How bad could it be to arm and train people in the Middle East to help fight our current enemies?

[mrdmk]

9. There is a link from that time to the present, need to examine a point.

From the responded too post:

"William Hartung argues that the early foundations of al-Qaida were built in part on relationships and weaponry that came from the billions of dollars in U.S. support for the Afghan mujahadin during the war to expel Soviet forces from that country."

From my reading and understanding of the matter with Afghanistan, need to disagree. The idea was to keep the Russians in Afghanistan bleeding the economy and their armed forces of resources. Afghanistan has a written history of wars that cannot be won starting at the time of the silk road. Many of armies got sucked into an endless war.