Thoughts on the Middle East, History, and Religion
Juan Cole is President of the Global Americana Institute
All hell seems to be breaking loose in Afghanistan, at a time when most Western observers are focusing on the Georgia crisis. Ten French troops killed by 100 guerrillas. An attack on US troops in Khost, then a bombing there. It is 1982 all over again only it is NATO being targeted now.
AP has video:
posted by Juan Cole @ 8/20/2008 12:59:00 AM
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Winner, October 5, 2007, Scott Nearing Award for Courageous Scholarship (Awarded by the Graduate Students of the Political Science Department, University of Pennsylvania).
Winner, 2005 James Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism, Hunter College.
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8 Comments:
At the end of the AP report: French sources state that the attacks only hardened their resolve to oust insurgents from Afghanistan.
When are they going to accept that it's the Afghans who are fighting them? Are they going to oust Afghans from Afghanistan?
To Afghans, fighting foreign invaders is a national sport, ranking high along with Buskhazi as something you have fun doing, the outcome given. Always, Afghans remain in Afghanistan, foreigners leave.
Dear Professor Cole
Perhaps someone has taken Mr Krauthammer's advice and bought a copy of Charlie Wilsons War?
We may not have been focusing upon Afghanistan, but as long as we focus upon military contacts; we continue to not focus upon what produces the long run consequences. We need to pay attention to how these firefights affect organizing or intimidating villagers.
Where did all of those Taliban fighters get their food and water? Do they just sit out in the barren hills until they attack?
I would not be surprised to see in a week or two that the Taliban have once again used a village as a base to attack an outpost or large convoy. They will draw American boomers to flatten another village and the Taliban will have suffered large casualties. By doing those things they will have shown the villagers that NATO cannot really protect them and they will have shown NATO that they must stay put in one area or the Taliban will re-enter and use that village to stage another attack. Essentially, they will have us pinned down and the Americans may not even realize it. They also use our obsolete air power to defeat ourselves.
The alternative is effective people organizing in the villages. Our goal should be to organize extensive networks that isolate the Taliban. Somebody needs to keep count of that kind of progress---if it exists.
Bob Spencer
Afghanistan: Another quagmire and blackhole for US troops' lives and US taxpayer funds.
The Soviets didn't win. The US won't win - however that is defined.
Good luck on ousting "insurgents" from Afghanistan. Suppose they're still counting on people not knowing the difference between "invaders" and "insurgents."
Perhaps the difference has become apparent in Iraq and that's why the people being targeted with missile and bomb-bearing drones are now referred to as "extremists."
Sometimes one longs for Barry Goldwater.
deja vu all over again... how about if the russians supply the "freedom fighters" with stinger missles? that would complete the "back to the future" picture.
The logic of power does not, and never can, understand resistance.
The logic of enlightened despotism does not, and never can, understand that power does not equal understanding.
Understanding one's own history does not mean understanding the history of others. Understanding one's own priorities does not mean understanding the priorities of others.
How sad that a former colony has become the colonizer. How sad that the political wisdom of those early generations has been forgotten.
So, Sarkozy goes to Afghanistan and says this just means there should be more or something. Why not leave?
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