US politicians and pundits speak as though the issues and the players are clear and distinct, which has no bearing on reality. We tend to regard any act of violence as committed by "The Taliban" or "al Qaeda," and certainly prefer to report that the only casualties are from one loathsome group or the other. This has long been part of our sanitized war reporting. There are no civilians in Gaza, for example. Or at least none who get hurt. We need to know the facts in order to understand what we're doing, and how to fix the damage. As a nation created through guerilla warfare with support for foreign mercenaries, we should understand that our presence in Afghanistan--and our financal/strategic meddling during the Soviet occupation--have much to do with the violence, unrest, and opposition to...our presence. We have but to look at the history of the region. From the Soviet war and occupation to the British efforts at adding Afghanistan to their colonial empire, foreign would-be conquerors are perhaps the only force in the world that will unite the fiercely autonomous tribal groups in this wild and shattered land. The people who belong there are wise to stand with anyone who can keep them safe and provide for their basic human needs. We will never be welcome, and we cannot 'win' by staying.