Conspiracy Theories

My favorite conversation themes are trying to figure out what's really going on. Do the Pakistani authorities really know where Bin Laden is hiding, waiting to pull him out of a hat and present him to the US at some later date when nuclear power is on offer? Is the latest string of Afghan suicide bombings really being conducted by foreigners, or are Afghans jumping on the band wagon? Was the Pakistani president really ignorant of the US intention to bomb Damadola village in order to kill Al Qaeda's #2, El Zawahiri?

And now I'm rubbing shoulders with square-jawed, steely-eyed men working in nebulous positions within the US government, but even though they've probably got some good answers to these questions, they're not talking, and I can't ask. It's driving me nuts. Blathering on about the latest conspiracy theory is pretty much second nature to me, no matter who I'm talking to. With these guys I have to rein myself in or be subjected to withering looks and pointed silences.

Asking questions is so uncool.

I need to spend more time with aid workers.