Rethink Afghanistan

          Rethink Afghanistan is a documentary movie discussing key issues in US-Afghanistan war. Six parts of the movie portray catastrophic impacts of troop escalation in Afghanistan, civilian casualties caused by US troops, Afghans’ misery due to the lost of their family members, and houses, women’s desperation because of violence and sexual assaults, and children’s suffering in slum camps. 

The escalation of US troops has triggered harsh resistance and more violence in Afghanistan. US airstrikes has killed many innocent Afghans, and made thousands of others being widows, orphans, disabled, and homeless.  These casualties has also made many Afghans chose no option, but participating in Taliban insurgency. Hence, the movie argues that the tremendous billion dollars being used to “preserve US domestic security” has caused more hostilities toward Americans and the Western world, in general. Americans, in return, are likely to be more unsafe from terrorism. 

It also reveals the paradox of common claims on the liberation of Afghanistan women. First, Afghan women are victimized fivefold of that of Taliban regime. Moreover, women who live in extreme poverty and become prostitute, due to the lost of spouses who are the breadwinners in the family, outnumbers the superficial numbers of women that get education and jobs.  The war, in fact, has severely exacerbated the lives of Afghan women and their families.