More on the US-Pakistan-Taliban love triangle

From Sully:

"From their point of view, surely a coup de grace: showing their firepower and fanaticism within earshot of the vice-president. All that was needed was for the veep to be trapped by a snowstorm for one night for the enemy to act. It certainly helps justify the extraordinary secrecy the secret service deployed for the trips to Pakistan and Afghanistan; but it also helps justify mounting concern that we are losing traction in the war against the Talbian in the region. Pakistan is particularly the threat, after the peace-deal with the terrorists by Musharraf. But here again, diplomacy does not seem to be Cheney's strong suit. "Pakistan does not accept dictation from any side or any source" was Musharraf's original response to Cheney's strong-arm tactics. Kharzai seems more supportive - just alarmed that he may be abandoned in the near or distant future. Both Democrats and Republicans need to make sure that Kharzai knows that U.S. support for his fledlging democracy is solid and bipartisan and open-ended. And that the debacle in Iraq - and whatever redeployments may be needed to grapple with it - will not affect that."

I agree with everything up to the last point. Not that I disagree with that point, only that Sully's comment is a bit murky, because US support for Kharzai's regime isn't "solid" or "open-ended" and in fact much of our support ended with Pat Tilman and our invasion of Iraq. We didn't finish the job there, and in fact Bush did a Pontius Pilate and washed his hands of the Taliban years ago. This is the aftermath. Not only that but or lack of that very same support in conjunction with the arrogance of Bush's rhetoric ("We will hunt down terrorists where ever they are, and we will consider countries that harbor terrorists terrorists themselves") is what makes our dealings with Musharraf impotent and woefully ironic. Here we have an 'ally' who has made an agreement with the Taliban and no mater what Good Cop/ Bad Cop Law and Order type dealings Cheney wants to have with Pakistan they know that, under this administration, we need them more than they need us. This is like playing poker with my fiance--she's going to call all my bluffs because, in the end, she's got my pin number.