The Hell of Bad Assumptions: Lessons from Afghanistan

None Of The Above

In the aftermath of 9/11, America’s political leaders lept to action based on, what turned out to be, a series of misplaced and untested assumptions. From conflations between the Taliban and Al Qaeda to misguided theories about nation building, these assumptions drove two decades of policy failure in Afghanistan. Critical missteps came with a human cost for both American soldiers and Afghan civilians.

In this episode of None Of The Above, IGA’s Mark Hannah sits down with Michael Cohen and Monica Duffy Toft of the Afghanistan Assumptions Project to analyze the key beliefs and decisions that shaped America’s longest war.