Afghan interpreter: ‘Vast majority of Afghans always viewed Taliban as lesser of two evils’ compared to US
Excerpt:
Baktash Ahadi says this is all about culture, but doesn’t mention what drives the cultural differences: religion. Many Afghans often viewed the U.S. with suspicion because the U.S. was not Muslim. Many understood “hearts and minds” initiatives as an attempt to entice Afghans away from Islam: “And the Jews will not be pleased with you, neither will the Christians, until you follow their religion.” (Qur’an 2:120)
“Opinion: I was a combat interpreter in Afghanistan, where cultural illiteracy led to U.S. failure,” by Baktash Ahadi, Washington Post, August 31, 2021:
…How could Afghanistan have collapsed so quickly?
As a former combat interpreter who served alongside U.S. and Afghan Special Operations forces, I can tell you part of the answer — one that’s been missing from the conversation: culture.
When comparing the Taliban with the United States and its Western allies, the vast majority of Afghans have always viewed the Taliban as the lesser of two evils. To many Americans, that may seem an outlandish claim. The coalition, after all, poured billions of dollars into Afghanistan. It built highways. It emancipated Afghan women. It gave millions of people the right to vote for the first time ever.
All true. But the Americans also went straight to building roads, schools and governing institutions — in an effort to “win hearts and minds” — without first figuring out what values animate those hearts and what ideas fill those minds. We thus wound up acting in ways that would ultimately alienate everyday Afghans….
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Upon Trump’s return every Muslim Afghan should be put back in the cargo planes and dropped off in a Muslim country. They are a pestilence to civilization.
I like your plan.