There is irony in the fact that we helped arm bin Laden in the first place, when he was a warrior against the Soviet Union after they invaded Afghanistan in 1979. The irony is not as great as many make it, however. The reason we were throwing money around was to weaken a superpower with ICBM s trained on us. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Men must face what is in front of them, even though they can t see farther ahead.
History shows that it is well-nigh impossible to occupy Afghanistan.
It also shows, though, that toppling its rulers is easier. If we do not intend to stay, we should be able to exact just retribution. The factions of Afghanistan, from the deposed king on the Via Veneto to the long-suffering people, can work out their destiny after we do our work. The second front of the war involves the states that helped, or could have helped, bin Laden. Both regimes could profit from witnessing exemplary justice.