I is for Infidel is written by Kathy Gannon, correspondent for the Associated Press from 1986 to 2005 and working mainly in Afghanistan and Pakistan. This book gives outstanding background information about two countries which have become so important to the United States after having been ignored for so long. As a "non-embedded" press correspondent, she brings a level of objectiveness to the Afghan war that we saw little of in the popular press. Also, being a woman reporter in Taliban controlled Afghanistan, she is able to relate the politics and ideology of the Taliban in a way that few others can.
However, like so many stories now circulating, she speaks mainly of mistakes made and opportunities lost. How, the Afghans looked to America to free them from the Soviet occupation and hoped we would stay long enough to establish a stable government. How we were too distracted by Iraq and therefore turned the reigns of government over to the Northern Alliance whose governance had led to the rise of the Taliban in the first place. And how Pakistan's opportunistic government plays both sides against each other.
Probably the story that fascinated me the most was Gannon's description of how bin Laden was able to drive a relatively moderate Taliban into extremism and cause them to do things that polarized the country and alienated the rest of the world. This led to isolation and sanctions, reinforcing the growing persecution complex in the Taliban and driving out the moderate element in that movement. This is a pattern we have seen with other movements such as Jim Jones and the Branch Davidians. The difference this time being that the Taliban were able to seize control of the Afghan power structure.
I highly recommend this book. At 186 pages, it's not a long read and it's well worth it.
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