Making Sense of Afghanistan

When you no longer trust the media to tell you the truth (which is where we are at today) then people will try to explain events in ways that make sense to themselves. This isn't about conspiracy theories or tinfoil hats - this is about common sense. Most people feel a need to make sense of the world they live in. Simple as that.

However, when the narrative the media or the government tries to peddle doesn't make sense - like how Afghanistan became FUBAR in such a short time - then those explanations may seem like conspiracy theories to many. But in fact they are probably closer to reasonable explanations then the narrative and obvious contradictions the government authorities would try and make you swallow.

I'm saying this because of this post by Borepatch - in which he points to this post by Big Country. Do I buy the explanations Borepatch and Big Country are offering? Not 100% but much of what was said does make sense to me.

Do I think Joe Biden is basically the Nominal Commander in Chief? Yes - absolutely. What kind of President allows himself to be told whether he's "allowed" to answer questions from the press? Can you picture Donald Trump, Ronald Reagan, JFK or Harry Truman allowing that? No way. 

Do I believe that a desire to have full withdrawal from Afghanistan so that the Biden Administration could have a photo op in NYC on the 20th anniversary of 9/11 was the driving motivation behind the hasty withdrawal? Yes - that makes perfect sense to me.

Do I believe that when things started going badly south in Afghanistan that all involved - the Executive Branch, the US Military, and the Intelligence Community - all went into full CYA mode? Yes- absolutely! Could this damage control have involved intentional damage inflicted upon each other as deflection tactics? Yes - nothing would surprise me about these people.

Do I believe the media has been complicit in all of this? Yes! And I also believe that the basic journalistic tenet of "Follow the Money" has mostly been ignored here.

The Military (the brass specifically the Joint Chiefs - not the enlisted personnel) and the Intelligence Community both actively undermined President Trump because he wanted out of Afghanistan. That would have turned off their 20-year spigot of billions of dollars. Trump only had one year to act before the election so they basically kneecapped him. And to Trump's credit - he didn't act rashly as Biden has done. Trump did want out of Afghanistan but the intelligence reports and the military's advice made him want to slow walk his plan.

Not good ole full steam ahead Joe Biden who pulled out of Afghanistan in his first year in office (to horrible consequences). The Military Brass and Intelligence Community couldn't pull the same delaying or dirty tricks that they used on The Donald. But they probably did give him the same intelligence reports and military advice - but Biden (or those around him) didn't listen. And we've seen the results on the ground. And as the CYA maneuvers, leaking to the press, and backstabbing continues - we'll start to see more kernels of truth of the story and the consequences involved as they unfold.

If you still want to follow the money on the withdrawal from Afghanistan and it wasn't the Military or Intelligence Community then cui bono? The obvious answer is the Chinese and Russians. For pennies on the dollar they were able to sow this chaos. Pennies on the dollar! It was a classic case of what Scott Adams calls "free money." The Chinese (and maybe the Russians) probably saw an opportunity too good to pass up. Look how fast the Chinese pounced in becoming best friends with the new Taliban government.

To be fair though - it's not all people fresh off the lobbyist gravy train making all the decisions. There's also woke idiots with no real-world experience making policy. These people certainly don't hide their ignorance under a bushel basket. There's no doubt in my mind many of these people have (and maybe still are) receiving funds from the Chinese in various guises. Or you may have a Dianne Feinstein's driver or Eric Swalwell girlfriend Fang whispering poison into the ears of influential folks in the administration. 

It's all a disgrace. That's how my mind makes sense of the situation in Afghanistan. It's all a disgrace.