>Afghanistan: Is Victory Turning to Defeat? – Newsweek: International Editions – MSNBC.com

It is hard to believe that five years have passed since the U.S. deposed the Taliban in Afghanistan. I remember when the Taliban came to power; the newsworthy anecdote of their ascendancy came when they demolished two 3rd Century A.D. Buddhist statues hewn from enormous hunks of sandstone.

After 9-11, they became part of the focus of our anti-terrorism efforts, and rightly so. They provided assistance to the planners of the 9-11 attacks, gave them safe refuge, a place to call home, and resources.

Five years later, they still have a safe place to call home, and it is the very same country from which they planned the attacks of half a decade ago. According the article, once one leaves Kabul, the Taliban have control of the countryside. Opium production in Afghanistan is the highest in years, even with U.S. anti-drug efforts and 40,000 U.S. on the ground.

The true focus of our anti-terrorism effort, should have been Afghanistan, not Iraq. If the White House were truly interested in driving a nails in the coffin of terrorism, Afghanistan should have been the terrorism graveyard.