Actually, you have missed the fact that the USSR did not invade Afghanistan but were invited to help by then leader Nur Muhammad Taraki, that time it was Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.
During that rule there were invoked many reforms... Unfortunately, Taraki was later assassinated, obviously by his deputy Amin, who in turn was later also assassinated.
Very strong influence from many sides that time... and later even more...
Afghanistan is a geographical expression that has defied central governance for centuries. In many respects it emulates Somalia in that the culture of political development is firmly rooted in clan/warlord partisanship and therefore impervious to western style democracy.
NATO only got involved because the Taliban offered support and a base for wotshisname to mount his successful attack on NY. The problem arose when they stupidly neglected Afghanistan after pacifying it in order to wage war in Iraq. In the subsequent vacuum left by the NATO command the Taliban regrouped and re-established their power bases ensuring an inevitable return to the warlord status quo. The past decade has simply been a futile conflict in which the only strategy by NATO was to find an exit that spared their blushes.
The exodus of Afghanis travelling to the West to claim asylum will be perpetual.
Their religious practices are of course extreme and savage but in truth that's their vale of tears and symptomatic of the region.
Grim, of course, but bears no comparison to the utter carnage and bestiality rained down upon the world by the Krauts and Nips.
In the meantime, let's look for some light relief and ponder the antics of American police killing unarmed 13 year old children.
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