Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Weirdo Diplomacy

Five Rupees recently had a post about how Diplomacy Is Weird, basically because diplomatic double-speak is the engine international relations thrives on.

You want really weird diplomacy? How about this from Peter Galbraith, who used to be No. 2 in the UN mission in Kabul and was fired after accusing Afghan President Hamid Karzai of widespread fraud during the last presidential elections:

“I don’t know how to put it diplomatically, so I guess I won’t — Karzai is a weirdo,” Galbraith said.

I may be wrong but I'm fairly sure this is the first time the word 'weirdo' has been used publicly in international strategic analysis.

Hamid Karzai: High Official? (Source: AP)

Galbraith, has earlier accused Karzai of smoking hash, which he feels is why the Afghan president tends to fly off the handle and make erratic statements. To be fair to him (Peter, that is), who wouldn't think that if the man most regard as the West's puppet in Afghanistan, able to survive only because of round-the-clock security provided by American commandos, were to suddenly threaten to join the Taliban?

Great. So now we have to contend with a hostile and high, weirdo puppet! But it does explain why Pakistan always referred to him as the "'tokin' Pakhtun" in the Northern Alliance government.

6 comments:

Ahsan said...

That last sentence is the bastard child of a Jay Leno joke and a The News headline.

Ahsan said...

By the way, not that I'm speaking from experience or anything, but doesn't smoking hash make you more chilled out, and LESS likely to behave erratically?

Alpha Za said...

Maybe he smokes really cheap messed up hash.

takhalus said...

Peter Galbraith, said much the same to fareed zakaria
p.s.:
spell check pyala?

Anonymous said...

eh? takhalus, if u're referring to "tokin pakhtun" u've clearly missed the plot :)

XYZ said...

@Ahsan: Haha, yes, just couldn't stop myself. As for the effects of hash, it all has to do with amounts and time spans. Yes, in the short term it is a depressive (thus the 'chill out' factor) but prolonged and excessive consumption also leads to paranoia and other neuroses. Of course, not that I'm speaking from personal experience or anything...

And as Alpha Za points out, who knows what else he's mixing it with?

@takhalus: Yeah, man, whachatalkinabout?