In Case anybody's wondering

You take one glance at my photo, and you can tell, I'm not Pakistani. So, if anybody has been reading my posts, they might wonder why I'm so concerned with Pakistan. I could give really good geopolitical reasons, but that wouldn't be the truth. Here's the truth:

I lived for a few years in Bahrain, in the persian gulf. I got to see up close and personal how things are in the middle east. My heart just bled for the Pakistani people. I mean, on the one hand, the Indians looked down upon them because they were muslim. Islamic Arabs used pakistanis as slaves, and looked down upon them because of that. Europeans, when they wanted to insult somebody from the middle east, would call that person a "Paki". I mean, think about it: when your nationality is an insult, you're pretty low on the pecking order.

Then, I learned about about what kind of a political football Pakistan has been, and how corrupt their leadership has been, and how desperately poor they are. You know how Animal Rights type of people feel about wearing fur? Well, that's how I feel about "persian rugs". Some of them are still made in Pakistan by 7 year olds literally chained to looms.

So, even though I know I'd never been seen as an equal in Pakistani society, I have always kept them in my heart. As mawkish as it sounds, that's really why I care about the place.

But, you want a geopolitical reason? How about the 7 billion dollar proposed natural gas pipeline from Iran to India, through Pakistan? Think about it. How would that change the international dynamic? Liquid state natural gas powering northern India, Pakistan, and Southeastern Iran. That's why you'll note that India sides with Iran. It all dovetails together: a stable, and modern Iran, Pakistan and India would be a pretty powerful alliance, don't you think? They want it to happen, more than you know. So, if any piece of that puzzle falls out, the remaining bits are going to be pretty put out.

Given what percentage of our technical jobs are in India, you've got another good reason for the US to support a stable alliance between the three. I believe the only real reason why Bush and company want a war with Iran is because of how much that would disrupt what they've done for energy production in Iraq,. If there was a major pipeline there, economically, they'd out-class Saudi, and it'd become obvious we put our cart behind the wrong horse.

Call me stupid, and soft-headed, but I truly believe that it's our moral, and economic interest to promote and support a stable, and modern Iran, Pakistan and India.

It's either that, or start trusting the Chinese with everything....