New York
The war on terror, as the most inarticulate man ever to inhabit the White House calls it, has now lasted longer than the second world war. And take it from Taki, it’s not going away, not in my lifetime, that’s for sure. Insurgencies have a tendency to wear out their enemy and eventually prevail. Malaya (1948–60) is the only exception (thank you, Col. Thompson). In 1946 the French fought an insurgency in Indochina, and after eight years they collapsed in Dien Bien Phu. Algeria ditto. Ten years in Vietnam saw mighty Uncle Sam defeated, while in the Philippines the Marxist Huks are yet to be beaten. In Afghanistan, the powerful Soviet Union ate humble pie after nine years, and at present Nato is also tasting the same kind of pie, despite reports to the contrary.
Let’s face it, victory in Afghanistan is an ephemeral mirage, to be enjoyed only under the influence of that miserable country’s most popular export. The Taleban has the same advantage over US and European forces under Nato that once upon a time the North Vietnamese and FLN had in North Vietnam and in Tunisia. Safe havens in Pakistan’s Tribal Areas, where the Pashtun population loves him, makes Johnny Taleban a very hard chappie to pin down. In fact, the only ones pinned down seem to be those friends of ours getting very rich indeed selling drugs back in Kabul. We need 400,000 troops to tie with the Taleban, and perhaps double that to win. Instead we have 60,000 whose operations are known in advance to the enemy through local employees that work in US and Nato bases. It is a joke except for those who have lost their lives over there in order to satisfy the Blair and Bush megalomania.
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