 cents in the last 3 hours and may go higher later today. The entire world seems to be in shock over this. Almost all moderate and some other Muslim countries are expressing outrage.

[1968]

Ugh. What Grub said...

[dbracer]

Classic case of the subject of Jacqui's Confucius by-line.

Respectfully,
dbracer

[Jacqui]

Lastest reports are that al-Qaida is suspected of doing this.

[Fezz]

I've been reading that oil prices are going crazy after news of her death was received. Gas here is up 12 cents in the last 3 hours and may go higher later today.

I always find it amazing that gas prices go up like this. Hey....PEOPLE...the gas...IS IN THE TANKS ALREADY!!!! PAID FOR......

Wake UP!!!!!


Maybe we as a group should instantly raise our frame and lens prices. I'm sure oil is used in both of their manufacture!

[dbracer]

Yes, but it will have to be replaced. It's called price projection. I do it in my own business.

Respectfully,
dbracer

[chip anderson]

Last night I heard a lot of Pakistani ex-patriots calling in on the radio. General opinion was She ain't no loss. The things they said about her corruption and robbing the country to the point of making the people poor.
A great many said she should have been executed when they caught her with her hand in the till. Many expressed similar opinions about her daddy who was executed when he was caught with his hand in the till. The lady was also very helpfull to the Talliband when she was in office the first two time.

Condeliza and George need to find much better people to put in power as puppets when they don't like the present regimes.

There you didn't think I would criticize the Republican Andministration did you?

Chip

[rinselberg]

November 12, 2007: The controversial return of Benazir Bhutto to Pakistan has obscured her equally controversial past. MSNBC's Richard Engel reports. Select ("click") icon to play video.

From Julius Caesar forward, to John F. Kennedy and Benazir Bhutto, charismatic leaders born of patrician families tend to emerge as conflicted and tragically flawed personalities when their lives are reviewed by later historians.


Benazir Bhutto in Washington, DC, in September, just before her return from political exile. Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images.

I would liked to have seen this Harvard and Oxford educated woman have another opportunity. I think she was smart enough to have learned how to correct some of the larger mistakes that were made (by many reports) during her two terms as Pakistan's prime minister. Here are two brief articles that I especially recommend: Be Careful of Pakistan's "Ms. Liberty"; Richard Engel; Middle East Bureau Chief for MSNBC; November 11, 2007; and Bhutto's Persona Raises Distrust, as Well as Hope; Jane Perez; The New York Times; November 11, 2007.


The former prime minister at a welcome home parade in Karachi on October 18. Daniel Berehulak captured the moment for Getty Images.


What's more fun than a barrel of fatwas? How about OptiBoarders weighing in on the CIA waterboardings of terror suspects . . . "Git" some here.

[GOS_Queen]

Condeliza and George need to find much better people to put in power as puppets when they don't like the present regimes.

Actually, I wish our foreign policy were such that we left other countries alone to enjoy their sovereignty as they see fit.

I've always wondered ... what gives us the "right" to meddle?

[RGC_man]

All those billions in aid, just so fundamentalist terrorists can be one step away from having their fingers on the nuclear button.

[bt5050]

It is a sad day when anyone - is killed to slow down democracy - however - the follow things have been bothering me about the whole coverage on this - and how some are not challenged - on the things they say

1- it is odd - that - the husband - refuses for a autopsy - esp with all the conflicting info out there - with what actually killed her - the blast - the gun shots - or know what the "Official government" is saying - is that when the blast went off - she fell forward - and fractured her skull -
with all these this up in the air - do u think this will turn into a anna Nicole - and she will be exhumed in 1 yr - after it raises more issues of turmoil - ?
personally - i also find this off base - since they say - any skull fractures would not cause someone to die this quickly - that it would take hours if not days -for this to occur --
I believe the doctor - that saw her - that stated - it was shrapnel or penetration - by the bullet -
i just don't see why - they would not want a straight answer - and i think this is covering something up- since it is not agst the muslims religion - to have a autopsy - and it is perfectly acceptable on the faith -
maybe it was a inside job ?
2- these folks out there throwing her recent letters stating - the p. government was not addressing her concerns on her security -
ALTHOUGH i saw many of her interviews saying she was afraid of the growing secruity concerns - but tell me this -

WHY IN THE WORLD - would someone with so many threats - and outright statements saying they where going to kill you - (even the evidence of the 1st 2 bombings on her life - - WHY WOULD she actually stand up - and hang out the sun roof - ?? (( DID U SEE THESE PICS ? )- it is just nuts !! she did go to school here - DID SHE FORGET the story of JFK ???

I really think what she was going ot try to do - was a good thing - and although the corruption card keeps coming out - form her 1st 2 times on office - you must also look at who was making these accusations - and more importantly -- WHY where these charges - dropped after the investigation - ?
maybe - someone was setting her up - or even maybe she did know about the bank transfers - but i doubt it - since it appears she had plenty of money since her family was so well known - and part of the upper upper class -

IT just shows - how easily MANY - IF NOT ALL THESE islamic states will just implode on the themselves with in time -
it continues to blow my mind - how a religion of " peace " would tolerate so much killing - they don't care who it is - they just either shot them - or blow themselves up- along with anyone else around - in the name of their religion - how long will it take for other muslims to step up and say this will no longer tolerated - and make a change after several hundred years - of this ?
JUST NUTS - if you ask me -

[chip anderson]

How she be done to have "touched our lives?" Surely Pakistan has many other flawed people who could do whatever she is supposed to have done or claimed she would do.
Is her death any more of a tragedy than anyone else's, in Pakistan or on skid row in L.A.?

Chip

[rbaker]

Assassination and terrorism are natural extensions of the socio/political arena.
.

[rinselberg]

From my perspective (which is rather limited), it looks like they were doing a very competent job of protecting Benazir Bhutto - keeping her well separated from the general population at that rally - until the very end, at which point, security completely breaks down. She should have been protected by having her make a prompt and discreet exit from that place in the SUV without any uncontrolled people getting right up next to it like that. Someone in her security detail should have prevented her from even having a chance to open the panel and emerge like that above the roof of the SUV.

Of course, I'm simply stating the more or less obvious.

But here's a thought: Many are pointing a finger of blame at President Musharraf and/or the Pak government for not providing enough security.

I have to think: What about the PPP (Peoples Party of Pakistan) ..? "Bhutto's outfit", in other words. Political parties need to have their own, independent security apparatus; especially in a volatile country like Pakistan. I think what we probably see is that the PPP has been too much of a "one woman show". Too much "Bhutto". Not enough "Party". That seems consistent with the other things that I've read about this woman.

It's worth remarking that many of the corruption accusations were lodged specifically at Bhutto's husband. And that Benazir Bhutto, following in the tradition of patrician families in Pakistan, was married through an "arrangement"; i.e. a marriage that was brokered by Benazir Bhutto's mother. It's been remarked that Benazir was brought down in considerable part as a consequence of a variety of unusual indiscretions on the part of her husband.

I'm guessing that her marriage was something of a secondary priority for her. Although she would probably have seen her children as essential to the future of the Bhutto family legacy: a legacy she would probably have done better to discard in favor of a more Westernized life as an individual or person - a "Benazir" - rather than the living embodiment of a lineage (Bhutto), an idea (democracy) or a nation (Pakistan).


Existentialism (as the 'berg defines it) rests its case.

[bt5050]

very interesting points - that you bring up - and i can agree with almost all of them -

as fo rthe breakdown of the security detail - THIS is so obvious - however - how about her own actions - She was a very smart woman - on one hand - but why would a woman so "" SMART "" stand straight up out a sun roof " to make herself such a huge BUlls EYE" ?? I guess we will never know what actually killed her in the end - and it will be something for the PPP to blame the gov't with for years to come - however what about her own ACTIONS ? -

if she never stood up like that - KNOWING what she said over and over - that 1/2 of the state wants her dead " i am sure she would have made it out alive after this attempt -

But on the other hand - the gov't must be some at fault here - since it was clear she asked for the same security - that other Prime ministers where entitled to - and did not get it -

and from what i read - the jammers and escorts that she was entitled to - where shabby at best - or not provided - and as for hiring her own "outside detail - as she had when she first arrived back in the country - was NOt allowed - and in the end - I guess if the president would have allowed her to access the government run TV - to camplan AT ALL --- maybe she would not have to put herself out there as much as she did ??

[rinselberg]

I posted links to some blog entries and columns that just came out in response to this tragedy ... material you can read quickly ... Christopher Hitchens and Amy Wilentz ... just a few pages of material that you can read on line ... find them here.