Karzai Kisses Holy Koran!

[Gary Sisco]

Kill him! Kill him!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...-2004Dec7.html

[Darryl G. Thomas]

Yeah, he's a marked man.

I'm rooting for the Afghanis although with all the war lords running around a real democratic country's probably impossible.

[patricia]

Elections and ceremony are not all it takes to bring democracy to Afghanistan, or any other country, It will be interesting to see if he will actually destroy the poppy fields, which are the source of about 85% of the world's heroin. In Afghanistan, it's their most profitable cash crop and this past year brought a bumper crop. The Taliban, warlords and the terrorists have not retired and the only thing that seems to have changed is that Hamad Karzai has been officially installed as President.

The warlords and the U.S. made an agreement that the poppy fields would not be destroyed and in return, the elections would proceed.
Drugs, the poppy fields, controlled by the warlords are the main industry in the country. Without their co-operation, the election of Karzai would have been impossible.
So, IMO, this election is a photo-op, so far and it remains to be seen if Karzai can actually do what he has promised to do.

[Pete C]

Originally Posted by patricia

So, IMO, this election is a photo-op,

Karzai has a nice hat.

[Ennis Snavely]

Someone keeps deleting my offensive posts...shucks.

[Gary Sisco]

Yeah, a nice beard, too. Now, if he could only find some Afghanis he could trust for a body guard. Must be strange to be president of a whole square block of Kabul and have to rely on US Marines and Special Forces for all of his security. Apparently, there's not even enough Aghanis he can trust to form his own guard.

Just doesn't seem right somehow, for a president.

[Coda]

Patricia, what do you suggest be done to fix the Opium problem in Afganistan? Do you realize that it's always been produced here or do you think it's a result of the US? Is it the job of the United States to wipe out illegal drugs?

I understand that Canada is exporting pot to the US. I hear that its one of your largest exports. What is being done about that? Or do too have a photo-op guy in charge?

[claude]

Originally Posted by Coda

I understand that Canada is exporting pot to the US. I hear that its one of your largest exports. What is being done about that? Or do too have a photo-op guy in charge?

Largest export?!? Wow, we would need to export some pile of pot to equal the amount of wood that we export, let alone wheat, oil, car parts, etc etc.

I don't suppose that you would be aware that we are the largest trading partner of the US? Do you imagine that that is all in illicit drugs.

Insofar as your point regarding the opium trade, I too was a little confused as to what that had to do with the price of tea in China (or Afghanistan).

[Darryl G. Thomas]

Weed's one of our largest imports from Canada? I knew NAFTA had to be good for something.

From what I've read since we kicked the Taliban out, opium production has sky-rocketed in Afghanistan. Not much the US could do about that, not enough troops, the country's dirt poor with no industry (except poppies) what do you expect? Folks (Afghanis) got to eat and the West (us) loves to get high. Economics 101 baby.

[A. Kingstone]

Originally Posted by Coda

I understand that Canada is exporting pot to the US. I hear that its one of your largest exports. ?

Nobody consulted me about this.

[Darryl G. Thomas]

We need to come up with a nick name for Canadian weed, like Maui Wowie.

Montreal Madness? Quebec Kickass? Le Habitant Hash?

[jesus marion joseph]

Whistler Whoopass
Regina Fina'

[patricia]

Originally Posted by Coda

Patricia, what do you suggest be done to fix the Opium problem in Afganistan? Do you realize that it's always been produced here or do you think it's a result of the US? Is it the job of the United States to wipe out illegal drugs?

I understand that Canada is exporting pot to the US. I hear that its one of your largest exports. What is being done about that? Or do too have a photo-op guy in charge?

I'm not suggesting that poppies were not being grown to produce heroin in Afghanistan, before the U.S. attacked. Poppies have been cultivated in Afghanistan, as well as in Pakistan, for decades, in response to the Western market.
I'm saying that the production of poppies now, with the Taliban no longer in power has increased, alarmingly. I'm saying that one of the reasons that the election of Hamad Karzai as President went ahead, unimpeded by the warlords, who control the heroin production, was that the U.S. and President Karzai made an arrangement with them. Had Karzai ordered destruction of their cash crop production, there would not have been an election at all.

As for the export of pot to the U.S. by Canada, I hadn't heard that it was a huge problem. Although the law against trafficking any drugs is as it always has been, stringent, there have been moves toward decriminalizing marijuana for medicinal use here.
The laws against trafficking are as they were.

[Gary Sisco]

My money's on the warlords. Americans don't have the attention span that the warlords have. They can bide their time. They've ruled for thousands of years and no one's conquered them, yet, in all of history.

Far's the opium and hash goes, I'm all for it. Don't fuck with farmers with your mouths or pipes full.

[Monte Smith]

Originally Posted by Darryl G. Thomas

We need to come up with a nick name for Canadian weed, like Maui Wowie.

Montreal Madness? Quebec Kickass? Le Habitant Hash?

Out west it was known as BC Bud.