AFGHANISTAN JOURNAL
This Blog update and continuing exclusive coverage on NewsRadio 600KOGO is brought to you by EL CAJON FORD and www.elcajonford.com ...
9:40PM KABUL TIME: Day two in this amazing place, so far away from the rest of the world. It's a land of desperate poverty, yet with a sense of new hope in the air. After 30 or so years of war, Afghans are very positive about the American presence here... and the way we're not trying to run everything but encouraging the local people to rise up and learn new skills, leading the way to a better future. Of course many fear the day when the U.S. leaves. Between now and then, the mission of the Coalition and specifically the Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan is to plan, program and implement reform of the Afghan Police and Defense Sectors in order to develop a stable nation, strengthen the rule of law and deter and defeat terrorism within its borders.
Terrorists are still out there, and likely just around any corner. Just walking from the camp where I'm embedded to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers across road requires a helmet and bullet proof vest. And one or two military security people with M-16s. And a drive down Jalalabad Road (the most dangerous in the country) puts nerves on edge. It also throws backs out of whack, since it's more horrible the farther you travel east. Along the road, what a strange, bleak and fascinating panorama. Produce stands, scrap metal shops, meat hanging in the dirt-saturated wind... you name it. And among the scenery, kids. Lots of kids. Sweet cute faces. The future of Afghanistan. One of the weapons against terrorism is literacy. Over 70% of the people in this country of 25 million cannot read or write. And that's just the way the ex-Taliban and Al Qaeda in the remote countryside want it. If people are poor and illiterate, they can be manipulated. We much pray that education grows quickly so fight the menace.
Afghan nationals building new facility for citizens who are entering the country's expanding army. This is done with assistance and training from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Another weapon in the arsenal of democracy is building and restoring the infrastructure. There's not much of anything in Afghanistan in the way of roads, railroads, etc. Anything they did have was trashed by the Soviets after they took over in 1979 through when they bailed in the late '80s, opening the door for the Taliban's horrible regime. I visited the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this morning (in their offices that were formerly the Iraqi Embassy) to get the inside story on this issue. The Corps enlists Afghans to do the work, with the planning foundations set by the U.S. engineers. I toured a site (out of central Kabul on Jalalabad Road... they nicknamed it "J-Bad" Road because it's so dangerous) where the Afghan National Army is building a center to process new military recruits. All of the Afghan Army troops are volunteers... the only such force in the region. That gives you an indication of the national pride that is here, and of the desire of the local people to control their own destiny.
The construction site is on the same location where another Afghan military installation stood until the Soviets bombed the tar out of it during their "adventure" in the region. I imagine this is what European visitors saw in Germany right after World War II. But it's now about 18 years since the Russians left here... seeing so much war damage, pretty much anywhere you go in the area, would be like going to Germany in 1963 and seeing nothing much had changed. In the midst of the rubble, old Soviet military hardware... tanks, trucks, artillary and more. A surreal landscape.
1980s Soviet tax dollars at work. Seeing the destruction left from their reign, followed by the Taliban is unbelievable. Surreal.
The Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan hosted me for a briefing this afternoon.. about ten key leaders gave me an inside look at the progress and challenges in the region, growth of the Afghan National Army and National Police. While there's so much in the way of positive news in this country, the Taliban drug lords are still trying to control the poppy crops in the south and Al Qaeda terrorists are exterting pressure on the Pakistan border. Terrorists are also trying to crank up problems for NATO forces in the north, as the organization is poised to take a more active role in the region in coming months. It's going to take time, but the move forward so far has been amazing. It's a vision of what Iraq could be like as well, given some time.
THE LATEST AFGHANISTAN NEWS:
http://afghanistannews.net/
Check back for more updates and additional photos from Afghanistan here on www.LarsonBlog.com
9:40PM KABUL TIME: Day two in this amazing place, so far away from the rest of the world. It's a land of desperate poverty, yet with a sense of new hope in the air. After 30 or so years of war, Afghans are very positive about the American presence here... and the way we're not trying to run everything but encouraging the local people to rise up and learn new skills, leading the way to a better future. Of course many fear the day when the U.S. leaves. Between now and then, the mission of the Coalition and specifically the Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan is to plan, program and implement reform of the Afghan Police and Defense Sectors in order to develop a stable nation, strengthen the rule of law and deter and defeat terrorism within its borders.
Terrorists are still out there, and likely just around any corner. Just walking from the camp where I'm embedded to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers across road requires a helmet and bullet proof vest. And one or two military security people with M-16s. And a drive down Jalalabad Road (the most dangerous in the country) puts nerves on edge. It also throws backs out of whack, since it's more horrible the farther you travel east. Along the road, what a strange, bleak and fascinating panorama. Produce stands, scrap metal shops, meat hanging in the dirt-saturated wind... you name it. And among the scenery, kids. Lots of kids. Sweet cute faces. The future of Afghanistan. One of the weapons against terrorism is literacy. Over 70% of the people in this country of 25 million cannot read or write. And that's just the way the ex-Taliban and Al Qaeda in the remote countryside want it. If people are poor and illiterate, they can be manipulated. We much pray that education grows quickly so fight the menace.
Afghan nationals building new facility for citizens who are entering the country's expanding army. This is done with assistance and training from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Another weapon in the arsenal of democracy is building and restoring the infrastructure. There's not much of anything in Afghanistan in the way of roads, railroads, etc. Anything they did have was trashed by the Soviets after they took over in 1979 through when they bailed in the late '80s, opening the door for the Taliban's horrible regime. I visited the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this morning (in their offices that were formerly the Iraqi Embassy) to get the inside story on this issue. The Corps enlists Afghans to do the work, with the planning foundations set by the U.S. engineers. I toured a site (out of central Kabul on Jalalabad Road... they nicknamed it "J-Bad" Road because it's so dangerous) where the Afghan National Army is building a center to process new military recruits. All of the Afghan Army troops are volunteers... the only such force in the region. That gives you an indication of the national pride that is here, and of the desire of the local people to control their own destiny.
The construction site is on the same location where another Afghan military installation stood until the Soviets bombed the tar out of it during their "adventure" in the region. I imagine this is what European visitors saw in Germany right after World War II. But it's now about 18 years since the Russians left here... seeing so much war damage, pretty much anywhere you go in the area, would be like going to Germany in 1963 and seeing nothing much had changed. In the midst of the rubble, old Soviet military hardware... tanks, trucks, artillary and more. A surreal landscape.
1980s Soviet tax dollars at work. Seeing the destruction left from their reign, followed by the Taliban is unbelievable. Surreal.
The Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan hosted me for a briefing this afternoon.. about ten key leaders gave me an inside look at the progress and challenges in the region, growth of the Afghan National Army and National Police. While there's so much in the way of positive news in this country, the Taliban drug lords are still trying to control the poppy crops in the south and Al Qaeda terrorists are exterting pressure on the Pakistan border. Terrorists are also trying to crank up problems for NATO forces in the north, as the organization is poised to take a more active role in the region in coming months. It's going to take time, but the move forward so far has been amazing. It's a vision of what Iraq could be like as well, given some time.
THE LATEST AFGHANISTAN NEWS:
http://afghanistannews.net/
Check back for more updates and additional photos from Afghanistan here on www.LarsonBlog.com
<< Home