Bhutto as a paradigm

Submitted by Vijay (United Kingdom), Jul 25, 2006 at 04:16

Bhutto remains a paradigm of Pakistani elite, political, military and social who matter in Pakistan. Dr. Pipes' description "...................represented no ideas beyond their own power. They turned opportunism - the bobbing and weaving for short-term advantage - into an art. They adopted to the moment and to the audience. Ideologies and ideals mattered little to them. They saw arguments as but words, to be changed with circumstance. The politician serves as a vessel for others' interests. "

If the world wants to understand Pakistani character in international relations, or more precisely, it's decision (or non-decision) makers, the above description fits extremely well. Whether Pakistan's dalliance with islamic fundementalism or it's proxy wars in Afghanistan and India or it's ineffective military on the battlefield or it's nuclear proliferation or it's relations with the US or China, an unprincipled oppurtunism combined with cynicism is at the core as described by Dr.Pipes.

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