I should have known better than to get into a current events forum ...
Aliantha, I am not convinced about the Koalas ... do you have link you can send me so that I can read about it?
UG, trust me, I do not support the Talliban. I support the Afghanistan war/invasion/operation call it what you will. And the ultimate goal of a planet where everyone gets along without blowing each other up sounds good. But I think the strategies pursued to that end, especially preemptively (ha, proactively, take that RKZenrage!) invading Iraq with minimal international support, and many decisions since then (especially disbanding the Iraqi army and gutting the civil service) were clearly mistakes. So I don't oppose the goal, I'm just worried about the guys who're driving the bus.
For the record, I opposed going into Iraq, but now that we have, I oppose pulling out. But I'm sure you don't need me to discuss the likely consequences of doing that!
Sorry for this off thread rant.