FTFA:
But Musharraf, targeted at least twice by al-Qaida assassins, has a knack for survival. And he has at least one loyal friend left. Shortly after the electoral drubbing George Bush paused on a trip to Africa to pay warm tribute to him.

Ah, the classic "fat wingman" maneuver. If you drag your less attractive, less fit, less intelligent friend to the bar with you it makes you look a little better.

So the question here then is.... who's pulling the ploy and who's the fat wingman?

The retired general still trots out for afternoon tennis, aides say, and enjoys a game of bridge a few times a week. In the evenings he pulls on a cigar and, although he can't admit it, nurses a glass of whisky.

Typical rich fat cat politician.

I completely fail to understand Pakistan's system of government. They have a president AND a military guy that wields more power than the president, and then they have like a prime minister guy or something, who plays chess or, holy goddamn...

All I know is a) they have nukes, and b) Musharraf is not the most stable cat on the block.

I'm sure im not the only one to read that as "erection loss".

what a noob

Thanks for propping another Dictator, America.

Shaggy_C

Actually that's the old-school army officer stereotype more than anything. He's not a fat cat politician, since he's not from the landowning class which dominates politics in Pakistan - the same class Bhutto/Zardari and Sharif come from.

/not a Musharraf supporter
//was one until last year

This douchebag took over his country in a military coup, and was wholeheartedly supported by the so-called pro-democracy US Federal Government. He shouldn't even have been running the country in the first place.

And if Bhutto hadn't been 'mysteriously' bumped off (something which Musharraf had absolutely nothing to do with, wink wink), it would have been Bhutto (a moderate) instead of the radicals that would have won in the elections.

RadioAaron: I completely fail to understand Pakistan's system of government.

Why yes. Yes you do. As does submitter.

Musharraf was (and is) the head of the military. He took over the presidency in 1999 by military coup. he was re-elected as President on October 2007.

The recent elections were for the Parliament - the equivalent of the Congress in the USA (2 houses - Senate and Legislative Assembly). The leader of the majority party (elected by the parliamentary members of that party) is the Prime Minister.

They have a president AND a military guy that wields more power than the president

All the same guy. He is the president.

submitter: Pervez Musharraf, sulky after his election loss

Musharraf did not lose the recent elections. He was not even running.
Feel free to educate yourselves about one of the most importantnooclear nations in the world.^{^}