There is no special significance to the recently concluded Pakistani elections - it has not shifted the ideological basis of the Pakistani state, and it is therefore going to continue going around in the circles of elections that seem to restore democracy, but it is only a temporary retreat into the barracks for the army. This is not one of those pastel revolutions that some countries in East Europe have had that changed the structure of governance in a significant way.

I say this with the authority of a inveterate Pakistan watcher, and the backing of an indefinite number of others like me, who have a special interest in Pakistan because we are of Indian origin or are Indians; and where at any time some one we know may be called upon to combat the Jihad that emanates from Pakistan.

As to Tibet, if I missed something, do tell me what it is.

Funny, many inveterate Pakistan watchers, both in and out of Pakistan, in and out of India don't agree with you. It was viewed as a pretty significant event, with quite a few possibilities by people in India who specialize in studying cross border terrorism, which I'm sure you are an inveterate watcher of as well. There were also people in both India and Pakistan who thought as you do. Your version does not represent the totality of informed opinion. And the murder of Benazir Bhutto got a lot of play in India as did the Emergency, for obvious reasons. People who remembered Simla found the assassination to be the end of a kind of hope - Indians, not Americans. The parallels of the Emergency and suspension of the judiciary with the '75 Emergency were quite prolifically editorialized in India in major news outlets. Kayani's withdrawal of the military from government is also not politics as usual in Pakistan unless you are a completely hardened cynic. But I will back off if you like. Just be careful: cynicism kills good things, even if it looks sophisticated.

You weren't really the target audience of the criticism anyway, I was ranting about the subjectiveness of American attention and its lack of attachment to the significance of foreign events that eventually bite us on the ass. I'm sure, if you are Indian and have followed politics from India as well as America, you know exactly what I mean, unless you believe that bus plunges are the most significant things that happened in India in the last 40 years.

On Tibet, there was a rather big uprising in 1989, it has been in the papers for over a week in almost every article, so if you missed it at the time, then you could have picked up on it this past week. Before that, there was massive unrest and confrontation in Tibet, and in Sichuan, during the cultural revolution, including pitched battles around or near the Potala. Adding it all up, the uprisings are sporadic and not continuous, but it is established fact that this is decidedly not the first stirrings in 50 years.

Now, for actions. Obama continued to attend Wright's church for 20 years

T.Suarez

Mr. Suarez, I am as disappointed as you that Mr. Obama is not Muslim, but we have to take what we can. Of all the non-Muslims in the Presidential race, he is ther best, tho.

Mr. Suarez, you can't have everything, and it's foolish to expect it. Perhaps a Muslim nominee can run next time.

Are you incapable of posting links? I ask because you make extremely damning accusations about people who comment here on Glenn Greenwald's UT without backing up your accusations. Post links of anti-semitic comments that were posted here by people who attend this comment board on a regular basis.

Huh!?

What in the world are you talking abou?! Who said anything about Obama being a Muslim?

Are you sure you're not mainlining morphine already?

I wasn't commenting on Churchill's views one way or the other. I was only citing him as another example of how the right selects extreme (or seemingly extreme) members on the left to demonize the entire left as a whole. (Folks on the right could accuse members of the left of doing the same thing, but I believe Glenn's fifth update explains how and why it isn't two sides of the same coin.)

I frankly know very little about Churchill as you correctly assumed; certainly not well enough to comment about him either positively or negatively in any way that could be considered fair or knowledgeable.

Thank you Mr. blank. Your reply was much as I expected.

You aren't trying to meet my expectations on purpose, are you? That would be very nice, but it's not what we do here. Please don't patronise me cause I do not have the understanding of these kind cultural nuances like yourself; no sir, please use the language, no matter how abstruse, appropriate to your social theory. I'll just use a dictionary if I can't keep up- I'm used to it.

Intstapundit did NOT link to the Obama story. He linked only to the post on Easter thoughts. Your attack on Reynolds is lame. Your great leap of guilt by a disconnected association is laughable considering that you give Obama a pass on his 20 years association with his pastor. The Easter thoughts post wasn't even made by the same person as Obama post.

Who said anything about Obama being a Muslim?

-- T. Suarez

Fox News and all of your favorite right wing blogs. That is up until it became more convenient to trash Obama for having attended a Christian church for the past 20 years.

A related point: Several commenters have referred to racism as being stronger or more common in the south, as if that was simple fact. It's a frequent and unexamined assumption that does not hold up under investigation. I suggest reading James W Loewen's book 'Sundown Towns' to see a fascinating investigation of an aspect of our racial history that he originally assumed to be southern, but found was prevalent almost exclusively outside of the south. It also shows why Rev Wright and other American blacks are unlikely to agree with Pat Buchanan about the gratitude they owe to whites. And that the projection of bad qualities onto the Other can be regional as well as racial or religious.