$(document).ready( function () { talk_rendercallback({"enabled":"0","islive":"0","eid":6236,"total":"12","discussion":[{"nm":"eric","rs":"0","ms":""my camera is my gun"....\n\nwow! talk about quick thinking to get out of a sticky situation!!!\n\nThat was good!","pt":"Mar 26, 2010 16:09"},{"nm":"Crawford","rs":"0","ms":"@ Ali\n"We dont want any foreign nonbelivers coming to us and telling us how to live, what values we should have, what poltical system we should have."\nThe great irony of this statment is the very concept of oppression of the populace by popular decision. It would be well within the power of the Afghanistan people to select a government system consistent with shariah; should they desire such a theocratic state, they could achieve one by VOTING. But, as the extremely high voter turnouts have shown, the majority of the Afghan people favor a democratic state with religious elements and not a Taliban theocracy. The majority of Afghani people don\'t support the Taliban, it is only a radicalized minority in the more rural areas that supports the insurgency.","pt":"Mar 22, 2010 13:40"},{"nm":"Viking","rs":"0","ms":"Trying to post for the second time here, is anyone else having problems?\n\nMr. Ali \nI am not going to join the debate as to whether the US should or should not be in Afghanistan, but I do have a couple of comments:\n-That the west never had much clout or influence over the Mujhedin is true.\n-That the west didn\'t play a significant role in forcing Russia to leave is blatantly false. The west played the deciding role.\nThe various factions (not least the one run by Hekmatyar who is now running the group featured in the documentary) received millions of dollars from the U.S. (specifically the CIA), and matching funds from Saudi Arabia, typically routed through the Pakistani intelligence services (who had their own agenda with Afghanistan). The Stinger missiles alone were a massive game-changer. All of this was aid, not sales. And well documented.\nThe funds and weapons from outside sources came at a time when the russians were getting quite good at hunting down the Mujahedin. They were in no position at all to drive the russians out on their own.\nThat the Mujahedin didn\'t make public statements thanking the outsiders for the help (especially the CIA) is understandable, but it doesn\'t change history. \nAfghanistan was another proxy battlefield between the two super-powers of the day.\nBy helping the mujahedin, the CIA was trying to bleed Russia, but that\'s world politics at work, like it or not...","pt":"Mar 10, 2010 14:17"},{"nm":"Andrew L","rs":"0","ms":"Francois... Al Qaeda, the Taliban, the mujahideen, and Hezb-i-Islami are all different groups with different goals (though some times they share common interests and cooperate). The attacks on the World Trade Center were perpetrated by Al Qaeda, not the Taliban. Furthermore, Al Jazeera reported that a speaker claiming to be Osama bin Laden has released a statement declaring that the attacks against the U.S. will cease once the U.S. ceases to fund the Israeli occupation of Gaza. In many ways we have brought these miseries upon ourselves by funding the suffering of countless Muslims. Unless Obama can begin peace talks between Israel and Palestine with visible signs of progress towards conflict resolution, I think we can expect hostilities from Al Qaeda for at least 3 more years. I\'m not claiming the attacks by Al Qaeda on the U.S. to be justified, but it must be understood that the U.S. is by no means innocent from the bloodshed that led to these attacks.","pt":"Mar 10, 2010 02:58"},{"nm":"Andrew L","rs":"0","ms":"This is, perhaps, the most incredible and ground-breaking journalistic work in regards to the Afghanistan occupation. As an American student, it is very hard to find honest des\criptions of "insurgency" forces in Afghanistan. To actually begin to comprehend the differences not only between what the Western media depicts "insurgents" as and what they portray themselves to be is a wonderful feeling. \n\nI don\'t believe American and NATO forces will ever achieve any sort of "victory" over Afghanistan. To see the sheer determination of those fighting against foreigners, and to hear their reasons for fighting leads me to believe that the U.S. military and government is delusional in thinking they can impose a Western idea of stability and democracy in the country.\n\nI disagree with certain practices from both sides, however, this is my interpretation of the current state.","pt":"Mar 10, 2010 02:49"},{"nm":"Ali","rs":"0","ms":"To Mr.Dominic. You seem to fall under the delusion the West actually played a significant role in defeating Russia. The West supplied arms whihc the Mujahideen BOUGHT, that is all. You never had clout or influence on the Mujahideen as you claim, never. You deleude yourself into thinking there can be acceptance of your occcupation by the Afghan people. YOu honestly think that if the US intervened after the withdrawel of the Soviets the Mujahideen would have been AMERICA OUR FIREND...come and stabalize us. No way, this is a nonsense argument from arrogance in thinking oh we made these guys so we can break them (lying to yourself is not a good way to make strategy). \nSecondly Al Qaedas goal to destroy you has always been to tangle you in wars with the Muslim world to bleed you and drain you, and you fell for it. As long as there is resentment to US foreign policy and support of polcie states by the US, you will have Al Qaeda. Simple as that, Al Qaeda are induviduals who think that attacking your political, economic and military interests, is legitimate and the solution to making you change your policy of support for the Arab police states and Israel. The fact is their main target is the Arab police states especially Saudi Arabia, they attack you because they know they have no chance to attack the Al Sauds, the Bashirs, the Boutaflikas, the Salehs unless your out of the picture. Im amazed at a country whose father George Washington worte in his Farewell address to aviod permenant foriegn alliances (hinting at France their ally) can whole heartedly support violaters of human rights, strongmen and dictators to the thier own detriment. Look at your own hitory, the Sons and DAughters of liberty, even your own reovlution was led by a dedicated band of radicals with a vauge politcal theory,at that time at least 25% of Americans were loyalists- yet t was British aggression and actions to curb liberty like the STamp Tax etc that spurred the population to join them. This is exactly what you are doing, playing the role of a unifying aggressor. ","pt":"Mar  4, 2010 05:13"},{"nm":"Francois","rs":"0","ms":"Fantastic documentary! I would be great to have seen even more of the Taliban\'s daily routine though, and perhaps less from the failed attack...great job though, and very courageous indeed!","pt":"Mar  2, 2010 06:45"},{"nm":"Dominic","rs":"0","ms":"When Russia left the country fell into chaos, at that time the media was saying that the west made a mistake by leaving Afghanistan. We should have stayed there and brought in order. That is why 9/11 happened. The first bombing of the world trade center was by mujahideen, who were formerly supported by the west. We are there not to impose any kind of government. If we left now, there would not be peace. Just like after the Russians left. The county would fall int civil war. Democracy is rule by the majority. If the majority want the Taliban, then the Taliban would form the government.","pt":"Mar  1, 2010 09:17"},{"nm":"Ali","rs":"0","ms":"Riddick, you seemed to have nailed the point. We dont want any foreign nonbelivers coming to us and telling us how to live, what values we shouldl have, what poltical system we should have. Especailly after colonialism and this current neocoloniasim of strongman governments.The fact is your actions agianst any muslim country are what radicalizes people. Sermons dont do anything unless htey seems true with killing here and there. CLinton killed 500,000 to a million iraqi children through sanctions alone.Your fight is against shariah, but shairah is core to islam. Our prayer, our fasting everything is regulated by sahirah and you cannot seperate it like chirsitanisty, sont impose your chirtian model on the islamic relgion. By wagin war to stop shairah you are wagin war against islam pure and simple and thats why everyone is fighting you. If you leave do u think the afghans are going to let al qaeda take them for a ride again, probably not- they will want peace like anyone else. 2 million afghans died in war agianst the russians and the factions fighting then were fighting for an ISLAMIC STATE not western democracy. You contradict yourself in thinking that America can win the hearts and minds as if afghanis are stupid animals to be taught whats right and wrong, we have a long history of fighting people who invae and impose on us from the ALexander, to the early muslim conquerers ( yes as pagans the afghans fought firecly against islam, it was not until the famous missionary HAsan AL Basri came and converted them) to the ENglish to the Russians and you are not going ot be an exception at all. Get out now! if you do the Taliban will be focused on their local issues again and will be relucctant to let al qaeda cause war aginast them again. Al Qaeda simply a eaction to your polcies against the Musluim world, OYu want peace, pull out now and stop supporting police states in the Muslim world, watch how quickly al qaedas focus shifts from you to the arab governments. If you continue then you do it against your own strategic interst for foreign allies like Israel and the Saud family. \nAlso your idea obout islamic law is flawed, id advise you to read up on it as it is not what the media of sound bites portray it as (beheadings and sotonings), infact the majority of punishment is based on what the judicary sees right so something that deserved the death penalty 4 hundred years ago can be somehting like a jail term today based on what the judicary think is the approptiate discretionary punihsment. \npeace","pt":"Feb 28, 2010 07:29"},{"nm":"Riddick","rs":"0","ms":"They are fighting us because we are non-believers.  We are not Muslim, we do not submit to Allah, and so we are the enemy.  And the fact that we are in their country, introducing all this western culture and ideas, and basically imposing democracy, they don\'t like it.  I\'m all for democracy, I think its the best system of government when its done right. But I\'m western, and I\'m Christian, so democracy is my culture, its what I\'m used to.  If Muslims came and invaded America and tried to impose Sharia law on us, you bet I\'d grab a machine gun, join up with a militia and go fight them.  I\'d die for it too, to protect my country from outsiders and people trying to force me to follow a belief system that I don\'t agree with.  So if you think about it that way, the Taliban make perfect sense.  They just believe different things from us and they don\'t want us in their country telling them what to do.  They\'d rather live their lives the way they\'ve always have, instead of getting better technology, infrastructure, roads, hospitals, big modern cities, etc.  All those things we value in the west, they don\'t want.  I\'d be all for the Taliban ruling Afghanistan if they didn\'t impose such strict Islamic laws, like not giving women any rights and beheading people for minor things. \n\nThe other problem is that even though the Taliban say they\'ll lay down their weapons if foreigners leave, they might do that but Al-Qaeda won\'t.  Al-Qaeda will be supported and protected by the Taliban and Al-Qaeda sends people to America to blow us up.  So that\'s why I support America being in Afghanistan, not to fight a war like we\'ve done in the past, but to win the hearts and minds of the people, whip the spineless Afghani police into shape, and help Afghanistan create a government that will protect and support its own people.   ","pt":"Feb 26, 2010 21:23"},{"nm":"Candy","rs":"0","ms":"What is making these people so angry. We as American txpayers have a right to know. People don\'t usually get this angry unless they geuinely feel oppressed and attacked. This war is immoral.","pt":"Feb 26, 2010 15:49"},{"nm":"Muhammad Mustafa Mustaan","rs":"0","ms":"I think it is a very brave great job. May Allah protect you from both sides!","pt":"Feb 25, 2010 18:51"}]}); });