The media is conducting serious mental gymnastics in an attempt to tout reconciliation with the Taliban. This headline from Reuters, “U.S. holds out olive branch to non-violent Taliban,” really takes the cake. This headline raises the question: If there are non-violent elements of the Taliban, why would the U.S. and Afghan governments need to offer them an olive branch? To her credit, Secretary of State Clinton, who is quoted in this Reuters story said no such thing. In fact, she said the goal should be to reach out to the elements of the Taliban that are reconcilable — the opportunistic or nationalist elements that have latched on to the Taliban movement. But by no means are these “non-violent Taliban”. This is far easier said than done, however, and is one of the real areas of weakness I see in President Obama’s plan for Afghanistan. A reconciliation program has been in effect for years in Afghanistan, and thousands of Taliban fighters and low level leaders have taken advantage of it. But the middle and upper echelons of leadership are by and large committed to the cause. And my guess is very few of them, if any, are non-violent.
