The Afghanistan mantra is starting up again. I don't mean the now seemingly endless notices about everyone in the dusty or, maybe now, mud bound place, gnashing their teeth or biting their nails about the "Spring Offensive" by the Taliban, Al Qaeda, the insurgents, god whoever, eh, people that actually live over in that place but don't hang out in Kabul.
So the mantra, better a ditty or a refrain, I guess goes something like this:
More troops, more aid, more troops, more aid,
with more degrees of freedom,
yes more degrees of freedom.
I think NATO characters, bored from a hard day of paper pushing, in their Belgium bunkers, put themselves to sleep at night, after a lot of that good local beer I hope, humming the little ditty. It's sort of catchy I think.
Now we find out, according to U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns, who, speaking in Brussels, has indicated that "an international presence in the war-shattered country [that's Afghanistan] for "many, many years" to come." is what is on the horizon, if you can make it out, the horizon please.
So I guess the little ditty needs to be updated to:
More troops, more aid;
With more degrees of freedom;
Yes, more degrees of freedom;
More troops, more aid;
For many, many years to come;
Yes many, many years to come.
Burns, bright fellow he is, said:
"... both NATO and the European Union, ......., should expect to remain there [that's Afghanistan, again] for years.
"We are going to have to be in it for the long-term... This is not a two- or three-year effort. I think all of us will be there many, many years from now," he told a conference ... ."
Ah, someone finally says it, and nicer than I would have. In fact, Afghanistan isn't even a basket case. If it was a basket case, you could actually dream a little dream of something there in a little while, if you could get the Taliban or insurgents or maybe just pissed off local people to settle down. But, it'll take more than awhile to reach the high level of that usual icon of a disaster -i.e. a "basket case", to be reached by Afghanistan. If, in 5 to 10 years, it can be considered a basket case the West should know they were on the right track. Think they may have the patience?
So, after many, many years, maybe there will be some hope?
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