Americans made two mistakes which squandered their advantage in Afghanistan.

Americans made two mistakes which squandered their advantage.


"People welcomed the Americans [because] they saw them as their liberators. There was no room for the Taliban to stage a comeback immediately."


"I think the Pakistani military... tolerated the Taliban and also helped them”
Hasan Askari Rizvi Defence analyst

By 2006, however, the Taliban had infiltrated large parts of the south - especially the provinces of Zabul, Kandahar and Helmand.

By 2008, they were spreading out north towards Kabul.

Brig Shah says the Americans made two mistakes which squandered their advantage.

"They focused on military objectives instead of stabilisation and development. And they soon went to fight a war of choice in Iraq, abandoning the war of necessity that had brought them to Afghanistan."

The lack of reconstruction, and rampant corruption among government officials at a time when millions of refugees were returning from Iran and Pakistan, led to widespread disenchantment and fuelled insurgency, he says.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-15132461>

Dick Cheney foolish defends the use of torture.

Terrorism feeds on misery, corruption and HATRED!


With reduced corruption the Afghan government would have been able to win many hearts and minds of the Afghan people and police itself. Reducing the world terrorism threat.

The decision to use torture and support the corruption of justice required to make torture possible has been a strategic blunder. Rebellion against the corruption within the Afghan Government gives the extremist terrorist more than enough support. We have wasted untold billions. We have wasted what was probably our only chance to bring lasting peace to Afghanistan and reduce the threat of terrorist who feed on the misery, corruption and hatred.

Torture is corruption of justice. The hatred created by torturing for information is beyond our comprehension.

Through the misery, corruption and hatred created through torture, Dick Cheney is a danger to all.