Who is the better candidates for Afghans?

Afghans generally favor Democrats, and for good reason. The very way the Republican establishment poses the terrorism issue is superficial and counter-productive. But to correct the excessive rigidity and one-sidedness of the Bush administration, esspecially its first 6 years, one should not go to the other extreme and be too soft or carefree about fundamentalism either.

So the gains made in the war against Taliban and their supporters--and gains have been significant--can only be secured and enhanced by a firm, uncompromising Democrat, one who does not shy away from confrontation and long-term commitment. 

This firmness and realism in dealing with the part of the world that we come from is present in Hillary Clinton and wishy washy in Obama. Regardless of his rather bold pronouncements about Pakistan, which he may have done to appear less soft, his willingness to sit even with Ahmadinizhad makes me uncomfortable.

His overtures towards Republicans make me even more worried. The rise of Taliban and before that of the less moderate factions of the Mujahedin in Afghanistan were a result of the Reagan era infatuation with Fundamentalism. With this recent attempt to appeal to the right, Obama is becoming too pragmatic in his electioin politics, or too academic in his idealism.

So many of Obama's supporters talk about the Iraq authorization vote. True, that was a sign of good judgment. But many people with good judgment made that mistake, and no one including Obama knew how much of a blunder Iraq would become. As for Afghans, I don't think any of us shed any tears for Saddam. 

Hillary Clinton has been personally active in the Afghan cause. She has made visits to the country and the region long before campaigns started. And when peole attack her as machine politician, let us not forget that one reason Iraq turned out such a disaster was that Rumsfeld disregarded the machinery of government and trumped competence. Those who knew how to do things, whether American or Iraqi, were kicked were ruthlessly thrown out of the picture as soon as the statue was pulled down.

I can certainly live with either one of these two front runners as our next President. But I can't help thinking that in Hillary's case, the chances of success in every area are much higher, be it in the economy or foreign policy.