She's Pissing me Off

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Seriously. First it was with all the hype before she arrived; then the blast in Karachi that killed all those people; then over in Rawalpindi, the streets lined with an assortment of posters with pictures of her: devoutly praying with eyes closed in ecstasy and her hijab casually slipped on to her shoulders (a statement in itself); with a mount half-open in admonition and looking quite stern, usually with floating faces of two other dudes (probably supposed to appear noble and leader-like, but only managing to look well-groomed and well-fed). I think it's ridiculous that they're obviously trying to portray her as good-looking: vote for BB; she's getting on in years, but she's still a real looker!

And then, the final straw...

I'm running on perfect timing. My daypack fits everything I think will be essential for the next couple weeks in the North. All is ready, washed, dried (except for my socks), packed and ready to go. I have a ticket reserved for the 9am departure to Besham (on the way to Gilgit). I take a covered-wagon pickup (they strangely resemble pioneer wagons, except these have 3-4 people hanging on in the back, and are colorfully and intricately decorated, and have chains and metal discs that scrape along the asphalt when the car is overloaded). Then a motorcycle converted into a 6-person (plus driver) carrier. No, not a rickshaw, a work of pure genius. I make it to the bus station in excellent time, ticket is purchased, breakfast (paratha, omlette, dood pathi chai) eaten. Ready to go.

No. There's a State of Emergency. The police have blocked off all roads. No vehicles can enter or exit the cordon. Wait around. Maybe it'll eventually clear up. 6 hours later I've given up. "There had better be some kind of suicide attack or anti-foreigner violence or another good reason why the universe dragged me out of bed and kept me at the bus station all day."

The people-carrier motorcycle drops us off in some unfamiliar spot. Never look surprised. Never admit to being lost. There are fruit and vegetable carts overturned and blocking the road, and some police with bamboo sticks lounging around. Barricades?! Is the revolution coming? No. These flimsy roadblocks are the work of Pindi's Finest. Following the crowd, I come across a large group of men in skull-caps and beards. Kids, really. There's something about to happen. Pretty soon they start chanting. If I wasn't tired I'd stick around... I see an American-looking Asian girl wearing pant-shirt and with a very conspicuous camera. She sees the forming mob and turns back. Further up the road, flushed faces and a sudden stampede. I dive into the nearest enclave out of the traffic. Tear gas? No, Riders on the Storm. Doubled-up motorcycle cops charging into the crowd of fleeing pedestrians, the rear ones swinging bamboo sticks at a few unfortunate enough to be within reach. One of them has two sticks. I bet he thinks he's real cool. I look at people's faces: even those clearly involved in mischief seem to be having fun, and the cops aren't pissed off either. They stop to greet and kiss some venerable-looking bystanders. Nope. No Revolution Yet.

I make my way back to the hotel, weaving through seriously winding lanes (all the main throughfares are blocked), following wherever people seem to be headed. Whoever said that about "the road less traveled" was seriously wrong! If the road is less-traveled there's probably a pretty good reason for it.

Back at the hotel. Back already? Oh yeah, Bhutto was in town and there was supposed to be some rally. That's why the roads were blocked. I guess we forgot to tell you. Bhutto? I'm disappointed. Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? Bhutto?! WTF does she have to do with anything? Isn't she yet another puppet figure, and isn't this "power struggle" between "democratic opposition" and a "military dictatorship" just a charade? Like people said in Iran about Bush, Ahmedinejad, and bin Laden: they're all friends and working together behind the scenes, and the "conflict" is just to make donkeys out of people. Who takes Bhutto seriously? And those religious dudes out on the street... they clearly weren't chanting for good-looking Benazir, were they?

No, the Religious Dudes are out in support of the Supreme Court justice who had some detainees-without-charged (disappeared persons) released. Hmmm... sounds like something Bush wouldn't like either. And Bhutto? She's against the religious people; she's said so in the pats. She wants a liberal Pakistan. Yes, a liberal Islamic State of... makes a lot of sense. Or, in other words, she wants to defend the interests of the rich elite and their international paymasters. "This man, this Mr Musharraf, he says he is president of Pakistan, but really he is like CIA agent for America. Everything America say he do."

Yes, and they make donkeys out of all of us.

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Comments

[Mj]

Wow
Amazing, simply loved your story telling and writing style. It is so true ''the "conflict" is just to make donkeys out of people''.

[Mr. Rheaman]

Money Up Front or Bullet in the Back
It's been two years since your wrote your post. Now that the terrorists are killing innocent Pakistanis by the thousands, do you still think the good guys are trying to make donkeys out of you? The good guys are still preaching democracy. The bad guys are the ones who are currently attacking Pakistan from the inside. America gives Pakistan money, arms, support. The terrorists give you death. Choose wisely.