[Skybird]

Well, I see where you are coming from, but what you say is right what the author of that essay criticises as this misled perception of "how the war could be won if only we do this or that". there is a cultural gap beteen them and us that you ignore. and no matter how many translators you have with you, and how many troops stay in a region - that gap remains to be there. And even many of the non-combatting civilian factions simply do not want what you offer them. They want to run their place in their own ways and by their own habits - not yours that you claim to be "democracy", no matter how precious you think your ways are. And as the author says, almost all parties, from politicians over the military and defence lobby to NGOs, have financial and powerpolitical interest to insist that things should be seen right the way you do, and that we just should boost up our effort to run it this way, and never put it into doubt.

In the end, there is plenty of profit and income to be gained from the Afghanistan policy NOT being changed and critically questioned. It more and more reminds me of the role of aid organisations and NGOs in the ME that run a business that depends on the situation not changing over there. they have more than one thousand different NGOs operating in the Palestinians' territory, with over 24000 employees on side of the UN relief organisation alone, and multi-billions of money changing hands. If suddenly peace would break out there and these NGOs would no longer be needed, it would be an major economic disaster, with a whole infrastructure collapsing and tens of thousands of additional unemployed.

Paradoxical effects.