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Stardate 20011115.1135 (On Screen via long range sensors): Another example of truly prophetic writing from the ancient history of last week:

By mid-November, snow will start to close all the mountain passes in Afghanistan. It will not only be impossible for the warring armies to move on the ground, but aid agencies desperately trying to prevent widespread starvation among the Afghan population will be rendered immobile.

There is no doubt that the air raids are causing massive damage to the ruling Taliban forces. They are not, however, causing any significant defections among the tribesman who support them. If anything, the bombing is having exactly the opposite effect. More and more volunteers, credible reports have said, are joining the Taliban ranks.

There is no question that this war will continue for a long time to come. We've won a battle, not a war, and in this war there will be setbacks. Things are going to go against us.

But we have won a battle, and in a most spectacular fashion.

This article is filled with misconceptions and outright falsehoods. It claims that the goal of this war was to capture bin Laden so he could be punished -- where the hell did that concept come from, and why won't people learn that it's not true? That was never the purpose of this war, though it might end up being a desirable side effect. The primary goal was to eliminate al Qaeda's ability to operate against us, and since the Taliban provided them with political and physical cover and allowed them to operate within Taliban-controlled territory and refused to stop, the Taliban also had to be eliminated.

The article criticizes the American press (especially CNN) for not telling how awful the US is or how badly the war is going. (That doesn't deserve comment.) It waves the flag of Viet Nam and preaches the gospel of Quagmire. Predictably, it blames the whole conflict on Israel. And finally, it discusses the hydra of terrorism:

"For the US, this war is unwinnable because our policy makers refuse to address its causes, and fear that doing so would make us look like we are caving in to terrorism. Until we do, for every terrorist killed, 10 more will take his place".

That remains to be seen. For one thing, the stunning defeat of the Taliban has the effect of putting all governments in the world on notice: if terrorists operating from within your territory attack the US, the US will take your government out. I'm willing to see 10 new terrorists spring up if I can also see 10 new governments suddenly take suppression of terrorism seriously. That's a good trade. (discuss)

By the way, the World Food Program expresses optimism that widespread starvation can be prevented. Presumably they know whereof they speak. Supplies are already flowing into northern Afghanistan.