The first time I saw you was in the Khyber pass. You came with your technology, elite fighters fueled by revenge, and the hubris to believe you could disprove history.
This was a war that you didn’t have the stomach to fight. But I’m glad you tried.
We bled you the same way we bled the Soviets in our Holy Land. We bled you the same way the Vietnamese bled you in their home land. We did it patiently and deliberately.
Patience. Something Westerners never learn.
Our history is millennial. We don’t yearn for an early victory when the Infidel ravages our Holy Land. Our victory is celebrated decades from now. We’ve endured, then ravaged every standing military that crossed our borders. Why? How? We’re patient.
In 30 days, we’ll be stronger, richer, and have control over precious natural resources that you need for your pathetic life dictated by comfort. We will have women, riches, land, guns, and ownership of one of the greatest chapters in military history.
You lose.
If you want to try again, we welcome the challenge. You will fail regardless of how much money you burn in our deserts. For pity, here is free advice that may contribute to your future success; should you ever decide to invade again.
You recruit your warriors and supporters from a drug addicted, distracted, disillusioned population that’s obsessed with comfort and entertainment. A population obsessed with altering their mundane reality. Alcohol, marijuana, pills, and our new favorite -- Tide Pods. Every time your doctors prescribe opiate painkillers, you line our coffers with gold. Your population’s thirst for our pristine heroin has never been more lucrative for our warrior tribes. We will keep feeding you poison for as long as you keep your hands out.
If your population wasn’t so spineless, undisciplined, and self-loathing, then you might be able to compile a raiding party with enough tenacity to outthink ours.
Our fighters are born into war. Raised in it. It’s a way of life that evades your “first world” nations. They live a life of such immense misery and pain that they’re willing to fight barefoot in the snow for the opportunity to martyr themselves. They yearn for the opportunity to die. When they do have the blessed opportunity to sacrifice themselves, they sit above Mohammed at the right hand of God. Blessed in Allah for eternity
What honors do your fighters receive? Their empty sacrifice is remembered in the form of a “three day weekend.” The majority of your population uses this sacred time to get drunk and grow more fat as a way to celebrate their fallen warriors. Sadly, we pay tribute to their death more honorably.
The colored pieces of cloth you pin on their chests are similar to the jewelry worn by our women. What good are accolades and vanity if you don’t have the stomach to endure a fight? We don’t offer the burden of healthcare to our fighters as they often want to die for Allah. Your fighters fight to live. Their inability to reconcile the inevitable outcome of our patience leads them to kill themselves. Your medications, counselors and non-profits will never undo the pain and suffering you’ve forced them to endure. It will never remove the pain we’ve caused your broken nation. You are your own worst enemy.
We will give your fighters credit. Some are creative, tenacious, and fierce. They outgun us in every way possible. But again, we simply wait them out. Allah is patient. You cycle them through our Holy Lands every 3 to 12 months for their combat rotations. After their tour is complete, they return to the comfort of their warm beds and endless entertainment. If you left them here, in our Holy Land, with no way out but to win, then you might of have had a chance of success. The longer you poisoned our Holy Land with your presence, your “rules of engagement” only strengthened our position. There is only one rule in war - that is to win.
Your commanders made you fight with your hands tied behind your back. Your rules also confused our fighters too. “We’re clearly the enemy; why are they letting us go?” Thank you for your compassion as it allowed our fighters to kill more Infidels. We began to feel as if your commanders were on our side. We’re thankful your most vicious dogs were never allowed off their leash.
Your showcase Generals make us laugh. You spend millions of dollars flying them around our country, inventing new ways to win while ignoring the guidance of our most capable foes. Your Generals make decisions to minimize risk to their fragile reputation with the ultimate goal of securing a lucrative retirement--jobs with suppliers that fuel your losing force. A self-serving circle that’s built on the backs of your youngest and most naive fighters.
Your retired Generals “earn” tens of thousands of dollars talking to your political, industrial, and financial leaders about “teams, winning, and discipline.” It’s a mockery of the war they refused to fight. It’s a mockery of the Infidel warriors who died in our lands. We urge you to continue following their vacuous personalities so we can further watch your once great nation collapse.
Your statesman and elected officials are spineless, narcissistic, and more cowardly than your Generals. They crave power over you above all else. They come to our country, hide behind blast walls, and only heed the word of the indigenous leader they put in power. I believe your soldiers call this a “self licking ice cream cone.”
They’ve burned billions of dollars in a wasted effort to bring clean water, electricity, business, education, agriculture, and exports to a region that didn’t ask for it. You should have saved yourself the effort and simply given the money directly to us. Don’t worry; your diplomatic friends gave us plenty of your American tax dollars. If you want to give it another shot with your “soft power,” send those with real experience, not fancy degrees and silver tongues.
Over the next few months, we will make the world understand that you failed worse than any fighting force that’s ever invaded our lands. Today we celebrate victory.
As you evacuate your embassy, our fighters will be standing in the shade. Our RPG marksmen will be patient. We thank you for the parting gifts. You’ll find surface-to-air missiles staged in the back of Toyota pickup trucks that you purchased for us.
We saw what Extortion 17 did to your nation and the morale of your fighting force. Do your citizens even remember that victory? We’ll be repeating and improving upon our victory while your citizens and sympathizers evacuate in disgrace. Every one of your foes around the world will know exactly how to break you.
You are welcome to fly your empty drones, target our cell phones, and send your spies. But they, too, will ultimately fail. We’ll use their failures to show the world that you’re not all-powerful. You’re a false front--an empty shell. You lie, cheat, steal, and are easily defeated because you lack the spine to fight. This is your history now. We’re grateful Allah gave us the opportunity to show the world how to defeat the Infidels.
We look forward to seeing you again across the battlefield.
Praise be to God,
The Taliban
***Authors’ Note***
If you’ve read this far. Thank you. I’ve spent the past week trying to find a way to communicate this to the American people in a manner that would cause anger, rage, action, and understanding. Writing in the voice of a Taliban felt right.
If this made you angry, cry, or contemplative--then our goal is achieved. Our hope is that it inspires you to take action with your elected officials. They’ve been repeating the same failing playbook since World War II with your sons, daughters, and tax dollars. If you want this to keep happening, do nothing. If you don’t, then do something. If we all do a little, together we do a lot.
About the Authors:
Matthew Griffin is a 2001 United States Military Academy Graduate, Army Ranger, Combat Veteran with the 75th Ranger Regiment (3x Afghanistan, 1x Iraq), CEO of Combat Flip Flops, author, and 2019 Henry Crown Fellow with the Aspen Global Leadership Institute.
Scott Chapman is a 2000 Murray State University Graduate, Army Ranger Fire Team Leader from Alpha Company 2/75th Rangers (‘01 - ‘05), OGA Blackwater Alumni, entrepreneur, and author. Combat Veteran ( 21x Afghanistan, 1x Iraq)
Comments
All I can say is there’s a lot of iron in those words. Damn the truth hurts.
All I can say is there’s a lot of iron in those words. Damn the truth hurts.
Some of the most absurd shit i.have ever read.
The only things Americans have learned from history is that they didn’t learned a blasted thing.
Our liberal socialist educators have brainwashed our youth Into the fact that they would rather believe a lie than the truth.
Khrushchev was rite on back in the late 50’s and early 60’s when he stated America would destroy its self from within. Exactly what is happening today.
I am a Navy veteran having served in the Vietnam years. I understood going into Afghanistan to attach the terrorist training cells but as the years dragged on I kept thinking, I don’t think we have learned anything from Vietnam. I once heard it said of the US by a Brit that the US was good at winning wars but sucks at keeping the peace.
Sad but true. We do tie our warriors hands behind their backs. Wouldn’t want cnn to be upset about war being too rough. We stayed too long, but the way in which we withdrew couldn’t have been done worse. To my brothers and sisters in arms (i did Iraq, but missed Afghanistan) your sacrifices will not be forgotten. Not by me and not by alot of our population.
I spent 21+ years on active duty in the US Navy as a Hospital Corpsman, during that time I saw how our Military change along with the Politics of the U.S. since my retirement this country has gone to pot along with our Military.
This message came to me via text from a career Marine. I served during the aborted hostage rescue attempt in 1980 and had a weird sensation back then that we would be back. I had no idea how badly we would be hurt. Ron Paul addressed our situation 10 years ago, he knew we were mired down and couldn’t win. I pray your people are safe and your operation can continue. I have my doubts. Hard times are ahead in our country, we have been soft for far too long and are now starting to pay the price. I hesitate to call the people running our country leaders because I don’t believe any of them possess any leadership traits whatsoever. All the conflict did was make some people rich, the same thing is happening with the pandemic. The powers that be care not for the good of the citizens they are supposed to govern, but rather for their own gain. I pray for all of us and for all of you for bringing to light what many of us have long thought. I will remain a loyal customer to the Unarmed Forces, but I fear that the taking up of arms again is not far off. Brothers In Arms we remain. (Dire Straits)
Thank you for this provocative this brave narrative. Our American arrogance, greed, thanklessness, and self absorption has run its course. I hope that Americans can get our collective shit together and stop the imperialism, so we may focus on our own “family” matters.
I write this as a three tour combat vet and an agent of the military industrial complex for 20 years. I feel no more guilt about feeling the way I do. War sucks.
This is a failure that’s shared by our entire nation. Right, Left, in between. Politics are garbage and to stand behind them is as bad as using a human shield. Making the decisions to go to and stay at war should not be made by the people that stand to benefit from them financially whether we win or lose.
As a citizenry divided by morals, or lack thereof, we can’t hope to influence the decisions of another nation. Until we can do something as simple as elect a president while behaving like adults, we should keep our agenda off of the world stage. Educate ourselves about the people that represent us, vote, hold each other accountable, get vaccinated, wear a mask, act like we give half a $;@? about one another. Then, maybe we can help other nations do the same.
In God we trust that this atrocities will stop by diplomacy and peace will be restored.War is not a solution but destruction.
Well presented. This has been obvious to the rest of the world for years. About time for us to wake up…
It hurts to read but it’s so god damn right! PS Your shoes are great.
There’s a million words everyone can say to express how they feel- I just turn to one song titled “Hang Em High” by a band called Havok
I don’t know how to feel. My son chose the military life and I am proud of him beyond words, as any parent should be. My heart is broken for those shattered by the last 20 years and the thing seen and done by our men and women in uniform. I am enraged by the lack common sense in the removal of personnel and those who assisted. I am pi**ed at those trained Afghan soldiers who dropped and left posts, including their own President. This was the ultimate spit in the face of all those who died and are scarred from 20 years of battle and aiding. My thoughts and prayers are with those struggling to understand what it was all for – I beg you to talk to someone before harming yourself. My prayers are with the women and young girls of Afghanistan who trusted their government and soldiers, husbands, sons, and brothers would protect them and DID NOT DO IT.
Outstanding. Brilliant. ’Ya Know What They Say at the OK Cafe.
An average, dumb civilian saw this coming almost 20 years ago. I spent many years protesting online, writing posts critical of Bush and the Iraq War and megacorporations that feed off endless war, the mindless insanity of those idiot crowds who cheered Bush as he said drivel about how we’re gonna “kill the killers.”
I talked to conservative Christians and atheist liberals – very few amongst the civilian population gave a damn back then. I got called an “America-hater” and all sorts of crap. The US is clearly ruled by crooks and idiots. We have sniveling, sycophantic idiots for leaders because a very large % of the population simply do
not give a turd about anything but consumerism & entertainment.
The “indispensible superpower” losing to a group of 3rd world jihadis is a mind-boggling disaster. But one that was highly predictable by anyone with functioning
brain cells.
To the guy that said “we need more leaders like Trump”. Don’t forget to thank him for cowing down to the Taliban and releasing 5,000 militants including their leader.
Powerful message. Thanks to the warriors that wrote it and all who came before and after. This message was true 20 years ago when we began in Afghanistan. Leaders were told that these people don’t fight for money, or glory, or even land. Death to them is a glorious sacrifice and they are willing to use as many humans as they can to continue their fight. Eradication is the only thing that will stop them. Period. You can’t win their hearts and minds, because their hearts and minds are fixed from birth. Politicians fight wars with human capital that means nothing to them. They worship power and wealth above all else and they don’t care how many of our sons and daughters they destroy to get it. I love the United States and the Constitution. The government can go straight to hell. Vote them all out!
They should hold their tongue. The Americans are so barbaric, they would bomb their countries with a nuclear bomb that would kill everyone. They’ve done it before in 1945, because they don’t give a shit about human life, even the life of their own people. If the Taliban responds and kills American civilians, they wouldn’t give a shit about that either. Matter of fact, they would welcome it. It would be a shorter version of their vaccine. If any of them plan on doing anything in the future, I would suggest they target the right place and the right people. They would be doing the rest of us a favor.
when one side insists on following a set of rules the other literally laughs at, the fight shouldn’t happen as it’s been lost already. moral high ground is an illusion when you’re sending young men and women to die in a rigged contest
As an Airborne Infantry Ranger and Vietnam Veteran, I watched this loss begin right after General Schwarzkopf retired, which allowed so many non-warrior flag officers to weasel into the military high levels and war fighting corporations for self gain on the blood of fighters! Leaving as losers should have happened 15 years ago! Leaving now=finally; the way it was done=beyond stupid!
Rangers Lead The Way!!🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🪂🪂🪂. Spanky
An underlying issue is to witness violence all your life, to be raised in it, and to continue it. This spirit of violence needs to shattered and the males who promote it need to be broken.
Powerfully well written. It chilled, enraged, and saddened me to the core. I have many friends that served there. We need more leaders like Trump and we need for our best warriors to be able to do what they are trained to do.
Well done, and Spot On!! My personal opinion is that the politicians and perfumed “Generals” like that idiot Milley ought to be the first ones to don the gear and go fight when they want to start a war! That way, there wouldn’t be any!!
God bless all who CHOOSE to serve. Thank you!
Our country is being divided into ever smaller slices by pandering, self serving lifetime politicians who can’t see past their next election. By pitting us against each other they distract from their incompetent “leadership”. Nothing will change until our leaders do. Congress has a <20% approval but 95% are re-elected by complacent voters. That is not accountability!!! Wake up and hold YOUR representatives accountable by voting them out. Our defenders, willing to give their lives for YOU, deserve better leadership – give it to them.
So many will not see through this for what the message really is. Our greed is ruining us. We are fat and lazy. We can not endure the slightest pain. How many canes,walkers,wheelchairs do you see today?,all because people a weak. We adore fake things have to have the best then throw it away. Give one thought to your favorite restaurant to where the food comes from to feed the taliban fighters? Think about your plush,heated bathrooms verse living in the desert.
It’s not our leaders who are ruining our once great nation it’s you ,you are allowing them to poison you. We are to smart to let this happen
It needs to be said. Even if it causes excruciating pain.
I hope this creates a movement of progression among Veterans. Our sacrifice should not be an additional bullet point of injury sustained from this war, but a way we become more unified and resilient.
We are stronger together ❤
our country was never designed for sustained empire building. our people dont have it in them, our leadership structure is inadequate for that type of campaign. bring em all home.
No war should be fought when the President will not issue an order to his Generals to win. A President who sends our youth into a war without that stated end goal is doing the unthinkable. He is sacraficing our military lives for a political purpose. We must realize, the military industrial complex becomes very rich and the politicians receive big campaign donations to keep the war going. Afghanistan and Vietnam were fought the same way. It was all about greed and politics.
They didnt lie and spoke with honor. The west will fail to realize the truth and realities of what we are doing to our own society and casting away veterans. One of my fellow comrades off’ed himself the other day and I can only speculate how my 8 years in the Corps impacted the world around me and affected progression of American society. Theres certain methodologies that the Taliban employ that is far removed from Islam and its teachings of what a proper muslim community should follow (I am a convert just like the growing number of many other U.S. veterans). Aside the point, we have to solve our own problems before others, we have to get rid of the poisons in government and in our own society before things can improve. Many things happening globally to include the middle east are all biblical. Its time to stand for freedom at home and employ the skills we learned at war to safeguard our ethics,
values, modesty, honor and rapidly diminishing morality at home. Never get complacent. Rah.
- SF
Do what can we do ?
Do what can we do ?
Let the Taliban have it all, evac everyone worth something to anywhere other than US soil. Get Trump back in office and blanket bomb Afghan non stop for four years.
This is exactly why I never went into the military. It’s run by self serving politicians and two bit whore generals! Be a patriot ? I don’t think so, not with this bunch of fools as our leaders!! Fuck that!
The two most powerful warriors are patience and time. Leo Tolstoy
Yep losing hurts!! it hurt pulling out of Vietnam it hurt in Lebanon it hurt in Chad and now the hurt begins for the people of Afghanistan l’m wondering when the politicians will be getting their participation medals for supplying death with intent again warriors a country left with broken words from two faced politicians with promises and hope’s only until the next election
Yep losing hurts!! it hurt pulling out of Vietnam it hurt in Lebanon it hurt in Chad and now the hurt begins for the people of Afghanistan l’m wondering when the politicians will be getting their participation medals for supplying death with intent again warriors a country left with broken words from two faced politicians with promises and hope’s only until the next election
You do know we could have wiped your country off the face of the Earth if had chosen to so. So keep up your 1000 year wars and your country will still look the same as it does today, poverty, no jobs (except illegal), no rights for the poor women who live there and completely war torn! Great sight to look at everyday I suppose,but then again you don’t know any different! Good luck with those Virgins in your so called heaven! You POS!
GET TRUMP BACK FAST!!!!!
They could come and try, cause every one of our citizens are armed, and they will experience a beating they never had!!! We are not afraid, let’s see what they got. They fight for evil and power we fight with heart and truth. And we will win. We will shoot down every talabine that comes.
First, to ALL who have served, my deepest and sincere gratitude. YOU are the real face of America, along with all those who hold your values of God, family and country. YOU are the reason I’m proud to be an American. Second, after reading all the posts, I am hopeful that America still has people who care about what is important and right. Thank you. Finally, I’m a musician, and I think Bob Seger’s song “No More” fits —
Are you sorry when the lights begin to fade?
Are you sorry for the promises you made?
For the burden of the ones who had to fall,
When you didn’t read the writing on the wall.
It was 40 years ago when I was young.
When the jungle not the desert heard the guns.
Someone said they had a secret plan,
And the rest of us were told to understand.
But I don’t want this.
No I don’t want this.
I have had enough!
No more
Tomorrow is the price for yesterday.
A billion waves won’t wash the truth away.
Some day you’ll be ordered to explain.
No one gets to walk between the rain.
And I don’t want this.
No I do it want this.
I have had enough,
No more.
Well written.
Not all will understand.
I served in Afghanistan as a trainer for the ANA. At a lunch with some of their officers and Senior NCOs they told us they liked us Americans but hated the British, not withstanding the Brits were fighting and dying out in Helmand for the Afghans. Why did they hate them? Cause the British invaded Afghanistan in the 1840’s. Of course they were driven out and slaughtered but the tales had been passed down through the generations and the hatred for the foreign invaders was just as fresh as 160 years ago. The Afghans think in generations and centuries, not in months or years. Our generals should have been at that luncheon to learn that. The tales of the defeat of the great satan, America, will be told for a very long time.
I will say this tho this part they nailed. It’s spot on how us Americans are. The truth really hurt. “You recruit your warriors and supporters from a drug addicted, distracted, disillusioned population that’s obsessed with comfort and entertainment. A population obsessed with altering their mundane reality. Alcohol, marijuana, pills, and our new favorite — Tide Pods. Every time your doctors prescribe opiate painkillers, you line our coffers with gold. Your population’s thirst for our pristine heroin has never been more lucrative for our warrior tribes. We will keep feeding you poison for as long as you keep your hands out. “
Speechless! You 2 have captured the “essence” of jihadists’ mindset. I took the time to read all 91 comments & was disappointed that many people missed the point. This “Letter” wasn’t about the fact that it’s delusional to believe death brings eternal blessings from “Allah”, but the jihadists BELIEF that it does. There’s NO WAY to change this fundamental belief & therefore it can’t be stamped out by war. Our military rank & file are BRAVE & FEARLESS WARRIORS/HEROS & all Americans are indebted to them for their service & sacrifice to our country. When Bush 43 started this war, it was to root out, disrupt, destroy Al Queda. We should have been out of Afghanistan by 2003 at the latest (like the Letter points out, Afghanis never asked for nation building)! We should NEVER have been in Iraq (IMO this was Bush 43s way to avenge his father for not going on to Baghdad) because Saddam’s WMD was a LIE & the people in power KNEW IT! Saddam was broke from fighting with Iran. The point from the Taliban about our society is definitely spot on. Just look at the demise of our country in the past 5 years. If this country doesn’t get back to being a God fearing people, we will be taken over completely by the Commies that are already in power. In closing, I am surprised by the number of people of all ages that have no clue about the invasion of Afghanistan by Russia in 1979 & that Afghani “Freedom Fighters” were the original organizers of Islamic extremist terrorism.
You both did a wonderful job in communicating the type of enemy we were at war with, the corrupt, greedy & elitist people calling the shots & the ordinary soldier who bore the brunt of these decisions. God bless you both.
I am feeling all the adjectives that you mentioned. I’m a 69 year old woman, but I still believe in our military and our country. It’s the politicians that stand in the way of any progress. Our soldiers cannot fight with one hand tied behind their backs! Thank you for waking some people up, let’s hope it gets to the right ones.
Much respect to both of you!!
Does anyone think now there will be a military return to Afghanistan? Does anyone believe this is a new taliban?
Just note that future American Leaders are reading these insults and trolling comments. Many Years down the Road when there is an American President that knows how to lead and isn’t afraid of other countries feeling will melt your Afghanistan to the ground with our Technology weapons . I promise you it’s coming and many of you Taliban and people that worship them, will see you final faith.
Great article! My father was a tank commander/ recipient of a Purple Heart and many other medals fighting the war in the Philippines during world war 2. My brother was a tank commander in Vietnam 1967-68. I watched and felt a need to follow in their footsteps. As I questioned my father about my interest, his reply was, things have changed. I would not trade my experience for anything in the world, however if I didn’t have to go , I would not. My brother gave me the same response. As I questioned them about there response it was not until I was a little older to understand their reply .Obviously the rules of engagement are certainly in favor of the enemy. And the ability to win a war the way a war needs to be won have all but dissipated. At least in the eyes of our country. When my own son decided while in high school that the marines were for him , I did all I could to discourage him. I even had a rather heated conversation with his recruiter about the new army and the rules of engagement. That didn’t go well as he realized my facts were spot on. I would not send my son into today’s military with the idea that I can’t fire without being fired upon. Until we put people in charge of our military, who are honestly interested in winning a war, we will still be walking away with our tails between our legs. By the way, my son didn’t join the marines, and as the news in Afghanistan unfolds, he has thanked me for my persistence. Good luck and thank you to all who serve. Please keep the pressure on today’s military to do the right thing!