tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32931256.post8858891665986527438..comments2024-03-22T05:20:44.167-07:00Comments on The Disaffected Lib: Does Ottawa Even Care Who Rules in Kabul?The Mound of Soundhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09023839743772372922noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32931256.post-35891818489098456232009-08-21T10:56:39.611-07:002009-08-21T10:56:39.611-07:00The point you're missing Kevin is that to try ...The point you're missing Kevin is that to try to eradicate the warlords is to revert to the same position the Soviets were in during their occupation. We'd be at war with every tribe on behalf of a nub of a central government. There's nothing that unites Afghan's warlords faster than a foreign enemy to rout.<br /><br />The insurgency began with the Taliban but it has since morphed to incorporate other groups of Wahabists, nationalists, drug lords and common thugs. Even Hekmatyar, once a mortal enemy of the Taliban, has thrown in with them.<br /><br />If leaving is the "least effective strategy" please tell us what you consider the most effective strategy and explain why all our efforts have failed to accomplish anything these past eight years.The Mound of Soundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09023839743772372922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32931256.post-73317695729237423962009-08-21T08:27:23.020-07:002009-08-21T08:27:23.020-07:00A year or more back a senior official of the US St...<em>A year or more back a senior official of the US State Department testified at a Senate hearing that there has never been a valid Muslim state that didn't first overcome warlordism and tribalism. </em><br /><br />So, obviously, the least effective strategy is to leave while warlords and tribalism still has a grip on the place.KevinGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01076379572939635274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32931256.post-62369835907036459962009-08-20T18:30:19.685-07:002009-08-20T18:30:19.685-07:00The only problem, Kevin, is that the Afghan people...The only problem, Kevin, is that the Afghan people don't get to choose how and by whom they're governed. <br /><br />Tribalism, compounded by warlordism, pretty much rules out free and fair elections. A year or more back a senior official of the US State Department testified at a Senate hearing that there has never been a valid Muslim state that didn't first overcome warlordism and tribalism. Why Afghanistan should be any different is hard to imagine.The Mound of Soundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09023839743772372922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32931256.post-72814153145162360702009-08-20T18:02:09.486-07:002009-08-20T18:02:09.486-07:00Another possible explanation of the many articles ...Another possible explanation of the many articles treating the outcome of the voting as uncertain is that it is an effort to lend credibility to the election and to help legitimize Karzai in the eyes of western readers and viewers when he "wins".Doznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32931256.post-10050932582326121952009-08-20T17:44:15.780-07:002009-08-20T17:44:15.780-07:00"Shouldn't our government care whether Ha...<em>"Shouldn't our government care whether Hamid Karzai retains power in Afghanistan? After all, what are our troops over there for if not to defend the central government?</em><br /><br />Sweet Jesus. I thought we were there to help Afghanis establish and maintain a system of government that allowed them to choose how and by whom they are governed.KevinGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01076379572939635274noreply@blogger.com