Is the Taliban taking back Afghanistan?

No

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by Greg Slack

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TALIBAN TAKING BACK AFGHANISTAN?

No they are not and it's not because of the presence of NATO or the US. They are not taking Afghanistan back because the Taliban was a form of government that backed Al Qaeda, not a sect or offset of them. They were not a terrorist cell or group, although they did oppress and torment their people, they were at one time the government of Afghanistan.

I have noticed a bit of confusion when it comes to Al Qaeda and the Taliban. So to clarify; Al Qaeda was and still is a terrorist organization, while the Taliban was a name for the government of Afghanistan.

The confusion is well deserved with the way the media and our politicians described the two at first, one would assume they were indeed one in the same. And given the way they treated their people they certainly fit the bill of a terrorist group.

On whether or not they are regaining power; one need only examine the nature of fallen governments of the past. The Nazi's and fascist Germany, once conquered were never heard from again in their original form. There were groups of neo-Nazis and various other supremacists that popped up from time to time, but the actual Nazi Party was gone for good. The same can be said for various other governments throughout history, whether considered good or bad; once defeated they disappeared.

Now if you are asking if another form of Taliban-like government may come into power again, any time in the near future. I would have to say, given the excitement of their people when the Taliban fell, and even more excitement over the opportunity to vote for their own leaders; I would feel safe in saying the Muslim extremist style of culture is no longer a threat in Afghanistan at this time.

If you ask me if it is for good; I can only hope so for the sake of the Afghani people and their future. The trouble is, the extremist style of getting the poor of a country on their side is very effective, especially in a region that is mostly Muslim.

They're going to have a hard road ahead of them, and will have to learn all the bad things that come with a democracy all at once. I hope they can handle these and survive the hard times that come with a new government and economy.

Remember, their economy was based on training terrorist cells and producing drugs under the Taliban. Those incomes are now gone, and will have to remain so if they plan on becoming a respected and trusted country that others will work and trade with.

In addition, they will have to come to an accord in many of the older customs that will allow them to accept some serious social changes. Women will have to become members of their society and not just slaves or concubines. Some aspects of religion will have to be excluded from the governmental process if their democracy is to have any chance of success.

In any democracy there are those that will try and manipulate the process to their own ends. The Afghani people will find corruption in government, perversions of the electoral process, and the wealthy manipulating policy all in a very short time. This will of course go against the very core of the Muslim beliefs and seem like it came from the democracy itself, and not from the greedy people that exist in all forms of government.

They may come to the conclusion; under the Muslim extremist rule of the Taliban, these things did not exist. That's where the challenge truly begins; to get all the bad parts of democracy we found over a few hundred years, in a matter of a few years, and not lose faith in the process.

The Taliban were not above any of these offenses, on the contrary they were most assuredly involved in much worse. However, they managed to hide behind the veil of being religious leaders as well as government officials. This kind of preying on the innocent is commonplace in many extremist Muslim controlled countries. They keep those they rule under thumb with fear and ignorance; fear that if they go against them they go against God, and ignorant in the true ideals of real Muslims.

When a people deprived of knowledge and held under excessively strict religious rule for so long, are suddenly given the keys to the world and all its knowledge and evils, they can be frightened into seeking familiarity even when it's bad for them. I can only hope this does not happen to them, and that the world lets them grow into their democracy, like we did.

The Taliban as it was, is no more, and will never be again in Afghanistan. However, there are many more new and old extreme Muslims waiting to take over, should their democracy fail to address the needs of the people.

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