The Afghanistan Culture and how it is a Threat to the US – Term Paper

The Afghanistan Culture and how it is a Threat to the US

The culture in Afghanistan has been in existence for the past two thousand years, and its beginnings can be traced back to at least the Achaemenid Empire during the 500 BCE (Emadi, 2005). It is also known as the place of Afghans or the land of Afghans when translated in the official Pashto and Dari languages. The country is mainly rural and tribal with communities around Afghanistan having native languages. There may be a few differences, but their way of life is mainly similar (Emadi, 2005). The country is Islamic, and therefore Afghans practice Islam. They eat the same food, dress the same, their music is the same, they follow similar traditions, and they celebrate similar holidays (Emadi, 2005). The country lacks a spelt-out government which leaves the Taliban, Northern Alliance and the military commanders in charge of various parts of Afghanistan. It is characterized by warfare, and many Afghans are often at the mercy of the Taliban and the military commanders (Emadi, 2005).

Being a war tone region means that the culture of Afghanistan may be built on violent cultural beliefs. Such a cultural practice is where the citizens are often subjected to cruel forms of punishment. Anyone viewed to have done wrong will be beaten, amputated or executed in public (Shorthose, 2003). The public executions will include beheading, shooting, and stoning. Such a practice will mean danger for the citizens of the United States once it finds its way into America. America believes in the rule of law and will view such punishments as inhuman. However, it does not mean that the nation is completely safe from the practice. Immigration grants Afghans an opportunity to live in America and they will carry their culture with them. Some will be engrossed in the form of punishment that takes place in Afghanistan especially those who enforce the punishment on others. Eventually, these individuals will engage in such cultural practices while in America and on American citizens thus endangering the lives of Americans. 

The Afghanistan culture does not empower its women and gives all the authority and power to men (Emadi, 2005). Men will take a more public role while the domestic space is left for women (Emadi, 2005). In such instances, education will not be considered as important for women. Therefore, such a case would mean that an Afghan man either in Afghanistan or anywhere else in the world will not support the empowerment of women (Jones, 2010). Such a man in the United States will not change his cultural belief just because the United States says so. He will stick to his cultural practice and prevent his wife and daughters from acquiring any form of empowerment and especially education. It will deny America the opportunity to develop an individual who will contribute positively to the development of the nation which means that the country moves a step back regarding development and advancement due to lack of education and empowerment for its women who are originally from Afghanistan.       

The state is also characterized by bomb attacks especially from the Islamic extremists present in Afghanistan (Jones, 2010). They attack innocent villagers killing children and children. In many instances, they will focus their effort on Afghans they feel are supporting other military operations from countries that bring aid including the United States (Jones, 2010). The practice often transits to the United States where individuals especially Afghanistan immigrants in the United States are used by extremists in their country to cause destruction in America. These people will often train as suicide bombers or bomb experts who will develop explosives and set them up in places that they can quickly blow up. America has experienced such an incident on the 11th of September 2001 were more than three thousand lives were lost (Jones, 2010). The country continues to get involved in the issues of Afghanistan, and therefore it increases its risk of an attack. The cultural practice mainly geared towards the Islamic religion may cause a bomb disaster in the United States which the country will need time to recover from.   

Afghanistan is an extremely religious and ethnic country (Entezar, 2008). The wide spread religion in the region is Islam, and their way of life is built around Islam. Their laws are developed around the Quran, and the judges will give a ruling according to what their religion says. There is no separation of civil laws and religious laws in the country. It is the reason why much religious police in Afghanistan remain omnipotent (Entezar, 2008). The different factions in Afghanistan will jail thousands of people without a fair trial (Entezar, 2008). A big part of the country is under the Taliban rule, and they have the drive to purify their society thus the group will emphasize the use of moral values (Entezar, 2008). The Taliban continues to wage war in the country, and they will punish people, mostly severely, according to the dictates of Islam (Entezar, 2008). In America, no one is ever above the civil law. Religion is at the disposal of every individual and people are free to associate with whatever religious group they feel comfortable with. Islam is part of the religion that is present, but the nation is dominantly Christian. However, it does not mean that everyone who makes a mistake will be judged and sentenced according to the Christian dictates. Everyone answers to the civil law and any individual who commits a crime no matter how big gets a trail to prove his or her innocence. The prosecution opted for by the Taliban would mean disaster for America. Many people could be executed even without trial if such a cultural practice was to find its way into the United states. The rule of law would have no power, and people would be judged and sentenced on religious lines.   

For the longest time, the Taliban have worked against any foreign aid organization that tries to find its way into Afghanistan. The group wants Afghans to stay poor and unempowered for them to remain under their rule and control. Massoud the former northern alliance leader, who was assassinated had tried to empower the people of Afghanistan through democracy and education (Shorthose, 2003). Many people had moved from the areas controlled by the Taliban to the regions that were under the supervision of the leader because he offered them a better chance at life. There were reports of some Taliban officials and commanders defecting and joining Massoud. He was open to foreign aid and welcomed other religions including Christianity.

All that he stood for went against the dictates of the Taliban, but it was the preferred rule by Afghans. It is clear that the Taliban rule in a way that is not favorable to the citizens of Afghanistan (Shorthose, 2003). They keep control of the people through inflicting fear. It is the reason why a big percentage of the country remains underdeveloped, and many of the citizens live in rural areas where they have little or no access to advancement. The Taliban wants them to remain unempowered. Such a cultural practice would be disastrous for the people of America (Shorthose, 2003). America is a nation that allows diversity and the opportunity for every individual to make himself or herself better. People have the chance to work for a better life, and the government and various groups will empower its citizens in all possible ways. The country will allow foreign aid where necessary and work with organizations that aim at helping its citizens (Shorthose, 2003). Therefore, the cultural practice in Afghanistan would limit the people of America to what the Taliban want. It would deny them of any aid and chance to live a better life. Such a way of life would cause an uproar in the country, and many will rise against it. It may even result in war between the people and the Taliban and the loss of thousands of lives. 

Military activity in Afghanistan never stops. The military commanders are often targeting and harassing innocent people, the Taliban, backed by Pakistan and the northern alliance will always be at war due to territorial issues and the way through which the three groups govern their regions in Afghanistan (Shorthose, 2003). No one will accept the other rule, and those who suffer are innocent civilians. There are instances where the Taliban will use military force to reassure the citizens of their control and to make sure that Afghans remain afraid of them and cow under their rule (Shorthose, 2003). It means that there is no instance when Afghanistan is every peaceful. The al-Qaeda is also competing for the opportunity to rule over the Islamic world, and in many cases, civilians will lose their lives, and the group fights against the Taliban. These groups will recruit the young and energetic Afghanistan men with the pretense of making them productive and giving them a better life (Shorthose, 2003). These young people are trained to become extremists, and in most instances, they will be used in suicide bombs and attacks on targets that both the Taliban and al-Qaeda view to be threats to their power and stability (Shorthose, 2003).

It means that Afghanistan never can develop and advance. The military and warfare environment makes it impossible. The country lacks young, energetic men who will work towards its development. America, on the other hand, is grounded on empowering its citizens to develop themselves thus developing the country. It is a peaceful country with much focus on economic and political empowerment. Therefore, the Afghanistan military environment would put the country on a downward spiral. It will present a threat to the economic and political development of America and the countrys position as a superpower in the world. No development would take place thus threatening the countrys place in the world.

The Afghanistan culture is a unique way of life that is uniquely recognizable to Afghans. However, the extremist groups who have slowly taken over the nation and developed an undesirable culture within the country make the Afghanistan culture a threat to the United States. The culture would mean political instability, economic sabotage, technological underpinning and the lack of empowerment which acts as the pillars of the American people and their culture. 

References

Emadi, H. (2005). Culture and customs of Afghanistan. Greenwood Publishing Group.

Entezar, E. M. (2008). Afghanistan 101: understanding Afghan culture. Xlibris Corporation.

Jones, S. G. (2010). It takes the villages: Bringing change from below in Afghanistan.

Shorthose, J. (2003). Unlawful instruments and goods: Afghanistan, culture and the Taliban. Capital & Class, 27(1), 9-16.