Matt Bors, Steven Cloud and I have just arrived in Mazar-i-Sharif, the fourth largest city in Afghanistan, the gateway to Uzbekistan, and about the hottest and dustiest place on earth. Don’t believe the Internet: It says it’s 81 here. More like 111.
It was a brutal drive from Taloqan, where we spent two nights looking for my 2001 fixer Jovid. (Follow my daily cartoon blog to find out whether or not we were successful. It was much, much worse in 2001, before road-paving, though. Yes, most major roads in Kunduz and Takhar provinces are now paved. This might have made a favorable impression on Afghans prior to 2003, but now it appears to be too late. Everyone knows the Taliban will soon be back in charge.
Women are still in burqas, same as it ever was. Business is booming, but poverty remains widespread. And American troops are still acting like assholes: buzzing through town at high speeds, terrorizing the Afghans they’re supposedly there to help.
We plan to enjoy a few days of R&R before heading west toward Maimana. Mazar has some major architectural treasures we plan to start seeing tomorrow morning.
9 Comments.
Everyone knows the Taliban will soon be back in charge. Hey that’s great news right?
Hey man, I’m sensing that you’re only about one or two more smart-ass quips away from defeating Ted forever! Never give up!!!
“Don’t believe the Internet: It says it’s 81 here.”
http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=temperature+in+Mazar-i-Sharif
says the high for today was a balmy 102 (but it got up to 122 in 1982, and the average high is 110).
“Hey that’s great news right?”
For the Taliban, yes. However, Barky the Trained Kenyan Seal is probably lying when he says we are withdrawing this year. It more likely that there will be US troops there probably for as long as there is a US. Because A’stan is so centrally located, because A’stan has minerals and now we’ve discovered oil deposits. Sooooooooo, the Taliban will only be allowed into power if they let the US have to goodies.
Oh, and there’s that oil pipeline, too. Hope Ted gets some pictures of it.
‘Scuse me, that’s “have the goodies”.
Susan,
Don’t get too down on Barry. It’s not his fault a large percentage of our population voted for this. They are a product of our miserable public education system (run by who? Oh yea, another union that contributes to who? Oh yeah Democrats.).
…I suppose the other half are geniuses?
Weird. There was this other wienie who used to troll here. He changed his name several times. First it was Edward Orysiek, then Edward. At times one of the anonymous posters sounded like Edward. After being repeatedly pants-ed by everyone here, and used as a foil / punching bag, the failed troll shrunk into a corner, and vaporized. Sometimes I felt like he’d rather be ignored than have to constantly confront his own idiocy, again and again and again.
Well, Edward… Welcome back!
I fervently hope that the shock of riding paved roads in Northern Afghanistan doesn’t weaken your resolve in opposing the occupation, Ted.
I’m still getting over the point when we were blowing up our Reagan era bunkers with Johnson era bombs. Perhaps the roads will end up working as well as the shiny new European standardized rail worked in providing stability to that region in the 30s.