Benizir Bhutto is blown up by a suicide bomber in Pakistan. For anyone who know something about Pakistani politics, this threatens to be the kind of event that creates total chaos and revolution. She is by far the most popular political figure in the country, and was on the road to being re-elected prime minister. The Bush administration had been pushing Gen. Musharraf to share power with Bhutto, thus defusing a very dangerous situation there.

Now all hell is set to break lose. With Bhutto gone, the battle for powere could very well evolve into a war between hated autocrat Musharraf and Osama bin Laden's radical followers, with a stockpile of nukes as the prize.

Update: They are still sorting out the pieces in Pakistan this morning. It's too early to tell just who killed her, but there are two very likely suspects. First, there are the Islamic factions who saw Bhutto's moderate/progressive movement as an impediment to their quest to turn back the clock to the 15th Century. Then there is military and their dictator-in-residence Musharraf, who didn't want to share power with Bhutto as most thought would be the result of the Jan. 8 elections.

For American politicians who talk about courage and convictions, they should take a look at Bhutto. Here was a woman who had already climbed to the top of the political heap twice, and was living an comfortable life when her country needed her. They tried to assassinate her on her first day back in the country in October, but she carried on. So it makes the blood boil even more when weasely politicians like Harry Reid can't stand up for what is right. Take a good look and what political courage really is, and what a real leader is.