Just Like Elections, Ideas Have Consequences

As a follow-up to 'Afghanistan Reconquered by the Taliban,' let us take a closer look at the ideas that contributed to the failure of the Afghan government to hold the country against Taliban aggression, and the failure of the U.S. government to nation-build a feudal-minded Islamist culture into the 21st century. Meanwhile, Hank Barrien at The Daily Wire reported yesterday 'Seizing on U.S. Weakness, China Warns Taiwan U.S. Will Not Defend Them.' NBC News presents President Biden's full speech addressing the nation on Afghanistan yesterday, taking no questions from reporters, and promptly returning to his vacation at Camp David. For more backstory on Afghanistan, check out 'Why Afghanistan Is Impossible to Conquer' by Real Life Lore on Nebula, and 'Afghanistan 1979' on Curiosity Stream. Also read 'Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise to Western Power' by Victor Davis Hanson. In sum, ideas have consequences. Elections have consequences because ideas have consequences. And ideas are upstream of elections.  And as Sextus asks Messala in Ben-Hur (1959), 'How do you fight an idea?' Messala was right about one thing. You fight ideas with other - and better - ideas.