Unrest abroad shows how lucky we are
by Pete Cunningham
*As printed January 9, 2008 in The Homer Index  

The world took a step in the wrong direction last Thursday. Society shifted away from progress and peace, and yet another victory was scored in the name of radical extremism as former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated.

Bhutto’s life suggested evolution, as she was the first female ever elected to lead an Islamic state. She certainly had political flaws, but nonetheless was a progressive leader in her country’s fight for democracy in an area of the world where neither female leaders nor democratic reform are well received.

Her death, however, suggests that the region has made no progress at all. Such a fiasco and its aftermath indicates that the efforts to shake the image of an extremist dominated region have thus far been in vain.

This is the latest in what seems to be a never-ending stream of political unrest out of the Middle East. In light of this tragedy, one can’t help but reflect upon how blessed “we the people” truly are.

President Bush issued a statement shortly following news of Bhutto’s death, and CNN reporters informed the television audience that he was vacationing at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Revealing his location spoke volumes of how far apart the worlds being displayed on split-screens truly are.

On the left stood Bush, one of the most controversial leaders in U.S. history, yet mentioning where he and his family were located was an afterthought. To the right was a scene of pure chaos, as mobs of Pakistanis escorted a wooden box containing their slain leader in a makeshift state funeral.

A similar disclosure of her campaign’s rout in the days before her arrival was no doubt a major factor in the mayhem being displayed. The scene also brought to mind the recent debacle that has been our state government’s handling of the budget. Angry civilian mobs flipped cars and basically demanded the head of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf. Although many might have a few choice words for Governor Granholm and wouldn’t mind seeing some representatives’ vehicles set ablaze, it’s a safe bet that the streets of Lansing won’t be jammed with a mob unless the Tigers venture there for an exhibiton with the Lugnuts.

Our good fortune is also evident at the local level. Take Homer Village Council’s firing of then-Village Manager George Strand last June.Although his dismissal left a sour taste in people’s mouths, no member of the council or community would ever wish ill-will toward Strand or his family. The same cannot be said for leaders in governments in other corners of the world. Bhutto, for example, is the fourth member of her family to be assassinated for political reasons in the past 28 years.

Though in her life Bhutto saw tremendous change, joining her father and brothers in martyrdom seemed an inevitability. In a September editorial in the Washington Post, she spoke of her return to her homeland after eight years of exile. She wrote, “I do not know what awaits me, personally or politically, once I leave the airport. I pray for the best and prepare for the worst. But in any case, I am going home.”

Her words seem eerily prophetic as less than three months after her return what awaited her was a madman’s murderous rage. While Bhutto’s life will forever symbolize democracy’s growth in the Middle East, her death stands as a reminder of how far it has yet to come. Both should remind us how lucky we are to call this our home.