[wombatmobile]

The other war that comes to mind that doesn't fit the standard model of black hat vs white hat is the Vietnam war. It was impossible to defeat the Viet Cong because they blended in with the citizenry. And so, despite superior technology and enormous wealth, America and its allies were unable to prevail in Vietnam.

And yet, today, the socialist republic of Vietnam is hardly a pariah, or a communist menace, or a backwater or a threat to anyone. It is a rapidly developing economic power in South East Asia, with a dispersed diaspora that has integrated well with diverse cultures in Europe, North America, Australia and South America.

Have you ever heard of a Vietnamese terrorist shooting up or bombing a public place in the west over the last 40 years?

What does that tell you about the paradigm of us vs them?

[gotoeleven]

That the Vietnamese don't follow a religion which they interpret as mandating the conversion or death of all non believers?

The Taliban have moral clarity and that's a huge advantage against the relativist post-modern muddle brained thinking that characterizes most of western leadership these days.

[shihab]

I think the entire point of the article was that Taliban doesn't really care about rigid ideology, it's their flexibility that has won them the war.

[XorNot]

They're in the middle of deciding Uighur's aren't really Muslims because that's awfully convenient when you want a deal with China.

[watwut]

Suprising amounts of conservative westerners seem to admire taliban.

[int_19h]

It can get pretty explicit on the fringes of alt-right.

http://web.archive.org/web/20180108005721/http://vandalvoid....

[Animats]

And yet, today, the socialist republic of Vietnam is hardly a pariah, or a communist menace, or a backwater or a threat to anyone.

If it turns out that Afghanistan has substantial mineral resources, as some claim, that could happen to Afghanistan. With substantial help from China.

Perhaps China will build a road and rail link to Afghanistan. There's a narrow corridor that connects the two nations. No roads. No rail. Mountains. But it's a shortcut for the Belt and Road Initiative, so it might happen.

[nicbou]

I've been on the Pamir highway, which is so close to Afghanistan that you can wave at them across the river. That same road is taken by Chinese trucks headed to CIS countries. You have to remember that those countries are next to each other.

A Chinese investment in the region seems pretty reasonable in my uneducated opinion.

[tigerdog]

I dislike CCP ideology, but its clear to me that if anyone can "fix" Afghanistan, its China. They accept ground realities and pursue their goals without taking up stupid challenges such as "bring democracy to Afghanistan".

[kevin_thibedeau]

We'll see how the Chinese contractors are treated by the Taliban who no doubt have an axe to grind over the Uighur issue.

[benque]

I almost died laughing at your comment. You have to understand the ethnic divisions that exist in the region before arriving at opinions. Taliban (Pashtuns) don't give a damn about "others" such as Tajiks, Uzbeks, Hazaras (in Afghanistan - read about how they slaughtered Hazaras around Bamiyan during 1996-1999 when they were in power). Do you seriously think they bother about Uighurs? Even if they do bother, China is unfortunately not stupid - they are capable of making deals with anyone if it benefits them. China also doesn't care about democracy, nation-building, and other impossible to attain goals in Afghanistan. You (and I) may dislike the authoritarian policies of CCP, but they know how to deal with religious authoritarians.

[tonyedgecombe]

Show me one Islamic nation that gives two hoots about the Uighur's. They are far more interested in the money flowing in.

[drocer88]

The East Turkistan nation disputes China's ownership of this area.

[tigerdog]

It tells me that religious authoritarianism is absent in Vietnam.