Pakistan

Who killed Bhutto?

I'm quite curious. As an Indian-American, my knowledge of Pakistan has been colored by growing up with very pro-Indian parents, and a concurrent severe dislike of Islam. Bhutto may have been a socialist, she may have been pro-Western, and she may be anti-extremist. But regardless of what she is, there are people in Pakistan who would lose out, ideologically, by her becoming Prime Minister.

Sure, no politician can appease everyone, which Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney seem to be trying to do.

The problem is, though, is that Pakistan is a country fundamentally lacking in any sort of national identity. The national language is split between Sindhi, Urdu, Punjabi, Pashtun, and English. The literacy rate is pitiful. There is a significant Shi'a minority, and a large extremist faction, along with the occasional Christian and Hindu. The population is just as racially diverse as India. And there is no burgeoning IT sector or call center business to take advantage of the global economy.

In short, Pakistan is the exact opposite of a country ripe for democracy.

The country was formed a mere 60 years ago. It's entire national identity is based upon the premise that Muslims in India would not be able to practice freely in India. But guess what? There are 140 million Muslims in India (freely practicing and Hajj subsidized), compared with Pakistan's population of 164 million. Not exactly the basis for a national identity.

So, on facebook or whatever, I see groups where Pakistani Americans say things like "Pakistan Zindabad."

Wtf are you talking about? It's a crap country. I don't even go around saying India is great because, damn it, my relatives migrated to the US and became citizens instead of staying in India. They did it for a reason.

But anyway, I understand that the Bush administration has to make a show of face by calling for democracy in Pakistan. But, the State Department should at least realize that this is a country where honor killings are a daily reality.