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Right at the Edge
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Dexter Filkins shows here how something is changing that may have been missed by American commanders and the new US administration- the evidence of a crumbling and unpopular feudal structure that the British maintained in Afghanistan to continue the imperial presence, and which has remained that way under the government of Pakistan for the last 50 years. Baitullah Mehsud and other Taliban leaders are from the lower strata of society, the porters and street cleaners and other occupations. The British operated through the malik system of tribal elders who were supposed to maintain order, and the British pretty much left them alone. The Pathan or Pastun people on both sides of the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan are going through some major social changes that are pent up for centuries. The malik system is beiing destroyed on one hand , and on the other hand the Taliban enjoy support among ordinary people in Pathan country as being good Muslims, and in parts of Pakistan itself. This creates a dangerous mix for American forces, popular sentiment of the lower strata and ordinary Afghans, with clandestine support from Islamist officers within the Pakistan army and intelligence services for more sophisticated warfare. Which only means that disproportionate resources would be needed for an expanded American project in Afghnistan, without much to offer in return.
Veteran reporter Dexter Filkins of the NYT talks with McChrystal and looks at the war upfront.
09/07/2008
Dexter Wilkins author of "The Forever War," reports what he has found. One of the things he says is that McChrystal has not thought through the implications for his more boots on the ground policy, when the Karzai government is increasingly seen as an illegitimate and unpopular government. McChrystal's background as a Special Forces commander has not prepared him for grasping its implications. The other is the allergy of the Afghan people to foreign boots, and the vast mountainous terrain, total breakdown or lack of infrastructure, and a people tired of the war. The Pashtuns in Pakistan can be added to this picture. The economic development programs in rural areas are faltering. This may make the Iraqi solution of Petraeus unworkable in Afghanistan, something else may be needed.
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In Kabul, Little Hope That a Runoff Will Be Fair
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New York Times 10/14/2009
Filkins describes a crumbling feudal order of maliks left by the British which makes Afghanistan an even more dangerous place for an American project.
09/07/2008
Dexter Filkins points to another factor in Afghanistan. Not only is there a double game- see the link to Playing the Game- where the army, the ISI and many ordinary Muslims in Pakistan are sympathetic to fellow Muslims fighting the Americans, but there is a social change in process. This may be even more dangerous, as the British left a feudal order intact in Pakistan with a wealthy landholding class, In the Pathan or Pashtun countryside it was run through tribal elders called Maliks, in the Punjab the wealthy feudal landholding ran things pretty much the same way as the British did for the last 50 years. Dexter Filkins points to the crumbling of this structure in the Pathan (Pashtun) countryside.
Grouped Articles
New York Times 09/07/2008
Afghanistan Army Tries to Attract Southern Pashtuns
New York Times 09/06/2011
New York Times 10/07/2011
A New Pakistan Policy: Containment
New York Times 10/14/2011
Book review: ‘The Unquiet American: Richard Holbrooke in the World’ - The Washington Post
Washington Post 11/13/2011
The Afghan Surge Is Over - By Rajiv Chandrasekaran | Foreign Policy
Unknown 09/26/2012
Playing the Game-Pakistan army and intelligence services use American money to finance the Taliban and obtain American aid to fight the Taliban.
01/06/2008
Report by Dexter Filkins of the NYT.
Grouped Articles
U.S. Options in Pakistan Limited
Washington Post 05/04/2009
Wall Street Journal 06/10/2014
Pakistani forces kill alleged organizer of school massacre - The Washington Post
Washington Post 12/27/2014
How the Pakistani Taliban Became a Deadly Force
New York Times 12/16/2014
New York Times 09/07/2008
New York Times 09/07/2008
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