A Primer: the Afghanistan war for dummies

Prerequisite #1

I require you to look up a topo/political map of NE Afghanistan, the tip of Uzbekistan, and the NW corner of Pakistan.

Prerequisite #2

watch the interviews by Lara Logan on 60 Minutes a couple of weeks ago of Karzai and US General John Allen.

Assuming that you have not skipped #1 and #2 above, you already know more than I.

Somehow, the Afghan War remains a black hole in the public mind, despite the fact that this where the real war against Islamic terrorists is being fought, and the Good Guys are losing.

Lesson #1: the Kunar Mountains

Here, the Bad Guys have safe haven, and here also you will find the heart and soul thereof. National boundaries mean nothing. Going back in history (at least back to Alexander the Great), those in control of Kabul have no control over these mountains, and this situation still applies today. It is from here that support for international Islamic terrorists originate.

Lesson #2: What is in a Name?

Nothing. I mean, absolutely nothing. It is habit in the American mainstream media to proudly proclaim that there is mutual distrust and hatred among the various Muslim groups, and Never the Twain Shall Meet.

Nonsense.

Right now, today, Al Qaeda and the Taliban are happily coordinating in the Kunar Mountains. So, it would be a strategic mistake to make too much of the distinctions between various extremist groups.

Lesson #3: Do Not Blame Karzai

It is popular sport to criticize President Hamid Karzai for the problems bedeviling his country: his administration is corrupt, his brother takes bribes, he is a weak leader, he is feckless, he is coddling terrorists, and so forth. This is akin to complaining about the sleeping drunk on the sidewalk while ignoring the roaming gangs marching down the street in formation wielding AK-47s.

Lesson #4: we have met the enemy, and they is Pakistan

Perhaps you have always wondered why Islamic terrorists are so persistent. Surely they have an incorruptible fountain of succor and support? Yes, indeed, and that fount has a name: Pakistan. They signed a peace treaty with the Haqqani clan, giving them safe sanctuary in southern Uzbekistan.

ISI is the Pakistani equivalent of our CIA. The ISI is the primary supplier of food, gold coins, logistical support, military intelligence, military training, and weapons to Islamic terrorist groups. Without the ISI, the movement itself would collapse in a NY minute. These 2 groups are allies, peas-in-a-pod, and whatever other mixed metaphor you wish to employ.

Pakistani support surely extends beyond the ISI: regular military, ordinary citizens, bureaucracy up to and including the president and prime minister (can you name them without consulting Wikipedia? You should, since they are the primary, global cheerleaders for radical Islam: Zardari and Ashraf; OK, how many of you got either name correct? Hmmm?).

Final Exam: how do the Good Guys win the war?

Easy: flatten the current Pakistani government with a steamroller, and replace it with one more sympathetic to the West. There is no other way to combat state-sponsored terrorism.