Quote:
Originally Posted by Aryan_
America seeks to claim the credentials of being a charitable without actually being charitable.
|
Sure, on the thin surface of it they'll maintain that their positions are altruistic. That's what they do. But nobody seriously discussing the matter (even within the government) will describe the US as a charity - it's a nation state, and their charity falls into the whole context of foreign relations, national security etc.
Quote:
Which Afghans requested it, and to what sort of aid?
It was not just America, Saudi Arabia too. In fact America had an agreement with Saudis that every dollar America spent on the "Mujahideen" would be matched by the Saudis. And that along with the large private donations by rich Islamist conscious Arab sheikhs (like our friend Mr. Osama) lead to the wahhabisation of the Afghan resistance. Radicals who believed in stoning, beheading and amputations like Sayyaf and Hekmatyar became the main beneficiaries of foreign funding, overlooking muslims like royalists, nationalists, and other non-wahhabi islamic groups who were in line with how Afghanistan was before the invasion. Indeed, the Americans went as far as to distribute Islamist literature in Afghanistan and Pakistan to radicalise and incite as many young muslims into "Jihad" against the foreign infidels. At no point did you Americans stop to consider what the effects the policies would be in the long run and what would happen if these newly radicalised elements turned on anyone else but the Soviets. Both countries were viewed as nothing more than battleground in the war against the Soviets.
What was the result? Two muslim countries that were very decent and comfortable to live in during the 70s have been turned into islamist warzones, with the same Mullahs Americans once funding now declaring not only minority sects heretical, but also female politicans, music and barbers. It's going to take the better part of this century to clean up the mess, and unfortunately millions of muslim lives.
Even today the American neocons have installed an incompetent lackey dictator in Afghanistan and are supporting another in Pakistan. Where isthe American belief in democracy they keep congratulating themselves about? Americans are spending a lot of money in Afghanistan, but it's not going anywhere but into the pockets of the corrupt.
I don't entirely blaming the Americans; the Soviets were to blame for their invasion and brutal occupation, but they were defeated and have paid the price in blood and with the loss of their nation. Those responsible for the policies have the blood of a lot of innocent people on their hands
I'm sick of the American hubris about "helping" Muslims who are ungrateful, because the only type of Muslim the Americans see (and support) is the turban wearing jihad screaming wahhabi radical.
Oh and happy 9/11 (only joking)
|
One can definitely fault the US for supplying aid to those guys, but hind-sight is 20/20. The situation was complicated, and to place the bulk of the blame on the Americans is to understate the affect surrounding states had on the situation. I'd be interested to hear more about the agreement the US had with Saudi.