Will The Taliban Take Over Afghanistan? Yes & That's OK!

Most U.S. troops are out of Afghanistan now, and very soon, all of them will be gone. As U.S. troops leave, the Taliban is taking over large areas of the country -- and it's very likely they will soon be in control of the whole country. This is not unexpected.

But it's being used by some to criticize the withdrawal of U.S. troops. But it shouldn't be. The U.S. (and some of its allies) have been in Afghanistan for about 20 years. It is the longest war the United States has engaged in. And for at least the last decade, it has been obvious that the situation would not get any better. There was no way the U.S. could "win".

The situation is much like the one the U.S. found itself in during the Vietnam War. We were trying to mandate a government in both Vietnam and Afghanistan through the use of our troops -- and it didn't work. We have the best military in the world, but we were asking them to accomplish an impossible task -- sustaining a (corrupt) government we had imposed on them.

Frankly, I think large numbers of Afghan citizens see that government as an extension of the United States intervention. And they won't care when it falls. Many also regard the Taliban fighters as heroes who resisted the foreign invader and finally drove them out.

That's not what Americans want to think, but it's not our country. As with any country, it is up to the citizens of Afghanistan to determine their own government (and the people that will control that government). 

Are the Taliban repressive and dictatorial? Yes. Will their government be a good one. No. It wasn't before, and it's not likely to be any better now. But that's for the citizens of Afghanistan to decide. When enough of them decide they no longer want to be ruled by the Taliban, then they will kick them out of power. It could be month or many years, but it will happen -- but it will happen only when the Afghan citizens decide it is time.

Boris Yeltsin once said that a person can build a throne out of bayonets, but they can't sit on it for very long. That applies to Afghanistan, just like it does to every country. 

The United States needs to stop trying to impose governmental change on other countries through the use of military force. It doesn't work, and we should stop trying to do it. Sadly though, we have a lot of stupid and hard-headed politicians. It would not surprise me to see them try it again -- and fail again.