What happened to the Taliban? During a bout of channel—flipping Sunday night I briefly stopped to watch ESPN's ESPY awards show. Actress Ashley Judd introduced the winners of something called the Arthur Ashe courage in sports awards. Ms. Judd introduced a video showing two Afghan teenage girls who were born under the iron fist of the Taliban, whose mothers and older sisters were often brutalized and murdered for even thinking of playing or learning. The video showed a woman being shot in the head on a soccer pitch, then transitioned into laughing and smiling girls who now felt safe enough to play soccer and enjoy some freedom.

I kept waiting for an explanation of what happened to the Taliban. Did they suddenly pack up and move to Pakistan? Did aliens descend from space and whisk them away? There was nothing about the lives and fortune sacrificed by Americans. Nothing about the leadership of George Bush. Maybe it was Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young who converted the Taliban.

Earl Wright   7 17 06