Al Qaeda doesn't like us any more

See those two gentlemen above with the one burning Obama in effigy? Apparently they want America out of Pakistan. I know, we're not even in Pakistan (maybe they want out unmanned drones out of Pakistan) and they've phrased their signs poorly enough to make it seem like they're cheering us on. But even with a new preponderance of professionally made and poorly worded signs, it seems we're no longer belle of the ball any more. Al Qaeda and the Taliban have found another object of their affections: Pakistan. Oh sure, they hate us, but they want to destabilize Pakistan itself even more.

As Taliban militants push deeper into Pakistan’s settled areas, foreign operatives of Al Qaeda who had focused on plotting attacks against the West are seizing on the turmoil to sow chaos in Pakistan and strengthen the hand of the militant Islamist groups there, according to American and Pakistani intelligence officials.

One indication came April 19, when a truck parked inside a Qaeda compound in South Waziristan, in Pakistan’s tribal areas, erupted in a fireball when it was struck by a C.I.A. missile. American intelligence officials say that the truck had been loaded with high explosives, apparently to be used as a bomb, and that while its ultimate target remains unclear, the bomb would have been more devastating than the suicide bombing that killed more than 50 people at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad in September.

Al Qaeda’s leaders — a predominantly Arab group of Egyptians, Saudis and Yemenis, as well as other nationalities like Uzbeks — for years have nurtured ties to Pakistani militant groups like the Taliban operating in the mountains of Pakistan. The foreign operatives have historically set their sights on targets loftier than those selected by the local militant groups, aiming for spectacular attacks against the West, but they may see new opportunity in the recent violence.

Opportunity in violence. I'm betting that's one of the motivational posters hanging around the cubicles at al Qadea's corporate offices. This is all kind of funny. For decades, Pakistan has supported and nurtured groups like the Taliban (thanks ISI) and done absolutely nothing to go after al Qadea forces in their borders. Wait, they did take billions of dollars in free money and weapons. They did do that. Now those same two groups are trying to destabilize Pakistan. What's so funny is.........oh fuck, Pakistan has a bunch of nukes. It would probably be better if we didn't let al Qaeda or the Taliban take over there.

Maybe we ought to scale up those drone attacks. Can never have too many drone attacks against al Qaeda and Taliban operatives. Unless President Zardari demands that we stop them in order to save his ass politically or demands that we give him his own Predator fleet which he swears he'll only use on the terrorists. For now he's only demanding the latter. Yeah.....no. As much as I'd like to see Zardari have half the Pakistani drone fleet stolen by al Qaeda and the other half used to stir shit up in Kashmir with India, I say let's keep that technology to ourselves. I just don't trust them to understand our technology when they don't understand our usage of the word "go".