“Man, I’m such a character out of Kipling!“
Keeping his campaign promises to focus the fight in Afghanistan, President Obama is going to soon announce how many more soldiers he will dump into the murderous mess there. After 30 years of conflict, fighting and turmoil, it either should be much, much more, or a huge negative sum — meaning withdrawal. Of course, it won’t be the latter as wise as it is because there is too much face to lose and too little pressure for a pullout from the Iraq-obsessed public.
Today, coordinated attacks hit the capital, gun attacks and suicide bombs, Afghanistan’s government is revealed as weaker. British officials are not very positive in their assessment of their fight against the Taliban. Foreign Secretary David Miliband said NATO was in a stalemate. Not everyone agree. Canadian Defence Minster Peter MacKay said that real, but very slow, progress is being made in Afghanistan. It’s a perceptual thing. Where Miliband sees stalemate, MacKay sees very slow, incremental change.
The Afghan people, according to polls, are displeased with Karzai despite his ability to continue to dress fabulously after all these years. They do not welcome the Taliban back, who would. The western imperial powers are not very happy with puppet Karzai because of the government’s failure to govern and rampant corruption. (Side question: Why do puppets always seem to disappoint their masters? Arafat, Noriega, and Saddam come to mind.)
As despicable as the Taliban are, they really seem destined to reign. It has been seven years and they are still going, and appear much stronger than they were. The political stasis and the American answer of pouring more troops seems to be going nowhere. Why not cede the country back to the Taliban, who are Afghans after all, and negotiate terms such as trying and arresting Al-Qaeda, and observing the constitution, not retaliating, etc. The western powers could mitigate suffering by opening their borders to Afghan asylum-seekers. Karzai can move back to Fremont, CA or wherever he was. Sure the Taliban would be nuts at first, but over time could moderate their views as the responsibilities of power hit them, especially if the world engages with them using carrots and not the Bushian sticks-only approach that Obama is furthering.
Let Afghanistan be stable and then develop. Development before stability sure has not worked.
Before you accuse me of ideal naivete, you have to remember that that political conditions of the country are the same as the ones that brought the Taliban into power in the first place. They came to power to unify a highly divided, drug crop-infested, warlord-run country reeling after years of foreign occupation. It is silly for Americans, Britons, and especially Canadians to think they can change the structural circumstances of historic tides. They seem much better off negotiating with them. Unfortunately, those in power would prefer to stay in a quagmire with few political costs for the time being than take the historically sound course of action.
I am as against the Taliban as anyone. But I find the misguided impulses behind remaking Afghnaitan’s political order to be only deadly and guaranteeing more years of instability and fighting — and the more they push the Taliban down, the crazier they will be when they take power.
Filed Under afghanistan, obama, war of terror, Will
[W]e cannot win a war in Afghanistan. Remember the Soviet Union? the British? the Greeks? the whoever thought they could win a war in Afghanistan, ever?
Posted by Sword | February 11, 2009, 7:35 amOf course, it won’t be the latter as wise as it is because there is too much face to lose and too little pressure for a pullout from the Iraq-obsessed public.
That is, of course, a lie, Will. Nobody really gives a shit about the nation building project in Afghanistan except the Europeans. The US doesn’t have any prestige on the line there. The most obvious answer is for the US/NATO to tell Karzai to go ahead and court the Russians, next time he threatens to. The other option (and the one Obama seems to be calling for) is taking the war into Pakistan, since it is Pakistan that has been keeping them afloat all these years. I don’t favor that one, and I’m guessing you don’t, either. The US needs to figure out a way to disengage from South Asia… we have other concerns, these days. I could make a pretty good argument that OBL is no better off in Afghanistan than where he is in Pakistan, anyway, and in fact if he does relocate to Afghanistan it’ll be a hell of a lot easier to go after him there, when the time is right.
Posted by programmer craig | February 11, 2009, 7:41 amBefore you accuse me of ideal naivete
Who would do such a thing?! You’re a dangerous person. You believe dangerous things. You are most certainly NOT naive.
You were absolutely, categorically wrong on Iraq. You are wrong on Afghanistan.
You wouldn’t surrender Palestine to the Jews, but you support the surrender of a nation of 25 million people back into Middle Age barbarism.
I am as against the Taliban as anyone.
Clearly not, because your first and only option is to SURRENDER to them!
guaranteeing more years of instability and fighting
Really? Afghanistan has known the most peaceful seven and prosperous years than since the 1970s. Kabul is a diamond of stability and development. An entire generation of Afghans has now been born into freedom – of religion, education, opportunity.
You would surrender all that. How do you look at yourself in the mirror?
Posted by Anonymous | February 11, 2009, 8:36 amPC, put your mouse over the image in this post, and read the end part of the URL ("Afghan_fighter.jpg")Does that look like an "Afghan fighter" to you? The headgear looks British. I suppose it's possible the Brits donated helmets… Look at what he's holding. It looks to me like a heavily modded SA80, standard issue British assault rifle, about 20 times the cost of an AK-47.That's not an "Afghan fighter", it's British infantry but it tells you something that this is how Will chose to save the file.
Posted by Anonymous | February 11, 2009, 5:11 amThat’s not an “Afghan fighter”, it’s British infantry but it tells you something that this is how Will chose to save the file.
Yes, well, I discounted Will’s false claims of being anti-Taliban as soon as I read them
It’s a bit impossible for somebody who supports Hamas to claim that they oppose the Taliban on moral grounds, and Will is obviously “pro-resistance”, when that resistance is against the US or Israel.
Posted by programmer craig | February 11, 2009, 11:35 amActually Will was right about Iraq and everything he is writing concerning Afghanistan would be in the best interests of everyone.
Development without stability, its common sense that this approach is retarded.
Posted by Arayus | February 11, 2009, 11:36 amArayus, are you insane?
Will would turn Afghanistan over to barbarians! Has ANYONE ELSE seen the Kite Runner? You people are absolutely out of your mind.
Stability? You close your eyes to the suffering and oppression of millions and call it stability.
Posted by Anonymous | February 11, 2009, 12:30 pmActually Will was right about Iraq…
No, he wasn’t, and his team lost in iraq, which is why he doesn’t talk about Iraq anymore. Iraq was only good for Will (and KABOBfest) from 2005 to 2007, when they could laugh about all the innocent Iraqis being killed by the Muj, all the Iraqi widows, orphans and refugees, ans so forth, and blame it all on the US.
This is propaganda 101, Arayus. The Iraq story is no longer worth telling, here.
and everything he is writing concerning Afghanistan would be in the best interests of everyone.
Nonsense. If Will advocates something, it isn’t in ANYONE’S best interest to listen, unless you happen to be an anarcho-socialist like he is. And even then, unless you are also a sick son of a bitch who doesn’t care about how many people suffer as long as your agenda gets served, you’re better off paying him no mind.
Posted by programmer craig | February 11, 2009, 2:24 pmit was in the East this war took fire, today the whole earth is its theater, like the game of love, this game goes on forever
Posted by riskability | February 12, 2009, 7:16 amit was in the East this war took fire, today the whole earth is its theater, like the game of love, this game goes on forever
Or not. Arabs have no capacity to escalate. The same cannot be said, for the rest of the world. This will end, one way or another.
Posted by programmer craig | February 12, 2009, 8:43 am“”Why not cede the country back to the Taliban, who are Afghans after all, and negotiate terms such as trying and arresting Al-Qaeda, and observing the constitution, not retaliating, etc.”"
Uh, what?
I dunno about you, but I’m willing to give a LOT of American lives so that the people of Afghanistan don’t have to live under a barbaric theocracy. And, considering that I’m actively looking at working for the Coalition in Afghanistan in the future if that’s where I can do the most good, that body count includes my own.
If you’re not willing? Go fuck yourself. The people of Afghanistan deserve better.
Posted by Joe | February 12, 2009, 7:02 pmAlso, way to play the total-bullshit card of “Well, Afghanistan has always been this way”.
They used to have a secular-liberal-leaning parliament! They gave women the right to vote before Switzerland did!
Way to be ahistorical, asshole.
Posted by Joe | February 16, 2009, 10:49 pmCurrently it sounds like WordPress is the best blogging platform out there right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you’re using on your website?
Posted by A few of my favourite things | May 21, 2013, 9:29 pm