[2banana]

Under Suharto, Indonesia, unlike Pakistan, never engaged in rogue behaviour regarding nuclear matters. And Suharto created widespread economic growth that created a middle class that ultimately wanted democracy. The contrast with Musharraf could not be greater. Not only is Pakistan ruled by a dictator, it is ruled by an incompetent and ineffective dictator. Thank God this was not true in Indonesia.

And he also brutally suppresses Christians and looks the other way when they are raped, beheaded and burned out

[sukhoi-30mki]

I don’t know whom you are referring to here,but both Suharto & Musharraf have looked away when it came to abuses & murder of Christians & other minorities like Hindus & smaller Muslim sects-both have their hands drenched in blood.

[Old North State]

No, Musharraf isn’t Suharto, but that misses the point. The correct analogy is to consider what happened when Carter threw the Shah of Iran under the bus, that is, disaster. We can’t choose what leaders we want to deal with, we have to deal with the ones that are there, considering what will happen if they fall. Whatever Musharraf failings may be, the prospect of another Islamic radical state under the control of lunatics must give us pause.

[John Valentine]

And he also brutally suppresses Christians and looks the other way when they are raped, beheaded and burned out

You may be confusing Suharto with someone else. I lived in Indonesia for quite a few years during the Suharto years and the type of activity you refer to was very uncommon. Most of the outrages came later, after Suharto was out of power.

Your use of the present tense indicates that you may have Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in mind.