AFGHANISTAN SHOULD HAVE BEEN NUKED AND GOTTEN OVER WITH MUCH SOONER?

ICHEOKU says 9/11 is still hurting so much because Afghanistan was not nuked. People feel that the response following 9/11 attacks was not devastating enough to maximumly punish those who had the audacity to come into American homeland and wreck as much havoc as they did on 9/11. They should have been punished in such a bone chilling manner that it would have served as a permanent deterrent for any person or group or country that ever dreams of hurting or attacking America in the future. An overwhelming severe force should have been used, such as would have shocked the entire world and quickly brought Afghanistan to a quick painful end. Such would have dispensed the losing of 2,448 service members and 3,846 defense contractors, as well as 20,000 others wh were wounded in the wasted twenty years in that awful piece of earth. 

The Japan example would have been replicated in Afghanistan and to the second degree, by completely wiping off the map the country known as Afghanistan. It would have fully placated Americans and brought back peace of the mind and sense of security in the country. But to engage the Taliban in a war that lasted 20 years which they eventually won, brings back all the bad memories of 9/11 rushing back and flooding our minds. It stirs a disturbing sense of trepidation in American people that America is no longer safe but vulnerable and that their country is no longer as powerful nor as feared as before. This feeling of vulnerability is what is making so many Americans raving mad and angry at each other because they are reacting to a bottled up sense of loss, anguish and anxiety. 

The thinking now is that the terrorists did it before and America was not able to prevent it or teach them a bitter lesson on why it is not a good idea to mess with America. They are back in power in Kabul and might soon start to scornfully treat America and with great disdain, to the point that they might some day become even more emboldened to thumb their nose at America, daring America to do its worst. Living such a life on edge of the unknown and what possibly this people might unleash against America in the future is not without its debilitating effects. Americans are largely traumatized and many are suffering from PTSD as a result of 9/11; and of course most have not been diagnosed and some don't even know what is triggering them comes directly from the 9/11 attack. 

On the roads, there are road rages everywhere; on the plane, Americans are losing it and throwing punches at one another; in neighborhoods, there are series of neighborhood wars going on and on our streets, Americans are shooting and killing one another with ease. There are shootings at job places, families are killing each other; police are killing unarmed people and some nut jobs are killing police as well. But we seem to gloss over the remote causes of this angriness in American people and why, despite all they are privileged to have, they are still not a happy people and are always lashing out at each other. Why is nobody in authority looking at the underlying factor of anger which is eating away at American people and forcing them to act out in manners, which are not only uncivilized but not expected of a country that supposedly has everything.

In Pearl Harbor attack, 2,403 Americans were killed with 1,143 others wounded by the kamikaze action of only 55 Japanese suicide bombers and Japan paid a hefty price for their thoughtless action with their two cities, Nagasaki and Hiroshima. On 9/11, mostly American people numbering 2,977 were killed with 6,000 others wounded by the actions of 19 Muslim terrorists who flew hijacked planes into three places, One World Trade Center, The Pentagon and a forced crash in Shanksville Pennsylvania. So, if less number of casualties in Pearl Harbor led to the annihilation of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, why was such bombs not dropped to avenge the death of more Americans on 9/11. Even Riyadh should have been on the chopping block as well, since 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi Arabia citizens. 

Yes, Americans are sad and sadder today than pre 9/11. They are sad because they feel that 9/11 was not adequately avenged; and are asking what are then nuclear weapons meant for if those who attacked on us on 9/11 were not evaporated. It would have been the best response for the havoc which those terrorists wrecked in America and on Americans, both those who lost their lives on that fateful day and those who are still alive but whose general psyche were irreparably damaged and destroyed asa result. We no longer feel safe in our homeland and our Twin Towers are gone too, drastically remaking our skyline without our having a choice in it. But the people who contributed to these woes somewhat survived and are back in power in Afghanistan as well as still sitting in power in Saudi Arabia.

Although some might read this as heartless, but ICHEOKU demurs that it is those who brought the level of calamity to America that actually have no beating hearts in them. Some people might say why use nuclear bomb for mere plane attacks, but ICHEOKU says those who perished inside World Trade Center experienced weapons of mass destruction, which is exactly the experience Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia deserved, because they do not have World Trade Centers equivalent which we could have brought down with full occupancy. That would have made it a fair retaliation but not when American troops were forced to waste trillions of dollars, thousands of lives and twenty long years searching for targets in such a wasteland. 

Anyway, the deed is done and the war is now over. All ICHEOKU is doing here is trying to second guess why we are not recovering from the 9/11 attack and will not recover from it, not as long as the 9/11 generation still lives. It is because the response was not adequate nor punitive enough to psychological make us feel good and fully recompensed. A case made worse with the Taliban being back on the saddle of power in Kabul and the occupants of the Kingdom of Saud are still acting as if they had nothing to do with it, when the whole world knows exactly that their fingerprints are everywhere on 9/11 attacks. It is sad the level of immunity which oil and oil money had purchased for Saudi Arabia that they simply gets away with everything. Even the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi who they butchered in their embassy in Istanbul Turkey has been forgotten. 

What a bloody world we live in where bloody alliances are forged on the blood of the people. The river of pain of 9/11 continues to flow and many Americans are continuing to  drown in it because treading of the water is fatigue inducing and difficult to maintain. Even coronavirus killer machine is not as pain-inducing as 9/11. There is something about 9/11 that has permanently enveloped Americans' joy like a demonic dark cloud that try as hard as one may, it never lifts nor goes away. The bad news is that by the time one begins to try and push it back in the distance memory, another anniversary of it rushes in and is deja vu the cycle of pain. 9/11 is a bad news that keeps on giving every September 11th of each year when the horrors of that day is relived. Will the torture ever end or at least reduced to minimum commemoration because it is turning us all into PTSD sufferers. 9/11 the worst day ever!

THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF 9/11: STILL NO CLOSURE NOR HEALING FOR AMERICANS.

ICHEOKU says this day, every year, has become the day many Americans grieve most as the pain is not going away and is only refreshed or rebooted every September 11th. Americans grieve on 9/11 not only because of the thousands of lives lost on that day, but the stark reality of their vulnerability right in their homeland, as they forever lost their sense of safety and security which the sea to the shinning sea hitherto "provided." Everybody in America is somewhat traumatized, admitted different people carry trauma differently; and although some people have also bravely soldiered on but are usually dragged back to what was and still is on the occasion of each anniversary of 9/11. 

A matter made worse because the skyline of Manhattan New York City was forever and permanently changed as a result of what the terrorists that struck Now World Trade Center desired. The authorities in New York failed to take this into full consideration when they hatched the plan for the restoration of the center by settling for one glass tower instead of two. It would have been a tribute in full restoration of the iconic Twin Towers which had graced the Manhattan skyline for such a long time that it became an identifier of New York City, in addition to Lady Liberty and the Empire State building. 

Although the glimmering glass tower is beautiful but it is not the Twin Towers; and can never be the Twin Towers, especially for the older generation who lived their lives with two twin towers on the horizon in New York City. First and foremost, one is different from two and less than two;  also the former towers were boxy while the new single one is anti prism shaped. ICHEOKU says is confident that had two towers been erected instead of one that it would have helped bring some closure to the tragedy, at least New York skyline would have been restored. But the lack thereof still gives the people the chill that not only were they so violently violated on 9/11, but also that their skyline was gone forever. 

Each day New Yorkers wake up to see a Manhattan skyline without their Twin Towers, it reminds them of the loss which they suffered on 9/11 at the hands of al-Qaida terrorists and it still hurts so badly. That void ought to have been filled and as long as it remains left unfilled, that long will the hurt feeling continue in the people until the generation pre 9/11 are completely gone; and the younger post 9/11 generation can then carry on with the only skyline known to them, devoid of Twin Towers. In fact, the terrorists won in that aspect by permanently and forever redefining an iconic American skyline for Americans. 

It is a defeat to accept their term on how our skyline should look and we are humiliated as a result, regardless of how anyone wants to spin that consequential fact. it would have been a different calculus had the New York development authority decided to change the skyline and took the Twin Towers down and replaced it with one solitary glass tower. But that al-Qaida forced the outcome is simply not the best medicine for anybody to take. It is partly why so many people are still hurting till today, even to the point of suffering PTSD; and going into mood swings and total depression on every September 11th anniversary of the terrorist attack of 9/11 2001. 

It is twenty years on and nothing has changed in the real sense of it. The reliving of the event each year on television is not helping anyone get better or over it either as it re-traumatizes them all over again. This leads to the question, is it not about time we reduced the extent of our 9/11 commemoration as it is causing more pain than bringing relief to millions of American people. Pearl Harbor attack is not commemorated in the same magnitude as 9/11 which have made it possible for most Americans to move on from the tragic Japanese induced event. So, when are we going to move on from 9/11 or will it take the dying off of the 9/11 generation to eventually reach such an outcome. 

ICHEOKU says does not know about you but September 11 of every year is not usually the best day and each year seems to be getting even worse than the year before in how sad one feels about it. It hurts so much that even tuning off televisions only masks it, because in the back of your mind, it is still that day of infamy, regardless. Although some cultures say that when the palace of a king burns, it is an opportunity to build a better palace, but is One Trade Center's single glass tower really any better than One Trade Center's Twin Towers that it replaced after it was burnt and brought down by the terrorists flying jumbo jet planes into them? 

This particular anniversary is very solemn in some awkward, eerie way. It is particularly memorable as the only anniversary of 9/11 without American troops boots on the ground in Afghanistan, fighting those who facilitated the takedown of our Twin Towers, who attempted the takedown of the Pentagon and also the take down of one other additional American landmark somewhere, before their plan was foiled by brave men and women on Flight 93 who sacrificed their lives by forcing the plane down in Shanksville Pennsylvania. Who knows what their exact target was as it could have been the Congress or the White House or even some place else. But whatever it might have been, it was aborted and for this, the nation remains perpetually indebted to those who, using fighting words "lets roll", rolled and prevented the murderous attempt.

To all those who were killed on 9/11 at the three sites, this day is to honor your memory. We remember you all and pray that you continue to rest. To all those killed post 9/11 through to  August 26 2021, fighting to avenge the deaths of the innocent victims of 9/11, we owe you a debt of gratitude for your selfless supreme sacrifice. We shall never forget, admitted doing exactly such is what will help us all heal and move on from the tragedy. But we are human beings and we seek vengeance, despite what the Bible said that 'vengeance is mine says the Lord.' After killing Osama bin Laden and thousands of people in Iraq and Afghanistan, we are still feeling unfulfilled in avenging 9/11. So, what will it take? May be we should have drawn on Nagasaki and Hiroshima experience to guide our response but we didn't. Now, it is only time that we can look unto to heal our wound; but as seen so far, twenty years is not long enough.  

IT IS A PANDEMIC OF THE UNVACCINATED: GET VACCINATED. - JOE BIDEN.

Good evening, my fellow Americans. I want to talk to you about where we are in the battle against COVID-19, the progress we’ve made, and the work we have left to do. And it starts with understanding this: Even as the Delta variant COVID-19 has been hitting this country hard, we have the tools to combat the virus. If we can come together as a country and use those tools, if we raise our vaccination rate, protect ourselves and others with masking, expanded testing, and identify people who are infected, we can and we will turn the tide on COVID-19. It will take a lot of hard work. It’s going to take some time. Many of us are frustrated with the nearly 80 million Americans who are still not vaccinated, even though the vaccine is safe, effective, and free. You might be confused about what is true and what is false about COVID-19.

So before I outline the new steps to fight COVID-19 that I’m going to be announcing tonight, let me give you some clear information about where we stand. First, we’ve made considerable progress in battling COVID-19. When I became president, about 2 million Americans were fully vaccinated. Today, over 175 million Americans have that protection. Before I took office, we hadn’t ordered enough vaccine for every American. Just weeks in office, we did. The week before I took office on January 20th of this year, over 25,000 Americans died that week from COVID-19. Last week, that grim weekly toll was down 70%. And then three months before I took office, our economy was faltering, creating just 50,000 jobs a month. We’re now averaging 700,000 new jobs a month in the past three months. This progress is real, but while America is much better shape than it was seven months ago when I took office, I need to tell you a second fact.

We’re in the tough stretch, and it could last for a while. Highly contagious Delta variant that I began to warn America about back in July spread late summer, like it did in other countries before us. While the vaccines provide strong protection for the vaccinated, we read about and hear about and we see the stories of hospitalized people, people on their deathbeds among the unvaccinated over the past few weeks. This is a pandemic of the unvaccinated, and it’s caused by the fact that despite America having unprecedented and successful vaccination program, despite the fact that for almost five months free vaccines have been available in 80,000 different locations, we still have nearly 80 million Americans who have failed to get the shot.

And to make matters worse, there are elected officials actively working to undermine the fight against COVID-19. Instead of encouraging people to get vaccinated and mask up, they’re ordering mobile morgues for the unvaccinated dying from COVID in their communities. This is totally unacceptable. Third, if you wonder how all this adds up, here’s the math. The vast majority of Americans are doing the right thing. Nearly three quarters of the eligible have gotten at least one shot, but one quarter has not gotten any. That’s nearly 80 million Americans not vaccinated. In a country as large as ours, that’s 25% minority. That 25% can cause a lot of damage, and they are. The unvaccinated overcrowd our hospitals, are overrunning emergency rooms and intensive care units, leaving no room for someone with a heart attack or pancreatitis or cancer.

And fourth, I want to emphasize that the vaccines provide very strong protection from severe illness from COVID-19. I know there’s a lot of confusion and misinformation, but the world’s leading scientists confirm that if you’re fully vaccinated, your risk of severe illness from COVID-19 is very low. In fact, based on available data from the summer, only one out of every 160,000 fully vaccinated Americans was hospitalized for COVID per day. These are the facts. So here’s where we stand. The path ahead, even with the Delta variant, is not nearly as bad as last winter. But what makes it incredibly more frustrating is that we have the tools to combat COVID-19, and a distinct minority of Americans supported by a distinct minority of elected officials are keeping us from turning the corner.

These pandemic politics are making people sick, causing unvaccinated people to die. We cannot allow these actions to stand in the way of protecting the large majority of Americans who have done their part and want to get back to life as normal. As your president, I’m announcing tonight a new plan to require more Americans to be vaccinated to combat those blocking public health. My plan also increases testing, protects our economy, and will make our kids safer in schools. It consists of six broad areas of action, and many specific measures that each of those actions you can read more about at whitehouse.gov, whitehouse.gov. The measures, these are going to take time to have full impact, but if we implement them, I believe, and the scientists indicate, that the months ahead we can reduce the number of unvaccinated Americans, decrease hospitalizations and deaths, and allow our children to go to school safely, and keep our economy strong by keeping businesses open.

First, we must increase vaccinations among the unvaccinated with new vaccination requirements. With nearly 80 million eligible Americans who have not gotten vaccinated, many said they were waiting for approval from the Food and Drug Administration, the FDA. Last month, the FDA granted that approval, so the time for waiting is over. This summer, we made progress through the combination of vaccine requirements and incentives, as well as the FDA approval. 4 million more people got their first shot in August than they did in July, but we need to do more. This is not about freedom or personal choice. It’s about protecting yourself and those around you, the people you work with, the people you care about, the people you love. My job as president is to protect all Americans, so tonight, I’m announcing that the Department of Labor is developing an emergency rule to require all employers with 100 or more employees that together employee over 80 million workers to ensure their workforces are fully vaccinated, or show a negative test at least once a week.

Some of the biggest companies are already requiring this. United Airlines, Disney, Tyson’s Food, and even Fox News. The bottom line: We’re going to protect vaccinated workers from unvaccinated coworkers. We’re going to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by increasing the share of the workforce that is vaccinated in businesses all across America. My plan will extend the vaccination requirements that I previously issued in the healthcare field. Already, I’ve announced we’ll be requiring vaccinations at all nursing home workers who treat patients on Medicare and Medicaid, because I had that federal authority. Tonight, I’m using that same authority to expand that to cover those who work in hospitals, home healthcare facilities, and our other medical facilities, a total of 17 million healthcare workers. If you’re seeking care at a health facility, you should be able to know that the people treating you are vaccinated, simple, straightforward, period. Next, I will sign an executive order that will now require all executive branch federal employees to be vaccinated, all.

I’ve signed another executive order that will require federal contractors to do the same. If you want to work with the federal government and do business with us, get vaccinated. If you want to do business with the federal government, vaccinate your workforce. And tonight, I’m removing one of the last remaining obstacles that make it difficult for you to get vaccinated. The Department of Labor will require employers with 100 or more workers to give those workers paid time off to get vaccinated. No one should lose pay in order to get vaccinated or take a loved one to get vaccinated. Today, in total, the vaccine requirements in my plan will affect about 100 million Americans, two thirds of all workers. And for other sectors, I issue this appeal: to those of you running large entertainment venues, from sports arenas to concert venues to movie theaters, please require folks to get vaccinated or show a negative test as a condition of entry.

And to the nation’s family physicians, pediatricians, GPs, general practitioners: You’re the most trusted medical voice to your patients. You may be the one person who can get someone to change their mind about being vaccinated. Tonight, I’m asking each of you to reach out to your unvaccinated patients over the next two weeks and make a personal appeal to them to get the shot. America needs your personal involvement in this critical effort. My message to unvaccinated Americans is this: What more is there to wait for? What more do you need to see? We’ve made vaccinations free, safe, and convenient. The vaccine has FDA approval. Over 200 million Americans have gotten at least one shot.

You’ve been patient, but our patience is wearing thin, and your refusal has cost all of us. So please do the right thing, but just don’t take it from me. Listen to the voices of unvaccinated Americans who are lying in hospital beds, taking their final breath, saying, “If only I’d gotten vaccinated. If only.” It’s a tragedy. Please don’t let it become yours. Second piece of my plan is continuing to protect the vaccinated. For the vast majority of you who’ve gotten vaccinated, I understand your anger at those who haven’t gotten vaccinated. I understand the anxiety about getting a breakthrough case, but as the science makes clear, if you’re fully vaccinated, you’re highly protected from severe illness, even if you get COVID-19. In fact, recent data indicates there is only one confirmed positive case per 5,000 fully vaccinated Americans per day. You’re as safe as possible, and we’re doing everything we can to keep it that way, keep you safe.

That’s where boosters come in, the shots that give you even more protection than after your second shot. Now, I know there’s been some confusion about boosters, so let me be clear. Last month, our top government doctors announced an initial plan for booster shots for vaccinated Americans. They believe that the booster is likely to provide the highest level of protection yet. Of course, the decision of which booster shots to give, when to start them, and who will give them will be left completely to the scientists at the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control. But while we wait, we’ve done our part. We bought enough boosters, enough booster shots, and the distribution system is ready to administer them. As soon as they are authorized, those eligible will be able to get a booster right away in tens of thousands of sites across the country, for most Americans at your nearby drug store, and for free.

The third piece of my plan, and maybe the most important, is keeping our children safe and our schools open. For any parent, it doesn’t matter how low the risk of any illness or accident is when it comes to your child or grandchild. Trust me, I know, so let me speak to you directly. Let me speak to you directly to help ease some of your worries. It comes down to two separate categories, children ages 12 and older, who are eligible for a vaccine now, and children ages 11 and under, who are not yet eligible. The safest thing for your child 12 and older is to get them vaccinated. They get vaccinated for a lot of things. That’s it, get them vaccinated. As with adults, almost all the serious COVID-19 cases we’re seeing among adolescents are in unvaccinated 12 to 17-year-olds, an age group that lags behind in vaccination rates.

So parents, please get your teenager vaccinated. What about children under the age of 12 who can’t get vaccinated yet? Well, the best way for parents to protect their child under the age of 12 starts at home. Every parent, every teen sibling, every caregiver around them should be vaccinated. Children have four times higher chance of getting hospitalized if they live in a state with low vaccination rates, rather than in states with high vaccination rates. Now, if you’re a parent of a young child, you’re wondering, “When will be the vaccine available for them?” I strongly support independent scientific review for vaccine uses for children under 12. We can’t take shortcuts for that scientific work. But I’ve made it clear I will do everything within my power to support the FDA with any resource it needs to continue to do this as safely and as quickly as possible, and our nation’s top doctors are committed to keeping the public at large updated on the process so parents can plan.

Now, to the schools. We know that if schools follow the science and implement the safety measures like testing, masking, adequate ventilation systems which we provided the money for, social distancing, and vaccinations, then children can be safe from COVID-19 in schools. Today, about 90% of school staffs and teachers are vaccinated. We should get that to 100%. My administration has already required teachers at the school that’ run by the Defense Department, because I have the authority as president in the federal system, the Defense Department and the Interior Department to get vaccinated. That’s authority I possess. Tonight, I’m announcing that we’ll require all of nearly 300,000 educators in the federal paid Head Start Program must be vaccinated as well to protect your youngest, our youngest, most precious Americans, and give parents the comfort.

And tonight, I’m calling on all governors to require vaccination for all teachers and staff. Some already have done so. We need more to step up. Vaccination requirements in schools are nothing new. They work. They’re overwhelmingly supported by educators and their unions. And all school officials trying to do the right thing by our children, I’ll always be on your side. Let me be blunt. My plan also takes on elected officials in states that are undermining you and these lifesaving actions. Right now, local school officials are trying to keep children safe in a pandemic while their governor picks a fight with them, and even threatens their salaries or their jobs. Talk about bullying in schools.

If they’ll not help, if these governors won’t help us beat the pandemic, I’ll use my power as president to get them out of the way. The Department of Education has already begun to take legal action against states undermining protection that local school officials have ordered. Any teacher or school official whose pay is withheld for doing the right thing, we will have that pay restored by the federal government, 100%. I promise you, I will have your back. The fourth piece of my plan is increasing testing and masking. From the start, America’s failed to do enough COVID-19 testing. In order to better detect and control the Delta variant, I’m taking steps tonight to make testing more available, more affordable, and more convenient. I’ll use the Defense Production Act to increase production of rapid tests, including those that you can use at home.

While that production is ramping up, my administration has worked with top retailers like Walmart, Amazon, and Kroger, and tonight, we’re announcing that no later than next week, each of these outlets will start to sell at-home rapid test kits at cost for the next three months. This immediate price reduction for at-home test kits for up to 35% reduction will also expand free testing at 10,000 pharmacies around the country. And we’re committing $2 billion to purchase nearly 300 million rapid tests for distribution to community health centers, food banks, schools, so that every American, no matter their income, can access free and convenient tests. This is important to everyone, particularly for a parent or a child, with a child not old enough to be vaccinated. You’ll be able to test them at home, and test those around them. In addition to testing, we know masking helps stop the spread of COVID-19.

That’s why when I came into office, I required masks for all federal buildings, on federal lands, on airlines, and other modes of transportation. Today, tonight, I’m announcing that the Transportation Safety Administration, the TSA, will double the fines on travelers that refuse to mask. If you break the rules, be prepared to pay. And by the way, show some respect. The anger you see on television toward flight attendants and others doing their job is wrong. It’s ugly. The fifth piece of my plan is protecting our economic recovery. Because of our vaccination program and the American Rescue Plan, which we passed early in my administration, we’ve had record job creation for a new administration, economic growth unmatched in 40 years. We cannot let unvaccinated do this progress… Undo it, turn it back. So tonight, I’m announcing additional steps to strengthen our economic recovery. We’ll be expanding COVID-19 economic injury disaster loan programs.

That’s a program that’s going to allow small businesses to borrow up to $2 million from the current 500,000 to keep going if COVID-19 impacts on their sales. These low-interest long-term loans require no repayment for two years, and we can use to hire and retain workers, purchase inventory, or even pay down higher-cost debt racked up since the pandemic began. I’ll also be taking additional steps to help small businesses stay afloat during the pandemic. Sixth, we’re going to continue to improve the care of those who do get COVID-19. In early July, I announced the deployment of surge response teams. These are teams comprised of experts from the Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC, the Defense Department, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, to areas in the country that need help to stem the spread of COVID-19. Since then, the federal government has deployed nearly 1000 staff, including doctors, nurses, paramedics into 18 states.

Today, I’m announcing that the Defense Department will double the number of military health teams that they’ll deploy to help their fellow Americans in hospitals around the country. Additionally, we’re increasing the availability of new medicines recommended by real doctors, not conspiracy theorists. The monoclonal antibody treatments have been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization by up to 70% for unvaccinated people at risk of developing severe disease. We’ve already distributed 1.4 million courses of these treatments to save lives and reduce the strain on hospitals. Tonight, I’m announcing we’ll increase the average pace of shipment across the country of free monoclonal antibody treatments by another 50%. Before I close, let me say this: Communities of color are disproportionately impacted by this virus. And as we continue about COVID-19, we will ensure that equity continues to be at the center of our response. We’ll ensure that everyone is reached.

My first responsibility as president is to protect the American people and make sure we have enough vaccine for every American, including enough boosters for every American who’s approved to get one. We also know this virus transcends borders. That’s why even as we execute this plan at home, we need to continue fighting the virus overseas, continue to be the arsenal of vaccines. We’re proud to have donated nearly 140 million vaccines to over 90 countries, more than all other countries combined, including Europe, China, and Russia combined. That’s American leadership on a global stage, and that’s just the beginning. We’ve also now started to ship another 500 million Pfizer vaccines purchased to donate to 100 lower-income countries in need of vaccines, and I’ll be announcing additional steps to help the rest of the world later this month.

As I recently released the key parts of my pandemic preparedness plan so that America isn’t caught flat-footed when a new pandemic comes, as it will, next month, I’m also going to release the plan in greater detail. So let me close with this: We’ve made so much progress during the past seven months of this pandemic. The recent increases in vaccinations in August already are having an impact in some states, where case counts are dropping in recent days. Even so, we remain at a critical moment, a critical time. We have the tools, now we just have to finish the job with truth, with science, with confidence, and together as one nation. Look, we’re the United States America. There’s nothing, not a single thing we’re unable to do if we do it together. So let’s stay together. God bless you all, and all those who continue to serve on the front lines of this pandemic, and may God protect our troops. Get vaccinated.

ASHRAF GHANI'S APOLOGY NOT ACCEPTED: ABANDONING HIS PEOPLE IS TREASONOUS.

"I owe the Afghan people an explanation for leaving Kabul abruptly on August 15th after Taliban unexpectedly entered the city. I left at the urging of the palace security who advised me that to remain risked setting off the same horrific street-to-street fighting the city had suffered during the Civil War of the 1990s. Leaving Kabul was the most difficult decision of my life, but I believed it was the only way to keep the guns silent and save Kabul and her 6 million citizens." - Ashraf Ghani, deserter and former president of Afghanistan.

ICHEOKU says the only thing the woke former president of Afghanistan, a captain who abandoned ship on the high seas with millions of Afghanis still in it and left to drown, can satisfactorily do now is to fall on his sword and commit harakiri. He was the commander in chief of Afghanistan National Army and he fled in the midst of battle, deserting his command post and left his troops and millions of Afghanistan citizens at the mercy of the invading Taliban. 

Therefore, no amount of explanation or apology will be enough to rectify the damage which his cowardly decision to run away to safety, abandoning millions of Afghanistan citizens who he took oath of office to defend and protect from all enemies foreign and domestic, caused. What exactly is he trying to explain and to who; or that the Taliban is not in power today in Kabul and dictating the policy of the state, having instituted an Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan with an acute sharia law flavor. Who is he actually apologizing to and expecting to accept it?

Is he apologizing to the millions of Afghanistan women and girls who have lost their twenty year freedom to wear make up, dress up, acquire education and then hold gainful employment? Is his apology for the hundreds of thousands of people who hitherto settled in Afghanistan but who have now been forced to be evacuated for fear of the terror of the Taliban? Is his apology to the United States of America which supplied Afghanistan with $83 billion worth of ammunition, weapons, aircrafts including many helicopters, tanks and other military equipments which are now in the hands of the Taliban? 

Who is this fella apologizing to really or is it to the investors and entrepreneurs who have put down roots in Afghanistan in the last twenty years, believing that the political stage of Afghanistan is safely secured to do business and thrive? Who exactly is this man making his apology to and expect to receive it, forgive him or forget what he did, the greatest betrayal of his people and other people living in Afghanistan. But he is a liberal Berkeley California educated fellow and possessed of a mindset that thinks first about self before others, thinking that apologizing later will suffice. 

How about the thousands of Afghanistan people who lost their lives because they did not flee but chose to stand up and die fighting to save Afghanistan from the Taliban. How about the thousands of American troops and their allies who died fighting the Taliban with hope of saving Afghanistan from the Taliban? How about the trillions of dollars spent on Afghanistan in an attempt to plant and sustain democracy in Afghanistan? But no, only Ashraf Ghani's life is so precious and worth saving that he felt he cannot make necessary sacrifice, if need be, to save it. 

ICHEOKU says anybody who accepts or even thinks about forgiving this man for what he did, needs to have his or her head examined. Were was his loyalty to his people when he ran away at their hour of greatest need of him to protect them from the Taliban. He was the center of gravity of democracy in Afghanistan but decided to let democracy collapse and die simply because of his selfishness and self centeredness. He convinced himself that his personal interest exceeds the greater interest of Afghanistan when he fled and here he is now, opening his mouth to offer an apology and give useless explanation. 

For what use are they anyway if one may ask? Former Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani should stuff his apology in his you know where, the darkest place in his anatomy where the sun hardly ever reaches. That is where his apology belongs as nobody wants to hear it or needs it; his apology is not accepted. He is a sad commentary to manhood and he will forever live in the shame of his deserting his people when they needed him and his leadership most. His name will live in infamy for abandoning his Afghanistan people without a care in the world if the Taliban slaughtered them all. Shame on him. 

TALIBAN GOVERNMENT: RECOGNIZE THEM NOW, NO FURTHER DELAY NECESSARY.

ICHEOKU says they were able to put a government together within such a reasonable time, barely one week after the United States pulled its troops out of Afghanistan. They were also able to repair and reopen the Kabul international airport within a record time. They have so far conducted themselves in ways not as harshly as their first time around. It is therefore about time the international community show them that they like what they are seeing and encourage them to maintain the right direction. 

We should therefore support their effort as go forth to govern their country by immediately recognizing their newly constituted government and help them get off the ground running. There is no need to adopt any "wait and see" approach or to say that "we are not in a rush to recognize them" because there is nothing else to find out. They are the only authority now in Afghanistan, regardless of the manner they got into power. At worst, we can see them as a government that came to power through a military coup and treat them as any such other country with similar experience by encouraging them to democratize. But to do nothing or defer establishing diplomatic relations with them, especially by reopening the embassy building in Kabul and reactivating other under the radar activities on the ground in Kabul will be hurtful to the overall security interest needs of America. 

The United States of America must not act as a dog in the manger or remain a sore loser because of the manner it was forced out of Afghanistan by protesting the newly formed Taliban government in Kabul. The war is over and every effort and action, going forward, must be geared towards asserting a firm influence over them and working out how best to protect the fragility of Afghanistan and not allow it to degenerate any further or collapse back to a terrorists breeding enclave. The Taliban may not be the government which we want or would have preferred in Afghanistan, but any government which can hold Afghanistan together and prevent it from sliding back into a complete anarchy is still better than no government at all. 

We can assist with the keeping of Afghanistan together by acting now and immediately recognize the Taliban government and work with them and try and influence them from the inside. To the victor, goes the spoil and they won the war; and therefore have earned the  right to constitute a government of their choosing. Nobody tells America the type of government to have or who should participate in it; so why is anyone bothered that the Taliban have chosen a government which they believe is in the best interest of their people, the Afghanis. It does not matter that it is an Islamic government with sharia law flavor and it should not matter either the people they put in charge to run the affairs of their state, what they did in their past lives notwithstanding. 

If those Guantanamo-5 were good enough to participate in the withdrawal negotiations in Doha Qatar, and were also rightfully released by the United States government in a trade for Bowe Bergdahi, then they should be good enough to participate in the government which they secured as a result of the negotiated withdrawal. It is their country, their Taliban, their choice; and now their government. All the West can do now is to find a way to eat their humble pie and work with the hand which fate dealt them, the enemies the Taliban, coming back to power. In fact it is the only option now left and we must cease it timely before we lose out clout to other budding interests including Russia and China. 

So what if the Taliban suppressed a protest recently? America also suppressed the January 6th Capitol riot and many others before and since after. Lets not forget that an unarmed civilian, a woman and a veteran was summarily executed inside the Capitol on that day, yet we are speaking of the Taliban as if they are the only ruthless government on planet earth. If they do not want women participating in their government, it is a cultural thing and we should respect that. Homosexuals participate in our government and so many countries would consider that as an intolerable aberration, yet no country has demanded that we first exclude weirdos from governance before they can deal with us. 

Our culture respects and accepts that and other countries accepts to respect America and its culture, so why cannot us also reciprocate this gesture by allowing other countries to maintain their own cultures as well. If they do not determine for us who should serve in our government, why are we serving them the potion which we will not drink by insisting that they must have women in their government. What if their culture sees such as a taboo, regardless of how mundane it might sound? We should as a matter of course, defer to them on who serves in their government based on what is their acceptable cultural norms. 

But how many women even serve in our friend and ally Saudi Arabia's government? How about Iranian, Pakistani, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan and other Islamic countries which America has cordial relationship with. so why is Afghanistan being singled out for this moral decency lessons of inclusivity? if we can tolerate these other countries and respect their cultural and religious need, why not Afghanistan? These countries consider homosexuals as taboo, yet they do not ask nor demand that we consider them same by excluding them from governance. Why are we forcing our values on them? 

It is their culture and religion and we should be humble enough to respect and accommodate it; as we continue to work them into understanding the alternative, and the advantages and benefits of inclusiveness. So far, they are behaving themselves as they know that the world is watching them very closely and they also want to be accepted as a bona fide government. We should take advantage of this their burning desire to be certified and approach them showing more compassion and then exploit it to get them change certain things is due course. 

At least the devil one knows is always better than the stranger devil; and since these Taliban leaders are people already known to the West, it will be much easier to work with them and eventually get them to do what the West wants and desires with time. They  pledged that Afghanistan's soil will not be used against the security of any other country. This should be good enough to allay fears of Afghanistan once again becoming a breeding ground for terrorism. We should work with them to ensure this never happens again. We might even at some point down the road, even cajoling them into allowing a military base in  Afghanistan for terrorism watch post. 

They have asked foreign diplomats, embassies, consulates and humanitarian organizations to return to Afghanistan and we should take them on this offer by reopening immediately all the embassies and consulates that were shuttered upon the withdrawal of forces. It is better to have assets on the ground, both human and electronics, to help monitor them better from close quarters. If they want a sharia law in their nearly 100% Muslim Afghanistan, so be it; as we have Judeo-Christian based English law in the West and nobody has questioned that. 

They promised a lasting peace, prosperity and development in Afghanistan and asked their people not to abandon their homeland but to stay and to help rebuild their war damaged country back better. This should be encouraged in order to save Afghanistan from ever sliding back to ruinous state. They also stated that they have no problem with anyone or any country and you ask yourself what other assurances do the West need before they can let the Taliban show them the money of their commitment by making due all the deliverables. It is the right toned speech and the West should help them realize them by sticking around closely and not deserting them. We can leverage and influence them to change their behavior but not by isolating them.

The people they announced as members of their interim government are people who the West already have dossiers on. Mullah Hasan Akhund, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Abdul Salam Hanafi, Sirajuddin Haqqani, Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, Amir Khan Muttaqi, Hedayatullah Badri, Abbas Stanikzai, Abdul Haq Wasiq, Norullah Noori, Khairullah Khairkhah, Mullah Mohammad Fazi, Mohammad Nabi Omari and Haibatullah Akhundzada are well known by the West and could be easily reached should the need ever arises. So, lets recognize the Taliban government now; and yes, we should be in a hurry to do so and not wait another 20 years to do it. Nature abhors vacuum and the longer we wait the more opportunity Russia and China will have time to exploit and fill the void which we left.  

MICHAEL K WILLIAMS, OMAR LITTLE OF THE WIRE: DEAD FROM DRUG OVERDOSE.

ICHEOKU says another famous black actor, who rose to fame for his role as Omar Little in the HBO series The Wire, has succumbed to the demon of drugs. Whether these people do not listen or are too stressed and depressed to care, remains the sixty four million dollar question which has not been answered by anyone. It was not too long ago that rapper DMX lost his life to drugs and now Michael Kenneth Williams too have  surrendered his life to the same killer pastime. Both and many others heard Witney Houston's admonition that crack is whack, yet it did not make them to look the other way. 

With his death, the tally of famous black people who failed to heed the warning and gave their lives to crack or whatever other drug of choice which whacked them, have now risen. But why are these people taking these drugs anyway, aware that they might overdose on them? Probably the same reason we all do the things that we do just because we cannot help ourselves from doing them. Addiction is it and it starts with one try, but why? Was it because the pressure that came with their fame made their life simply unlivable without staying high always to mask and muffle it? Did their fame make their life become so boring that they cannot just go on living a normal life they were used to without some help from drugs? 

Do these famous people feel isolated, scared and cornered without anyone to trust anymore that they feel lonely and finds some companionship with drugs? What is it exactly as too many  people are being lost daily to hard drugs in America without an answer to why they choose to get high and many of the drugs are no longer as pure as they used to be. The drugs are constantly being adulterated with other substances such as fentanyl that they end up not being what the addict meant to introduce into their body as they end up poisoning themselves, which is causing all these "accidental" overdosing. The greed of suppliers and lust for triple gains as well as the demand from addicts for Empire State building high, caused these boosting of supplies. 

All these people succumbing to drug overdose were not and could not have been just that suicidal to knowingly introduce into their bodies substance that would end their life just like that. But they end up dying anyway because their heart was shocked by a traumatic experience induced by these drugs  and they just pack up. So, it is not totally the dealers and suppliers fault that these drugs are now increasingly being adulterated because the market forces control what is available. Some addicts have used so much drugs and for such a long time that it no longer gives them the high which they crave for. The search for the next level high and the dealers desire not to lose the customer makes them to upgrade by juicing up the drugs.

It is very tragic that many people are constantly now dying as a result of these boosted drugs. These occurrences should be something of great concern to America people, particularly the loved ones and other people around these famous people in the entertainment industry. They should be on their guard and more proactive in spotting a cry for help from such people in need before it becomes too late. A matter made worse because these famous people usually surround themselves with "aiders and abetters" who simply nod to whatever they say and desire, without giving a care in the world about whether it is in their best interest. Their only concern usually is to ensure that their cash cow keeps on producing dairy products and once their bills are taken care of, that is good enough. 

Now they have killed another black famous entertainer and you ask yourself, when will it end. It is sad losing Michael Kenneth Williams especially so close to the death of DMX, both from killer drugs which they overdosed on. Unfortunately, the society does not appear to care enough about these people dying, to want to do something serious about the drug scourge ravaging American society. Michael Kenneth Williams is now dead, another victim of drugs overdose and who shall it be tomorrow? For who the bell tolls next and when will something be done about wrestling drugs out of the American society. It is another indication that the war on drugs has either failed or is not being earnestly prosecuted, just like the Afghanistan war.

Omar Little was one of ICHEOKU's favorite black actor who ICHEOKU personal acknowledged as the real scarface, not Al Pacino; because of his very prominent facial scarring running from his head right through down to his neck. As he explained in an interview, he got the scarring from a bar fight when he was 25 years old and his attackers used a sharp blade and carve him up. With his death, you wonder if any of those black entertainers who are still shooting some liquids into their veins or popping pills or snorting powdery substances right into their nostrils will stop for a moment and think again about what they are doing and its attendant risks, including sudden death. 

But the death of DMX did not stop Omar Little from also now taking his own life from drug overdose, accidental or not; and his death will also not prevent the next druggie from overdosing in the future. Drugs have become a grave epidemic or rather pandemic in America but it seems that the society has accepted to live with it, leading to the increasing number of people dying from overdosing. It has somewhat become a weapon of mass destruction in America, worse than gun violence and even worse than terrorism, the number of Americans being killed yearly by drug overdose considered. Is there no solution or have the society given up, tired from years of war on drug that has not yielded the desired result.

It is sad that another famous black person has now bitten the dust of drug overdose; and for one such famous person killed, hundreds of other less known persons equally succumb to their own drug addiction daily in America. Every year the number of drug killed casualties keep on rising and then add the junkies filling up American city streets. It is pitiful that the number of Americans being wasted by drugs is this many and it cuts across the length and breath of America, all races, classes, admitted it is the black drug scourge that is the subject of this focus. But will anything now change because of the death of Michael Kenneth Williams? ICHEOKU says will not bet on it and so should you. Anyway, may his soul now rest. Michael Kenneth Williams was 54 years old. Adieu Omar Little. 

AFGHANISTAN: A MICROMANAGED MILITARY FOUGHT A MISMANAGED WAR AND LOST.

ICHEOKU says if after twenty years of blood and treasure the situation in Afghanistan was in such a mission-critical that a $700 million embassy building could not safely be occupied and operates, but has to be closed and abandoned and eventually will fall into ruins, what then have America been doing all the years of sojourning in Afghanistan. It shows that the Taliban was righteously disappointed and indignant that America stayed in their country, uninvited, for that long without any real achievement. They could not even secure their own embassy building and you wonder what else did they secure; and why American people are not rising up in protest on the streets and demanding that the frolic of the last twenty years be investigated and accounted for. 

American taxpayers deserve some answers and they should be asking to know what the two trillion dollars purchased and on what it was expended. How was the money disbursed and who got what, Afghanistan officials or their American counterparts? Over two thousand American lives and over twenty thousand injured Americans cannot just be swept under the rug and pretend as if nothing happened, especially when the amount of money spent to incur such a gargantuan loss is factored in. They had the superiority in manpower, weapons, equipments,  airplanes, logistics and all manners of other hi-tech gadgets and vision capabilities, yet they lost the war to a band of Taliban fighters. What happened? 

ICHEOKU says has come to the conclusion that too much civilian interference with war prosecution cost America the war in Afghanistan, period. The civilian wing of the Washington DC elite and political establishment purposely gummed the war effort in Afghanistan and misdirected its prosecution. Too much civilian involvement and near total control of the military is eroding the fighting abilities of the United States military as they not only start these wars but also micromanage its prosecution. This is causing the many not too stellar results of missions and in turn causing too many dissatisfaction in the military as the fighting men and women know that they can do it but not with their hands tied behind their backs. 

It is increasingly bleeding the morals of the men and women in uniform and also eroding the confidence in America by many international bodies and other countries which heavily relies on America to show the way. This evaporating confidence in America must be arrested quickly before it is too late, forcing these various interests to seek shelter of protection elsewhere, most likely China. It is acceptable that the military should be under the control of civilian leadership, but it should be to the extent of issuing a command but not how that command is carried out. It is what the military trains and lives to do every day, how to carry out the command. But to order them into war and still dictate how to fight the war is too intrusive and very demoralizing. It makes them look idiotic and that they don't know how to do their job.

How could an infantry with boots on the ground in a theater of war be required to first crosscheck with Washington DC or Florida or Virginia before moving on a cornered target? How could a fighter pilot over an enemy be required to ensure that no civilian, women and children will be killed by a dropped bomb? How can a band of brothers carrying out a raid of an enemy'e dwelling be required to make sure that only the "correct" enemies were killed and when unavoidable collateral damage results, is courtmartialed and sometimes imprisoned or fired? it is not as if they are not operating under a highly charged environment already, but their civilian minders prefer to add to their psychological payloads. 

Recall the incident that happened with Osama bin Laden who was cornered in the mountains of Tora Bora around December 2001. But instead of the summarily swooping in on him and capture or take him out, their rule of engagement required them to first seek clearance and get approval from the civilians in Washington DC before acting on the intelligence. When they did, they were ordered to step down and not proceed to deal with Osama bin Laden, allowing him to escape kill or capture so soon after 9/11 and you wonder why? The war would have ended right then in Tora Bora, but the Deep State Military Industrial Complex wanted to make money, hence the forever war began, resulting in the 20 years jamboree in Afghanistan. 

Now, America will also go down in history as another country which was defeated in Afghanistan, the other major two being the British Empire and the Union of Socialists Soviet Republic, largely now known as Russia. It was the same story line, they could not defeat Afghanistan and were forced into a humiliating withdrawal with their tails tucked in between their legs. But if only there was not a too constraining rules of engagement which hamstrung American fighting men and women, their own story of expedition in Afghanistan would have turned out differently. But their hands were tied by too many regulations; some, made up as they fought, which made it impossible for them to operate and no war could have been won under such circumstances.

The only way American military can start winning wars again is to let them do what they train and live for, fight like their lives depends on it. The First and Second Gulf wars were such wars where Generals Charles Albert Horner and Norman Schwarzkopf were allowed the liberties of being commanding generals and they delivered. Therefore going forward, the military should be allowed to do what they do best or don't send them into battle, especially for some of these needless egotistic wars such as to avenge one's father's image. Also many of these wars can be avoided if the draft is reintroduced in the military. With everyone having a full stake in the wars, including those war profiteering mongrels, wars will be seriously thought through before they are started. 

If they know that their own kits and kins could be sent into battle fronts, they will have a thorough circumspection to undergo before pulling the trigger of war declaration. But as long it is other peoples children and relatives that will be put in harms way and possibly brought back in body bags and America flag draped caskets, they will continue to be very cavalier in the manner they start wars, including in very distant lands with no particular national security interest or implication to America. They have upgraded wars as money minting endeavors for them, sort of business venture and they will only continue to salivate at any opportunity to make more money at the expense of American taxpayers. 

Imagine the impact all the resources wasted in Afghanistan would have had were it invested in America? It would have transformed America into the Dubai of the Western world, with a fully rebuilt, replaced and completely modernized infrastructure; possibly free tuition, free healthcare and possibly solve the homeless problem too. But no, the fat cats of DSMIC want the money in boatloads and only by American taxpayers spending them on expensive weapons and military hardwares will they make out like bandits through war profiteering. 

Thankfully, Joe Biden stayed his ground and brought the Afghanistan gallivanting to an end. The Deep State military industrial complex is not happy, they are seething and growling, and before too soon, another war might be started somewhere just to pacify them. Whether it will lead to a war with China, which will be a mother-load for weapons sales, nobody knows but it will definitely be a very costly adventure both in human and financial resources. It will also be the mother of all wars which America has ever engaged in as the forces will be nearly evenly matched, ferocity for ferocity. It will not be a case of an overmatched opponent struggling to put up some fight, but two strong powers going at each other and throwing everything into it to come out on tops, the proverbial two elephants. 

But the world will never allow such war between America and China to happen because it will literary destroy the world, economically. The two sides are the world's greatest powers, militarily and economically; and their engaging in a destructive war will not only stagnate their respective countries, but also strangle a world that is heavily dependent on them for their own survival. The grass will not allow itself to suffer such pain and agony and will therefore not allow the two elephants to fight. But the Deep State Military Industrial Complex is addicted to wars and they must have their fix, starting another war very soon. ICHEOKU says strongly believes that war between America and China is uploading.  #ReintroduceDraft.

PRESIDENT TRUMP: NOT GIVING AMERICAN PEOPLE THE ROOM TO MISS HIM.

ICHEOKU says if only he can appreciate the need to remove himself from the firing range and totally and completely isolate himself from the line of fire and not give the media a reason to see him at the business end of their rifle. That way they will be forced to concentrate only on the target at the White House without being distracted by their Trump's derangement syndrome, which usually kicks into overdrive each time President Donald John Trump comes into focus. Yes, for all intent and purpose, Joe Biden should be the only target on the crosshairs of the viewfinder, strapped alone at the firing range of political destruction right now in America. But President Donald John Trump cannot retrain himself and is constantly trusting himself into view and making it difficult for the media to concentrate their aim. 

If only he could discipline himself enough and take a leave of absence, away from the center of attention, he will give those his usual traducers time to really find another target of attack concentrate their attention. They will be forced to engage the man at the White House, whose stewardship so far needs some reviewing. But unfortunately, his love for camera, light and action has become almost an addiction and he cannot help himself but continuously insert himself into the fray. Now the woke media is trying as hard as possible to make him the bogey man of everything that has gone wrong so far in the Joe Biden's administration. He forced them to redirect attention at him and with it, Joe Biden is not being fully exposed to the heat of all that are going awry in the country. 

President Donald John Trump is oversupplying himself to the media and at a time when he should be very scarce, in order to force them examine Joe Biden's record more closely to see if they are meeting his election campaign promises. He is the one now in the White House and since the buck stops on his desk, the media and politics pundits will have no other choice in the matte but to explain to American people why things are going awry with an "adult" now in the White House. If President Trump can just move away, even temporarily, may be American people will then become fully aware of who is in fact responsible for all that are going adrift in their life and America in general, the present occupant of the White House, his name is Joe Biden. 

There is the Afghanistan withdrawal hiccups; the resilient coronavirus disease which is still scalding Americans; the weak economy with very slow recovery; the weak jobs numbers; the natural disasters of hurricane Ida and wildfires in California; and of course the exacerbating gun violence as well as opioids deaths. All these are problems needing solutions, which Joe Biden promised Americans he will wipe away once in the White House. But nine months later, he seems lost in finding solutions as promised. American people should be edge now, demanding answers and seeking to know from the Joe Biden why his administration has not delivered as promised. Because the media is not concentrating focus on these problems solely on him, it makes it appear as if things are still firmly under his control.

ICHEOKU says strongly believes that the problems would get the attention they deserve when Joe Biden is hounded by American people with the help of the media and demanding answers for why things are not smooth sailing since he came into office. A smarter President Donald John Trump should therefore not stand in the way of focusing attention on Joe Biden and should have since yielded the spotlight and disappeared. Joe Biden could then be pinned down to explain why so many things are not currently working out as he promised and American people had anticipated. But as long as President Donald John Trump keeps on placing himself in the center-front, that long will the media and pundits be tempted to make him the subject of discussion. 

Who gains from this but Joe Biden who is, coasting under the radar, without being held to account for the shortcomings and unfulfilled expectations of his administration, nine months after. The Afghanistan debacle would have been a great opportunity to compare notes between what President Donald John Trump would have done if similarly situated, with what Joe Biden did.  Many people are leaning on the side which said that Trump would have not allowed the Taliban to so easily rout Afghanistan. Some other people also blame Trump for entering the agreement with the Taliban which they claim bounded Joe Biden's hands, but they fail to also include that Joe Biden could have canceled the agreement as he did other things with Trump's signature on them. 

President Donald John Trump was saved from salvos of condemnations which would have come his way had Afghanistan ended as it did with him still in the White House. Imagine what they would have done to him had it been under his watch that Taliban breezed into Kabul without any hinderance or resistance. Even the woke generals would have "rebelled" against him for being such a "mumbling" and pathetic" commander in chief and foreign policy novitiate who did not know what was in the best interest of America. The media would have also chewed and spat him out like a bad curd; and paid hacks who are parading themselves as pundits and experts would have brought the roof down on him with their useless analysis explaining why Trump was not fit to remain in the White House. 

For added effect, they would have used all manners of words to describe him such as fumbling and inexperienced; maniacal and egotistic; dead brain; hare brained; a buffoon who knew nothing about foreign policy etc. They would have blamed him for everything and being the sole reason the outcome turned out as it did. Both political parties, democrats and republicans, would have joined hands in demanding that he resigned from office and would have summarily impeached and removed him from office  if he hesitated or resisted. Now, even some republicans are defending Joe Biden's foibles, needless to add that no democrat has so far ever ventured outside their party directive to raise a voice against all the shortfalls bedeviling the administration. 

May be if Trump wasn't in the way, the situation could have been different, but he is not yielding nor ceding the space to test the theory. American people still see him very much around and nearly everywhere, such that some people probably thinks that he is still in the White House and calling all the shots. The media is not helping matters either as they are using him as scapegoat to cover for Joe Biden's problems; and thus saving Joe Biden from the full weight of anger by an increasingly disappointed and despondent American people. But for Trump interjecting himself in the situation, all the current darts would have been shooting straight right at the White House with none ever being directed at Mar-largo. The media would have had no choice but to keep it one hundred on Joe Biden, but with Trump giving Joe Biden some lease on life with his availability, Joe Biden is largely left unscathed.

A more political adroit and astute Trump should have known that he is helping Joe Biden by serving himself up to the media at this time. He is their goose that keeps on giving as they have insatiable appetite for attacking and criticizing him. If ICHEOKU were advising Trump, would suggest that he take a break from the media scene and allow Joe Biden to answer for his stewardship so far, by forcing the media to finally solely focus on Joe Biden and dig into his records. President Trump is one lucky fella and probably the luckiest politician alive in America right now for not being in the White House at this present time. He should therefore do himself a favor by making a b-line out of the media circus and stay away; and watch Joe Biden take all the heat. But his addiction to light, camera and action would not permit it.  

UNDERESTIMATING THE TALIBAN COSTLY: WE DIDN'T ALSO EVEN KNOW THEY CAN FLY.

ICHEOKU says the fact that they can get that baby up in the sky and also safely land it back on the ground speaks volumes about the new Taliban 2.0 and their readiness to outperform expectations. Nobody ever thought that they know how to drive armored vehicles, talkless of flying a helicopter; but they have once again proved everyone wrong. It was the same way they survived the 20 years of world powers occupation of Afghanistan and eventually toppled the government in Kabul and are now in power.

What else about the Taliban is the West misreading or "mis-underestimating" or not understanding that will eventually spring a rude surprise on them. The West underestimated the Taliban several times before and they are today still being cocky about them, despite having  routed a government which the West backed and supported militarily. What is wrong with those cranking out policies in the West one may ask. Instead of the tough guy posture and we have the leverage to choke the life out of them attitude being exhibited by the West, the better approach should be to be humble in defeat and explore ways of accepting the reality that is Taliban now in charge in Afghanistan. But the longer the West waits on the sidelines from recognizing the Taliban, the more it will be difficult to reel them in within an acceptable behavior.

The Taliban have proved severally that they are better than we give them credit for and that underestimating them is to our own detriment; so, why the adamancy on the old approach. They came before and were very ruthless, but that was 20 years ago; why not give them the benefit of the doubt that they might be different this time, no matter how miniscule. They have made a lot of promises too to be of good behavior and so far they are still tallying along those narrow lines, without veering off to their notorious old hardline display of absolutism. It is a window of opportunity which is open to the West and which could be used to contain them and somewhat also control them. It is therefore incumbent on the West not to allow it to close or go to waste. 

We might also be surprised to see how quickly all those aircrafts, vehicles and equipments which departing American military damaged and abandoned in Afghanistan will be repaired by the Taliban. Once they are repaired and added to the thousands of other military fully functional vehicles including armored tanks which were also left for them, they might very quickly turn Afghanistan into a regional military power in South-central Asia. They are nearly finishing the formation of their all inclusive Afghanistan national government and with support from their Pakistan neighbors, their MiddleEast friends and other fellow Muslim countries such as Turkey, the Taliban might once again surprise the West by in fact running an effective government in Kabul. 

The arrogance of the West is in the way and once again making a fool of the West by their not grabbing with two hands the opportunity to embrace the Taliban fully and be in a position to influence their government. Sanctions which normally work against civilized countries will not work with the Taliban because majority of them have never been on an airplane talkless of enjoying vacations in the West. Majority of them too do not have bank accounts talkless of having secret Switzerland coded accounts or in the Cayman, Bahamas, New York or London which the West can cease. Majority of them too do not have their children going to posh schools and universities in the West who could be targeted by any sanctions and lastly, they do not have palate for Western fine wines, cigars and delicacies. 

So, what exactly is the West going to sanction the Taliban with which will force them to change their ways and behavior, assuming they decides to call the bluff of America and its Western allies and reboot their old ways. They have all the weapons, equipments and military vehicles which they will need for their natural pastime, fighting; at least it will last them for the next decade or two; and they got them for free. The West therefore have no serious leverage over the Taliban and it will be in the West's best interest not to turn their back on the Taliban. The best foot forward is to immediately recognize their government, bring them closer and work with them in order to try and moderate them from within. If they can fly a chopper, it means they can do a lot more and the West must not allow itself to be left behind as the Taliban train roars off.