I know Benazir Bhutto's assassination has been covered here extensively, but I would like to add my two cents. A frequent cry from conservatives is "Where are the moderate Muslim voices? Why aren't they denouncing the jihadists?" Well the fact is, they do denounce the jihadists and one of the most powerful moderate Muslim voices in the world was silenced today.
When I first heard the news bulletin about Bhutto's death I had a visceral reaction. This was a woman who I could identify with, someone who saw the face of extremism and didn't flinch. She survived an assassination attempt only to come under house arrest and despite the threats from jihadists and the government, she never backed down. As a run of the mill center-left politician she deserves our respect as Democrats. As a woman who didn't give a flying fuck about the dangers inherent in agitating against a society unduly influenced by religious zealots and the military establishment, she deserves our awe as an example of the courage that we all wish have but know we don't possess.
As to the title of my diary, we've all heard the trite line of conservatives about the lack of moderate Muslim responses to extremism. Benezir Bhutto was the living example of that voice. She knew the mission of confronting extremism is lethally dangerous and pushed on without a care for her own safety or mortality. The regime wouldn't ensure her safety? She didn't care, her mission was too important. Her enemies were so fanatical they would send suicide bombers to end her life? She saw through their cowardice and pushed on despite the threat.
Instead of following the conservative lead and asking where the moderate Muslim voices are (without bothering to look), we as American's should be looking to the example of leaders like Benezir Bhutto who are able to inspire the people of the Muslim world against extremism and face that threat head on. Americans who support the use of violence to combat Islamic extremism but don't bother to put their own lives on the line should be proud of the life that Benezir Bhutto gave and ashamed of themselves.