Rug Pundits » Taliban

Flawed basis for our reasoning

Jakob Steiner — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 21:25:10 +0000

Gallup Pakistan has recently published statistics on opinion of Pakistanis and Afghanis on whether the presence of the Taliban in their country has a positive or a negative influence on their homeland. The results were clear, 72% in Pakistan and 79% in Afghanistan see it as a negative influence.

Numerous Bloggers and Scholars have taken that result as a proof for what they see as an increased unpopularity of the Taliban and thus an argument for continued presence in the region and apparent accordance on the goals of the current war. But the question was not “Do you support the actions/ideology of the Taliban?” or “Do you favor the Taliban over your civilian government?”. The presence of the Taliban is of course unpopular – with all it’s consequences including the presence of Western forces on their soil. But that doen’t mean that the questioned people favor the West’s interference in the region over the Taliban’s presence.

We keep asking questions in a way we already know what to expect as a pleasing answer. Justifying our actions in retrospect with flawed polls is not going to help us ahead.

Pakistan’s role in current scenario

Yasir Hussain — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 11:54:16 +0000

Mushahid Hussaind Syed and Gen. (r) Hameed Gul (former DG ISI) analyse Pakistan’s role in current changing scenario in the wake of US forces’ withdrawal from Afghanistan. Watch here [Urdu].

Exit Strategy III – An Austrian Solution for Afghanistan

Jakob Steiner — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:19:27 +0000

Peter Tomsen (former chargé d’affaires of the US to the Northern Alliance) has proclaimed a possible exit strategy from Afghanistan based on an Austrian State Treaty Model from 1955. in: Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, Vol. 25, Winter 2001

The same guy had a shot at the predictioner’s game concerning the Taliban way back in 2000, subtitling in his Foreign Affairs piece “Ahmed Rashid has it wrong. The Taliban’s days are, mercifully, numbered.“

SufiLore #1 – Which way, Taliban?

Jakob Steiner — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:05:17 +0000

Copying Tim Stevens’ (on ubiwar) and others’ concept of a material list provided continuously on stuff previously read or dealt with, I will start a regular material list, always on a specific topic, including a small number of links, with one line each to underline the reason why I included it. The material will include stuff I read or watched, in some cases (like with the book in the first list) I will make exceptions and mark them with stars.

Which way, Taliban?

[Article] Flipping the Taliban. Fotini Christia and Michael Semple, July/August 2009, Foreign Affairs Volume 88, Number 4.

“For many Taliban ﬁghters, insurgency has nothing to do with Islamic zealotry; it is a way of life.”

[Article] Know Thine Enemy – Why the Taliban Cannot Be Flipped. Barbara Elias, November 2 2009, Foreign Affairs (online).

“And there is little reason not to expect flipped Taliban to flip back when it suits their purposes.”

[Video] Transition to What?. Talk at the Halifax Forum, November 21 2009.

“Stick with it brothers, and we’ll topple the government.”

[Blog] A Study of Martyrs. Blog Thread by Mari Saurgo on www.makingsenseofjihad.com

In January 2008, Al-Fajr Media Center, an al-Qaida affiliated media group, released an extensive issue in its series, “Biographies of the Martyrs in the Land of Khorasan.”

*[Book] My Life with the Taliban. Abdul Salam Zaeef/Alex Strick van Linschoten/Felix Kuehn, to be published on January 31 2010.

“…presents a unique insight into the worldview of the Taliban.”