In yet another attempt to dislodge the foot that he had swallowed in the last Republican presidential debate (the oops moment), Governor Perry has decided to chew on Pakistan as a laxative to excrete the said foot through the other extremity of his long intestine. [Watch the video here]
It seems as if having run out of usual slogans for do-nothing economics and other extreme forms of social conservatism, Mr. Perry is now attempting to forge a tough guy image and Pakistan, it seems, is an ideal whipping boy for this exercise.
It is sad to see this sham policy debate as all the candidates excrete is the xenophobic and tetosterone-driven drivel that somehow counts toward their increasingly diminishing constituencies. So, Mr. Perry would expect Pakistan to continue losing its civilians and soldiers for a US imposed war and then come and beg for some help. This kind of politics might work in Texas, where Mr. Perry has had cordial relationships with rich so-called Job-Creators, but would not serve the US well in the international arena. Providing financial aid to one’s friends is the only tangible way of ensuring them of US committment to peace and stability in the region and if that aid is withdrawn to safeguard domestic political agenda then the consequences of such actions would not just be pertinent to the region.
So, in all sincerity I hope that Mr. Perry finds some other remedy to cure his own image problem and a little bit of reflection before opening his mouth would be a good first step toward curing this affliction of the mouth.
