With the rest of the world, I watched with trepidation as Kabul fell to the Taliban against no resistance, then watched with great sadness as thousands of Afghan citizens stormed the airport in a desperate attempt to flee their country. For most of us of a certain age this recalled the images of the last helicopters leaving Saigon from the roof of the US Embassy, leaving behind our Vietnamese collaborators clamoring on the roof.

The war in Afghanistan is already being portrayed as another failed example of US foreign policy and pointless military engagement. This assessment overlooks one important fact.

I believe the greatest legacy our sacrifices in Afghanistan will leave is a generation of educated young women. Sociological studies, conducted over the past two decades, have demonstrated conclusively that educating young women, even just to the fifth grade level, improves every metric of personal and public health. In fact, it is the single most powerful intervention ever measured in effecting overall improvements in standard of living in a country.

We and the international community must work together, with or without the Taliban, to nurture this seed that has been planted and watered with American blood. I know it will be transformative.

Phillip Frederick
Cumberland Center

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