Updates........Pakistan/Mumbai; Israel; Protectioism; Obama and Bi-partisanship

      After a visit by Richard Holbrooke, Obama's special envoy, Pakistan has acknowledged for the first time, that parts of the Mumbai attack were planned in Pakistan and that 6 suspects including the "main operator"are being held pending trial. Lashkar-e-Taiba was responsible and Harper's( March 2009) has a detailed transcript of the  conservations between the terrorists and their handlers eg. " are you setting the fire or not?" "not yet, I am getting the mattress ready" " we have set fires in four rooms"... "keep throwing a greanade every fifteen minutes or so" "throw one or two grenades on the Navy and police teams" and " we have three foreigners, including women from Singapore and China".. Kill them" " don't saddle yourself with the burden of hostages"... Israel has made a request through diplomatic channels to save the hostages. If the hostages are killed, it will spoil relations between India and Israel"

      Pakistan has signed an agreement with the Taliban, operating in the Swat Valley,  whereby the system of Islamic law/ Sharia will be adopted. This area of 1.3 million voted for the secular Awami National Party in the last election and the Taliban (3000) have frustrated the Pakistani military (12,000) and gained control. This concession has exposed the Pakistani military as bloated and weak, able only to wage war in concert with terrorists in Kashmir., but when called upon to face a hard-core, internal enemy is found to be quite lacking. Is this the begining of the unravelling of the Pakistan? The 25 million Pashtuns in Pakistan and Afghanistan may be the next to win concession and maybe set up their own state.   

      The battle for the soul of Israel continues. Ego and selfish ambition (Netanyahu and Lieberman), against hope( a National Unity Gov't....a Grand Coalition). In the meantime Hamas has offered a six-month truce, but Israel is demanding an open-ended truce and the release of captured Israeli soldier. At least the fighting has eased, but Israel has to find a solution to its political tug-of-war, five elections in nine years and still waiting for a government .

      Protectionism is like pouring oil on flames. The spectre of protectionism has not vanished but is still present in the Obama's $787 billion stimulus package. There is a proviso that "buy America" will not be applied to Canada and Europe, if it violates trade agreements. Caterpillar, whose sales outside of the U.S.A. is 75% of its total sales, is one company that opposes protectionism, due to this and the fear of retaliation by China, Brazil and Europe. Canada which is America's largest supplier of oil and gas, and with whom it has $1.5 billion in trade with millions of jobs dependent on it on both side of the 49th paralell, and with NAFTA, is well placed to avoid this protective trap.

      At the recently concluded G7 meeting in Rome, it was agreed to avoid protectionism, which is viewed as a response to short-sighted and short term demands in the USA. There was also a pledge to discuss and implement stimulus measures at the G20 meeting, scheduled for April 2, in London.

      In the meantime Pres. Obama's offer of bi-partisanship has been soundly rejected by House Republicans and supported by only three Republican senators. It is very apparent that Republicans are not interested in working with Obama for political reasons. They do not want him to be successful, because to them this will bad for them in the mid-term elections in 2010. These are the same Republicans who gave gave George Bush whatever he asked for in tax cuts for the wealthy and tens of billions to fight the draining wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Bi-partisanship is good politics for Obama but is also good for the nation and the "brain dead" ideological, shortsighted and bitter Republicans will pay a heavy price in 2010. The President is using all his selling skills to win public approval and his town- hall type meetings and his recent press conference have been highly successful. His package, and it is clearly his, will work, not merely because it will redress the problems, but because he has credibility, and the American people believe in him.