- Markland on 'Why "special forces" fail in Afghanistan, from Churchill to Obama.' (The Dominion)
- 'Karzai, Abdullah teams claim wins in Afghan vote.' (Washington Post) What color do we suppose Mr. Abdullah will choose should this escalate to a 'revolution'? As Mr. Bhadrakumar pointed out, the Iranians "publicly warned...about post-election manipulation by outside powers."
- 'U.S. officials eye hanging chads -- in Afghanistan.' (LA Times)
- Recall that the Blackwater-guarded International Republican Institute (IRI's) widely-covered poll recently laid some groundwork for post-election chaos with its finding that Karzai is not "certain [to win a ] first-ballot victory." This wouldn't be the first time that IRI attempted to help engineer a run-off in favor of it's preferred candidate (for example, their failed attempt to influence the outcome of Haiti's 2006 Presidential elections).
- Between 26 and 50+ people killed on election day.
- Official line? Said the Canadian electoral overlord, Grant Kippen, "I think it went quite well...This is an emerging democracy." Obama decrees the elections a "success," while Stephen Harper gushed "what is taking place in Afghanistan ... is remarkable."
- Another (CIA/Blackwater?) drone attack kills upwards of a dozen people in North Waziristan.
- While everyone was fixated on the elections, Time Magazine announced that, official rhetoric to the contrary, the U.S. has embarked on a neo-colonial project in Afghanistan that would make even Michael Ignatieff blush.
- Meanwhile, 'Public Opinion in U.S. Turns Against Afghan War,' while 'German Party Calls for Plan for Removal of Troops From Afghanistan.'