President Zardari: Monarch of the Ruins

“Oh, you simpleton,” replied the girl. I laughed because I saw that you had not an iota of sense or reason.”

“The Heron wished to stay in the lagoons, and the Owl in the ruins of which he was the undisturbed monarch.”

Conference of the Birds by Farid-ud-Din-Attar

The Muslim world was seen laughing and dancing in the streets after the operatives of Al-Qaedah slammed commercial aircraft into the Twin Towers. From Cairo to Gaza, a scene of surreal madness unfolded while Americans were still cocooned in a state of shock. There was not an iota of sense among the celebrants who reacted in such illogical manner. Apparently not understanding the nature of a snake they did not know that soon enough, they would become the next mouse. Human blood all has the same scent to those with a predatory ideology. Such men don't take sides and bloodshed for political advantage is given little consideration in the greater scheme of things. It is more important to keep the ideology viable than mere human flesh. After the attack, Osama bin Ladin and Co. nestled into the mountains and ravines among their own, and patiently waited. The Americans would come to them. Then the real war would begin.

Oderint dum metuant. Surely the citizens fleeing the advance of the Taliban hate what is happening to their lives and culture. But it does not matter, as long as their fear is greater than their hatred for what is being inflicted on them at the other end of a Kalashnikov. With an estimated one million feet in flight along the Swat Valley, a substantial percentage are the tiny feet of the most vulnerable of society. Next in line, would be nursing mothers. One should always pray that flight be not in winter and not when the babe is suckling the breast. For Americans, this tragedy can be hard to grasp. We fought a war of brother against brother to bring an end to slavery. In the Swat Valley, the war is one to reintroduce slavery; this time, a slavery of the soul and the spirit. No dancing, no music, no sounds of joy.

Acutely problematic is dealing with insurgency tactics which not only blur the front lines, but also function with invisible flanks. An elbowing maneuver tests the spleen of the targeted urban area for responsiveness to external threat. If conditions are good, the invisible flanks awaiting command then materialize to strengthen the elbow. These flanks, are now embedded both within the countryside and urban landscape of Pakistan.

Sovereign Pakistan is ultimately both responsible and accountable for their population. President Asif Ali Zardari cut his teeth on the politics-as-usual model for Pakistan. The powerful military class stabilizes the center and the equally powerful land class maintains their own status quo whilst fighting amongst themselves for political prestige and chunks of USAID. I retain little confidence that he has the necessary skills to weather this crisis. President Hamid Karzai is a cagey old political warrior who knows the ropes and has a knack for favorable stage presence with the press corps. He will do whatever is best for Hamid Karzai. President Barack Obama is full of hope, which is poor political currency on the international stage.

So the trilateral meetings will proceed, the Pakistani's of Swat Valley will flee, and eventually a nation will implode in more dramatic manner than did the Towers on 9/11. Too bad that those celebrating an unjust cause were unaware that the grave diggers of Al-Qaedah also retained a spade in the hand for them.

Tammy Swofford
tammyswofford@yahoo.com