Guest bloggers

As part of our efforts to promote a peaceful non-military solution to the war in Afghanistan, I was screening our documentary, Afghan Exist Strategy, to a group of middle school students in Denver. The following is their reactions after seeing the film and my brief presentation on Afghanistan.

Guest blogger 1:

The cost to build a modernized school in a developing foreign country would be about $10,000. Last year alone, Americans spent:
- $10,000 on make up
- $100,000 on gold
- $200,000 on cigarettes

So it is totally possible to end poverty, through education in a matter of a generation, as long as we change out outlook on life. If we use our education and share it with the world poverty as we know it today can be forever changed for our and future generations.

Guest blogger 2:

When I saw that video I thought of all the people who are affected, and how Americans think of the people of Afghanistan as bad people, and we need to stop judging them. We can’t grasp the concept of what the people are going through over in Afghanistan. We need to help tell our peers what is going on and raise awareness, so that we aren’t so quick to judge, and actually try to help.

Guest blogger 3:

Suicide is an action that is frowned upon in almost every society. There are only two cultures that actually accept it as a way of life: the samurai and the Taliban. For some reason, they see taking your own life as honorable. The Taliban actually recruits young boys and men to train and attack positions with bombs and explosives. But why is this lifestyle so appealing? It all has to do with money. Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world and as time and money are poured into helping the people of this struggling society, things just seem to get worse.

The images that are fed to the masses by the media don’t even scratch the surface of what really goes on. You don’t see the struggles that Afghans power through every day. Today, I have seen and learned information that just blew my mind. I had on idea how hard it was to just to get a days pay in order to support your own family. I am glad to hear that the society in Afghanistan is rebuilding itself but I just wish the news media could report this instead of a sorrowful suicide bombing.

In conclusion, I feel that as soon as the world begins to learn about the true story of the Afghan people, life in this torn country may be able to finally return to normal. It must be known that the only reason a life in the Taliban is so popular is because it is the only way out for many struggling Afghans. The only true solution to this predicament all lies in the creation of jobs in this terror-stricken society.