1. I have never believed that AQ was an independent organization. I think the best guess is that when it was exiled from Somalia to Afghanistan, it was adopted by Iraqi intelligence in cooperation with ISI, which was and is running the Taliban.

2. At some point a few years ago, ISI was left with the whole ball of wax. It was probably they who decided to rat out Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the brutal Palestinian who was running the Iraq operation. By that time it was clear that a Sunni government was not going to be established in Iraq, and ISI did not want to run the risk of provoking the Iranians.

3. I credit the report that OBL was living in Abbottobad for several years. It makes perfect sense, with ISI running things, OBL was a 5th wheel, and, he was “retired” and told to work on his memoirs. OBL was not running AQ with out coms or an office that had them. Besides, if OBL were important they would have at least provided him with bodyguards.

5. Did ISI rat OBL out? Most likely, What better way to get the US out of the neighborhood. Now, Obama can now declare the war won and exit. And they got the $50 million. And OBL is a martyr who can be summoned up to motivate the rabble when necessary.

6. BO probably bargained for three steps to the door. I.E. the US winds down the Afghanistan operation, and Pakistan keeps the Taliban on a leash and the Karzai government in place until after November 2012.

7. I despise and disrespect BO and don’t agree with him on anything, but that would not be a bad deal. Clearly, the war in Afghanistan is a war against Pakistan, and it cannot be won, or even properly fought without an all out attack on Pakistan. We cannot do that right now because our soldiers are behind enemy lines — literally. Get our soldiers out of Afghanistan, and we can deal with the Pakistanis from our bomber base on Diego Garcia.