On 9 Aug 2002 at 20:23, Hermit wrote:
>
> Still don't get it, do you, Joe?
>
> Any "government" in Afghanistan is largely an artificial construct, a
> figment of Western imagination. Afghanistan is a tribal society (like
> most of the Middle East - including Iraq). No tribe in Afghanistan is
> sufficiently powerful to enforce its will on all the others, and
> cooperation is not a part of their heritage. Any group achieving
> dominance is hated and resented by all of the others, and the only
> thing that can unite them, temporarily, is an invader. Whoever the
> world imposes as a "government" will require support forever as they
> "defend from the inside" (even if they do, as now, control the funds
> from the drug trade) or the situation will simply collapse again. This
> is as true today as ever.
>
We shall see; it was once like that everywhere, but the majority of the
world has moved on; why not them?
>
> The problem is not with the Afghans. It is with the fact that the
> World insists that the Afghans support an alien and inevitably
> inequitable system. The chances of this ever functioning
> satisfactorily are close to non-existent. Thus, counter to your
> assertions, the US will not be leaving Afghanistan, unless it is
> "abandoned". And of course, any time they leave their enclave, they
> will take losses. Not large losses, unless their enemies "get lucky",
> but continuous losses, which will add up over time. And while they sit
> in their enclave they can do nothing effective but rather engender
> resentment and a continuing and not insignificant expenditure.
>
Democracy was once alien to all peoples; after tasting the alien fruit,
many have decided that they like it. Let's see what happens.
>
> As the Afghans know, and America is discovering, it is tough when
> nobody loves you.
>
It is a human foible to resent those whom you owe, whether that which
you owe be retribution or gratitude.
>
> Hermit
>
> ----
> This message was posted by Hermit to the Virus 2002 board on Church of
> Virus BBS.
> <http://virus.lucifer.com/bbs/index.php?board=51;action=display;thread
> id=26011>
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