Friday, June 24, 2011

Dancing at the edge of a black hole

Fareed Zakaria says there is mounting evidence that "radical Islamist ideas — with America as the great Satan — are now reflexive for many in Pakistan’s military." He writes: "Islamist ideology is replacing strategy. For 60 years, Pakistan’s military has focused obsessively on its rivalry with India. Large elements within that military appear to be switching obsessions, and the United States is replacing India as the organizing principle around which Pakistan’s military understands its national security interests. If this happens, not only is the Afghan war lost but Pakistan itself is also lost. (It does not have that far to fall; it made its annual appearance this year on Foreign Policy magazine’s “Failed States” list, coming in 12th, above Yemen.)" Here's hoping Zakaria is wrong about this potential nightmare. The trouble is, he rarely is on these issues.

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