I never said they weren’t muslim. They’re pretty hard-core muslim. They’re bad-asses and muslims. When I was training for Peace Corps there, we were told that the local mullah would be firmly against anything we might be for in improving life, whether it be vaccinations against small pox (it was that long ago), digging a well for clean water, or encouraging kids to go to school.
Their national sport is buzkashi. It’s kind of like polo—except it is played with the carcass of a dead goat or calf. The horses are trained to bite opposing players, whips are allowed, but the use of knives was outlawed several decades ago. As I said—they are bad asses.
Going in there with any intention to stay for any extended length of time was a mistake and it is good we are getting out. Hopefully in weeks rather than months.
“Going in there with any intention to stay for any extended length of time was a mistake and it is good we are getting out.”
We didn’t go in as a conquering force. The intent was to dismantle Al-Qaeda and deny it a safe base of operations in Afghanistan by removing the Taliban from power. And POTUS Bush strongly requested that the Taliban hand over Osama bin Laden and expel al-Qaeda; Bin Laden had already been wanted by the FBI since 1998 for his connection with the 1998 bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya.
We didn’t ever intend to conquer a country, just to relieve ourselves of the problems that were pertaining to us. Same with Iraq. If they had handed him over and helped themselves by expelling Al-Qaeda, we’d have never had the headache. They didn’t do what we asked, so we went in. And Obama increased the assault during his tenure.
rwood