Afghanistan: Shades of Sunshine? Or not....
Afghanistan is in the midst of a Presidential Election. There are three main challenges to the useless incumbent, Mr. Karzai. I had a chance to listen to Dr. Abdullah and Mr. Ghani on Fareed Zakeeria's GPS and realized how the useless Karzai has truly presided over a disaster. In all of Karzai's happy talk, he is yet to explain why the Country that he has been President went from being Taliban-Free to being infested in almost the entire country in some fashion or another. If there has been one, I have not seen it.
The Taliban have been saying that anyone who votes will have their throat cut. The Presidential Candidates are not being given Government Protection and told that they have to get their own security guards. Just within the past forty eight hours, a horrific attack North of Kabul left dead and wounded when the Taliban attacked an Election Office and other Government Buildings. What is clear is that the Taliban are relentless an are so fragmented that no one truly knows who they are. I don't think even Mullah Omar has total control over his legions.
The Taliban have fought NATO and the United States to a standstill. The new commander, General McCrystal, is evaluating the situation and odds are that he will ask for more troops. I have no clue where they will find those troops. The election will be a test. The question is turn-out and whether Karzai will be kicked out. What has he done after 8 years? Has he brought peace and staibility? Has he brought economic opportunity? The answer to these three questions, in my view, is a resounding No all around. I wonder who will even bother to vote. Afghanistan has been the graveyard of Empires. Whether the U.S. will join in that long list of casualties (Persia; Russia; etc.) will be an open question.
The Taliban have been saying that anyone who votes will have their throat cut. The Presidential Candidates are not being given Government Protection and told that they have to get their own security guards. Just within the past forty eight hours, a horrific attack North of Kabul left dead and wounded when the Taliban attacked an Election Office and other Government Buildings. What is clear is that the Taliban are relentless an are so fragmented that no one truly knows who they are. I don't think even Mullah Omar has total control over his legions.
The Taliban have fought NATO and the United States to a standstill. The new commander, General McCrystal, is evaluating the situation and odds are that he will ask for more troops. I have no clue where they will find those troops. The election will be a test. The question is turn-out and whether Karzai will be kicked out. What has he done after 8 years? Has he brought peace and staibility? Has he brought economic opportunity? The answer to these three questions, in my view, is a resounding No all around. I wonder who will even bother to vote. Afghanistan has been the graveyard of Empires. Whether the U.S. will join in that long list of casualties (Persia; Russia; etc.) will be an open question.
Mike Pouraryan
