“The freedom fighters of Afghanistan are defending principles of independence and freedom that form the basis of global security and stability” – Ronald Reagan in 1982
“American officials no longer refer to Afghanistan warlords and insurgents as ‘freedom fighters'; yet, to a very large degree, U.S. and NATO forces are fighting the offspring of the jihadists that Reagan so lavishly supported in the 1980s. Preferring to compartmentalize history into pre-9/11 and post-9/11 segments, Americans remain oblivious to the consequences that grew out of Ronald Reagan’s collaboration with the mujahideen.” – Andrew Bacevich in The Limits Of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism, p48