#352 — Hubris & Chaos
Making Sense with Sam Harris
**The folly of attempting to micromanage nation building USA in Afghanistan **
The US and its allies intervened in Afghanistan after 2001, working with questionable figures and warlords to maintain order in the country. The intervention involved trying to replace corrupt leaders and militias with foreign soldiers and clean technocrats. However, this approach led to a 'you break it, you own it' problem, as the US and its allies attempted to run Afghanistan with a lack of understanding and knowledge about the country. The extensive moral ambiguity and the futile attempt to micromanage how districts were run in southern Afghanistan demonstrated the folly of engaging in nation-building efforts in a situation where the US lacked the necessary knowledge, legitimacy, and power.
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