9/22 "Afghanistan Is Like Nothing You've Ever Seen, Soviet Vets Say"
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-000075191sep19.story
\_ Unlike the Russians and British, we're not trying to take over the
country and rule the people.
\_ Unlike the Russians, the British, while having Gen. Elphinstone
lose a > 12,000 man army the first time around, actually whupped
them something good, blew up their main mosque, then left,
having made their point. They were not trying to take over,
but rather to prop up a suitable puppet capable of keeping the
Russians from moving in and threatening India in their desire
for non-isolated warm-water port. As Afghanistan, under the
English-installed kings was actually quite stable from 1847-
1965-ish, at which point the British were no longer in India,
and with a government in place there which was friendly to
the soviets, one might conclude that they were pretty
successful. So none of this untameable tribal barbarian stuff,
please. -John |