David Reidy: How the U.S. Got Played - huffingtonpost

The AP is reporting that Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban's second-in-command who was captured by the ISI with U.S. support several weeks ago, was deep in secret negotiations with the Afghan government.

I don't see why the U.S. would sacrifice negotiations in return for the capture of Baradar. I don't think his value as an intelligence source is that significant and I believe the U.S. is more savvy about the long-term prospects for peace in the region. Instead, I think Occam's razor should apply here. The U.S. was not a party to a shady backroom deal; it was the chump on the corner unaware that a deal was happening. The U.S. simply got played, once again, by the ISI.

The big winner here is Pakistan -- they protected their strategic allies, thumbed their noses at Karzai, and even managed to win brownie points from the clueless Americans for bringing in a highly valued target. And the losers? Karzai, the U.S., and most importantly, the Afghani people. David Reidy: How the U.S. Got Played

AT WAR: Colbert Mocks Media Over Afghanistan Coverage (VIDEO)‎