Musharraf: Three Steps ahead of Bush in the Dictatorship Race

Which country described below is the United States and which is Pakistan?

Mystery Country 1

• Protesters clubbed; 3500 imprisoned
• The president assumed power in a coup
• The Constitution was suspended and martial law is in effect
• Re-election of the president was only questionably legal
• Is considered to have become a police state
• Extremists are making increasingly more powerful attacks

Mystery Country 2

• 2400 protesters imprisoned in 2004 in one protest alone, manhandled, pepper-sprayed, and shot with rubber bullets
• The president assumed power in a much-disputed election, fraught with hanging chads, supporters storming the election returns recount, Supreme Court intervention, and admitted e-voting fraud, under-counted ballots, and other voting fraud
• Has been chipping away at the “it’s just another G*^ D$%&# piece of paper” Constitution with the Patriot Act, the destruction of Habeas Corpus (illegal detentions without charges or hope of trial and torture—Guantanamo is but one example), illegal wiretapping of private citizens, imprisonment of anyone deemed an “enemy combatant,” —can you think of more?
• Re-election of the president was only questionably legal
• Creeping toward a police state, via control of the media, federally-sponsored propaganda campaigns, violent silencing and/or detention of protestors
• Extremists are making more powerful inroads
  
  

As Mystery Country 1, Musharraf has little incentive to re-institute Pakistan's Constitution, nor to hold elections that might potentially oust him because he is reassured the U.S. will NOT stop its flow of aid ($493 million over next three years) to Pakistan because his country is needed to "fight Al-Qaeda and its militants." Condoleeza Rice was instructed to call up Musharraf and give him a tiny little swat on the back of hand, “Now, now, Pervez, m’dear, you simply must behave.”

Meanwhile, at Mystery Country 2, there are still months to go before the illegal administration is removed from power, pending the sudden growth of spine on the part of Congress to oppose the “Lil’ Dictator.”