On the other side of the aisle -- an angry blogger wrote "A Dirty Dirty Trick" about Khaleda's potential departure to Saudi Arabia (that arid moru desh!). Ma and widower, giving it all up for her sons -- heartbreak, Bangla style.

The "minus two" solution attempted to short-circuit the laborious, time-consuming court process of corruption investigation by expelling the two Begums. But Bangladesh is not Pakistan, and now these clumsy maneuvers have even brought two blood enemies back to talk of an alliance. The same two people were ripping each other (and desh) to shreds only months ago? Truly, Selucas ...

Hasina-Khaleda/BNP-AL: two entities that ran the country for fifteen years as their own private fiefdom. Two politicians who ruthlessly wiped out all democratic dissent inside their party and surrounded themselves with sycophants. Two groups that crippled a country through a fifteen year program of death-by-thousand-hartals, I-will-make-YOUR-politics-difficult, and plain old incompetence, corruption, nepotism, and runaway greed.

But now, thanks to the bull-in-china-shop tactic of the army-backed CTG, both of them have become temporary heroines. We are the ultimate society of spectacle.

In another part of the map, jute workers went on massive strikes in Khulna, demanding Tk 6 crores of wages (can we auction off abandoned SUVs to raise that cash?). "I'll commit suicide if the government doesn't pay my dues. The government should pay or kill us," said jute mill worker Delwar Hossain.

The CTG's response was as heavy-handed as BNP-AL before it. Instead of listening to the demands, the police filed charges against 2,500 striking workers. Once again the working class of this country is on the short, brutal end of neo-liberal policies that have no plan for re-training, creating new jobs, or a safety net. Where are Khaleda-Hasina on these issues? Busy plotting the demise of CTG, after which their gladiator wars can resume.

I wrote earlier (in "Why Are They Smiling?") that if the courts try to ram through kangaroo court cases against BNP/AL without due process, the whole thing will fall apart (if not now, later). We see signs of that already in the debates about bail hearing, due process, and now with the case against Khaleda's "house arrest."

Little by little these things could add up, and the AL-BNP could regain the upper hand. It seems astounding after the endless revelations of lootera state, but there is already come clucking of sympathy for the begums. With either party back on top, and in vengeful mode, deshbashis have a lot to fear.

I'm exhausted by the endless telenovela of Hasina-vs-Khaleda (marked by the jehadi josh with which Mujib-Zia photos are exchanged every five years), and want something different. Not the army, but something new within democracy.

I was intrigued by third force forays like LDP and Nagorik Shakti. Maybe they could be better, let's see. But with the CTG's ban on political organizing, these nascent third forces are unable to hold meetings, raise funds, go out and build infrastructure, canvass support, or speak to issues.

The CTG has to decide what its end game is. If there is a genuine intention to punish the godfathers (within due process), separate the judiciary, and strengthen anti-corruption commission, all with an intention to guarantee clean elections and make the environment conducive to the rise of an alternative third force, then that's where the focus needs to be. Too much of their (and our) energy is being sucked up by these ill-thought out, poorly executed, back-door dramas.

Riding the tiger -- when and how do we get off?