on the coat tails of musharraf's leaving

and king george's dethroning (i have my fingers crossed we don't enter into 100% martial law with the king never planning on leaving) we have THIS ugly story (not that it should be a surprise to anyone mind you)

POLITICS: Bush Covered up Musharraf Ties with Qaeda, Khan
Analysis by Gareth Porter*
WASHINGTON, Aug 19 (IPS) - Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's resignation Monday brings to an end an extraordinarily close relationship between Musharraf and the George W. Bush administration, in which Musharraf was lavished with political and economic benefits from the United States despite policies that were in sharp conflict with U.S. security interests.

It is well known that Bush repeatedly praised Musharraf as the most loyal ally of the United States against terrorism, even though the Pakistani military was deeply compromised by its relationship with the Taliban and Pakistani Islamic militants.

What has not been reported is that the Bush administration covered up the Musharraf regime's involvement in the activities of the A. Q. Khan nuclear technology export programme and its deals with al Qaeda's Pakistani tribal allies.

The problem faced by the Bush administration when it came into office was that the Pakistani military, over which Musharraf presided, was the real terrorist nexus with the Taliban and al Qaeda. As Bruce Riedel, National Security Council (NSC) senior director for South Asia in the Bill Clinton administration, who stayed on the NSC staff under the Bush administration, observed in an interview with this writer last September, al Qaeda "was a creation of the jihadist culture of the Pakistani army".

If there was a state sponsor of al Qaeda, Riedel said, it was the Pakistani military, acting through its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Directorate. .........

no doubt in my mind, i believe dr khan

the government of pakistan KNEW what was going on and more than likely sanctioned it. we pour BILLIONS of dollars into pakistan (i'm all for helping other nations. we MUST. i do NOT believe we should be funneling bucks into governments and militaries though. the money, if needed, should go to the PEOPLE that need it. the hungry, the sick, the destitute. NOT INTO THE POCKETS OF THE DESPOTS OR THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO BUILD BOMBS AND POISONS TO MAIM AND KILL OTHERS)

ABC Exclusive: Pakistani Bomb Scientist Breaks Silence

Dr. A.Q. Khan Gives His First Interview to an American Journalist Since Being Placed Under House Arrest in 2004

By BRIAN ROSS

The Pakistani scientist blamed for running a rogue network that sold nuclear secrets to North Korea, Iran and Libya has recanted his confession, telling ABC News the Pakistani government and President Perez Musharraf forced him to be a "scapegoat" for the "national interest."

"I don't stand by that," Dr. A.Q. Khan told ABC News in a 35-minute phone interview from his home in Islamabad, where he has been detained since "confessing" that he ran the nuclear network on his own, without the knowledge of the Pakistani government. The interview will be broadcast Friday on "World News With Charles Gibson."

It was his first interview with an American journalist in a series of telephone interviews he has granted this week, marking the 10th anniversary of Pakistan's first test of a nuclear bomb.

"People were asking a lot of questions, so I said, 'OK. Let me give an answer,'" Khan told ABC News early Friday, Pakistan time.

As to his widely publicized confession, Khan said he was told by Musharraf that it would get the United States "off our backs" and that he was promised he would be quickly pardoned. "Those people who were supposed to know knew it," Khan said about his activities.

If true, it would mean Pakistan lied to the U.S. and the international community about its role in providing nuclear weapons technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya.

A spokesman for the Embassy of Pakistan in Washington, D.C. said today the government there hasn't changed its views on Khan despite the claims he makes in the interview, "The government of Pakistan has adequately investigated allegations of nuclear proliferation and considers the AQK affair closed," said a statement from the embassy to ABC News.

A U.S. official said American investigators were also unconvinced of Khan's latest claims. "We have not changed our assessment that A.Q. Khan was a very major and dangerous proliferator. He sold sensitive nuclear equipment and know-how to some genuinely bad actors," the official said..............

yup let's bomb the shite out of yet ANOTHER country

first let's pour BILLIONS of dollars in bribes and goddess only knows what else, to the country, then let's kill 'em all! yeah! blood guts AND money. MY f**king money and YOUR f**king money. that's not EVEN counting the lives we're obliterating (i'm NOT advocating for the taliban or al-qaeda. i'm saying we have NO bid-nez bombing ANYONE in pakistan unless their name is osama bin laden)

U.S. Steps Up Unilateral Strikes in Pakistan
Officials Fear Support From Islamabad Will Wane

By Robin Wright and Joby Warrick Washington Post Staff Writers
The United States has escalated its unilateral strikes against al-Qaeda members and fighters operating in Pakistan's tribal areas, partly because of anxieties that the country's new leaders will insist on a scaling back of military operations in that country, according to U.S. officials. Washington is worried that pro-Western President Pervez Musharraf, who has generally supported the U.S. strikes, will almost certainly have reduced powers in the months ahead, and so it wants to inflict as much damage as it can to al-Qaeda's network now, the officials said.
Over the past two months, U.S.-controlled Predator aircraft have struck at least three sites used by al-Qaeda operatives. The attacks followed a tacit understanding with Musharraf and Army chief Gen. Ashfaq Kiyani that allows U.S. strikes on foreign fighters operating in Pakistan, but not against the Pakistani Taliban, the officials said. ........

what's wrong with THIS picture

our king doesn't HESITATE for one INSTANT in giving a FOREIGN COUNTRY 300,000,000. (a drop in the bucket when you consider the money we spend in iraq DAILY) when (and let's just take THIS ONE EXAMPLE) victims of hurricane katrina STILL suffer (as i said, ONE example. we're not even talking the housing crisis, the cost of heating oil and petrol for the cars or groceries or health care or education or on and on and on)
Bush waives law to give millions to Pakistan's anti-terror fight
President George W. Bush has cleared the way for giving millions of dollars to Pakistan to fight terrorism this year, the White House said Tuesday as a new government took power in Islamabad.
In a memo to the secretary of state dated Monday, Bush used his authority to exempt Pakistan from a law that restricts funding countries where the legitimate head of state was deposed by a military coup, as in Pakistan.
The waiver, which Bush has approved every year since 2003, opens the way for the United States to provide about 300 million dollars this year to key "war on terror" ally Pakistan to boost its counter-terrorism operations.
White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the Bush administration still had concerns about the human rights situation in Pakistan, where President Pervez Musharraf took power by force in 1999, but stressed its major strategic role........

i don't get it

da liebs wants to bomb the shite out of EVERYONE BUT PAKISTAN? c'mon da liebs, not them too? (of course i wouldn't trust ONE WORD musharraf uttered softly in my shell-like ear. sure he's a puppet of king george and his court BUT at the same time he is as corrupt and dishonest as they come.) da liebs da liebs da liebs, someone you SHOULD be afraid of you gently let off the hook. what up wit dat?
US Senator 'reassured' on Pakistan nukes
A US senator who met President Pervez Musharraf Wednesday said he felt reassured about the safety of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, and called for upcoming elections to be "fair and credible."
Senator Joe Lieberman said he had received a "detailed and explicit" briefing by Pakistan's military leadership on the security of the US ally's atomic arsenal.
"I was impressed by the specific explanation I had about the system that is in place here," Lieberman told reporters after the meeting, on a visit planned before the December 27 assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.
"There are some who have expressed concerns about the security of the Pakistani nuclear arsenal," he said, referring to doubts expressed by the head of the UN nuclear watchdog and others in recent days.
"Overall I felt reassured... and I will take that message back to Congress," he added.............

who is one of THE most evil people on earth?

Musharraf: Bhutto To Blame For Own Death
Pakistan President Tells "60 Minutes" His Government Provided All Possible Security

(yeah, she was responsible because she was ALIVE)

hey king george

musharaf doesn't give two flying yoo hoos about DEMOCRACY (just like you!!!). all he cares about (just like you!!!) is the all mighty DOLLAR (well, in his case rupee)
a bit of wednesday humor:

Bush More Emphatic In Backing Musharraf
He Says Leader 'Believes in Democracy'

By Michael Abramowitz and Robin Wright Washington Post Staff Writers
President Bush yesterday offered his strongest support of embattled Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, saying the general "hasn't crossed the line" and "truly is somebody who believes in democracy."
Bush spoke nearly three weeks after Musharraf declared emergency rule, sacked members of the Supreme Court and began a roundup of journalists, lawyers and human rights activists. Musharraf's government yesterday released about 3,000 political prisoners, although 2,000 remain in custody, according to the Interior Ministry. ..............

i was listening to

bbc world news on npr this morning and i heard some dude saying we were giving pakistan (well musharraf who then distributes it as HE sees fit. greasing palms and paying off soldiers so they won't turn against him and on and on) MILLIONS, HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS of dollars A MONTH. well, it was WICKEDLY EARLY and i thought i misheard all of that shite UNTIL, i came across this (and i wasn't even looking for it)

U.S. Aid to Musharraf is Largely Untraceable Cash Transfers
By Spencer Ackerman - November 7, 2007, 5:05PM
After Pervez Musharraf declared martial law this weekend, Condoleezza Rice vowed to review U.S. assistance to Pakistan, one of the largest foreign recipients of American aid. Musharraf, of course, has been a crucial American ally since the start of the Afghanistan war in 2001, and the U.S. has rewarded him ever since with over $10 billion in civilian and (mostly) military largesse. But, perhaps unsure whether Musharraf's days might in fact be numbered, Rice contended that the explosion of money to Islamabad over the past seven years was "not to Musharraf, but to a Pakistan you could argue was making significant strides on a number of fronts."
In fact, however, a considerable amount of the money the U.S. gives to Pakistan is administered not through U.S. agencies or joint U.S.-Pakistani programs. Instead, the U.S. gives Musharraf's government about $200 million annually and his military $100 million monthly in the form of direct cash transfers........

i'm stunned at my own ignorance. i had NO IDEA this was happening when i sure should have
and our veterans are homeless AND lacking care AND our children don't have health insurance OR enough educational supplies AND there are victims from coast to coast of natural disaster that have NEVER recovered and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and andand and and and and and and and and and and and and and...........

dana milbank's column

in today's wapo, could NOT possibly have a better title.
Hitting the Mute Button on the Freedom Agenda
By Dana Milbank
Just last Thursday, President Bush spoke of his Freedom Agenda spreading democracy across the globe: "We are standing with those who yearn for liberty."
Yesterday, the Bush administration unveiled a pragmatic new foreign policy: The Stand by Your Man Agenda. In the intervening period, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, a U.S. ally, had suspended his country's constitution, arrested Supreme Court judges, closed media outlets, and beat or imprisoned demonstrators by the hundreds -- using some of his billions of dollars in American military aid to impose martial law. .......

critical allies?

more like a puppet on his lap (or is that dick in a box?-which by the way IS wickedly funny if you've not seen it)
this f**ker is OUT OF CONTROL
U.S. Is Likely to Continue Aid to Pakistan
By DAVID E. SANGER and DAVID ROHDE
WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 — The Bush administration signaled Sunday that it would probably keep billions of dollars flowing to Pakistan’s military, despite the detention of human rights advocates and leaders of the political opposition by Gen. Pervez Musharraf, the country’s president. In carefully calibrated public statements and blunter private acknowledgments about the limits of American leverage over General Musharraf, the man President Bush has called one of his most critical allies, the officials argued that it would be counterproductive to let Pakistan’s political turmoil interfere with their best hope of ousting Al Qaeda’s central leadership and the Taliban from the country’s mountainous tribal areas.
Speaking to reporters in Jerusalem, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that ...........

Musharraf Leaves White House in Lurch
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG and HELENE COOPER
WASHINGTON, Nov. 3 — For more than five months the United States has been trying to orchestrate a political transition in Pakistan that would manage to somehow keep Gen. Pervez Musharraf in power without making a mockery of President Bush’s promotion of democracy in the Muslim world. On Saturday, those carefully laid plans fell apart spectacularly. Now the White House is stuck in wait-and-see mode, with limited options and a lack of clarity about the way forward.
General Musharraf’s move to seize emergency powers and abandon the Constitution left Bush administration officials close to their nightmare: an American-backed military dictator who is risking civil instability in a country with nuclear weapons and an increasingly alienated public. .................