In These Times: Operation Infinite Imperialism

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Operation Infinite Imperialism
Two recent books examine America’s military and diplomatic forays into South and Central Asia.

By Robert S. Eshelman


In October, an avalanche of events crashed down on the Bush administration’s unbelievable statements about stability in Afghanistan.

Stories emerged, documenting the connections of Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s brother to the opium trade. Then, the U.S. military released a report stating that 30 civilians had been killed in an August airstrike — not the five to seven deaths it had previously claimed. The new figures were still well below 90 deaths the U.N. and Afghan government estimated. This was followed by a leaked version of a National Intelligence Estimate that stated Afghanistan was in a “downward spiral,” and warned of increasing Taliban attacks from within Pakistan.

Even the administration’s most tepid critics wondered how seven years after the invasion of Afghanistan, the situation there has deteriorated so drastically. For several months, military casualties in Afghanistan have outnumbered those in Iraq, while the Taliban has begun to focus its attacks within the territory of America’s ally Pakistan.

Two recent books examine America’s military and diplomatic forays into South and Central Asia over the past several decades. Together, these books — Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid’s Descent Into Chaos (Viking, June) and British-Pakistani journalist Tariq Ali’s The Duel (Simon and Schuster, September) — survey the mangled wreckage of failed states, warlords and dictators, refugees, and nascent social justice movements crushed by brute force.

With Obama elected on promises of increased military deployments to Afghanistan and action against the Taliban within Pakistan, these books appear at a critical time. .........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/4081/operation_infinite_imperialism