I was hoping not to have to do an arguably presumptuous report card for President Joe Biden, after having given ex-president Donald Trump my failing and near-failing grades for nearly all of his policies — but fair is fair.
Biden’s environmental and domestic changes seem to deserve A and B status, in my mind, but internationally, Afghanistan has to get a sad F-minus, even though Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and especially Trump made the fiasco nearly inevitable. With corruption, greed for mineral wealth, and support for a sham democracy as driving forces, it’s difficult to imagine that policy makers were unable to see the outcome beforehand. Whatever.
As the world frets the takeover, it has also been noted that although the Taliban nationalistically and religiously unifies Afghanistan, when the foreign enemies are defeated, the movement has a tendency to collapse into fragments vying for their own power. This occurred after the Russians were overcome. Simply stated, the country may collapse into more strife and division, but the Taliban may not pose a unified international threat in the long run. Being reminded of this somehow puts my mind more at ease, though my conscience will always be writhing in disbelief and shock. More sorrow for the Afghani people and the entire area, who are again put sadly back to square one, if not further. America certainly could’ve, should’ve done better.
— Ken Green
Cooper Landing
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