Opinion | Biden Ditches the Generals, Finally (Published 2021)
Another casualty in the graveyard of empires.
Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/17/opinion/sunday/biden-afghanistan-war.html
Gates told reporters he had only just learned the “eye-opener” that the Taliban were attracting so many fighters because they paid more. Generals in Afghanistan said the Taliban were giving fighters $250 to $300 a month, while the Afghan Army was paying about $120. So Gates, employing the American way of throwing more money at a problem, got the recruits a raise to $240.
And this pathetic bidding war with the Taliban was eight years in.