The Afghans have shown a propensity for some of the extreme elements of Islam. The rule of the Taliban was not imposed primarily by force. That’s something we are going to have to deal with. Spouting “we are the world” phraseology will not substitute for that.
One huge stumbling block to our winning over the Afghan of the countryside will be how we deal with the opium crop. There is no legal replacement that equal the rewards of opium with the amount of work needed to produce it.
What we should do is throw out the drug warriors and get real. We need opium for many legal and medical uses. We should set up an choice like the Columbian’s did. “Oro o plomo”? Gold or Lead?
Sell us your opium crop at a fair price. (and make sure that it is a fair price.) We will give you other assistance and protect you.
But, if you insist on selling your opium on the black market or to the Taliban, we will burn your crop and provide you with only a bare subsistence.
That is a language that the average Afghan understands. Once we remove the opium funding for the Taliban we can move on from there. We co-opt them like in Iraq and give them something to lose if the Taliban comes back.
It doesn’t really matter what we do with the opium. We can use it or burn it, or dump it in the ocean. In the long run it is cheaper than the “erad” tactics we have tried before.
Remember, strategy is your goal, tactics are the way you work toward that goal. Stop thinking tactically and start thinking strategically.
