Elsewhere: Understanding Afghanistan
If you are looking for a comprehensive primer on the state of affairs in Afghanistan—what are the strategies, who is making the decisions, what are the possible outcomes—let me suggest this extensive assessment by Spencer Ackerman. It is really rather long, but at the end of it you'll be much better informed about the whole situation. And probably much more depressed.
i wish there could be a cartoon about this because that's how i do all my best learning. my reading eyes are sore.
I'm too sick to read this today. Don't want to get sicker.
I am a simple-minded person when it comes to such matters. We do not learn from our mistakes. We stubbornly deny there are forces beyond our control. We elevate slogans to policy and are stunned when slogans don't topple dominoes.
We do not understand that our cultural and economic goodwill, such as they are, are our only useful weapons in Non-Westernized environments. We are more or less hamstrung to affect lasting change without global will alongside us.
Meanwhile, we martial piecemeal efforts to rejigger microscopic portions of societies we refuse to accept or comprehend.
I will gladly volunteer to be The Awl's Afghanistan Opium Trade correspondent!
I see this ending much the same way Viet Nam did. In about 15-20 years a bunch of Afghani kids are going to immigrate to the US in search of their fathers. Once they have settled here other family members will follow. Soon after, there will be a bunch of great Afghani restaurants popping up all over the place.
Khyber Pass on St. Marks is pretty good. Not great, but good.
I've just had home made food that an Afghani friend used to bring to pot luck dinner parties. It was pretty good.
My roommate in college was Indian, and she used to make the most insane food.
I would like to see an explanation of the administration's eager embrace of Karzai. And more Afghani restaurants.