ISIS Defeated?

[Dill]

(01-18-2019, 05:20 PM)Au165 Wrote: The government has offered to recognize the Taliban as an official political party....I'd call that an ideology. 

You talk about the tribal mentality, etc. That is kind of what I am talking about. We can't instill democracy and our idea of government in a place so set in previous ways and functions as it continues to be rejected. Anything short of spending one whole generation there holding their hand won't work, and frankly I don't think anyone is really interested in that here or there.

This kind of got sideways from ISIS but some of the same issues are present across the ME.

Well I agree with you on the bolded.  Afghanistan is not a "country" in the sense that France or China or Brazil are.  It is a claimed central government which controls Kabul, six or seven cities, and some valleys around them, all inside a much larger national territory filled with semi-autonomous tribal groups and people whose first allegiance is local and who don't think the government speaks for them. 

The US did begin recognizing this back in 2006-07, rather late, and has tried to build a government from more like the traditional sura system.

Again, I don't doubt the high leadership of the Taliban is "ideological" in your sense. They know they cannot integrate themselves into any kind of pluralist system of government.  I am just saying that this rigidity does not extend down very far into their ranks. Hence offers to join the government create fissures among the subgroups.  Create security and stability for trade, allow village and town self rule, and few will want some Taliban leader telling them how to wear their beards.  We don't have to defeat the Taliban if we can do that.