The edge of the Pakistani knife

It is true that the lawyers’ movement, if it destroys Musharraf, could create more problems than it solves. The fall of Musharraf could well lead to the rise of violent political Islam. I certainly believe that no civilian government on its own can put that genie back in the bottle. But, if idealism is naïveté, then so be it. It is ideals that move history forward—think of Gandhi or Martin Luther King. Many thought they were politically naïve, but it was they, not the realists, who succeeded in changing the course of history.

-- Jugnu Mohsin, the publisher of the Friday Times, talking to William Dalrymple (Days of Rage).

[P.S. 16.30 BST: Meanwhile, Paul Rogers notes, the U.S. makes ready the Reaper.]