NY TIMES on Afghanistan

[Eric J in MN]

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/02/opinion/02thu1.html

What Mr. Bush should really talk about tonight is staying the course in Afghanistan, which is a case study in the perils of battling groups like Al Qaeda as if they were nation-states. The American-led invasion was a success to the degree that a government friendly to the United States and opposed to terrorist groups has been installed in Kabul. But armed opponents of the government are still all over the rest of Afghanistan, including Qaeda remnants and a revived Taliban.

So are the people who sponsor them, like Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, a notorious warlord and savage fundamentalist who in the 1980's and 1990's served as the chief mentor and protector of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the Qaeda mastermind of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Incredibly, Mr. Sayyaf has been a major beneficiary of the American-led invasion and is now one of the country's leading power brokers. All of the main candidates in the coming presidential election in Afghanistan, including the American-backed incumbent, Hamid Karzai, actively seek his endorsement.

[soothsayer]

1. this reminds me that cheney pronounced it TALLYban

like come mr tally man, tally me bananas

Bugged me somehow.

[krkaufman]

2. Couldn't agree more: W jumped-the-shark on November 21, 2001

See "November 21, 2001"

[DeepModem Mom]

3. kick