I still think Asif Zardari was somehow involved in his wife’s murder. He had everything to gain from Benazir Bhutto’s demise. Although I’m one of the few with the foolishness to express such sentiments in public, I doubt I’m the only person who suspects “Mr. 10%”, especially given how he swaggered after his wife’s death.

With Musharraf gone, I think the lid will be off of the cauldron of Pakistani politics. I will likely get nastier from here on out. We want to defeat the Taliban; most Pakistanis don’t and moreover resent the entire idea that they should be expected to fight other Muslims. It’s the fashion now in Pakistan for cocky Pakistani officials to hint at arming the Taliban while tartly telling the Americans to go to Hell. Musharraf, to his credit, knew the Americans meant business in the aftermath of 9-11 and knew that Pakistan would be attacked by the United States if Pakistan didn’t cooperate, Pakistan’s nuclear deterrent be damned. Now, Musharraf is vilified in Pakistan because America is perceived to be a paper tiger by Pakistan’s ruling elite (and that includes the Pakistani press).

I am inclined to take CIA officials at face value when they claim that the ISI is aggressively attacking American forces. I’m reminded of what Boss Tweed once said:

“What are you going to do about it?