Can you say "Pakistan"?

What happens when you have a country with a huge army, nuclear weapons, religious fanatics, an unstable government, and a starving population? Can you say "Pakistan"?

WASHINGTON: The Pakistani state could collapse within six months if immediate steps are not taken to remedy the situation, warned a top adviser to the US Central Command. David Kilcullen, who advises CENTCOM commander Gen. David H. Petraeus on the war on terror, urged US policymakers to focus their attention on Pakistan as a failure there could have devastating consequences for the entire international community. Asked to explain why he thought Pakistan was so important, Kilcullen said: “Pakistan has 173 million people, 100 nuclear weapons, an army bigger than the US Army, and al-Qaeda headquarters sitting right there in the two-thirds of the country that the government doesnít control.” (Source.)

Are you scared yet? . . .Why not?

Downsized: Global financial assets (stocks, bonds, used bikes...) lost at least $50 trillion in 2008, an amount equal to an entire year's global output in goods and services.

Thought Experiment: The current economic crisis seems intractable, with no easy solution in view. Think how much harder solving the economic crisis will be after the global food system collapses; for food is but petroleum converted to carbohydrates, protein and fat through the catalytic application of credit.