It won't be the Afghan government that fills the security vacuum. As became the template for the decade to follow in other countries, the U.S. greatly underestimated the Afghan population's support for the Taliban, for Sharia, and for jihad for the sake of imposing it. That is in large part because the U.S. greatly underestimated the content of Sharia, accepting a sugar-coated, vapor-ware Sharia -- what is at best an academic, drawing-board conception of what Sharia, could, would, or should be according to agenda-driven apologists, and at worst an outright lie -- as what it really has been in practice all these centuries.
"Taliban "poised to retake Afghanistan" after NATO," by Hamid Shalizi and Mirwais Harooni for Reuters, February 1:
KABUL (Reuters) - The U.S. military said in a secret report that the Taliban, backed by Pakistan, are set to retake control of Afghanistan after NATO-led forces withdraw, raising the prospect of a major failure of Western policy after a costly war.Lieutenant Colonel Jimmie Cummings, a spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, confirmed the existence of the document, reported on Wednesday by Britain's Times newspaper and the BBC.
But he said it was not a strategic study.
"The classified document in question is a compilation of Taliban detainee opinions," he said. "It's not an analysis, nor is it meant to be considered an analysis."
Nevertheless, it could be interpreted as a damning assessment of the war, dragging into its 11th year and aimed at blocking a Taliban return to power.
It could also be seen as an admission of defeat and could reinforce the view of Taliban hardliners that they should not negotiate with the United States and President Hamid Karzai's unpopular government while in a position of strength.
The U.S. military report could boost the Taliban's confidence and make its leaders less willing to make concessions on demands for a ceasefire, and for the insurgency to renounce violence and break ties to al Qaeda.
But Britain's Kabul Ambassador William Patey wrote on his Twitter feed that "if elements of the Taliban think that in 2015 they can take control of Afghanistan they will be in for a shock." He did not say if he was referring to the document.
Hours after the Times report, the Afghan Taliban said that no peace negotiation process had been agreed with the international community, "particularly the Americans."
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that prior to any negotiations, confidence building measures must be completed, putting pressure on Washington to meet demands for the release of five Taliban in U.S. custody.The hardline Islamist movement also said it had no plans to hold preliminary peace talks with Afghanistan's government in Saudi Arabia, dismissing media reports of talks in the kingdom.
The U.S. military said in the document that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) security agency was assisting the Taliban in directing attacks against foreign forces.
Reasserting control over the country would be more difficult a second time for the
Taliban, however, with Afghan police and soldiers expected to number about 350,000 beyond 2014 and some foreign troops likely to remain, including elite forces.
"Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that prior to any negotiations, confidence building measures must be completed, putting pressure on Washington to meet demands for the release of five Taliban in U.S. custody."
Oh yeah, confidence that that the West, NATO, and America, are still dumb suckers about islam and its complete lack of honor and trustworthiness, especially as it relates to conquering by any trick whatsoever. If the taliban and islam can sucker the enemy into handing over trained killers, so much the better, then maybe they give some empty words or promises, and then the never fail dishonoring any treaties or promises.
I mean, c'mon people, know and understand well that you're dealing with the devil, even slightly worse than hitler, know you are going to always get nothing, but death and dishonor.
Surprise, surprise! On more than one occasion, I have postulated here that we have been merely training and equipping a more deadly future taliban in the guise of "Afghan security forces." It looks like my prediction may come true. The taliban need only offer the underpaid, uneducated forces a few more schekels than what they're getting now, and they'll change sides faster than Ahkmed can betrothe his 4-year-old daughter to his cousin Abdul. What a waste of time, resources, and lives to help an ungrateful and unappreciative populous. I say pack up, get the hell out, and leave them to their own devices.
Ima
Dare one invoke Claude Rains?
We have to give them their national rights.
After all it is their country.
Who are we to impose our values on these people?
Working against them will only increase the antagonism.
C'mon it's not their fault, it's the culture.
And remember men, even if threatened or you see them planting explosives do not shoot unless fired upon.
And on it goes but could anyone imagine transposing these cop out inanities to the period in 1945 when Hitler's armies were routed and Germany occupied by a coalition of allies?
The purge of Nazis was then considered serious. War Criminals were hunted down and hanged. Never again was the theme and we meant it.
Now? A social worker army shut down and restrained by a politically correct west whose incoherence and lack of connection to objectives is a global joke.
They're laughing at us. We have the power and technology to route these primitives. In the way Kitchener at Omdurman sliced through the Mahdi army with his new fangled Maxim guns we could rain such fear that they'd think twice before riling the infidel again.
Instead we imbue these savages with a humanity, we empathise, we feel their pain. If only they'd reciprocate?
Only they won't and no amount of New York Times wishful thinking will make it otherwise.
So it's back to square one. They got their roads and hospitals and schools and fresh water and millions in aid and what do we get by way of return?
We get the Taliban. Bigger. Badder. And better at understanding what war is all about.
It may be their country, but if we don't impose our values, the Taliban will. Obama should make it clear that Islamic values such as Jihad, repression of women and bombings of our troops are unacceptable. The five Taliban terrorists in US custody should stay in US custody. They are killers. If the US leaves with them in control we will see more hangings, shootings and beatings, of men, women and children. We will see more beards and restrictions as the Taliban has no qualms about "imposing" their values on the entire country. As much as we want to get out of Afghanistan we would be right back to hijacked airplanes, bombs, threats and shootings. The Taliban should not be allowed to come back into power. They are terrorists and America doesn't negotiate with terrorists, right?
NATO's involvement in this wretched country has all been for nothing.
Total USA defeat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. All those lost lives and the horrendous loss in treasure for nothing. This is because we have no-good dhimmies in command of the US military, in the CIA, in the State Dept., and keep electing dhimmies, Republican and Democrat, to the White House. In 2008, we had a chance to elect a capable and courageous man, Rudy Giuliani, to the presidency. It took the Republican primary voters only 10 days to get rid of him. What a disaster our American voters are. A disaster unto themselves. Western democracy is not up to the challenges of today's world. Singapore is the way! We must change to the Singapore system of government, the best ever known to man. How? In a nutshell, create a good ruling elite to replace what we have now. Give all the power to capable and courageous people such as Rudy, Paul Sperry, Robert Spencer, Steven Emerson, Pamela Geller and others. Let them hand-pick their successors, thus continually renewing the good elite. We do have our own Lee Quan Yew's, but under this democracy, they have no chance of ever making it to the top.
Ruslan Tokhchukov, EnragedSince1999.