Would the USSR and the USA have saved themselves a lot of blood and money in Afghanistan by reading Kipling’s “The Man Who Would Be King” before going in.
Tag Archives: Afghanistan
The U.S. Ignored Kipling’s Cautionary Tale
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged "White Man's Murden", Edward Said, Huckleberry Finn, Man Who Would Be King, Mark Twain, Orientalism, Rudyard Kipling Comments closed
Dr. Watson Returns from Afghanistan
Dr. Watson is also a former Afghanistan War vet, with certain similarities to our own vets. The messy end of America’s involvement also recalls Kaye’s “Far Pavilions.”
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged "Birds of Afghanistan", Afghan withdrawal, Arthur Conan Doyle, Far Pavilions, M. M. Kaye, Scott Bates, Study in Scarlet Comments closed
Could a Bestseller Help Defense Sec?
Secretary of Defense James Mattis is a voracious reader, and a novel he mentions liking is M. M. Kaye’s “Far Pavilions.” The work explores how to deal with inept leadership, which may be important to him in his current situation.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Donald Trump, Far Pavilions, James Mattis, M. M. Kaye, nuclear war Comments closed
Milton’s Jesus vs. Trump’s Bombs
Unfortunately centrists and liberals have been endorsing Trump’s bellicosity abroad. Milton’s Jesus in “Paradise Regained” would not approve.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged bombing, Donald Trump, John Milton, North Korea, Paradise Regained, politics, Syria bombing, war fever Comments closed
Benito Cereno on War, Racism
A story of two students who found themselves using “Benito Cereno” to sort through two of the biggest issues that Americans face.
An Afghan Vet’s Green Knight Encounter
An Afghan vet found his war experience captured by “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.”
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Marines, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Veterans Comments closed
Pakistan’s Secret Service as Minderbinder
The crazy logic of Milo Minderbinder in Joseph Heller’s “Catch 22” shows up in Pakistan’s Secret Service using funds donated by the U.S. to hire terrorists to attack the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.
The Birds of War-Torn Afghanistan
I share today a poem by my father Scott Bates, who is an ardent birdwatcher as well as poet. The poem reminds us of an ongoing war that too often we want to push out of our minds. Through contrasting the natural world with the disasters created by humans, my father expresses his longing for […]
