Our Karzai Problem

Packer describes it:

Wars that hinge on an unstable, highly personalized relationship seldom come to a satisfying end. This relationship in particular has come to resemble that of an exhausted mental health professional and a beleaguered patient who suffers from chronic delusions. The shrink doesn’t know whether to work with the delusions or puncture them, and he keeps switching between one approach and the other because neither shows any sign of succeeding. For the moment, the Obama Administration has decided to indulge Karzai by bringing out the expensive china, in the slender hope that he can be coaxed into changing his behavior. Unfortunately, this was roughly the approach of the Bush Administration for seven years, and it helped lead to the stunning resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan.