All morning long and for the past week or so I’ve been reading one article after another about the Taliban gaining more control of the countryside. The latest is an article in Albawaba News titled Taliban Warns Afghan Civilians to Stay Away From 'Military Bases' in Kabul, Attacks Expected.
I find myself asking, how does an insurgency continue to exist and exert such force after all the blood, sweat, and billions we and other countries have spent to stop such extremism from gaining power in a country with a democratically elected government?
That’s the crux of the problem. “Democratically elected government.”
We and the other members of the coalition continue to expect Afghanis to wish to have a democratically elected government. Our politicians seem to be unable to understand something. The majority of the 35.66 million Afghans have no idea what democracy means or even want it! They are generally uneducated and deeply indoctrinated in tribalism and Sharia Law, the mainstay of Islam. Their lives are centered around their villages, their poppy fields, and their ancestral tribal leaders. It is only a small percent of them who have advanced education and knowledge of the outside world.
So why on earth have we been fighting there since October 2001? Nearly 18 years and the country is still torn by the horrors of war. Many reports indicate the Taliban controls almost 30% of the country. 30%! And that is only what government and coalition sources are agreeing to publicize.
War in that country is not anything close to warfare as we westerners know it. Elders send little children wearing bombs into crowded places to blow themselves up for The Glory of Allah to slaughter all those nearby. Soldiers, supposedly loyal to the government, turn on their fellow soldiers and coalition members, civilian and military.
How do you fight an enemy you can’t see?
After 18 years, the Afghanis we’ve trained and supported are no better at fighting them than are we. In fact, they are as torn and bigoted as the Taliban with their deep divisions between Sunni, Shia, and Kurds. What good are our efforts if they cannot unite themselves?
They’ve just elected an individual whose militia once fought against coalition forces to be prime minister of their government.
What an amazing reward after 18 years of fighting!
Is there a solution to this?
Certainly. Let the Afghanis decide for themselves what they want and how to govern themselves. Let’s get ourselves and the coalition the hell out of there. Today! To hell with the tanks and billions worth of supply and equipment. Pack up our military and civilians and bring them home. Load them on planes and get them out of there. ASAP!!!!!
“But what about …..?”
Who cares? Only the politicians and CEOs running corporations making ungodly profits from or continued involvement there.
What about you? What do you think?
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