Went to a riot and a rally broke out

I've been paying attention to the news, and of course have seen that Benazir Bhutto was assassinated. I think the US is facing a series of bad choices in Pakistan. Musharraf is a power-hungry dictator, and the two main opposition leaders were both considered highly corrupt. There's a military term for the current situation, which is "Charlie Foxtrot." (I'll explain in comments for those who need it.)

Having said that, what I find remarkable is the way in which political rallies, or for that matter funerals, are conducted. It's really hard to distinguish these chaotic affairs from riots. The video of Bhutto's funeral shows that they could barely get the coffin out of the funeral hall due to the press of crowds. Maybe I'm being an ugly American, but I just don't understand that.

I also don't understand how one provides security in such conditions. Human reaction times being what they are, some level of separation from the crowd is vital. As to who killed Bhutto - well, the list of suspects is long. Suicide bombers are an Al-Queda thing, but the Pakistani secret police are smart enough to know that. It's also possible that the assassin didn't know he was rigged to explode, and was detonated remotely.

Like I said, a genuine Charlie Foxtrot.

One Version of Pakistani History

From Making Light, here's one version of the recent history of Pakistan. (It's long - go get a cup of coffee.) Benazir Bhutto does not look like much of a saint.

I'm not sure I agree with some of the author's recommendations, but it does show the depth of the problems we're facing in that part of the world.