Oswald in the doorway: the blog of the Oswald Innocence Campaign, by Ralph Cinque

 With Covid dominating the news and our lives, it's not surprising that Afghanistan has disappeared from the news. I read tonight that 40 million Americans are on the brink of being evicted for not paying rent. Such people cannot be expected to worry about what is going on in Afghanistan. 

But, I continue to have a keen interest in it. The Taliban website was hacked again and has yet to resurface.  So, I don't know what they are saying. But, other reports are saying that the intra-Afghan talks, between the Taliban and the Afghan government, are about to begin once the prisoner releases are fulfilled by both sides, as per the agreement between the U.S. and the Taliban. It is amazing that the U.S., apparently, committed the Afghan government to doing something without telling them. 

The Taliban agreed to talk to the Afghan government, which is something that they refused to do for a long time. So, why did they agree to do it, to talk to the "puppets"? I think it's because it got them what they wanted: for the U.S.government to agree to get out of Afghanistan completely, which is something we refused to do for a long time. 

But, the Taliban got the better of that deal because, as the saying goes, talk is cheap. They can meet and say, "What we want is a government run by Sharia law. We don't want a Western-style democracy. And anyone who was a Quisling during the occupation has got to go. That means you, Ghani."

There may be some give and take, but if so, it will mostly be the Taliban taking and the other side giving. And if that doesn't happen, it is just going to be war.

Americans are an evasive people. We evade reality. For instance, we don't admit it when we lose a war. For instance, we lost the Vietnam War, and we've never admitted it. We have the Vietnam War Memorial, and I have visited it. To the extent that its purpose is to mourn the Americans who died in the war, I say fine. But, I hope it's not to celebrate their actions or to thank them for protecting us and keeping us free. Because: they didn't protect us, and they didn't keep us free. They weren't free themselves. Look how many of them were drafted. 

What's going to happen in the future? Are they going to build an Afghanistan War memorial? Please don't. The war was a complete catastrophe. It was 100% tragedy and without the tiniest speck of glory. The bravest Americans involved were the ones who refused to deploy there, and the same goes for the Iraq War. The wars of George W. Bush were complete, unmitigated disasters for all the people involved on both sides.  God, is it ever unjust that he walks around a free man after what he did. He killed so many people.

Will there be peace in Afghanistan? I don't know. I hope so. But, the sad truth is that, at this point in time, peace there is as elusive as ever. There is nothing to grasp onto as a foundation for peace. I can't think of any theoretical basis for an accord between the Taliban and the Afghan government. I'd love for it to happen, but I just can't see it.