Kabul Is Not Afghanistan

I have been in Kabul for a few days now and an underlying theme of the visit, both from what I've observed, been told, and is apparent from our guest lecturers is that "Kabul Is Not Afghanistan."  First the cosmetic.  When you fly in, it really is apparent that you are flying into a city.  You see the poor, shanty like villages, that mark any urban area around the world.  But you also see modern looking office and apartment buildings and one structure that glowed through the night (I asked and most likely a wedding hall).  The people are different -- younger, more urban.  The Afghans who lectured us were younger, wore suits instead of traditional Afghan "man jams," and often were clean shaven.  Most hysterically to me, they had PowerPoint presentations.  Of all the things we are trying to influence, improve, and import -- why the PowerPoint!

More seriously, progress on security, development/the economy, education/literacy, and just about everything the international community is pushing for as we move towards transition are light years ahead in Kabul from even the provincial capitals around the country.  This makes Kabul a nice place to visit (we went hiking!).  But it also quickly apparent why there is sometimes such a disconnect between both GIRoA and CF leaders/policymakers and what is happening at the provincial and district level -- or "in the field" as we have repeatedly been told (NOTE: from my perspective I am deployed to a combat zone; the terminology "in the field" to me is more akin to academia and research).  This issue is not unique to Afghanistan.  How often do you hear people in the U.S. decry "Washington" and the idea that they have no understanding of the problems of the average American.  But I do think it speaks to the current and future challenges of the country.  I am not doing a very good job of organizing my thoughts on this as I just spit something out in a few minutes.  As an example, one of the Ambassadors that came to talk to us cited a survey in which people in Kabul listed security as the biggest problem nationwide.  In the districts, people listed security 7th after jobs, electricity, roads, and a few other issues.  More to follow on this...