March 20, 2009

The Great Game (Twenty First Century Version)

It's not for nothing that Afghanistan has been called 'the graveyard of empire.' And the U.S. would be far, far better off had we never invaded. Now we're there, however, it's not quite so easy to get out, nor are the repercussions limited to Afghanistan — there's nuclear Pakistan to worry about, along with India, Iran, and the general neighborhood. An incredibly vexing situation. To get some thoughtful perspective I turned to Jonathan Landay, of McClatchy, who's been reporting regularly from that part of the world for over twenty years and has just gotten back from a month in country. It was a real pleasure to talk with Jonathan and his points are very well taken. Total runtime an hour and ten minutes. Let's hope for the best.