Hurtling down Afghanistan's road to perdition
By Matthew Green
Financial Times, 25 September, 2011
"This entirely civilized and not unreasonable assumption proved ill-founded when the Idirans - thinking to make it very clear to all concerned who were the fanatical, invincible ultra-warriors in the matter and who represented the hopelessly decadent, simpering, irredeemably civilian bunch of martial no-hopers merely playing at war - attempted to traumatize the Culture straight back out of their newly begun war by attacking and attempting to destroy every Orbital its war-fleets could reach."
Iain M. Banks
Surface Detail
