Written by Richard Kane   

Many are mulling over what to do hoping for major changes to save the economy from too much so-called defense spending. Instead I am going to suggest small steps or gestures toward peace. This is especially timely since Afghan President Karzai recently demanded an end to civilian casualties,
http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/06/02/karzais_civilian_casualties_ultimatum

1. The Taliban could appoint Hamid Karzai to be Mayor of Kabul, a post he already holds in the joke circuit. Then look around for other Kabul government officials that they might appoint to lesser posts in the Taliban shadow government.

The Taliban, the Afghan government, and US officials are terrified of showing weakness more than they want peace. This gesture could not be seen as a sign of weakness.


Karzai has expressed remorse at the possibility of being chased out of Afghanistan someday. This gesture would give his some comfort. Not long after the Russians left the death-rate went up, not down, due to warlords fighting. Not wanting to see this sad history repeat itself is one of the things in the way of peace. Another sad history is all the people fleeing Vietnam when the US left. The image of people fleeing as US leaves is something no US President or the American people would want to see repeated.

2. Western peace groups could likewise similarly suggest that the Taliban accept temporary autonomy for the small areas of the country firmly under Afghan government control. Peace groups tend to have been infatuated at the idea of UN peacekeepers but the Taliban considers the UN one of the belligerents. Chinese peacekeepers serving as guardians of the peace at the outskirts of Kabul and other small areas.

Somewhat relatedly, Hamid Karzai had asked Saudi Arabia to be a mediator between them and the Taliban. Saudi Arabia said, “not unless the Taliban denounce bin Laden first”. Now would be a good time for peace delegations to try to meet with Hamid Karzai and Saudi Arabia,
http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/02/02/us-afghanistan-saudi-idUSTRE61117E20100202\

3. Peace and economically worried US representatives could submit a Congressional resolution mandating no more defense expenditures until the Administration announce very limited goals in Afghanistan. The no more funding in six month, a current bill being submitted, allows a lot of unnecessary deaths for the next six months. A demand for an ironclad timetable to turn the war over to the Afghan government ignores that every since Obama became President he has been trying to do that which the Taliban considers a nightmare if successful because in their mind (and the world’s opinion as well) victory is theirs’ if they are able to fight long enough. Vice President Joe Biden’s idea of bunkering down in limited areas would make the image of Korea threaten the Taliban where US troops are in a limited area for more than half a century.

Now that bin Laden is dead if the US could be big enough to let the Taliban save face, not the US, peace would soon be on its way. Much of the beef the US has with the tribal areas on Pakistan was a mistake because bin Laden it turns out was no where around.

4. One thing I left out is what President Karzai could do for peace which is ironic considering his frequent peace efforts such as asking the US to release Taliban prisoners in Guantanamo to him, so that he could negotiate peace with them,
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/karzais-peace-council-seeks-release-taliban-leaders-gitmo_550569.html

If the US and world peace movements were willing to back him up with significant demonstrations Hamid Karzai could demand that during his next peace conference Jirga that their be no forward movement of US troops and in Pakistan no drone strikes. The US with bin Laden has shown if necessary the US doesn’t have to use drones. I won’t argue on the side of those who would prefer to have seen bin Laden captured alive to suggest that it is even worse karma than killing someone is to be casually sipping coffee at a air-conditioned computer desk while the joy stick one is casualty controlling is attached to a drone, wrecking havoc. The Navy Seals facing death greatly improved the aftermath of bin Laden not playing by the rules he required of his followers.

Martin Luther King and Gandhi tried to negotiate peace between world leaders. Some such efforts have been rather recent,
http://tribune.com.pk/story/167929/indian-pm-backs-afghan-peace-talks/
http://www.peaceproposal.com/power4.html

Bin Laden created a trance where al Qaeda always won dieing in victory, an exposed terrorist turning capture into victory, thought death. Crashing a bomb loaded truck into a gate killing himself may no longer be seen as any sort of victory. This trance has been broken,
http://my.firedoglake.com/politicalpartypooper/2011/05/06/usama-bin-laden-profile-of-a-coward/
It would be too much to say that in every case where a group of people long for something to be destroyed they won’t admire this being accomplished through suicide-bombing.

However, ironically bin Laden’s trance first started to be broken when a poverty-stricken man set himself on fire igniting the Arab Spring,
http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/printer_63050.shtml

After the Navy Seal’s helicopter crashed their ace in the hole superiority through the power of surprise, evaporated. If bin Laden had been following the script he set for his followers the likelihood of getting out of there alive would have equaled that of a suicide-bomber, instead the charisma of victory through terror further evaporated,
http://my.firedoglake.com/politicalpartypooper/2011/05/06/usama-bin-laden-profile-of-a-coward/

In the long run a world of currency collapse due to, too much defense spending is closer to a bin Laden victory than to a defeat,
http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/Article_63114.shtml
But we all know this. However, what we don’t know is which small steps on the road to peace needs to be taken, I hope I have started the steps even if some of the ones I suggest turn out to be to a slight degree in the wrong direction.

Please see,
http://my.firedoglake.com/richardkanepa
http://readersupportednews.org/pm-section/24-24/6103-a-miracle-almost-happened-a-world-at-peace