Pervez to the Remainder bins

Memo to Coles and Chapters, don’t order too many of the latest offering of Pervez Musharaff. Somehow we don’t see his new biography becoming a best seller above the 49th.

The President of Pakistan, who apparently is taking time off of running that failing example of a government and the ever constant search for Osama Bin Laden, in order to sell copies of his testament to himself, put his very large foot in his mouth regarding Canadian troops serving in Afghanistan.

Musharaff made few (if any) friends in Canada with his declaration that while “his country has lost 500 troops" to terror in Pakistan, Canadians have nothing to complain about "You suffer two dead and cry and shout all around the place that there are coffins”.

Disregarding the arrogant jerks crappy math skills, (its 36 not two), perhaps if his nation was a bit more on the ball in the terror department, there wouldn’t be a need to have any involvement over there at all.

There is every indication that Pakistan is shall we say dragging their feet in the quest for Bin Laden and indeed in battling the Talebon, in fact it was his government that set up a special arrangement with them, to handle their own affairs in the border areas near Afghanistan, carte blanche to come and go as they wish. A decision which certainly makes for an unusual approach to multi national co-operation and hasn't done much to stem the flow of fighters and arms into Afghanistan.

Musharaff, who seems to be enjoying his time on the talking donkey tour, appeared this week on Jon Stewart’s The Daily show, 60 minutes and of course made that bizarre plug for his book while in the middle of a press conference with George Bush.

He made his disparaging remarks about Canadians in harms way, in an interview with the CBC, squeezed in between big time American press functions, a little bone for the potential book buying public to the north. For which we should no doubt be thankful that such a great man could spare a few moments for the bumpkins.

Today he’s in England, arriving just in time to see accusations of his own military’s assistance to the elements of terror that Musharaff says he’s fighting. A rather annoying bit of reporting from the BBC that probably wouldn’t be allowed in Perverez’s paradise of South East Asia.

We just assume that things are great in Pakistan, there’s no real issues to deal with, no hunger, no poverty, no unemployment, no anxious public worried for their futures and no need for that bothersome democracy thing. Otherwise a leader wouldn’t be able to dedicate such a lengthy bit of time out shilling for his book. Yes, we can only assume that Pakistan is a paradise, Musharraf its genial ruler and purveyor of kindly sentiment.

One can only suggest that if Pervez Musharaff is indeed working on the side of the angels here, then perhaps the war on terror really is lost. Because if this is the guy who is our “best hope”, then perhaps we had best stop hopin’ and look for something a little stronger to see us through.

Our only consolation is that the history of Pakistan suggests that the Prez’s time in office is running out. Since the electoral process in Pakistan is kind of a shaky proposition at the best of times, we can only guess that like the current, ahem, former Prime Minister of Thailand, Musharaff will probably soon find himself forced out of office.

Either by a military coup, seemingly the crowd favourite way of government replacement, and which is how Musharaff came to power, or perhaps at the hand of one of the many factions there that don’t particularly agree or like the gentleman.

Whichever way, we suspect that there won’t be many more updates to his publicity seeking tome “In the Line of Fire”. There comes a time in pretty every politician’s life when his arrogance and sense of hubris overtakes his true worth, tick, tock, tick, tock that’s the clock ticking for Musharaff.

We still are waiting for the Government of Canada to say something about Musharaff’s dismissal of Canadian soldiers and his complete disregard for those Canadian families that have suffered such a horrific loss. To stay silent and not express outrage, or at least strong concern is a baffling strategy and not a particularly great moment for the government of the day. If this is the quality of a supposed close ally, then perhaps we need to make some new friends. Lets try Dehli for instance, that might get the attention of the tin pot dictator of Pakistan.

As for his book, well we look forward to waiting for its arrival in the remainder bins across the country, the repository of those books that no longer hold appeal.

Something that the President of Pakistan would have already accomplished even without a book to flog.