"Elections will be held on time, so says Musharraf."
"And no state of emergency will be declared."
"Yes, he says the army is not to fight its own people...well, he didn't quite say that."
"He said the army will continue its training."
"Training for what?"
"I don't know, I suppose that's what an army does during times of peace."
"These are times of peace?"
"Well, we are not fighting foreigners."
"What about Waziristan?"
"Oh, that is different."
"I thought Balochistan was different."
"Don't politicise the operation."
"Right, and you are under training to be the Foreign Office Spokesman."
"Don't be facetious."
"But one question: did Musharraf say elections will be held on time before or after the voluntary resignations of seven judges and before they were declared to be on forced leave or non-functional."
"Which province?"
"Six from Sindh, and only one from Punjab."
"What are we in Punjab? Lotaland?"
"It would appear so. No principles and therefore some gain."
"At least we had one from Punjab, what about the smaller provinces?"
"Wait for a while and they will follow."
"I guess but remember the last time Musharraf took on the judiciary - fired everyone and got a new set in."
"But that was shortly after he took over power in a bloodless coup and he wasn't being wooed by the West at that time so he didn't care."
"So now is the era of moderation and enlightenment."
"Indeed - the West should be proud of it."