I recently heard a bit about the "Northern Alliance" who would seem to be poised to reap the immediate benefits of any destabilisation of the Taliban regime.

It seems that the last time they were in control of Kabul the spent most of the time in looting and internecine disputes. According to some reports up to 50000 citizens of Kabul died in the crossfire and the Taliban were welcomed as liberators by the civilian population.

"If you sup with the devil, use a long spoon........." would seem to be a good philosophy here.


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<font color=lightblue>Regards

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Mouse
(Occasional crooner and all round friendly Scottish rodent)</font>



[This message has been edited by Mouse (edited 10-13-2001).]

it may be true that the present may be "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" yet in the future "your friend may always be your enemy" .. oh i hate philosophy http://www.ironworksforum.com/ubb/no...iles/frown.gif

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Revived I Am to hunt this world... Banish ye evil or face my wrath...

Maybe it ought to be "The enemy of my enemy is not my enemy at this time, but he might be in the future. Unless he marries off one of his daughters to one of my sons and they have many grandchilren" http://www.ironworksforum.com/ubb/no...es/biggrin.gif

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Crustiest of the OLD COOTS
Airline ticket to Afghanistan $800
High powered rifle with scope $1000
Hotel room with roof access $100
A clean Head shot on that sack of Horse Manure Usuma Bin Laden PRICELESS!

America should be very careful here as if they support the northern allience they are supporting drugs,human rights abuses and worse. and remember how often america has been bitten by the human rights abusers they have supported.

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http://www.40k.org/grimstalker/imper...d%20emblem.gif

In nomine Imperatis, guard our armour and our gaze; lubricate our projectile weapons that they do not jam. Bless and brighten the beams of our lasers; fiat lux in tenebris.
He is the Master of Mankind by the will of the gods and master of a million worlds by the might of his inexhaustible armies. He is a rotting carcass writhing invisibly with power from the Dark Age of Technology. He is the Carrion Lord of the Imperium to whom a thousand souls are sacrificed every day.

Well, you know of the definition of BG2's Chaotic Evil alignment?

"They never cooperate or do care about each other, and if they do, it is just to down a being of greater power than they."

Meaning that, after they beat up this big threat, what alliance? http://www.ironworksforum.com/ubb/no...iles/smile.gif

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Mithril Cavalier of ALSB
You almost had me? You never had me! You never had your car! It is not about winning by a mile or by an inch, its about winning.

Hopefully the mistakes of the last 20+ years will be taken into account. I do think that GW jr is NOT going to make the same mistake as his father in not finishing off terrorists and their infrastructure across the entire mid east. From what I have heard, It sounds like afg world is going to be a UN protectorate after the talis has bin banned. I hope that they go about rebuilding that fixer-upper of countries for many years - look what happened to communism - once the people got a little taste of freedom, choice, and consumer goods, they will not bedenied more of them. All we have to do is a little of the same, and make sure that the women get some freedom - they'll never go back to being treated as chattel and cattle.


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Amanda's Dad-Best Damn Job, Period.
http://angelfire.com/rpg2/mirac/images/mummy.gif
Official Pin-Up Girl Massager of the O.L.D. C.O.O.T.S. Clan
To Err is Human To Forgive Divine, However Neither is U.S. Marine Corps Policy.

Nah, to be a good proverb, it should be "the ennemy of my ennemy is still my ennemy unless we were not ennemy when they became the ennemy of my ennemy".

People will always strive to protect their own self-interests. That's what the US and the Western world is doing as we speak. Ironically, that's what our old ennemies (those that are now our allies and the current ennemy of our ennemy) are doing too.

Yes, the United States/Bush does know exactly who the Northern Alliance is/was.

Problem is,

If the Taleban vacate power in Afghanistan, that power vaccuum must be occupied quickly or it will plunge the country into 1000 different factions all battling for power and control, litterally plunging the country into another 10 year civil war.

Someone must hold that power or the Afghanistn will be in even worse chaos than it is now.

Unfortunately the Northern Alliance are not much better than the Taleban. The only hope will be for the United Nations to act quickly once the Taleban vacate. The United Nations must restore some form of representative government there that will represent all factions in Afghanistan. The United States has said it will turn this matter over to the United Nations after the Taleban are gone and pay for the operation to secure a stable government in Afghanistan. Bush does not want to do this himself for obvious reasons. Only the UN will be able to act as a representative force in this matter.

However the Northern Alliance must occupy that vaccuum even if temporarily. If this does not happen, then Afghanistan itself is doomed to another 10 years of civil war.