Devoted to Managers and those that seek to improve their management skills

With the assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the question must be asked if the United States and the West attempted to reach too far, too quickly with Bhutto.

While we must consider that Bhutto was an adult and made the decision to return to Pakistan, at the same time, there was no way anyone could have offered her the type of protection that would have given her a chance to survive her political run this time around.

The United States specifically had been pressuring Musharraf to include political opponents in the process, and especially Bhutto.

Another reality connected to this region of the world, is the assassination of Bhutto for most people wasn't even a surprise, and was expected by many. Even the fairly unpopular Musharraf has had several assassination attempts on his life.

It's understandable why the idea of having Bhutto lead Pakistan was desirable by the United States and the West, yet the conditions of the country are so unstable, that it's probably far too premature to be thinking in terms of something this drastic happening in the region.

A leader can't lead if there isn't the underlying foundation to go with it. It seems the U.S. may have thought the opportunity was there because of eight years of military rule by Musharaff, but obviously that hasn't done much to make Pakistan safe or its people ready for democracy.

It seems to also speak to the possibility that what was considered a regional, border problem, has now expanded into the center of Pakistan, and is threatening the ability of the nation to even function properly; speaking of extremism and terrorism.

The hope was that a win in the upcoming election by Bhutto would help in the war on terror, as she was committed to fighting strongly against the problem. There were also hopes that a political victory would lead Pakistan down a more moderate path.

Unfortunately, what the death of Bhutto does is underscore the weakness of Pakistan, not show that it is emerging as a stable country.

To me, the problem is the expectations for Bhutto and Pakistan, were far too optimistic and ahead of its time. The reach to put her back into power without having control of the country, was an exercise in futility.

Until Pakistan gets tired of the extremists and terrorists, they aren't going to embrace democracy or freedom. Pakistan is one of the major enablers of terrorism, as they refuse to truly battle the problem in their country. Until that problem is dealt with, the ongoing instability of the country will continue. The terrorists and extremists want that type of world to continue to exist, as it plays to their strengths.

A people must want something before a leader can truly emerge that can help them reach it. Until that time, Pakistan will continue on its path of inner turmoil and destruction. Nobody can lead a people to where they don't want to go; at least over the long term.

In reference to Bhutto herself, even though she seemed the obvious choice to lead Pakistan, the overall country is in no place for that direction to be embraced. Until the idea of extremism and terrorism is dealt with at its root levels, and the extremists themselves confronted strongly and consistently, it won't matter who the leader is that emerges, they'll face the same thing Bhutto did.