Quote:

“Where do you want to start?” —Farhad Azad

About:

Afghanistan has far too often been referred to as a place where countries go to die, it is a graveyard of empires.

This moniker has been cited so many times and for so long that it’s unclear who first said it. Even the Afghan community will recite this pride. But what a title like this fails to convey is that while this might be a country responsible for the many tombstones of others, it very well is also a moratorium of progress for itself, a state in perpetual arrested development.

This is also a cemetery for countless Afghans who, in more modern times, failed to see any empire rise.

Why do some countries get to debate their histories while others have their legacy determined by outsiders? And what gets lost along the way?

This is Part II of a multi-part story on how history, current events, and culture all complicate the Afghan identity. 

Show Notes:

1. [00:30] “The Layers of Heaven” by Jovica
2. [00:45] The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
3. [00:50] The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis
4. [01:15] Re: Is it hard to have fun when you have a library card?
5. [01:20] More on Jamil Jan Kochai (@jamiljankochai)
   1. Read his book, 99 Nights in Logar
   2. Read his New Yorker story
6. [01:35] The renovation project on the West Sacramento Public Library
7. [02:35] Listen to Part 1 here
8. [02:50] A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
   1. And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini 
9. [03:10] Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini 
10. [03:15] “Mirrored Seduction” by Walt Adams
11. [04:40] SparkNotes for The Kite Runner 
12. [05:05] The Kite Runner movie trailer
13. [07:50] “Attan-Khatme Zanzeri”
    1. s/o to the original “afghan-music.com” 
14. [09:50]  Books here:
    1. Afghanistan: A Short History of Its People and Politics by Martin Ewans
    2. The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Lemmon
    3. Killing the Cranes: A Reporter's Journey through Three Decades of War in Afghanistan by Edward Girardet
    4. Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia by Ahmed Rashid
    5. Zinky Boys: Soviet Voices from the Afghanistan War by Svetlana Alexievichy
    6. Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan by Steve Cole
    7. Horse Soldiers: The Extraordinary Story of a Band of US Soldiers Who Rode to Victory in Afghanistan by Doug Stanton
15. [11:55] “Walk Like an Egyptian” cover by The Cleverlys
16. [12:20] Light reading on Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt
    1. Related reading here
17. [12:35] French Suite No. 2 in C Minor
18. [13:20] Light reading on the late Edward Said
19. [13:30] A recent review of Orientalism by Edward Said
20. [13:45] “Choose Your Outfit” by Colors of Illusion
21. [14:10] Edward Said with the Media Education Foundation in 1998
22. [15:20] More on Farhad Azad and afghanmagazine.com
23. [16:10] “Over the Dunes” by Jon Sumner
24. [16:55] Light reading on Nader Shah
25. [17:10] Light reading on the Pashtuns
    1. More on Pashtunwali
    2. Light reading on Ahmad Shah Durrani
26. [20:05] “Portobello Road” by David Celeste
27. [20:30] More on Dr. Nivi Manchanda (@ManchandaNivi)
    1. Her blog on the disorder of things
    2. Her book, Imagining Afghanistan: the History and Politics of Imperial Knowledge 
    3. A Q&A on her book
28. [21:00] Light reading on the British East India Company
29. [21:10] Light reading on the geopolitical context of the 1800s
30. [21:50] An Account of the Kingdom of Caubul, and its Dependencies in Persia, Tartary, and India
31. [22:30] Some of Dr. Manchanda’s other writings
    1. “The Imperial Sociology of the ‘Tribe’ in Afghanistan”
    2. “Queering the Pashtun: Afghansexuality in the homo-nationalist imaginary”
32. [23:45] “Fairy’s Fear” by Deskant 
33. [26:30] “Leavy Quickly” by Alan Carlson-Green
34. [26:35] Light reading on the US-Afghan war
35. [26:50] Light reading on the Great Game
36. [27:00] “Oh Motherland” by Sight of Wonders 
37. [27:25] “Devil’s Disgrace” by Deskant
38. [27:35] Light reading on the British Intelligence officer who coined the term “The Great Game”   
    1. Related: A 1901 review of Rudyard Kipling’s Kim
39. [29:05] See 'Remnants of An Army’
    1. Read some backstory of the painting here
40. [29:30] Light reading on William Brydon
41. [29:45] Technically, it was the winter of 1841-42, but more reading on that retreat here.
42. [31:20] Light reading of that first occupation in 1842
43. [31:25] ”Alive Without Breathing” by Deskant
44. [32:30] Light reading on Dost Muhammad Khan’s reflections on the British empire
    1. More on First Anglo Afghan War (1839-42)
45. [32:50] Light reading on Sher Ali Khan 
    1. More on the Second Anglo Afghan War (1878-80)
46. [33:50] Light reading on Abdur-Rahman Khan (aka The Iron Emir)
    1. Light reading on the state of the Hazara population
    2. Light reading on the Hazara genocide of the 1890s
    3. More reading on the Hazara genocide
    4. More reading on the Hazaras
    5. His rationale of his brutal reign
47. [33:55] “Pepper Seeds” by Rune Dale
48. [35:40] News of Afghanistan’s latest railroad here and here
49. [36:05] Light reading on the assassination of Habibullah Khan
50. [37:20] “Crusade” by Max Anson
51. [37:50] Light reading on the Third Anglo Afghan War (1919)
    1. Light reading on Ammanullah Khan
    2. Light reading on the bombings of Kabul
    3. Light reading on Afghan Independence Day
    4. Related: Independence movements in Egypt, Ireland and Malta
    5. Light reading on the Durand Line
52. [39:35] More on Wazhmah Osman
    1. And her book: Television and the Afghan Culture Wars
    2. And her film: Postcards from Tora Bora
53. [41:40] Light reading on Khushal Khan Khattak
54. [44:00] “Nothing in This World” by Telmo Telmo

"You've got boys flying kites again..." —George W. Bush

About:

Oh, the privilege. 

And what a privilege it is to publish a story about the broader theme of culture and identity, specifically for Afghanistan’s diaspora living in the States, like those on that third-culture-wave, when Afghans from the home country are left dealing with far harsher realities.

The diaspora’s dilemma pales in comparison (if you’re that foolish to try and compare the two) to their dilemma. No less, it is still a dilemma.

With that in mind, Part I of this multi-part story dives into that nebulous question...what does it really mean to be Afghan? Really, what does it mean to be from anywhere?

This is a tricky one.

Show Notes

1. [00:45] “The Layers of Heaven” by Jovica
2. [02:15] “I Know A Way Through” by Phillip Ayers
3. [03:30] “Afghan National Anthem”
4. [06:05] 2010 Census data on the number of Afghans in America 
   1. Related: Some of the other largest ethnic groups in America
   2. Related: Light reading on Dearborn, Mich.
   3. Related: Light reading on Egyptians in Jersey City (h/t @Saressaa)
   4. Related: Light reading on Iranians in Glendale / Tehrangeles
5. [07:10] More on the Kalacha
   1. On the real estate
   2. The surrounding area
   3. And some other stats
6. [07:50] “Don’t Say No” by Mike Franklin
7. [08:40] Light reading on Flushing
8. [08:50] Light reading on the local soccer club scene
9. [12:05] “Burnin’ Things” by Mike Franklin
10. [14:35] Light reading on Rumi
    1. Related:“I am not of India, nor of China, nor of Bulgaria, nor of Saqsín; / I am not of the kingdom of Irãqain, nor of the country of Khorãsãn.”
    2. And the debate over where Rumi is from 
11. [16:55] More reading on consumerism and American culture
    1. Here
    2. Here
    3. Here
    4. Here
    5. Here
12. [19:05] More on Jamil Jan Kochai (@jamiljankochai)
    1. Read his book, 99 Nights in Logar
    2. 2020 Pen Award finalist for debut novel
13. [19:20] Light reading on Logar, Afghanistan
14. [19:45] “Khaista Logar De” 
15. [20:05] Afghanistan by Mohammad Hassan Kakar
16. [21:45] “Antidote X” by Van Sandano
17. [21:45] George W. Bush announcement of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan on Oct 7, 2001
18. [21:50] President George W. Bush’s comments in December 2008
19. [22:25] President Barack Obama’s comments on drone strikes in 2013
20. [23:00] President Donald Trump comments on US Afghan war in 2019
21. [23:45] Rory Stewart’s two-part documentary series: Afghanistan: The Great Game 
22. [24:30] John Rambo’s history lesson of Afghanistan in Rambo III
    1. Related: this was propaganda
    2. Related: the Rambo musical score
23. [28:30] “Desert Hideout” by Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen
24. [31:00] “Wandering Soul” by Gabriel Lewis
25. [31:10] Light reading on the rise of the median home price vs the median household income
26. [31:20] Light reading on the increase of the cost of education
27. [31:30] Light reading on the rising cost of healthcare over the past few decades
28. [32:19]  “Playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain” by Jamil Jan Kochai
29. [32:25] Light reading on Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
    1. “Afghanistan is a big place”
30. [33:10] “The Early Eagle” by Jon Sumner
31. [35:25] Shout out to the prologue
32. [38:10] Light reading on Dari vs Farsi
33. [38:15] Light reading on the attan
34. [39:45] “Nysnö” by Sandra Marteleur
35. [40:00] Light reading on the history of slavery in the U.S.
    1. Related: Seeing White 
36. [41:15] Light reading on 
    1. Modern-day redlining
    2. The state of U.S. law enforcement
    3. The socioeconomic wealth gap
37. [43:25] “Mountain Solitude” by Moorland Songs
38. [44:00] The second-coming of the Bamiyan Buddhas 
39. [44:15] “Good words, good thoughts and good deeds.”
40. [45:10] John Gardner’s The Art of Fiction

This is a prologue to a multi-part series about the Afghan diaspora in America reclaiming their past and trying to grow from the present. It’s a story about culture, identity and authenticity.

Show Notes:

1. [00:30] “The Layers of Heaven” by Jovica
2. [00:55] Hit rewind. (freesound.org / cognitu perceptu)
3. [01:00] “Our Son the Potter” by The Blue Dot Sessions
4. [01:10] When LeBron James threw up his arms at J.R. Smith
5. [01:20] The hit song of Summer 2017
6. [01:30] Why the Game of Thrones finale was awful
   1. The teaser to Season 7 for old times sakes
7. [01:45] Brigette Gabriel’s call to “protest”
   1. More on Brigette Gabriel
8. [02:10] The Southern Poverty Law Center’s take on ACT for America
9. [02:15] Saturday, June 10, 2017, “anti-sharia protests” take place across the country
10. [03:15] Dispatch from an “anti-sharia protest” in Santa Clara, Calif. (h/t @SarRavani)
11. [06:25] More on the 2017 Portland train incident
    1. Related: The Story of a Hate Crime
12. [06:40] The surge of hate crimes that followed shortly after the 2016 election
    1. See here, here, here and here
13. [09:00] Light reading on no-go-zones.
14. [09:10] Light reading on Dearborn, Mich.
15. [09:40] “Cupcake Marshall” by The Blue Dot Sessions 
16. [12:15] Light reading on “white genocide”
17. [14:40] “Verdigris” by The Blue Dot Sessions
18. [16:20] This is a throwback to the original prologue of this podcast. It’s meta.
19. [16:50] Light reading on that third culture wave.
20. [17:20] Spoiler alert: no.
21. [17:30] Afghan National Anthem performed on TOLO TV