POSTED RESPONSE TO A COLUMN BY CORY ANDERSON IN TORONTO'S GLOBE AND MAIL
"Over the past decade, the international community has invested billions of dollars and sacrificed hundreds of men and women in a fragmented effort to stem an increasingly downward tide that has been evident for years."
Cory Anderson, this is complete rubbish.
First, Afghanistan has been torn apart for decades, going back to America's secret war against the Soviet Union in which a couple of billion dollars were spent on destruction.
Indeed, under the Soviet Union, many Afghans, especially women, did better than under the Northern Alliance which came afterward and which is again in charge thanks to America.
Second, it is an occupied country still, and every week bombs fall on civilians somewhere and destroy buildings somewhere.
Third, it is, and was, a poor place, and like all poor places in the world it features backwardness and low levels of education.
Fourth, if by some magic you educated every child to a high level starting tomorrow, the economy would have no place to absorb them. They would virtually all become candidates for emigration, effectively taking with them a costly investment somewhere else.
Fifth, in order to both educate and absorb educated people, an economy needs economic growth and plenty of it.
Sixth, if America had really wanted to assist Afghanistan, it would have dropped dollar bills, not bombs.
Seventh, may I suggest that you avoiding writing about matters in which you have almost no knowledge?
