Afghanistan, in Today's News 02.02.10

Afghanistan. Today's Wall Street Journal has a report on the 'allied' plans to secure Kandahar in the spring of this year. The plans come complete with three concentric rings: a ring of stability, a ring of security, and a ring of deep fight. The allied coalition plans to stabilize this spring the stability ring, which includes Kandahar and major satellite towns.

One wonders if they have stopped studying history at the military academies. There is nothing new is these plans. They have all been tried before, many times, as far back as Algeria. These type of plans have failed each time.

Why have they failed? Because it is all paper, dreamed up schemes, that have nothing to do with the real life in the war situation. It is epitomized by a statement by Canadian Brig. General Daniel Menard, the commander of the Task Force Kandahar, "They [the Taliban] will not fight us when and where they want. We will fight them when and where we want, and that is a huge change."

This is just dreaming. Already in the last two weeks the Taliban has struck in their own fashion where they wanted, almost toppling the Kabul regime. In the meantime the 'allies' were concentrating in a whole different area of the country.

In other words, the Taliban is fighting when and where it wants.

All this 'allied' activity comes down to busy work, designed to look like something meaningful is being done. All the while the Taliban is building its real support throughout the country.

Well, at least the next few months should be entertaining.