Pak Tribune, Pakistan
'Time to 'Drive the Nails' Into 'Dream of Empire's Coffin'

By Anwaar Hussain*  

October 2, 2006
Pakistan's Pak Tribune - Original Article (English)    



Art depicting the idea of American Empire. (above and below).


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Bring out the nails to be hammered into the coffin. Waning badly from trying to create outposts in Afghanistan and Iraq, the death of America's dream of Empire is fast approaching. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. In the first neoconservative neo-colony of Afghanistan, the Taliban are on the rise like the fabled phoenix rising from the ashes. Once again they openly control most of southern Afghanistan, setting up a shadow administration. Coalition forces are getting the beating of their lives from the rag tag Taliban. The whining and griping among coalition troops over their looming defeat increases with every passing day. Meanwhile on the Pakistani side of the frontier, rather than trying to reinforce failure, General Musharraf has beaten a hasty retreat from bordering Waziristan. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. Drunk with delusions of grandeur and self-adulation, the Empire seekers made bad choices in Afghanistan when they ignored the warnings of Sir Olaf Caroe, the last British governor of Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province. Caroe said: "Unlike other wars, Afghan wars become serious only when they are over." Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. The Empire seekers failed to understand, and still don't, that it's not the phenomenon of the Taliban that writes the epitaph on the grave of the Empire-builder's dream, but it's Pashtun RealVideo culture itself that is responsible. They failed to study the history that the British know only too well, but chose to withhold from their gullible partners. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. The Empire seekers have tried to defeat with brawn what they should have conquered with brain. They failed to realize that the rise and fall of the Taliban was but a brief moment in history in this rugged part of the world, and that Taliban or no Taliban, resisting foreign occupation is a way of life for them. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. The Empire seekers failed to comprehend that the Afghan Pashtuns may have been briefly subdued, but invariably they bounce back against their enemies with renewed strength and malice. They are equally renowned for their loyalty to friends and for their fierce blood feuds and hatred of their enemies. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. The Empire seekers refused to learn from history that as far as their blood feuds are concerned, the patience of the Afghan Pashtuns is as great as their mighty Hindukush [mountains]. These are some of the most battle-hardened tribal people on earth, having withstood the military might of Alexander the Great, the Mogul Emperors, the Soviets and the British. They don’t consider death too high a price to pay for their honor. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. The Empire seekers ignored the wisdom passed on to them from the Europeans since the days of Alexander. Afghanistan is a vast expanse of desolate plains and untamed mountains, ferocious warriors, uncompromising Islam, vicious tribal rivalries, and a complex politics that entwines bloodlines, chivalry, religion and history. It is a land of great mystery that should have been left to find stability on its own. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. In Iraq too, for the rigor mortis has nearly set in to corpse of the Empire-builder's dream. There is a sense of finality that hasn’t existed during the past four years of occupation of that unfortunate country. Success in Iraq is no longer defined as defeating the sandal-footed resistance fighters, but rather to hold on long enough for something or someone to relieve the bogged down, war-weary and dehumanized American troops. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. The recently declassified National Intelligence Estimate calls Iraq a "cause celebre RealVideo" not for resisters of American occupation, but for "terrorists." This deliberate attempt to confuse the two is likely to cost the Empire seekers more dearly with each passing day. Bring out the nails.



Bob Woodward's new book, State of Denial,'
has shaken up pre-election Washington.


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Bring out the nails. Veteran Washington reporter Bob Woodward tells Mike Wallace in an interview to be broadcast Oct. 1, that the Bush Administration has not told the truth regarding the level of violence in Iraq, especially against U.S. troops, and that attacks against coalition troops are getting to the point, "where there are eight, nine-hundred attacks a week. That's more than 100 a day. That is four an hour attacking our forces" Woodward said. And intelligence reports predict that the insurgency will only grow worse over next year. Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails. According to Woodward, the President and Vice President have begun to regularly consult with Henry Kissinger, the war criminal and author of the Cambodian Bombing campaign which contributed so much to the civil war in that country. Kissinger thinks that in Iraq "victory is the only meaningful exit strategy" and that "the problem in Vietnam was that we lost our will." Bring out the nails.

Bring out the nails to hammer into the coffin of the Empire-builder's dream, but keep a silver bullet handy should the monster make a last-ditch attempt to escape from its eternal grave.

Bring out the nails.

*Anwaar Hussain is a former Pakistan Air Force F-16 fighter pilot. With a Masters in Defense and Strategic Studies from Quaid-e-Azam University Islamabad, he now resides in United Arab Emirates. He has published a series of articles in Defense Journal, South Asia Tribune and a host of other web portals. Other than international affairs, Anwaar Hussain has written extensively on the religious and political issues that plague Pakistan.