Dog or Dogcatcher

There is no doubt that despite all the wealth and military hardware Americans are naive people. The cartoon in the DC paper depicting Pakistan or more correctly Pakistan’s fourth military junta as a faithful dog was yet another proof of this typically American naiveté.

Pakistan’s military junta can be labeled as a dogcatcher, which this scribe has been doing for the last three years. A dog is a better creature than a dogcatcher! Is it not correct that in the 1950s a Pakistani general Habibullah made a statement that Pakistan is like a beautiful woman that must sell itself to the highest bidder! The general was recipient of an American military award, which is given to dogcatchers in the third rate countries of the third world. No doubt the generals rise at least in personal terms was rapid i.e ownership of Gandhara Industries. No mean achievement for the son of an Assistant Political Agent. But then Ayub Khan was no son of a Rothschild ! Rising from middle or lower middle class origins Pakistan’s generals have done well and today own at least 25 % of Pakistani business and the whole poor Pakistani state, created in the name of Islam and occupied by an army which was the most loyal and obedient servant of the British before 1947! Allah may help Pakistan.

Coming back to the point, a dog has some sterling attributes like faithfulness, agility, bravery, and simple Spartan habits. To call a dogcatcher a dog is an insult to the dog! That great specie! More specifically an insult to a hound as the American cartoon depicted Pakistan’s military junta! A dogcatcher is a petty municipal worker, assigned to do menial tasks. Tasks that Pakistan’s military junta is performing well, first under the English East India Company from 1757 and later under the British Empire from 1858 and the American Empire since 1947.

What is the motivation of these dogcatchers? They are usurpers! Usurpers who have committed treason by launching coups. Thus the exercise of dog catching to please the Americans. To save their skins! To get American aid half of which is skimmed off and siphoned to private bank accounts by these military usurper. The first was the son of a Risaldar Major and did well! The second was the son of a gazetted police officer and did not care about money. He had a gentlemen taste for wine and women. The third was of humble origins and a man of many complexes. He opened the Pandora’s box of Islamic extremism for some very selfish personal reasons. The fourth is son of a grade 16 officer of the dispatch section of the Foreign Service promoted to officer rank in the last leg of his service and has many complexes. First he launched the Kargil faux pas, the charge of Light Brigade of Pakistan Army. Lately since 9/11 he has been doing the job of dogcatcher of USA quite well.

Dog catching is not paying! The reason is that Osama is not the centre of gravity. Everyday many Osamas are being created. Why? Someone may ask, because of the ham-handed and crude manner in which USA is fighting the war against terror. The Americans lack subtlety, this i discovered many years earlier when I had the singular misfortune of sipping Jack Daniels! That day I really missed my Grants and Bells Extra Special. What the Americans need to do is to play down the hunting of Al Qaeda and what its doing all over the globe! The anti American forces no longer needs an Osama. The fateful deed was done on 9/11.The myth of US invincibility and the tradition of US mainland being impregnable was broken on 9/11.Now all anti US forces have a clear road map and US or the interests of its allies are so globally spread out that USA cannot defend everything! The USA needs to review its strategy .It does not have to withdraw but it has to re-align, regroup not only in the physical realm but also in the cognitive realm. No one is invincible and nothing is inevitable. This is true both for US and anti US forces. But one thing is clear. The dogcatchers will in the long run be an albatross around USA’s neck. Deadweight and when the backlash comes in their home countries, more anti US states would be created. USA then would be fighting not against groups but against countries some of which may be having real WMDs, not the ones that Saddam did not have!

What is the analysis? Dog catching, the cheap manner in which it is being done is not helping the American cause. The dog catchers lose credibility in their own people with every dog that they catch and thus weaken the American cause in the long run. When a dog is caught it should be very secret, which is in best interest of the Americans as well as the dogcatcher. Making it public merely increases the resentment in the average Muslim. Even endangers the life of the despicable dogcatcher. Not a coup, since all Pakistani generals would be happy to be dogcatchers! Even Benazir and Nawaz Sharif are panting to be dogcatchers! Every Pakistani politician is a dogcatcher in waiting! But there is the chance of the dogcatcher being gunned down by a common soldier who has more attachment to Islam or may be another view of Islam.

The USA needs to do some inner thinking! Desecrating the Quran or glorifying dogcatchers is counterproductive. Washington should restrain its newspapers. By publishing cartoons of Pakistan’s military junta as faithful dogs the Americans are merely damaging their cause. Dogcatchers need American protection. Remember the fate of the Shah of Iran and Anwar Saadat two good dogcatchers. Americans, be subtle for God’s sake! You have the material might but what happened to your brains! Life goes on!